---Lyra's POV---

Opening my eyes, I was unfamiliar with the ceiling that slowly came into view. Disoriented and slightly nauseous, I closed my eyes again on a groan, lifting a hand to touch my face.

My body protested against the slight motion and any hopes of falling back asleep fell out of the window. As I slowly pondered how I ended up in the room or why my body felt sore all over, I suddenly remembered the matches.

A pair of strong hands prevented me from fully jolting upright, not that I could have even if I wanted to. The sudden motion made my ribs scream in protest, depriving me of my breath as I fought against the urge to curl up into a tight ball and whimper.

Instead, I gritted my teeth, taking shallow breaths as I fought against the pain before looking up.

Instantly my hackles rose, faced with a complete stranger whom still had his hands on me. Baring my teeth with a low, warning snarl, I tried to shuffle backwards, away from the stranger.

The man instantly let go of me, raising his hands to show he meant no harm before taking a step back. Behind him, both Blake and Ryan were seated on two chairs, eying me with a mixture of relief and worry.

It was then that I realized I was no longer in wolf form, even though I couldn't remember shifting back after the fight. Or make my way to this room. Nor had I any recollection of dressing myself, as I was obviously unable to dress myself while unconscious.

"What happened?" I asked no one in particular. "I feel like I'm missing something here."

Ryan cleared his throat, hair disheveled and dark circles underneath his eyes. "You passed out only moments after your last words. The pack doctors have brought you here and discovered one of the broken ribs had punctured your lung." He croaked, keeping his gaze averted though he couldn't remove the guilt from his eyes.

The unknown man smiled reassuringly, reaching back for the tray that held medical equipment. I held my breath as he gently reached out, his fingers cool to the touch as they gingerly pressed on my ribs.

Yup. Definitely broken more than one.

I cringed, hissing through my teeth in pain. "How long was I out?" was all I managed to grit past the searing pain, making the man apologize.

"You were unconscious for about an hour. While your regeneration has kicked in and pushed your rib out of your lungs, you still need to heal your bones." He hummed thoughtfully, pursing his lips at the dark bruising across my side.

He looked up before shaking his head with a sigh. "My apologies, I haven't even introduced myself. I'm Mark, Head doctor of the pack." He presented his hand, which I shook thoughtlessly before regretting the sudden motion.

Ryan's eyes snapped up when he heard my painful hiss, giving me a full view of his eyes that were swimming with remorse and guilt.

"Small, gentle movements for now. You're slowly regenerating but flesh wounds are always easier to heal than fractures; especially displaced fractures."

The remorse was clear in Ryan's eyes, who scratched at the back of his head. "I'm..I'm sorry about breaking your ribs. I certainly didn't mean to, I mean, my wolf was taking over and-" He rambled on before I smiled and cut him off.

"Broken bones were among the allowed injuries, Ryan." I stated with a soft smile, slowly shuffling my weight to be more comfortable on the pillows. "Give me an hour or two and I'm back to normal."

He smiled slightly, though I could tell he didn't fully believe me. Keeping his gaze on me, watching every single motion, every shallow breath until I rolled my eyes at him. "Stop worrying yourself to death. I've been through much worse."

At that, Ryan slowly nodded before turning to Blake. Even throughout the conversation both their eyes would flit to me on a regular basis with Blake smiling with amusement.

Even if I rose my brows, silently inviting Blake to explain what was so funny, he simply shook his head and continued talking to his so,.

Meanwhile, Mark observed my injuries, wrapping them gently before announcing that I would indeed be completely healed in two hours. However, he gave me a stern warning that in that timeframe, I was forbidden to shift, as that would only pull apart the healing ribs.

At that, I barely suppressed the urge to roll my eyes, because honestly, why would I feel the need to shift? I just had near back to back combat with a group of overeager men and was recovering from the injuries as a result.

The last thing I wanted to do, was shift. At most, I wanted to take a shower before going back to bed but even that would have to wait.

"I agree." Mark stated as I posed the question, "Showering right now is too risky, plus the shower isn't going anywhere. You can shower in two hours, when your bones have mended and your body has recovered some strength."

With a muttered greeting to the two Alphas present, Mark left the room after gathering his belongings, leaving behind an uncomfortable silence.

Desperate to break the tension, I stated, "Anyways... what prompted you to become my knight in shining armor and call a draw?" Glancing at Ryan, I was amused by the blush on his cheeks. "You knew you could've won that fight easily, especially given my injuries."

"It seemed the only right thing to do." Ryan sighed, averting his gaze as he continued his explanation. "If I hadn't lost control of my wolf, you wouldn't have been injured this badly. My leg couldn't hold under the stress of a continued fight and would've given you the win."

An amused snort escaped me before I teased, "And here I thought you were worried about little ol' me." I grinned, watching as the slight blush exploded over Ryan's face into a deeper shade of red.

Blake snickered, obviously amused at his son's reaction as he too teased, "I dare say Lyra, that my son might have taking a liking to you."

Ryan's head snapped up, wide eyed and shocked as he stared at his father before snapping his head to look at me. The pure shock along with the redness still on his face made me wheeze out a laugh while desperately clinging onto my ribs.

"You..should've seen...the look...on your face!" I wheezed, cackling while hissing in pain "Fucking priceless!" Meanwhile Ryan sat there with a look of absolute confusion and slight horror as I whined in pain between bouts of laughter.

"Stop laughing! You're gonna end up hurting yourself even more." He said half-jokingly, yet smiling and shaking his head when I could only cry in laughter.

Even Blake snickered as I whined "Then stop making me laugh! Oh shit, this hurts!"

