I dragged my tired body down the hall to my room. Staying out so late had been the worst idea of my life. It didn't help that the herd had gone so far into the mountains. My legs felt like they were going to give out. I glanced down the hall. I need to bathe, but I wanted to sleep even more. If I slept on the floor instead of my bed, I would get anything dirty. Yawning, I shuffled inside and curled up on a fur spread across the ground. It felt amazing to be off my feet. Being this close to the floor made me notice all of the dirt. I needed to clean. But that would have to be done another day. Dragging my calendar closer, I marked off today and smiled to myself. It was going to be a full moon tonight. Closing my eyes, I smiled to myself.

***

A bang jolted me awake. I lifted my head and stared at the wall I shared with Saigon. Something else slammed into it. I flopped back down as the racket continued. A few curse words were mixed into the fit Saigon was throwing. Darius probably yelled at him for something. Red markings sure did make a werewolf short-tempered. I circled my claw around the date on the calendar. I was going to sleep well tonight and be fully recharged for the hunt tomorrow.

A crash sounded from the room next door. Rolling my eyes, I lifted myself to my feet. My joints popped and cracked. The bastard knew what it was like to be a young dominant, yet Saigon felt it was okay to make so much noise that it was impossible to sleep.

Throwing back the curtains to his room, I glared at him. Was this his version of cleaning? Chucking all of his shit into a pile?

Saigon noticed me and froze. "Archer, um... what's on your fur?"

"Blood," I stated, glaring at him.

He swallowed hard and looked around.

"Some of us worked this morning and are trying to sleep. Your grandmother would beat your ass if she heard you cursing up a storm and making so much noise."

Smiling sheepishly, he rubbed his arm. "Sorry. I got a little carried away."

"A little?" I shook my head. "Just keep it down. I'm going back to bed."

"Because you were up last night?"

"It doesn't—" I glanced into the hall. Jagger was coming this way. I straightened up.

"Did you go—"

I held up my hand. "Shut up. We can talk about it later."

Jagger gave me a nod before looking at me, concerned. "Are you hurt?"

My shoulders dropped as I picked at the dried deer's blood on my chest. "No. I haven't had a chance to bathe yet. I took a nap first."

Jagger nodded. "Go and do it then so you'll be well-rested for tonight."

"Tonight?"

Saigon perked up as well.

"Yeah, you're on the schedule."

"No," I said, trying to not sound panicked. "I looked at the list. I'm not doing patrol until Saturday."

"I had to change it." Jagger turned to Saigon. "You'll be leading a group tonight on the first shift. It runs along the border with the humans and us."

"So the boring one?"

"The safest one," Jagger stated. "I'm not going to give you the hardest route on your time going solo." He patted my arm. "Archer will be on your team."

Saigon let out a deep breath. "Okay. Sounds like a plan to me."

Jagger glanced around the interior. "You might want to pick up your room a bit before your aunt sees. Storm's been cracking down on it lately." He turned to leave.

I hurried after him. "Jagger, wait."

"I can't change it, Archer. You have to find a way to juggle both patrol and hunting."

"It's not that."

He faced me and I bowed my head.

"I think you should talk to Darius." I glanced at Saigon's room to make sure he hadn't followed.

"About what?"

"I can't go tonight."

"Why?" He eyed me.

"I physically can't do it."

He looked me over. "Are you ill? Did you get hurt?"

"No, no." I rubbed my face while checking to make sure no one was within hearing distance. "Please just talk to Darius. I can't go."

Jagger grabbed my arm and led me further down the tunnel. Leaning against the wall, he folded his arms. "What is it?"

I clenched my jaw. The fewer people who know about my condition the better.

"Archer," he said in a quieter voice. "I'm going to be the next alpha. If something is wrong with you, I need to know."

"It's a full moon," I whispered.

"And?"

I flexed my hands. "Don't make me say it."

He seemed confused before he mouthed an 'oh.' "Physically," he said under his breath. "So if you go out tonight, that'll happen?"

If I hadn't been covered in fur, he would have seen how bright red my face was burning.

"Please, don't tell anyone. Not even Raven. I don't want it getting out."

Jagger gave my shoulder a squeeze. "I think I'll go have that chat with Darius. He failed to mention this when he said I had to do the scheduling."

"My father made him swear not to tell anyone. He knows how bad werewolves with the condition get teased about it." Teased wasn't the right word. Tormented was more like it.

"I won't tell anyone. I'll do some shuffling. Come and find me tomorrow and I'll let you know what days you have."

"Thanks." I let out a deep breath. "I'm going to go take a shower now. The smell is getting to me."

Jagger laughed. "Your appearance was a bit shocking when I saw you. I honestly thought you got into a fight."

"I had a rough hunt."

"Well"—he gave me a smirk—"tonight will help you feel better. I'll see you around."

I waved. "Thanks for changing it."

Jagger nodded and left. Cursing under my breath, I banged my head against the wall. That was so embarrassing. Why hadn't Darius filled Jagger in on that little detail? I couldn't go out under a full moon. My body turned into a pile of mush. I would have spent the night running into trees, high on moon rays. I never would have lived it down. My eyes wandered back to Saigon's cave. I returned to the entrance and peeked inside. He was sitting with his back to me, looking through a stack of photos. His dad took a lot of us growing up.

I crept back to my room to get my shower supplies. Saigon would tease me every chance he got if he found out I had a moon sensitivity. Taking a deep breath, I cinched up my bag. Jagger wouldn't tell. That was one thing about alpha werewolves. They wanted their pack to trust them and I was going to have to trust Jagger that he wouldn't let my biggest secret slip.

***

(Saigon)

We were so cute as pups. I smiled at the pictures. I had forgotten where I'd had put them all. A little angry cleaning had helped me find them. Would our pups look this cute? They'd probably be cuter. Putting them back into the plastic bin, I thought about taking a nap. I had patrol tonight. At least, I'd get to be with Archer. I wouldn't have to worry about him running off with Willow. I crawled into my bed when I heard footsteps in the hallway. Hurrying to the door, I peeked outside to see Archer heading for the hot pools. I ran my hand down my stomach fur. A hot bath would help me fall asleep faster.

Snatching my shower bag, I took off down the tunnel. Archer had said we'd talk about the 'Willow thing.' I arrived and noticed him sitting hunched over under the waterfall. It might be best to leave him alone and let him get cleaned up first. Willow and her usual group weren't far off. Darius needed to put them to work. The rest of us were lacking sleep and being run ragged while they just sat around all day.

I stepped into the water and sat on a lower ledge. It was too hot. I should go closer to the river but that was where all the annoying voices were coming from. Climbing out, I laid on the side and dangled my leg in the water. That felt better. The subtle breeze ruffled my fur. I could take a nap right here. My eyes closed and I drifted off.