Chapter 1: It's Not Manly

The Full Moon Gathering was the one time each month that werewolves in the county would meet up in a secluded location to report pack activity—and where single werewolves socialised.

Ran was walking towards the bonfire at the centre of the clearing when she felt a large hand touch her from behind. Instinctively, she lifted her leg and swung it at her attacker. The offending party dodged her lethal kick with inhuman ease.

'Woah!,' he exclaimed. 'Easy, girl. It’s a party. Chillax a little.'

The culprit lifted his arms in mock surrender. He had a beer in one hand and a bottle opener in the other. There was a wide smile on his face. She frowned.

'A drink for you?' he asked. Her fingers twitched.

'No, thank you.' She stepped out of his way and continued walking.

He followed her. 'Don't like beer? What would you like? I'll get it for you.'

She glanced sideways at him. Like most werewolves in their human form, he was tall and muscular. His abs rippled through his tight t-shirt with every step he took. He kept pace with her easily. A normal human would have been out of breath.

'Don't,' Ran said.

'Don't?' he repeated. He tilted his head to the side, revealing his chiselled jaw. 'As in, you don't like beer? Or you don't like drinks in general?'

Ran stopped walking abruptly even though she had almost reached the bonfire. Here, howls of laughter and loud conversation surrounded her on all sides.

She looked the handsome werewolf stranger in the eye, deadpan. 'Don't hit on me.'

His jaw dropped at her lack of tact but he covered it up quickly by drinking from his bottle of beer. Ran walked away, her eyes scanning the boisterous crowd for members of her pack. She liked knowing where her people were, even though they were in no danger here at this Full Moon Gathering.

'I'm not hitting on you,' he said, trailing after her as she picked her way through the crowd. 'I'm just being polite, you know. It's manly to ask a female if she wants a drink.'

Ran stopped walking again and glared at him. 'That's not manly. It's flirting. I'm not interested in you.'

The handsome werewolf stranger flinched. 'Now I know how you became the Beta of Eridanus. You're just like your uncle.'

Before she could respond, he disappeared into the crowd.

Ran reached the buffet spread piled high on rows of sagging wooden tables. Obviously, feeding hundreds of hungry werewolves meant there would be a lot of food. There was more meat and cheese on these tables than there would be at a commercial poultry farm. Jars of cow's blood sat at one end of a particularly rickety table, weighing down one end of the wooden surface so it almost toppled over.

Ran picked up a packet of marshmallows and tossed the packet from one hand to the other.

A gruff voice called her from behind.

She spun around instinctively.

Anyone from the Eridanus pack would have, because Acamar was the Regent Alpha—the current leader of the pack because Ran was not of age yet to take over the role of Alpha. Her parents, the Alpha and his Luna were killed ten years ago. Acamar, her father's older brother, was her guardian and would remain the pack's leader until she turned 21.

Acamar was big and burly with an ugly scar on his left temple left behind by a silver bullet from the Human-Werewolf War. He had sharp black eyes, just like her father, only his were hardened from surviving many brutal battles. Ran bowed her head briefly, a show of respect for her leader, but met his gaze right after like an equal since the position of Alpha rightly belonged to her.

'What is it?' she asked.

Everything seemed to be going well at this Full Moon Gathering. There was peace among the Septrion County packs and no major problems had to be dealt with urgently. All the packs had given their reports and the First Shifting Ceremony had been held for the new werewolves. The 'gathering' part of the Gathering had just begun.

'Is something wrong?'

Her uncle shook his head. He gestured at two werewolves behind him. Ran did not recognise them. 'They are not from our county,' Acamar said, reading her eyes.

He pointed to a stocky muscular man with the sides of his head shaved and the rest of his brown hair pulled up in a stumpy ponytail. 'This is the Alpha of the Cassiopeia pack, Celphus.' Ran nodded her respect.

'And this is his fourth son, Caph,' he continued, gesturing at a taller younger man with tousled red-brown hair and bright blue eyes. He was lean, unlike his father, lithe and inconspicuous. Yet at the same time, he attracted her attention because of his unique features—the red tint of his hair, the alert glint of his gaze, the way he stood with lazy confidence. Ran had never seen anyone look good with messy hair, until now.

'Happy 20th birthday,' the Alpha of the Cassiopeia pack said, holding out a large hand to shake hers.

She was suspicious. Her uncle was not a sentimental person. Quite the opposite. Why did he tell these strangers it was her birthday today?

Acamar saw these questions flash through her eyes as she hesitated to take the Alpha's hand.

'This is an order,' he began.

Immediately, Ran straightened her back, her senses heightened. An Alpha's order was the sacred word of his pack. Even she could not resist it yet. Not until she was 21.

'You will allow Caph to court you.'

'What?!'

Her uncle's eyes hardened and asserted his authority with a growl. Ran lowered her head reluctantly.

'You must marry before you turn 21,' Acamar commanded, 'otherwise you will hand over the position of Alpha to me.'