>>Seraphina

Azef let out a sigh while I watched him with horror filled eyes. My emotions churned in my chest.

Marriage?

Where did this come from? Who is that woman? Did Azef already have someone he was going to marry? Why did no one tell me about it? Just a few hours ago, they all were asking me about liking him. Were they making fun of me or something?

No..

It didn't look like that... Or was I just too blind to see their mockery?

No..

It's not like that. They're good people...

"I can't marry you, Zena," He replied.

OH! GOOD! Yes, you tell her that! I felt momentary relief.

Zena was offended by that, "Why not?" She glared at him, "You need my support."

For what? Why would he need her support?

"I do," He said, making my chest hurt. He does? He needs her? "But marriage isn't the only way."

"But, it's the fastest way." She said,

I gulped, feeling anxious I looked at the others who were peeking at them. That's when someone grabbed my arm behind behind

!!!

I shot my head back at Runy, "That's Alpha Zena, from the shadowless moon pack," She said, her eyes glaring at the woman standing next to Azef.

"Alpha?" She's from another pack? I looked back at her. But why does she want to marry Azef?

"We're in no hurry," Azef replied, "We can take our time." He said.

Zena shook her head, "Last time you said you'd pick a date for our marriage." My heart dropped at her words, "You're in no hurry, fine, but we'll finalize a date today."

I shot my head at Runy, "They're getting married?"

Runy looked at me hesitantly, "I... had no idea the Beta had that kind of commitment with someone."

"Oh..." I guess they weren't making fun of me then...

Azef clicked his tongue, "How about we talk in private?" I looked at him with wide eyes. He wants to talk to her in private? Why?

It felt like the floor had been pulled out from under me. My heart, which had been so light and full of hope just moments ago, now felt heavy and bruised. The lingering warmth from my daydreams vanished, replaced by a cold, sinking feeling in my stomach.

"Sure," Zena smiled, moved forward and wrapped her arms around his, taking his arm into her bosom, "It's been a while since we've been alone."

The anxiety built up inside me, I tried to focus on something else, anything else, but my eyes kept drifting back to them. I felt my pulse quicken, my palms damp with sweat. My mind raced, thoughts swirling chaotically.

They've been alone before? Just for meetings right? It wasn't something else,

Right?

But why is she taking his arms between her chest!!

No,

I can't jump to conclusions! Azef just said he can't marry her!

They began to walk away when Zena said something that broke my heart, "You didn't come to me for your rut,"

!!!

He's been sleeping with her?

I felt my world break.

I couldn't stand it any longer. I needed to get out. I turned and bolted for the door, my footsteps echoing loudly in the tense silence of the room.

God!

How did this suddenly happen? Wasn't the pack members fine with me liking Azef? But suddenly there's another woman? A woman he sleeps with?

I burst out into the backyard, the cool evening air hitting my face, but it did little to calm my frantic thoughts.

I ran, my feet pounding against the ground as I put as much distance as I could between myself and the house. The trees blurred past me, and the sound of my own ragged breathing filled my ears.

Tears streamed down my face as I ran, my vision blurred by a mix of pain and panic. The questions and doubts chased me, relentless and unforgiving. I felt foolish and vulnerable, like my heart had been laid bare for all to see. I didn't know where I was going, only that I needed to get away, to find some semblance of peace.

Eventually, I stumbled to a halt, my legs trembling from exertion. I found myself in a small clearing, the quiet sounds of the forest surrounding me. I sank to my knees, sobs wracking my body as I let the tears flow freely. The anxiety that had driven me to run now gave way to a deep, aching sorrow.

I had no idea it hurt so much to fall in love. I didn't have the slightest clue that my heart could throb like this.

I hugged my knees to my chest, trying to gather my scattered thoughts. I felt lost and alone, the earlier happiness a distant memory. The weight of uncertainty pressed down on me, and I couldn't shake the feeling of impending doom.

What if Azef and I were never meant to be? Was it really me being delusional?

Why was he so nice to me then?

>>Azef

Shit

This isn't good.

I glanced at Seraphina who was listening to our conversation. I let out a sigh, "How about we talk in private?" I looked back at Zena

"Sure," She smiled and came towards me, wrapping her arms around mine, "It's been a while since we've been alone." We began to walk when I looked at Seraphina again. There was a look of doubt in her eyes. She was looking at me as if I had betrayed her and that look hurt me and my wolf.

