"I have no idea what I'm even supposed to pack!" At this point I'm yelling at Sage in frustration for truly not knowing what to pack for this sort of thing! Sage being completely over it and also having no idea what to pack asked me to just text Lenny. I honestly don't know why we didn't start there. It's been about a week since I met Casey at the Paradise Club. He did hold true to his word and made the arrangements for me and Sage to accompany him and Lenny on this tour and all of the details were sent to me a day after I met Casey. Sage and I have been slacking on the packing. We leave in 2 hours to go to the airport and while we have everything else packed, we haven't packed anything clothes wise. Besides lingerie of course that was easy. With a heavy sigh I reach into my pocket to send Lenny a quick text about clothes. Minutes later I get a message back from him telling me to be prepared for any kind of weather. I'm not sure what that means but I'll take his word for it. I share the news with Sage, she gives me a funny face but does it anyway.

Two hours later and we piled up all of our stuff in the back of Casey's car and made our way to the airport. Lenny and Sage go on about the latest gossip while I listen in, weighing in when they start taking it too far. Casey mainly laughs at them, having no clue who they're talking about. Casey is apparently the highest tier member with the airline for how much he travels, and we all get through airport security pretty quickly. I had already tried several times to get Casey to tell me how much everything is going to cost for Sage and I but he refused to tell me and told me it was fine and that he "took care of it". We've been arguing about it all week. He finally told me that as long as I sit with him, we're even. I don't think he knows what "even" is. Truly. I ignored him but upon boarding the plane I did sit with him. Lenny and Sage took the seats directly beside us.

"We're definitely not even. I can't believe we're in first class. You have to let me help pay for my share for this!" At this point I'm begging, and I don't care.

"Amara! Shut up and let the nice man pay for it!" Sage reached across the aisle swatting me with her complimentary peanuts.

"Sage! Quit hitting me with peanuts!"

"Sure! If you agree to shut up about money!" Casey and Lenny are just full on laughing at us. I can feel eyes on us and my cheeks starting to get red, so I roll my eyes at Sage and Casey and say, "Fine." Sage sticks her tongue out at me and settles back into her seat just as the seatbelt sign turns on and the flight attendants prepare everyone for takeoff. Afterwards I turned to Casey, "Where are we going first?"

Casey turns to me with a mischievous smile on his face and says, "Boreal Forest in Canada. Have you ever been?"

"No. The closest to Canada I've ever been to was Washington state."

"Well, it is absolutely gorgeous. And home to the largest werewolf and Lycan pack in the world. It's where the king himself lives. Of course, it's a very large forest with 1.2 billion acres and the wolves are amazing at staying hidden there. We'll spend about a week there, at the royal castle as different pack members come to visit throughout the week to sniff out a mate. There will be a party or gathering of some sort of every night. I'm sure we'll get a schedule once we get there. You guys will be staying with me, in my wing of the castle of course."

"Right of course. In your wing in the castle." I chuckle to myself, finding his sudden confidence about the Royal freaking Castle absolutely hilarious. I look around to see if anyone else finds this hilarious and find a bunch of shocked faces staring at me, aside from Sage, she thinks it's funny. I look back to Casey to find him laughing at me.

"Amara, I thought you knew." Casey says to me somehow finding it in him to stop laughing long enough to add, "I am the Lycan Prince. That's how it was so easy to make all the arrangements for you and Sage and why you will be staying in my wing of the castle. Did Lenny really never mention that his uncle is the freaking Lycan King?"

I can't find words. I look to Lenny hoping to see him say gotcha or anything but instead he reassures me it's true multiple times. I just can't believe it.

"Sorry, I'm having a really hard time with this information. You don't act like a Prince at all! You act like a normal guy. I just can't imagine you being a prince and having royal duties and stuff. Do you ride horses? No, that would be ridiculous when you literally have superhuman Lycan speed. This just doe-"

"Amara, can you please ramble in your head and not out loud." Sage gives me a "get a grip" look and goes back to scrolling on her phone.

Casey gets my attention as he starts showing me pictures of him with his royal family. Some of them are just normal family pictures that any family would have. "It's important to my family that I have a normal life. That I do know how to act normal and not like some hoity toity rich kid. I spent a lot of my childhood with our maids, farmhands and cooks around the castle. Learning the importance of all jobs. I don't usually announce to people that I'm a prince because they usually treat me differently."

It makes sense. And now I kinda feel bad. I try to choose my next words carefully. "Well, I'm not going to treat you differently, unless you want to foot the bill then I'll just let you instead of complaining for a week straight." I say with a hearty laugh. Casey laughs and says "Thank Selene! I don't think I can survive that ever again!"

"You know there's a lot of information I could get from you and Lenny that would help a lot with these journals. Would you be up for an interview?"

