Scarlett and Silver

Scarlett and Silver
Silver
I watched helplessly as Scarlett looked up at Beanie with tears pouring down her face.
“What happened?” She sobbed, stroking his face.
Beanie handed me the two hearts in his hands before crouching in front of her.
“He’ll be okay, Scarlett. He’s just exhausted. He just needs to rest. Once he sleeps for a few hours, he will be back to normal.” Beanie looked at me. “Are you going to be okay out here, watching over them by yourself?”
I blinked in surprise. “I won’t hurt her.”
He narrowed his eyes on me, and I knew he was conversing with Elena before he gave me a short nod. After threatening me, they took the hearts from me before walking off. What in the hell just happened? Scarlett looked up at me, her eyes widening at my rough appearance.
“Did Beanie and Osprey do that to you?” She asked, her hands stilling on his face.
“No, Scarlett. The wolves did before they got there. It was payback for protecting you at the tryouts.”
“Oh, okay. Will you be okay?”
“Yes.”
I backed up a few feet to slide down a tree, keeping my senses open for any sign of danger, while my eyes followed her hands as they moved over his face again. She lowered her head to press a kiss to his lips, and my heart skipped a beat in my chest. What in the hell was wrong with me? I had never felt this way about anybody, not even Vanessa. It was almost like I was in love with her, but it was so much more intense. I had stopped longing for my wolf a long time ago, but now I feel different. Something had definitely changed in me.
We had never imprinted on an Alpha before, and I had been too afraid to ask what it felt like. Sage had asked once, and our parents had beat him almost to death. Even without knowing what it felt like, I was sure that was what this was. What used to be days full of fury was now filled with hope that I knew was misplaced. No matter how much I wanted to beg for forgiveness and to be spared, I knew my fate. I accepted it now. When I looked at Scarlett and saw how much she cared about everyone, including me, I wanted to just end it. It had gotten worse after she had pulled out the real reasons for my behavior at lunch. I hadn’t even admitted them to myself, and I had definitely never confided in anybody the way I had done with her.
Afterward I felt free. I never realized how much I wanted to belong. Nobody in the pack really belonged. The pack was just a prison, one I was glad I had escaped, with over a hundred prisoners who were basically sentenced to obey and serve the Alpha. Since Scarlett came back, she has been different. She exuded a timid confidence that I had wanted to break. I needed to. It was easier to live with what I had done to her to save face in front of the pack if I thought she wasn’t worthy. Now, I couldn’t pretend that she wasn’t. She was the most worthy person I knew.
I scanned the area again before closing my eyes as my head started to pound. I could feel my heart beating in my brain every time it throbbed. The pressure only eased slightly when the wind blew and Scarlett’s scent wrapped around me. Everything I had longed for my entire life had been given to me in my final days. It was a depressing thought, but also a comforting one. I would get to meet the Goddess with my head held high, knowing that I had fulfilled my duty of devoting myself to the right Alpha. Most of my old pack would never have that privilege unless Jarrod managed to wrestle control from his tyrannic father. Suddenly, my eyes snapped open to slowly scan Scarlett.
‘So, this is the Alpha you chose? A woman?’ A weak, familiar voice asked, shocking me into sitting up straighter.
This couldn’t be happening. Wolves didn’t just come back to life. Scarlett’s head snapped up to allow her to scan my face. She tensed as her eyes met mine.
“Silver?”
I shook my head. I was going crazy. His low bark of laughter in my head made me freeze. What the actual fuck was going on? My body tensed as his presence grew stronger in my mind, eyeing Scarlett, who had shifted position to crouch over Osprey as she watched me.
‘How are you alive?’ I asked in amazement.
‘Before wolves die, we lay dormant. If nothing triggers us to come back, we die. You imprinted on this girl. Her beast called to me. It pulled me back from the shadows of Hell,’ he answered, growing even more curious about Scarlett.
I was forced to my feet as he took over to slowly shift as we walked toward her. He put our snout into the air, inhaling deeply. I tried to hold him back as I panicked. I had no idea what he was going to do, and I refused to let him hurt her. She met his gaze, completely unafraid, as he circled her and Osprey. After a few minutes, he stopped in front of her, sitting still with his head tilted as he studied her up close.
She held her hand out a few inches from our face. I was proud to see that it didn’t shake, even though I knew she was nervous. I was surprised when he moved forward slowly to put his forehead against her palm. Electricity raced through our bloodstream as a bond snapped fully into place. He uttered little whines as he nudged her hand with his snout. She giggled as she began to scratch his ears.
“You’re not going to hurt us, are you, you good boy?” She crooned. “What a good boy you are.”
Darian wagged his tail as he licked her wrist. Scarlett shifted off of Osprey, and Darian followed her movements, sticking close to her side. She put her hand flat on his side before running it down the length of his body. Darian closed his eyes, enjoying her petting him, until she yawned loudly. His eyes opened, and she gave him an apologetic smile.
“It’s been a long day,” she whispered.
Darian got up to curl into a ball behind her. She leaned back against him with Osprey’s head in her lap.
‘You finally did well, human,’ he murmured to me. ‘Now, when we die, somebody will actually mourn for us.’
I made him turn his head to look at Scarlett, who was bent over Osprey with her forehead against his and her hair creating a curtain around their faces.
‘Yeah, but she’s the last person that should mourn over us.’