Bonded ✔️

Chapter 1: Part One

"Harley, I need you to come to the border right now," I heard my father's strong voice through our mind link, "The rogues are outnumbering us."

Until he had alerted me, I had been corralling the pack members who had stayed behind and the children into the safe room. Traditionally only males fought in battle, but my father used every able body in these types of situations.

Our pack was under attack. If it was up to me I would have already been out there protecting our people, but my father usually tried to have only one of us in combat situations since I was his next-in-line. His call for me now let me know that this battle was not one to be taken lightly, and that our pack's safety was at risk.

At sixteen, my combat abilities were more advanced than most people assumed they would be. My strength came from long, hard hours of sparring and training with the best fighters in the pack, along with the countless summers I had spent battling other Alpha children from the region.

"I'm headed that way, and I'm bringing Rowan with me," I quickly passed the child that I had been carrying into the arms of a woman nearby and headed up the stairs to my best friend's room.

Neither of us was old enough to go into battle unless our help was requested, but we both knew that we'd be two of the best fighters there once we arrived. Rowan's massive black wolf paired well with my smaller brown one. We had worked together like a well-oiled machine since we were children, and there wasn't much that we couldn't handle together.

"Rowan!" I banged on his door. "We've got to go, they need us!"

His door flew open, and he ran out of his room like he had been waiting for my call. As we raced downstairs, he began removing his shirt in anticipation of his coming shift. Unconcerned about ruining my clothing, I left mine on and shifted when we exited the house. As soon as we had both turned we ran towards the gruesome sounds of battle.

"They should have called for us sooner," Rowan sounded aggravated as he took in the scene that was unfolding before us. There were mangled remains littering the field, and with every second that passed the number of lifeless bodies grew.

"Start fighting Rowan, there's obviously no time to sit and watch," I nudged him roughly with my snout, and let out a short growl before jumping onto an approaching enemy.

I quickly snapped the neck of the enemy wolf before scanning the area for pack members in need. Instinctually I felt the need to ensure the safety of my pack members. It was always a concern of mine, but at times like this, my worry multiplied. I heard a loud yelp of pain that caused my head to snap towards my left.

My father was surrounded by four large wolves. We were so outnumbered that no one had noticed that he was at such a disadvantage. Normally this wouldn't be a problem for my dad to handle, but I saw that he was struggling to stop their advances.

He was already covered in injuries, and I realized that he wouldn't be able to fight them off by himself. My wolf reacted before my mind could fully process what was happening. Surprising the attackers, I rushed the smallest wolf and pinned him to the ground before ripping his throat out. When I looked up I was met with my father's concerned gaze, and I knew that he was just as worried about my safety as I was his.

"Harley, you need to go back to the pack house now," he demanded as he started heading toward another one of the aggressors. A low growl emitted from my chest in response to his statement, as I jumped toward one of the two remaining enemies.

"If you actually think I would abandon you right now, you've lost your mind," I snapped back in reply.

Suddenly, as if that the attackers realized that the entire alpha line was open to attack, an ever growing onslaught began berating my father and I. After managing to take down several who had attempted to ambush me, I realized that the attackers were beginning to retreat.

Puzzled, I watched as they ran back towards the mountain range that they had entered our territory from. I didn't understand their sudden retreat until my gaze landed on my father's human body lying on the ground.

"Rowan, dad's hurt. I need you to come help me," I called out to him as I ran to my father. The only reason that he would have shifted from his wolf was because he was seriously injured. Through the mind link, I demanded the pack doctor to come to the battlefield.  I shifted back into my human form, and unconcerned with the bareness of my body I squatted beside my dad and pulled one of his hands into mine.

It was impossible to ignore the chunks of flesh missing from his body, and he was covered in his own crimson blood. "Dad, come on. You have to stay awake," there was no hiding the fear that I was feeling as my voice cracked.

"Harley," he released a ragged breath, "I need you to listen to me. There's no way that my body is going to be able to heal fast enough-"

"Don't say that! You have to be okay. The pack needs you," I cut him off as tears started to pour from my eyes. The fighters from the pack began to circle around us, but no one dared to interrupt the moment we were sharing, "Dad, I need you."

"Our people need you to be strong Harley," his normally loud voice came out as a whisper. "You're going to have to use all the lessons you've learned over the years to keep this pack strong and united," he placed his hand on my cheek and rubbed his thumb against it.

"You're going to do so well, they may not know it yet but they need you Har." he ended his statement with tears in his eyes and his eyelids started to slowly close.

Just as his hand started to fall from my face, Rowan picked me up and hauled me away from the scene. The pack doctor had arrived, but he was too late. Moments later every pack member felt an intense pain radiate through our chests as my father, our alpha, took his last breath.

________________________________________________________________________________

AUTHOR'S NOTE:

Hey guys! I am so excited to start this story. It will definitely be different from the "normal" mate plot that is common on Wattpad. This story is about a mate pair, but centers on the female lead, Harley, and her struggles to become a strong alpha.

[I will be updating at least once a week, but if this chapter gets 5 votes and 5 comments I will post sooner!]
^keeping this here because it makes me smile that at one point this was a major goal for me. If there are any re-readers pls know that I love you.

Please vote or comment, or not if your heart desires 🤞🏼

Much love <3