by Arizona Tape
"Yeah, sure, whatever makes you sleep at night," I scoffed, not liking how he kept turning the tables on me.
"No, no, no, honey, now I get it. You helped me cause your tribe idolises anything Wolf related. In your eyes, I’m a direct descendant of your God, but you can just call me Aspen," he grinned, his smirk so sexy I wanted to slap it off his face.
"Don't mistake yourself, you’re nothing special."
He flashed his eyes. "Oh, but I’m. If I recall correctly, you aren't regular shifters. No, your tribe is the one with the chained wolves. None of you can shift at will."
I ground my teeth on each other as hearing him say it made it even worse. He was right, our tribe couldn't shift. We hadn't been able for centuries now. We were cursed. The reason why went way back to the beginning of history, where the Twelve Spirits had just begun distributing the Earth.
The Swan had chosen the coasts, while the Black Bear had taken the great forests for himself. The Puma had settled for the desert, while the Coyote and Wolf quarrelled over the great Wastelands. Eventually, the Coyote settled for the East, while the Wolf had taken the West. It had taken them seven nights and seven days to make a fair trade-off, and while they thought the hardest was over, the worst was yet to come.
There weren't just lands they needed to distribute, every Spirit was given the honour of picking out a gift for their people. While the Snake picked youth for his people, the Swan chose beauty for his folk. The Boar chose to grant his people abnormal strength in times of distress, while the Eagle gave his tribes the gift of foresight. The Monkey from the Mountains picked for his descendants, configuration, and the Black Bear oddly enough asked for the Eternal Sleep. The Puma took invisibility, a feature the rest would later envy him for, while the Turtle chained his people in an endless circle of rebirth. The Rabbit was granted eternal peace and as the last of the Ten, the Porcupine chose forbidden blood magic. But the Wolf and the Coyote, they couldn't stop fighting. They both had their eyes set on the ancient magic of the Shifters so they could live on eternally in their own descendants. But as it was, both couldn't get this power.
So they had a face off, one that lasted for many years. And in the end, the Wolf came out in as the ultimate victor. So we were given the rare power of transformation, something the Coyote loathed. As the last of the twelve Spirits, instead of choosing a gift for his people, he chose only for himself. A curse.
He cursed the Wolf and every single one of his descendants. And so, instead of us becoming a race of shifters, we were now a pained folk with wolves stuck inside us.
So this bag of muscles couldn't have been able to shift. So either he was crazy or he was lying. Maybe he was a dirty coyote and was just pretending to be my companion so he could lure me into a false sense of security.
Yes, that must be it. Crazy Coyote, the worst of their kind. And it didn't seem like he was about to leave, no, he was still hanging around.
I jumped back as I pointed the stick at him again. Better sort this out now before he became even crazier. "Tell me who you are. Or get the hell out of my camp!"
He rolled his eyes. "This again? I told you, I am the wolf."
"Impossible. Wolves can't shift. None of us can."
"Well then, today is your lucky day, pumpkin." He flashed me another smile and to my annoyance, he had perfectly white teeth. That bastard.
"Don't call me pumpkin. And if you’re a wolf, just prove it," I challenged him, crossing my arms as I dared him to make a fool out of himself.
"Alright. But you asked for it."
If you ever thought the transformation from man to wolf was painless and smooth, you were horribly mistaken.
In front of my very eyes, Aspen's skin split open as all his limbs twisted in a way they weren't supposed to bend. He writhed and groaned in pain as I heard all his sockets loudly pop, his bones one by one realigning from a human skeleton to that of a wolf. He fell to the cold ground as he screamed in agony until he no longer possessed a human face or mouth to scream with. Instead, the forest was filled with a howl that sent a twinge of shivers down my spine as I found myself in the company of a grey wolf.
He stared at me with his dark amber-coloured eyes, the pain of his transformation still lingering in his eyes.
Guilt washed over me and I immediately fell to my knees as I hugged the beautiful animal. "I’m sorry I made you go through that," I softly sobbed in his fur, not believing he actually did this for me.
