8 Chapter 8

Phoenix

"So tell me again why you were out in the woods all alone?" We had taken the quickest way back home with Evelyn fussing over Apollo all the way. Even when he had shifted back into human form, there were no scars on his face from the shredding he had received. The only mark was that on his stomach.

"I don't know. I just felt like something was compelling to go I guess. I don't remember much." Even though we had tried to sift through his memories, it was as if they were wiped clean. There were foggy ideas of the memory, but nothing we could solidly identify. Before the pack could ask anymore questions, there was a knock at the door.

My wolf stood up at attention sensing Lauren on the other side of the door.

"We'll talk about this later, from now on no one goes out alone, and I want the entire pack to be sleeping in this house. I'm going to summon Ezekiel later for his wisdom and help. For now, everyone needs to be on alert and cautious. Whatever this was laid low for a long time before striking again." The pack nodded and everyone got up from the living room. Another knock came from the door.

"Alpha, you need to tell her." Quincy came up from behind me nodding at the door. I sighed. I knew I had to tell her soon.

"Not soon. Today." He said once more before turning away and opening the door. Lauren smiled from the outside and walked in.

"Hey Quincy, how are you?" He smiled in return.

"I'm doing well, I'll leave you two alone now." I went to hug Lauren and relished the feeling of how absolutely perfect she fit in my arms, she belonged in them.

"There's a place I want to show you." I guided her out the door before taking a left around the house. It wasn't a long walk, and it was close to the pack.

*Quincy please make sure we aren't disturbed.*

I felt acknowledgement before I shut off my mind from anyone but myself. Lauren and I talked as we walked, and I could tell she was eager to see where we were going. I could smell the fresh water as we got close to the hidden waterfall on our territory. Pulling back a clump of brambles I let her go first before following close behind. There was a gasp of wonder as the sun shone through and revealed the waterfall.

Two massive rocks outlined the waterfall on each side as a cascade of water fell into a basin below. The crystal blue water sparkled in the sunlight refracting like a million diamonds.

"This is beautiful, Phoenix." She turned to me, eyes shining taking the scene in. I gestured for her to sit with me by the water letting my feet skim the surface. It was times like these where I appreciated the peace the world could offer. Here we were in the most beautiful place on Earth, and I was here with the most perfect mate anyone could ask for.

My eyes wandered over seeing as the light reflected on her skin making a slight halo around her. Her mouth was curved into a small smile while her eyes were still filled with wonder of the view. I leaned back on my arms expelling a long breath as I prepared for what I was about to do.

"What's wrong?" I couldn't look her in the eye.

"I have something to tell you, Lauren, and it's not easy and I don't know how you're going to react." She looked concerned, I would be too if I were in her shoes. The way I was saying this wasn't the best way but I didn't know how to tell her any differently.

"Lauren...fuck...I don't know how to say this...I really have no clue how to say this. I've never done this before. Okay here we go. Lauren, I'm a werewolf." Her face didn't really give any reaction away but I could hear her heart beating a little faster.

"Is that all?" I couldn't tell if she thought I was joking or if she was genuine.

"Erm, yeah." She expelled a long breath.

"Okayyyyyyy, well at least I know you're crazy. But crazy is better than I thinking you were gonna tell me you were dying or something." I laughed quietly.

"No, dying isn't in the job description." Her eyes skimmed over me and I could see the battle of believing me or turning and running because I was crazy in her eyes. She wasn't scared, but she definitely wasn't comfortable.

"Don't be scared, just sit there for a minute." I stood up, brushed off my clothes sending small dirt flying off my pants and took a deep breath. I allowed myself to slip into my wolf and the transformation happened quickly. When I opened my eyes, Lauren was staring at me with her lips slightly parted in surprise. I waited while she took the truth of what I said in, my thoughts going a million miles an hour. Then, suddenly she did what I had least expect and she doubled over with laughter.

"You really...just turned into...a. WOLF!" She said in between gasps. Puzzled, my head turned to one side waiting for her to finish. "You're like a big cuddly dog!" Tears had begun to form in the corners of her eyes as she held her stomach. It took her quite a few minutes to calm down enough where she could look at me without cracking up.

"So you're a wolf." I dipped my head in acknowledgement, amusement shining in my eyes. This was going better than I thought. She started toward me and I followed her with my eyes warily. She was the first human I had let see me in my true form, was I good enough for her? Would she want a better looking wolf? Stronger?

