A few hours later, after everyone had given me some privacy to get ready, I found myself walking arm in arm with Lindsey, laughing loudly and joking at the cafeteria lady, who enjoyed covering her eyes in bright blue eyeshadow and babying everyone around, piling mounds of food on their plates insisting that "you're toothpick thin, sugar!", Sophie walking calmly next to us stopping here and there to sniff around. As we piled into the lounge room, which was full of couches, pillows and bean bags and where we liked to hang out the most, laughter tears in my eyes from Lindsey's imitation of the cafeteria lady, we fell quiet as the tension was almost palpable in the room. Seth was standing, his back tense and his brow furrowed in front of Lucas, who had a decided expression on his face, his arms crossed, his eyes full of Alpha power. A silent domination was going on and clearly, though he was losing, Seth wasn't willing to give in. Kayla was wide eyed sitting deep in a beanbag as though she wanted it to swallow her, Brittany had changed her "whatever" expression for one of confusion and concern, and Seth still wouldn't budge. Lindsey cleared her throat and it was like pressing the play button on a paused DVD. Kayla stood so fast, she nearly toppled the huge TV next to her, Brittany jumped mid air and both Seth and Lucas turned to us. "Excuse me," said Seth and he walked out of the room, an exasperated gleam in his eyes. I turned to him confused, but he wouldn't even turn to look at me. I turned back to Lucas, a questioning look on my face. He walked up to me and hugged me tightly. "Happy birthday Ana," he said releasing me, "I'm sorry I couldn't make it to the cake this morning, I was busy dealing with some things." He smiled apologetically and all I could do was smile back and utter a small "thank you" my mind still working on what I had just seen. I mentally reached out to Seth as the others gathered together to choose a movie to watch. The first thing I realized was that Seth was now in wolf form, and to my dismay and sadness, that the moment he felt me in his mind, he blocked me out. I needed to find out what had just happened, for in the bottom of my heart I had a heavy feeling, a sense of dread and worry that almost had me sobbing on the floor. Kayla touched my arm and Sophie whined at my feet. "You okay?" she asked quietly. This was one of the things I liked the most about Kayla; she could always tell when something was wrong with me, yet she kept it private, something just between the two of us. Realizing that it was of no use to lie to her, I sighed quietly and shook my head. She hooked my arm in hers and led me outside, where we sat on a little patch of sunshine in front of the building, Sophie rolling around in the grass. "What happened in there?" I asked her, not giving her the chance to ask me what the matter was. She looked dumbfounded and at a loss for words, "Look Kayla, I know that you've all been very secretive and stuff, but I really need to know what's going on. Seth won't even talk to me right now, and he's somewhere out in the forest, I don't even know where or why. Since I got here all of you have been acting strange and I know that the Tahiti pack has a lot to do with this, if not everything but I really need all of you to come clean with me." Surrender was clear in Kayla's eyes, "I'm sorry for not telling you. I really didn't want to concern you, but seeing how things have played out by now and you being Seth's mate and all you probably should know. If any of the elders knew that I told you this they would probably kick me out in no time, but whatever, you'll be one of us soon enough." Kayla paused and looked at me apprehensively and I raised my eyebrows, prodding her to go on. She closed her eyes, "Seth told Lucas that we should ambush the Tahiti pack and Lucas disagreed, they got into this really heated argument and I could have almost sworn that they were going to shift right then and there and rip each other to pieces." My heart sank. For me, there was nothing more terrible, than Seth head butting with none other than Lucas Wilde, the alpha of the Dark Guardians, mysterious, dangerous, brooding Lucas Wilde, who had had to kill his own brother, who was the most experienced, the strongest, fastest and smartest wolf on site. It was pure dread. "Look Ana, I don't know if Seth told you this but…" Kayla once again hesitated, and realized that she had no going back now on what she was going to tell me from the look I gave her, "Seth was the alpha back in his pack. It wasn't his fault that the pack dissolved. From what I understand, there were awful problems with his father. He was completely vicious at times and the power sometimes got to him. Seth struggled and fought against it, but the pack ended up dissolving anyways. Seth was born to be an alpha, just not this pack's. I'm scared for him, Ana you know we're very instinctual at times and Seth might get crazy ideas and urges. There's a reason the elders wanted him back in Canada, but he fought so hard against it. I don't think they would have managed to keep him in Canada anyways, you know how the pull between mates is. It's just…" Kayla trailed off, tilting her head as if listening for something. Instantly I could feel the air tensing, the forest around us going completely quiet, I could actually smell the anticipation that began to waft off from Kayla, first a bitter scent, and suddenly a smell like acrid fire as the anticipation turned into fear and her eyes widened, "Kayla.."I began, but before I could say anything else, she had undressed in lightning bolt speed and shifted in a glimmer, I stood and reached for her but she was already racing towards the fringe of the trees. She paused, looked back at me, fear in her eyes, pointed her snout to the sky and howled loud and clear. In less than a minute, Lucas, Rafe, Connor and Lindsey were all on the grounds, multicolored wolves with eyes reminiscent of the man or woman they were, and in a time shorter than that in which they had arrived they had sped off towards the forest, leaving only the scent of their worry and rage behind.
I was left standing in front of the building, staring dumbstruck at the forest, my mind clouded and heavy. What the hell had just happened? Why had no one told me anything? Where was Kayla? Where were Connor and Lindsey and Rafe and Lucas?
Where was Seth?
