The Blood Shadow Pack house was quiet, the echoes of the day's training and celebrations lingering faintly in the grand halls. Serena Anderson moved through the main chamber, each step deliberate, avoiding Clinton Stratford's gaze. Her ginger hair glinted in the warm torchlight, fair skin glowing, grey eyes sharp and wary.
Clinton followed, massive frame silent yet imposing, golden eyes fixed on her. Every instinct screamed to protect her, guide her, stay close. Yet Serena was determined to evade him, weaving around couches and archways as though the walls themselves could shield her from his presence.
"Serena…" Clinton's voice rumbled low, echoing slightly off the high ceilings. "I'm here. You don't have to do this alone."
She paused, brushing past a hallway pillar and keeping her back to him. "I know what I'm doing," she said, voice firm, almost cold. "I can handle it. I don't need—"
"You don't need me?" His growl vibrated through the floorboards, deep and raw. That's not what I'm offering. I just… want to be with you, as your partner.
Serena stiffened. "I can't afford distractions. Not now." Her voice was quiet but unwavering, and her tail flicked in irritation. I won't let anyone… even him, cloud my focus.
Draxis growled softly in her mind, Charis stiffening in response. You're pushing him away, Charis warned. We are mates. You're supposed to accept him.
Clinton's shoulders tensed, frustration and hurt flashing across his features. He stepped closer, bridging the gap between them. "Serena… I'm not trying to control you. I just… want you to feel it. Feel me. This bond—our bond—it doesn't disappear because you're stubborn."
Her jaw tightened, heart racing. "I know. But I can't let… feelings, desire, anything… distract me from the pack, from what's coming."
Clinton's hand reached for her, brushing a strand of ginger hair from her face. "Let me help you. Let me be your partner, Serena. Let me—"
Before he could finish, Serena dodged his attempted kiss, stepping back sharply, eyes flashing. "I said I can handle it," she whispered, defiance lacing her tone.
The hurt was immediate. Clinton's chest tightened, golden eyes darkening with pain. Draxis groaned in his mind, a deep, aching sound that mirrored the human Alpha's heartbreak. She's rejecting me… our mate bond… it hurts.
Serena's gaze softened briefly, but the wall remained. "I'll come around," she murmured. "Just… not now."
Clinton nodded slowly, jaw tight. "I'll wait," he said, voice low and rough, just above a whisper. "But know this… I'm not going anywhere."
The silence that followed was heavy, filled with unspoken longing, frustration, and the ache of mates out of sync. Draxis curled slightly, Charis responding in kind, a mirrored reflection of the humans' tension, both desperate, both hurt, both bound by Selene's will.
Even within the walls of the Blood Shadow Pack house, Serena could feel it—the pull she couldn't name, the connection she couldn't ignore, even as she stubbornly kept it at bay.