* * *

There was only one thing that Remus was worrying about when it came to Hera. And it involved if he would ever fit Hayes' image of being good enough mate to his daughter—That was another thing that trickled into his brain in the middle of night.

Which was why he didn't take her offered number.

But when Jackson informed him that the pups of the pack and a good portion of the Enforcers that she met while training had all befriended her on Moonstgram, he too had to look—Only to find she was private, like she mentioned in their last phone call.

In clicking on her profile picture he let out a breathless sigh, goddess he felt like a pup. Fawning over the picture she had decided to use, what was she doing in it?

Why was she smiling?
Who took the picture?

The two hadn't talked since their first call, as the workers starting to pile up with Hayes' and Harlow's suggestions were time-consuming. And while he no longer had his Delta, he recruited a Gamma—Shawn, and his mate Jessi.

They were in the same generation as Leo and had pups of their own, but they had given the perfect balance to what he was lacking.

However, in his walk-through of what he did today, he suddenly pressed 'request follow' on her account. "No...Nonono fuck." He said, getting up from underneath the covers and scoffing at his luck.

Remus could simply play it off, say he didn't mean it the next time they talked. Just as he was about to refresh the page so he could unrequest—He was suddenly visible to her account.

And sweet goddess he couldn't get enough, he found himself screenshotting a few—Only to receive a notification on the app.

<Alpha it's 3 in the morning, so good morning and I hope you're having fun>

"Shit." He cursed, but then he narrowed his brows and hurried to type back.

>It is 3 in the morning beautiful, so good morning, but what are you doing up?<

He caught the small little bubble icon pop up, his eyes not daring to move away from it.

<I uh...My stomach's still upset, I threw up.>

>Goddess, I thought you were feeling better?<

<I was, I just don't want to wake up anyone. Besides, seeing you stalking me is kinda letting me ignore the fact my body is trying to kill itself.>

>I wasn't stalking. I was doing research<

<Yeah, and any interesting findings on this research?>

>That you have a beautiful smile, and a beautiful wolf.<

<Oh, I guess you haven't seen my wolf either huh?>

>Nope, I missed out...I should let you get back to sleep, we're not supposed to be talking<

Remus had seen that she was still active online, or so says the little green circle beside her name. But in seeing the lack of texting back he started to get the jitters.

"Alright, it's fine, she probably fell asleep. It is almost four and she's sick—Goddess." That wasn't at all what happened, sure she had fallen a bit ill again, and in thinking that it would make her feel better, she took a peek at her Alpha's profile.

He wasn't private and while she was sitting on the cold tile of her bathroom, a harsh cry caught her by surprise. She instantly locked her phone and sobbed further into her elbow.

Hera didn't have any expectations as to what he would post, but them being mostly of him and Kelly was exactly not what she wanted nor cared to see.

She supposed the Omega looked pretty, and while he admitted he wasn't pure—what did she expect? They were together since high school. A part of her burned in anger, happy that she met someone before him.

Then it was a layer of regret, he probably saw her as a pup like the rest of them. It's why he didn't address any of the pack's real problems or keep her as informed as Jackson.

And she was sick of asking him to know more about the pack when he always pushed for her to ask the Alpha.

>Hera?<

She looked up to the ceiling and tried to breathe evenly, of course, he wouldn't know what was wrong. The she-wolf hardly knew herself, so she just slid the chat back open, just in time for another text.

>I'm gonna guess you fell asleep. One of us should be sleeping. Goodnight beautiful. Talk to you soon<

Whether it was bittiness that caused her not to reply, or that she left her phone in the bathroom's counter. It meant that his message was read but not replied.

The next morning, however, she couldn't hide the symptoms from the healer as she was still weak. Hera hardly ever stayed in the house for long, and the four walls around her were undoubtedly going to kill her.

Yet a blessing occurred, and she had gotten the slightest response from her wolf. If anything it felt like she was drowsy, as the poison was meant for her wolf more than herself.

It was Willow's theory that Hera had never drank or experimented with drugs like her siblings had on more than one occasion. The Wolfsbane had much more of an effect. Causing Hera to groan at the fact that her good and clean choice of staying away from all those things was causing her more pain.