He whined in my mind, telling me to move away from Zena.

I felt a little panicked. I wanted to push her away when she said something to cause further damage, "You didn't come to me for your rut,"

I paused and looked at Zena in horror

"What?" When did I ever say I would go to her for my rut?!? That's when I heard someone run out. I shot my head and saw Seraphina.

Oh no

I wanted to go after her but Runy gestured to me that she would go.

'Beta,' She linked her mind with mine, 'You need to take care of this matter first. I'll go after her.'

'Me too,' Lila came in, 'We had no idea you talked about marriage with someone.'

'This was for the pack...' I replied, 'I didn't think it would get like this,'

'For now, handle Alpha Zena,' Runy and Lila began to run, 'We'll solve the rest afterwards.'

***

"I never said anything to you about my rut," I looked at her with cold eyes.

"I just assumed you would come to me since we decided to get married." My head throbbed at her words and my wolf howled in anger. He was angry at me for making such a stupid commitment.

"I know I said I'd marry you previously." We sat in my office, across from each other, "But that's no longer possible." I looked at her as I shook my head,

"What?" She wasn't taking it well, "Don't tell me you've taken a fancy to that human." She crossed her legs while she had her arms folded.

So she caught onto Sera. Well, any wolf can tell a human apart since their scent is different, but she must have caught on since I kept looking at her.

"And what if I have?" I replied calmly

"Azef! You're a new pack! You need the other packs to acknowledge you for you to grow. You know what, right?"

"We were able to form a pack against all odds. I don't see why we won't get acknowledged?" Matthew is the one who put in the most effort to make this pack. He begged the previous king and Queen for it too but they didn't agree. The new king has more common sense and he allowed it, thus we were able to make a home for ourselves.

But all of us knew that acknowledgement from other packs wouldn't come because we were almost all bastards and didn't fit in well.

This was a decision I made on my own. I thought if I married Alpha Zena, who also didn't have a mate, it would bring something good to our pack. Having the backing of a powerful pack like hers would help us a lot.

I just never expected I would meet Sera.

"My pack is one of the strongest in the country. If you pair up with me, I'll do everything in my power to make others acknowledge you too." Zena replied

"That's a kind offer, but I'll refuse. We're doing just fine." Now that I've met Sera, my wolf has healed a lot. With the way it's howling in my mind, I can tell he's alive only because we met her.

She sighed, "Seriously? You're doing this for a human? If you had to like someone, why not like a wolf!? A human would never fit in, and especially not with a pack like yours."

"What's wrong with my pack?" I answered her calmly.

"Hah," She scoffed, "Every single person in your pack is a trained killer."

"Yes," I answered, "And?"

"She's a little sheep. You're really going to do that to her? Have you even talked to see if anyone in your pack wants her in? What if someone kills her?"

"No one will kill her for no reason." I replied, "You seem to have the wrong impression of my pack members."

"Wrong impression?" She said, "You're all from the streets. You were all rogues. None of you were raised as wolves are."

"So?" Her words ticked me off. She's mentioning how wolves are raised in packs with a set of codes and values and since we were all rogues, we didn't receive that education.

In short, she's also calling us all illiterate.

"Don't you think anyone might rebel?" She said, "The fact that most of you were born rogues is another reason why you need an alliance with a strong pack."

I had to force myself not to grit my teeth, "The members of this pack are chosen very carefully." I looked at her with a sharper gaze, "Do you think we just picked up random rogue wolves and made this pack?"

!!!

She was a little startled.

"I didn't mean to offend you-"

"Well you did," I cut her off, "Not a single person from this pack will ever do anything to bring the misfits to shame."

"Azef, I-"

"My decision was wrong," I stood up, "Marrying a pureborn wolf is a bad idea." I glared at her, "It's good you showed me what you think of us. You saved me the trouble that was going to come in the future." I began to walk away when she stopped me.

"Hey!" She stood up in anger, "Tell me one good reason why you would choose that measly human over me!"

I looked back at her, "A good reason?" I smirked, "Oh, I've got one that will shut you up."