Mating With An Alpha

Chapter Three

       As Roxy walked into the dark woods, she became increasingly nervous. Everything she thought she knew about her life was a lie. She pondered on how her mother did not tell her of this sooner. It was wrong, even if her mother was trying to do it for the right reasons.

            "Okay, so how do I do this?"

            Rain began speaking clearly to Roxy. "Your first shift will be extremely painful. The more you shift, the less painful it becomes. Are you sure you want to do this?"

            "I need to understand this, and we need to be able to connect to each other better. So, yes, I need to do this."

            Rain gave Roxy exact directions on how to release control to her. "Close your eyes. Focus all your attention on me and my voice. Weld it in your mind that you want to shift your control over to me."

            "Wait...shift control over to you?"

            "Yes, Roxy, that is how this works but do not worry. Even though I will be in control, you will see and hear everything that is going on. When you are ready to shift back, you can do so at any time."

            Roxy nodded her head in understanding. She began to close her eyes and focus on the instructions Rain had given her. Roxy gave complete control of her body and was ready to embrace the shift. It took her a good fifteen minutes to give up total control. Then, she began her first shift. Her clothes started ripping as the sounds of her bones began to snap. Roxy screamed in agony as the pain possessed her body. Now that she had let Rain in, it made it easier for Rain to stay more in control and to keep her from stopping mid-shift. Her pure white fur began penetrating from her skin, her feet now turning to paws, and her claws became elongated. With one final scream, her shift was complete.

            Roxy and Rain were now able to hear each other’s thoughts and were now joined, making their connection to each other stronger.

            "Roxy, from now on, you will be able to hear me at all times. We are one now. How do you feel?"

      "The pain is gone, so there's that."

            Rain took off running while Roxy took everything in. Everything was heightened. She could smell the sweet flowers that roamed in the field nearby, she could hear the sounds of every animal that shared these woods with her now, and she could feel the cold hard ground with every step Rain took. As they came upon a meadow, Rain ran over to a small creek, placing her head down to get a drink. When she raised her head and stared down into the water, Roxy could see the reflection. It took her by surprise. She could not believe how mesmerizing her wolf was. Her eyes were still the same emerald color but were now shining brighter than ever before. And her pure white fur glowed naturally under the moonlight.

            "What do you think for your first shift, Roxy?"

            "This is amazing! I feel so...free. Everything is so breathtaking. I can feel things that I never really appreciated before."

            "Being a wolf means everything will become heightened around you, and you will feel things more deeply than before. There is much more for you to learn about being a wolf, but this is a great start. You took your first shift well, but it is now time to return home. You need your rest. The first shift always takes a lot out on your body. Be prepared to wake up extremely sore tomorrow."

            She stayed in wolf form until reaching the edge of the woods, and her home was in view. Rain gave back control to Roxy, and she transformed back into her human form, which was less painful than shifting to a wolf. She placed her clothes on before running back into her home. Once she was in her room, she dropped straight onto the bed, too worn to do her regular nightly routine. Roxy fell fast asleep, dreaming of running freely in the fields all night long.

            The morning sun peaked into Roxy's room, stirring her almost awake. Then she heard the loud sounds of honking from outside her window.

            "s**t!" Roxy remembered that Brooke was coming to pick her up for a fun-filled day of shopping.

            She jumped right out of bed, running into her bathroom to brush her teeth and comb out her hair. The horn of Brooke's car finally stopped blowing, and she knew this only meant one thing.

            As on cue, Brooke opened Roxy's door with her arms folded tightly in an aggravated kind of way. "I thought I told you to be ready. You aren't even dressed yet!"

            "I know. I am sorry, Brooke, but I overslept."

            "Roxy oversleeping? Since when is that a thing?" 

            "Mom was talking to me more about the move, and we stayed up later than we intended to."

            "Your mom is already gone. So how come she can get up on time, but you cannot? What is going on with you, Roxy?"

            Roxy could not even look at her friend because she knew she would make a mistake by telling her everything if she did. But she knew she could not introduce her to this lifestyle. They never kept secrets, but this would have to be one that stayed hidden from her best friend because she knew the danger she would put her in if she knew.

            Roxy threw on a pair of clean light jeans, converse sneakers, and a plain black shirt. "Ready."

            Brooke began to become suspicious of Roxy's silence. Even though she did not know what was wrong, she could sense something vastly different about her best friend. She just could not put her finger on it.

            They spent hours at the mall. Brooke made it a point to walk into every shop, tormenting Roxy because she knew how much she hated going shopping.

            "Lighten up, will you, Roxy. This is supposed to be a fun girl’s day out. You are killing my great mood."

            "Sorry, my mind is preoccupied with the move."

            "I understand that this is a big change for you, but you will always have me. I will be visiting you so much that you will be ready to kick me out of Georgia."

            After a day filled with shopping, Roxy had enough clothes now to throw out her old wardrobe and start a new one. "Geez, Brooke, are all these clothes really necessary?"

            "Duh! You will be in a new city, filled with new people. First impressions are everything. Plus, you may even meet a guy there."

            "You know the last thing I am worried about is some dude coming into my life, messing up all my plans."

            "Roxy, will it kill you to get laid now and again? It is not like you have to marry the guy or anything. Just screw until you are done, then move on to the next. It is that simple."

            "s*x is not everything, Brooke. One day I will be ready to possibly date, just not right now."

            Shortly after leaving the mall, Brooke dropped Roxy off back at home, reminding her that she would come over in a few days to say her goodbyes.

            Roxy walked into the house, setting all her new clothes down on the sofa before taking a seat herself.

            Her mother still must be out because silence filled the house thoroughly. The last thing she wanted right now was to be left alone. Instead of letting her mind wander about being a wolf, she decided she would head upstairs and began to pack for the move.

**

            Roxy did nothing but pack her things for the last several days, and today was the day for the big move.

            As Esther and Roxy began packing everything into the rented truck for the move, Brooke pulled into the driveway.

            “I am so sorry I almost missed you. There was this thing I had to take care of.”

            “A Joseph thing?”

            “Surprisingly, not this time. I got you a going-away present. It took longer to prepare than I wanted it to, but here you go.” Brooke handed Roxy a small box that had little to no weight to it.

            Roxy began shaking it to try and guess what was inside.

            “Just open it already, Roxy!”

            Roxy giggled. Brooke was extremely bossy, but she would not have her best friend any other way.

            Once she opened the box, she gasped. Brooke was not one for sentimental things, but this gift was nothing, but. The small box held a beautiful necklace inside. The chain was a thin gold, and the attached pendant was a broken heart. On one side of the heart, it read Best, and on the other, it read Friends.

            “We can each wear these, never forgetting our friendship, no matter how far you move away from me.”

            Brooke elbowed Roxy’s side as Roxy began taking out the necklace and clipping it around her neck.

            “This is perfect, Brooke. You are such an amazing friend. Promise me that you will come to visit soon?”

            “I already told Mr. Brunson that I was taking off two weeks in the summer to come to visit you, and the tickets are already booked.”

            Roxy grabbed her friend, pulling her into a tight hug. Tears began to trickle down her face as reality set in that she was really leaving. “I will miss you so much, Brooke.”

            Brooke pulled her back and began wiping the fallen tears from her cheek. “None of that, Roxy! We will see each other in just a few months, no biggie!”

            Esther called from the driver’s side of the rental truck. “It is time, honey. We have got to hit the road to make sure we get there before dark.”

            Brooke pulled Roxy in for one last hug as they said their goodbyes. Roxy jumped in the passenger seat alongside her mom, waving goodbye to her friend as they drove away.