The Training

Aria POV

I’d only been on the pack territory for a day, and I was beginning to reminisce on the reason I’d left in the first place. 

It wasn’t about the building or the guest room that was assigned to me. The guest room was more comfortable than the Marriott, and Damien made sure I had everything I needed. It wasn’t the stares and whispers that trailed after me as I walked through the pack members. I saw it coming. 

But what bothered me was the nostalgic feeling I kept getting. Their morning routines and rituals, the pack flow, and the strategic hierarchy that governed every part of it. It was like I travelled back in time, except that I was seeing it from a different angle this time.

Watching the training session going on in the courtyard below stirred something in me. The way the young wolves sparred, practiced taking forms, and worked as a team reminded me that three years ago, I would have been down there with them, struggling to keep up in an attempt to prove that I also belonged. 

Now I was watching, like a stranger.

A knock came in through the door, interrupting my thoughts. “Come in.”

It was Sarah, one of the younger pack members, I remembered from before. She had just clocked sixteen when I left. She was skinny and always looked up to others, now, she was nineteen and had grown into her confidence.

"Hey, Aria." She smiled, but I could see the nervousness underneath. "Some of us were wondering... would you maybe want to join the training session today?"

I raised an eyebrow. "Why?"

"Well, we've heard stories. About what you can do now. About the hunters you've taken down." She shifted from foot to foot. "We were curious."

Stories. Of course, there were stories. Pack gossip traveled faster than wildfire, and my reputation had preceded me.

"What kind of stories?"

Sarah's eyes lit up. "Like how you took down that rogue pack in Portland single-handedly. And the vampire nest in Salem. And that thing with the demon in…."

"Those are exaggerations," I said quickly. "I don't work alone."

"But you do the work. Real work. Dangerous work." She leaned forward eagerly. "We've never had anyone like that in our pack before."

Anyone like that? Not anyone like me. The words rolled off her tongue as if I’d become something entirely different, something legendary. 

"Alright," I said finally. "But I'm not going easy on anyone."

Sarah grinned and practically bounced out of the room. Within minutes, I could hear excited chatter from the courtyard. Word traveled fast in a pack.

I changed into workout clothes. It was black leggings, a fitted tank top, and boots that had seen more action than most pack members ever would. When I walked outside, I found about twenty wolves gathered around the training area, ranging from teenagers to adults in their thirties.

And Kieran, standing at the edge of the group with his arms crossed.

"Heard you were giving a demonstration," he said as I approached.

"Something like that." I kept my voice neutral, professional. We'd managed to maintain that tone since we started working. "Are you here to watch or participate?"

"Depends. Think you can handle an alpha?"

There were murmurs from the watching pack members. A few nervous laughs. This was either going to end very well or very badly for someone.

"I've handled bigger," I said.

The murmuring increased, and I heard someone snort in disbelief.

"Alright then." Kieran stepped into the training circle, his posture shifting into something more predatory. "Let's see what you’ve got."

The pack formed a loose circle around us, everyone eager to see how this would play out. I could smell their anticipation, their curiosity. Some of them probably expected Kieran to go easy on me. Others probably expected me to embarrass myself like I used to.

They were all in for a surprise.

"Rules?" I asked, settling into a fighting stance I'd learned from an ex-military hunter in Colorado.

"No shifting, no permanent damage, fight until someone yields." Kieran rolled his shoulders, loosening up. "Unless you want to reconsider."

I smiled, and several pack members actually stepped back. Apparently, my smile had gotten more intimidating over the years.

"I'm good."

Kieran moved first, coming at me with the speed and power I remembered. But I wasn't the same person who used to crumble under that kind of assault. I sidestepped his charge, using his momentum against him to send him stumbling past me.

He recovered quickly, alphas always did, but I was already moving, staying light on my feet, keeping my distance. Let him think he was controlling the pace.

"Running away?" he asked, circling me like the predator he was.

"Waiting for you to get tired," I replied.

A few people laughed. Kieran's eyes narrowed.

He came at me again, this time with a series of quick strikes aimed at testing my defenses. I blocked most of them, absorbed the ones I couldn't avoid, and watched for openings.

Then I found one. The side he had been trying to protect was his left side. It was probably an old injury, and it must have been bad if he hadn’t fully recovered from it.

We traded blows for several minutes, neither of us gaining a clear advantage. I could hear the pack members commenting, their voices getting more excited as they realized this wasn't going to be the quick victory they'd expected.

"She's faster than she used to be," someone said.

"Look at her technique. That's not pack training."

"Where did she learn to fight like that?"

Where indeed. From a dozen different teachers, in a dozen different cities. From humans who fought supernatural creatures for a living. From other supernaturals who'd been cast out by their own communities. From anyone willing to show a lost girl how to survive.

