Lydia's POV:

That scene I knew so well laid before me.

This endless plain, the dark starless sky. Everything I was used to being accounted for.

I stood motionless for a few moments, longer than I ever had before.

All of the times before this I followed the regimen I'd discovered just to get me out of the dream I'd deemed a nuisance the quickest.

This time everything felt different. I'd been granted so many answers pertaining to this in such a short amount of time, and now that I was here again, I was almost hesitant to face the main part of it.

Seeing it now... Knowing what it was, what this all meant.

My hand rose cautiously to my chest, feeling the excitedly nervous thumping beneath.

There was a firm difference in what was happening now compared to other 'normal' dreams I've had.

An awareness you couldn't get even while lucid dreaming.

I drew out a calming breath, finally turning to the right as I always had.

Part of me was prepared just to see the wolf as I always had. Still, unresponsive, laying in that same spot atop the flat surface of a boulder.

But instead, I got met with that same golden stare as last time, laying with its- with her head lifted.

For what felt like forever, we just stared. Every semblance of information Luka or Eren had given to me up until now running as a replay in my mind.

This time, she did blink. Just as normally as any other wolf should.

I could see the twitching of her nose, seemingly catching my scent, and her ear flicking.

Otherwise, she was just as motionless.

This was her. This was me!

I took a steady step closer, that fear from the last time she had her eyes open nowhere to be seen.

Her ears pointed upwards in attention at my movement as if she was surprised.

Should I talk? Do I need to talk? If she's me- or a part of me I need to awaken, then aren't her thoughts mine?

God, there was still so much I didn't understand.

"I have no idea what I'm doing," I admitted under my breath, and yet it echoed through the space as if I was speaking it directly into my own ears.

I took another step, and then a few more, pausing only when she began to move.

About four feet from the boulder was when she started to get her paws up under her.

Each action looked somewhat stiff, fumbling like a newborn filly up onto her feet.

For the first time...

A big huff blew through her nose, eyes lifting to me again.

She was much bigger standing up than I'd ever previously given her credit for, that fact growing further when she approached further.

Paws skimming the sides of the rock, inching her way down before just jumping from it.

Standing before me now, she was big. Not quite as large as Luka's wolf, but definitely up there.

She shook off, thick copper fur waving still after she settled, peering up at me with those pupil-less golden eyes.

Staring back, I was surprised to find that deep down there was a sense of... understanding. Of belonging.

Relief embedded in understanding what this was. Why she was here. All with a deeply rooted gratitude that she got me here.

That she lead Luka to me, kickstarting this whole process.

My hand rose carefully towards her, watching her meet me halfway with another step, my hand skimming the soft fur between her ears.

Immediately there was a wave of crackling energy snapping through me, yanking me further into that satisfaction and acknowledgment that this was where I was meant to be.

Different from the mate bond, but arguably just as powerful.

Wow...

Her tail began to languidly sway, nose going wild with those sniffs as I further closed the space. She was soon circling me, investigating me in the same way I wished to see her.

Sneaking little licks across my arms, pawing at my legs and feet, rubbing her face against my sides.

We both had a knack for curiosity it seemed. I think we were going to get along well.

A soft laugh bubbled from my throat at her actions mixed with all the new feelings they came with.

