"So when are you going to tell her?" Valerie asked out of the blue one day when they were alone. They were lounging outside the school, sharing a rabbit Valerie had caught.

Natania shot her a confused look. "What?"

Valerie raised an eyebrow. "You're supposed to have children right? So what if you don't?"

Natania's ears twitched, she took another bite of the rabbit before answering. "What are you on about?"

The tan wolf padded around so she was facing Natania and sat down, looking very serious. "I know."

"Know what?" Natania got to her paws, tilting her head.

"That you're in love with Leah," Valerie said simply.

Natania blinked. "What are you talking about?" she said, incredulous. "I'm not gay."

"I'm not going to tell anyone," Valerie assured her. "You don't have to deny it."

"Um," Natania squinted at her. "I don't know how to tell you this, but I'm really... not? Though I appreciate the open mind, that's a death sentence."

Valerie frowned. "Nat, I saw you at that meeting, you had tons of extremely attractive men to choose from, and you didn't look at a single one. Heck you were repulsed by them looking at you."

Natania flicked her tail. "I'm sixteen, and most of them were a lot older than that."

Valerie groaned. "You know what I mean. Stop denying it, I've seen the way you stare at Leah. You're pinning hard. I don't know what happened between you that made you fight, but you look like a kicked puppy when she ignores you now."

Natania froze. Her heart ached at the thought of Leah. Then she blinked, she felt like she'd been slapped in the face. Wait a minute, am I gay? Natania's eyes widened. She thought about the way her stomach fluttered and her heart raced, that she couldn't get the wolf out of her head. Natania blinked a few times. Am I crushing on Leah?

Valerie frowned at her. "Why am I getting the impression this is news to you?"

"Because it is?" Natania muttered.

Valerie gaped. "How do you pin so hard for someone and not even realize it?"

"I guess, I don't know!" Natania sputtered. "There isn't exactly a manual!"

Valerie broke out in laughter, her eyes starting to water. "Well, I'm glad I could help you on this journey."

Natania started pacing. "I'm not! How am I supposed to look at her now? I can't do this! I'm forbidden!" Natania turned a wide eyed look to Valerie, who sobered.

"You don't have to tell the other purebloods."

"You can't hide that kind of thing! Plus, she hates me! What am I..." Natania trailed off, quivering.

Valerie brushed up against her. "She doesn't hate you. Relax Nat, you haven't signed your death warrant yet. You're sixteen. You can date whoever you want, and pick a mate fifty years from now if that's what you decide. Why don't you just talk to her?"

"I scared her," Natania whispered. "I lost my temper, and now she thinks I'm a monster like my father."

Valerie scoffed. "You're nothing like him. Nat, you saved her mother's life, one temper tantrum isn't going to make her hate you."

"You clearly don't know Leah," Natania muttered.

"Maybe," Valerie barked a laugh. "Why don't you just try talking to her?"

"I can't."

"You absolutely can," Valerie argued. "Don't be a baby, you're supposed to be a brave and fearless alpha. Besides," she continued, "you wanted her to be your second didn't you? How are you supposed to ask her, if you won't talk to her?"

Natania blinked. "How did you know that?"

"It's not that hard to figure out. You asked her to train the wolves with you, you clearly respect her a lot. I know why you won't pick me, and face it, you can't pick Branson as your second. Maybe as your third, but not your second."

"You would be a good second," Natania argued.

Valerie smiled. "Thank you, but for the pack you want, you need Leah. I don't have the patience, and I'm not going to push you if I disagree with your choices."

Natania continued pacing. She didn't know what to do here. Valerie was right, she did need Leah as her second. Wanted her as her second. Natania glanced up at Valerie. "I need to go, thank you for your insight."

Valerie nodded. "Anytime."

Natania tripped over a tree root in her race through the woods. She stumbled and rolled a few feet, landing inches from Leah's porch. Skylar was outside fixing one of the windows, and stared at Natania as she shook herself off.

"Are you okay?" he asked, dropping his tools and approaching Natania with his hands up.

"Fine." Natania laughed at her own clumsiness. She was glad Skylar didn't react as strongly to her when he was in human form. "Is Leah around?"

"She's inside. You're welcome to make yourself at home."

"Thank you." Natania shook out her pelt one more time, shedding a bit more loose dirt, then walked up the steps to the porch and nosed her way in.

Leah's home was cozy. Aside from the kitchen cabinets, she could tell everything was homemade. The chairs and table were exquisitely carved. It made her own home look cheap. Natania glanced at the wooden figures lining the shelves in the living room and padded over. Momentarily distracted from her goal.

The figures smelled of Skylar, he must have spent hours carving them. She padded over to a large wolf carving, made out of a log. It was about the size of a medium dog, but the detail that went into it was breathtaking.

"What are you doing here?"

Natania jumped at the voice, her head bumped one of the shelves, knocking one of the figures off. Natania shifted in an instance, catching the fallen carving in one hand. It was a rabbit, and just as detailed as the wolf beside her.

"Well?" Leah asked. "Did you just come here to break my dad's art?"

Natania frowned guiltily and walked over, placing the rabbit in Leah's outstretched hand. "Sorry," she said. "Your home is beautiful."

Leah looked away. "Dad made the art, Mom made the furniture."

"You did the paintings?" Natania asked, noticing the collage of drawings plastered on some of the walls, and covering the fridge from top to bottom. She remembered Leah liked to draw from their elementary class.

"Some of them," Leah said stiffly. "When we could afford paint."

