“Go back to sleep,” I whined, covering my head with the comforter. He yanked the covers off me, pulling them down by my feet. I instantly pulled my legs up to my chest as the cool air hit me.
“We can’t, Margo. You’ve got to get ready. Gabriel is gathering the wolves, and they’ll be ready for us in about an hour.”
I shot up, nearly bashing heads with Theo. “He’s gathering them now?” I wailed. Theo nodded, walking into his closet. “Why didn’t you tell me about this sooner?”
“I reminded you last night before I went to bed, but you were still kind of bite-drunk, so it doesn’t surprise me you don’t remember.”
“Ugh,” I growled, fighting my way past him to my side of the closet, fishing through all my shirts and pants and dresses to find something suitable.
“Margo, are you okay?”
“No!” I shouted with my head in a pile of clothes. Theo chuckled and walked over to me, removing a shift from my head and fixing my hair. “What do you wear when you’re going to be on display in front of thousands of wolf shifters?”
Theo crouched down and smiled at my disheveled appearance. “I don’t know what to tell you, little one. Dress warm; we’re going to be outside of the packhouse, there’s a sort of stage and podium area where Gabriel talks, but it’s in the open, and it’s windy today.”
I nodded and started sorting things into piles of warm and cold clothes. Eventually, I found a calf-length olive dress with bell sleeves. It was very chic, something Caddy’s mom would be proud of me choosing, and it was longer than most of my other dresses. I fixed my hair in the bathroom mirror, cursing that I didn’t know how to put on sophisticated makeup, and settled for mascara and lipstick, the only staples I was ever taught how to use.
As I pulled a pair of tan, ankle boots on my feet, Theo wandered out from the closet in his usual black slacks, and his white shirt rolled up to his elbows.
“Margo, your legs are going to be cold,” he scolded.
“The few inches that are bare,” I giggled. “I wanted to look nice, Theo.” He nodded, grabbing my hand to lead me downstairs, where we put our coats on.
The drive was shorter than the trip to town. Theo held my hand in his lap, stroking it gently as I watched the trees pass by us. Once we got close enough, I could see the packhouse was larger, by far than any structure I had seen.
It was like a castle in its grandeur, standing several stories high with different wings and adjoining buildings that could house my entire old pack. We arrived in the back, where Gabriel stood on a podium, not speaking yet, and his pack surrounded the area.
I wiped my forehead nervously. Theo noticed and moved to put his warm hand on my shaking knee.
“It’s going to be fine, Margo. They’ll love you.”
“But what if they don’t?” I asked frightfully. He smiled a little and kissed the side of my head as the driver parked alongside the building. We walked towards the side of the stage area with Theo mainly dragging me behind him.
“Thank you for being here today,” Gabriel spoke through the microphone as we approached. “I called you all here for an important purpose. As you all know, we rarely call everyone together except in wartime, but this is not wartime, this is a grand occasion.” Gabriel smiled, glancing over towards Theo and me. Theo stood behind me, his hands on my shoulders to prevent me from running off.
“As you are all aware, my brother Theodore has taken over the position of Enforcer. It is with great pleasure that I invite him up here to speak and introduce you to his lovely mate.”
A roar of whispers and intrigue surfaced as Theo climbed the few steps, dragging me by my hand behind him until we reached the center of the podium.
“Quiet,” he spoke sternly. The crowd hushed, staring at me. I stood next to Theo, completely exposed as he kept his hand firmly around my wrist. “Gabriel has called you all here today so that I would be able to introduce my wonderful mate to you all.” Theo smiled down affectionately at me. “Valkyrie Pack, please welcome, Margo. I trust you will all treat her with the same kindness and respect as you have always shown me and my family.”
The crowd was silent for a few moments, taking in the news. I stilled while my heart continued its rapid beating in my chest cavity.
“She’s human,” someone said loudly, slightly off-put and confused.
“Correct,” Theo noted flatly. “Any other observations?” If I wasn’t so terrified, I probably would have laughed. I looked around the crowd some happy, some confused, others angry.
“Well, I think it’s wonderful,” a woman’s voice shouted close to us, and the majority of the wolves gathered in an uproar of cheers, hoots, and clapping. I blushed and tried to hide my face in Theo’s arm. He chuckled, stroking the back of my head softly. Gabriel resumed his position after patting Theo’s back happily.
“The reason we have gathered here today is to celebrate our previous Alpha and newest Enforcer’s happy news. We have also gathered to ask something.” Again, the wolves stilled. Gabriel turned his head towards me and placed his hand protectively on my shoulder. “I have only known Margo for a few short weeks, and I know for most of you this is the first time even hearing of her, but she deserves the same protection, respect, and love we show all our Lunas. I know Margo will find her place here, in time. Valkyrie Pack, Margo is one of us now, and we protect our own.”
With his words, the wolves began to howl loudly, shouting into the air. Gabriel and Theo stood at my sides, staring into the crowd of wolves victoriously and joined in the howl.