"Yes. But no cameras or audio recorders, it's a rule. No super naturals are allowed to undergo video or audio interviews for fear of being hunted. But it can all be on paper." Casey looks at me with a hopeful smile. Hoping for understanding I'm assuming.

"That's totally fine. I'll take whatever I can get!" I say with a smile plastered on. I prepared for this moment. I reach for my bag from under my seat and start digging around for my notebook and pen. Once I find it, I start looking for the pages I've already started writing my questions down in. I have a few pages dedicated to each of the main species we will be visiting over the course of this tour; Werewolves, Witches, Vampires and Mermaids. A lot of my questions are directed towards learning more about the species specifically while others are about the politics and history of supernatural beings.

"Okay! First up, what is the difference between a Lycan and a werewolf?" I ask Casey with a yawn escaping my lips. Casey grabs my journal and starts filling in the answers to my questions I'm assuming. He confirms my suspicions by saying, "Get some rest we still have a few hours before we land, I'll write in my answers to the questions you have here and if you think of any along the way I'd be more than happy to fill in the blanks for you again." He winks at me. I decide he's right and start leaning back in my seat to get some sleep. As I finally started to drift off, I swear I heard him say, "Besides, who wouldn't want to see a gorgeous princess sleeping." As he brushed stray hairs out of my face, I drifted off into the darkness.

I woke up to Casey nudging my shoulder. "Amara, we're here, wake up." I look outside our little window and see the airport's landing strip but past that, gorgeous forests stretching so far.

"Now this is some scenery I can get behind!" I can't even control my excitement at this view. Much better than a busy street with a homeless guy living in a dumpster. The views in New York City are not it. Unless it's a skyline view. I can barely hear Casey laughing at me over my thoughts about all the different things we can explore. That is until I'm pulled out of my thoughts by the flight attendants announcing that we can now get off the plane. We grab our carry ons and make our way to the airport to board the private jet that will take us to the royal court of werewolves and Lycans. This flight will be much shorter and much easier to board. Right as we are about to step onto the private jet Lenny stops me and Sage and looks at us very seriously.

"It is important that while we are around other super naturals, that you guys are on your best behavior. Casey is a prince and while he doesn't act like it around you guys, he has to flip the switch around people who report to the royal courts. We will have both of your backs no matter what but not everyone is okay with humans being on this tour. Just try not to talk to anyone that Casey and I haven't told you is okay with us." Noticing how serious Lenny is, me and Sage both glance at each other with worried glances not sure what we have really gotten ourselves into. I look at Sage and nod my head signaling I'm okay with it if she is, she nods back to me. I turn back to Lenny and give him a nod with a smile. He flashes me a grateful grin and proceeds to board the jet, with Sage and I right behind him. We all sit next to each other on the bench seat on the jet. Me and Sage sandwiched in the middle of Casey and Lenny, with Casey next to me and Lenny next to Sage. Casey and Lenny both have their arms around Sage and I in a protective stance of some sort. I can understand power dynamics enough to know they're protecting us from any unmated males in this room. Letting them know we aren't available to them. It's a quiet and uneventful ride to the royal landing pad. Once there we all exit the plane and make our way to the castle entrance where a couple of butlers are waiting to collect our luggage and show us to our rooms. The landing pad is quite large. I can see two other private jets landing with more guests for the events.

As we reach the butlers, they all take us in and begin bowing to Casey. Actual freaking bowing.

"Prince Casey, it is so nice to see you again. I trust your travels were comfortable and well?" A tall butler in the front of the group approaches Casey pulling him in for a hug.

"Always! I've missed you Sebastion. How is your family?" Casey replies, seeming to have known this man his whole life.

"Very well. Thank you for asking. We added another grandbaby to the collection!" Sebastion says while pulling out a picture of his wallet to show Casey his beloved grandchild. Sebastion gestures to the other butlers to pick up our bags and start leading the way. We all follow them and Sebastion, as he and Casey continue to talk and catch up with each other. Upon entering the castle, I felt my breath catch in my throat. The outside was absolutely stunning but is nothing compared to the inside of this place. The outside revealed a giant cream castle with vines and moss growing all over it and a gorgeous forest surrounding the area. Upon entering the floors are a white and black checkered marble with gold accents in the marble. The high ceilings reach a glass ceiling revealing the beautiful weather above our heads. Walls of cream with deep red velvet tapestries all depicting different scenes in gold of war and love. Columns meeting the curved ceilings and a spiral staircase tucked in the corner of the room with a reading nook perched behind it with rows and rows of bookcases. In the center of the room is a grand staircase with red carpeting going all the way up to the next floor with an archway carved by gods. The detail in the carvings of the wood all over this place is insane. Wolves and mermaids battling humans together. Wolves and vampires fighting each other. Along with several other war variations. Leaving me to wonder how far back their history goes in comparison to humans' history. The whole place gives off cathedral vibes. Which makes sense, considering royalty lives here. Literal royalty. I mean what the fuck have I walked myself into. I can't help thinking that this whole thing seems rushed, that maybe I didn't give myself time to really think about the possible danger I may be putting myself in by walking around with a literal freaking prince. It's too late to think about that now, the damage has been done. Besides, when an opportunity comes along of this magnitude, you can't refuse it. Even if I don't write about it, I will walk away with an amazing story and hopefully learn something from all of this. Walking through the hallways and more stairs to make our way to the east upper wing of the castle which is apparently on the opposite side of the castle that we landed on. The other butlers had long disappeared with our luggage. Probably taking a shortcut. At least this way we can see more of the castle. This place is huge and full of people. Everywhere I turn I can see maids and butlers all over tending to other guests, no doubt getting everyone prepared for the events that are to take place during this all-around tour they are hosting. Mates must be a pretty big deal to attract this many people to participate. I'll have to check my journal to see if Casey answered that question for me. I come to an abrupt stop upon walking straight into Lenny.