Natania sighed and scratched her arms. "Look, is there somewhere we can talk privately?"

Leah gave her a cold look. "What do you want now? I've been going to training."

"I know," Natania replied. "Can we please talk?"

Leah closed her eyes and took a deep breath. "Fine, follow me." Leah led the way up a spiral staircase. She pushed open the only door at the top, it was made of heavy oak, and revealed her bedroom. It wasn't a very large room, but Natania was taken in by the care that went into it. More handmade furniture, a thick blanket of pelts. Even the rug looked like it was handmade from a pelt, a fox or two, from the look of it.

"Stop staring and talk," Leah growled.

Natania flinched. "I'm sorry. Your home is lovely."

"Thanks," she replied dryly. "Now what do you want?"

Natania took her hand and sat on the bed, pulling Leah down beside her. Her heart got a little faster, and Natania took a deep breath to calm herself. It wasn't very helpful, considering she got a nose full of Leah's scent instead. Natania cleared her throat and tried again. "I'm so sorry for losing my temper. I didn't mean to scare you."

"You didn't," Leah growled, ripping her hand from Natania's grasp.

Natania let her go. "I did, and it was wrong of me." Natania swallowed thickly. "Please don't hate me," she whispered.

Leah flushed and looked away from her. "I don't hate you, and you didn't scare me."

"Feels like you do," Natania muttered, twiddling her thumbs. She decided to drop it and let Leah keep her pride. "Look," Natania sighed. "I get it, if you don't want to be friends. That's fine. But you're an important member of my pack and I'd like to be able to talk to you, without getting the silent treatment. We're kind of going to be stuck in a pack for a long time, unless you want to join Alistair's or some other alpha's instead. Which I mean, if that's what you want, then fine."

Leah murmured a quiet, "no."

Natania smiled a little. "So I'd like to at least be civil. And I really did appreciate you helping Keiran and Branson. They improved a lot because of you. You probably saved their lives in that fight. I would appreciate it if you could help me with some other members of the pack as well, but I won't pressure you."

"Fine, fine!" Leah snapped. "Is that all? Will you leave now?"

Natania stood up, she didn't want to overstay her welcome. "I have something else to ask you, but I need to talk to Branson first." She needed to explain to Branson why he couldn't be her second. She didn't want to hurt his feelings by asking Leah without even telling him what she planned. "Can we talk tomorrow? After school?"

Leah made a noticeable effort not to bare her teeth. "Okay, fine."

"Thank you," Natania said, dipping her head. Leah scowled. Natania let out a snort then let herself out of the house. She leapt off the porch and shifted, landing on the grass in her wolf form, and ran off to find Branson.

He and Thomas were helping Sara with her garden, preparing it for the cold months. Natania silently crept up and breathed down the back of his neck. Branson tensed, but relaxed when he caught her scent.

"I need to talk to you." She glanced at Sara, "Hi Ma."

"Hey Sunshine, what are you doing here?" Thomas looked up when Sara spoke and gave his own greeting.

"I need to steal Branson," Natania explained. Sara relayed what she said to Thomas, him being human meant he couldn't understand their tongue. "But I'll come back and help when we're done, if you're not finished yet." Natania glanced at the garden, gardening was not one of the things she excelled at. Even after helping Sara for years as a child, she still had a black thumb.

Sara was clearly thinking the same thing as she laughed. "I think you'd better not hun. But you can join us for dinner if you'd like."

"I'd like that." She nodded at her foster mother and nudged Branson. He stood up, brushed off his pants, then followed.

"What's up boss?" Branson sat on a fallen log, putting one knee up.

Natania paced back and forth. She didn't know how to start. The last thing she wanted to do was make him think she didn't respect him. Branson raised an eyebrow when she didn't speak. "Everything okay?"

Natania forced herself to still and sat facing him. "I need to pick a second," she said, hesitantly.

Branson raised a hand. "Stop right there. You're not about to ask me right? I really don't think I'm cut out for the job."

She breathed a sigh of relief, then frowned. "You don't want to be my second?"

Branson chuckled. "And lead the pack when you're away? Gods no. They'd chew me up and spit me out."

Natania frowned. She didn't know why she was a little irritated, his standing made it easier for her, but she was a little offended. She shook it off. "Okay, well. Then," she trailed off and frowned at him again.

"What did you want to talk about?" he pressed.

"I'm going to ask Leah," she said. "And I want you to be my third."

Branson's eyes widened. "Leah? Really? I thought for sure you would pick Valerie." He glanced around uneasily. "I guess I could handle being third."

Natania leapt up on the log and sat beside him, paws sliding a little on the bark, it wasn't big enough for a wolf, so she shifted, letting her feet dangle. "She's strong and capable and I want a second that's not afraid to tell me I'm doing something stupid."

"And she's cute and feisty and stole your heart?" Branson teased, poking Natania in the side.

Natania groaned and put her head in her hands. "That is not even remotely relevant."

Branson laughed. "You're not even going to deny it?"

She shoved him off the log. "I already had this moment with Valerie, am I that obvious?" He landed on his feet and turned to face her, face red from laughing.

"Only to people that know you," he said, patting her on the head.

Natania rolled her eyes. "Gods, does she know?"

Branson shrugged. "Ask and find out?"

"Not in a million years," she growled.

"Our Alpha's in love," Branson said, in a singsong voice. She shoved him harder this time, knocking him into the dirt, then stomped back to Sara's house for dinner. She pretended not to hear Branson muttering, "love hurts."