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The New Mate

Harry's POV

I tried to move, I was stopped by two warm, soft and firm arms around my waist. And that confused me even more. When I turned my head, I came face to face with a sleeping Draco. Suddenly, the happenings from last night came back to my mind. I groaned inwardly. I couldn't believe that I lost my virginity to a guy I only knew for a few weeks. I didn't even know if I was into guys or not. In my life I hadn't the opportunity to think about that. I was busy surviving.

But I couldn't deny that I felt some kind of connection to Draco. Now that I thought about last night, I was partly shocked, partly embarrassed, but for some reason I felt warm and fuzzy inside. I didn't understand why though.

A few minutes after I woke up, the blonde next to me groaned and stirred. Instantly, I felt panicked. I was never in this situation before and I didn't know how to act.

''What time is it? ", the other male asked sleepily.

" I-I don't know... "

Draco looked closely at me.

"How do you feel? "

"I don't know..."

I felt irritation at myself, bit something wasn't right. The feeling didn't feel right. It felt like it didn't belong to me.

"Can- Can I ask you something?"

I was hesitant.

"Sure. What's wrong? "

"What was that yesterday when- when you got bigger i-inside m-me? "

"I knotted you. Werewolf males share this particular detail of their anatomy with real wolves. But I don't know why... Normally, this only happens with mates..."

I remembered that Neville told me about mates. Every werewolf has one. A soulmate. A person that completes you. Someone who understands you completely, who loves you unconditionally and forever.

"Are you saying we can't be mates? "

I felt sad and rejected and unworthy. I looked down onto my lap. Draco placed a finger under my skin and lifted my head up.

"Hey don't look so sad. I didn't mean that I wouldn't like to be your mate. In fact, I would be honored. But I can't... Alphas don't have mates. "

"But... Don't you feel this connection? ", I asked feeling insecure.

What if I only imagined the feelings that were similar to mine, but actually didn't belong to me?

"I do. But I shouldn't. It isn't possible. "

"I... What do you suggest we do? "

"I don't know what to do... I think we should consult the pack's elders. "

"Elders? "

"Every wolfpack has a small group of old and wise werewolves, who are advisors for the pack leader. "

"Oh okay..."

"But at first breakfast. "

After said breakfast, Draco led me into the woods. We followed a well-trodden part. We walked for almost an hour, until we reached a clearing with three huts on it. Between the huts was a small fireplace with three people around it.

The first one was an old man with a long white beard and long white hair. He wore colorful robes and crescent-shaped glasses and his nose looked like it was broken, which didn't make sense to me. I mean werewolves had the fast healing ability. His eyes were twinkling. And he was munching on some sweets.

The second person was another man in black robes. He was unnatural pale and he had greasy and long black hair. The man was scowling, while he brewed something in a large cauldron hovering over the fireplace.

The last person was a woman with brunette hair. An aura of sternness was around her. She wrote rectangular glasses and was knitting a quilt.

"Harry, these are our elders. "

They looked up and smiled. Well, two of them. The third still scowled.

I blushed and ducked my head. I felt kind of uncomfortable with their stares.

Draco pointed at the man with the scowl on his face.

"This is Severus Snape. He is a very talented potions master and indispensable to our pack. "

Then he nodded into the direction of the other male.

"This is Albus Dumbledore, one of the last living sorcerers. And a extraordinarily powerful on top of that."

"My dear boy, you always seem to forget to mention my love for sweets. "

Draco chuckled. It was an endearing sound. And it made me happy.

"And finally this is Minerva McGonagall. She is a shifter. "

I frowned.

"What does that mean?"

"I am able to transfigure an object into something else. "

My eyes widened in surprise.

"Really? That's so awesome! "

She gave me a small smile. I watched them closely trying top figure out what makes them elders.

"If you want to know something, my dear boy, please ask. ", Mr. Dumbledore said.

I blushed.

" I-uh... I just wondered how you became elders. "

"Most are old werewolf's or their mates. There are either 3 or 5 elders in every wolfpack. An old werewolf becomes an elder when the other elders decide to offer him a place in their round. ", Dumbledore explained.

"But people with special abilities are favored...", Snape added.

I took a deep breath.

"None of you smell like a wolf"

Draco looked proud at me.

"Well done pup. It's true. We are not werewolves. Albus and I had werewolf mates. ", McGonagall explained.

"And Severus is my godfather. ", Draco said.

" Oh... Okay. Well, uh- It's nice to meet you. "

"How can we help you? ", Dumbledore asked.

" We uh... I..."

I looked helplessly at Draco.

"Harry is obviously new to the pack. And yesterday I scented him in the usual way. Well... Something unusual happened. "

"Really and what's that? ", Dumbledore asked curiously.

" I knotted him."

Draco said it like it was the most normal thing in the world, while I blushed furiously.

"And now we were wondering... A werewolf usually only knots his mate. But I know for a fact that the Alpha of the pack has no mate. "

The elders looked at each other and I could feel how they communicated silently with each other.

"You know something, don't you? ", I asked.

" Yes, we do. "

"Look, Draco. There is a very important misjudgement about Alphas. It is widely assumed that Alphas don't have mates. But that is not true. "

"WAIT? WHAT? Why didn't you tell me sooner? You knew exactly that I always wanted a mate! "

I looked surprised at the blonde. He seemed to me pretty happy and I thought he wanted to be single.

Snape sighed.

"Draco there is a reason that most people think there are no mates for Alphas. It is dangerous and it causes chaos. "

I frowned

"I thought mates meant- you know- soulmates... I don't see where this might lead to chaos. "

McGonagall looked sadly at me.

