Alpha's Bullied Fox

Breakfast

          Nathaniel

         Through the forest, the white fox and I ran happily. We played among the trees and waded through the streams. Butterflies and dragonflies darted around us as she seemed to laugh at my antics. Her white fur seemed to glow even in the sunlight as she was easy to spot. My wolf would yip with happiness when he caught up to his sly little fox. She would lick his maw and send him into a frenzy before darting away, daring him to follow. The warmth of the dream started to fade as my fox got further and further away until she disappeared completely. My wolf let out a mournful howl for his lost mate.

           I open my eyes to find that I am in bed alone. Yesterday had been the best as I had found my long-awaited mate. It had broken my heart to learn she had been abused, but she was strong. I sensed her indefinable strength, and I would build her up more. I wanted her to be the best she could be. 

           Last night like a dream, she came to sleep in my bed with me. I have never woken up so rested as I reach over to her spot. It's a little warm, so she hasn't been gone long. I get out of bed and sniff the air. Her scent lingers, and I hope she hasn't run away. I pull on a t-shirt and shorts and walk out of my room. The smell of cooking bacon carries me down the hall, and I spy Darcy in the suite kitchen cooking. I slink into the kitchen and grab her from behind while she is at the stove. She jumps with a gasp. "Shh, it's only me," I whisper as I rest my chin on the top of her head. "Are you cooking breakfast?"

           "I uh woke up early like always and got up to make breakfast because that's what I do," She mumbles. "I’m sorry.”

           “No, it’s alright. We make breakfast together as a family all of the time. We don’t always rely on the omegas. Not that we can’t rely on our omegas. They are great,” I explain to her.  I look down to see she has bacon and pancakes going. The pancakes smell heavenly.

           “Whoa, Darcy makes breakfast?” I hear my younger brother Justin from behind us. I turn as he sits on a stool at the counter. He only has shorts on, and his brown hair is disheveled.

           “I made coffee too,” Darcy says as she wiggles out of my hold and goes over to the coffee pot. “Would you like some?”

           “Sure, with cream and sugar,” Justin replies.

           “You can get your own coffee, Justin,” I tell my brother. “Darcy, honey, you don't have to serve us.”

           She frowns and looks at the ground while twirling her hair. “I’m sorry. I messed up.” I hear her sniffle, and my heart breaks.

           “Good job, Nate. You made you mate cry,” Justin snorts.

           “Dude shut the fu-“ I pause. “Just shut up.”

           “Who’s making pancakes?” Carrie says as she and Molly walk into the kitchen. My twin sisters are glued at the hip and rarely do things separately. 

           “Darcy is, but Nate made her cry,” Justin states.

           “I did not,” I protest. I look at Darcy. “Sweetie, I’m sorry. You can make us breakfast if it makes you happy,” I say to my mate.

           Darcy smiles softly at me and gets back to the stove. She whistles happily as she flips the pancakes and turns to my siblings. “How does everyone like their eggs?” she asks.

           “Scrambled,” My sisters both reply.

           “I’ll take scrambled too,” Justin replies while getting his coffee.

           “Do you need help?” Molly asks. “We usually help our Mom.”

           I can’t help but smile. Darcy looks at my sister for a moment. “I-I guess, Carrie.” She replies.

           “I’m Molly,” My sister corrects my mate. “That’s Carrie,” Molly points to Carrie. “She is a quarter-inch taller than me.”

           Darcy’s eyes dart between my sisters. “Okay, you guys can help.”

           My sisters squeal happily, and I watch as they help Darcy make breakfast, and before long, they are all giggling like old friends.

           “Good morning, my children,” Dad says as he and Mom walk into the kitchen dressed in their pajamas. “I had to come out and see what the commotion was.”

           “Darcy is making breakfast,” Molly says. “So we are helping her.”

           Mom steps towards my mate. “You don’t have to make us breakfast-“ She is cut off as Darcy walks by with a plate of chocolate chip pancakes. “Holy hell, those smell good.”

           My sisters had helped her set the table, and the other food was already on the table. “I hope you all like it,” Darcy says shyly while looking at the floor. 

           We all sit at the table and start to dig in. Darcy walks towards the stove. “Darcy, aren’t you going to eat?” Mom asks her.

           “I have to clean the kitchen,” Darcy replies robotically.

           “Sweetie, that can wait. Come eat.” Mom encourages her. 

