Nate and Caleb kept to the back corner of the large shed. Both found it strange to be at Dean's house and not see him. His scent was fading, yet even now in the busy area it was like his presence was still around, which Nate at least found comforting. Caleb just wanted to leave.

"So, what's made you a ray of sunshine this evening?" Nate asked, waving at a couple of girls who had just come in. Of course Caleb didn't answer him. "You're even harder to be around than usual."

"Thanks." He muttered.

"You know you can talk to me right? I know you want to, twins remember?" He elbowed his brother to get his attention, yet both stopped as the crying woman and her husband walked in. "Who are they the parents of?"

"David." Caleb thought about the last time he had seen the other shifter and keenly scanned the room for the others that had been giving May a hard time. Brad and Paul sat near the front, looking as devastated as they all did. Jake was missing too, and it didn't give him the satisfaction he was hoping it would.

It was then their mother stood up, and the murmuring crowd silenced with only the odd sobs breaking the quiet. The spill was the same as what was often opened with. The pack will prevail, we will not be beaten, and Caleb stopped listening. With his brother distracted, whispering with a couple of their friends, clearly just as interested Caleb slipped away and went and sat outside.

'You should have told her.'

Groaning, he put his head against the cool metal of the shed and using all the energy he had, forced the wolf back. It was always the same thing; say sorry, tell her, go to her. Well, it was a bit late now wasn't it.

"Mum will be pissed if she knew you were out here." Nate interrupted, flopping down beside Caleb.

"Think I care?"

"No." He sighed. "You're making me feel all, weird. Tell me what's going on and I won't even tell them you've gone right away."

Caleb glanced at his mirror image, and during times like this he hated how well they knew other. Worse than that, he hated how Nate was back on his case about talking, wanting to be there for him and all that other lame stuff that made him sound like their parents. Six months ago Caleb had snapped which resulted in the siblings fighting - more than the usual playful rumbles and Nate had backed off. Now Caleb knew he had two choices, do that again or give him what he wanted, neither of which held any appeal.

"What makes you think I'm going anywhere?"

"Intuition." Nate smirked.

It was then four others slipped outside, the two girls giggled as the guys with them growled to shut up. Yet as soon as they saw the twins, they all froze in shock - worried they'd been caught. It didn't last and a big grin appeared on one of the boys as he moved towards them.

"What are yous doing out here?" Tom asked as Nate stood. The pair gave each other a fist bump, yet Tom's gaze stayed on Caleb.

"What are you?" Caleb asked, clearly not interested.

"Is that - Caleb! Hi! We never see you around anymore, even now you boys are back in town!" Jessica said cheerily. "How are you?"

He hadn't actually recognized her, since her dark hair had been lightened to a brownish blonde and the gangly, skinny teen was starting to change into a more fuller figured young woman. His mind worked quickly, trying to recall all he could about Jessica, soon remembering she was one of the girls who had always been nice to May when she hung around the twin's friends. There was even a time she had acted as her tutor when May had been having trouble at school with Math and Jessica had willingly offered to help the younger girl. Caleb smiled at her.

"Yeah, okay. I've been busy." He lied.

"Of course, it's kind of thrown everything off track. It's good to see you though. Isn't it terrible what's happened?" She frowned.

"My sister is in David's year. I can't imagine losing her, especially not like that." The other girl spoke up and Caleb could not remember her at all.

"Where is your shadow? I didn't see any of them in there." Tom's cousin, Greg, spoke up.

"What?" Nate asked cautiously, as Caleb had much less fonder memories of his old friends. There was a big reason why he had made no effort in seeing them again since he went off to university. He didn't want to.

"What's that runts name again? May, wasn't it? Did you actually ditch her for good?" Tom laughed and Caleb instantly tensed. They were stepping into dangerous territory now and none of them, except Nate seemed to realise it.

"I heard she was at that party last night." Greg gossiped and Nate moved slightly so he was just in front of Caleb.

"Oh I remember her." The unknown girl added, flicking her mass of brown curls over her shoulder. "I can't believe she survived and-"

"Shut up Lily. Don't you dare say what I think you were about to! David could still be alive, we don't know what they're doing!" Jessica snapped.

"What about May?" Caleb changing, inching closer to Lily. "Why can't you believe she survived?"

The girl swallowed nervously and stepped back into Greg. "I just-"

"What is your deal, back off bro!" Tom went to push Caleb back, but Nate stopped him.

"I wouldn't do that if I was you." He warned.

