Dream mate

Chapter 2 - The Hidden Flower pack

“Morning, Hana!”

A heavy weight thudded into Hana's back, making her lurch forward as a cold shiver sliced down her spine. Every nerve ending in her body prickled awake and she managed to catch herself on the wall running alongside her. She winced as the brick bit into her shaking palms but closed them into tight fists to hide their tremble. Arms encircled her shoulders and began to close tighter around her neck, but a familiar laugh cut through the rising panic that had Hana’s heart thundering against her rib cage. She forced herself to relax and tapped a hand against the intruding arms, needing them to soften. She managed a raspy giggle as she did, willing her clenched jaw to relax. After a moment, her koala of a best friend released her playful grip and jumped back to the floor, allowing a small sigh of relief to calm through Hana.

“You know, there are nicer ways to say good morning.” She poked Marci in the side as her friend kept laughing at the disgruntled pout she wore.

“Nicer, maybe, but they won’t be as fun.”

Marci spun away from the next jabbing finger that Hana aimed for her, deepening Hana’s scowl, though her gaze was rooted with flickers of affection. Since she had been taken in by the Hidden Flower pack, Marci had been by her side. She understood, more than the others, what Hana had survived after seeing a glimmer of her fate within Simon’s grips. Sam had rescued them only a couple of days after Marci was captured. She was one of the lucky ones. She hadn’t broken yet. By the tales Marci told, and the unburdened skin she wore, Hana knew they hadn’t hurt her friend. They had locked her away and threatened her about the never-ending nightmare to come, but she had been freed to soon to experience it. Hana was glad she had been ok, but sometimes it didn’t feel fair knowing her friend was whole, yet she had so many pieces to still put back together.

“You shouldn’t be throwing yourself around like a little kid anymore, Marci. Especially not at me.” Hana chastised.

Though her friend was already eighteen, so technically older than her, Hana felt like she acted a lot younger. Maybe it was the difference of their life experiences but sometimes she felt a lot older than seventeen. She was on the cusp of eighteen which was an age of adulthood in a wolf. It is when you finally become your whole self, but Hana felt like she had been grown for years already. She felt weighted by the burden of her memories and couldn't imagine being as innocent as her friend.

“I can, and I will.” Hana had to hold in a smile as Marci stuck her tongue out and kept twirling away. She wished she had the same carefree nature. “And you can’t tell me not to, you’re not my Luna!” Her friend then came to a sudden stop and Hana flushed, already knowing what was coming next. “Not yet at least.”

If the words weren’t enough, the eyebrow wiggles painted her cheeks scarlet. She opened her mouth to retort but only a small squeak came out as her throat thickened around the words. She clapped her hands over her mouth, eye widening as victory danced across Marci’s face. Her relationship with Sam wasn’t a secret, far from it, but each time someone mentioned it Hana felt reduced to a teenage girl with a crush. Unable to push past her embarrassment, she spun back in the direction she was headed and stomped off, hoping Marci wouldn’t follow. She wasn’t that lucky.

With a head start, Hana made it into the heart of the pack before Marci caught up. The packhouse, where she stayed with Sam, sat on the border and acted as the frontal defence for anyone who wanted to come in and out of their land. It made Sam aware of everyone on his territory without needing to patrol their borders. There was no reason to have warriors in the Hidden Flower pack because it was so small. Tiny really. It had been formed by a handful of families who had broken free from a larger pack that had a bully for a Beta wolf and an Alpha who didn’t care. Sam’s father had been the one to lead them away from the danger and he was quickly proclaimed as their new Alpha and entrusted with their protection. He found them a small clearing amongst a dense wood, well away from humans and other packs, and they had been living there peacefully ever since.

When Marci was taken, Sam’s dad had been killed by the infiltrators and Sam had to put his grief aside to step into the role and save her. Hana was amazed that he had only recently become an Alpha. Not only had he managed to infiltrate Simon’s base to save her and Marci, but the pack had been running without a hitch ever since. In the six months Hana had been living there, Sam had been running the pack as if he always had been. It was clear by the cooperation of his wolves and their respect for him that they loved Sam as much as they did his father.

The light breeze, that fluttered about that day, danced across her skin, brushing away the last of the uncomfortable prickles from Marci’s sneak attack. Her sudden appearance and tightening grip had thrown Hana back to darker times but, after many months of practise, she was slowly getting better at refocusing on the present and reminding herself that she was safe. It was a testament to her freedom that she was out walking with the open sky above her and could be whenever she wanted. It was no longer a delicacy to reward her for obedience, nor a permission that needed to be granted. It was her choice and would never again be taken from her. With a deep breath of fresh air, a smile pulled at her lips and she decided to focus on her jobs for the day. After all, there were a lot of preparations to help with.

