I'm Sorry, Little Wolf | Werewolf Romance

[1] ɪɴᴠɪᴛᴀᴛɪᴏɴ

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Bloodshed, merciless killings, and hostility stretched back centuries between WhiteAsh and BlueRidge. The story surrounding the start of their feud had been changed as it passed from generation to generation, leaving the truth impossible to pick out from the false. Even without the origin story about their packs' history, the distaste for one another was carried in their blood. Both sides held strong opinions of the other, believing that they were the better of the two close neighbors. Separated only by a stretch of dense forest marked as neutral land, travel between the two only took three days with stops to rest and eat. Miles away from any human civilizations, one pack took the east while the other took the west.

To the east where the sun shined a golden hue along the land was BlueRidge. A large clearing in the woods with rainbows of wildflowers and tall grass. The people of BlueRidge were polite and well-mannered. They prided themselves on good grooming and the more sophisticated aspects of life. The pack resided in one large castle broken into two buildings, joined by a bridge that hovered over their glistening river. Under constant rays, the people of the east were usually quite tan. They tended to be slimmer and elongated figures, with more feminine features – even the men who gained sharper features and soft skin. Compared to their animalistic, barbaric pack they held strong beliefs in courting and the sacred bond created through the process before any intimacy was allowed.

The WhiteAsh pack were much more 'in tune with their true nature' as they described. Constantly under heavy rain and snow, through thick woods with dangerous cliffs looming over the ocean below, lived their rival pack. Ruled by an Alpha whose family line carried stories that were the fuel of nightmares, this pack didn't have time to worry about politeness and privacy. The pack were more aggressive in nature and assertive about what they wanted. Only seeing the sun once, a year, WhiteAsh members skin was much paler than their neighbors to the East. They didn't believe in the purity of 'courting' like BlueRidge did. They wore little to no clothing daily, their bodies adjusted to the colder climates as well as embracing their true nature. No one was off limits, some higher ranks even had harems of multiple partners. Seemingly more laid back from the wolves under the sun, both packs were highly religious and carried their own beliefs when it came to the Moon Goddess.

The bad blood between the packs had kept them clear of one another, unable to stand within a few feet of one another without a surge of bad energy radiating from their wolf putting them on constant guard. No one passed the other's territory line, no one sent letters from either pack to the other, and no one risked being the ones to start a war that would end in countless deaths. A war right now would only put shame to those who had lost their lives recently.

Over the past few months, bodies have been popping up around the land they each called home. One wolf from each pack plucked from their home and dropped off just before daybreak. They were left in a way to portray a message that whoever was doing this had come to play. Hunters, healers, warriors; it didn't matter. Anyone was at risk of being next. Bodies were left mangled, but no blood seeped into the grass around them which told Alpha Dusken of BlueRidge that they were being killed somewhere else. She had double patrols, sent out more hunters and put more warriors on guard but nothing stopped the killings. They were lucky if it were only once a week, sometimes more.

Each pack could only suspect one person. Their neighbors. That they knew of, they were the only creatures within hundreds of miles of each other. Right? Even with their suspicions, they couldn't approach one another without probable cause. That's why it was so unfathomably frustrating. Whoever was doing this was smart. They didn't leave a shred of evidence behind. No weapon, no note, nothing. Only the devastating sight of one of their family members deceased. Nerves were growing in the pack as people began to worry if they wouldn't wake up the next day, if they were next to have their head on a stake to be found by their family. Desperately answers were needed. But Calliope didn't know where to turn.

"Alpha?" A soft voice seeped through the crack of the door and into the office of the BlueRidge Alpha. Ice blue eyes peaked up over the map Calliope held in her hand. Striking blonde locks fell straight down towards her shoulders, not a hair sticking out of place.

"Enter." She called out, softly returning the large map against her desk. Standing gracefully, she dusted the invisible dusk from her gown, eyes gazing to find Francis entering. Her best friend and Head Warrior entering with a respectful bow of his head.

The warm smile on the Alpha's lips faltered as a scent hit her. One that she hadn't smelt in years, far before her parents' death and the rest of these killings. Unlike their floral, aromatic scent floating into the room with a gentle summer breeze, it was replaced by the scent of wet pine and rainfall. WhiteAsh.

Grasped in the hand of Francis was a letter, stamped with a wax seal. Black wax, as if the scent alone wasn't enough of a signature. Sighing, she nodded for Francis to proceed into the room and hand her the letter once the door was shut.

The brown parchment paper carried faint stains, left from the dried rainwater as it had traveled several days to arrive. WhiteAsh didn't send mail, which only made the strange nature of the situation stand out to her more.