Jason chose to peek his head around the corner, resulting in another bout of laughter before I finally managed to calm down with a sigh. Wiping the tears from my face, I shook my head "That fucking hurt but it was worth it." I stated, wiping the tears from my face.

"I'll say. Sometimes a little pain is a small price to pay in life." Blake chuckled, wiping away his own tears before pushing up in his seat. "I'm fairly confident to say you earned your place in the pack after wiping my son and his friends out in battle. Before I can make the announcement, is there any particular role you'd wish to perform?"

I blinked, murmuring a surprised "Oh." Stunned to silence at the fact that they allowed me to choose. What little of pack life I was used to, roles were often given to you.

"Peacekeeper." I decided, making sure that my voice left no room for any arguments or doubts.

Both Ryan and Blake blinked in surprise, sharing a look as their confusion slowly turned to understanding. "I suppose... I mean, it could work. Our pack doesn't have a designated peacekeeper at the moment." Ryan stated hesitantly, glancing at his father with a hint of doubt.

Blake hummed, eyes focused as he looked ahead, nodding to himself. "yes, I see. After all, a peacekeeper would need to be strong enough to separate fighters and most importantly, have enough authority so the involved wolves will actually listen."

They both returned their gaze towards me, this time with equal smiles. "I think you'll benefit my pack greatly, young lady." Blake's statement didn't hold a single hint of lies or deceit as he grinned.

Pushing up from the chair and putting it in place, he slowly made his way towards the door before turning to look over his shoulder. "Your parents would've been extremely proud of you." He spoke before closing the door behind him.

"Thank you." I managed to choke out, desperate to fight back the tears that threatened to overwhelm me.

--- Ryan's POV---

Jason and I left the room soon after my father did. Lyra was still recovering, slowly dozing off under the effect of the painkillers given to her.

Honestly it was strange yet refreshing to see her genuine, carefree character coming through. Probably because I've stopped looking at her as if she's a Rogue; a bloodthirsty monster who would snap and go on a killing spree in a moment's notice.

"What's in the past, is done Ryan. Nobody can change anything about our past actions, only what we'll do in the future." Jason said, obviously picking up on my mental distress. "Besides, no permanent harm done. She's part of the pack now."

I looked up at him, catching his thoughts before shaking my head. "Don't. I know that look. You're going to have your ass handed to you, especially after the warning Lyra already gave you."

Jason's head snapped towards me before he chuckled awkwardly. Forcing Lyra's hand by picking a fight in her vicinity, then thinking of a way to thank her, was still disrespecting her choice.

Yet Jason had also picked up on the low growl that slipped from my throat, a wide smirk gracing his lips. "Feeling a tad jealous, are we?" He teased, making me scoff and shake my head.

"No!" I snapped, "Why would I be jealous of a Beta running around like a headless chicken while chasing some tail? It's beneath you!" I snarled before storming off.

I swear, this girl was twisting my emotions and thoughts into one indescribable mess. After what happened to Sam, after her murder, I had sworn I would kill any rogue that trespassed our borders or came too close to our liking.

Yet this single woman was turning my concepts, my view of the world upside down. Especially so after she had now proven herself to be a formidable ally.

The second I stepped foot out of the packhouse, I shifted. Needing to run away as far as possible before I said or did something I'd come to regret later.

My wolf certainly wasn't helping, urging me to go back, to return to Lyra's side. "Learn more about her past before you judge her. She wasn't rogue by choice, after all."

He...He did have a point. Lyra wasn't a bloodthirsty being that had lost all humanity, only wearing a human skin as disguise. From what little I knew, she was an outcast and unjustly so, according to the little hints dad had dropped.

Yet that didn't explain this drive, this urge to keep around her. Even though I've come to realize she wasn't a threat, I still couldn't fully trust someone within a few days of meeting them.

And just as quickly, a thought came to mind, that had me skidding to a halt in the middle of the forest. After all, dad had mentioned that once I was old enough, there was a possibility of encountering my mate.

She can't be ...right? I would've felt something more...I imagine?

"And why not?" My wolf barked in amusement, pacing in my head. "She's proven to be strong and resourceful."

I didn't have an answer for that. My past self would've declared his hatred for rogues as a defense but I knew that was a lie. I just, wasn't interested in her like that.

My wolf snorted as a response. "Riiiight. Yet you acted jealous when both Eric and Jason, when other males tries to get her attention. Not interested my ass."

That's....different.

A snicker of amusement was the only response I got. Logically, I knew there wasn't anything stopping me from investigating this possibility further. So far, Lyra was technically our pack's weakest link, simply because we knew nothing about her.

"You mean, the youngster know nothing of her." My mom supplied in my head, opening the link to show that she had returned to Lyra's side to keep a watch on her. "The adults were all aware of her bloodline before the fight."

My hackles bristled, wanting to warn her away from someone who's technically an outsider but also knowing that mentality was wrong.

"Indeed. Plus, I'm the parent and you'll respect me as such." She added, shaking her head slightly. "Lyra's past is not exactly as secretive as you'd think. While most of the adults don't know the finer details, we all know what happened to her. We also knew you pups would not accept her if we simply invited her with open arms."

The utter sadness and sorrow in her voice made me freeze, shivers darting up my spine. It made me both curious yet dread to ask what even happened to Lyra, to her parents.

At that, mother sighed. "It is not my place to tell. The details are kept secret between Alphas, at Lyra's request. You're the future Alpha... but you're no Alpha yet."

She left my mind, leaving me along with my scrambled, confusing thoughts. Maybe both my mom and my wolf were right; I needed to look into Lyra's past, the history of her pack and learn what happened to her. To talk to my dad and figure out how one finds their mate.

But right now, I needed to run. Check the borders and come back later. With that matter settled, I allowed my claws to dig in and accelerate, propelling myself further into the woods.