Attack (2)

{Jax's POV}

{Flashback}

I ran through the back door into the backyard with Pat on my tail. Pat had just turned 4 just over a week ago. Giggles had erupted from both of us as we ran towards the pool. I scrambled to the edge and leapt in, making a big splash which soaked Pat who let out a squeal before jumping in after me.

Suddenly I felt uneasy, like somebody was watching me. I held up my hand to Pat and put a finger to my lips. Since we were so young we weren't able to mindlink yet, you could start mindlinking after you got your wolf. Kids generally began getting their wolves around 12.

I looked around nervously while treading water, but everything looked normal. I dipped my face under the water up to the brim of my eyes, still looking around. A tree at the edge of the massive yard seemed to shake slightly, but I wasn't sure if I was just seeing things. Just to be safe I moved over to Pat. “Pat” I whispered right next to his dripping ear, “I don't feel right. I think something bad is going to happen. I want you to go into the house, get mom or dad, and tell them we need them to come outside. Do not come back out here without somebody.”

Pat looked at me nervously before nodding and climbing out, sprinting back inside. I swam to the edge of the pool clinging to the side, watching the treeline. I listened carefully. Even though I was only 5 and didn't have my wolf yet, being of Alpha blood gave me exceptional senses.

I was meant to be the next Alpha after my father. And with great future responsibility came lots of expectations, extra education, training, and more. Pat got a little extra education too, but not nearly as much as me, and he wouldn't start his training until he was 6. I started a year ago when I turned 4.

I kept trying to sniff, but the chlorine from the pool was completely overpowering. I continued to watch the trees, nervousness boiling up in my chest. What was taking Pat so long? I heard a crack, like somebody misstepped and broke a twig on the ground.

In fear I leapt out of the pool and heard a snarl come from behind me. Now I could smell something. It smelled like blood, sweat, mud, and grease. I was suddenly on the ground and there was a full grown adult wolf on top of me, her claws digging into my flesh. I cried out, terrified and in pain.

She half shifted, something people generally avoided doing, pinning me down on the ground. “I'll kill you before you hurt my niece!” She snarled quietly at me. I could feel blood begin to trickle down my body as I heard the sound of a weapon being drawn. Instantly I felt a searing, burning pain on my chest right where my heart was. Whatever it was, surely a dagger based on the size, it was laced with wolfsbane.

Wolfsbane was one of our biggest weaknesses. Wolfsbane was also something that could hinder healing. I screamed out in intense pain at the searing sensation, tears streaming down my face, blood down my body.

And it was then my dad and Pat came out, my dad shifting instantly and chasing her off. He didn't stop chasing her, and Pat came over to me sobbing. I lay on the ground for a while, I was traumatized, hurt, and in shock.

Pack news hit some time later that a she-wolf had gotten imprisoned and sentenced to exile or death. Her identity eventually got revealed. She was the estranged sister of Azelie. Azelie Len, mother of Rose Len, a girl my age. It had turned out Azelie and Nyoka had gotten into a huge fight when they hit twenty, and had never spoken to each other again nor seen each other.

She hadn't had the chance to fully stab me, maybe she was too riled up, maybe a small part of her felt bad for trying to kill a five year old, maybe there was a different reason. But she had broken skin, and that area where the blade cut into my flesh became permanently scarred. Typically wolves could heal so well and so fast we didn't scar. But such was the power of wolfsbane.

From that point on I avoided ever taking my shirt off around other people besides my immediate family. Even when shifting. If I did take my shirt off while shifting, I made sure to do so in privacy. I never wanted anybody to see my scars, inside or out.

*

A couple years later after the event I realized who Rose was. She was in my class. And my instinctual reaction to her as her Aunt's voice rang repeatedly in my head was rage, and maybe a little fear. But mostly rage, and anger. I'll kill you before you hurt my niece! I lashed out, shoving her. She cried and I got reprimanded, but given my status the staff were uneasy about punishing me fairly.

She wasn't the only person I bullied, but she was the main person I bullied. I rarely bothered with anybody else, but I still lashed out to most everyone if they got in my way.

I continued to lash out at her as I began to realize I could get away with a lot, and I started taking out my trauma on Rose. In my eyes, it was all her fault anyway. And soon it became habit to make her life hell. I tried to never cross a certain line, but I sure did get pretty close sometimes.

As we hit puberty and we each got our wolves, my aggression actually began to get worse. It took almost a year for me to start to get better, only compared to just how bad I got when I got my wolf, Luca. Luca seemed just as angry as I was.

It wasn't until the end of the school year for my Junior year that my parents had had enough of me getting in trouble at school for being a bully towards Rose and generally aggressive towards other students. They forced me into therapy.

They knew it had stemmed from what had happened to me when I was five, and they tried to talk to me about it and through it on their own for years, but they were never able to get anywhere with me. So they decided to finally involve a professional.

It was very hard work, but hopefully it was all for the best. I really did want to be a good Alpha like my father and many generations before me. I was aware of my flaws but I was struggling to conquer them. One of my fears was being a failure in the eyes of my family and my pack and being a poor leader. But I did still have time.