A/N

I know, it's been a couple days. I'm going slightly insane recently with an overload of homework and actual work, but here it is, the 11th chapter. I don't know how long this story actually will be, but I will keep writing. Reviews are food for writers! If I were living off of reviews, I'd be dead. Jk. Thanks to those who did review!

Thanks to my wonderful readers!

~MC

I knew that the two boys didn't understand me and my mate. They flinched when I touched her, and seemed uneasy when I was around at all. I liked the man they called Charlie. He had copper colored hair, kind blue eyes, and tanned skin. He understood my bounds, and was relaxed with me. I sensed he was one of my mate's pack, so I was especially careful not to upset him. He was her Alpha, and I had to consent to that before I would be allowed to join their pack. As her Alpha, he could dissolve our mating bond. "Draco," Charlie looked me in the eyes, "may I speak with you alone?" He asked.

My mate looked up at me innocently and I squeezed her hand reassuringly. "Of course. I'll be right back, Love." I followed Charlie into the hallway and squared up to him, looking him in the eyes. I respected him, but I would fight him if I absolutely had to. "What can I do you for?" I asked him. Charlie smirked, understanding my body language. Hermione told me he spent years studying body language and other non-verbal cues. I wondered if he could pick up on scents.

"What are your intentions with her?" He asked. I cocked my head. "You call her 'love,' you shag, you spend every waking moment with each other. Where do you intend to take it?"

"I don't understand," I admitted. It sounded like he was asking if I wanted to marry her, and eventually the man wanted a human wedding, but I was a wolf. Marking her as my mate was all the validation I needed that she was completely and irrevocably mine.

"The second Mark, have you told her about it?" Charlie asked and I flinched. "I'll take that as a no." I sighed and looked at him expectantly. "You either tell her or I will end your bond, understand? You have no right to keep this from her." His voice was steeled. He wasn't above ending our bond if he thought I wasn't being completely and wholly honest with her.

"If I give her the Mark, she'll… she won't understand," I admitted. "I'm afraid she'll overreact." Charlie growled at me, and for a second, I backed down. That second was all it took, though, and Charlie was satisfied that I was below him and would follow his orders.

"Tell her, tonight. If she doesn't want the Mark right now, then she doesn't want it, but if she does want it and you're withholding it from her, then you don't deserve to be her mate," Charlie said flatly. "You know that the female mate craves the Mark. They don't know they do, but they do." I sighed and looked up at the Alpha.

"I'll tell her, but I need help right now," I admitted. "I can't sleep. The man can't help me, or control us. He tries, all day, but I always have control over our body. I'm edgy, anxious, and I feel physically sick all the time."

"When did this start?" Charlie asked, looking concerned. I was in his pack now, and I knew he'd take care of me.

"After Alice Carrow tortured her," I looked at Charlie. "I need to kill her and it's making me sick that I can't." Charlie nodded and set a heavy hand on my shoulder.

"I will get her for you," Charlie promised. "Okay? You're anxious because you were denied your right to protect your mate. I'll get her for you and make sure you're given that opportunity. Just don't tell the others what I'm doing just yet, including your mate."

"Thank you, Alpha," I nodded my head and Charlie smirked a little and touched the top of my head.

"Maintain control, pup, and tell your mate about what is happening to you. She'll be able to help you with the anxiety," Charlie told me. I took our conversation to mean he had accepted me into the pack, and I was extremely pleased by that.

"What'd Charlie want?" Hermione asked me later, rubbing my shoulders.

"He accepted me into the pack," I admitted. "He's the Alpha, I knew that immediately. He's your Alpha, and I'm still working on whether or not Bill is the Beta or if you are."

"Charlie isn't a wolf," she cocked her head a little. She was on my lap, rubbing my shoulders, and I kissed her nose softly.

"But he's the superior, and you consider him family. He's your Alpha, trust me. They give off a scent that marks them as such. Betas are a little different. Who do you think Charlie listens to more, you or Bill?"

"I really don't know, baby," she admitted. I wished she and Bill would just fight so their scents weren't so similar. They were at a stalemate right now, and I hated it. I liked numbers, definitive standings. My mate's docile side was very annoying at times. She was either a kitten or a wolf, and she needed to make that distinction.