Heavenly Poison

Damien Gray

“Wake up!” Sebastian shouted, while shaking me.

Emilia was sleeping right next to me, and she sat up looking startled. Her hair was all over the place, and she was still out of it.

“It’s already seven,” Sebastian said.

I could smell his minty fresh breath blowing across my face from how close he was to me, so I shoved him away.

He was showered and dressed. I wouldn’t put it past him if he’d eaten breakfast already.

“You really need to learn boundaries,” I told him.

Just then, Luke came strolling into the room, barking playfully.

“Hey Luke,” I said, patting the spot in between my legs for him to jump up.

“I really regret giving him that horrid name,” Sebastian commented, as he picked up Luke from the floor and threw him onto the bed.

The puppy, which was looking slightly taller than when we first got him, landed between Emilia and me.

“No need to curse the name just for one asshole named Luke,” I remarked, scratching the pup’s head.

“You two, seriously?” Emilia complained, before lying back on the bed and throwing the comforter over her head.

Sebastian laughed at that, and he started tugging on it.

“Not a morning person, ay?” He asked her, his voice fully amused as he kept fighting her for the comforter.

“Come on, leave her alone,” I told Sebastian.

I climbed out the bed, and stretched, feeling my muscles relax. I had slept for too long.

“We’re going to be late,” Sebastian told me, before he jumped into the spot I had emptied. “Hey, maybe Emilia wants to stay here and cuddle with me,” he said, tightly wrapping his arm over Emilia’s stomach, which was covered by the comforter.

I broke out laughing when Emilia jumped out of the bed, clumsily. If it weren’t for her heightened reflexes, which were a bit fuzzy in the morning, she would’ve planted on the floor.

“I’m up!” Emilia snapped at Sebastian.

“Finally, I was starting to think you liked my idea,” he said, winking at her.

I rolled my eyes at him, and headed for the closet.

“You’re not my type,” I heard Emilia say while I was searching for clothes.

“And Damy is? He’s looks just like me,” Sebastian added with a chuckle.

“He’s my mate,” Emilia flatly replied.

“So if he wasn’t your mate, you wouldn’t want him?”

“Of course I would! He’s different, and not just because he’s my mate. He just is,” Emilia quickly defended, and continued to mumble a few other incoherent words to herself.

I chuckled at her quick reply, and the angry blush that was growing in her face.

Sebastian left the room soon after that, leaving Emilia alone in bed. A light shade of pink was still coating her face.

“You’re going to school from here?”

“Yeah, I don’t want to be late. My dad said I have to go, but we need to go back to the pack right after school.”

I nodded at her, and made my way to the shower.

“Do you mind if I burrow some clothes?” Emilia asked me, sounding shy.

“Go ahead. The shirts on the top drawer are the smallest size I have,” I told her, before shutting the door to the bathroom.

When I came back out, Emilia was gone. I finished getting ready and left downstairs.

“You two made up?” Sebastian asked.

He was halfway through making breakfast.

“I guess so,” I replied, taking a seat in one of the stools.

“We’re going over to her house after school?”

“She told you?”

“I might have been listening in to your conversation,” Sebastian innocently said.

I chuckled at him, not even able to get mad about it.

“You’re making breakfast?” Emilia asked when she walked into the room. She was wearing the same jeans from yesterday, but she had one of my white undershirts on.

My eyes stayed on her for a while longer than usual, taking her in. I liked her wearing my clothes. Even while the shirt fit her loosely, it was appealing.

Her black hair was in a messy bun. Having it pulled back from her face made her icy blue eyes stand out. When I snapped out of gazing at her, I realized she was giving Sebastian a funny look.

“I’m a great cook,” he shrugged.

“He is,” I agreed.

Emilia was still looking at him strangely.

She had showered, probably in Sebastian’s bathroom.

“Did your father hear anything about Brian?” Sebastian asked her.

“Not yet, but Luke hasn’t shut up about it ever since yesterday. He’s been throwing accusations left and right. Some names popped up in his rants,” Emilia said, her voice turning serious.

“Names?” I asked her. “What names?”

“How soon can you get ahold of Alpha Layton?”

“I could call him right now if you want. If not, I’ll take care of it whenever Anthony wants to set up the meeting.”

“For what?” Sebastian asked.

“We’re hoping the meeting can take place this coming weekend, if it’s possible,” Emilia replied.

“I’ll set it up,” I said, with a short nod.

“My dad thinks that we shouldn’t take Brian’s threats lightly. He was our third in command for a very long time. He made some friends with other packs,” Emilia said.

“Important ones?”

“A few, but there’s one shifter that has my father worried the most.”

“Who?” I asked.

“You don’t know him.”

“He’s dangerous?” Sebastian asked, but it seemed like he knew the answer his question.

“He used to be an Alpha, not anymore. He was brought down by other packs, but they didn’t kill him. We’ve heard the guy is pretty lethal.”

Arriving to school with Emilia was an event. It didn’t exactly help that she was wearing my shirt, and that is was obvious it wasn’t hers.

