Please Reject Me.

Investigate.

Manny’s POV

Being in Hesperia’s room filled my body with regret. How could I have not seen the signs? How could I not know it was her? I pictured the small blonde child walking into the halls of the Black Lunar pack. She was holding the hand of a tall stocky man with fiery red hair and eyes like oceans.

She wasn’t a Selunite wolf or even a Fenrir. She was a daughter of one of the High Lords of Spring. I was amazed at how they held themselves. Her dad insisted she go to play with the younger wolves and they all loved her immediately. Even the fighters were eager to give her rides on their wolves which was all but demeaning to us but for this child this pack would give anything. I remember being confused and hated how she was naturally loveable. My own family hated me due to being a product of infidelity.

The young Hesperia came up to me and tried to give me a flower crown she had made but I was young and reckless and pushed her down. Her big beautiful blue eyes filled up in tears and I wanted to say sorry but my pride just wouldn’t let me. She stood up dusting off her dress, cleaned her eyes and patted my head, “it’s okay.” It was such a good warmth that I started to cry. The little Spring child held me while I cried my eyes out.

“Hes?” I could hear her father’s worried voice call out.

“Over her papa!” She giggled. “Wanna come to dinner with us, it’s supposed to be massive!”

I didn’t even get a chance to decline when she dragged me out and announced that I was going to come with her to dinner and was not allowing anyone to tell her no.

I sat on the bed, the smell of her blood still permeated the air. I looked around trying to see if there could be any clue of where she might be. High and low until I found a loose base board I pulled it open and found a small pressed daisy. I gave it to her on the day she left back to her court.

“She kept it?” My wolf Izny whimpered.

“We must find her,” I sighed and tucked the daisy into my jacket pocket.

“We must leave this pack, if Joshua gets his hands on her I do not think he will let her go as easily this time. The one thing on our side is that for some reason no one from this pack knows who or what she is,” Izny concurred.

“I also question how she is even in our realm, she is born of a High Lord shouldn’t she be in Avangala?” I questioned looking into the hidden spot finding a locket and note that had faded so much most words were unreadable.

I opened the locket and found a picture of her father River. I also tucked that away and fixed the floorboard wanting to make sure it stayed in place.

“We need to find out how she came to reside here,” Izyn raised. “We need to start using the beta office again. Let Joshua deal with Alpha duties for a while so we can figure this out.”

As I left the room I saw a few omegas coming to clean her room out and rolled my eyes. He was going to drive this pack into the ground, and I was going to let him. Walking to my office I found calls from the twin princes and growled. They knew abuse had been going on in the packs for a while not just with Hes but for plenty of others and yet only when it pertained to them did they want to step in. At least something was finally getting done though, so I had to give them that.

“Hello,” I answered the phone.

“There you,” Azrael huffed. “Gods your pack is hard to get a hold of.”

“Well, it’s a bit busy. What can I do for you, your highness?”

“My family is planning to stop by for a week to aid in the search for Hesperia, please prepare for our stay we will be arriving tomorrow at noon,” he demanded and then hung up before waiting for my answer.

I took a deep breath before calling a few omegas in to prep guest rooms for them.

“Do you think the twins will take care of her?” Izyn asked itching at the back of my head to get out and run.

“I think Hes needs to go back to Avangala with her family, she can decide who she wants to be with or if she wants to be with anyone at all. I just want what’s best for her,” I replied and stood up. “Let’s go for a run, maybe we’ll run into some rogues and blow off steam.”

The Earth under my paws was welcomed, I hadn’t shifted in so long that I was aching. The smells that permeated the air of deer and a few werebears running around. I chuckled as two bunnies chased each other around.

And then the rotten smell of rogues piqued my interest and I followed the scent. There were three, their fur was patchy and the stink of decay was obvious. They ravaged a doe pulling her apart. I was surprised to see them hunting in a pack but it wasn’t anything I was too concerned about.

“Hey are you just going to watch us pretty boy,” one of them gruffed. He was the largest one with a black and grey coat.

“You are encroaching on the Onyx Lake pack,” I stepped out, I was large for a wolf on par with a Fenrir. I could see the fear in the rogue's eyes as they realized.

Izyn I thought you wanted to fight, not be diplomatic. Manny huffed in the back of my head.

We are still in a position of power. I do not intend on abusing it. I retorted to him.

“We’ll leave,” the bigger one looked defeated.

“Head to the Silver Lake pack, they have a program that takes in rogues you don’t have to join the pact but they’ll feed and shelter you for a bit,” I nodded and they ran off seemingly a little happier.

I could feel someone trying to enter my head and I blocked them not wanting to be conversing for the time. I wanted to run. I flew through the trees pushing myself faster, my legs burning with freedom.

I ended up at the beautiful StarLight lake dipping my tongue into the water and happily drinking the cool water. Again another nudge of someone trying to get into my head it wasn’t like someone trying to mindlink with me either it was so outside force. I shook my head trying to get rid of the feeling and walked along the lake.

“Leave me alone!” I heard a woman screaming at the other end of the lake in a different territory.

I ran over to commotion finding a Naiad being toyed with by a couple of guards wolves. I growled and they whimpered bowing after seeing me. The Naiad had been scratched up. I could see bite marks along her thighs.

They held an aggressive stance realizing I wasn’t a part of their pack. I ended up getting the fight I wanted. The wolves lunged at me, one grabbing on to my ankle the other heading for my neck. I swiped at him, flinging him back. I grabbed the one biting on and tossed him across the field. I stood over the Naiad protecting her and they seemed to notice because the next line of attack came for her. One tried to grab at her and I threw myself in the way, my tail ending up in his mouth. I yowled as his teeth pierced my flesh. The other clawed at my face. I bit into his foot, crushing his bones in my mouth. The other realized they were nowhere near strong enough to actually take me.

I growled again and they tucked tail and ran. The Naiad whimpered, backing up the look of fear on her face. I sat now and tried to present myself as innocently as possible. The woman sighed and held out her hand the lake water coming towards her and healing her own wounds.

I sighed and shifted back into my human form.

God damnit. I laid on my back, annoyed at Izyn for getting hurt. The Naiad walked over asking in a soft siren voice, “heal?”

I nodded and let her do her work.

“Are you part of the Spring court?” I asked, wondering if she may have an idea about Hesperia.

“Yes,” she nodded.

“Do you know what happened to River?”

“High Lord River, may he rest in peace,” she whispered sadly before continuing. “The Silver Maiden got him killed.”