Two

Francis gasped in shock. She was basically dying before his eyes!

 She's trying too hard to push out the wolf sealed in her mind, but the wolf was either too sluggish or too weak. 

 Or perhaps, Aurelia's body couldn't carry the shift.

 But he has been training her for years now to improve her physical strength and endurance. Blood was seeping out from her mouth and ears. She was burning her bloodline power just to initiate a shift! 

"What a foolish and desperate move, she will turn into a cripple at this rate. She is indeed useless. A disgrace to a powerful man like Beta Francis who has a rare Alpha bloodline. Who asked him to mate a weak slave for love?", the Alpha's son muttered from the tall tree where he hid watching the spectacle. 

Beta Francis rushed to his daughter.

 "Stop!!" He roared in panic.

 "No dad, I need to shift" Aurelia whispered, crying. 

Her whole body was shaking. 

"Burning your bloodline's power and potential won't help you shift. It will only cripple you!" Francis roared in anger and reached for her hands. 

 But before he could send some of his powers to stop the process, she collapsed. He quickly caught her and hit the arteries on her hands and the claws changed into her slender hands. 

 He quickly poured an elixir into her mouth to seal her heart. She had ruptured her heart in her desperation. He carried her up and ran back into the mansion. The crowd waiting for her return began to murmur and Sabina simply cackled. 

Francis was angry. His hearing was exceptionally good, so he heard everything they said. Especially Scarlett and her friends who called her useless. One of Scarlett's friends even speculated she's not Francis's child. 

 Francis stopped in anger and turned around.

"Shut up or go home!" He roared at the guests. 

 Aurelia's eyes fluttered open; she had heard the girl say she's not the Beta's daughter. Tears welled up in her eyes. Francis quickly carried her in and set her down on the bed. 

Aurelia broke down crying profusely. Her father hugged her, his heart shattering into a million pieces. 

 "Don't mind them sweetheart. You don't need to shift. I will always be here for you, whether you shift or not".

Scarlett who was standing by the door to eavesdrop frowned. She felt like marching into the room and killing the witch immediately. Her father never gave her half the love and dedication he gave to his useless daughter. 

Her allowance was bigger.

Although Scarlett and her mom always seizes it the moment Francis leaves the house, daring Aurelia to tell him. 

Fearful Aurelia never complains or speaks out.

As long as her dad doesn't catch her, she has no qualms bullying her weak elder sister. She turned around and went back to the lavish party. 

 

The waiters were already serving the buffet. She quickly sat down with her clique. Gosh! How disgusting. Did you see the blood all over her? Just for one little shift she almost killed herself. She's really useless. Her friends murmured trying to fawn over her. 

"She would have probably died if the Beta was not there" Oliver said sipping his glass of Martel.

Francis looked at his daughter "sweetheart it's your party, dress up let's go rock it. I will never let anyone intimidate you. You're the most beautiful girl in this pack, weak or not. Ok?". He whispered, smiling at her. 

 Aurelia nodded agreeing with him. She might be useless, but she is indeed very beautiful.

 Her blue eyes were as bright as the moon, she was tall with an hourglass shape, her hair was the longest black hair ever, just below her waistline. 

 

Her stepmother had wanted to shave off her hair, but her father had dared Sabina to do it and face the consequences. 

They would have disfigured her face, but they were afraid of what Francis will do to them. So, they opted for hitting her in hidden parts like her back, backside or her belly. 

Aurelia went in and dressed in the princess gown her father had bought for her the previous day. She wore the sapphire necklace that matched her eyes perfectly and she was good to go. 

 Francis stared at her as tears welled up in his eyes, she was almost a replica of her late mother. The only difference was that she had his black hair while her late mother was a blonde-haired goddess. 

As they walked down the stairs, she felt someone stare at her murderously and turned. It was Scarlett and her mother. She shivered and clutched her dad's hands. The party was quiet for an instant, there was no mistaking the lust in the men's eyes. 

"She's really beautiful. However, no matter how beautiful she is, she's useless. She can only become a liability to her mate" one of the boys whispered. 

Mate! That was it! What she felt now was the mate bond! It quickly clicked in Aurelia's brain immediately she heard the man's murmur.

 She quickly looked towards the position where she perceived the sweet smell. The area was packed with young men and most of them were her bullies. Who among them is it? She thought craning her neck. 

"What is it?" Francis asked looking down at her. He had noticed her excitement. 

"Nothing dad" Aurelia said, smiling. She felt happy and the disappointment of the failed shift disappeared. Although the moon goddess didn't push out her wolf, she had at least given her a mate to take care of her and cherish her. Her father soon excused himself and left to entertain the older guests. 

She was eating her meal when she suddenly felt her mate shift into the corridor. She quickly grabbed a handful of beef and rushed after him, throwing them into her mouth at intervals. 

She felt him enter the woods behind her house and quickly followed.

 Her body was tingling from excitement, in fact she was giddy with happiness. 

Soon she came out into a little clearing and saw a man backing her. That cloth, that silhouette! 

Aurelia's heart shook. He turned around. Oliver walker! 

One of her chief bullies and Scarlett's friend. 

Well, the mate bond is strong, maybe he will like her now. 

Besides, he's from a powerful Beta bloodline. She walked closer to him, but the look of disgust on his face as he took a step back made her pause in her tracks.

"I Oliver walker of the frost moon pack reject you Aurelia Johnson of the frost moon pack as my mate!" He roared. 

Aurelia felt a pain in her mind and heart. 

She collapsed from the pain. Her system was already weak from the failed shift, she can't really handle a rejection now.

 She looked up with pain, her glassy eyes wet with tears pleading with him to stop. 

"you're mad and useless. You think I will accept a weak kitten as my mate? The last time someone did that he ended up with a useless daughter. You! I will never repeat your father's mistake" he howled, kicking her belly. 

He kicked her out of the way.

 "One more thing. No one, I mean no one at all, should find out that the mischievous goddess chose something like you as my mate" he completed and walked back to the party. 

 Her party. Why does it seem she is an unwanted beggar in her own party?

 Aurelia began to sob again. She lay there until her father, who had noticed her disappearance, rushed to her. 

 "What's it, baby? Why are you crying in the woods" Francis asked going down on his knees. Aurelia simply hugged him and cried. 

He wiped her tears and carried her in through the back door. He laid her down on the bed and covered her. 

 "Sweetheart, I will be going out tonight. The Alpha sent me on an errand. I will be back in two days. 

Until then don't let anyone bully you. Stay strong, ok? I love you" Francis whispered, shoving a bundle of money in her hands and covering her with the sheets. 

"I have a surprise for you when I come back" He kissed her hair and left. 

At once Aurelia's tears began to flow freely. She already knows tomorrow will be hell for her. She hates it when her dad travels, her suffering is often unlimited when he's away.