An Alpha's Claim

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"I said, get the hell out!" A voice yelled, muffled by the office door.

J had gone to Leah's old office, to find it practically empty, with a thick layer of dust coating the surfaces – not great for a medical centre. So, she'd been forced to ask at reception. To her surprise, Leah now had a giant office on the next floor up. She was in charge of all of it.

J smirked as she recognised the voice drifting beneath the door as a shaking shadow moved towards it.

She purposefully positioned herself in front of the door, knowing that the shivering wreck who was trying to escape Leah's wrath would walk right into her.

"Get out!" Leah ordered again, her voice clearer here. J had never heard her sound so...authorative. Her heart warmed in pride at her old packmate's confidence. Good.

With a meek apology, Elenor twisted the door handle and opened the door to escape, but slammed into J's chest. It was a good job she was expecting it, because for a moment she'd forgotten that whilst Elenor had her wolf's strength, J did not. If she hadn't braced, it would have sent her flying. As it was, it only served to jar her hip and send pain echoing down her spine.

J, however, didn't let that faze her, and instead fixed a smirk on her face – the same one that Lee described as 'utterly horrifying'. J narrowed her eyes and filled them with all of the hate she felt for the woman in front of her.

Elenor had rocked back on her heels after slamming into J, and was now staring up into J's eyes, her pupils round as saucers. "So-sorry, J. I didn't-I hadn't..."

J merely stared at her.

Elenor cleared her throat, a blush chasing up her neck and spreading across her cheeks, "I-uh-I..." Helplessly, she threw a look over her shoulder to Leah, who was leant back in her chair, watching the exchange in amusement, clearly not inclined to help the floundering she-wolf.

Elenor took one more look at J, before ducking to the side and running out of the room. J chuckled as she watched her go, enjoying the sliver of power it brought her. It had been a long time since J had felt anything more than powerless.

Her eyes slid back towards Leah as she made her way into the room with a relaxed smile on her face. Finally, finally she felt like maybe she was home.

She paused at the look on Leah's face. The amusement was gone, her eyes were narrowed and her brow furrowed, even without her wolf, J could feel the anger simmering under the surface of Leah's skin.

Looking away to close the door, J took a small breath before facing her friend with the biggest, fakest smile she could muster. "Leah!"

Leah didn't respond. In fact, she didn't even blink. She just stared at her. It was a move that J had taught her when they were younger. Something she was regretting now. With a frustrated sigh, J plonked into the chair opposite Leah and tilted her head, waiting for the anger, the yelling – whatever it was that Leah had to say.

The longer she stared at her old friend, the more she realised that it was not anger – well, it was, but there was something else, something more. Sadness. Leah's eyes sparkled, not with rage, but with unshed tears. Her breathing shaky, not from a need to murder J on sight, but from the sadness she was trying not to share.

"Leah," J begged, softly.

Leah cleared her throat and looked away, hand furiously wiping across her eyes. "I'm fine. You're not though," she accused, as her attention snapped back to J. The threat of tears gone, but eyes still watery.

J shifted in her seat, then winced from the motion. She sighed again, wondering if it was becoming her 'thing' now. She could lie – could pretend that everything was fine, but she'd been doing that for far too long.