PARTY WITH THE PRINCESS: BEHIND THE SCENES

The moment I stepped out of my room, I was greeted by too many wolves for comfort.

"Alpha Princess is here." My good beta stood at attention immediately.

Next to him, Neil, Jax, Torque, and Ink snapped smartly at attention in single file, "Yo, Princess!"

I stopped at my door at the sight of the warriors lined up outside my bedroom. That "yo princess" thing... that was kind of weird.

Wolfgang apparently thought so too. He winced at the warriors' greeting, but made his bow, "Good evening, Princess."

Fluffy, smiled and bowed from next to him. The both of them were suited as before, but Fluffy's suit had been properly buttoned up and straightened so it was weird seeing them stand next to each other.

"Do you like our new suits, Pretty Alpha?" Fluffy asked, "Hotstuff had insisted upon them."

"Beta Ki had been most efficient at procuring them." Wolfgang commended, "Within the day, your SPECIAL TEAM had their wardrobes upgraded as befitting their station."

What station? But I knew better than to ask lest the answer had anything to do with the secret harem I was apparently keeping. Instead, I decided to pick my battles with Wolfgang. I'll give him this one, "It's very nice."

Both Wolfgang and Fluffy took their bow to receive the compliment. So much for Wolfgang helping Fluffy learn to be normal... on the bright side, maybe all these outdated mannerisms might be just right when Fluffy was returned to his family in the Colored Mountains.

When they straightened, I had to take a second look at how they were perfectly matched - physically anyway.

I had once read a book that described a pair of brothers as "two matching candlesticks on the mantle". I think I understood what that meant now. Both men were blond and of very similar build and height. Wolfgang was a bit broader and his expression stern on default, with blond curls and forest green eyes. Fluffy could've passed for his smiling younger brother, with straight blond hair and cornflower blue eyes. Both guys were obviously good-looking - I would have been blind not to notice, but now dressed in uniformed suits, it was like their good looks had exponentially skyrocketed.

Come to think of it, Bell and Ki had the same matching candlestick styling, but Ki always wore a darker or lighter shade to complement Bell from behind. Come to think of it, my Beta's dark blue suits were matched to the shade of my hair, and the perfect foil behind the creams, whites, and shell pinks that Ki often laid out for me. I had always thought Ki just liked to dress me like the goddess/princess/Lorent girl, but now I realized my outfits had always been carefully styled to stand out in contrast to my betas in the lightest and more feminine way. Ki was a genius.

He might not have the IQ to become the number one hacker (I highly doubt this would be his ambition in the first place), and he might not have the same organized administrative memory that wrote air-tight contracts and never left loose ends hanging, but Ki was a genius.

Now that I had wolves in suits contrasted with the wolves in warrior jackets at attention outside my bedroom door, I realized belatedly that the new formal suit was not only classy on its own, but as a uniform, it added another layer of color among the wolves in my entourage and in that way, broke the monotony of uniformed warriors. I would no longer look like I was always surrounded by a horde of barbarian warriors (even though I was). But a well-cut suit (when worn properly) really transformed a man.

It also differentiated my wolves according to their duties. And as an added bonus, the wolves in suits would have the element of surprise on their side should the push come to a shove and they had to take action. An attacker would focus on taking down the warriors first, they wouldn't realize the suited gentlemen around me were even more deadly. Like I said, Ki was a genius. It's like he had every detail thought through.

It seemed like a lot of extra trouble though.

But according to Wolfgang, the extra trouble was necessary for proper alpha princesses.

Never mind what they were wearing, why were they even here?

Okay, Fluffy was taking me to Abigail's party. So I needed him - or rather, I needed his invitation card. The club was only open to members or by invitation. Abigail had taken special care to inform everyone that her father chose this club because the security was tight. There was no chance of gate crashing the party because you needed the official club invitation to be allowed into the building.

Maybe we needed Harvey to drive us. To be honest, I would feel more at ease if Harvey came. I seriously didn't feel like I could keep an eye on BOTH Fluffy and EJ. In fact, I would totally consider calling out EJ's wolf. I know, I know, the Red Prince was infamous for loving his blood baths, BUT as far as I could tell, EJ's wolf was far more sensible than EJ!

Talking about EJ, "Where's EJ?"

