Chapter 31

[ 1,478 words ]

The unmated females

31: 31.

The unmated females Aria

The first thing I notice is the quiet.

Not actual silence—there’s nothing silent about a pack—but a different kind of noise.

Layered.

Alive.

Intentional.

Harmonious.

The kind of atmosphere tht settles into your soul.

Which it good because the thought of the Assembly returning here when they find out I’ve undergone the change make me a little more then anxious.

Voices carry across the clearing, low and familiar.

Laughter breaks out near the far edge where a group of wolves—people, I remind myself—are stacking firewood.

Somewhere behind me, metal clinks against metal, rhythmic and steady.

The scent of smoke curls through the air, mixing with pine, damp earth, and something warmer—something distinctly them.

Home, my wolf murmurs.

I stiffen.

Sure the place is nice and everyone’s been welcoming so far, but home?

I’m not sure there is any place I’d truely call that.

My wolf take an irritated swipe at me.

She doesn’t argue though.

My chest feels tight in a way I don’t understand.

I shift my weight, arms crossing as I stand just at the edge of everything.

Not quite in the clearing.

Not quite out of it.

Watching.

Learning.

Trying not to feel like I don’t belong.

“They can feel that, you know.”

I flinch, spinning toward the voice.

A girl stands a few feet away, hands clasped loosely in front of her.

Her blonde hair is held on lose ponytail, and her brown eyes are soft and warm as manuka honey.

She looks about my age—maybe a little younger.

There’s something immediately… calm about her.

Non-threatening.

Submissive, my wolf identifies instantly.

I blink.

“Feel what?”

She tilts her head slightly, a small, knowing smile on her lips.

“That you’re trying unsure of yourself, or maybe them. That you are purposefully keeping your distance.”

Heat creeps up my neck.

“I’m not—”

“You are,” she says, not unkindly.

“It’s okay.

We don’t get many new wolves but from my epeirnece the change can be hard on them and not knowing what to expect doesn’t tend to put people at ease.”

“I’m not ‘most wolves,’” I mutter.

Her smile widens just a fraction.

“No. You’re not.”

Something in the way she says it makes my stomach twist.

“I’m Quinley,” she adds after a moment.

“You can just call me Quin.”

“Aria.”

“I know. The whole pack was excited to meet you before, where you were Liam’s human sister, but now that you’ve changed, let’s just say we’re excited to see what you bring to the pack.”

I glance back toward the clearing.

“So… they can feel it?”

She nods.

“Not like mind-reading or anything,” she adds quickly.

“It’s more like… emotional scenting.

Energy.

The submissives more so.”

“I’ve been working on my scenting.

I’m still trying to figure out emotions, though,” I say honestly.

“You’ll get used to it.”

We already feel it, my wolf says.

You’re just ignoring it.

“I’m not ignoring anything,” I mutter.

Mara’s brows knit together.

“Chatty wolf?”

“Yeah,” I say quickly, feeling slightly embarrassed.

Doesn’t look at me like it’s anything to be embarrassed about.

“Yeah,” she says softly.

“That happens.”

I study her more closely now.

There’s a steadiness to her.

A quiet confidence that doesn’t demand attention but holds it anyway.

“So… you grew up here?” I ask.

“In a pack?” she clarifies.

“Yeah. My whole life.”

I glance around again, trying to see it through her eyes.

Not strange.

Not overwhelming.

Just… normal.

“What’s that like?” I ask.

She exhales softly, like she’s considering how to explain something that’s always just been.

“It’s… constant,” she says finally.

“You’re never really alone. Even when you are.”

I huff a quiet laugh.

“That sounds exhausting.”

She smiles.

“Sometimes it is. But knowing you have people who will stand beside you through anything is worth it. Even if they’re nosey bastards most of the time.”

Not to us, my wolf says.

We crave it.

I ignore her again.

Quin gestures toward the clearing.

“Do you want to walk?”

I hesitate.

Then nod.

We fall into step side by side, moving slowly along the edge before easing into the heart of it.

No one stops what they’re doing.

But I feel it.

The awareness.

The subtle shifts of attention.

“They’re trying not to bombard you with interaction,” Quin says under her breath.

“Trying?” I echo.

She glances at me, amused.

“Well, you are Ronan’s mate after all. And you’re the only mated band in the pack. People will be curious as to why.”

I can feel my face go hot.

Quin notices and gives me a comforting smile.

“Oh dont worry. No one is going to judge you. In fact, I think most of the unmated females will be jealous. You took four eligible mates out in one fell swoop. I’m impressed.”