"Why? It's not as if any of you even like her. Why get so defensive over it, she isn't a shifter no matter how much you pretend she is like the rest of us. My Dad says we used to kill things like-"

That's all it took and Caleb had Tom beneath him, his fists throwing blow after blow as the wolf felt like it might explode into reality at any second and finish the job off. Nate and Greg, even Jessica fought to stop Caleb while Lily ran inside for help. Caleb was no match; his rage made him stronger and as Cody was the first to appear, Caleb did shift.

"Caleb!" He yelled, the wolf pausing before he made his attack to look up at the authority in front of him. Bianca was there a second later, her surprise giving way to disappointment as Caleb snarled at them. Nate blocked Tom, earning a snarl to be sent his way as well. From inside, everyone started to filter out to see what was going on, more scared that the Hunters were there than one of their own had lost control.

"Shift." Bianca demanded.

He didn't, the creature only doubling in size as his hackles stood along his spine and his head dipped lower.

"What happened Nate." She asked, her eyes not leaving Caleb.

"He, ah-" Nate moved closer to his mother, barely whispering as he spoke. "He was talking about May."

"Just talking?"

"Well, it was implied perhaps she should have been taken instead of David and also that pups with her lineage used to be killed, not treated like pack."

Bianca growled in frustration, glancing towards the group gathered around Tom. "Shit. As if we didn't have enough going on right now."

Using the moment of distraction, the wolf made its move. Caleb was mid air when Bianca threw herself at him, the unexpected blow and the force of her hit, winding him as he was knocked down. A knee went into his side, barely under his ribs as she leant over him.

"No one is going to kill May. She is safe." Bianca assured him, her hands weakening from where she had grabbed at his neck. "Go run it off. Now."

Caleb fought her until finally she slowly eased off him and let him up. Boldly, he snapped at her before running off and Cody was instantly beside her.

"If you had changed too, it would have got out of control." She told him.

"He can't just go around acting like this Bianca. What are we going to do with him?"

"I don't know if there is anything we can do. This is a much bigger problem than we first thought." Cody frowned, not seeing what she did. "Nate, please go after him. Don't get too close, and if anything happens call to us."

"What was that? He nearly killed my son!" An angry voice growled behind them.

Bianca felt another headache coming on and Cody took the lead, trying to sort out the mess Caleb had left for them. So much for the talk of pack unity, and as Kyle pushed through to the crowd, Bianca wished she could run off for a bit too.

"That was your son?" He asked.

"I'm dealing with it."

"Sure looks like it." The younger male narrowed his eyes at her, standing a little taller as he only moved in closer. "That is not on. When I take over, any anti-social behaviour will be dealt with accordingly."

"Oh will it?" She asked, glaring at him. "So, how would you deal with one pup running his mouth about other pack members, who may or may not be full shifter, to the point where he mentioned they should be killed? Caleb's reaction was wrong, I know that and will punish him myself. Tom has hopefully learnt his lesson too."

Kyle instantly looked uncomfortable. The one thing Dean had drilled into him was they were all equal. The runts he took in were just as much pack as anyone. If society failed them as they had in previous years, it only put them all at risk and with the Hunters lurking anywhere and everywhere, he had been right. The fight had panicked everyone, and Kyle realised getting caught up in it too had been wrong. When he was the one in charge, he couldn't make those mistakes. Already everyone was looking between the pair of them, and so he took the high road.

"You're right. I do not agree with Caleb's reaction, I also disagree with Tom's views on certain pack members. This is not the time to be fighting against one another!"

The meeting was over. Patrols had been arranged, pups were being managed accordingly with new curfews being put into place and using any contacts they had in any type of government organisation, the hunt was on to find out the base for these monsters.

Tom's Dad picked up is barely conscious and bloody body, grumbling to himself the whole way to the car. Eventually, there was barely anyone left and Bianca stood by Leanna and Harry, as Cody shifted to go and find the twins. None of them said much, there wasn't anything to say really as they just wanted to go home.

Home was the last place Caleb wanted to go and stalking his sibling who blindly followed his scent, he was back in control of his actions. Nate paused, looking over his shoulder towards the bushes Caleb had squatted under before slowly moving further down the path. The land that Dean had purchased around his small property was solely for any of the shifters to use to stretch their wolf legs whenever they needed. A small population of wild rabbits that inhabited the same space gave them something to do, the wolves often given permission to do as they wanted out here. It wasn't like the farm Amber now lived at with the pups, yet Caleb had a feeling even with the miles of freedom his parents first home offered, it wouldn't be enough right now.

Suddenly he jumped forward, sprinting across the ground until he leaped at Nate. The wolves went down together with a thud, a series of playful snarls and the clinking of jaws snapping in mock battle filling the night. They bounced around each other, both brothers trying to get the advantage. Sharing equal size and strength, Caleb was always that second ahead of Nate, and as he knocked him down once more and gently tugged at his ear, some of the earlier frustrations finally left him.