Kieran caught me with a solid hit to the ribs, and I let myself stumble backward. He pressed his advantage, coming in close for what he probably thought would be the finishing move.

Instead, I grabbed his arm, dropped low, and used a throw I'd learned from a Japanese hunter who specialized in taking down creatures twice her size. Kieran went flying, landing hard on his back with me standing over him.

The training yard went completely silent.

I offered him my hand. After a moment's hesitation, he took it, letting me help him to his feet.

"Nice throw," he said quietly.

"Nice recovery," I replied.

The pack members burst into chatter, some of them looking impressed, others confused. I'd just taken down their alpha. In their world, that meant something.

"Again?" Kieran asked, but there was something different in his voice now. Not challenge, but curiosity.

"Maybe later. I think your pack has seen enough for one day."

Over the next hour, various pack members approached me for tips, questions, or just to introduce themselves properly. The younger wolves were especially interested, hanging on every word when I explained different fighting techniques or shared stories from my time as a hunter.

It felt strange, being looked up to instead of looked down on. These kids saw me as something to aspire to, not something to overcome.

"You're good with them," Kieran said, appearing at my elbow as I demonstrated a disarming technique to Sarah and two other young women.

"They remind me of myself at that age. Eager to prove themselves."

"And now?"

I glanced at him. "Now I know there's nothing to prove. Either you're strong enough or you're not. Other people's opinions don't change that."

I could be wrong, but I saw a flash of regret in his eyes, or maybe it was recognition. Before he could say what he had stuck in his mouth, Sarah called out.

"Aria, will you show us that throwing technique again? The one you used on the alpha?" 

I demonstrated the throw using Sarah as a volunteer, explaining the physics of leverage and momentum. Around us, pack members gathered to watch, their attitudes noticeably different from when I'd first arrived.

Respect. That's what I was seeing. Not the grudging acceptance I'd hoped for three years ago, but actual respect.

"You know," said Marcus, one of the older warriors, "we could use someone like you for advanced training. Someone who knows how to fight dirty."

"Hunters don't fight dirty," I corrected. "We fight smart."

"Same thing, isn't it?"

Maybe it was.

By the time the training was over, I was already exhausted but oddly at peace with myself. I had forgotten what it felt like to be part of a pack, even temporarily. The constant awareness of how the pack works, the pack meals, the casual conversations that could turn into pack business at any moment.

I was heading back to my quarters when Kieran intercepted me near the main house. I was surrpised to see him there, but I let my demeanor remain calm. 

"Walk with me?" he asked.

I should have said no. Should have maintained the professional distance I'd worked so hard to establish. Instead, I found myself nodding.

We walked the perimeter of the pack territory in comfortable silence, following paths I remembered from years ago. The moon was nearly full, casting everything in silver light.

"You were right earlier," Kieran said eventually.

"About what?"

"About being strong enough. You always were. I just couldn't see it."

I kept walking, not trusting myself to respond to that.

"The pack sees it now," he continued. "They're talking about offering you a permanent position. Training coordinator, maybe, or head of security."

"I'm not interested."

"Why not?"

I stopped walking and turned to face him. "Because this isn't my life anymore, Kieran. I have a life. A good one. I'm not going to give that up to come back here and play house with people who spent years telling me I wasn't good enough."

"I never said you weren't good enough."

"You didn't have to. Your actions said it for you."

He stepped closer, and I could see the frustration in his face. "What do I have to do? How do I prove that I was wrong?"

"You don't." The words came out harsher than I'd intended. "That's what you're not understanding. This isn't about proving anything or making amends. This is about the fact that you broke something that can't be fixed."

"Can't it?"

The question hung between us, heavy with possibility. For a moment, I let myself remember what it had been like when we were together. The easy intimacy, the way we'd moved around each other like we were two parts of the same whole.

Then I remembered the look on his face when he'd told me the elders had concerns about our bond. The way he'd stood there while they listed all the reasons I was unsuitable.

"No," I said quietly. "It can't."

His phone rang before he could respond, the sound jarring in the quiet night. He glanced at the caller ID and frowned.

"Damien. It's late for him to be calling." He answered the phone. "What's wrong?"

I could hear Damien's voice through the speaker, agitated and urgent, but couldn't make out the words. Kieran's face went pale.

"When?" he asked. "Where?"

There was more urgent talking from Damien.

"We'll be right there." Kieran hung up and looked at me, his expression grim. "There's been another murder."

"Who?"

"Elder Blackthorne. Found an hour ago in his study."

My blood ran cold. Blackthorne had been one of the most vocal opponents of our original bond. If the killer was targeting people connected to my rejection...

"There's more," Kieran said. "The killer left a message this time. Carved into Blackthorne's desk."

"What did it say?"

His eyes met mine, and I could see my own fear reflected back at me.

"'She was never worthy.'"