Once, for Halloween, I'd dressed up as Little Red Riding Hood. But since I was 16 and in highschool, the costume had to be the sexy version. You know the one—a corset top, red flaring miniskirt, a short cape and overdone makeup. Becks, Keye, and I had snuck into our first club on Halloween night in Seattle while they were on some random school trip. And I just remember as we made our way through downtown Seattle, rocking on our too high heels and freezing, men howled at me in the streets, pretending to be the wolf in the story and coming up behind me to grab me. One even growled as he walked past and said "All the better to eat you with my dear." I remember being deliriously amused and scared at the same time. They were predator and I was prey. At any moment, the wolves would descend and come to gobble me up.

Maya woke up on Saturday morning, exhausted and in a panic. When she hustled down the stairs and into the kitchen, her parents were already there.

"Good morning my Ivy League Bound Baby!" Rish said, setting down her coffee and bead work to jump up and give Maya a hug.

"Thanks, mom," Maya said a little less than enthused. Her father gave her a warm, proud smile. "Hey, can I ask you guys to do something for me?" Her mom gently pushed some of Maya's hair behind her ear and went to sit back down next to her husband.

"Sure," Rish said, "There's some breakfast in the kitchen behind you, by the way." Maya looked over her shoulder at the spread and then back to her parents quickly. Her hands were tangled in each other as she pulled at her fingertips nervously.

"Can you guys give me a week before you tell everyone on the rez about this?" Rish's eyes looked confused and her dad just looked at her strangely.

"What, why honey?" Rish said softly.

"I just need some time to figure out how to tell..Paul. And I want to be the one to share it with my friends first, if that's okay?" Maya said quickly. Mostly it was to be able to have some normalcy with Paul before she brought the realities of Maya's future crashing down around them. She knew he had said he wanted those things for her and that he understood she was leaving, but understanding a hypothetical and being faced with the reality of it were two different things. Rish looked at Tom for a split second and then back to Maya.

"Sure honey. We'll announce it at next week's bonfire, on Friday. Does that work?" Rish glowed at this, at the possibility of getting to announce such honorable news in front of everyone, the council, and have all eyes on her.

"That would be great, thank you." Maya breathed letting her hands fall as she turned to get some food in the kitchen.

Later that morning, Maya had packed up her massive collection of notes and textbooks and hoofed it to Keye's house. Now that spring break was nearly over, finals would be upon them in two weeks and Maya needed to push through to the finish line spectacularly if she was ivy-bound.

After an hour or so, Becks showed up, dropped off by Jeremy who politely declined to study citing epic cliff jumping conditions. Becks brought iced coffees from the local diner and Maya and Keye gratefully took them.

"Okay, now that Becks is finally done boinking her boyfriend, tell us how Santa Monica went!" Keye said in an excited voice.

Maya put down her pen on her physics notes and immediately blushed.

"Did you do it?!" Becks said, her eyes flitting around Maya's body as if she could tell just by looking at her.

"No! No. He just….gave me head," Maya said in a small voice as she averted her eyes toward the ceiling. Both Becks and Keye squealed.

"Nice going Maya Sun! Welcome to the fucking club finally, you old prude," Keye joked. Maya started laughing. "So did you enjoy giving him head? Honestly, my first time I thought I was going to puke." Maya immediately turned bright red.

"I mean...no he hasn't asked me to do it to him. Should...Should I?" Maya looked from Becks to Keye who were staring at her now in shock that transformed into awestruck smiles.

"Holy shit! You've got him so fucking in love that he gives you head and you have to do LITERALLY NOTHING?! HOW?! Teach me your ways!" Becks through herself at Maya and they fell back on the bed in a laughing heap. Becks leaned up over her and poked at Maya's ribcage. "You fucking hussy, I'm so jealous."

"You guys are going to do it though, right?" Keye asked incredulous from her side of the bed. Maya screwed up her face in thought.

"I mean, obviously we will eventually, but I'm not ready. We literally just became boyfriend and girlfriend like four days ago." She let out a small laugh at how that made her feel—calling him her boyfriend for the first time. Above her, Becks went stock still and leaned up to sit back on her knees as she shared a worried look with Keye. Maya noticed it almost immediately and she sat up quickly. "What?!"

"He's your boyfriend now?" Keye asked, almost annoyed. Maya looked at each of them in confusion.

"Uh...yeah? What's the big deal?"

"The big deal?!" Keye's voice was rising now. Becks looked at her with a softer look.

"Keye, calm down," Becks said.

"No!" Keye slammed her book shut, "Maya! You're dating the dude who imprinted on you?"

"Yes! What the fuck is the fuss about?" she was honestly lost.