Due to her lack of tolerance.

Jackson was quick to tell Remus that Hera was starting to feel her wolf coming back, but the healer suggested not to risk a shift. Even when Hera was beginning to be given the go-ahead.

"Hey, two more days. Not so bad, and we can take a walk around...Meet some friends...Some she-wolves." Hera laughed, shaking her head as she continued to her set of push-ups.

"I don't have many friends."
"That can't be true, you're the sweetest she-wolf I know."
"Why do I get the feeling, Delta Jackson, that you have other words for she-wolves that are not PG for my mind." He perked his lips at the fact that he was surely called out.

"Besides, who wants to be friends with an Alpha's daughter?"
"A lot of people?" She shook her head, which was very telling as to how Hera was a teen—Or why she was so worried about making friends her own age.

She didn't have many.

"Alpha's wondering if you'll have 'dinner' with him."
"'Dinner'? Or did he forget we're about six hundred miles away from one another?"
"Yeah, on the phone I mean, so dinner over the phone." As cute as that sounded, Hera found herself finishing her push-ups to fix her training bun.

"I'm good."
"You're good? Uh...Maybe I don't speak pup anymore, what does that mean?"
"I'm good, don't want to have dinner over the phone. So I'm good to not do it." He was surprised at her denial, but then again she didn't ask about Remus as she had in previous days—Did something happen?

Jackson had the unfortunate task of telling Remus that she didn't want to talk that night, and Hayes just smirked in the corner as he scuffled together the rest of the paperwork.

"Don't take it personally, Remus. She got her wolf back...It's going to be a lot harder on her now." He had assumed that it would be a blessing or easier if she had received her wolf back. But no, it seemed to make matter worse.

Especially when she posted a new picture with another she-wolf. The similarities of the two were seen in the eyes, and when he asked Hayes he simply informed him that it was her cousin, Elenor.

And Remus felt guilt that when Hera did live with him, that she would have to establish a new set of friends here in Crescent Moon.

After a week of silence, Remus had enough—and his work ethic was starting to reign thin as it was Hayes himself that called Hera to see what the problem was.

"...I'll admit, I'm not the most involved when it comes to my pup's use in social media. And my mate tells me constantly that I need to pay more attention to it, but I have a feeling that whatever she saw on yours, didn't impress her." Remus hardly understood the concept of it, he hadn't recalled when Kelly made it for him.

And that's when it hit him, just as the pictures flashed him in the face. He hardly could formulate a sentence in realizing what Hera must've seen.

"How do I delete them," Remus growled, tapping the photo and looking aimlessly for an answer and Hayes sighed. "Deleting them won't change it, son. It's a start, maybe...My girl's smart, but she's also still considered a teen."
"Uh, sir—"
"I am here to help you be Alpha to your pack, Remus, not to be romantic with my daughter." Romance. Remus could do Romance.

Well, after twenty minutes Remus realized he couldn't do romantic at all, not with distance at least. So when Eli found his Alpha with his down on his desk, he sighed.

"Alright Alpha, you need a—"
"Hera's pissed."
"Yeah, Jack told me." It earned the Beta a groan, he should've realized himself that something had been wrong.

"Oh goddess have mercy on you Rem, did you really google that?"
"How am I supposed to know the basics of a long-distance relationship? I've already messed up the first step: Communication."
"So then send her some flowers, get her a gift, write a poem. What does your wolf want to do? Listen to him, he might not have met her for longer than a minute but the two of you are supposed to be mates. What would she like?" Remus growled, his wolf have one of the many ideas that could perhaps pass over well.

But he'd need to send it.

"Sure Hayes will take anything to her when she leaves, or—"
"This needed to be done days ago!" Which caused Remus to use the rest of the afternoon to get together a package for his mate.

Some of it was slightly difficult to come by, as the power of ordering things was time-consuming—Hopefully Hera finds some of this as him and his wolf try to sort out what he's done wrong.

Goddess, he realized he made a mess of all of it—If his pack was normal, if he was normal then perhaps Hera wouldn't be agreeing with her father.

