The Tribrid Heir's Orphaned Mate

School's a Pain

Warrick's P.O.V.

My eighteenth birthday is in four days. Mom and Dad are planning a huge party, like they do every year, but for some reason, I'm not as excited this year about the party as I have been in the past years. My eighteenth year, the year that I'll finally be able to start looking for my mate. Growing up, I always thought my mate would be my best friend Sylvia, seeing as she's the daughter of Beta Sean, as well as, the daughter of Lillith, who's a witch and the sister of Conrad, my dad's warlock counterpart. Don't worry, Sylvia and I aren't blood related, so it wouldn't be weird for us to be mated to one another. Long story short, Conrad died years ago, but was blessed enough to become my dad's warlock counterpart when my dad transitioned into a tribrid. However, that's a long story and I don't really feel like explaining it further than that, which is why I shortened the story in the first place. Everyone seems to know the story about my parents, anyway, so you probably do too if I had to guess.

Anyway, as I was saying, I always thought that Sylvia would be my mate. She's only a year younger than me and we've always been close, so it would make sense. Wherever I am, Sylvia's not usually far behind, and vice versa. Usually, a person's wolf can't feel the mate-bond until their eighteenth birthday. However, it should be different for Sylvia and I, though, since I'm a tribrid and she's a werewolf-witch hybrid. Since both of us are from such powerful bloodlines and are also born from ranked members, we should be able to feel the mate-bond earlier than our eighteenth birthday. At least a small hint of the bond, anyway, if we're fated to one another. Lately, though, my wolf, Tucker, has been very stand-offish with Sylvia. If I'm being completely honest about it, he's actually been putting up a mind-block the past few days every time I even have a simple conversation with her, just to tune her out. It's been annoying, to say the least, seeing that Sylvia's my best friend. He's being absolutely ridiculous if he thinks I'm just going to start ignoring her. Even if Sylvia doesn't turn out to be my mate, she's still one of the most important people in my life.

Today, though, Tucker has been even more annoying. So annoying, in fact, that I wish he would put up a mind-block, just so I don't have to listen to him. He's been anxious and loud, pacing back and forth impatiently in my mind and letting out whimpering howls every now and then. Between him acting the way he is, the lockers being slammed shut throughout the school hallways, my friends chattering amongst themselves and the lectures from the teachers in class, I've become the victim of a raging migraine. I wish I knew what his problem was, so I could finally get him to chill out. Usually, school isn't too bad, even if my senses are extremely heightened with me being a tribrid, but with him acting the way he is, school is unbearable today.

"You ready for the party this weekend, A.J.?" Sylvia asks in her usually chirpy voice, as she comes to stand beside me at my locker.

I wince at her voice ringing through my ears, before a smirk makes its way onto my lips once I realize what she called me. My middle name. Anthony Jacob, or A.J. for short. Sylvia only tends to call me that nickname when she's up to something. Usually, she calls me that when she's trying to sweet talk me into using me for an alibi or wanting something from me. Sometimes, though, she'll use it if she's trying to hide something from me and trying to surprise me.

I gently close my locker door and turn to look at her, before crossing my arms over my chest and quirking an eyebrow at her, "A.J., huh? What do you want, Sylv?"

Sylvia rolls her eyes at me, before a sickly sweet grin flashes across her face, "I was wondering if your parents would be okay with a few more people coming to the party?"

I grunt at her, before letting out a small sigh, "Who exactly are these people that you want to invite?"

Sylvia presses her finger to her chin, like she's thinking about it, as she looks up at the ceiling, "Um...Katie, Julianne, Brock, Callie, Jeremiah, Chris, Paisley and Ryannn." she tells me, trailing off at the last name as she looks away from me, before biting the inside of her cheek.

I scoff at her, "All of them but the last one, Sylv." I tell her, before turning away from her and walking towards class.

"Come on, A.J.! He's never done anything to you!" she says as she runs up beside me, before grabbing my arm to make me turn around and face her.

I clench my teeth in irritation, before letting out a frustrated sigh, "No, he's never done anything SPECIFICALLY to me. However, he broke your heart six months ago, which means he was on my s**t list the second it happened."