Aspen the wolf gently licked the back of my hand as he rubbed his soft head against my shoulder. The pain slowly faded from his eyes and he didn't seem to blame me for it. Maybe he was used to it.
I didn't want him to be used to it. It was never okay to get used to pain.
He gently nudged against my knee as he dribbled around my seated figure. He wagged his tail playfully against my leg as he ran circles around me.
"You want to play?" I smiled as I wiped the tears away from my cheeks.
He happily barked, resembling a tame dog rather than a wild wolf. Then again, he wasn't exactly a wild wolf.
I grinned as I stood back up. "I guess you won't be able to transform back for a while, huh?"
He softly whined as he tilted his head at me, his dark eyes sad again. So that was no.
"Sorry..."
Aspen nipped at my ankles as he bumped against my hip. I let out a yelp as I swatted him away. "Alright, alright. I'll run with you."
And so, I ran into the night with my wolf by my side. Having a companion wasn't such a bad thing after all.
Apparently, it took Aspen the whole night to refill his reserves before he could turn human again.
Somehow, it didn't seem nearly as painful for him to shift into his human form. Yes, sure, there was some whining and whimpering, but the transformation went much more smoothly.
And at the end, instead of having a beautiful wolf as my companion, there was a sweaty ball of male lying next to my feet. He was slowly panting as if he ran a marathon, but I wasn't complaining. In the position he was in, I couldn't see his "crown jewels" and I was fine with that. Well...
No! I was fine with not seeing them.
"You okay?"
"Never been better, pumpkin," he grinned, flashing me his signature smirk.
I huffed. I liked wolf Aspen much better than man Aspen. "Get up, you sweaty hairball."
"I'm glad to see you too."
Why were his teeth so white? "Whatever," I scoffed, turning on my heels as I walked away from him. I didn't plan on waiting for him to get up and do his naked dance again. I was already scarred for life.
"Oh come on, princess. Don't pout because you didn't get a peek at the goods!"
Yes, I definitely liked wolf Aspen better. I heard his bare feet hit the snowy ground and briefly wondered how he wasn't hurting himself.
"Tell me I’m not the man of your dreams!"
Ugh. What did I care about his feet. His ego probably protected him from any harm. But then again, he was kind of dreamy... In a messed up, gross way. Yuck, what was I thinking?
I stomped towards our camp and planted my ass down on the stupid hard log. Why did I leave the comfort of home again?
Aspen was right behind me as he casually strolled into our camp sight, like he was out camping for fun. Why didn't he seem affected by the maggoty logs or the freezing wind? It wasn't fair!
Stupid wolf. Stupid sexy wolf. With his sexy smirk. And his sexy voice. Arggh, I should just kill him right now.
But then I would never find out how he shifted. I'd been so amazed by the whole transformation, that I forgot we weren't supposed to be able to shift. Now, if he would just tell me how he did it, I could kill him after.
"So how did you shift?" I nonchalantly asked Aspen as I threw him one of my smaller bags, hoping he would cover himself up.
"Wouldn't you like to know, darling."
"Really? More pet names?" I sighed in exasperation. "Just tell me how you did it."
"N to the ope."
Why w
as he so freaking annoying? N to the ope? Who even says that?
Being nice to him obviously didn't make him respect me. I groaned as I banged my fists against my forehead. Ouch.
"Tell me how you shifted," I ordered the practically naked man standing in front of the campfire. The only thing that apparently survived his shift was a small amulet on a piece of string. Apart from that, he was as naked as the day he was born. Luckily, he was now holding a small leather bag in front of his... Well, you can imagine what he was trying to hide. Frankly, he wasn't doing a very good job. The bag was too small. Or his... Thing... Too big. It didn't really matter.
I directed my eyes towards his waxy chest and immediately regretted that decision. With the dancing fire, the shadows cast on him just made him look even more sexy. I wondered if biting him would be as satisfying as biting in a roasted leg of lamb.
Focus!
"I want to know how you’re able to shift. Tell me." I repeated myself sternly. At least, I tried to be. His pulled up eyebrow and the smirk told me I might not have succeeded.