Yet Leo's words cycled through the Alpha's mind, that Mystic Grimm females were protected by their fathers for things like this.

Remus didn't stop trying in talking to Hera, but whenever he mentioned her to Hayes or Harlow, it seemed that there was the general amount of worry that shaded the conversation in not so many words.

It was Jack that told him the truth, that Hera and Maverick finally spoke to one another—He couldn't be all that angry, if he had to continue training with a mentor that could pass or fall everything that he's done leading up to now...

He would be feeling pretty pissed too.

So maybe it wasn't all about the pictures? Maybe he had a chance to—

"My son told me a Thirty-five-pound package was delivered with my daughter's name on it?" He found himself taking his last statement back, was he overcompensating for his own failures that were going to shared with her now?

He simply sighed over his desk.

"She wasn't accepting my offers in calling, it's been a week—Jackson needs to come back soon." Hayes hummed and rolled his eyes, but then picked up the phone again and laughed further.

"Yeah, it's from Remus."

"Could he act like more of a puppy?! Goddess her birthday is coming up!" Harlow grumbled and it made Remus feel even worse, the second-hand embarrassment of feeling his mate's judgment to what he picked out.

He was just hoping she liked one thing. Just one.

"She's on her way back from a run, wanna stay on the phone? Sure that little mate of hers will want to know what she thinks." Hayes looked to Remus and the male nodded close to desperately, which caused him to set the phone speaker and onto the desk in front of them.

"Your dad wasn't kidding when you run the entire pack grounds. Goddess, Hera, I can't feel my legs!" Scratch that, Jackson was much more of an embarrassment than the ladder.

"Come on, it was great! And you don't sound like you're dying today—Uh...Bubs? What's that?" Remus couldn't breathe.

"That, bubbles, is from your mate. Because you're not giving him a chance to talk." Hayes almost lost himself when he heard Willow laughing in the background, he had to wave it off to the male in front of him or else he was sure Remus was going to dig himself a grave.

"That package is bigger than me!"
"And heavier than you too, so—" There was a bit of shuffling over the phone and Hayes really couldn't manage when Willow was scolding their children for acting like pups.

"He's my mate, not yours!"
"Dad says we need to—"
"Thanks bub!" And thus the sound of the door closed off in the distance. Leaving Hayes to smirk towards his in-law and wink.

"I think it's safe to say she's excited." Jackson teased into the phone and Harlow agreed with his own laughter. Merlin, he was starting to feel the jitter, especially when Harlow had ended the call and left Remus to sit in wait.

Hera settled the box on the floor and smiled at it, and Harlow was right, whatever he set was heavy and packed tightly so she hurried to cut the tape and folded the edges back, only to be introduced with everything that Remus probably thought she would like.

But what caught her eye first was the deer skull with antlers—Which was probably why the box was so tall, to begin with. Hera's wolf was salivating at the idea that her mate went hunting for her and had it skinned and everything to send her a trophy.

"Score one for you, mate." She whispered, setting it down as the goodies in the box didn't end at all. Instead, she held a package and blinked at it in confusion.

The label had male handwriting on it, but she hardly got to know that detail and sighed at the idea of her mate sending her deer jerky. "Okay, that's another point...Goddess, I don't have a romantic bone in my body and this male comes out of nowhere and—Wow." Perhaps it was cheesy, perhaps it was perfect.

But in seeing the package entitled 'distant bracelet,' one of those human-made sensors that allow a tapping pulse to connect to one another.

"That's gotta be like five points, alright, Moon...You got me." She growled, almost mad at the fact that she couldn't feel mad at her mate anymore. That he was trying and to be honest, Hera didn't give him much of a chance to explain.

Her wolf was adamant on even going on Moonstagram anymore in worry that Remus might try and text her again on the app, he didn't thank goodness—But she didn't put it past him not to later one.

There were a few other things inside, a small stuffed bear that was absolutely adorable, some snacks—Something that her dad probably told him about. That she loved chips, the cheese ones especially.

