Renna's Reign

First Rounds.

         My stomach twists in knots as I wince and try to nibble on the light breakfast I prepared. Atlas nurses at my chest, occasionally taking small nips of table food. Asa is so far away. He is right beside me, but mentally he is miles and miles away. I want to touch him, to try to comfort him, but I know that he is inconsolable right now. He is nervous, stressed, and I do believe frightened. We hardly slept a wink throughout the night. He was up, possessed by his beast, checking on Aaron via link and roaming the house on guard. The weight of the world is on his broad, strong shoulders. This is an entirely new Asa to me.

         "Are you alright?" I nudge him with my head and he breaks out of his head for a moment to smile at me. It is stiff, but it was a smile.

         "No, but we will be. I just have to be ready."

          "You will be amazing. You will have all of us to aid you. Remember when you once declared tp me that you were alpha? I believe it. I see it in you."

          "I have doubts. A bad time for doubt, yes. I do have doubts though. Something feels off. I can't shake it. I hate the unknown, it's frustrating. I also...well...I feel that perhaps I am not suited to lead. I am too impulsive, too selfish."

          "We all have doubts. I think half my life is spent in doubt, but despite the past I know you will allow no harm to come to those you love. You are a natural leader." I try to hype him up, and he pulls us into his side.

          "How you think so highly of me, after everything, I don't know. You are correct though, it would be over my dead body before I ever let my family get hurt. I love you, Ren." He kisses my cheek and I squeeze his arm in mine, curling around him. Atlas giggles and pucks ar his arm too. Asa looks down at Atlas with eyes full if pride and a puffed chest. If he needed more motivation, his son's adoring eyes is it.

          The sun is just breaking through the clouds, and I know that we have little time until the battles for new alpha will take place. It looms over our heads like a dark cloud, and it's pending arrival feels like a funeral date. I don't want to lose Asa, Aaron, or anyone. All I can think of is what happens if things go wrong. Asa has taken Atlas from my arms and I leap up to retrieve one thing I know will soothe Asa, his cookies. I have learned to keep some frozen, and some in tightly sealed containers out of sight so he always can have a stash. I place a couple on the plate to warm, and sprinkle a few sugar crystals across the top.

         "I smell cookies."

          "You do." I return and set the plate by him. I take one cookie and break it, and careful watch Atlas nibble on it. His little eyes shine, and remind me so much of Asa's.

           "Your mother is one of a kind. An alpha female. Find one like this when you are older." Asa coos at Atlas and I smile at the pair.

          I pack a first aid kit, much to Asa's dismay, and I pack a bag of necessities and toys for Atlas to keep him calm. We dress in lose, easy to whisk away clothing for the shift. I shift as soon as we leave the porch, and I kneel to make Asa and Atlas ride. Asa will be fighting soon, and I have no idea how many fights will occur before the last cab challenge Elric. I do not want him to tire out. He holds Atlas against his chest, and holds to my neck with his free arm. He pets soothing circles, and I turn back to nuzzle his hand occasionally.

          "I always forget how beautiful your beast is. Soft, shiny, and powerful. Her antlers have grown so much from those tiny little spikes." My heart swells for a moment, my beast reveling in the praise of her mate. Sometimes I take for granted how far Asa has come. From being that brooding chauvinist male, to being playful and adoring. And a great father too. As our eyes meet, I decide that he has to be alpha. At all odds.