"He's picking up his date, Alpha." Harvey informed him, "I've lent him one of the twin benzes. Cobra would be driving him."

Oh. I narrowed my eyes, "Why Cobra?"

Cobra had a very particular skill set... which wasn't exactly chauffeur skills. Were we shorthanded, and he was the only one with a valid driver's license?

Harvey winced a little, "He will be part of your security detail tonight, Alpha."

There were 7 men in this room. But my security detail tonight required 20 fully trained warriors, sent in three waves.

WAVE 1 was Delta Hiram and ten warriors who had been dispatched earlier and had since secured the perimeter.

"Who?" I had never heard of him.

"Ram." Fluffy explained, "His fight dog name was the Sandman."

Of course, I wouldn't know. Did I look old enough to watch a fight cage? I'll just take it that he's one of the ex-fightdogs in the underground army.

Ram and his men were on the perimeter patrol.

EJ, his date (Krystal), and Cobra were WAVE 2. Cobra would drop them off at the club and "disappear". EJ would use his invitation to get himself (and his date) into the party. EJ and Cobra were the assassins.

"Why do I need assassins in my security detail?" I interrupted.

"A good offense is the best defense, pretty alpha." Fluffy explained. Wolfgang nodded like that was exactly right.

I looked to my good beta. Surely Harvey could see this was overkill! But Harvey didn't look like he saw a problem with this arrangement.

It was Fluffy who explained, "Since Pretty Alpha dislikes collateral casualties, it is imperative that any threat be nullified immediately and completely."

Well, yes... but also... I felt a little sorry for anyone who might decide to threaten me with these guys around.

WAVE 3 would be my actual entourage. We would travel together to the club where Fluffy will use his invitation to get himself and his date (me) in. Harvey had a gold member's card. He will let himself and the other four warriors into the club. They'll be on standby in the building.

"It's actually just a sub card from my Dad's membership." Harvey explained modestly. Because Beta Gerald had a lot of business meetings at the Gold Packlands while The Langston 2.0 was being built and the country club was conveniently located on the same street as the hotel's building site.

Right, because Beta Gerald was also Mr Langston of The Langston.

I should be quite safe with Fluffy by my side, EJ nearby, and Cobra watching from the shadows.

"Seriously, guys..." I sighed, "You guys will probably be the greatest danger in the building."

"One can never be too careful these days." Wolfgang shrugged it off, "Even the hunters are showing their faces in broad daylight."

It wasn't so much the words but his tone that reminded me how wolves hated hunters. Ki was most unfriendly towards them earlier today too. Vampires, Rogues, and Hunters - they were the worst of the worst. At least, that was what I had thought since young. Tessa seemed nice though. Maybe a little unlucky when it came to rogue vamp encounters. I didn't think a rogue vamp was a common occurrence so losing not one, but two mothers to a rogue vamp attack did seem unrealistic. Like being hit by lightning twice. I wondered if her dad's work had anything to do with it. What if the rogue vamp attacks were all revenge attempts? The way the "Rogue Councilman" was seeking revenge for the murder of his spawn?

"What's happening?" Wolfgang demanded, "Why does she keep doing that?"

Harvey grimaced a bit, "Ben said she did that yesterday night too. He thinks she's burning wolf power."

"I can tell she's utilizing her wolf power, but what is she powering?" Wolfgang sounded miffed to have his intelligence insulted.

Harvey shrugged haplessly, "This... we have no idea. It's a new development."

I felt my hair settle around me.

"What did you just do, pretty alpha?" Fluffy decided to get the answer from the horse's mouth.

"I was just thinking." I tried to wave it off like I did last night.

But my good beta figured it out, "Gift of insight."

"How did you know? Do you have it too?" Now I tried to joke it off.

Harvey shook his head, "I guessed. Congratulations on your latest evolution, Alpha."

This was how I found out that my hair flared and I zoned out completely whenever I used my gift of insight now.

On the inside, I suddenly knew or understood things that would never have occurred to me before.

On the outside, I looked like I was experiencing a power overload. Like my hair would flare, my alpha wolf would surface its dominance so that no one could come close without coming under its crushing pressure, and I'd blank out with my eyes opened.

"May I suggest only exercising this gift in private, Princess?" Wolfgang said.

