My question took Asra aback; the sheer surprise on his face was almost comical. I had never seen him so unexpected by a question before. The man was usually stoic in his responses. He blinked slowly before shaking his head and letting out an exasperated scoff.

"What do you mean, smell the same? Of course, you do." He coughed a laugh.

"On the surface?" I cocked my head. "Or deep down?"

"Tulip, I am not following..." He frowned, eyebrows knitting together.

I sighed, pinching my eyes shut. "Eris said that Arabella was a human of similar blood."

"Yes..."

"Similar does not mean the same," I stated. "Similar means like. She was a human of blood, like mine."

"Right..." His nose scrunched as he peered at me from opposite the desk.

I sighed, exasperated. "So that means she does not have the same blood as me!"

"Tulip... Ailia... Look." Asra sighed. "Eris likes to play games. She likes to taunt."

"But she is also a vampire who has amazing senses with a speciality in blood." I rose an eyebrow.

"Humans have different blood types. They come from different eggs, different sperm. They will not smell exactly the same." He shook his head. "Eris most likely meant nothing by it, I can assure you of that."

I frowned, still not agreeing with his explanation. "Are you sure?"

"Yes, Tulip. As far as I can tell, you smell the same, but now you smell like me, so it is a little different." He shrugged.

"Okay," I sighed. "I suppose you have a point."

"If I noticed anything, I will tell you. Okay?"

A small smile lifted my lips as I agreed verbally with him, but I still disagreed. Eris' words taunted me; and I couldn't help but overthink them. Asra's scent sniffer must be off. Perhaps I needed another dog to have a test run at it.

But even if Eris said it without having meaning, it was the fact she still used those words. She could've just said the human or just the girl, but she had to describe Arabella by her blood. Predator or not, it was a weird way to describe somebody. It was like she knew something I didn't.

Asra cleared his throat. "Anyway, your sister is in her room."

"Really?" My eyes widened with glee.

"Yes, so I suggest you go find her and both of you cleanse yourself." He sheepishly smiled.

"Oh, I will!" I grinned, jumping from my seat.

I was gone without another goodbye, knowing I would be back in a bit, anyway. I rushed around the house, throwing myself into the death-box without another thought. Impatiently, I waited for it to arrive at her floor before hurrying to her room. The door was open, and a soft murmuring came from inside. As soon as Bella saw me, her tired eyes widened.

Embracing her was like a bucket of water had been dumped on my burning skin. Immediately I felt relief, my shoulders sagging. We didn't hug for long before she was pulling away from me with a grimace.

"What happened?" She wondered.

"I made him come to his senses," I shrugged. "But he is not getting away with it so easily. Come, he needs to apologise."

"Oh no, it's okay." She was quick to shake her head.

I ignored her sudden bashfulness as I led her towards Asra's office. The moment we were face to face with the solid wood, she tried to back away. Grunting at her sudden strength, I pushed the door and dragged her inside.

Asra was frozen at his desk, eyes flickering between the two of us with surprise.

Oh, I was keeping him on his toes today.

"You're back?"

I smirked, forcing Arabella beside me as the door slammed shut behind us. Crossing my arms, I nodded with triumph.

"Yep, sure am."

"Both of you?" He quirked an eyebrow.

"We will not be leaving until we get what we want." I deadpanned.

The other eyebrow also rose before they settled into a mischievous smirk. "Oh yeah? What's that?"

"An apology."

He blinked, unfazed. "What for?"

"You are a clever man. Work it out." I glared.

Asra grumbled, shifting uncomfortably in his seat. I held my expression even as he dropped his gaze to look at my sister with uncertainty. Eventually, he sighed and rose to his feet.

"Arabella, I am sorry."

"For..." I gestured for him to continue.

Blue eyes snapped to mine with irritation, jaw grinding as I forced him to say sorry like a child.

"For imprisoning you."

"Falsely, imprisoning."

He grumbled. "Fully intentional."

I glared back, leaning forward on his desk. "Now say it all together."

The growl deepened before he straightened his spine. Smoothing out his shirt, he held my sister's gaze, and she inhaled sharply at the attention. A sly smirk rose on my cheeks as I leaned on the desk and glanced between the two of them.

"Arabella Thorne, I apologise for imprisoning you when I do not have sufficient evidence you are working against us to take down my pack."

My smirk dropped, my mouth dropping with shock. "Asra!"

He snorted, sitting back down. "I apologise for locking her up, but I do not apologise for what I think. We have spoken about this, Tulip, and I see your ways and you do mine."

