Alari's pov
Eight days… Sounds like a lot but believe me it's not! It felt more like eight seconds than days.
“Again?” Pearl whined, throwing herself backward on the bed.
“Please” I gave her my best puppy eyes and she just rolled her eyes.
“It's not even the same, according to the King, it's a lot worse. Why are you doing this to yourself? To me?!” she asked, raising her head to look at me.
Pearl and I had been hiding in her room, okay, it wasn't really hiding because Damien could find me, it was more like, holding Pearl hostage in her room, and forcing her to describe her shift. Over and over.
It was finally my twentieth birthday and of course, the day of my long awaited shift.
It was exciting at first, knowing I'd finally get my beast like other shifters but now, I was terrified.
This was something I knew would change me completely, and I wasn't sure I was ready for such a big change.
I could feel it already, the tingling beneath my skin, the cold at the tip of my fingers. I could feel Sapphira so strong and dominating.
It scared me a little, knowing I had such a powerful beast, with no idea how to control her.
“I just… I want to be prepared” I said, throwing myself backwards into the soft bed. Looking up at the high ceiling.
I woke up this morning and was assaulted by all the sounds and smells. The light, so blinding and everything so… vivid.
“And we're not even at full function!” Sapphira laughed in my head, startling me. I wasn't used to having her around so much yet, it felt weird, in a good way though.
“Alari, you're going to be fine. You have your mate, your parents, me and Mason” she said, her hand finding mine.
“This shift is going to kill” I mumbled, feeling a shiver overcome me as I remembered how much pain Pearl had felt when she shifted.
“Oh definitely” she said, making me laugh.
“Seriously?!” I exclaimed, shaking my head.
“It's almost dark, we need to get you ready and I'm sure the King wants to see you now, we've been locked in here for hours and I'm also hungry!” Pearl said, making Sapphira whine.
Yeah, I miss him too.
“Are you trying to get rid of me so you and Mason can have sex?” I asked, raising my head to look at her.
“At first no, but now that you've mentioned it” she said, getting this dreamy look on her face.
I rolled my eyes , knowing that was my cue to go find my own mate.
“Oh, would you look at the time, I've gotta go” I said getting up while Pearl laughed.
I opened the door and gestured for Mason to go inside, telling him I was going to find Damien so he didn't need to come with me.
“Damien” I called into the link as I made my way to our room.
“Oh thank Goddess, finally!” He said, sounding excited.
“What's going on” I couldn't help the giggle.
“I've missed you baby” he said, making my heart ache a little.
“I missed you too, sorry for disappearing on you” I said, quickening my pace.
“You're anxious about the shift, I understand” he said, making me smile. He was just so understanding.
“Now get here already, I've prepared your herbal bath” he said, making me frown.
“Herbal bath?” I asked.
“Yeah, your dad gave me some herbs to help relax you” he said.
“Oh” I said, not really surprised dad would have something for my nerves.
I opened the door to our room and was met with a half naked Damien coming into the bedroom from the bathroom.
He was only wearing sweatpants that hung low on his waist, showcasing his marvelous body.
“Yum yum” I said, closing the door behind me.
“There you are” he said, opening his arms for me.
I rushed into his embrace, loving every second of his touch, my fingers tracing the muscles on his back.
“Have I ever told you how sexy you are?” I asked, looking up at him with my chin on his chest.
“Not quite enough today” he said, smirking.
“Let me correct my mistake My King” I said, kissing his chest, a low growl making his skin vibrate against my lips.
“You are the most gorgeous man in this world, the previous and the next” I said, kissing higher with every word.
“The only man that makes my pussy weep. My adornis” I traced his bicep with my right hand, watching lust heat up his gaze.
“You certainly know how to stroke a man's ego” he said, leaning in for a kiss.
“It's my duty as your Queen” I said, making him growl before latching his lips on mine in a heated kiss. One that left my body hot and needy.
“What a pity I have to make sure you're ready within the hour” he groaned against my lips, lifting me.
I wrapped my legs around his waist, hands around his shoulders while his gently squeezed my abundant ass.
He took me to the bathroom, got me naked and set me into the tub, kissing my forehead before leaving.
I set my head back, enjoying the scent of the candles and the herbs in the bath. It felt good.
I must have dozed off because the next thing I knew, Damien was shaking me awake with an amused smile.
“Did I fall asleep?” I asked and he nodded.
“Only for some minutes, come on, let's get you out princess” he said, helping me out of the tub.
I dried off and put on lotion before returning to the bedroom, where a green dress that fit loosely around my figure lay waiting on the bed.
“No underwear?” I asked, slipping the dress on.
“You're just going to tear it off, and that's my job as your King” he said, shrugging like it's normal.
“And you owe me new thongs!” I said, hands on my hips. I hated how he kept ripping them off of me like a caveman!
“I'll buy them… and then rip them off again” he said looking smug and I just glared at him.