For the first time in my life, I pleaded with my mind to keep this dream going as long as I possibly could.

~~~

Luka's POV:

I took my place seated on the edge the cliff that backed my home. Placed on the left of the river that fell into a waterfall.

Over the years that we built this pack, I grew to favor this spot.

The view was unbeatable, being able to see the members of my pack awake from the freshly risen sun or some return after an eventful nightly hunt.

Catching the few tending to the fields and spotting Lydia's horse further out in the pasture there.

The light breeze was welcomed by my skin still damp with sweat from my morning perimeter check, and the cold snowmelt runoff from the river was even more appreciated when splashed over my face.

I glanced down at my home, searching for any sign that Lydia had woken up yet.

She was, understandably, still asleep when I awoke, but I wanted to catch her when she did to make her a meal.

Or even better make one together.

My heart fluttered at the thought just as it did when I was young and daydreamed about the things I would do with my mate for hours on end.

Decades of daydreams and plans my wolf wanted to jump right into and I was left having to reign back.

'Baby steps' I told myself, coaxing it back into calm 'one thing at a time'.

I blew out a long breath, leaning back against my arms for support.

Glancing down and enjoying the sight of a few pups taking dips in the river, Eren being the one to make sure that none of them got too rowdy and played fairly in their games.

Milo was further down, but still in eyeshot of his mate, checking in with the tired parents and making sure that everyone was doing well with the change in season.

I'd need to get up and do the same here fairly soon, as well as take inventory for the food storage we have left.

There's a trader who frequents our pack- or 'village of strange wolf tamers' as he calls it to take food in exchange for other materials or farm animals.

Apparently, no one grows food quite as well as us, and since we never agree to trade our 'tamed beasts' he settles for just food.

But, I'll get to that after my mate wakes up and I have her taken care of and set for the day.

Let her decide who she wishes to accompany, or if she'd like to simply go off on her own to explore on her own terms.

Only one of those options rose a concern, the reason being-

My thoughts turned at the sight of white and blonde hair rounding up the steady incline in the mountain that lead to this spot atop the waterfall.

Speak of the devil.

I kept her in the corner of my eye, taking another moment to calm my wolf for a different reason.

I knew that she'd hunt me down here soon after Lydia's Arrival, but that didn't make the sight of her approaching any more welcoming.

I knew what this was about. I knew her concerns and was well aware of how she already felt about it.

But she should know as much as the rest of us that you can't compete with a mate bond, and she was absolutely aware of how long I've waited and how much I'd been pleading for the day I'd find mine.

"Luka!" She called as soon as she was close enough, leading me to roll my head to face her.

Oh yeah. She was not pleased.

"We need to talk," There was already a sharp edge to each of her words, her hands finding her hips.

"I really don't think that we do," I replied, "I found my mate, and now she's here. There's nothing to discuss."

She glared down at where I was sitting

"And how exactly is this going to affect our deal?"

"Deal?" I nearly laughed, "That wasn't a deal. Not one that I ever agreed to at least. It was purely an idea that you fabricated and ran with,"

For decades now. It was bout time that it got shut down.

"You can't just take that away from me. Need I remind you that I was born to be an alpha female, It's my birth right!"

I rolled my eyes at the statement that was once true.

"It was your 'mate right' if anything, and obviously not something Luna deemed you fit for any longer given the circumstances."

My words struck a visual nerve in her, and one in me that I think I succeeded in supressing.

It still hurt regardless, but it was true.

I didn't like talking about this, and it was all she would ever talk about when she was nearby.

"How dare you. What would your brother-"

"Dont talk about my brother," I warned, dealing the anger surge into my blood, "You have no right to speak about any of them."

"I have every right to speak about my mate!" She rebutted.

"Then you should have died with him like the others did!" A snarl rose from my throat.

The memory, the very thought about that day brought no joy to anyone, and was a very sensitive topic for me and even more so to my wolf.

That battle... If the fight didn't kill them, the agonizing grief from the loss of their mate took them not long after. It took a large chunk of my father's pack. And yet here she still stood.

A fact that I'll never understand.

Ronin, my eldest brother absolutely adored her. The mate bond took over quickly given that we all lived in the same place, clicking together the day she turned 18.

They were inseparable from that day on, and he was the epitome of perfection when it came to being the next alpha of our pack.

She was less so, but she showed improvement as the years passed.

He loved her and that's what most of us cared about. We were happy for them, I was happy for them.

They were our pack's future and they shined with a bright one.

She was meant to be an alpha. Once upon a time.

But that fateful day took a lot from each of us, and from her both her mate and her future title along with him.

She accepted one of those facts but never the other.

"But I didn't," She eased, "And don't pretend like that alone isn't a sign of what I should be doing."

It was a sign of something, but not that.

Her 'idea' was ludicrous and was something she decided was appropriate to start spreading as soon as she learned that the title of alpha fell onto the only member of my family that hadn't yet found his mate.

She spread the idea that when the day came that i 'gave up' my search in finding my mate, that she'd step in. She'd claim the title she would have gotten with my brother as Alpha female.

A title and power she could no longer gain naturely due to his untimely demise, but Luna has been known to make adjustments when requested and wished upon by the people involved.

She could technically make her my alpha female, but she would never be anything more to me.

For the sake of the pack is the only reason Luna would make such adjustments, and even though she did so with a heavy heart.

