Biting their mate

"Alright, fated or not, you're not bad company," I tell her and give her a playful smile.

A growl vibrates through the room and my attention whips towards the feral sound, where I see a male grabbing a female from behind. He has fiery red hair and his eyes are flashing blue, the wolf predator lurking underneath his human form vying for control as his canines elongate.

I tense, remnants of my own experience from a werewolf's bite bringing me to a dark place before I snap back to reality. From above, I can't see the woman's face behind her curtain of blonde hair to know if she needs help, so I start to move forward and walk downstairs to the dance floor to make sure. I realize I'm too far to be of use when his sharp teeth descend on the woman's neck and bite deeply into her skin.

Oh, no. No no no.

The distressed trill repeats in my head until her savage scream puts me into action and I rush forward towards the stairs. A moment later, a strong tug has me looking back to see Teo trying to pull me back.

"Layla, wait - look!" She breathes, motioning for me to stop and watch. The woman reaches behind and grabs him by the hair, but rather than fighting him off, she seems to be pulling him closer. Her scream tapers off into a moan of pleasure, and I glance at Teo in confusion and see that she is smiling while watching with a wistful look on her bright face.

A howl sounds somewhere in the room and soon it is joined by a few more. Before I know it, the sound grows as nearly everyone howls in enjoyment, raising their glasses in salute to the couple wrapped in an embrace on the dance floor.

"Remember how I mentioned most come here looking for their mates?" Teo speaks while my eyes scan the room to see the many smiles that I don't understand. I give her an absent nod in answer. "Looks like they found each other and he couldn't wait to mark her," she gives a shrug and her smile widens, happiness lighting her face.

"I don't know much about mates," I say in a low voice, shy that I don't know what's going on.

"Right, of course" Teo shakes her head. "Wolves mate for life, and the moon helps us identify our potential mates. You'll know when you have met a potential mate based on the deep attraction and connection, not to mention the pull you will feel to be near each other. To touch each other," she adds with a wink before tilting her head towards the newly mated couple. "It's an unexpected but pivotal moment when you meet your mate, and when you're lucky enough to form the mate bond with another, it will be earth-shattering. Your heart will be laid bare, your bones exposed.. It's a raw, unrelenting connection to a kindred spirit that goes further than love," she ends on a sigh.

"Is that a werewolf thing? I mean, human marriages don't sound quite as profound as what you're describing." Don't get me wrong, humans do love each other and love deeply, but what Teo is talking about sounds entirely different.

"It is,�� she confirms. "Humans love each other but they can't bond to another's soul or being. Some supernatural species have various versions of the mate bond, some have more than one mate and instead have harem or polyamory relationships. It varies. For werewolves, you usually only have one potential mate, but in some instances there can be more than one person you feel the mate pull to. The moon lets us choose, choose who to be with and who to form the mate bond to. It's rare, but some will reject their mate in favor of another choice, or atleast the perceived possibility of one."

"Having choices seems counterintuitive to the concept of fate, don't you think?" Teo looks thoughtful about my question and takes a moment before responding.

"I suppose, but even with fate nothing is set in stone. We can have more than one fate, and our choices lead us down different roads that can take us to our predestined destinations. Who knows?."

"Still sounds like a bunch of nonsense to me." Teo shakes her head at my answer.

"Oh come on, you have felt the moon - you know that things are not as simple as you once believed and that there are forces out there that cannot be easily explained or understood."

"That's true. Have you met your mate?" I ask curiously.

"No," she snorts. "But I will. You will too," she adds, and I pump the brakes on my thoughts before it can spiral into more possibilities.

There are howls still ringing out in the room and I see the couple starting to take off their clothes. My gaze travels the dancing and writhing crowd as I see more people tugging off their own clothing. Torches I didn't pay much attention to before seem to give off a brighter glow, flickering in tune to the bass of the drums sounding throughout the room. A flash of blonde hair and a quick glimpse of a male's sharp profile feels distantly familiar for a moment, but I'm not able to pinpoint where I have seen them before and I go back to watching the carnal celebration below me.

"That's a lot of nudity," I mutter, causing Teodora to laugh.

"Yeah, babe. There's a lot of nudity here. There's another part to the mating...well, besides the actually 'mating'. That comes after," she says, distracting herself before continuing. "Before they do the deed it's traditional for their wolves to come out and meet each other during the Trcati - the Run of the Wolves. It's just as important for their wolves to have the chance to bond, and many will join them in the run. Wolves are pack animals, after all. Come, let me show you," she says and we both leave our empty glasses behind and we walk downstairs. Weaving in and out of the crowd, Teo leads me towards the back of the room.

The flashing lights have died down, turning a night club into a sensous revelry. There's nothing but the fire of the torchlights to lead our way, the scintillation of the flames thrumming with the bass of the music permeating through my bones. The orange and red glow reflecting on the skin of those lost to the sounds and their movements. Lips are parted in pleasure, heads thrown back and eyes closed while swaying with their partner.

Many run their hands down my arm or brush my waist as we pass them in the crowd, the touch of their skin calling to me in a way I haven't felt before. Teo gives me a smirk as though she feels it too, but we don't stop and continue to make our way through the crowd.

I see another face that seems familiar, and my feet stop moving for a second as the face finally clicks in my memories. She is one of Audrey's friends that have been giving me a hard time. She has short brown hair and brown eyes, if I remember correctly, and she's dancing with a male that also has brown hair. He is running his lips up her neck before capturing her mouth in an ardent kiss. From what I can see, he doesn't look familiar but he does seem to be our age so he could be from the academy too.

I pull my gaze from them, not wanting to feel like a creep. Teo brings me through one of the doors I noticed earlier and we squeeze our way through and follow a small crowd through it. A wall of fresh air smacks me in the face, and I take a long draw to inflate my lungs and clear the recesses of my mind. I lift the locks of hair off the back of my neck, letting the cool breeze bring down my temperature while I survey the crowd.

The very, very naked crowd.