06. Rivalry

Sablecrest Pack House

The sun came out again after a light drizzle of rain, shining on the enormous estate that was the Pack House. It was still the morning, so there weren't many Pack members buzzing around, except for the Hunters and Scouts that were doing their exercises.

Paige gives her father an unimpressed look. "Are you serious right now? I have to fight this unruly girl?"

"Watch it, you bitch," June hisses. "I still can knock your ass to the ground."

Paige rolls her eyes before facing her, feeling the magic buzz at her fingertips. "This is a waste of time."

"Like I said, I want to see the limits of June's power," Zachary says, a smile playing on his lips. "We haven't been able to see the full extent of her ice magic. It's also a great way to get your anger out before we start. I've gotten permission from the Alpha, so knock yourselves out. I'll stop you if it gets too dangerous."

The two girls nod, getting into their stances. June had fierce eyes and her body was lowered to lunge at Paige, the latter maintaining a blank face with a poised posture. Zachary glances at both of them, before smiling.

"Begin."

June didn't hesitate to attack. She raised her hands, a blue circular glow manifesting in the air. Almost immediately, multiple large ice shards are projected towards her opponent.

Paige's eyes widen slightly before flames lick her skin, hurling back at the ice. It was consumed by her flames easily, and June was being pushed back. She curls her upper lip to give Paige a snarl, who unaffectedly blinks.

'Without incantation?' Paige thinks, before a smirk appears on her face. 'Whatever, she made a rookie mistake using big ice shards in the beginning of the match.'

The flames grow brighter, hindering most of Paige's view. Her smirk widens as she thinks, 'I'm going to win.'

June's figure disappears from behind her flames, and like a blur, she moves to the side. Paige tsks as her bursts of fire shape themselves into a sphere, changing its direction to follow June.

The girl's leg burned with adrenaline as she quickly dropped before the fireball could catch her clothes. She rolls across the ground and groans at the aching in her side from the fall. She looks up, taking one look at the smirk of satisfaction on Paige's face before her anger burns brighter than Paige's flames.

She flicks her wrist and changes the fireball's direction once more. It speeds towards June, whose heavy breaths and glistened forehead from sweat shows that she was losing her energy to fight.

Faint crackling could be heard as the droplets left on the grass were turned into ice. It spread out on the ground to Paige. June's hands slam onto the green grass, and a small wall of ice raises up and catches the fireball. The wall of ice was destroyed upon impact, allowing for a couple of sparks to fall onto June's dirt stained shirt.

'So now she's conserving her energy,' Zachary thinks, rubbing his stubble with interest.

Paige tsks again as she sees that her fireball was blocked. She tried to move herself but can't feel her feet lift off the ground. Looking down, she sees ice crawling up to her ankles, trapping her. An annoyed look crosses over her features as she raises her head back up again.

A palm enters her vision, and frost shoots from it and onto her face. She screams at the freezing temperature that was stuck onto her face, preventing her from seeing. She raises her hand and blindly hurls magic at every direction, buying enough time for her to thaw the frost from her face.

Her eyes were clouded by rage as she looked up at June, who blocked the fireballs. Paige's eyes burn like the fire that grew on her hands. She raises both of her hands this time and sends a wave of fire more powerful than the last ones.

Having the heat of a dragonfire, it instantly melted June's ice. She heard her heart pump erratically in her ear. Her legs burned and itched, begging her to sit down and take a break. Her sweat stained her shirt as quickened breaths left her mouth. Her vision blurred and the fireball seemed to move in slow motion.

June raises a shaky hand to block the fire.

"Enough."

And suddenly, the fire disappeared, as if it was never there in the first place.

June's half-lidded eyes widened as she looked around, seeing Zachary walking towards them with a stern look. He observed June's form, who looked like she was about to pass out at any second. He then looked at Paige, who was shocked that he ended the match so soon.

"But, Father-"

"I can still go on," June's hoarse breath said, turning their attention to her. She wipes the sweat that was rolling down her chin as her eyes narrow. "I'm not done yet."