Freeing the inside letter from the envelope, Calliope so distinctly smelt the scent of Dean Sutton, the WhiteAsh Alpha. Every wolf had a scent, which was more powerful based on the rank of their position. They also carried the lingering scent of their pack, but Alpha's scent was unforgettable. It was engraved into a wolf's memory until the remainder of their days.

Written in sloppy letters that curved only slightly to the right told Calliope he was a lefty. The very top of the page, written in ink red, 'Calliope Dusken and those in BlueRidge' with a simple, few lines to follow.

Calliope Dusken and those in BlueRidge,

As days draw long, I fear I share the same longing thoughts as you may regarding the dwindling numbers of our packs. Though our packs' history runs thick in our blood, I feel as though we all may need a few days of relaxation and celebration of life to rejuvenate us.

On behalf of myself, I would like to extend the invitation to you and the pack members you choose to join WhiteAsh in celebrating the Moon Festival. I open my home to your pack for the duration of this blessed holiday if you are to accept my cordial invitation.

Perhaps the celebration would offer us the chance to get to know each other better.

Alpha Sutton.

The swoop of his signature travelled completely off the page, as if he had lost control of his arm mid-pen stroke. Overly dramatic like the rest of their kind.

"WhiteAsh don't invite anyone to their Festivals, why is he inviting us now?" Francis questioned, eyes rereading his words searching for an answer. WhiteAsh were notorious for keeping the details of their sacred holiday a secret.

"It's not simply a party invitation. It's an invitation to be watched." She huffed, letting the letter fall onto the map beneath it. Her neatly tended to French tip nails tapped against her desk in thought. "What do you feel about this?"

"I don't like the idea of spending one minute in WhiteAsh let alone three whole days," Francis huffed, earning an amused smile by his friend, "but it may be the only opportunity we have to see the territory from the inside out. Let us watch them while they watch us. Perhaps you could arrange a meeting with Alpha Sutton and learn if he has made any advancements yet to see on our side."

The alpha agreed, nodding her head as she stood straight again. "Gather those who you feel we may need for any reason. Healers, hunters, all of them. Keep information to a minimum and brief Estelle on all of this."

Francis nodded as he was given orders, exiting without another word and preparing everyone who was expected to go with them. Calliope didn't know how she felt about this. It was a great opportunity to compare information with the WhiteAsh Alpha, but she couldn't help the looming feeling over her like something was going to happen. It wasn't a sense of danger or harm, but instead something she was unsure about. No matter what emotions she was feeling about this personally, she would put them aside and focus on her pack. Her priority was stopping whatever was dwindling her numbers and killing off her family no matter what the cost.

Calliope didn't know what oath other Alphas took, but hers was one sworn to put the safety and success of her pack before her own happiness and safety. All Alphas in their generations from the first took the same oath and they took it seriously. So seriously that majority of Alpha females were prearranged marriages. Alphas, it was believed by the Elders and others of the pack, didn't have time to find a mate. Finding a mate wasn't guaranteed, some people didn't have mates, and sitting around waiting for one was putting BlueRidge's future on the line. From the way that the Elders, a group of older pack mates with respectable reputation, saw it – an Alpha waiting for a mate was waiting time she could be carrying more children for the pack. It was a day Calliope secretly dreaded. Her own mother had lectured her numerous times about how painful the experience is when it is with someone who wasn't your mate, even more so not your choice. It had been years since an Alpha in BlueRidge found their mate. That was their curse of the war they believed the Moon Goddess was imposing on them.

Going to WhiteAsh carried another worry for Calliope, one only her closest friend Francis and beta Estelle knew about. From a young age Calliope had a wolf who seemingly flourished on behaviors and desired that completely stood against all BlueRidge customs. She was rebellious, verbal, and quite imaginative. She had thought that it would fade over time as she became of age, but it never did. She had somewhat accepted the fact that she would have to continually suppress her wolf for the remainder of her life, no matter how painful it was at times to keep her in. The Alpha couldn't remember the last time she allowed her wolf to take complete and total control of their body. WhiteAsh was everything her wolf wanted. The carefree behavior and lack of stringent rules sounded like heaven to her. Drowning out her wolf now was easier as she was constantly surrounded by the 'dull and boring' BlueRidge way of life. Controlling her around WhiteAsh and their... different way of doing things was going to be separate challenge in itself. One she didn't know if she was going to be able to withstand.

For her people she would do this, for the possibility of finding something valuable for them to get through this hell hole plagued upon them. She had seen too many people die and was certain Dean felt the same, regardless how stone hold and merciless he was. They were both alphas and very few things mattered to them in life. In two days', time they would be in WhiteAsh territory, far from their own land.

Let's get this over with.

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