           I see the hesitation in my mate. She finally relents and walks slowly to the table. She goes to sit between Dad and me, but she bumps the table, causing some coffee to splash onto Dad’s pajama top. Darcy steps back and starts crying.

           “I-I-I’m sorry,” She drops to her knees. “Please don’t whip me.” Darcy pleads while sobbing. 

           I am on my feet and kneeling beside her. “Darcy, no one is going to beat you,” I say to my hysterical mate. Neo is whining in my head. He hates seeing his mate in so much distress.

           Darcy is rocking herself with her eyes closed. “I-I won’t do it again.” She cries, and I pull her into my arms. 

           “Shhh, it’s okay. My Dad isn’t mad,” I tell her.

           Dad kneels beside us and reaches to touch Darcy’s shoulder. “Darcy, I am not mad. It’s just coffee,” He says to her.

           Darcy stops sobbing and looks at my father. She sniffles. “I won’t eat breakfast. I was bad.”

           “No, sweetie,” Dad pleads with her. “Come on. Eat breakfast with us. It tastes so good.”

           Darcy sniffles and snuggles into my chest. “I’m sorry.”

           I rise to my feet with her in my arms and help her sit at the table. Dad starts to place some pancakes and bacon on her plate. “Do you want eggs too?” He asks. 

           “You are the alpha?” She says to him.

           “Yes, I am also a father,” Dad smiles at her.

           Darcy takes a deep breath. “I-I’ll take eggs,” She says quietly. She starts to eat voraciously.

           “Sweetie, when was the last time you ate?” Mom chimes in.

           “Yesterday, I ate with the omegas. That was the first time in three days. Well, Buddy gave me a muffin, but I wasn’t allowed to eat.”

           My siblings all looked at her with horror. 

           My parents exchanged looks. “Did they deny you food often?” Dad asks her. 

           Darcy nods. “I am bad, so I get punished.”

           “Whipped?” Dad asks, Darcy stops eating, and I see tears forming in her eyes.

           “Dad,” I say to him.

           He sighs and nods. “It’s okay, Darcy. You will never be whipped or denied food here, ever.” Dad says with a serious tone causing Darcy to flinch. He sighs.

           “They didn’t let you eat?” Molly interjects. “Where did you come from?”

           “S-s-tar Valley,” Darcy replies quietly. “I was the trash that my parents left behind.  My Aunt Jean says my parents were drug addicts, and I was a runt. That’s why they abandoned me. That’s why they hated me,” She adds sadly.

           My family is just staring at her with shock. “We don’t hate you,” Carrie says. “We like you.”

           Darcy sniffles and smiles at my sister. “Thank you, Mol- or Carrie. Sorry I get you two mixed up.”

           “Don’t worry about it. Our Dad gets us mixed up,” Molly laughs.

           “I do not,” Dad protests.

           “James, you mixed them up the other day,” Mom adds.

           Dad sighs. “Just that one time. You let them dress identically and did their hair identical.”

           “Didn’t you mix them up after you brought them home from the hospital?” Justin chimes in. “I remember Mom telling us about it.”

           “I do not mix up my daughters,” Dad argues. 

           Darcy laughs while eating some bacon. “You guys are funny.”

           It warms my heart to hear her laugh. “You should see us on game night,” I tell her. “We are a riot, especially when the cousins join.”

           Darcy smiles as she finishes her food and stands up with her plate. She collects dirty dishes from the table and walks towards the kitchen. 

           My sisters get up with their plates and grab Justin’s plate. “We are going to help, Darcy,” They say together. 

           I finish my food and take my dishes into the kitchen, where Molly and Carrie are giggling with Darcy again. I set my plate down and lean down to kiss Darcy. My mate melts into me.

           “Eww,” Molly exclaims. “We just ate.”

           I roll my eyes at her. “Grow up, Molly.” My sister sticks her tongue out at me, and I release Darcy. “I am going to go get dressed now.” I kissed her cheek and walked out of the kitchen. My brother followed me down the hall.

           “How messed up is your mate?” He asks.

           I turn to him with a growl. “She isn’t messed up, Justin.”

           “Well, she freaked out when she spilled coffee on Dad. I am just asking because she seems nervous too,” He says as we walk into my room.

           “She has been through hell, Justin. Okay, that’s all you need to know,” I tell him.