"The most important reason for Alphas not having mates is that if another Alpha would challenge Draco in order to win leadership of this pack, it would be a possibility that the foreign Alpha goes after the mate of the old Alpha... "

Draco gasped.

"I don't think a werewolf would use the mate of another werewolf in that way..."

"But it happened in the past... I've seen it..."

"Another reason...", Dumbledore began.

" ... Is that in the past Alphas often abandoned their pack and went on a search for their mate. It's needless to say that the lone wolf died quickly and that the abandoned pack didn't last longer. "

"And the third reason is that we wanted to protect you. It is extremely rare that an Alpha finds its mate. I wanted to spare you the disappointment of not finding him or her. Because that would have hit you harder than thinking you don't have a mate.", Snape concluded.

The last one was actually a sweet reason.

"That means that Harry is my mate? "

"Yes."

"But why do we only fell a very weak connection? "

"You need to acknowledge the bond first. "

Draco looked at me.I shivered at the look in his eyes. His eyes were filled with fire: sadness, wonder, confusion and something that looked like adoration.

"I-I have to think about it..."

The blonde rushed off and I looked confused at the pack elders.

"What is with him?"

McGonagall smiled.

"Come sit down, pup. Do you want something? Tea? Ginger biscuit?"

"I'd like a cup of tea, please. "

After I got the cup, they sat down around me.

"You have to know one thing about Draco. He is lonely. His entire life was circling around being a good Alpha. In fact there were only two things he was 100% sure of: that he wanted to take care of the pack as long as he was able to do so. And the second thing was that he would be always alone. He knew that he had his pack, his friends and us, but he always yearned for a mate. And now that one of the two things he thought to know was proved wrong, he needs some time for his own. "

"Any didn't you tell him then?"

"Because he would have run off to find you. But to wolves that are on their own terrible things happen. "

My knowledge about proper werewolf etiquette in a situation like this was not existent, so I asked:

"What should I do now? "

"Let him think. He needs to digest the new information. He is out of knowledge and that's not usual for knows as much what to do as you do, bit if he does he will come to you. ", Snape said.

" As for today you can stay here, we'd love some company. "

"Draco doesn't visit you very often?"

"He does but he has a lot of other things to do. Another regular visitor is Neville. He is a great conversationalist and a interested listener. But otherwise we don't get much visitors. "

"And I prefer it that way.", Snape murred.

" Oh don't be so grumpy, Severus. ", Dumbledore said good-naturally.

~Time Skip~

A few hours later, Draco came back:

"I'm sorry for leaving so abruptly."

"Don't worry, young man. We had a lot of fun with young Harry here."

Draco looked at me.

"Ready to go back?"

I nodded. After I said goodbye to the elders, we went back to the village.

"Look Harry, I am sorry for leaving you there. I just didn't know what to do. "

"It's okay. I would have reacted the same way, if I had been in your position. "

He ran a hand through his platinum blonde hair.

"No, it is not okay. How could have I not known that you are my mate? What kind of werewolf mate am I? "

I stopped him with a hand on my shoulder. I didn't know where my confidence came from, but it was there. I put a hand on his cheek.

"Draco, it doesn't make you a bad mate. I didn't know it either. "

I tried to look him in the eyes, but he avoided my gaze.

"Draco, is there something else?"

He nodded sadly.

"How much did Neville tell you about mating? "

"Not much."

"Usually before two werewolves complete their mating bond with an intimate relationship, there is a long courting period where the mates get to know each other. It's the most important and most valued part of the main process. "

"We can still do that. We can start during the full moon. Neville told me that the whole pack come together and plays and runs. "

The blonde smiled.

"Yeah, we do, but I'm sure he also mentioned that the first transformation is the worst and that you'll have to spend it alone."

"I-I have to be alone?"

"Well, not alone. I'll be with you. "

~Time Skip ~

"Today, we'll welcome a new addition to our pack. I'm sure many of you already met him and I can say he will be a useful member of the pack. Let's welcome Harry! "

I stood blushing next to Draco as the pack howled and clapped. After the noise subsided, Draco wished his pack a good full moon and led me to a small hut at the corner of the village. Inside he gave me a vial filled with a silvery potion.

"What's that?"

"A potion to make the first shift easier. Severus invented it."

After I swallowed it, I had to gag. It tasted vile.

"Don't worry. It will be worth it. "

I nodded absentmindedly.

Half an hour later, the full moon rose. And my whole body started to burn. An excruciating pain flowed through my veins as my body felt as if it was torn apart. I screamed loudly, but the screams soon turned into howls. I could feel the shift racing through my body: I felt the fur growing all over my body. I felt claws growing where I had fingers. I felt how my teeth grew and sharpened. A few minutes later the shift was completed and I collapsed being totally exhausted. In a corner of my mind I registered that my senses were heightened: I heard the rest of the pack sniffing at each other until they didn't took off and the sound of their running became almost non audible. When I could smell and fell the presence of another werewolf, I growled until my mind registered: Mate.

I looked up and saw a giant wolf with blonde fur and silver eyes. I felt the urge to get up and run with my mate, but when I started to move my body protested and ached. I fell to the ground again and whined. Draco came over and sniffed at me. Then he curled up against me and pressed his snout into my side. I growled pleased and closed my eyes. A warm, sweet scent flooded my nose, a scent I recognised as Draco's. With a huff, my mind lost consciousness and I fell asleep.

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