"It's okay, thank you, Alpha." Arabella murmured, dropping her eyes.

I sighed, standing upright. "I suppose that is good enough."

"Great, now please, go shower. Your guard will be there shortly."

"Guard?" Arabella wondered.

"You have not told her?" Asra's lips twitched with amusement.

I sneered at him. "Not had the chance to."

"Tell me what?"

I fidgeted by the door, frowning. "You are free to roam and live freely under the eye of a guard."

Her brown eyes narrowed. "A guard? Like I am a child?"

I gave Asra an I-told-you-so look, but he just shrugged and got back to work.

Sighing, I looked at my sister. "Only for a few weeks. It is not your fault, just the circumstances. It's just to make sure you are not secretly plotting to kill me."

She pursed her lips but shrugged. "Okay, I can understand that."

"You can?" My eyes widened.

"Yes, now can we please go shower? I feel gross." She grunted.

I laughed, pulling her into my side. "Thank you."

"Yeah, yeah." She shoved me away. "But they better not watch me get dressed!"

I grinned as we made our way out of the office, proud of my sister for handling it so well. But then again, so did I, and it made me pause when I realised how accustom to strange measures we had become. Anything for peace, I suppose...

***

In the days that followed, Arabella was a free woman

Well, as free as constant baby-sitting duty gave you.

It did not bother Arabella that much, and I gave her complete credit for that. Her days continued like they usually did and despite her aversion to the babysitters, they rarely talked to her. I found myself having breakfast with her sometime on the days she was actually up early. We spoke little, neither of us having much to say. Arabella had always been a night person, but it seems even that had changed a little.

Today was different, not in the sense of friendships, but in routine. I had woken at a later time, being my day off, only to be forced to shower and dress by Serenity.

Waking up to see the half-human waltz into my room was unusual, but it appeared someone had given her strict orders today. Asra was nowhere to be seen, having left our room unlocked, which wasn't unusual lately. Ever since we guessed the threat of Eris being against us, he was working constantly.

If he wasn't in his office, he was meeting with wolves from other packs who may have sightings. I barely saw him, but tonight, he could not get away from me. Because tonight was the damn ball.

Huffing, I eyed the clothes that Serenity had ready for me. Apart from the standard comfy undies, there was no bra, nor bottoms. I didn't mind wearing a dress, but this one hardly looked appropriate for travelling in a car. Especially for...

"How long is this journey again?" I asked her.

"Six hours," she chirped.

I let out a low whistle, eying the tight blue dress. "I would rather go naked."

"I was told you have to dress appropriately for when you arrive." She winced.

"Of course," I muttered. "Appearances right?"

"Luna..." she began, but changed her tone at my words. "Ailia, you are the luna, so it is expected. And for me... it is an honour to aid you."

Smiling softly at her, I picked the dress up. "I know, I know. I just don't like transportation at the best of times."

She laughed softly, turning abruptly when I dropped the towel. Rolling my eyes, I pulled on my underwear and then the dress. It was snug to my hips, and I frowned when I realised how little I could sprawl out in the car.

"Well, how do I look?" I gestured.

Serenity turned around, beaming at me. "Just your hair."

"Hair? In a car?"

"Just something simple, honestly."

I frowned as she dragged me to the bathroom. She disappeared for a second, only to come back with a chair and push me into it. Serenity had become bold, and I rather liked it. I could feel her excitement bubbling over like a pot. This really must've been an honour.

As she brushed my hair, I stared at her in the mirror. Her eyes caught sight of my silver mate mark, eyebrows furrowing as the brush slowed. She blinked rapidly, softly shaking her head before continuing.

I was right in thinking the silver was weird.

Asra must be a mutated dog.

"Do you often do hair and... stuff?" I wondered.

She grinned, shaking her head. "My mother was the previous Luna's maiden."

"Oh?" I frowned. "Maiden? Is that was this is?"

Serenity's brown eyes were amused. "Alpha Asra was never the blood of this pack. It took him a lot to gain some people's respect. He earned his title as Continental Alpha, and with that came some pack members from different places..."

"I know," I mumbled.

I remembered how Asra said rogues killed half of his pack. If his father ever came near me, I would gladly give him a piece of my mind. You make a commitment to your pack, to your extended family, to protect them and he failed. Asra stepped up and got them out of that situation.

