Kaya
I freeze, my mind spiralling as if the entire world has been turned upside down right now. Mistfall is the pack I grew up in. Mistfall is the pack I ran away from.
And now, its Luna is gone.
"What’s wrong?" Sam’s voice cuts through my thoughts, catching a little off-balance. "Don’t worry about it," she then tries to reassure as she places her hand on my back and guides to an available table in the corner of the dining room.
"We have co across a lot of similar cases in the last several years," she continues once we’re seated, pushing a cup of coffee toward . "It’s a strange occurrence, but the continuous disappearance of the female wolves has beco a bad norm for us now. It’s the first ti a pack’s Luna is involved, though. Strange."
I listen to her voice, my fingers wrapped around the coffee mug as my thoughts continue reeling. Yes, I am aware of that. And Samantha is right––it’s the first ti a pack’s Luna is involved. However horrible she might be.
"Hey," she snaps her fingers in front of my face, effectively yanking out of my trance once again. "What’s wrong, really? Do you know soone from that pack?"
"Yes," I nod without hesitation. ". I grew up in Mistfall."
"Oh," Sam recoils a little, probably scolding herself for being a little too straightforward. "I thought you ca here from Dark Wood, though?"
I nod again. "Yeah, I... Alpha Damien took in when I was fifteen."
"Well," she tries to sound softer now, but I honestly don’t really need that. I hated that pack, I still do. But still, sothing deep inside trembles at the thought––what the hell is really happening out there?
"Alpha Magnus will take care of it," Sam nods slowly as if half-debating her own words. "Now that things have escalated like this..."
She trails off, watching lazily twirl my spoon in my right hand. There is a full bowl of fresh porridge right in front of ––I can sll honey and cinnamon inside, so nuts and dried berries, too, but I have no appetite.
"Hey," Samantha draws my attention again, her eyes narrowed with concern. "Eat up. We have a training session after!"
"What?" I nearly drop my spoon in shock. "What training?"
"Oh, that was the sole reason I was looking for you!" She scratches the back of her head sowhat awkwardly, though her smile is still as sincere as always. "Alpha Magnus assigned as your personal trainer! From now on, instead of training with the rest of the packmates, you will be training separately with ."
I’m not sure how I feel about this. On one hand, I feel exhilarated to get back to training again, but on the other hand... private sessions? Favorite. That’s what the Alpha’s Favorite gets.
"Hey," Samantha frowns again. "I know what you’re thinking, but this is normal, got it? Don’t think much of it and just train. Once you get a lot stronger, no one will be able to say a word."
Sowhow, Samantha’s words do find their way into my heart, and before I can even realize it, I already feel better.
She’s right; who cares what others think? I am a mber of this pack now. My job is to be strong, so this is precisely what I’ll be. Eventually.
"That’s right," Sam’s voice brightens up when I start swallowing my porridge at the risk of choking on it. "Fill up. My workout sessions will definitely squeeze you dry!"
Ugh, I don’t like the sound of that!
***
Both Samantha and I were right. Sam was right to warn , and I was right not to take that warning lightly.
During the three hours of our first training session, I felt like I had to use the muscles I did not even know I had. Stretching, squats, push-ups, pull-ups, whatever ups and downs there were––it felt like I had to do them all.
When she finally told that we were going to finish off with two laps around the training grounds, I almost wept. Not because I was scared of running, but because I was ready to accept the sweet release of death that even one lap could finally bring .
"So, how are you doing?" Samantha hovers over with a strangely pleased smile as she hands a bottle of water.
I accept it silently, although I do struggle to suppress a groan that threatens to escape my lips when I lift my arm. She snorts, taking a seat beside while I am sprawled on the cold wooden floor of the resting area.
"I have to hand it to you," she continues, "I did not think you would last till the end. I saw resignation bubbling behind your eyes, but you still kept going. You have my respect for that."
I want to nod, but I no longer have any control over my tired muscles. And I know that it will be even worse tomorrow. So I just lift the corners of my mouth and pray that what I have there is a smile and not a scowl.
"Thank you," I manage sohow, the words nearly getting buried inside the loud exhale that accompanies them.
"Thank ?" Samantha raises a brow. "What for?"
"For doing this," I explain. "You don’t have to do it, but you still agreed. I really appreciate that."
She laughs, slapping my shoulder playfully, though the impact still sends a wave of pain through it. "You’ll thank when you can run around the forest faster than I do! For now, I am just helping a friend out. You’d do that, too, if the roles were reversed."
"How do you know that?"
"Hey," Samantha lies down next to , her faint scent enveloping like a comforting blanket. "I have a good eye for people I want to be friends with. That’s why I am not friends with Gloria or her an Girls, you know. And since Alpha Magnus vouches for you... Well, you can’t go against his judgnt for sure. I know you’re a good person, Kaya. I can feel it."
I smile again, though this ti it’s a wider, more genuine emotion.
A good person. A friend. Have I ever been called that before? To Damien, I was a treasure; sothing special that no one else had. Still, even with him, I’ve never felt like I ant more than just a possession.
Who knows, maybe here... I can truly beco sothing special.
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