Breathing heavily, the pair parted and sitting on a patch of grass, Nate shifted. Reluctantly, Caleb did too. His hands hurt; his knuckles remaining split and bloody. He groaned as he flexed his hands, trying to ignore the pain.

"So, May is still a sensitive subject." Nate didn't hide his sarcasm.

"You want to go there?" Caleb warned.

"I think I kind of have to considering what just happened." Caleb ignored him, choosing to instead lay down on his back and stare up at the sky. "Mum is so going to kick your ass later."

"What did you say to her?"

"Nothing much." Nate grinned, not scared of pushing Caleb's buttons.

"Nate."

"Caleb."

"Will it help if I call May, wanna talk to her?" He asked, really mocking him now. "Maybe I'll call her. I'm sure she'll appreciate since I'm not an asshole to her all the damn time."

"You have no idea what you are talking about." Caleb muttered, the warning obvious. It only made Nate keep going.

"Pretty sure I do. Tom isn't to blame, not really. I mean, after what you did and said. They all probably think it's okay to look down at her like that."

Caleb got up and started to walk away. It was one thing to do that to Tom, but not Nate. It didn't help that everything he was saying was true and rubbed Caleb the wrong way as he hated to be reminded of it.

"Are you seriously walking away, what the fuck Caleb? I am sick of this!" It didn't sound like Nate. Nate who was always joking and playing around; the fun one who didn't seem in a hurry to grow up, while Caleb gladly took on the role as the 'bad twin'.

"Then forget about it." He snapped back.

Caleb thought about this for a second. The best way to get Caleb talking, was to get him mad. Sure there were some risks involved with that, but he'd always been one to blurt out secrets when under pressure. How many times had he and his siblings got him into a position where that had happened. Even May used to have her own ways of doing it. The silent treatment probably wouldn't work now, tickling seemed too childish and then Nate worked it out. May.

"Okay, I will. I will also tell May to forget about it and make sure she knows at least one of us cares about her." He called out, trying not to smile as Caleb stopped. "Besides, she's too good for you and that human she's seeing. I'm sure after we spend some time together, it won't be hard to forget all about you."

Caleb slowly turned around, his jaw clenching as he struggled to speak. "What are you implying?"

"That I could take very good care of her. Really, I think she's always liked me better anyway." Nate kept a straight face and when Caleb met his gaze, he held it. "Actually, I've always kind of thought of her as mine."

Caleb growled, the look her served Nate murderous.

"What? It's not as though you care." He continued to taunt his sibling, his own wolf warning him to be careful as Caleb took a step towards him, but Nate needed him to break. "Just the other day when we picked her up from school I was thinking about good she is looking now. When I hugged her, my hands roamed a little over her perfect little ass. She didn't seem to care either."

Nate hated himself for talking about May like that. He saw her as he saw Leanna, a sister. If Caleb was thinking clearly, he'd be able to sense how disgusted Nate was with himself and work out what was going on, but as Nate suspected and already pointed out - she was a sensitive subject for him.

"Don't you dare touch her like that again." It wasn't a warning, it was a threat.

"I won't. I'll do a lot more." Nate stepped towards Caleb, still not backing down. "Besides, why do you care?"

"Because she is mine." Caleb realised what he said as Nate used the second of distraction to move away and keep a safe distance between the pair of them.

"I knew it!" He blurted, grinning like a kid on Christmas. "All this time, Caleb, what the hell is going on then? Why aren't you two together?"

Caleb blinked, staring blankly at Nate as he processed what he just did - more importantly what his brother had done. Amazingly, he did feel a lot better now he'd actually shared his secret. "It's complicated."

"Is it, or are you just making it that way?"

"She doesn't want me."

"No, really, what's the problem?" Nate dared to move closer, sensing the danger had passed.

"That is the problem and any chance I had to convince her otherwise is gone because I ruined it." Caleb admitted in defeat. Now the anger was gone, there was nothing else left to keep him going.

"It's May. She's your mate, your actual mate Caleb. I really don't think you have ruined anything. You just need to be honest with her."

It sounded so simple, but Caleb shook his head. "I can't."

"What am I missing here?" Nate frowned. "Is it, because she didn't shift? Don't tell me what I heard you said to her is true?"

"No. I was just being an asshole. I wanted to hurt her then, because she fucking nearly killed me. Us. Even that stupid wolf let me do it because we both wanted to push her away."

"What did she do?" Nate couldn't think of anything May had done that could have Caleb, and his wolf, doing that to May.