"Isn't that what the council wants? I'm all for nailing the guy and getting head, but...your boyfriend?!" Keye was a flurry of emotion.

"What the fuck? Who gives a fuck about the council?" Maya was getting mad now.

"You did! Not one week ago when this dude was literally throwing you over his shoulder and telling you you couldn't fucking leave his house!" Keye was up and moving now, her eyes frantic. Becks kept trying to plead with her to bring it down but she plowed ahead. Maya really regretted telling Keye about that incident now.

"Listen. Things change. In Santa Monica we...we clicked," Maya said, trying to explain, but how could you explain the intensity of an imprint bond to someone who hadn't felt it themselves? Of course she sounded crazy. Keye scoffed and Maya looked at her annoyed, "Keye you're being fucking rude. He's my boyfriend. So what! I'm still going to college. I'm still leaving for Columbia or Princeton, come fall—"

"Wait what?!" Becks said, delight coming over her face, "You got in?!"

"Yes." Maya said in a quiet voice. Becks squealed and wrapped her in a hug that Maya returned, relieved. Keye had her arms folded and stood next to the bed.

"Did you tell him yet?" she said in an annoyed tone. Maya pulled back from the hug and made a frustrated noise at Keye.

"I just fucking found out last night, Keye! What is wrong with you?"

"I don't know, isn't that news you'd want to share with your boyfriend immediately?!" Keye retorted.

"I'm leaving. I don't need to deal with this utter bullshit you're spouting right now, Keye." Maya was up but Becks grabbed hold of her arm.

"No, no don't leave! Keye, you need to chill. Let Maya be happy and be happy for Maya!" Becks demanded. Keye rolled her eyes and to Becks she said:

"She's not even operating with all of the information, Becks! This is a mistake and you know it."

"Keye...careful," Becks warned.

"No! I'm sick of this secret keeping. She needs to fucking know!"

"Know what?!" Maya looked at them both frantically. Was this what they hadn't been telling her?

"I don't think we should….Jeremy said—" Becks started.

"Fuck what Jeremy said. And fuck what Sam said!"

"Sam!? What did Sam say?" Maya's panic was building. Becks still had a hold of her arm and dropped her hand into hers before pulling her back onto the bed.

"Sit down," Becks said gently. Maya obliged and looked at Keye who had dropped her arms down by her side now, trying to get up the courage to say what she needed to.

"Keye?" Maya looked at her expectantly. Keye's eyes darted to Maya and stared back seriously.

"Do you remember the legends about the wolf warriors?" Keye started slowly. Maya quirked her eyebrow in surprise.

"Of course, but what does that have to do with anything?"

"Just listen, My." Becks said softly, giving her hand a squeeze.

"The legends state that to protect the tribe from danger, the warriors were able to transform into wolves and eliminate threats. That protection group Sam has—they're the direct descendents of those warriors. Including Paul."

"Right...That's why he imprinted, I get it." Maya confirmed

"Maya...They're actual wolves."

"Who?" Maya said, thrown off.

"Sam's group...Paul. They can transform into wolves." Keye said, her voice shaking now.

"Shut up." Maya said, letting out a sigh of relief at the absolute absurdity. This clearly had been a joke and Keye was doing a shit job of getting to the punchline. Maya looked at Becks with amusement, but the look she returned was worried, fraught even.

"No, My, I'm serious! They….they turn into giant fucking wolves!" Keye said loudly when Maya looked back at her.

"Yeah, okay Keye." Maya said dismissively, "Can we get back to studying?"

"You believe the imprint is a thing but not this?! My, that's who saved you that night! It was Jeremy. He exploded into a huge fucking wolf and took down a cold one." Maya laughs hysterically and Keye's eyes are wild with fury.

"She's not kidding. I've seen it." Becks said softly to Maya.

"Oh fuck off, you too? Come on, Becks" Maya groaned.

"Maya! Think about it!" Keye yelled now. Maya looked at her seriously, the tone of her voice starting to tick anger in Maya now.

"And you think Paul is what exactly?!" Maya returned angrily.

"He's Beta to Sam's Alpha in the pack." There was that word again—pack. She thought. She shook that from her mind trying not to get distracted.

"You guys sound crazy. Like actually crazy. Are you okay?" Maya's eyes were wide in disbelief. This had to be a joke. One that wasn't funny.

"Why would we lie?" Becks said gently.

"I don't know! But this is next level bullshit."

"Just ask him." Keye said.

"I'm not asking my fucking boyfriend if he turns into a giant fucking wolf. Do you want him to have me committed?!" Maya screeched.

"He won't, because it's the truth. He should of fucking told you by now anyway." Keye said annoyed, rolling her eyes. Becks pulled on Maya's hand.