"Why? Did it look very freaky?" I suddenly felt self-conscious about it. Did I look possessed? Did I look like I was suffering a stroke? Or worse, make some kind of cringe expression?

"I meant as a safety precaution, Princess." Wolfgang clarified, "It seems you become unconscious of your surroundings when manifesting your gift. Also, it appears to be a power-intensive ability. It would be prudent to pace yourself and perhaps allocate a safe time and place where you might recuperate after."

I shook my head, "You don't have to worry. I'm not anywhere close to running out of power."

Had he seen how my mate slugged my power on multiple and repeated resurrections? Compared to that, using my gift of insight barely made a dent - at most, it was like having to carry all my betas through a dream travel and back again. Which I did before too... and promptly fell asleep upon returning. But that was before, I've grown stronger since.

But Wolfgang didn't say I did NOT look freaky, so just in case, I decided I better reserve my new "manifestation" look to the privacy of my own room from now on. Sigh. It had been nice knowing things and not being "slow" while it lasted.

Harvey checked his watch, "The car is waiting, Alpha."

I nodded and let him lead me down the stairs.

"Please open your mindlinks, Princess." Wolfgang instructed.

So I did, and Wolfgang gave me last-minute instructions for my party later. Abigail's father was a self-made businessman. He started his career as a mattress salesman but was now the CEO of Gold Cloud Inc. The greatest makers of mattresses for that perfect sleep.

Who needed the gift of insight when I had Wolfgang?

We should expect paparazzi at the entrance steps since the Young Alpha Henry would be in attendance. Apparently, Henry had a rep of always having a new pretty girl on his arm at every event, and the paparazzi made it their job to document every appearance so that the LNC could analyze the different girls in detail, make note of every time a girl is repeated, and discuss what it could all mean.

It meant your future alpha was a playboy. I think that much was obvious!

Furthermore, a few other young betas were expected at the human girl's party. Naturally, this would draw some media attention.

Once through the entrance, the place should be largely paparazzi free - notice how it wasn't absolute at all.

The party would be held on the rooftop of the main building of the club. There's an outdoor pool, but obviously, there will be no swimming there in this weather. Wolfgang expected that the party reception would be held here though. Especially since there was a rather nice bar by the pool. There was also an indoor pool facility with fully serviced changing and shower rooms (this meant there were toiletries and service staff available to assist you.) Should I wish to swim, I may collect a towel and flip-flops from the pool counter and head in.

On the other side of the pool, there was a glass-encased hall. This would probably be where the buffet tables would be laid out. Abigail's father and grown-up relatives and perhaps her father's business associates, if they were invited, would most likely gather there. The country club had a strict attire policy, and one was expected to be dressed in business formal to dine. Should I wish to dine, I may leave my coat at the coat counter at the entrance of the glass hall.

I had to say, this information was very helpful.

Wolfgang also expected that some of the adults might approach me to network. Therefore I should be mentally prepared, but all I had to do was politely respond to their greeting. It was Fluffy's job to just as politely excuse us. At any rate, the Young Alpha Henry would also be there and the networking adults would more likely attempt to approach him. I wasn't going to take offense at this. That's good. They should go bother Henry instead of me.

And lastly, I should bring a heavy coat. By now, we had reached the pool room. Fluffy held up a white woolen coat, "I've got it."

"That's going to be way too warm." I said. Actually, I didn't need a jacket.

"Better warm than sorry." Fluffy beamed, "There's an extra coat in the car too."

Wait, was Fluffy seriously worried about me being cold? I frowned trying to make sense of it (without my gift of insight.)

"I could lend you my coat, but I prefer not to be tortured and drowned in the pool when I get home." Fluffy looked way too happy when he announced this though. It sounded more like he was playing a game of taboo now. Okay, knowing Fluffy, he was trying to tell me something without telling me. Probably because he wasn't supposed to tell me.

I was really hopeless at getting subtle or even not-so-subtle hints, but I did connect it when I noticed how everyone looked pitifully at Wolfgang.

"It didn't hurt." Wolfgang lied and then he tried to shrug it off, "As you can see, I am perfectly well."

Right now, yeah, you looked fine, but what could have happened? No, don't tell me...

Bell.

{Mate! ~ ❤️} Please disregard my dumbass wolf.

It had to be Bell.