*Arealla*I went to the room, and asked for someone to have Liana meet me at the door. She was there before I even arrived."I need a dress for a council war meeting," I told her firmly as I approached."Say less," she told me.Liana opened the door for me, and we walked through together. She immediately took me to one of the wardrobes on the other side of the room, and she went in without pausing. She came out holding a dress."Perfect," I told her smiling, looking at the garment in her hand.She helped me dress, and within the hour, I was ready to leave. Liana took me to the council room, and once I was sure that everyone was already gathered, I indicated to the guards to let me through.They had obviously been well informed that I was indeed coming, and that I was to be let through, because they responded to my request immediately.Everyone's jaw dropped as I walked into the room. I remembered Liana's words, and made sure to keep my head high, my jaw extended. I was

*Arealla*"He's just stressed right now. I'm sure he knows what you meant. I'm going to go speak to him," Liana told me, as she followed her brother out the door.She pulled the door closed behind her, and I heard her call her brother's name.And then, just like that, I was alone in this entire mess.I wasn't as sure about Marcus understanding my words as Liana was. And I knew that there was a big problem here that needed to be fixed.And there was only one way to solve this entire situation.I had to speak to Jason.He was the one leading the insurgency. The wolves gathered around him and relied on his knowledge of me, and the fact that he had brought me into the pack, to base their claim that I should not be trusted.If they could convince the rest of the pack of what they thought, that I was the culprit or the one causing all the mayhem and chaos in the pack, then it put Marcus in a very difficult situation.And I couldn't really imagine the true depth of that.B

*Arealla*'A very powerful Luna,' the wolf inside of me spoke.And her voice sounded so familiar. It was the same voice that came to me in thought, sometimes. Though I had always just assumed that it was my own thoughts.Now I knew differently. It sounded like me, but it also sounded not like me.I stared down at Marcus, wanting to focus on anything other than what was happening in my own mind. Without any kind of warning, Marcus rushed at me, cupping his hands on either side of my face. And then I felt his lips press against mine.And then I punched him square across the jaw.He staggered back. And for a moment, I almost didn't register what that meant.I had punched him. And instead of my hand being broken, he had gone reeling.I flexed my fingers, there was a bit of a sting, but nothing was broken. And I had punched him hard enough that there should be some kind of damage.'No,' my thoughts answered me. 'We're as strong as he is now. He is our mate.'The thoug

*Arealla*My fears turned out to be well placed. Even though I had half-shifted last night with Marcus, nothing we did seemed to make it come back out now."Okay, stop," Liana said, staring at my face with an incredulous expression. "That just looks terrible."I dropped the stance that I'd been holding, not even sure what I was trying to do myself. It had worked with emotion last night, but obviously that couldn't be the key every single time. I'd seen wolves just transform without having to go through some intense crisis for each transformation.But whatever the key was, I just wasn't getting it. We spent hours trying different techniques, but I was getting more and more frustrated as we didnt get very far."You could try talking to your wolf," Liana suggested hopefully. "Maybe she can help you."I wasn't so sure. She hadn't come out last night because I'd been talking to her. She had spoken to me because I had unlocked it.But still. I was at my wits end, and I was read

*Arealla*Leaving the pack lands was harder than I thought it would be.Marcus accompanied me right to the edge. And even when we reached there, he seemed to linger. This was hard for him, too. But I had been prepared for that. I hadn't been prepared for how hard it would be for me.I felt a pull to the lands that I was walking away from. I felt a pull to the wolves that I was leaving. Marcus explained to me that I wouldn't go mental like the Luna he told me about, because he hadn't sealed our bond yet, he hadn't marked me nor did I mark him. This gave me some peace of mind.A part of me felt like even the moon would be different once I left here.The Moon Goddess was strange. I could feel her influence over me. I could feel the need to transform greater under the full moon, but it was just a gentle whispering. A suggestion that was near a temptation. But it was nothing overpowering, like in all the stories.Something told me that whispering would be gone once I left the pa