Mate

Archer Dakota P.O.V

Its been four days, since I'd traveled to a pack in the south with my Gamma and Head warrior, a messenger had arrived late in the middle of the night to report an uprising dispute between the pack and the locals who call themselves the stewards of the land

A steward had seen a group of juvenile pups hunting down prey in the primeval forest known as the virgin land, not that the stewards forbid pack hunting but this particular ground has been ruled reserved for animals and plants, and hunting is strictly forbidden there. It's part of the numerous law created in cooperation of the councils and the locals in maintaining peace.

I'd left my pack at the break of dawn with the messenger, accompanied by my Gamma Ace Blackfoot and Head warrior Boar Stones on duty call leaving the Beta in charge of the pack.

After the territorial war a hundred year ago, only four shape shifters pack was left standing on Sioux's soil, the Eastern Band of Cherokee with the population of 302 werewolves, the Southern Ute with the population of 452 werewolves, the Western Shoshone with the population of 378 werewolves, and my pack the Northern Cheyenne with the population of 634 werewolves.

All four packs form a council of 12, with three representatives from each pack consisting of Alpha, Gamma, and Head warrior while the Beta serves as an acting Alpha whenever the Alpha is away from the pack.

As the head of the superior body known as the Council of 12 overseeing and maintaining peace and harmony between the shapeshifters and the locals, I have no other choice than to go in attendance of the uprising issue settlement.

We'd arrived at the Southern Ute by noon of the third day, a two and a half day journey, I use the half of the remaining day in meeting with the locals to settle the dispute and dish out punishments to the dumb pups, we eat and left the pack at the wee hour of the night when the half moon was high up.

I looked up an hour later at the clear sky which was now getting cloudy, I urged my wolf to move faster with my Gamma and Head warrior right behind.

We're already out of the Southern border and a few hours to dawn heaven opened for a heavy downpour, we seek shelter at an abandoned cabin in the middle of the forest until the rain finally stopped.

We left the cabin at the first sound of dawn, and continue our journey home.

It was already late into the night when I decided we needed to take a rest and fill our empty stomachs before we continue back on the journey, I linked my Gamma and Head warrior "let's camp here for tonight".

I look around, spotting a fallen log, and headed toward it with my Gamma and Head warrior. We shifted back on two legs and sat down.

We sat there naked for minutes resting, we never traveled outside the northern border with clothes since most of the journey is in our wolf form, not that it bothers me, because all shapeshifters tend to go naked more often than normal.

It's our way of life.

I look toward Ace and Boar their midnight black hair ruffled and messy one of the similar traits of our tribe and without doubt, I knew mine looked the same.

We the northerners are known for our midnight black hair, brown eyes, olive dark skin, and the left arm tattoo of a wolf's head wearing the Sioux war head bonnet made of feathers. All northern-born shapeshifters have one since birth, it's our crest.

Alpha, I want to go hunt and gather firewood to keep warm for the night. Boar said excusing himself.

I just nodded, letting him know I heard him, the man has traveled with me on every journey since I became Alpha.

I have known him in all of my 27 years, he was a Head warrior for my father long before me and I still find him worthy of the title when I took over as Alpha of the northern Sioux tribe.

He's one of the aged wolves in the northern tribe along with the pack's elders but not the oldest, my great aunty Anpao, also known as the pack healer, blind but alive is the oldest in the Northern Sioux tribe.

Thinking of the elders, I clenched my teeth. Those imposing group of old hags.

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An hour later, we sat down across the glow of orange flames burning brighter. With an arm length of smoked largemouth bass.

Boar had gone into the forest to hunt for meat only to come back with a fish, he said he'd caught at a nearby lake

By the time we finished eating, the crescent moon was fully up in the sky, we lay down for the night. After hours of tossing and turning without feeling sleepy, I decided to just walk around and engage myself.

I stood up, making my way out of the small circle we created with our bodies, "Are you going somewhere Alpha"? I heard my head warrior ask pushing himself up from the ground.

"I can't sleep, I just wanted to walk around you can go back to sleep". I told him knowing he needed the sleep but find his sense of duty superior.

Let me come with you I can't sleep too, he said standing up. Knowing nothing I said will keep him from shadowing me I just nodded for him to follow.

