➳

A ticklish sensation above his chest stirred him awake. Matthew sleepily opened his eyes, squinting at the sunlight that peered through the curtains. His mate laid on top of him, her face digging into his neck as she sniffed him rather aggressively.

"What are you doing?" His voice came out deep and husky, laced with sleep.

Madeline lifted her head to look at him. "Why do you smell so good? It's like you dipped yourself in chocolate. Mmmh..."

The corners of his lips curved upwards. "That is my scent. You can finally smell it now that you're a wolf." He reached up to grab her hands, sinking his fingers into spaces between hers. Her body melted at his touch while she stared at their interlocked hands in awe.

"Do you feel that too? It's like, tingling every time you touch me," She marvelled, giving his hands a small squeeze.

"I've been feeling this ever since we met." His arms travelled down to wrap around her waist, pulling her up to give him access to her neck. There stood his mark, right above her collarbone.

She was his, officially.

Leaning closer, Matthew began to leave a trail of kisses down her soft skin, before reaching her mark and softly sucking on it, his teeth lightly scoring the sensitive flesh. She stiffened as a burst of pleasure jolted up her body, a tiny moan involuntarily escaping her lips.

"Ah- Stop! That feels weird," She mewled, trying to wriggle out of his grip. He chuckled against her neck, his arms tightly secured around her.

"That's only because it's your first time feeling these things. You'll start to enjoy them soon. One day, I'll do things to you that will feel way better than this."

Although she was not sure what he meant, his words gave her a rush of excitement. The mere act of kissing him felt like heaven; she could not imagine anything that could be more pleasurable.

Madeline nuzzled closer to him, relishing the new sensation of the sparks. Now that she could feel the effects of the mate-bond, she did not know how she would ever be able to detach herself from him. "Can I stay with you today, please?"

"Of course, princess. I wanted to teach you a couple things about direwolves now that you've turned into one."

——————————

"... In order to preserve the nearly-extinct species, enhanced abilities and powers were granted to the direwolves by the Moon Goddess."

Madeline was sitting on her mate's lap while he read a book out loud to her.

"Is it bad that I don't really know what the Moon Goddess is?"

He looked at her, with disbelief apparent in his eyes. "You have lived with werewolves your entire life, and you don't know who she is?"

"I know that wolves pray to her and stuff, but at my old Pack, when I'd try to learn about her or pray with them, the other werewolves wouldn't let me. They said she didn't love me because I'm a human."

"You were a human," Matthew corrected. "And that's not true, don't listen to what they said."

"Hmm... You're right. Surely she must love me, because she gave me the best mate in the world." Madeline looked up at him, smiling adorably. His heart melted for the millionth time that day, unable to stop himself from smiling as well.

"You're too cute, my doll." He leaned down, pressing a tender kiss to her forehead. "Speaking of your old Pack, I have some work to do there this evening. Would you like to come with me?"

Her grin widened; the thought of going back to her former Pack was elating. She had not had a chance to see to her old home, meet her past friends, or visit her parent's graves ever since she moved to Mystic Moon. Deep down, she had been yearning to return at least once.

"I would love to."

——————————

Madeline gazed out the window excitedly as they drove near her old neighborhood. "Can you let me off here, please?"

"What? Your house is still a couple blocks away."

"I know this whole area very well, I want to walk around for a bit."

Hesitantly, Matthew concurred, stopping the car to let her out. "My meeting will be over in about two hours. I'll come see you then, alright?"

The young girl nodded. "Okay, bye!" She did not even wait for his response, before running away, her stomach bubbling with anticipation.

She had missed them so much.

Her legs sprinted as fast as they could down the cobblestone path. All she could hear was the wind whipping through her hair and the steady pound of her footsteps as she darted past the gates and trees. Her heart thumped wildly against her sternum, but she did not stop. Not until she reached them.

At last, she dropped down, her knees digging in the soft grass. Trying to catch her breath, she looked up at the two gravestones that stood before her.

"Mom! Dad!" Madeline's mind raced with thoughts; so much had happened since she last spoke to them. She had so much to say, where could she even begin? Her mouth went dry as memories of her childhood swept through her head.

...

The eight-year-old girl sobbed bitterly while her father walked up to her.

"It's not fair. I'm always the last to finish the race," She cried, curling up into a ball on the grass.

"It's alright, Maddie. You tried your best. It's not your fault, werewolves are just faster than humans." More tears poured out when she heard his words.

"I hate being a human!" She banged her tiny fists on the ground, unnerved.

He reached down to pick her up, gently swaying the little girl in his arms in an attempt to console her. "Don't say that. I think you're perfect just the way you are, sweetie."

-

"Madeline! You're skipping school again? This is the third time this week," Her mother scolded angrily, pulling her out of her hiding spot.

"I don't want to go, everyone is so mean to me there," She muttered, tears threatening to fall from her eyes.

The woman sighed, kneeling down to properly look at her daughter. Her arms wrapped around her little body to pull her into a comforting hug. "They're still being mean to you? My poor baby... I'm sure they'll stop it soon."

"They'll never stop. No one will ever love me."

"Darling, that's not true. You're a kind, loving, selfless, and beautiful girl. Anyone who looks deeper than the fact that you're a human will fall in love with you."

"But no one looks deeper than that. As soon as they find out I'm a human, they treat me like I'm nothing."

-

"Maddie? Who made you cry this time?" Nathan asked, hearing muffled sobs coming from her bedroom.

"Go away," She mumbled against her tear-soaked pillow.

Her brother walked closer, before sitting on the edge of her bed. "Not until you tell me what happened." The room fell in silence for a while, before she finally lifted her head from the pillow, looking at him with puffy eyes.

"... I know it's a silly thing to ask, but is it possible to turn a human into a werewolf?"

Nathan snickered at her question. "Maybe if you drink some crazy witch potion or something. Why?"

"I really want to be like the rest of you guys. I hate being a different species than everyone else."

A frown formed on Nathan's face. ''You'll always be my baby sister, I don't care what species you are. Stop listening to those stupid bullies."

"But they're right. No matter what, I'll never fit in here..."

...

Madeline did not notice she had been crying until she tasted the salty tears on her lips. She blinked hard, realizing the sun had almost set. How long had she been stuck in her thoughts?

"Here you are." Matthew walked up to the gravestones, frowning the teardrops running down his mate's cheeks. He glanced at the names engraved onto the stones, then back at her face. "... Are these your parents?"

She nodded meekly, leaning onto him as he sat down behind her. Matthew silently payed his respects to the dead werewolves before him, and the couple sat together wordlessly.

"Thank you," Madeline spoke after a while.

"For?"

"For turning me into a direwolf. I was thinking about my childhood earlier, and how my whole life, I've wanted to become a wolf like everyone else, and-" She paused, a sniffle escaping her lips. "And you finally made my biggest wish come true. I love you so much." Turning around, she wrapped her arms around his body, embracing him tightly.

A small smile found its way on his face as the girl hugged him. "I love you too, Madeline."