We pass a group sitting around a rough wooden table, sorting something that looks like herbs.

One of them nods at Quin.

“Mornin’.”

“Morning,” she replies easily.

“Aria, this is Olive.

She is in charge of our apothecary stores.”

“Hello Aria, nice to see you again.”

I vaguely remember her from the pack meeting, but then again, I met so many people I can’t say for certain I remember most of thier names.

“Same here,” I reply, as we continue walking.

Normal.

So normal it almost makes my chest ache.

“What do you do all day?” I ask.

“I mean… is there, like, a schedule? Jobs?”

Mara nods.

“Yeah.

Everyone contributes in some way.

Hunting, cooking, patrols, training… even repairs and gathering supplies.

Then there are those of us who have jobs in town.”

“In town?” I repeat.

I thought shifters wanted to keep their distance from humans.

“Sure,” she agrees.

“The pack owns many businesses that we work in with humans. But only those with complete control do those jobs to make sure we maintain anonymity.”

The reminder of having to keep secrets from humans makes me think of Liam, of the way I treated him, not understanding the full extent of what he went through.

And now I find myself in his shoes, running from the world I know and lying to the only friend who stuck beside me through the years.

Hazel.

My chest tightens.

“I never appreciated how hard my brother had it,” I say suddenly.

Quin looks at me.

“You couldn’t have known.

”

“Yeah.

Logically, I know that, but emotionally, it feels like I kind of let him down by not giving his decisions the benefit of the doubt.”

“It can be hard when we have to live on half-truths,” Quin’s eyes look far away when she says that.

I’m not sure what it is about Quin, but I feel like I can talk to her.

Like I can trust her.

My wolf nods in agreement.

“I have a friend. More like a sister, really. I had to leave her behind in the city, and I guess I’m struggling with what to say to her about everything in a way that won’t make her feel like Liam’s absence made me feel.”

Quin hums, thoughtfully.

“That is a tricky one.”

I shake my head.

“What am I supposed to say? ‘Hey, I found out my brother’s a wolf, turns out I am too, and now I live in the woods’?”

She laughs softly.

“Yeah… that might not be the road you want to venture down.”

“I hate lying,” I admit.

The words come out sharper than I expect.

“I didn’t even realize how much until now.”

Quin’s expression softens.

“I don’t want to rub it in or anything, but how you’re feeling now, this was exactly what Liam was feeling.”

“How do you know that?”

“I’m a counselor for the pack. We met often when he first turned.”

Liam went to counseling?

We walk a few more steps in silence.

“I still don’t like it,” I add.

“You don’t have to,” she says.

“But sometimes… we carry things so others don’t have to.”

I glance at her.

“You sound like you’ve done that before.”

She shrugs lightly.

“Growing up in a pack, you learn early that it’s not always about what you want.”

I’m starting to see that.

“You said you’re a submissive,” I say after a moment.

She nods.

“What does that actually mean? Because where I come from, that word has… different connotations.”

She smiles, understanding.

“Here, it’s more about instinct and role.

I’m not weak.

I just don’t have the same need to lead or dominate, and I wouldn’t be able to physically outmatch a dominant shifter.”

“Does that bother you?”

She shakes her head.

“No. It feels… right.”

I study her.

There’s no resentment there.

No insecurity.

Just acceptance.

I wonder if I would ever be comfortable with myself.

“Ladies,” Kade says, coming from behind them and sliding his arm around Aria.

“Hey, Kade,” Quin says.

“Keeping Aria company today, Quiny,” he asks her with gentle familiarity.

The soft tone in his voice makes her wolf bare a fang.

Jeez, what’s wrong with me?

Quin has been nice to me.

“Just showing her around and trying to get to know her better. Not that you’re any help,” Quin lifts a slender shoulder.

“I just want her to settle in before Aunt Reyna goes on the attack.” His hand brushes the small of my back, and my wolf is mollified by his touch.

Aunt…

“Are you guys related?”

“Cousins,” they say in unison.

We start walking back toward the clearing, and Quin gives us a quick goodbye, saying she’ll stop by to see me later.

“Glad to see you moving more freely around the pack,” Kade says once we’re alone.

“Me too,” I say.

“I really like Quin.”

“Yeah?” he questions, like the answer is important to him.

“Umhum.”

“Good. I hoped you guys would click.”

We go.

He slides his hand down mine, twining our fingers together.

And as the forest breathes around me again, I realize something that both steadies and unsettles me all at once.

I’m not just visiting this place anymore.

I’m becoming part of it.

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