We walked through the tall canopy of magnolia trees and into the glade, I listened to the sounds of crickets and frogs calling to their mates. I felt the familiar shadow of melancholy ready to cast itself on my mind over the thought of a "mate" and I immediately brushed it aside.

Thinking of what to do to take my mind off the annoying sad thought I decide to go for a swim, "take me to the lake" I linked Boar as I waited for him to take the lead.

"Yes Alpha", he said in a clipped tone navigating through the forest as I follow right behind him. I heard the soft hum of water and smell its fresh scent long before we reach it, I walk closer inhaling its calming scent. "Strange".

I sniff again and I caught the smell, "wild wolves" I said aloud and saw Boar from the corner of my eye sniffing too.

"Yes, wild wolves but strange, smells like rogue shapeshifter".

I sniffed slowly trying to catch his meaning, knowing the old wolf nose never misses anything.

The air smelled of wild-rose, tinted and untamed though it a faint smell surrounded by earthy scent of other wolves, I scanned the wolves with my eyes trying to pinpoint the owner of the wild-rose scent, I locked eyes with a brown she-wolf in the middle of the water.

The breeze blow a gentle fluffy of air carrying her scent towards me, I took a big whiff of the calming scent, and my body begged for more of the scented oxygen "Mate" I whispered stunned.

My wolf recovered faster than I with the need to protect, our mate was surrounded by a pack of wild wolves, they might hurt her.

My wolf's instincts took over and growled at the wild wolves surrounding her.

They looked toward my direction in alarm and retrieved into the water with their tail tucked including my mate, I growl louder sneering at them to back away from her.

She moved deeper into the water with them, and I noticed two of the wild wolves shading her in a protective stance, I came to the realization same time my wolf did "They are protecting her".

She's comfortable around them, I looked closely and noticed she's with them, a part of their pack, a pack of wild wolves.

"Mate" I repeated waiting for her to advance toward me, to recognize the bound. But she just stood there staring at me, mouth slightly agape, all of them shading one another.

I waited a few seconds and when she didn't advance, my wolf riled up and growled enraged, she didn't acknowledge us, she did not find us worthy of her, my wolf growled in my head stalking slowly towards them, advancing like a predator ready to pounce on its prey.

As I put a foot into the water, the wolf's courage crumbled and they all scurried away running in different directions including my mate, giving my wolf the wrong signal.

"She wants us to chase" she wants us to prove our worth, my wolf growled louder in my head again and the tiny restriction I had over my control was snatched away, control by my animal instincts to chase and claim, I ran after her managing not to shift just yet.

They'd made my chase easier by running in different directions, I slowed down inhaling her scent on the forest trail, "wild-rose" catching a whiff of her scent ahead with my Head warrior's disturbing scent right behind, I ran faster on my two legs her scent became stronger and a source of motivation, "she's not too far ahead", my wolf said enjoying the chase "but she seems weak if we can easily catch up to her on two legs while she's on four" I replied smugly.

"Our mate is not weak she just can't outrun us" my wolf growled back at me annoyed, "ok" I replied smiling at the defensive mutt.

I took a sharp turn following my wolf's lead even though I knew that Isn't the path she took, probably a shortcut.

I crashed into her from the left just before she jumped over a fallen log, "mate" I growled dangerously low, I stood up to allow her crumpled form to stand.

"Shift" I commanded

She stood up shakily on all four, she look at me with her wide brown eyes and whimpered, lowering herself to the ground in a submissive pose, I heard footsteps behind me. And caught a whiff of my Gamma scent, Boar must have linked him. He moved to my right side just as Boar arrived and took the left flunking me.

"I don't need a bloody army to tame my mate", I linked them annoyed but they ignored me, I focused back on my mate.

Her eyes darted beside me at the two idiots and she raised back on her hind legs ready to lunch in the opposite direction, my wolf saw red, and I pounced. knowing she's ready to make a run for it again.

I caught her before she can escape, and before I can stop it my canines elongated and sunk deep into her neck claiming her wolf "mine" my wolf growled in my head knowing he'd find himself worthy of the claim after the chase.

I retrieved back my canines, and the heaven spit out another downpour, and as the first drops of water landed on the ground my mate took off and ran into the woods, I stood there Stunned, before finally chasing after her with the rain pouring down in heavy torrent washing away her scent.