"My...this isn't a joke, I promise. That night...Jeremy phased and attacked that...thing that had a hold of you. When he grabbed it, he accidentally cut your arm open with his left claw. Do you...do you remember what you saw that night?" Becks said gently.

"I do! But it wasn't a giant fucking wolf!" Maya said desperately, she was starting to hyperventilate.

"Then who got that creep off of you?" Keye said. "Think!" Maya looked at her frantically, her heart hammering in her chest as she careened toward a panic attack. A rushing sound like water pulsed in her ears as she felt herself going under. She heard the muffled voice of Keye: "See! This is why he should have told her sooner. She's fucking panicked!"

Maya focused on her breathing as Becks tried to soothe her. That night...there was a flash of red eyes, the ice cold grip around her neck and then, a flash of warm brown fur mixed with the searing pain in her arm. When she collapsed on the cold concrete, her vision had been blurry, but she'd seen it. Now that she was trying to open up that memory, mixed so clearly in her nightmares, she saw it.

A giant brown wolf had it's back to her in that alley, snarling and tearing at the struggling man who had had Maya's throat in his hands just seconds before. When a clear shattering sounded from the alley, the wolf turned it's head to look over at Maya, his gaze connecting with hers before everything went black.

On Sunday morning, Maya walked over to Paul's. Her hurried steps did nothing to quell the nervous energy rising in her throat.

Paul was a fucking wolf? No way.

Maya had been awake almost the entire night before thinking about it. After she had remembered Jeremy's form in that alleyway, everything was thrown into disarray.

Does she confront him? Ask him point blank if he's a wolf part time and call him out for lying to her about it since the imprint? Wasn't that important information?

Keye had told Maya that Sam asked her and Becks to let Paul tell Maya about the true nature of the pack, but when Paul failed to do so, they had both grown worried. They didn't like keeping secrets from her, but Jeremy would remind them that it wasn't their place to come between the imprint and telling her without Paul could ruin things between them. Maya wasn't sure if Jeremy was correct or not, but she would ask Paul in no uncertain words: 'Hey..what the fuck?'

As she climbed the steps that linked the beach to Paul's backyard, she took deep breaths to steady herself.

You can do this. She said to herself. You can look like an absolute idiot in front of your boyfriend for five seconds and when he looks at you like you need your head examined, you can laugh and say 'Haha just kidding. Take me to bed.'

Good plan.

As Maya pushed open the back door into the house, she already felt the pull of relief rush through her. This house felt like home to her. Paul felt like home to her.

"Paul?" she called out. The house seemed empty though and she dropped her bag by the kitchen table as she went to brew some coffee. She was there pretty early, but he was almost always here if he wasn't out of town. A few minutes later as she poured some coffee into a mug, she heard the front door open and Paul, breathless, walked through it.

"My?" he said, coming around the corner. When he laid eyes on her, he beamed. He was shirtless and glistening in sweat. He made his way to her and scooped her up in his arms, crushing his lips to hers. Maya squealed and when he plopped her on the counter and pulled his face away from hers for a second, his hands pawing at her jean buttons, he said, "You're here early. I wasn't expecting you so soon." His lips were on her neck now and Maya let out a little sigh that mingled with a moan. Paul shuddered at the sound and successfully unbuttoned her jeans and quickly peeled them off down her thighs. "Arms up," he said as he pulled her shirt up off of her. Maya was smiling as he kissed down her collarbone, unlatching her bra and tossing it aside to take her breast in his mouth. Maya threaded her hands through his hair and held him to her.

He lifted her up under her thighs and carried her to the couch, his lips too frantic indicating he couldn't make it upstairs. He kissed down her body slowly, taking his time and causing Maya to dampen with anticipation. As he pulled off her pink underwear, he let his index finger run the line of her fold before he took her in his mouth. Maya arched her back and threw her head back letting out an elated moan. Amidst huffs and sweet breaths, she whispered to him, "Oh I missed you."

This sent him into a frenzy and he tentatively dipped a finger into her, causing her to gasp as he pulled on her to climax. She released into him in one shuddering breath and for a moment, everything cleared blissfully from her mind and she felt free.

That afternoon after they had showered together and Paul had distracted her in bed some more that ended with Maya straddling herself across his face, she sat out on the back deck that overlooked the ocean, her textbooks spread out in a mess on the table.

The sun dipped in and out of the low hanging clouds and Maya revelled in the temporary warmth of it all. Paul came out and set down a glass of iced tea and some fruit in front of her before sitting down in the chair next to her looking out over the ocean. Maya picked at the fruit and watched him instead. It was now or never, she told herself.

