HSDWM, a fanfiction

Chapter 30

Soon after I related Markus' story about his daughter and the dragon shifter Xavier took Jordan and Cameron to his office to discuss pack business, leaving Alice, Gabriel and I unsupervised.

My friends insisted I tell them everything that had been left out as they helped me clean up the snacks. I obliged, doing my best to recall everything that had occurred.

They reacted as I thought they would. They both teared up about my breakdowns and Alice was ready to go to war over Jenna's antics. In the end they both pulled me in for a group hug saying they were just happy to have me back.

"I'm happy for you that alpha finally apologized and is trying to do right by you," Alice said.

"We're just trying to be friends for now," I said.

Gabriel asked, "Do you have your wolf back?"

I shook my head, and sighed. "No. Xavier says to be patient, he believes she'll return when she feels safe to." I looked up at Gabriel, asking, "What are you going to do about Hail?"

He drew in a sharp breath and stepped away, "I don't know. I'm doing everything I can to avoid-"

"Gabe, you're going to have to confront her. Mate bonds were the main topic we talked with Markus about. He said the goddess assigns mates, and she should be able to un-assign mates, so long as neither is marked, but you have to ask."

"You're talking about using prayer," Alice said.

"Yes," I said, with a nod.

"Do you really think it would work," Gabe asked, dubiously.

"Markus studied the scrolls extensively and told us the various interpretations. He believes the prayer must be performed in wolf form on the full moon."

Alice exclaimed, "Well, that's less than two weeks from now."

Gabe was still skeptical. "Do you really think that would work, though?"

"It wouldn't hurt to try," I said. "But I really do think you need to actually talk with Hail, help her understand you are never going to be able to fulfill the mate bond with her, and maybe try to get her on board with also praying to the goddess to change the mate bond."

Alice and I watched Gabe closely as he thought about it. Finally he nodded and agreed he could try to do that. "You should talk to gamma Cameron about this, too." He tapped my nose with a slender finger.

"Yeah, I will, I was planning on it."

Xavier came back downstairs with Jordan and Cameron following close behind, signaling it was time for our guests to pile out of the house. And just like that Xavier and I were alone again.

****

"Come, let's get started," Xavier gestured me to follow him in the kitchen.

I checked my phone. "But it's just five thirty. Don't we usually eat dinner at six thirty or seven?"

Xavier turned around to look me in the eye, a smirk planted on his lips, "Food takes time to prepare, love."

"A full hour?"

"Meat is better when it's seasoned, and it takes at least an hour for the seasoning to soak in." He grabbed the beef out of the fridge and a cutting board, then selected a knife. He looked up and seeing I was watching him, said, "Well, come over here. You can't slice the meat from over there."

I soon learned that when he had said "we" were going to cook, what he really meant was that he was going to demonstrate what needed to be done, then stand aside and let me take over, with him continuing to guide me as necessary.

In the end, the meal was good. A little too much vinegar in the sauce for either of our tastes, but it was edible, and I was assured I'd get better at it with practice.

After cleaning up the kitchen Xavier coaxed me to take a walk with him.

I asked if there was a lot of pack business he had to catch up on. He answered there wasn't much, as Jordan and Cameron had been able to keep up with most of it.

He asked what I'd talked about with my friends, so I told him of the strange mate pairings our friends were experiencing. He was surprised to learn all our friends had been experiencing their own mate bond struggles. He blamed himself for not knowing his own Gamma, one of his best and closest friends, had an unrequited mate bond of his own.

I tried to comfort him. "Xavier, he knew you were contending with your own mate issues-"

"It wasn't just my mate bond," he scoffed and turned to me, grabbing hold of my shoulders, "I was giving you the shaft end of it, but still you knew, and you've been trying to...," he looked away from me and closed his eyes, pinching the bridge of his nose, "It's my job to know when things in my pack aren't working as they should. It's my job to know when my pack members are hurting. It's my job to set things right."

Not knowing quite what to do I looked down and wrung my hands. "I'm sorry."

"No, no," he squeezed my shoulder, "You were, and are, doing what a Luna should do for the pack. You've been caring and showing empathy and giving guidance to the best of your ability. You've been doing everything right, you've just been trying to do it while running on empty." He wrapped his arms around me, pulling me to his chest, "I'm the one who's messed up... big time. I need to fix this."

I wrapped my arms around his waist, "You didn't create this by yourself, it's not yours to fix alone. This is our pack and they're our friends."

He sighed and kissed my head. "You're truly an amazing person, Ash. I'm very lucky to have you in my life, as my friend and as my mate."

"Yeah, you are lucky. Just don't let it go to your head. Your ego's big enough as it is."

He chuckled, "You think I have a big ego?"

"It could trample a herd of moose."

He threw his head back and laughed. "Okay, we'll call Markus tomorrow and see if he has any insight."

I went to bed that night overall satisfied with the day. I smiled when I felt Xavier join me in bed and snuggled into him as I drifted off to sleep.