Like he said, it was May they were talking about. One of her first words was 'beb' as clearly a one year old getting out Caleb was too hard. When instead of only getting closer to each other after her birthday came, they both changed and stayed as far away as they could instead, most of the family just thought it wasn't meant to be afterall. Not that they were mates and they'd seemingly rejected each other.

"She doesn't even know." Caleb whispered.

"Do you?"

Rolling his eyes Caleb nodded, and looking at his feet, he didn't want to see Nate's face when he said what was next.

"She was supposed to shift Nate. I was with her, and her wolf came as it was supposed to. I felt it and shifted, ready to help her as Mum told me I might have to. Remember? It's an alpha's call that guides a new wolf, but she said we could both do it to help May because she wasn't full shifter."

It was then his wolf went quiet, vanishing into the back of his mind where Caleb had had been wanting it to go for so long. Having his head to himself was as refreshing as a cold breeze on a hot day and usually when ever he thought about it, that's when the rage came. Now he felt his eyes burning as he refused to cry.

"Yeah, I remember. The change can be harder on them." Nate said sympathetically.

"I sensed her, well my wolf did. We felt her with us. When you find your mate, they're right. It's amazing. I can't even describe it Nate, there aren't words. We find our mates, spend time getting to know them, creating that bond as our wolves connect. May and I had already done that. Her wolf was just the final part, I understand all of that now."

Nate didn't know what to say. May couldn't shift, nothing had happened that night and while he waited with the others, remembering the sounds of the alphas call still sent a shiver down his spine as it only brought back the memories of his change. Caleb had already spoke to him more than he had in the last year and knew this was the first time he had shared what happened at all, so he let Caleb do so in his own time.

"Then it was gone." Caleb whispered.

"What was gone?"

"Her wolf. She came, and then, just, rejected us."

"I don't understand."

"Neither do I, do we." He sighed. "I felt like I was fucking dying after that, and she didn't care. She didn't even look at me. Anytime I tried talking to her, she was busy or ignored my calls. Then when she did come to me, I couldn't be nice. It was too hard hiding from everyone how hurt I was, to be worry about what I was actually doing. I just wanted her gone, I wanted her to feel what I did and I hoped by pushing her away, I could feel start to feel better and not that I had just been ripped apart. It worked for a bit, yet as soon as I felt better that way, I still fucking missed her, wanted her. The fucking voice in my head seems to think it was all my fault, when I know it was both of us and I get so mad, I can't think."

"So, it's a misunderstanding. Tell her that. You can still work it out!" Nate urged. "Anyone who sees you two together can see that!"

"I tried, even after last night. I thought, I thought there was a chance and when I tried talking to her this afternoon she made it clear she likes that human. He makes her happy apparently. She told me so, and she already gave me the let's be friend talk and also thinks my hanging around now is because I'm jealous." He growled.

"Well, you are aren't you?"

"I want to rip his fucking head off." Nate didn't think Caleb was exaggerating either. "Your mate is supposed to know who you are to them and she just doesn't feel that way about me."

"Miranda is human and-"

"Chose Braydon like he chose her. It's different." Both stopped as they heard footsteps, and sure enough Cody was running towards them. "Say a word to anyone and I will hurt you. Badly."

"Say a word about what?" Nate offered him a sad smile, before shifting.

Caleb soon followed and once back at their car, the trio quickly dressed. The whole time Caleb avoided eye contact with his parents, waiting for the argument, his punishment and the usual lectures, but nothing happened. They went home, all moving in their own directions once there and once the house was settled with the kids in bed, Bianca knocked on Caleb's door.

"Can we talk?"

"Fine." He answered, and she walked into the semi-dark room. As always, his face was blank giving none of his emotions or thoughts away and the dangerous look in his eyes always made her wary just how there was that brief scent of pain and anger that followed him around. "I know what I did was wrong, but I'm not apologising."

"I don't expect you too. You're nearly twenty Caleb, you can't act so impulsively. Nate told me what went on that made you snap, please, please work on controlling your temper."

Caleb gave a small shrug. "K."

"Did you want to talk about it?" She offered, wondering where her sweet little boy went. They'd always had a close bond, at least until hit nine and suddenly decided he was grown up enough not to need her as much as he had before. Bianca would give anything to have some of that time back again.

"Nothing to talk about."

She was expecting that and gave a little sigh. "Well, you know where we are if you ever do."

Maybe it was getting everything off his chest with Nate, as when Bianca left the room, he almost stopped her. After all, she had killed her true mate; his father's had died, and yet like Miranda and Braydon, they were just as bonded. Maybe they had some advice he needed to hear, something to say that would help him get past this and move on. The door closed and swallowing down all the pain from freshly opened wounds, he turned off the lamp beside him and tried to sleep.

__________

So... there's a little glimpse into Caleb's head for you.