With the last of her energy, she lunges at Paige. Her hand was outstretched to shoot ice at her, but then June slammed against an invisible wall and fell to the ruined ground with a thud.

She was suddenly pushed back from an invisible force and fell to the ground. June rubbed her throbbing side, and looked up to see a faint glow shaped in a rectangle suspended in the air. Her eyes turned into astonishment as she stared. 'Woah... is that also magic?'

"Now that you've tired yourself out, we can move on," Zachary says.

June scowls and tries to stand up, but a sharp pain in her side makes her drop back down onto the floor. She hisses as an outstretched palm comes into view, and she looks up. Zachary gives her a smile and a curt nod, but June scoffs and looks away.

Paige glares at her for refusing her father's kindness, but Zachary doesn't think anything of it. He shakes his head at the girl's stubbornness before turning his gaze to Paige.

"This is a barrier. You can learn how to do this once you've mastered advanced magic," he says. "Since Paige is already close to that level, she'll be helping June with her training."

"Huh?" Paige sputters out, looking at him in disbelief. She points at the girl on the floor. "I have to train with her? She can't even use magic properly and you want me to train with her?"

June's scowl deepens at the insult and she rolls her eyes. Zachary nods at Paige's question.

"You can't do this to me, Father," she pleads in their home language. "Why should I have to be on the same level as this... low leveled wild child?"

"Teacher, Paige," Zachary corrects her, pointing a finger. "While I teach you the basics of magic and later advanced magic, I am no longer your father, but your instructor. You have to train with her because I've made a contract with the Alpha in exchange for protection. You know our situation."

Paige goes quiet at that, knowing that her father was desperate at this point. Their coven needed help as soon as possible, and there is none better than the most powerful Shifter of them all.

She glances at June with a sigh. "Fine. If it benefits our coven, then I'll stoop to the level of this amateur."

"The fuck did you say?" June shouts, standing up and balling her hands into fists.

Paige sends a quick icy glare at her before turning to her father. He held his hands behind his back and opened his mouth to speak.

"As of now, I want the both of you to address me as 'Teacher'," he announces. "You will both give your undivided attention to me as I teach you the basics. If you focus, you'll quickly drink up the information."

The two said nothing and only shot small glares at each other, which the man noticed.

"And the two of you won't be distracted by your dislike for each other. While I'm in the process of teaching, I don't want any roughhousing, horseplay, fights, insults at either me or your partner, or disrespect."

"Whatever, dude."

Zachary sends a cool glare at June. "And you will not refer to me by any nicknames like dude. You will refer to me as 'Teacher' at all times. And if you want to say something while I'm teaching, your hand better be raised."

June rolls her eyes and crosses her arms. 'What is this– school?'

"Now, then, let's begin-" Zachary was cut off by June's raised hand. His eyes narrowed before he cleared his throat. "Yes, June?"

"Are you going to teach us the fun stuff, like making a barrier?"

Zachary sighs. "I told you that will be after you've mastered advanced magic. First, you must learn about the history of magic, spell casting, and also-"

June groans loudly, cutting the man off. "Fuck that. I want to do interesting stuff. Why don't you just skip to teaching us how to use magic?"

"You can't use magic if you don't first know where it comes from," Zachary hisses. "That's why I'm teaching you-"

"Then just tell it where it comes from."

Zachary's eye twitch as he tries to hold back the scream in his throat. Now I see why the Alpha has a hard time controlling her.

"That will be after I've thoroughly taught you the basics-"

"That's boring," June whines.

And finally, Zachary's face goes red as he yells, "June! Let me speak!"

June immediately closes her mouth as her eyebrow raises in amusement. 'So, he can get angry... This is definitely going to be a fun class.'

Later,

Kieryn sighs as he leaves the chaotic kitchen. 'I hope it's not too bad in there.'

Earlier, Vanessa was teaching Haylee how she made her House famous butter cookies. After a while, Haylee wanted to try making them herself. She was doing well, mixing the ingredients and all, but then it went downhill fast.

