Chapter 4

***Auri’s POV***

Maddie had woken me up around 10am pounding on my door. Our parents had already left and wouldn’t be back for the rest of the day. We would meet them at the ball since they were the hosts. Ty would have to take us in his car later in the evening. She was bounding around the house as I got a brunch ready for us and she ferried me, with brunch, up to her room.

“Auri, do you want me to do your make-up? I won’t do a lot, but at least a little eye shadow?”

I chuckled. “To what Maddie? Bring out the grey in my eyes?”

She scoffed. “I mean, I could match it with Kai’s eyes. Are you going in blind to the ball?”

I nodded and looked out the window, Kai giving me her vision. I first was assaulted by Maddie’s choice of pink and white stripped wallpaper and ridiculous amount of red heart pillows, but I settled my vision on the forest outside. The lush green soothing my eyes. Usually, I went blind just about anywhere unless I was unfamiliar with the surroundings. This was different. I didn’t want to hid behind her eyes. If my mate was gonna reject me, they were gonna see all of me.

“Well, I think I can still make something happen. Cause sometimes if you look in your eyes long enough, if feels like you could see a galaxy in there.”

“Maddie, the romantic in you is admirable. But you focus on you. How’s the dress? Did Father let you get ‘the one’?”

She huffed and put her hands on her hips. “No! Daddy was such a hard-ass when he saw it. ‘No daughter of mine will be walking around like a skank’. And mom couldn’t fight him. So I had to settle for this one.”

I did laugh at her impression of our father. She had picked out a very skin tight red dress that did look absolutely gorgeous on her. But it also made her look like she was twenty-one and would have brought all the boys to the yard. Maddie wasn’t curvy by any means, but she was definitely more developed than your average fifteen year old. Hell, even your average seventeen year old.

The dress she did settle on, the one she was pulling out, was a midnight blue. It did hug her but it flared out into a typical ballgown. The sticker price on the dress had been astronomical and I knew the last three months I had worked went to that dress. But I felt better that it didn’t go to another designer purse for Melissa. It was Maddie’s first Gathering and she should have something special.

“You know, maybe the Alpha from the Harvest Moon pack is coming. Maybe I’ll be his Luna. He’s been waiting for me this whole time.” She twirled, holding the dress up to her.

“Poor guy. I would laugh if he gets stuck with Suzie or someone.” I chuckled. “What is he, like 30 now? And his mate ends up being 13! Imagine!”

Maddie started to laugh as well. “Oh how cruel the Moon Goddess can be.” She plopped down at her vanity and started a skin routine that I didn’t envy. “What about your dress? I know dad didn’t give you any money for one.”

“He brought home some fabric and said to make it myself.”

She turned around, half her face covered in a green paste. “WHAT?! Don’t tell me it was that ugly pastel blue bag!”

I nodded. “The amount of fabric brought home wouldn’t even cover half my body. But it’s not like I can say anything.”

“So what are you doing?”

I smirked. “You remember Melissa and fathers old comforter. During Melissa’s metallic phase?”

“The shimmery silver one? God that thing hurt my eyes. A king size silver blanket. As though we don’t have a weakness to silver.”

“That one. Its been in my closet for like four years. So I used that to make something.”

She gave me a look of ‘I don’t believe you could make something nice out of that color’ but she didn’t say anything. She turned back to the mirror. “Well, at least you should try and look hot. You might find your mate.” Looking at me through the mirror, she waggled her eyebrows. “Maybe Alpha Logan is YOUR mate.”

I made a gagging sound and she laughed. We spent most of the day in her room. I made a late lunch since I knew that Maddie would insist on not eating dinner because one, there would be food there, but also that she would not have a food baby in her dress when she walked in.

Maddie was finishing her makeup when I head the front door open and close. I leaned my head out and heard Ty coming up the stairs.

“Cutting it a little close Ty. We need to leave in an hour or so.”

He scoffed. “Says the one not even in her dress.”

I stick my tongue out at him. “Maddie’s dress takes like 10 people to get her into. I may need your help. I only count as five people.”

He waved me off and went into his room and I heard the shower start.

“Alright Maddie, let’s try to get you into this thing.”

It was another 15 minutes but just as Ty came out, dressed in black slacks, black shirt, white tie and a white dress jacket, I managed to get Maddie in and laced up in her dress. Her breasts were just under her chin but she said thats exactly how she wanted it. It was one night and who needed to breathe, were her words.

“Auri, now would be time to get your dress on.”

My hair was already done thanks to Maddie. I looked nothing like the dark chestnut brown family. My hair was a platinum color, nearing white in the right light. It matched exactly with my wolfs color. It was almost as thick and unruly as well. Maddie had braided it to the right side and put little pins of peals. It was to be swept in front of my right shoulder. I hopped down to my closet and took out my dress. I had it covered in a bag so it wouldn’t get dirty or get eaten by moths. Running to the bathroom, I slipped off my baggy shirt and sweatpants I had been in all day.

The dress was probably my finest work yet. It looked like a greek goddess. It had a deep V-neck that also dropped low down the back. The fabric clung to me and shimmered and I made the skirt part of the dress slightly pleated to allow movement. It also had pretty high slits up the side of my thighs. Sure, it showed off all my scars, but damn did I feel good in it. It was definitely not Father approved and it made me very happy. It would be the last time he would ask me to make my own dress.

I walked out of the bathroom, adjusting my hair to over the shoulder when I heard water being spewed all over the kitchen.

“DAMN.” Maddie put her hands on her hips and swayed them back and forth. “Who knew you were hiding that body under those baggy pants and shirts.”

Ty, who was still coughing from inhaling water cleared his lungs enough to say, “There is no way you are wearing that.”

Maddie turned on him. “Why the hell not? Auri looks HOT.”

“We are supposed to find mates, not me beating off men with a stick cause my two sisters look like they just stepped out of their wet dreams.”

I wrinkled my nose. “One, I am NO ONES wet dream. And two, we all know how tonight is gonna go for me. So you can just focus on making sure Maddie is taken care of.”

He shook his head but Maddie squealed. “We are gonna be late and Mom will KILL us. Let’s go now!”

She looped arms with me and dragged me out of the house, followed by Ty who locked up. His car was a nice sedan that he had paid for himself working at the mechanics while he wasn’t in school. I helped Maddie get her entire dress into the back seat and sat in the front seat of the car.

“When’s the last time you sat in the front seat of the car?”

I chuckled. “Never?”

He started to drive and I could feel him staring, I had already request Kai to back off for the night.

“You know I can feel you staring, right?”

Ty cleared his throat. “Sorry. You do look lovely tonight though. That dress…” he paused for a moment, “…suits you.”

I smiled and Maddie leaned forward from the back. “SUITS her? She looks like a bombshell. A damn greek goddess. I should have forced Dad to get the red one.” She leaned back in the seat, huffing.

“Next time maybe?” Ty chuckled.

“I hope there isn’t a next time.”

This made both Ty and I laugh. We pulled into the parking area of the castle at exactly 6:00pm and it took both Ty and I to get Maddie out of the car. We walked into the castle and into the main ballroom where the lights were low and music was playing. And so the night began.