--- Hild ---

"Ok. It's your turn, B," I said and smiled. "If you want to."

She nodded.

"I think I have to."

We were out for a walk with Harry, our loyal companion. The sun was warming, and birds chirped in the air. Harry did not need us for the walk, but his presence felt safe. It was an odd feeling to be this relaxed.

B continued:

"So, I grew up in a pack, but since my dad was a bit... far out there... we lived in a house at the edge of pack territory. My Mom and Dad loved each other deeply, but he had issues with his temper and was often absent. He said he had some important things to do, but I don't know."

It was a lovely day, and we soon strolled along a river. The scene was serene and calm, and I felt an odd sense of peace.

"So, apparently, he was furious when Mom got pregnant with me and almost tried to kill her before I was born. It was crucial for him not to have a girl." 

She sounded bitter now. "So you can understand how disappointed he was when I popped out."

I huffed in annoyance. Men.

"Anyways, when I was seven or eight years old, my Mom once, only once, suggested that they should try for another pup, and they got into a fight, and he... he... killed her. I don't think he meant to, but it was what happened. She fell down some cliffs and... died."

Her voice was a whisper at the end, and she tilted her head a bit as if pondering over her Mom's death for the first time.

"Oh, I'm sorry to hear that, B," I said, stopping to ensure she was alright. She smiled meekly.

"It was a long time ago."

Quietly, we continued our walk, with Harry in tow, sniffing every straw of grass he could find. B found a stick and swung it before Harry, only rendering an insulted look back. When she threw the stick for the retriever to fetch, he blatantly ignored her and continued sniffing. He sure was a charmer. 

She sat down on a patch of grass, and I joined her.

"Then it was just him and me. He loved me a lot but worried about me more than he loved me - does that make sense? As I got older and became a teenager, I was not allowed to meet with others, not allowed to have friends, especially boys, and he started going on his stupid travels again, leaving me alone for months at a time. Thank Goddess, my uncle sometimes came to check on me."

She paused, gathering some courage. I waited patiently, having all the time in the world. Obviously, it was a hard memory for her to process. 

"My Dad had been gone for months. Tom was the youngest alpha son, and we attended the same high school. He was my age and nice. We didn't talk much, but he wasn't as standoff-ish as everyone else. I liked him," she said with a smile that vanished as she continued. "We weren't even close friends. He had just started to say Hi and stuff like that. And it was maybe the third or fourth time he walked me home. But he was... somewhat of a friend. My only one."

Her voice was now agitated as if she defended herself against accusations no one placed upon her.

"This day, he took my hand. I thought... perhaps he was my mate. It is not that we know such things until we are older, but I have heard that sometimes you can sense them earlier. Anyway, his friends caught up with us, and then things escalated. It ended with him almost forcing himself upon me, like to prove something to his friends... and that is when my dad shows up," she said, rubbing her forehead.

"I think he probably didn't mean to, but he went.. berserk and killed Tom, and another guy just caught in the middle and injured the other ones pretty badly. And afterwards, he just collapsed, and the alpha came and... well, and he was given a death sentence. The next day, I left.".

She looked down at her hands. Silent tears fell.

"He begged me to leave. He told me he loved me and that I shouldn't worry. I would find my way to where I was supposed to be. So I ran. A few weeks later, I fell into an unknown pack territory and injured myself." 

She gently rubbed her knee, where I noticed a mature wound, and then gestured towards her forehead, where another red mark informed me of more injuries. I looked out over the river, pondering over how much a person should have to endure.

 "Someone saved me," she continued but paused again. Her lips twitched into a small smile, and she dried her tears. "Zac."

There was a slight mood change, and I glanced towards her but stayed silent, allowing her to remain in the memory. 

"He directed me to a pharmacy, and this wonderful lady took care of me for a couple of hours, but then... she got a phone call, probably from Zac, telling me that what I presume is the horrible Alpha of his pack, has decided that they are going to catch me and that I need to run."

"Wait, what?" I said and turned towards her with furrowed brows. "Why?"

"I don't know," she replied and shrugged. "I mean, I trespassed. And the Alpha is some monster, apparently."

She continued:

"I ran. I ran for almost three days when I suddenly heard and smelled... you. Someone who needed help, and for some reason, I cared. But then...," she said and paused, frowning at the memory. "I don't know what happened. I only remember going inside the house, and then it was all white. I can remember fragments, but it is like it was not me doing it; it was Siri, but not in a controlled manner. I couldn't control it."

She sounded utterly exhausted, and I took her hand and squeezed it. 

"Siri?"

She looked at me in realisation.

"Oh, right. Siri is my wolf."

"Ah," I said, not knowing how to reply. The wolf thing was still new.

"And then I wake up in the cottage."

She raised her eyebrows in conclusion, and I frowned.

"Wait a minute here. Do you mean to say that the guys helping us were also chasing you?!"

She looked at me as if suddenly remembering something and slowly said:

"Yes, you are right. Tristan was there, wasn't he? Yes, he must have been the one chasing me. I don't remember that part of it all."

I was angry again.

"What kind of man chases a young girl through the woods like that for three days?!"

She contemplated before she answered.

"I don't think Tristan chose to do it by himself, but his alpha is a real asshole. He probably wanted me as a mate for someone in his pack. Jerk."

I huffed again.

"I can't believe this! And I said we would call them at some point. Something about some questions they might have."

I looked at her.

"You know what?"

She gave me a quizzical look. I continued.

"I don't care how bad we look right now, but we should find somewhere else to live as soon as possible. And then we will send the money back for the motel—we will send it to... uhm, well, wherever they live."

B smiled triumphantly.

"I know where their mail goes!"

I smiled back.

"I am sure your friends are not as bad as it seems, and all the blame is probably on their boss, alpha, whatever he is called, but let us just decide to forget about all that has happened and let this be the first day of the rest of our lives. There is a smaller town, maybe half an hour north from here; why don't we see if we can relocate there?"

She nodded and smiled. I continued.

"So it is decided then. From tomorrow, it is you and me against the world. We will find a place to live, I will look for a job, and we won't depend on anyone but us."

"I can find a job too!"

"Absolutely not. You are going to finish high school."

She rolled her eyes in the most teenage way, and for a moment, it felt like we were just a mom-daughter duo living everyday lives.

"It is almost summer break, and I could get a job in the evenings or on weekends."

"Fair enough."

She looked at me with a smug face.

"So, can you pretend to be my Mom when I register for high school? Like we just have moved here or something?"

"I - sure."

"Not that I think you look old enough to be my Mom! I think I need one for it."

I smiled.

"No worries. But would the effect be better if we go there like now, with these faces, or should we wait a couple of days? Perhaps our cover story is that we are under witness protection and, because of that, cannot provide too many details on things."

I nodded at my cleverness. These bruises could still do good.

"Awesome!" she almost shouted but then shot a serious look. "But could we go clothes shopping first? I don't want to look like uhm... someone without taste buys my clothes."

"We can! Let's see, so tomorrow we will do some shopping, job searching, and find a place to live. And then, after some treatments tomorrow, we will look fabulous enough, but still beaten enough, to make a grand entrance at the high school registration office on Wednesday. Sound good?"

She nodded enthusiastically.

"Let's go to bed now so tomorrow will come faster."

Heh. Like a child before Christmas.