Things happened and now there is batter everywhere and the oven is burnt.

Kieryn could hear Vanessa scolding her as he walks away. He wipes off the black smudge off his face that spread everywhere in the oven.

Sauntering down the hallways was one of his hobbies, since there was little to do in the Pack House. He usually would spend time with Christine, but she was helping Yuliana in the Pack Quarters. All the other maids were off doing their own thing, so Kieryn had no one to socialize with.

And honestly, he didn't mind the silence. He was used to not having anyone to talk to.

He passes the French doors that lead to one of the balconies on the third floor. He was about to walk away when his eyes widened in realization. He steps back, turning his head to see the Alpha sitting by the table on the spacious balcony. She looks out to the endless land, seemingly lost in thought.

Kieryn nervously bites his bottom lip, feeling the urge to enter. He didn't know why, but he wanted to be around her often. It was strange, but he liked the strange feeling she gave him.

The woman feels the prolonged stare on her and turns her head. Kieryn flinches when he's discovered and wants to run away. But her piercing stare kept his feet stuck on the ground.

She raises a hand towards him and curls a finger. As if that single gesture compelled him, he opens the door and steps onto the balcony.

Two chairs, one of which she occupied, sat in front of the acacia table. A platter that served slices of multiple kinds of fruits which were neatly separated, silver picks poking into the fruit. There were also chocolate covered strawberries around the fruit as a dessert, which Adella held in her other hand. She puts it down on the platter before she speaks.

"Kieryn," she greets with a dazzling smile. "Why don't you come here and sit with me?"

Her voice was polite, but it left no room for argument. Not that he would argue in the first place.

He takes his seat across from her, shifting his weight onto either side of his feet. His eyes darted all across the table before settling on her hypnotizing green eyes. He gulps, feeling his hands become clammy as he clamps them together.

'I'm going to ruin the mood.' He bites his bottom lip again and starts to fiddle with each other. 'I'm going to do something stupid, I know it. I'm going to-'

"Kieryn." This time her voice comes out sternly, bringing the man's attention to her. "You're thinking about embarrassing yourself, aren't you?"

Kieryn furrows his brows as she is accurate with her observation. He turns his gaze to the table again, hiding his shy gaze from her. She continues, her voice soothing his nerves.

"You don't need to be anxious. Take your time and relax. When you're ready, look me in the eye."

It was hard for him to even be around her without going into full panic mode, so how is it possible to look at her without having a mini mental breakdown? Kieryn takes deep breaths to calm his erratic heart. It quickened with every passing second that Adella was staring at him.

At this rate, he might die from such a quick heart rate. He attempted to raise his gaze, and it was pinned there by Adella's. A smile spreads on her lips.

"So then, how was your day so far?" She asks, leaning back on her chair.

Kieryn felt his chest swell with pride as Adella's attention was focused only on him. A smile threatens to appear on his mouth, but he holds it back.

He looked around for something to write on, and Adella chuckled. "It's alright. I'll just interpret it from your eyes. They call me a mind reader."

Kieryn nods and brings back his attention to her. 'It's been great so far.'

"Hmm, I see it's going well." She picks up a glass of lemonade, eyes trained on him as she takes a sip. She smacks her lips as she sets it down again. "Mine is better now that I have some company. I like speaking to you."

Kieryn's heart skipped a beat at that. He felt like he achieved a long time goal.

In Adella's mind, she cursed herself for sounding cringy. 'Did that sound weird. Shit, I might just creep him out more.'

She doesn't let her embarrassment show on her face. Her leg crosses over the other as her eyes slide down Kieryn's body, taking in the beautiful sight of her mate in the morning. Her smile grows wider as she is lost in thought. 'Fuck, he's so gorgeous. Where the hell did he come from? Was he personally carved by the Moon Goddess herself?'

"Have you already eaten?" She asked, watching Kieryn's face turn into nervousness again.

"It's alright, have some fruit," she offers, pushing the platter towards him.