And when she reached the bottom with the stuffed bear cuddled into her lap she revealed the letter with her name on it.

Hera,

I'll admit, I'm probably the worse possible mate in existence for the shit I did to you before I even had the chance to know you. I'm sorry.

We only really talked on the phone once but I can safely make the assumption that I love your laugh and your purity in the world. It's refreshing, and as your dad said, I've had a stick up my ass for way too long.

I wasn't sure if you really liked chocolate, but that's what Leo says he gets his mate when he works overtime or said something to upset her...Which is a lot considering they just had a pup recently.

But I'm getting off-topic, sorry.

The jerky is a family recipe that I managed to make, mom's recipe actually. It has a little kick to it so don't eat too much at once.

I hope this makes up for being an inconsiderate cocky Alpha male.

Tap the bracelet three times and I'll know that you got the package and you like it.

Two if I'm a sappy mutt that might be clinically insane, one if I'm still in the dog house or I guess none if you want me to leave you alone to be forgiven later.

Whatever you chose is Hera, I'll respect it.

-Remus

Hera sniffled as she curled further around the stuffed bear, and of course, her wolf was howling at the fact that it smelled like him.
Goddess did it smell so good.

"Sweetheart? Can I come in?" Willow said, but that tone indicated that she was on the verge of laughing as well. Yet the lack of response caused the overprotective mother to peek her head in, and of course, she threw her head back.

"Harlow! Oh goddess this is perfect, he got her a deer skull!" Hera instantly groaned as she fell back onto the floor, the contents of the package ready for everyone to see—Even Remus' Delta couldn't handle to stifle a laugh at the romantic gesture that was given.

And while Hera was trying to set up the distance bracelet, she caught her brother shaking his head off in the corner. "Bubs, you being quiet is a hundred times scarier than you saying what you're thinking. What is it?"

"He might have a chance huh?" Hera pouted and held up the little bear right up beside her face. "Look how cute he is, and it smells like Remus—I'm pretty sure his wolf rolled around or played with it. I like a smart male." It earned her a shiver from her brother and she rolled her eyes.

"You'd think after having Haylee as a sister you wouldn't be so worried about me bubs."
"I'm always worried, about both of you—That just comes with being the oldest...Did you talk to Maverick?" She nodded, biting her lip as she fumbled with the bracelet, reading the instructions to make sure that she did it right before tapping the screen.

"What the hell is that—Is that a tracker?!" Harlow said trying to yank it out of her hands and it caused her to jump away.
"No! It's a distance bracelet you brute! Get off!" He instead settled for the box and eyed the instructions just the same, all while Hera had given three taps to the device on her wrist.

He felt the small vibrations and the color that popped on the screen with her taps. But after a moment she gave another two sequenced taps because he was certainly a little sappy and clinical.

Remus was still with Hayes in the office, though it was after hours now—His Beta and Gamma having gone home for the day and thus...Left the two Alpha's in the company of one another, though it was clear that whatever conversation they were having it was one-sided, not that Hayes was offended.

But it was confusing as to why the male kept looking to his wrist.

"So what was in the package?"
"You're just going to laugh."
"I can promise you that a mate will a lot for one another. And this honeymoon stage might be on hold, but it'll come around." Remus tried to accept the male's hopeful speech but it was hard.

Especially when Hera surely went through the whole package—Unless he forgot to place the letter down!

Just as he was about to return to his bedroom, his wrist let out a small vibration. And a rumble of approval shot through him like a glass of cold water, he received a three—followed by a two which caused him to chuckle.

"What in goddess green earth is that thing?" 

"A long-distance bracelet, and she liked my gift." Hayes smiled—Not because of the bracelet, that would need to be addressed later as damn it looked like a tracker. But because Hera had accepted the gift.

"So are you going to be having dinner with my daughter tonight, if so I'll need to get Willow out of the house."
"I don't want to push my luck...I didn't plan that far ahead." He said with a sigh and Hayes rose to his feet with a slight chuckle.

"Call her. Hera loves little things like that bracelet—Whatever the hell it does."

______

Date: 03/02/2022

Time: 9:19

Words: 3136