"Ain't going to tell you my secret, princess. Now, be a dear and throw me one of your furs, will you? I’m kind of on display here." he grinned, the bag falling with a dull thud on the ground I cleared.
"The furs are in the bag!" I groaned as I couldn't believe him. "Oh, and I’m only going to tell you one more, my name is Akira!" I exclaimed as I covered my eyes hastily. I had already seen enough of his... Thing... Now I understood why some people called it "junk" though. Ugh.
Aspen casually threw our last log on the fire and as he did, I saw his muscles flex under his shirt. He was just so damn sexy and I couldn't understand why. Almost so sexy I didn't worry about it being our last log, but I did. The rain from last night had really screwed us over.
I threw another look at the golden boy. Okay, he was sexy enough to make me forget. If our fire went out, maybe he could warm me up. I didn't understand why I was so attracted to him, I mean, he was just a regular guy. With incredible hair. And freakishly handsome features. And muscles that made me swoon. Okay, he was just attractive as hell, but I had been around hot guys before and they never made me feel like this. Well, hot guys might be a little overstatement. I had been around guys before, but they, well, they were no Aspen, that was for sure.
Mine.
I jumped up as I heard my wolf's voice clearer than ever. I felt her stir inside me and I instantly knew what this meant.
Mate.
Chapter 4. Ashleigh
The sound of a dry branch snapping echoed through the silent winter night. Startled, I jumped up and grabbed the stick I had been using as a walking cane.
"Who is there?" I yelled into the darkness as I held the branch out in front of me protectively.
"Relax, don't stress so much," Aspen said as he stretched his legs towards the fire.
I turned towards him. "Didn't you hear that? Someone is coming."
He put his hands behind his head as he made himself comfortable. "Yeah, no need to worry."
I snarled and poked his leg with my stick, earning an angry look from him. I was about to poke him again as I heard approaching footsteps so I decided that my stick had a better use than to poke a carefree Aspen with.
From the darkness, I saw a shadow appear, so I hid myself behind a tree as I watched the approaching figure. I tightened my grip on the stick and prepared myself for an attack.
With my breath held, I listened for the person making its way closer to our camp. The snow creaked and creaked and suddenly, silence. I slowly peeked from behind my tree.
"What are you doing?" a curious voice suddenly asked, almost making me jump out of my skin.
With a swift kick, I targeted the woman who was suddenly standing behind me as I buried my foot in her shin.
"Awww, man!" she howled, as she jumped up and down on one leg in pain.
I raised my stick and as I put some distance between us, I yelled. "Watch it, lady!"
She extended her arms towards me as she backed away from me. "Woah, relax. Am not here to hurt you."
"Lee-Lee! You’re finally here." I suddenly heard from behind me.
Aspen had gotten up and was now approaching the woman standing in front of me. A grin appeared on his handsome face as he pulled her into a tight hug. I heard her squeal as he happily kissed her cheek.
Mine. I heard my wolf jealously growl inside of me as Aspen hugged the girl. So they knew each other? Why was she touching him?
"What took you so long?" he inquired as he took the girl in a choke hold and ruffled his knuckles through her hair.
"Get off me!" she yelled as she squirmed herself free and stomped him against his arm. "Wasn't my fault, Aspen. A little Danny drama, as usual. They are only a couple of minutes behind."
He shook his head and scoffed. "Typical. But am glad you’re finally here."
The girl flashed her perfect white teeth and as if she only now noticed me, she took a step forward and studied me from head to toe. A shiver ran up my spine as her eyes travelled over my body and after she inspected me, our eyes met.
They were impossibly blue, piercing blue, glacier blue and another shiver shot through my body.
Mine.
I confusedly tilted my head as I heard my wolf stir again. I thought she meant Aspen, I mean, I felt the thrill when I was with him, the attraction, he drew me in. He called out to me. But when the girl cheekily winked at me, all thoughts of Aspen vanished from my mind as my wolf howled again.
Mine.
I held my hands up at both of them. "Woah, back up a bit here. Aspen, who is she?"
He smirked as he slung his arm over her shoulders for another hug. Again my wolf growled, but this time, I realised it wasn't because of him, it was because of her. He was touching her.