“The moon will peak soon, time to go outside” Sapphira said, her voice so majestic it made me shiver.
She sounded like the Alpha I'm not, strong and dominant, I was her human half but I knew better than to deny her.
“Let's head out” I said, taking him hand and pulling him with me.
“Yes ma'am” he responded, making me smile and shake my head.
“The council has arrived and requested to be there for your shift, but I told them to fuck off, you don't need all those eyes on you” he said, and boy was I grateful.
I wouldn't feel comfortable shifting in front of strangers!
“Thank you” I said, looking up at him. The Goddess definitely knew what she was doing when she made him for me.
There were five people waiting at the bottom of the stairs, Rose being one of them and she quickly averted her gaze when our eyes met.
“King Damien, My Queen!” A man that stood taller than all of them spoke, his eyes fixated on me.
“Elder Raven” Damien acknowledged in a clipped tone.
“Forgive our intrusion, the rest of us only wanted to meet the Queen” the elder said, bowing respectfully.
“Now is not the time, as I've already said, you'll have all of tomorrow to get to know her, right now, we must go” he said, leading me past them without waiting to hear anything else.
We went into a secluded part of the forest, where no pack members would stumble upon us.
It was a full moon and shifters would be out to enjoy it.
Pearl, Mason and my parents were already waiting for us in a small clearing, just big enough for us.
It had a clear view of the moon and for the first time in… well, ever, I felt it's pull, it's allure, I felt it's power.
The energy radiating off of it into the earth, into all living creatures, into me. The rush it created within me addictive, almost like a drug.
“Are you ready sweetheart?” Mom asked, giving me a warm smile.
I nodded stiffly, not sure I could trust my words.
“You got this girl, we're here for you” Pearl said with her thumbs up.
“Alari, it's time, give me control!” Sapphira pushed forward, invading me in a way I'd never felt her before.
I could feel our souls knit together, and I couldn't see her in my head anymore, instead, I felt her like she was me.
I felt something move within me, a cold that warmed my insides and made my skin tingle.
But the tingles soon became a painful ich as white fur pushed through my skin.
*CRACK!* That was the sound of the first bone that broke.
“Aaaaaaaaah!” I screamed, falling forward as the pain washed over my body.
Damien caught me, bringing me to the ground softly, his touch soothing and healing.
Another bone broke and I screamed bloody Mary before biting into his hand.
“It's okay baby, let it happen, it will be over soon” he cooed but it sounded like nails on a chalkboard as my hearing intensified ten fold.
If I thought this morning's assault on my senses was bad, this was pure hell. It was like I could hear everything, even the insects crawling on the forest floor.
My voice died when both my legs broke and reformed into paws. The pain was too much and it felt like my world was ending, like I was dying.
How hadn't I passed out from all this pain?!
“Almost there” Sapphira spoke as my body changed, morphing into her form.
I felt like my breathe had been knocked out of me, my body was burning and aching. I felt like I was on the verge of explosion, and I couldn't hold back anymore.
“Let go, I've got you” Sapphira said and I felt something go loose. A wall fall and my mind opened up to something… foreign, yet too familiar.
“Sapphiraaaaaa!” The scream tore out of me, ringing deafeningly in my ears until I heard a howl.
Strong, commanding! A call from someone, the call of an Alpha to their pack.
And it was mine! My call to my pack!
The pain finally receded, my body slowly healing from the trauma it just went through.
A gasp made me open my eyes to find Damien shifted into his midnight Lycan, there wasn't a single spot of colour on him… just pure black.
Mason and Pearl had also shifted and my parents were looking at me like they were seeing something so precious they feared it would disappear if they blinked.
I caught movement in the trees and turned to see eyes, too many to count, all looking at me.
“You called your pack, they answered” Damien linked, pride in his voice.
I looked at all of them, waiting, but for what?
“Our command” Sapphira said and I just kept looking at them, not knowing what to tell them.
The moon was shining brightly and all I wanted to do was take my new form for a spin.
“Leave us” Sapphira and I said and without question or a single howl, everyone left, my parents included. And it was just Damien and I.
“You look… out of this world” Damien's voice was breathless as he bowed.
“Don't look too bad yourself” I said with a giggle, making him growl. He looked amazing.
His Lycan looked strong and he was large, his silky coat catching snow flakes.
Snow flakes??
I looked up and what do I see? Snow falling! Freaking snow!
Did I do that? Mom said my biological mother could do it.
I got up and realised I was sitting on a bed of snow, my white paws literally disappearing against it.
Damien brushed against me, causing jolts of electricity to rush through us.
“Follow me” he said and ran ahead of me, slowly until I got used to my new legs and soon enough, we were practically racing.
Sapphira pushed us to run faster and Damien matched our speed, bumping into us like cars did in the movies as we sped through pack grounds.
This! This is what freedom was. This is what it meant to be a shifter!