The Rogue Alpha

I brought my plate into the kitchen as my bro entered the cabin. He looked at the roast, and how much was missing. Then he smiled and asked, "Did you get enough to eat?"

I nodded my head and inquired, "Did you have fun with Sammy Sam?"

He grinned mischievously. "As a matter of fact, I did. She really has a mind for business, she's extremely goal orientated, plus we make each other laugh."

"Well, thank God for that last part, or I'd swear you were interviewing her for a job." I stated tersely.

"Don't you like her?"

I groaned, "It's hard to like somebody who's stealing my bro away."

"Isn't it better that we find our mates at the same time?" He asked cheerfully.

I snapped, "What makes you think I'm going to find my mate, especially here?"

He tossed me a folder. "That's what the fall party is all about. This is your Luna packet. Since there's more Alphas than Lunas this year is Luna pick. An Alpha can still turn you down, but in your case that's highly unlikely."

I opened the packet. The seven Alphas from the bonfire party each had a page. Then there's a red page. It's all about Alpha Nolan. I paused on his page, and stared fondly at his pictures. His mohawk is prominent in both his human and wolf forms. At 5'8" he's shorter than the other Alphas, and at thirty five years old he's definitely the oldest.

My bro looked over to see who I was reading about. "He's said to be the most insane Alpha ever. He went rogue around thirteen years ago. Had a son with an Omega he'd had a one night stand with. That boy's growing into a Beta as insane as both his parents combined. She tries to call herself a Luna, because she bore an Alpha's son, and she's been telling her son that he's an Alpha, no good can come from that."

"Well, I guess that explains why his profile is in red." I stated as I closed the file.

My bro shrugged his shoulders. "Any rogue known to be in the area, and compatible, would be in there with a red page."

"So, do you have a Beta compatible folder?" I inquired.

He nodded his head with a grin. Then he informed me, "There's two female rogue in the area right now."

"Can I see your folder?"

He shook his head while grinning playfully.

"That's not fair." I declared, "You obviously got a look at mine."

"Life's not fair. You of all people should understand that. Besides, I'm expected to guide you through this process, not the other way around."

I scowled at him. "Guiding doesn't mean choosing."

He assured me, "I would never dare to do anything of the sort."

"How did you get all this information?"

He served himself a slab of meat and explained, "Usually it's given through the pack. Since you don't have one; I agreed to be bound as your Beta, until you have found your Alpha."

"So, it's in your best interest for me to get married, or mated, right away?" I asked, crossing the room to stare him straight in the eyes.

He looked a little uncomfortable. "You're officially my responsibility, where as before it was unofficial, but no less important to me."

I narrowed my eyes, and I'm pretty sure they went wolf. "How does your responsibility being official change things?"

"When you choose your Alpha, if he doesn't have a Beta, I must offer to join his pack."

I laughed.

"Who you pick directly effects my life after this trip." My bro pointed out defensively, "Of course I wanted to know what the options were."

"And you don't think your pick effects me?" I countered angrily.

"Not as much." He declared nonchalantly before taking a bite of the roast, using a fork.

I walked over to the dining room table and grabbed a fake orange. I whipped it at my bro with all my might. It hits him in the shoulder. He let out a quiet sound that was a mixture of pain and shock.

"If you're Beta to my Alpha, who becomes my second?" I scowled.

"Well, in a small pack, my mate." He answered. After a few moments his eyes widened with understanding.

"If you get input on my choices: I get input on yours!" I declared firmly, stopping just short of adding a growl for emphasis.

My bro put up his hands and replied, "I won't say another word about who you should pick."

I laughed, then scoffed, "Like that's really going to happen."

He stared at me.

"Maybe I'll pick Alpha Jace." I claimed.

My bro shrugged his shoulders.

"Better yet." I stated, "I'll go with Alpha Derik." I instantly saw a flash of red in front of my mind's eye at the mention of his name, but I ignored it, I was busy making my point.

"He already has a Beta." My bro objected, "The whole point of this is so we can stay together."

I laughed and pointed out, "You made it all of twenty seconds without making your opinion known."

He groaned, pulled out his folder, and handed it to me. His was slightly thicker than mine. I quickly flipped to the red pages. The rogues didn't have a chance with my bro. They both looked like punk rockers, complete with attitude. I pulled the pages out of his folder. "Well, we can count them out."

He chuckled and confirmed, "I couldn't get past their pictures to learn more about them."

"That's enough to disqualify them for sure."

My bro eyes my folder. "Should we get rid of your red page as well?"

I shook my head.

"Why not?" He inquired.

"I don't want to disqualify him just for being a rogue." I answered.

My bro stared at me and sniffed the air. After a few moments he stiffened and declared, "He was here?!"

I grinned sheepishly. "Just outside my window, not inside the cabin. We barely talked, but I can tell he's in a lot of pain. I can't cause him more by rejecting him for being on a red paper."

"Woah! First, watch what words you use carefully." My bro stated as he grabbed our folders and led the way to the comfy couch in the living room. He took one end and I took the other. We sat facing each other with our legs stretched out between us.

"Please explain." I reminded him.

"There are two ways to turn down a potential mate. If you reject them: a physical mark appears, usually on their back, like they've been whipped. If you release them: nothing happens physically. Either way they're free to choose another, but rejected wolves have a harder time getting another to accept them." He looked around the cabin before adding, "That's why it's considered cruel to reject a potential mate without good cause."

I gasped. "The other Lunas are probably rejecting him right now."

My bro quickly assured me, "Any rejecting or releasing has to be done in person. Rogues rarely have to face either from a pack wolf."

"Okay." I breathed a sigh of relief. "So, what if I want a potential mate?" I asked cautiously, trying not to sound eager.

"If you're just saying that they have potential you accept them. If you're saying you've found your mate: you choose them." He explained, "Most wolves start with only accepting and releasing, specially for the first week. Some declare their mates before the games are over, but it's highly frowned upon by the elders."

"So, I can release the fifteen year old, and Derik for having a Beta, and no one will get upset?"

"What's wrong with Alpha Zech?" My bro teased, "He's kinda cute."

"If I'm looking to adopt a child or gain a little brother." I replied.

We both laughed.

"I'll be releasing everyone under twenty first chance I get." He admitted.

"And you've already accepted Sammy Sam." I added.

He smirked and exclaimed, "You know me too well."

We spent the next few hours joking about our potential mates, and what life might be like with them. We avoided the ones we'd already decided against, as well as Sammy Sam and Alpha Nolan. It was an unspoken boundary to our joking that we agreed to without acknowledging.

I finally let out a huge yawn.

My bro looked at his watch. "It's way past your bedtime, little sis, you've got a busy day tomorrow."

I looked at him suspiciously. "What's so busy about picking out a couple outfits?"

"That's what we're doing in the morning." My bro informed me, "Then you'll be doing wolf training, followed by a Luna meeting."

"As in Lunas only?"

He nodded his head.

"You know I don't do well with females."

He grinned and stated, "You'd better get good at it. A lot of your responsibilities include leading women, and interacting with fellow Lunas."

I groaned, stood up angrily, and went to bed, only stopping briefly in my doorway to tell him, "Night bro, love you."

"Night sis, love you too."

The door slipped closed and I climbed into bed wondering what life might be like with Alpha Nolan at my side.