"Anyway, the alpha before him was Alpha Edward and Luna Jamie," Serenity began. "My mother was her maiden, born of a lower status, she catered to Luna Jamie's wellbeing and appearance. Around thirty years ago, the luna passed away. My mother lost her position and became a housemaid for a few years."

"What happened after that?" I wondered.

French-plaiting my hair, she frowned. "The alpha's son was to take over, but he died in battle against rogues about six years after his mother's passing. He wasn't very old, and his emotions were his downfall. That's what got him killed."

"Oh, I'm sorry." I grimaced. "Those rogues never stop, do they?"

She shook her head. "Alpha Edward didn't take it well; but... Alpha Asra became our alpha about fourteen or fifteen years ago. Alpha Edward did not want to survive, but he would not give in so easily. He had to go down with some honour."

I smiled sadly. "He sounds like a great alpha."

"He was," she nodded, tying the ends of my hair with elastic bands. "All done."

"Thank you." I met her eyes, and she bowed her head.

"If I can be anything like my mother, I am happy to help." She gushed.

"Is she still around?" I wondered.

She shook her head. "Just my dad."

I accepted her short answer, standing from my chair. Serenity was quick to push me back down, demanding I had to go through make-up. I insisted I could do it myself, but she wouldn't let me. She kept it simple, hovering in front of me so I couldn't see what was happening.

"Tell me something else." I mumbled, my eyes fluttering shut.

"Like what?" She wondered.

"Anything about your pack, your family..."

"I have a brother," she hummed. "He's a patrol guard."

"A patrol guard? That's a good position. How did he get that?" I asked, curious.

"Half-breed wolves can have a mix of genetics, and his were strong enough that he could shift." She muttered. "Whereas I only have the senses and cannot shift."

"Oh, I didn't know that."

"Yeah, half-breeds seem to be multiplying." She laughed softly. "There's quite a lot of us, all with different ratios of wolf and human. Some never show wolf symptoms at all."

I hummed, my mind suddenly tilting to another universe.

"Do you know anything about mate bonds, Serenity?"

"A little," she chirped. "What did you want to know?"

"Mates can share life bonds, right?" I peaked one eye open only to have her scowl and force it shut with a brush. "That's why so many mates lose their minds or sometimes their hearts give out when one mate dies?"

"Yeah, that's right." She agreed. "It's stronger in wolves. Human mates can move on better. They just age normally once the wolf counterpart has died."

"Is that what happened to your father?" I wondered.

"Yeah, my dad is in his forties, at last." She snorted before her voice became soft. "My mother...died around eight years ago, and he started aging then."

"So he didn't gain any wolf abilities at all?"

"Nope, humans don't tend to." She clicked her tongue. "Think of it this way. The moon and her goddess blessed the magic in a mate bond. It connects two souls from creation, and they can only become one when they claim the other wholly. Only from then do they share the same life bond. Figuratively, they are two halves of a soul, or a heart, and become one, living as one."

"I see..." I mumbled.

"Okay, I'm done!" She giggled, and I opened my eyes.

I admired Serenity's handiwork with a broad grin, happy with the soft make-up pallette she used. She uttered I was going to have more put on later and my hair changed, ready for the ball, so this look was only temporary.

Despite her nervous ramblings, I couldn't help but focus on what she previously said. If humans experienced the mate bond so differently, then why was I suddenly super sharp in the senses department? Questions swirled my mind, ones that I had no genuine answers to.

Why did I have good senses after marking Asra when I was human?

Why was our mark silver?

What Eris said played in my mind, circling me back to her points. Similar blood.

Was I... even a human?

Something swirled anxiously in my gut, and it wasn't my lack of breakfast.

*****
Hey all, sorry I've not left my authors notes.
I have so damn busy with life and working hard to get 7 books written, edited etc whilst also being a mum of two, keeping family happy, attending kids clubs, stressing about money and the future, and having "work" outside of Wattpad - I'm a volunteer so it doesn't get paid either for the amount of effort 😂 it gets tough and tiresome and this world can be so stressful and crap, but thank goodness for Wattpad's new automatic posting feature. Otherwise I'd probs forget half the shiz I'm meant to post 😂

So anyway, how you doing? How's your 2024 gone so far?

A gentle reminder this book is complete on my Patreon, (users in the banner below) and book 3 is half way through. I also have exclusivebonus content on there for all 3 books, and have a brand new series launched this week on there! The sample is on Wattpad rn - Gemoira - but if you're down, I'm down! ❤️🙌 love to you all I hope life is good for you, I really do.