He nods obediently, taking one of the picks and poking a grape. He brings it to his mouth, but that's when his eyes catch hers. His gaze snaps back to the table as he shoves the grape into his mouth, chewing silently.

Adella chuckles under her breath before her eyes widen, remembering something. She reaches for the platter, making Kieryn flinch at the sudden movement. She takes the chocolate covered strawberry between two fingers and looks back up at Kieryn.

"Remember when I said that I'll reward you for winning against Damineh?"

Kieryn's eyes lit up and he nodded vigorously. Excitement shows in his brown eyes and a smirk plays on Adella's lips at his undivided attention.

"This is your reward," she says, bringing the strawberry close to Kieryn's face. "Eat."

At this point, he didn't care what kind of gift Adella gave him. Anything would suffice, even something as useless as a trashbag. As long as it was from her, his chest would inflate with joy.

He brought his hand up to take the strawberry, but then she pushed it onto his lip. He blinked before realizing that she wanted to hand-feed him. A small blush painted his cheeks, embarrassment showing in his eyes at the action. Nevertheless, Kieryn parted his lips to nibble on the chocolate, tasting the sweet substance.

His eyes went from the chocolate to Adella's darkened gaze. The two lock gaze as Kieryn finds it harder to breathe. Her green eyes flickered from the juices that spilled on his chin and back to his eyes.

Kieryn opened his mouth wider and took a bigger bite, feeling a sudden boldness as he looked into her predatory gaze. She looked like she wanted to replace that strawberry with herself, or even the roles being switched and Kieryn being the strawberry she was eating.

"Good boy," she murmurs, loud enough for Kieryn to hear. His ears turn red at the praise and his eyes dart down to the table. "Look at me."

It was a command, one that he could not disobey. The Alpha looked pleased that he heeded her words and held his gaze.

That's when she swiftly pulls the fruit away and brings it closer to her own. Her takes a small bite as her eyes narrow in amusement, seeing the red juices and saliva that coated his lips. At that moment, she imagined it to be something else.

After she puts the finished strawberry down, she leans back as if nothing has happened. While Kieryn, on the other hand, was slightly panting because of the hungry eyes that pierced into him.

She pushed the platter with a small, polite smile. Not at all like the cunning smirk from before. "Have some more fruit, Kieryn. I plan to make your stomach round and plump."

Kieryn didn't say a word, only shoving more fruits into his mouth. Adella once again took a sip of her lemonade, hiding a small smirk behind the glass.

Afterwards,

Haylee skips and swings her arm as well as Liam's, whose large hand covered hers. He was pulled along with her as she walked through the arch gate of the garden, walking down the cobblestone path. She takes in the sight of colorful, perfectly maintained flowers on the bushes.

"The daisies are so pretty." She grins and stares at a butterfly fluttering its wings as it sits on a flower.

"Do you want to see the ducks?"

Haylee's eyes widen as her grin does the same. "Duckies!" She squeals, pulling Liam with her as she runs down the cobblestone path.

A small smile settles on his face as he allows his almost seven foot frame to be dragged by a woman much shorter than him. The soft ripples of the water as it is pushed by the soft wind enter their ears. At the end of the row of flowers was a small patio built by the river, and Haylee saw two people sitting there already.

"Hima! Emily!" Haylee shouts, gaining Himari's attention.

Soo-Yun doesn't turn around until she is tapped on the shoulder by Himari. She turns her head to see Haylee speeding towards them. Soo-Yun puts on a smile and opens her arms as Haylee lets go of Liam and runs into them.

Haylee laughs in her shirt as Soo-Yun tightens her grip, laughing along with her. Haylee raises her head and places a kiss on her temple. Himari narrows her eyes and crosses her arms.

"Hey, are you trying to steal my girlfriend?" She scowls as Haylee raises her head and smiles at her. She walks to the woman and kisses her forehead. Himari's scowl disappears as it is replaced by a bright smile.

Haylee releases her and walks over to the rail bar, gazing at the ducks that peacefully swam in the river. She sometimes wished she was a duck, but she didn't want to end up in someone's belly.