The Hidden Flower pack was a very different to her original home. With less than fifty wolves, it was the smallest pack Hana had even seen, but she found herself preferring the close-knit wolves that completed it. Everyone here knew each other and had done since they were children. That bond flourished in everything they did, and they all chipped in to help with tasks. With their small size, only Sam held a title and had a dedicated role to keep the cogs turning in the pack. Everyone else just did what needed to be done and contributed to all the day-to-day aspects of their life. It was like they were all one big family and Hana was gratefully that they had accepted her among them so easily and was happy to call this place home.

Today was slightly different to the usual relaxed state of the pack. Wolves were bustling about, busying themselves with preparations for tomorrow. A buzz of excitement fizzed in the air, carried by the breeze, along with the whispers of her birthday celebrations. They were often accompanied by musing of her relationship, but Hana pretended she didn’t hear those. Balloons decorated every house in their little settlement with fairy light dancing around the border. She grinned as she imagined the magical glow they would cast over the woods as the sun set on her birthday and the bright full moon would rise to greet her wolf for the first time. Hana was excited for that moment more than anything; she was finally ready to receive her gift from the Moon Goddess. She didn’t feel any apprehension about the pain of her first shift, she had felt pain before, but this was for a good reason. Her wolf would be a part of her, give her strength and company that no other person could ever give her. Being able to find her mate was another consideration, but a small part of her whispered she knew she had already found him.

“Hana! Come on! I was only joking.” Marci finally caught up with her, and she realised she had been almost running in her efforts to get on with her preparations, excitement fuelling her movements.

“I know.” She sighed and looped her arm around her friend’s elbow. “But everyone keeps talking about it and it’s making me worry.”

“Why would you worry? Don’t you want to be Sam’s mate?”

“Of course, I do...” Hana trailed off, trying to find the right words. “But being mates isn’t guaranteed. What if I wake up tomorrow and we aren’t? Everyone will be disappointed, and I’ll...”

“You think you'll be kicked out of the pack. Do you really think we’ll not care about you anymore?” Marci finished when Hana couldn’t. The fear of losing everything she had gained in the last six months felt very real and she wasn’t sure she could lose another pack; another family. Marci stopped them and planted her hands on Hana’s cheeks, forcing her to pull her eyes from the floor. The determined stare of her friend shocked her enough to not care about her face being squished. “Are you silly! We love you, Hana, and you are one of us. Whether you are Sam’s fated mate or chosen mate, you will always be our Luna. No matter what.”

“wuh ifus hes doosunt wuntn mees?” Hana squished mouth garbled until Marci relaxed her hold slightly. “What if he doesn’t want me if we’re not mates?”

“That man is crazy about you, Hana. You’ve got nothing to worry about. Whatever happens, by the end of tomorrow, you'll be our Luna. I promise it will work this time."

“This time?” Hana frowned.

“Well... Erm... Yes... You’re getting the life you deserve this time. It’s your time. All the bad stuff is behind you.” Marci stumbled."

Hana smiled but didn’t feel any comfort in the words. No matter how often she heard her friend say them or repeated them to herself, they just didn’t sit right with her. It was like something was out of place and wrong with them. She could never put her finger on it, and never felt the doubt in Sam’s presence, but it didn’t stop the feeling lingering in the back of her mind. Marci seemed to accept the smile that Hana was now fine and happily continued their walk, pulling Hana along behind her.

“So, where are we headed first? Do you have your dress yet?” Before she could answer, Marci stopped and suddenly ran her fingers through her hair. “How are you doing your hair? I know Sam loves it, so you should make it look really pretty for tomorrow.” A flash of envy crossed her friend’s eyes, her lips pursing in annoyance at the brown bob that hung lifelessly against her cheeks. “Your hair is so long, there’s so much I could do with it.”

“Well, no I haven’t picked anything yet.” Hana swotted away her hand, but it was quickly back in her hair, pulling it this way and that into various styles. When she saw the sharp look in Marci’s gaze had softened into something more playful, she resigned herself to let her friend continue messing around with her hair, knowing she couldn’t do much to stop her anyway. “You can do whatever you want with it, but I was going to see if anyone needed any help getting the preparations sorted first.”

“Pfft, don’t worry about that stuff. You’re the birthday girl, you shouldn’t be organising your own party.”

“Everyone else helped with there’s.” Hana pointed out with a raised eyebrow.

“But you’re turning eighteen. A wolf only turns eighteen once, and we’re going to make it so special that you’ll never forget it.”