"Oh! I'm sorry Lenny!" In my process I managed to knock Lenny's carry on out of his hand. I reach down to grab it for him at the same time he does and we both bonk into each other's heads and fall over laughing clutching our heads. Sebastion and Casey both come over to help us both off of the ground.

"Are you guys okay?" Casey asks and he and Sage, both look us over to check for injuries. Lenny and I are laughing way too hard to let them know we're okay, just idiots. So, we try nodding our heads at them and that seems to get the message through enough. Sebastion turns to Casey and whispers something in his ear before walking away.

"Well, let's make our way inside and I'll show you guys your rooms. Then we can have some dinner!" Casey says as he makes his way inside the room. As I step inside, I realize I was wrong. This isn't a room; this is a whole ass house or large apartment. In front of me is an open room with a full living room and fireplace to my left three doors along the wall to my right and separating the living room from the full kitchen equipped with, what I'm assuming is all the best in kitchen appliances, is a dining table suited for 10. Along the wall to the far left are three more doors that Casey explains both middle doors are bathrooms, and the other doors are bedrooms.

"Take your pick of rooms. Minus the room to the left closest to the kitchen. That's mine. But you are more than welcome there anytime." He says turning to me and winking at me. I can feel my cheeks heating up. Sage takes this moment to take a break from the unusual quiet that she has been to intervene.

"Amara and I will take the rooms over here on the right. Is it okay if I shower? I feel gross after flying twice." She gives a little shake at the end as if to signify how disgusted she is. I've never understood her being a germaphobe. She steps into the first room by the door and drops her stuff and makes a beeline for the bathroom not even waiting for Casey's reply.

"Please make yourselves at home. I want you to feel nice and comfortable while you are here." Casey says making his way to the kitchen after dropping off his bags in the doorway of his room. Lenny took off to the bedroom by Casey's dropping his things off and heading for the other bathroom announcing he's also going to shower. I make my way towards the bedroom I'll be staying in for the next week. As I step inside, I'm greeted with a large bed that is calling my name with the most gorgeous white and green bedspread. The walls are painted a sage green, my favorite color. There's a wooden vanity with a chair to match in front of the wall to my left upon entering and a closet door next to that. I open the closet and dump my bag into it and start pulling out my makeup bag and toiletries bag to set up on the vanity. Once I'm done, I make my way into the kitchen to help Casey figure out what we're all going to eat before passing out for the night. It's around 7pm so it will be a late dinner but a dinner no less. I walk into the kitchen and find Casey pulling out a bunch of different ingredients as if he's trying but failing to decide what to make. I see the makings for a pizza and walk up and put my hands on his shoulders.

"When pizza is an option there is no other option." I say with a very serious expression. Casey immediately starts laughing at me.

"You are absolutely right. What was I thinking?" Casey says laughing as he starts putting away the ingredients for everything else he got out. We started working on putting together a pizza and I was just about to ask Casey about my journal when there was a very angry sounding knock at the door. Casey gives me a confused look as he makes his way to the door. When he opens it I can see two younger looking girls standing there with frustrated looks on their faces as Casey gestures for them to come in. I can finally hear some of the conversation.

"- and then mom said she gave my room away to another family, so I have to stay somewhere else. I mean how could she let someone else stay in my rooms! They will leave germs everywhere!" I can't help but laugh at this as she sounds exactly like Sage to a T. This unfortunately brings her attention to me. "Who is this? Don't tell me you have people staying in all of your rooms too! Please tell me you have one spare for us!!" She's practically begging at this point. I can't say I blame her though. Casey turns to me and gives me a please help me kind of look.