           He sighs. “I’m just concerned. She seems nice but is she strong enough to be Luna,” He states, and I nearly punch him.

           “She is stronger than you know, Justin. Drop it okay before I kick your ass,” I snarl at him.

           Justin rolls his eyes. “Whatever,” He throws up his hand and leaves my room.

           “Ass,” I mutter, walking into the bathroom.  After my shower, I got dressed in some jeans and a t-shirt. I walked out of my room and towards the living room. Darcy walks out of her room wearing some old jeans and a t-shirt so worn it's see-through. I sigh. “You look beautiful,” I say to her, and she smiles. I pull her into my arms and kiss her on the lips. Neo is in my head urging me to mate and mark her.  ‘Down boy,’ I bark at him.

           ‘I am not a dog,’ He mutters.

           ‘Well, then stop acting so horny,’ I argue with him. Darcy laughs. 

           “Are you arguing with your wolf?” She asks, and I nod.

           “He is being a naughty, boy,” I whisper in her ear. 

           She giggles. “So is Kaya.”

           “I want to see her,” I tell Darcy.

           “She wants to see Neo,” Darcy replies.

           “Are you ready to go, Darcy?” Mom interrupts us.

           Darcy nods. “Yeah, Mom.”

           “Mom?” I lift an eyebrow at my mother.

           “I told her to call me Mom if she wanted,” My Mom replies. 

           “Oh,” I smile at Darcy. “Where are you guys going?”

           “Shopping,” Darcy replies. “Just for a few things. I don’t want to be a burden.”

           “Darcy, you are not a burden,” Mom argues.

           “What am I supposed to do all day?” I whine.

           “Go help your father,” Mom replies. “He is trying mop up the mess with Star Valley.”

           I sigh. “Oh right. We aren’t going to wind up at war with them, are we?” I watch Darcy look at the ground.

           “This is my fault,” She mumbles.

           I wrap my arm around her shoulder. “No, it’s not. They brought it upon themselves.” I tell her. 

           “Alpha Mason would be dumb to start a war with us knowing that Hell’s Canyon is our ally,” Mom states. She looks at Darcy. “Come on, sweetie. Don’t worry about war stuff. Let’s focus on shopping.” She holds her hand out.

           “Okay,” Darcy says quietly. 

           I lean down and kiss her. “I’ll see you later, okay? Maybe we can have a picnic,” I say to her.

           “I would like that,” Darcy smiles at me. “Buddy and I used to have picnics sometimes until-“ She trails off and shakes her head. “Nevermind.” She clasps my Mom’s hand and is led away.

           I sigh as I watch them leave. I go to the kitchen, grab a can of Pepsi, and sit on the couch where Justin is watching TV. “Hey, aren’t you going to go visit Zach’s new kid?” Justin asks.

           “I should. s**t, I nearly forgot that my best friend just had a baby,” I state. 

           “Man, that chick has you wrapped around her finger,” Justin says while shoving chips into his mouth.

           “That chick is the future Luna of this pack,” I punch his arm and stand up. ‘Dad, do you need me in the office?’ I mind link, my father.

           ‘I don’t need you right now. But I could use your help later.’ He replies.

           ‘I wanted to visit Zach’s, new baby.’ I tell my Dad.

           ‘Okay, son. Then come here after that.’ He says to me.

           ‘Are we on the brink of war?’ I ask my father hating the response.

           ‘No, son. Everything is alright, for now.’ He replies.

           I shake my head and walk out of our apartment and down the stairs. I head to the pack hospital to visit Zach and his new family. I can only hope that Star Valley doesn’t start anything between our packs. They acted like they didn’t even want Darcy. But my Dad and Uncle Patrick talked about going to the Council about how they treated Darcy. That may cause problems. Not to mention that Felix Mason still acted like he wanted her despite rejecting her. 

           ‘We have to stay vigilant,’ Neo interjects. ‘Darcy is no mere fox.’

           ‘What do you mean?’ I ask my wolf.

           ‘She has powers that are highly sought after,’ He explains.

           I remember seeing what looked like lightning before Darcy ran out of the room where Felix had been hurting her. My blood boiled at the thought. But I remember Felix smelling like burnt flesh. ‘What sort of powers?’ I asked Neo.

           ‘We shall find out soon,’ He says and retreats.

           ‘Damn wolf,’ I mumble and continue towards the hospital. I would ask Darcy about it later during our picnic.