"Wait," Himari says, "Aren't you supposed to be at your session right now?"

Haylee freezes and slowly turns to the narrowed eyes of the woman. She cocks an eyebrow as Haylee gulps, nervously placing on a smile.

"You're skipping therapy again?" Liam's deep voice rumbled, making Haylee shiver. His eyes looked as angry as Himari's as they crossed their arms simultaneously, waiting for an answer from her.

"Uhm... yes?" She says in a questioning tone.

Himari groans and rubs her eyes with her hand. "Haylee, you know Alpha will be mad at you if you-"

"I know," Haylee cuts off with a pout, looking at the floor. "I just feel that they treat me like a kid."

"Hun, they are trying to help you by doing that. If they sat down with a serious face and spoke big words to you, would you listen?"

Haylee pauses, digesting her words. She was right, but Haylee didn't want to admit it.

"Haylee." Liam's stern voice makes Haylee raise her head. "I can come with you if it makes you more comfortable, but you cannot skip it. It will help you get over... your past."

She frowns at the mention of something she wished to remember, her pout disappearing. Her hands ball up the fabric of her skirt as they start to shake. Himari frowns as she sees that the woman is close to crying, and she is about to stand up to comfort her.

"Haylee-"

"I know." No longer was the high-pitched tone she usually had. Instead, it was low and sorrowful.

Himari inwardly sighs, knowing that speaking about her past is a sensitive subject. But she'll only get more hurt if she tries to avoid it.

The burly man steps towards her, placing an arm on her shoulder and bending down to see her face. "Don't cry, Papáki," his soothing voice calms her down. "I will be by your side every step of the way. We are here to help you, so you don't need to feel alone."

Soo-Yun tilts her head, sensing Haylee's sadness. She pulls on Himari's sleeve, signing to her for answers. Himari shakes her head and rubs the top of her hand. Her gaze flicks from Liam to Haylee with a smile on her face.

'What would we do without Liam?'

She was glad that Liam took on the fatherly role to calm down Haylee. When his work was finished, he would stay by her. Although Haylee liked everyone, Himari would say that Liam was her closest friend after Haylee. She needed comfort and reassurance, otherwise...

Soo-Yun leans her head against Himari, bringing the woman out of her thoughts. She gives her a small smile before placing a kiss against her cheek.

'Yeah, I'd rather not think about that...'

In the afternoon,

"She wasn't as difficult as you said, Alpha," the woman said with a slight Spanish accent. She flips through the clipboard and smiles, looking back up into Adella's eyes. "She was telling me everything on her mind, even the things not relevant to the questions. I think I'll need to restock on candy though."

Adella raises her eyebrows, shocked by the information. "Really?"

"Yeah. She wasn't very talkative at first, but she started to speak more after time went by." The woman brushes her black hair behind her shoulder.

"I'm impressed," Adella says truthfully.

"Pardon?"

"In just a single day, you've made more progress than any other therapist I've hired." Adella crosses her arms and gives a small smile.

The woman blushes, tucking her hair behind her ear. "N-no, it's only because the Gamma was there."

"Don't be so humble," she chuckles. "You've done what we thought couldn't be possible. And for that, you'll be given two times your current pay."

Her eyes go wide as her mouth drops open. "Right off the bat? But, it's only my first day. Doesn't a raise usually take, like, months? And I'm not even that experienced-"

Adella raises a hand to stop her, making her close her mouth instantly. "In Sablecrest, we do things differently. I believe that your inexperience makes it easier, because most of Haylee's past therapists have been stone-faced, unempathetic women. You're able to laugh and joke around with her, which is why she opened up. I think part of what she needed was to step out of her comfort zone."

Adella turns around to leave, but the woman opens her mouth to stop her. "Wait! Uhm, I wanted to thank you for letting me stay here, Alpha."

"Of course. The city is a long way from here, so I don't want you to drive nearly five hours twice a week."

She smiles, and Adella gives her one back. A blush coated the woman's cheeks as she watched Adella strut away.

'Wow, the Alpha doesn't look at all what the rumors say.'