I knew it would never come to pass. My greatest desire ever since I learned what the word meant was to find my mate. I'd never give that up, and espesicially not to settle for someone previously mated to my brother.

I was young back then, but I wasn't naive.

Even then, when the back needed her most, she never tried to help out with the burdens dropped on me as a new and unprepared Alpha. Instead it was Milo and Eren who took as much of the weight off that they could.

All while she spread the word more and more about the day she'd finally be able to take her title.

I never stopped her, and in hindsight, I should have. But my lack of a mate, of an alpha female, to help lead and guide after such a devastating fight between two packs arose tension and worry.

Her idea gave them hope that I couldn't shoot down, so I let her spread it.

Knowing that when the day came that I did find my mate, all it would do is boost morale and cause for celebration. No one would think twice about the ridiculousness that her idea posed because it was no longer tangible.

All except her.

Through the decades of me being mateless, she's evolved into the theory that my constant lack of a mate meant that it was Luna's way of proving that the alpha female spot was made to be hers.

Going as far as explaining that the only reason she survived the death of Ronin was that this pack needed her.

Then here comes Lydia.

A  strong, stunning, intelligent woman. Perfect in my eyes and even more so when it came to fitting the title that belonged to her if the day came that she accepted all of this and me as her mate.

"This isn't up for discussion Alyssa." I dismissed, turning my head away in hopes it would help the building tension in my chest.

Give her the chance to walk away before it got any worse.

I had resentment towards. I had anger, and how with Lydia here I had the instinct to protect with any means necessary but I'd never use that against a member of my pack.

If not for Alyssa specifically, then out of respect for Ronin.

I refused to be that kind of Alpha.

"Well, it should be," She pressed anyways, "What kind of Alpha female can't even shift? Doesn't know a damn thing about us to begin with? Hell, Luka, she hasn't even accepted you yet!"

I involuntarily flinched at the reminder.

I did make an announcement through my mental link the morning I brought her here. Explaining her situation for the soul purpose of warning the pack not crowd her with questions or expectations.

Explaining that she'd need time to take it all in. That I couldn't promise them anything, but for now, she was here.

And they responded with congratulations and excited understanding. Most of them.

"Don't make shitty assumptions because of her upbringing. She didn't get the luxury of being born into our lifestyle like the rest of us did. It's going to take time, but that's nothing we're lacking in right now."

She just kept going, lot listening to a word I was saying.

"And what if something happens? How is she going to be of any help when she's useless to us!?"

My jaw clamped shut, hard, hands balling in the grass.

I could feel the gnashing teeth begging to be released to fight for her honor.

Left again to ease myself with the knowledge that her words truly held no weight. She knew nothing about Lydia.

About how curious and insistent of learning she's been ever since I first introduced it. The pack, our history, our biology, our god, she'd even mentioned wanting me to train her in how we sparred.

And, as I learned yesterday, she was quite good with a knife.

She was perfect, already engaging well with my friends and the rest of the pack, her eager questions. Just the way she looked at this place I could see the potential she'd bring to it.

She was a natural-born Alpha. And Alyssa not seeing that out of her own vanity didn't make it any less true.

The only one who needed to discover it, was Lydia herself.

"I find your definition of useless wildly inaccurate But I'd like you to remember that we're in a time of peace, there was no reason to rush anything from her." Even if we weren't, I still wouldn't put any sort of pressure on her, "I have Milo, I have Eren. I've run this pack without a proper mate for decades. I'll manage with what I have, and I can assure you that you are not needed in that aspect."

She stared wide-eyed through the angle in her eyebrows, seemingly not expecting that kind of response for some reason.

How exactly did she think that this was going to go?

Silence fell between us and I thought for a hopeful moment that it meant that she was done.

I had nothing left to say in this conversation, and I'd foolishly presumed that she had the same.

"What if she rejects you?"

A surge in my chest pulled me onto my feet, guiding me right in front of her.

I could feel that fight nearly rising to its surface, begging to be released in the form of tension in my arms and neck.

If not my wolf, then something else, and that too tingled against my back.

I had a presence as an Alpha. One that reminded pack members of my status. Of who they'd submitted to and allowed authority over them.

I'd never once used it, but that... that got me pretty damn close.

Just my approach had her taking a step back, a look of regret only passing her features for a moment. Otherwise, she stood her ground.

Her words were a valid concern, and one I'd painfully pondered over many times already, but that wasn't the problem.

She didn't speak it as a thought, nor just a general concern.

It almost sounded like an idea as it left her mouth.

It was my turn to shoot a glare down to her direction, one that she couldn't entirely keep.

I wasn't the type to snap like this, and she knew that.

Yet she pushed and pushed.

There was no reasoning with her. Not with this so I needed to stop whatever the hell was going on in her mind here and now.

Nobody was going to hinder this for Lydia.

Not that I think she'd be so easily swayed by anything, but she didn't need to experience this unnecessary and petty drama.

"I don't want you anywhere near her," I began in a low and threatening tone I'd never had to take before, "If I so much as hear your name from her lips in a negative light I will not hesitate to ostracize you from this pack. Do you understand me?"

The face of my brother weighed on me as I spoke.

I just hoped that if he were here, he'd understand.

It wasn't something I desired to do, but I needed her to know that, for once, I was completely serious.

I wasn't still only the jokester youngest brother she once knew. I was her Alpha, and I finally had a mate that I wouldn't allow anything to happen to.

She let out a huff, turning away from my gaze.

"Whatever. Luna will play her part here soon enough and show us who the title really belongs to."