The Awakening

After running for about two more hours, Shina stopped to listen for guards that might have been alerted to us crossing the border and coming after us. When she's sure nothing coming our way, she motions for me to remove a still-sleeping Odett from her back before shifting back to her human form and putting her clothes back on. She takes our bags, and we continue walking for another mile or so before we come to a creek with a beautiful little waterfall.

"My father used to bring me here when he was still alive, but I haven't been back since the attack." She says, with pain and longing in her eyes as she relieves those memories. "There's a small cave behind that waterfall we can sleep in for a few hours. No one knows about it other than my father and I, so we should be safe."

Once we're in the cave, Jess lays down the blanket, and I place Odett on it, and we lay down on either side of her to make sure she gets our body heat and is safe. Then we dose off. I'm woken up by a strange voice that sounds like it's echoing through the cave, so I stay as quiet as possible, hoping the person it's coming from doesn't find us. And after a few minutes, I don't hear it again, so I feel like we're in the clear.

I look at my watch and can't believe it's after 10 A.M. I sit up to check on Jess and Odett, relieved they're both still fast asleep. I stand up and make my way to the waterfall to wash my face then I decided to grab all three of our thermoses and fill them up before putting them back in our bags. It's 10:25, so I decide it's time to wake Jess and Odett up so we can eat and head out again. I grab three protein bars and walk over to Jess to wake her up first.

"Wakey-Wakey," I say as I unwrap the protein bar and put it right under her nose so she can smell it. When she grunts at me, I laugh. "Come on, we have to start moving again soon, and you need food."

"Fine... I'm awake, Happy?" She grunts as she sits up, grabbing the protein bar from me with one hand, while rubbing her eyes with her other hand.

"Absolutely," I giggle, and she throws the wrapper at me. I get up, and walked over to Odett, and gently nudge her awake. "Hey, baby girl, it's time to wake up."

She sits up, slowly opens her eyes, and for the first time, Jess and I notice the purple rings around her emerald green eyes. We don't react as I hand Odett her protein bar, and then Jess and I walk over to the waterfall to make sure we're out of earshot.

"What is up with her eyes?" Jess whispers.

"She's a hybrid." I heard someone say.

"I asked what was up with her eyes." She says, giving me a confused look.

"I could have sworn you said something about a hybrid," I say in my own confusion.

"No, I didn't," she replies, and I think to myself, maybe I'm losing my mind from the stress of the past few days.

"You're not losing your mind. I said she was a hybrid." The voice said again, knowing now it wasn't Jess since I was looking straight at her this time. Her eyes got huge suddenly, and she gasp.

"Oh Goddess, you have it too." She says, first freaking out but then looking more confused. "Wait, that's it. Y'all are both hybrids. But you're not a wolf."

"Yes, you are." The voice says again. That's when I realize I'm the only one hearing it. I can't think about this right now.

"We can figure all of this out later, but right now, we need to put as much distance between us and your former pack and my ex-mate, if that's even what you call it," I say, and Jess nods in agreement. "We have Odett to think about now too. It's not just us anymore."

"Odett sweetie, are you done eating your protein bar?" Jess asked as we walked back over to her.

"Yes, ma'am." She says in the sweetest little voice I think I've ever heard.

"Okay, little one, let's get you ready to go then," Jess says, picking up the empty wrapper and shoving it in our duffle bag before taking out Odetts thermos and letting her take a few sips before putting it back in her backpack. I grab the masking spray and make sure to spray them down well.

Jess walks out to shift so Odett doesn't get frightened by the sound of bones popping and skin ripping as she shifts. I walk out with Odett a minute later after grabbing our bags and the blanket we used last night. I placed her on Shinas' back and wrapped her up tightly, making sure she wouldn't fall off, and then we started traveling south again.

"So, I'm a wolf?" I think to myself, not really expecting to get an answer.

"You are more than just a wolf. You are a hybrid, the first hybrid, actually." The voice answers back.

"Is that why my parents hated me, and abandoned me at the orphanage?" I ask her

"They didn't abandon you. You were taken from them." She says, and my body froze at what I just heard.

"I wasn't abandoned, I was taken?" I said over and over again in my head, trying to wrap my head around it.

"Yes, there is much to discuss, but for now, I will start by saying My name is Dosha, and I am your wolf." She says

"It's nice to meet you, Dosha," I say with a smile. "Since you are a wolf, does that mean you can communicate with Shina?"

"Not yet, Though she should be able to sense me now, I'm not strong enough to communicate with anyone yet." She answers, and I nod while walking by Shina and playing with Odetts long brown hair. She looks over at me and smiles, and I practically melt.

"She is absolutely adorable," Dosha says, and I completely agree as I giggle.

We walk for a few hours before we come to another creek. Shina checks for anything she can hear or smell before we stop for a small break. When she gives me a nod showing it's all clear, I take Odett off her back so she can shift back and get dressed. Then the three of us walk over to a small clearing by the creak so we can sit down and rest our feet.

After sitting quietly for a bit, I look over at Jess and ask, "Do I still have the rings in my eyes?" She looks closely before shaking her head no in response.

"Dosha, are you there?" I ask mentally.

"I'm always with you," she responded, making me smile.

"Why do those purple rings show us in Odetts and Is' eyes at times, but then disappear? How am I able to feel and hear you already? I thought a shifter had to be 17 before they got their wolf. sorry for the questions back to back. I'm just so confused about all of this." I say, realizing I may have gone overboard with the questions.

"First, I will tell you that when you were taken from your parents, a witch put a spell on us that essentially made me go dormant. The only way to pull me out of my dormant spell was to break the fake mate bond between you and that idiot of a future Alpha. The witch that took you and cast the dormancy spell made it so that you would never find your Goddess-given mate by creating a fake mate bond between you and someone else. Once he rejected you and you accepted his rejection, the bond was broken, and I was finally free to communicate with you. And you have been 17 for eight months, my dear." She said, as I try to take in all of this new information.

"Wait, so you know about Ian and me?" I ask, slightly embarrassed.

"Of course, Even though I was dormant, I was still with you. You were never truly alone." She says with love.