Her hand began to reach out and it laid on my head between my ears. I huffed. This would humiliating if it was any other person...come to think of it if it was any other person their hand would be bitten off, but something about it was okay because it was my mate who was doing it, but at the same time this was the first time I had ever experienced anything close to this. She moved to stroke my neck, back and muzzle. My body shivered as she reached the scars on my back and my forelegs but I allowed it.

"Can you change back on command?" Nodding, it took another few seconds for me to change back and face her again.

"So that was awesome, okay, tell me more." I went and sat back down and she followed.

"What would you like to know?" Her face said it before she did, "Everything." I knew this was the case as I would've responded the same.

"My name is Phoenix Adolfo, in the ancient languages, Adolfo means Noble Wolf. I was born and raised in the United States and I'm around 270 years old; I've lost count. When I was 13, I became the youngest Alpha in my pack and as you can imagine, my father wasn't happy. While he was Alpha before me, as soon as I turned 13 and shifted, I became more powerful than him. He had to bow down to me.

There is one thing you must know, I never wanted the power of the Alpha. I never wanted any of it. I just wanted to live. Be who I was. I was 13, I didn't want the responsibility of Alpha, and would've gladly given the power back to my father. However, that wasn't how our old laws worked. My powers as Alpha grew everyday, and so did my father's hatred.

He began to drink, and while the werewolf limits on drinking are significantly higher, he laced his drink with wolfsbane. It doesn't kill us as some of the rumors say, it's more of a drug to us than anything. That, mixed with the immense alcohol intake wreaked havoc on his body. You see, as my father and former Alpha, he was supposed to train and help guide me through taking leadership of the pack. I learned quickly he would never do such a thing.

As his drinking got worse, abuse followed. His anger fueled by wolfsbane and drink made him a different man. Every chance he would get he would take everything out on me. The pack's loyalties had quickly shifted to stand behind me, however there wasn't much they could do. Even if he wasn't Alpha anymore, he still had power over the other members of the pack.

I did nothing as he was my father. I still thought he had some good left in him. I could still remember him playing with me in the backyard, always devoting every last minute he had with me. He would even skip full moon hunts to be with me before he shifted. I remember when I was really young and he'd let me ride on his back while he ran through the woods feeling like I could fly as he jumped over logs and dodged huge boulders. I could still remember his smile when I was first learning about who I was, and how proud he was when he introduced me to his pack for the first time.

You see, I had been blinded for the love I held for my father to not see what he had become. He destroyed himself, my pack, and me on his way down to the darkness. He soon drove the pack insane as his medicated mind seeped through our mind link.

It was over as soon as it started. I was left without a pack within my 13th year, and my father had driven himself insane leaving the town before anything else could be done. The pack I had come to lead had been driven mad, many of them taking their own lives.

I left the town as soon as possible and began to wander aimlessly. I didn't know what I could do, and I spent most of my time in my wolf form. I began to self harm, blaming myself for what had happened to the pack, my father, and knowing that it had been my fault he was driven to insanity. On the night I planned to end my life, I sat on a cliff in my wolf form staring at the moon. I was ready to jump when something stopped me.

A sort of mist or something came in front of me and...hovered. She introduced herself as Leto, the Goddess of the Wolves.

'Phoenix,' she said, 'Your time is not now. You have much to live for. My child, you have suffered long and hard at the cruel hand of your father, but now you must break free of his curse. You are my child, Phoenix, not just by wolf, my real child. You have the power of the ancients within you, and your destiny is a great one. Find your pack and lead them as you always have. Use the magic given to you by me to heal the rift you have in your heart.'

And she left. I soon found she was right, I had more power in me than ever before. I searched for my pack and began to find them here and there. They were powerful, more powerful than any other wolf. We have gifts, besides shifting. Quinlian is the healer, Arielle has the power to control dreams and visions - that's how she put you to sleep the night you came to my house. Blaze has the power of fire, and that's just scratching the surface. My pack is the most powerful in the world, not just because of our gifts but because of our bonds. The pack grew as many of the wolves found their mates over time and had children of their own. If they weren't gifted or didn't fit into our pack they would go and search for their own pack outside in the world.

After a few years of running wild, we settled down here in these woods. Watched as the town began to grow, and built up this house for ourselves. Every 50 years or so we would spend as our wolf selves as the town began to become suspicious we never aged. And now, here we are, present day." While I had talked it seemed Lauren had gotten lost in my story only coming back to reality when I had stopped talking.

"These mates, tell me more about them."

"A wolf will only ever have one specific mate. We find them overtime and it becomes a bond like no other. Honestly I want to say, Twilight had it pretty right on how finding your mate really feels like. You know as soon as you see them." Her eyes were now locked on mine.

"And you? Have you found your mate?" My jaw clenched.

"Yes."