Sylvia rolls her eyes, before poking out her bottom lip, "Come on, A.J. I've forgiven Ryan, so you should too. Plus, we're trying to work things out. We might even end up getting back together."

I furrow my brows at her, before letting out another scoff, "You're forgiving him for cheating on you, AND planning on getting back together with him? You're an i***t sometimes, Sylv, I swear. He's just going to do it again. He's the biggest player in this school."

"Well, Warrick, the rest of these guys in this school weren't blessed to be a tribrid like you, to where they can magically control their wolves' urges! Good for you, for being a saint and all, by deciding to wait on your fated mate! However, that doesn't give you the right to judge everyone else!" Sylvia yells angrily, before crossing her arms over her chest and letting out a huff, like a petulant child.

I squint my eyes at her in disbelief, "I didn't use any magic to control Tucker's urges, Sylvia. He and I both agreed to save ourselves for our fated mate. The rest of these idiots are just using that as an excuse. If I had to guess, their wolves are angry at them for not waiting on their fated mate, as well, rather than cheering them on for bedding multiple she-wolves. Tell me, Sylvia, is Meredith hard to control when it comes to THAT, or does she want you to wait on your fated mate, as well?"

Sylvia looks away from me, before she lets out a defeated sigh, "She wants me to wait."

"And are you?" I ask her further, trying to prove my point.

Sylvia nods her head slowly at me, before looking back at me, "Yes, I am."

"Did you happen tell Ryan that when the two of you were dating?" I ask her as I cross my arms over my chest and look down at her.

Sylvia only gives me a small nod, so I continue, "Which is probably why he cheated on you in the first place, Sylv." I say as I let out a small breath to calm myself down, before placing my hand gently on her shoulder, "If you and your wolf have both decided to wait on your fated mate, then why are you even wasting your time on dating a jerk like Ryan?"

Sylvia casually shrugs her shoulders, "I just have fun with him is all. Plus, he's really popular and cute. What if HE ends up being my fated mate, anyway?"

I chuckle at her as I pull my hand away from her, before crossing my arms over my chest again, "I don't think The Moon Goddess would pair you with someone like him. You deserve someone much better." I say, before flashing her a devious smirk, "Plus, I'm even more popular and even more cute, so you can just hang out with me instead. Problem solved."

Sylvia rolls her eyes at me, before giving me a wicked grin, "Watch out, Warrick. If your head gets any bigger, you'll break your neck." she says, before she takes off walking away from me down the hallway.

I watch her walk away, deciding not to pester her anymore on the subject. Besides, Tucker is still whining in my head incessantly, which is now making my temples throb painfully. I close my eyes and let out a frustrated sigh, before opening them back up and walking towards my class, as well. As much as I would love for Sylvia to be my mate, I know in my heart that she's not. I know for a fact that I would've felt an inkling of the mate-bond by now. On top of that, with the way Tucker has been acting lately, it's just further confirmed my suspicions that she's not. In fact, I'm even starting to notice that Tucker has been stand-offish with every single young she-wolf that's in our pack lately. My chest suddenly starts to ache as I walk through the door to my final class and take a seat, when the realization hits me that my mate is more than likely not even from our pack.

Uncle Damon soon starts his lecture not long after I'm seated, but I find myself not paying attention as I look around at all of the she-wolves seated around me. Some are twirling a strand of hair around their finger, as they smile at me flirtatiously, while some blush red and avert their eyes as a small and bashful smile plays on their lips. They all know that I'm turning eighteen in four days, so they all know that I should be able to feel a little bit of the mate-bond by now. Which means, they're all secretly hoping that it's them who's my mate. Tucker keeps letting out huffs of disgust in my mind, as I take my time to look at every single one of them in the eye, before I just finally give up and roll my eyes at his stubbornness and turn my attention back to Uncle Damon. I've never had a hard time getting a girl's attention, seeing as I'm the future Alpha of the pack, as well as a tribrid. However, I've never found myself actually wanting their attention, either. In fact, Sylvia's really only one of the few girls my age that I can stand being around.

I just hope that my mate, whoever she might be, isn't the type to give in so easily. I would love for my mate to be someone who gives me more of a chase and has a strong backbone, rather than falling at my feet and submitting to my every need. I've had everything handed to me my entire life, so a mate like that would be like a breath of fresh air.