The walk to the pack hospital felt ominous. The sky was dark; usually, I’d think that it made the lights inside of the buildings look cosier, but not today. It felt like a warning, like a threat; a winter sky watching over us in summer, drawing away the light and leaving only bleak nothingness in its place.Samyak had been reticent to let me go on my own, but I’d made up my mind. He’d agreed, although hesitantly, once I’d explained that I did not want it to feel like an attack. Ace was his friend, after all, and I didn’t want to accuse him of anything.It was merely unfortunate that all signs pointed to him. There was a comment he’d made, and it felt like forever ago, now; he’d alluded to the idea that not all rogues had bad intentions, or something like that. I’d brushed over it at the time, but since I’d become suspicious of the drugs he’d given me, it had flared up in my memory, like a swollen joint that was always present in the corner of your mind.I steeled myself when I reached

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Hi, Samyak said. I went to respond vocally, but I then realised that he had not, in fact, spoken. He had mindlinked me.Hey, I replied, my mouth stretching into a dopey, excited grin.The feeling reminded me of being a child, of sending secret messages to my friends. The sort of joy that can come only from the sneaking feeling that you’re getting away with something; not a malicious kind of hiding, more an innocent, giggling state of being.Samyak’s emotions were intensified through the bond, too. I could feel his glee as well as my own. The drizzle was becoming heavier, falling in fat droplets onto our skin, but we did not care nor move. We lay under the moonlight and explored one another, feeling out the parameters of our newly completed mate bond.We stood, after a while, our backs sodden from the wet grass. Under the crystal light of the moon we danced, filled with such happiness that we had to move, to hold one another and twirl through the wildflowers. I leapt into Samyak’s arms,

“Let’s do it,” said Samyak.“Okay. I’m all in if you are,” I agreed.We were sat on the rooftop garden of our cabin, surrounded by the climbing tendrils of plants as the evening sun dropped low in the darkening sky. The clouds were bubble gum pink, bright against the purple backdrop of the twilight air.We had a plan. It was time to put it into action.The next morning, I awoke early, well before training. I tugged on the shorts, t-shirt, and sneakers that I wanted to wear to train in, and, pressing a quick kiss to Samyak’s forehead before I left, I crept out into the quiet of the morning.There was a chill in the air, the sort that comes before the heat of the midday sun. The grass was damp with dew, and it felt cool as it lapped at my trainers. I walked with purpose, my strides long despite my short stature, and I covered the ground quickly.Nami was waiting for me outside of the pack house when I arrived. She yawned widely, and scratched behind her ear. Her hair had been braided int

The night of the welcoming ceremony was upon us. My stomach churned with nervous excitement, and I kept having to wipe my sweaty palms on my gym shorts.Nami bustled in, damp from her shower, her towel slung around her body and slipping down as she powered into her bedroom. She rolled her eyes and held it up with one hand, and gestured at the bathroom with the other.“Your turn,” she said, nodding towards it as she spoke.“Thanks,” I said, my voice burning in my throat.I didn’t know why I was so nervous – since his revelation about the hunters and the rogues, Samyak had been in a permanently good mood. As for the ceremony itself, I was more excited than worried. I supposed that it must be the stress of pulling off my surprise afterwards, and I tried to soothe myself. I knew I’d pull it off, but with a pack of wolves there were always unprecedented factors to consider.What was really bothering me, though, I thought as I slung my towel over my shoulder, was that the last ceremonious ev