"Lee-Lee, this is my baby sister!"
What?
"Bro, stop calling me Lee-Lee! I’m only thirteen minutes younger than you!" she protested as she shrugged his arm away and slowly walked towards me. So, his sister, huh? Damn, that was one good-looking family.
"So who is this lovely lady?" she smiled as she stared directly into my eyes again. I felt myself heat up as she looked daringly at me, one eyebrow sexily raised. Remind me again how I managed to find two freakishly handsome people in the middle of nowhere?
"Hi, I’m Akira," I hastily introduced myself to the woman who was apparently Aspen's sister.
The palm of her hand was warm against my wrist as she greeted me the old way. "Ashleigh, but Ash is fine, instead of using Lee-Lee like this moron over here. "
"Ashleigh," I greeted her, forcing my voice to sound casual, like I hadn't just met my mate. I saw her raise an eyebrow at her full name so I quickly added: "I don't like pet names."
"Akira," she replied as she held my gaze, her thumb tickling the inside of my wrist. I quickly pulled my hand away and awkwardly dusted myself off. "You said more of you’re coming?"
Aspen nodded. "Yeah, our friend Danielle and her three lovers should arrive any..."
"Helloooo, my darlings!" a cheery voice trumpeted through the night.
"...Second now," Aspen muttered under his breath, as four more figures appeared from the night.
I softly groaned. Great, more people. Did this forest produce them?
Appearing from the shadows, I saw a redhead followed by three more guys. Greattttt. If I wanted to be surrounded by more people, I would've brought people from home.
"This, this is Danny. She is a friend." Aspen introduced the girl who was by all means, way too cheery.
I extended my arm for a handshake but found myself in a full on hug. "Hiii, it is so nice to meet you. I’m Danielle, but you should call me Danny."
"Danielle, I don't really like usi..."
"Danny! I won't take no for an answer!" she sang, my head already hurting from all her happiness. How could one person be this happy?
"Oh, how rude of me! Boys, introduce yourself!" she chirped as she slapped her own forehead. She pointed to
wards the first male from the right and he stepped forward.
He gave me a steady handshake and I felt my hand disappear into his palm. He was massive.
"Regan," he curtly nodded, his voice incredibly low and calming. He had the same vibe as an oak tree and somehow, it didn't spook me as much as a guy as tall as a mountain should.
"My lover," Danielle, no, Danny, chirped in. I didn't like pet names, but I decided that I'd rather not have her tell me again. She was just too cheery, what if it rubbed off on me?
The second guy didn't make any attempts to come closer. Instead he just awkwardly waved at me as he nervously ran his hand through his hair. "H-Hi, hey, my name is JP and it is so lovely to meet you. D-D-Did you know that your brain is 80% water? N-N-Not specifically your brain, I mean, everyone's b-brain. I wasn't implying that your brain had more water than anyone else, n-no-not at all, I just meant that..."
"JP rambles when he is nervous." Danny interrupted him, as she gently rubbed his shoulder. She pulled a handkerchief from her pocket and patted his forehead dry as she told him to relax. The slender boy apparently named, JP let out a long sigh and pushed his glasses back up his nose.
"But between you and me? He is an incredible lover." Danny whispered loudly. Loud enough that everyone could hear, so not at all between her and me. So two lovers, huh?
Before I could ask more questions about her romantic situation, I was suddenly slapped on my back by the third guy in what I assumed was supposed to be a friendly introduction. To be honest, it felt more like someone trying to slap my heart out of my body.
"Oh, and that is Darren," the redhead happily said, unaware that I was wondering if I had an internal bleeding.
"Her lover as well," the shaggy, dark-haired guy grinned as I saw a twinkle of amusement flicker in his eyes.
So three lovers. No wonder she was this happy.
"Yeah, yeah, boys, meet Akira, Akira, these are the boys. Can we skip the chitchat and poke up this fire? I’m freezing!" Ashleigh suddenly chimed in as she waved away Danny's pleasantries and pulled out some logs from Regan's backpack.
This guy just walked around with firewood in his pack?