"Sage and I can share a room and since Sage has only stepped foot in her room long enough to drop her bags off, I can just move her stuff into my room. I'm Amara by the way." I say as I step towards her with my hand out. She grabs it, shaking my hand and saying "Oh, I'm so sorry. I'm Lina, Casey's sister and this is my mate, Angel. Thank you so much for being willing to help us out and share your room with your friend!"

"Oh, it's really no problem at all. Back home we pretty much share our rooms every other night." I say with a laugh as I move to grab Sage's bags to put in my room. Sage steps out of the bathroom right at that time and sees me with her bags and the girls in the living room and immediately puts two and two together and takes her bag from me and heads to my room saying, "You better shower before you get into bed with me. You have airplane germs." I can't help but roll my eyes at her. I head to the kitchen and wash my hands and Casey comes up behind me and asks, "What kind of germs are on a private airline?"

"I'm not sure. Maybe the mile high club kind of germs." I say laughing as I get back to kneading the dough. We continue working on the pizzas as we laugh and talk about so many different things. I learned that Casey loves to paint and spent most of his childhood outside playing with the many farm animals around this place, usually with Lenny and Lina by his side. And then much later Angel. He said they all went everywhere together. About the time Casey spilled pizza sauce on me is when Lenny and everyone else came out from settling into their rooms to help us actually make the pizzas and we all spent a little bit of time getting to know each other. Lenny spent every summer vacation here with Casey and Lina learning every nook and cranny of this castle. Lina met Angel when they were 16 and always knew that they would be mates. This was confirmed when they turned 18 a few months ago and have since then been traveling the world together to see all the most beautiful sites they can. Lina heard her older brother was coming home for the all-around tour and just knew she had to come home to visit and wish him well before his travels. We all sat down to eat our pizzas together and spent the whole time laughing and just having the best of time. Everyone started settling down as we all started yawning. Realizing how late it was getting we all decided to hit the hay for the night. I, of course, had to hit the shower first at Sage's very real and seriously mean request. I literally showered this morning. There's no way I stink. As I finished my shower and was drying off and getting dressed in my pajamas, I could hear Lenny and Casey talking in the living room.

"Do you think she's your mate?" Lenny whispered to Casey.

"I don't know, it's so hard to tell with humans. My wolf definitely likes her and reacts well to her but he's not sure either. The only way to know would be if she started to change. I mean that's bound to happen at some point anyways, right? Can we just wait and see if that happens? I mean humans can't be mated to a supernatural being unless they have the supernatural gene and just don't know it yet. Maybe being around all these supernatural's will bring that out of her."

"I don't know. Don't you think we should just talk to her and tell her? This is a big thing to keep from someone. And if we're wrong then nothing happens right?"

"My wolf can sense she definitely has to have the gene. Is there like a test we could do? You're the science guy. What if she doesn't want to be supernatural and it all just scares her? Or if she does and we get her hopes up for nothing?"

"You're right. Let's just talk more about it tomorrow with your mom. Maybe she'll have a little more insight into the situation. She'll be here for breakfast, right?"

"Yeah. Alright I'll see you in the morning. Not a word until we talk to my mom." I hear some shuffling and eventually both bedroom doors close. I finish getting dressed and quietly make my way to my room where Sage is awake waiting for me to gossip about the day like we usually do every night. When I get to the door, I see my journal sitting outside of it. I grab it and rush into the room. As soon as I get into the room, I relay everything I heard to Sage.

Journal Entry #1 Werewolves and Lycans

What is the difference between a Lycan and a werewolf? Lycans are bigger, stronger and faster than werewolves. Lycans can also half shift, resembling a large wolf that evolved to stand and fight like a kangaroo. To kill a Lycan you must sever the spine from its body.

What's the deal with all the moon stuff? Do werewolves have to change at the full moon? No, we can change at will and have full control over ourselves. At every full moon we usually have a celebration to honor our moon goddess and usually turn and hunt animals as tradition. Not everyone has to participate in the hunt though. Usually younger or unmated wolves do it as a way to find their mate or burn off energy with their wolf.

What are mates? The best part in my opinion. Every supernatural has a mate. And for every supernatural finding that mate is different. But ultimately it is your soulmate. The person your heart and soul bond with literally and figuratively. You can sense their emotions and thoughts. Almost like having a string connecting you to them. And if you're close enough you can hear each other through that string.

What's one thing you would want humans to know about werewolves? That we aren't all bad and that no we do not eat humans. Quite disgusting actually. Most of us would prefer to just live in peace together.

Are any of the movies about werewolves even close to having a somewhat accurate representation? I haven't really been watching a lot of werewolf tv shows to be able to help answer this one. But my sister says Teen Wolf.

What is something that humans can do to help support werewolves and other supernatural creatures? Just treat us like normal people. We're human to a fault and have feelings and emotions and just want to feel seen and heard like anyone else. We don't want to take over, we just want to be able to be normal without hiding who we are.