homework

I sat sipping my coffee at our local coffee shop as I read up on our pack history, one of the assignments I had to answer questions for homework. Our pack is well known as a very powerful and wealthy pack, but very secluded. We keep to ourselves and rarely go outside of our pack to look for help. This is information that most of us understood as good and normal. We liked to keep to ourselves, well most of us.

The biggest problem with keeping to ourselves is mates. In the last five generations our alpha hasn't been able to find his true mate. Also information that was common knowledge, but the rumor around that was because our alpha family refused to allow anyone to go outside of our pack to find mates. We could look for our mate in our pack but not outside, and if we did we would be banished from our pack. For our alpha to be he had always mated with the beta's eldest daughter and a new beta was picked and life went on as if this was normal.

The next alpha will be becoming of age to take over our pack, but before he can do that he needs to choose a mate and complete the mating process. That's where I come in.

My name is Astrid, the first born daughter to my father, the beta of our pack. I will be turning 18 tomorrow and my gift is to be mated to the future Alpha, Huxley. Hux and I have known since we were both young that we were to be mates. All throughout elementary school we were close, and middle school we were close, but not because of our own choice. When high school came around both of us wanted nothing to do with the stupid tradition, so we secretly broke off our relationship. We agreed that we could see other people, but when we were with our parents we were a happy couple.

It felt wrong to lie to our parents about it at first, but Huxley was happier this way, and past year he said he felt his true mate pull. He thinks that she might be part of the pack and promised that if he could find her before my 18th birthday that I was free to be with whomever I chose. Hux was lucky to be able to have a few years to look for his mate, once I turn 18 I will have no other choice other than to mate Hux if he can't find his true mate, which he hasn't found her yet. It would be a miracle if he found her before tomorrow.

"Hey Trid!" I looked up and saw an excited Huxley burst through the door. His all too perfect smile shining bright as he rushed over to me. He sat down in a huff and panted as if he had been running for miles.

"Take a breather Hux, where's the fire?"

He grabbed my lemonade and chugged what was left as if it was his.

"You'll never believe what just happened!" He sounded so excited as he whispered to me leaning over the table.

"Well, don't hold me in suspense, what happened?" I closed my history book, knowing there was no way I was getting back to that anytime soon.

"Dad decided to join an alliance with two neighboring packs. He also said that with this alliance we can now find mates in these packs."

"That's great news, but you could have waited to tell me this, so?"

"Well, as you know, I went with my dad to meet one of the Alpha's of one of the packs we will have an alliance with and I shit you not," he paused and took in a deep breath and in a rush of words finished with, "I found my mate. She's a year younger than me and so beautiful. She's smart too, knows all about strategy, rogue attacks and how to defend against the, she's a good fighter as well and guess what?"

"Hux, did you mate with her?" I needed to know this, if he did then I was free to be with whomever I chose.

"No, not yet. She is coming here with her father, the alpha of the pack we visited, and tomorrow, instead of calling you up I'll call her up."

"Wiat, won't your father be upset that she isn't an ally yet and not a member of the pack? Shouldn't you tell him sooner?"

He shook his head and leaned back.

"If I did that granddad will be furious, but if I do it during the changing of Alpha ceremony, he won't make a scene. I promise that I will make sure you can be free of this stupid forced mating. That's what you want right?"

"Yes, I want to find my true mate just as much as you did, but my wolf still hasn't stirred. I know they don't often awaken for females, but I thought since I was a beta's daughter it would happen. It would be easier to find my mate if I had a wolf like men do." I leaned back and looked out the window and watched as cars drove past and people walked along the sidewalk, as if this wasn't an exciting turn of events day.

"I know," Hux reached over and clasped my hand and squeezed it gently, "I'm sure you'll get it when you turn 18, give it time."

"That was going to be the best part of being your mate ya know," I sighed and smiled slightly.

"Oh, getting your wolf would be the best part, not being Luna or having me as a mate?" He rose his eyebrows and smiled at me.

"I mean this would be nice perks, but I think knowing I would get a wolf was a big part of it. But I guess I can live with being the best