"Paul?' she said gently. He looked over to her, his face glowing in the warm temporary sunlight. She almost lost her breath when he looked at her like that—when he looked at her at all honestly. The look always communicated their unspoken bond, that reached out and whispered in the back of Maya's brain: You are mine.

"Hmm?" he said, grabbing a grape out of the bowl. She had no idea how to go about asking him this.

"Do you…" Turn into a giant fucking wolf at will? She met his eyes now and they looked at her curiously, "Do you think there are other things about our tribe's legends that are true? Kind of like how the imprint was true?" What kind of convoluted question…

Paul looked at her hard for a second. She'd give him an opening at least.

"Like what?" he said, a light tone in his voice after an excruciating few minutes of silence. Maya let out a breath. She had no idea how to proceed and then...she remembered the flash of red eyes.

"Like...the cold ones," she said slowly, her eyes measuring the recognition filling his. He kept his face stone though and Maya wondered if it was always this easy for him to lie. Especially to her.

"Maybe," he said noncommittally to the idea. Maya kept her eyes on him, the snake in her belly striking at her insides and filling her with dread. She wrapped her hands around her stomach and tried to continue.

"Maybe? You think something like the imprint can exist but not the cold ones?" she quizzed echoing Keye's logic. Paul was watching her carefully but not saying anything. Maya was starting to see the truth brewing in him and she worked to keep her breathing even.

"I guess when you put it like that…" he said and trailed off, looking down to the fruit and back up to her nonchalantly. Maya was simmering. What was happening? Why wouldn't he say it? Maybe it sounded just as crazy in his head as it did to Maya.

"Then what? They're real?" she said softly. He shrugged and didn't give her an answer, but his eyes flashed with recognition. Something in Maya snapped and the snake stood up and arched back, ready to strike. "I need to tell you something." Maya hated secrets after all.

"Okay," he said. She couldn't figure out what was behind his tone. But he watched her, even keel, and it was infuriating. If what Keye said was true then why didn't he just tell her now? Why wouldn't he tell her when the imprint happened? Her anger was rising and she was certain the snake was going to poison her from the inside out if she didn't say something.

"I got in. To Columbia and Princeton." That….wasn't what she was going to say. She sucked in a sharp breath, surprised at her own misstep.

"Oh," pain instantly flooded his eyes. Before where clear tension held on, he slumped. "That's...that's amazing Maya. I knew you'd get in," he tried to cheer his tone but Maya heard it. Disappointment. Tears threatened around the edge of her eyes now as internally, she escalated.

This was never going to work. The imprint would make them miserable apart. He was already miserable now that he heard the news and knew she would leave. Maya flinched at what it would be like when she actually left him. And then...she knew what she needed to do:

If he could lie, she could lie too.

"I…" she started, in a whisper and then choked. She had to make it convincing if she was going to believe it herself and hammer it into him too. She cleared her throat and looking at him hard she said, "I don't think this is going to work...me and you."

Paul's eyes hardened as he watched her, the breath starting to pull in faster in his chest. "What are you talking about?"

"You know what I mean," Maya said, trying to clear the obvious shake from her voice, "This. Us. I don't think it's a good idea for us to be...together." she clarified.

Paul was starting to shake and Maya gripped the arms of her chair now. "Maya, don't do this." His voice was a mixture of pain and anger, the tremors clear in his voice.

"Do what? We haven't even gotten that far. It's better this way and I can't….I don't want to hold onto you when I'm out there," her eyes moved around now, digging for any excuse to keep her grounded.

"No." he said through gritted teeth, "I won't let you do this." She could hear the anger growing now and his body physically started to blur as he shook.

"It's not up to you, Paul," she shot back, her voice filled with venom. "This was never going to work—"

"NO!" he yelled now. Maya gasped, fear apparent on her face and then it shifted to anger as she recovered. The snake hissed and lashed within her.

"I decide the nature of the imprint. Not you." she seethed. Paul threw back his chair, unable to calm down and Maya made a sound of fright. He stumbled backwards into the backyard and Maya watched him wide eyed as he shuddered and shook, trying to bring himself under control but failing. "Paul!" she yelled. But he was gone and then, right before her eyes, he exploded, his clothes falling off him in tatters, into a giant grey and black wolf. Maya quickly got up and jumped back as the wolf growled, bearing its teeth at her.

Fear shook through Maya, as she pressed her body up against the side of the house watching as the wolf eyed her, seething anger in its face. Keye had been right. Maya's face screwed up in the anger and pain that had been etched on his earlier.

The wolf stared her down for what felt like forever before it turned and took off down the hill toward the beach and disappeared into the tree line. The speed at which it moved was unnerving. Maya, alone now, collapsed on the deck in shock with a hand over her chest as she choked out a sob.

Everything in her was gone.