Willow's Tree

31

That night when Willow was in a deep sleep, I slipped out from the covers and away from her warmth. I sat on the edge of the bed for a bit and stared at her sleeping figure, curled up with her hair spread across the pillows.

After a few more seconds of watching over her, I stood up and left the room. Drew had called me once again in the middle of the night to help train the younger members of the packs for the big war. Which would occur the next night.

The only concern I had was Willow and her baby. Our baby.

When I stepped outside onto the training grounds, I saw that both the packs were already there, training their bodies. The moon was high and almost complete, meaning tomorrow would be the full moon. It was convenient but also ironic.

I still didn't want Willow to see me in that form, but from the way things were going, it was unavoidable.

Drew spotted me and waved a hand. I walked over while watching the packs practice their skills of strength and speed. The discussion I had with Willow earlier that day came back to my mind. I was honest when I told her that we were ready for the war.

But winning it was a different story.

There were perhaps seventy to eighty able bodies. The Blood Moon Pack had over a hundred. And from the small demonstration we had from before, they were strong. Maybe even stronger than we were.

"Don't think that," Drew said, making me look at him. He stared at me firmly. "We will win this. For you, Willow, and your child."

I didn't answer him and instead, scanned the crowd and saw the Golden alpha walking around and watching the packs train. His face still had shadows cast over it. I purposely didn't go watch him interrogate the prisoners because emotions would influence his methods. And that was something I didn't want Willow to see.

It was stupid to try and protect her from witnessing everything since she eventually would have to. But I just didn't want Willow to see all the death and gore. She was just a human girl, and yet, I've dragged her into my life and she wouldn't be able to avoid it much longer.

Helen trailed after Dominic, watching him with loving eyes, like a mother would to her child. The girl reminded me a lot of Willow. Stupid, I knew, but it's true. Ignore the appearance and behavior-wise characteristics and focus solely on how idiotically dense the two were, they were the exact same.

The overly-protective alpha continuously watched over Helen and cared for her unlike any other guy and she still couldn't read the signals. Dominic would have a hard time cracking Helen's thick skull, especially since the two practically spent their whole lives together. His words wouldn't seem serious enough for her. I could already tell.

"Trey," Karen called and I turned towards her voice. She was coming out from the dorm building. "Is Willow still fast asleep?"

I concentrated on Willow and found the entrance to her mind. When I entered, I saw that she was dreaming about lying under her willow tree with a sketchpad in her lap. She was beginning to draw the trunk of the tree. I would've stayed to see how her dream continued, but pulled back and focused on what was in front of me.

"She's asleep," I said to Karen who smiled in response.

"Trey," Drew said. "You should get started with some of the members."

I nodded my head and made my way through the packs. They made a pathway for me and I reached the gate before easily jumping over it. I turned around and looked at them. "Who's first?"

Three boys and one girl stepped forward and over the fence, landing in front of me. They were all my age or younger. Those who were older had much more experience than me so there'd be no point in me helping them train.