“You’re with her again?” Tania asked right after we arrived at her table.

There were three other girls sitting around the picnic table. Sebastian went to her side and wrapped his arm around her shoulders.

“You know how young love is,” Sebastian told her dreamily, giving both of us a teasing grin.

“What do you care,” Emilia snapped, glaring at Tania.

“I wouldn’t care if you hadn’t been cheating on Damien,” Tania snapped back.

Emilia took a step towards her, and Tania got up from the table.

“Whoa, whoa,” Sebastian said, standing up as well and taking a hold of Tania’s hand.

“I wasn’t cheating on him,” Emilia said, just as I told her, “Let’s go.”

“You shouldn’t stay with her,” Tania said to me.

Emilia growled at her words, and it was loud enough for Tania and her friends to hear.

“Damy,” Sebastian said, giving me a hard look and nodding towards Emilia.

“Come on,” I told her, and pulled on Emilia’s hand to drag her away.

She didn’t want to move, so I ended up using my mind to force her to walk by my side. The more I pulled her away from Tania’s table, the angrier she got at me.

We passed her group of friends, which was missing Luke and his buddies, but Emilia paid them no attention. It was Lexi who made the move to follow after us.

“Where have you been?” She asked Emilia in a demanding tone.

“I was with Damien.”

“What happened this weekend? And what the hell are you?” Lexi asked, being subtle as always.

“Anthony captured Luke, Brian turned against the pack, I’m a Legen, and I am stronger than you,” I said, giving her a quick smile, before walking away from her.

Emilia didn’t speak until we made it to the stacks.

“Are that girl and Sebastian together?” Emilia asked me through gritted teeth.

She was really worked up, and her eyes had completely shifted to black.

“Tania?”

“Yes, is she with Sebastian?”

“No,” I replied.

“Then why does he keep her around. Is she his regular?”

“Not exactly, more like she puts up with Seb, he trusts her, and she doesn’t have to put out for him,” I shrugged.

“She seems comfortable defending you,” Emilia said.

I sighed, finally understanding where she was getting at.

“She’s a good friend.”

“You hardly even know her!” Emilia cried, throwing her hands in the air.

“I could say the same thing about you.”

Wrong thing to say, Damien, I told myself, when I noticed the daggers she was shooting at me.

“I’m not interested in her, and she’s not interested in me. Tania’s just worried.”

“I don’t like it,” Emilia said, pouting like a little girl.

I wasn’t sure she had noticed it, but it was cute. She rarely allowed herself moments like those. She was aggressive and protective when it came to me, but she didn’t really throw tantrums. Not like most girls did anyways.

I got closer to her, and wrapped my arms around her waist, lazily resting them on her lower back.

“Sebastian told me Tania kicked you out of the apartment Saturday night,” I said.

I wanted to laugh about that, but I held it. Tania was going up against Emilia, yet she had no idea just how strong Emilia really was.

“She’s just a human,” I told her.

“One that doesn’t know how to mind her own business,” Emilia growled.

“We should just get to class,” I told her, when I noticed she had calmed down enough.

Her posture didn’t seem tense and her eyes had returned back to blue, which was usually a sign that her Wolf wasn’t going to attack me or anyone else.

“Right,” Emilia said, but there was an edge to her voice.

“What are you two going to do right now?” Tania asked.

I had walked back to our car and Tania and Sebastian were already there.

When sixth period started, Emilia had been called up to the office. About five minutes later, she texted me saying her dad had picked her up.

Sebastian and I couldn’t just ditch class because we were already in there. Since we didn’t have anyone to sign us out, we had to wait until the bell rang.

“Emilia’s dad invited us for dinner,” Sebastian replied.

He seemed in no hurry to get to Mountain Peak territory.

“Tell me again, why did you go back with that little hussy?” Tania asked.

Her words got to me. I wasn’t sure if it was because we were back together or because she had insulted Emilia, but it ticked me off.

“We talked it out,” I replied, trying to sound nonchalant.

She was looking at me suspiciously, although I knew her suspicion was mainly directed at Emilia.

“Did talking it out include kicking Luke’s ass? Because Emilia and Luke have had a thing for each other since middle school,” Tania said, shaking her head disapprovingly.

“They dated before?” Sebastian asked, first looking at Tania questioningly before his eyes landed on me.

“No, they didn’t date. They just hung out.” At least, that was what Emilia had told me.

“Right,” Tania said, outstretching the word, “Emilia and her exclusive group of stuck up jerks.”

I couldn’t help but laugh at her comment.

If only she knew what their exclusive group really was about.

“We can drop you off on the way,” Sebastian suggested.

He had his arm slung around Tania’s shoulder, but when she nodded her head, he went to open the door for her.

“I still think this is a bad idea, Damien. But it’s your call,” Tania said.

Sebastian nodded at her in agreement, before shutting her car door.

I sullenly slipped into the backseat of the car, feeling moody after that conversation.

“So what’s the plan?” Sebastian asked Anthony.

We had just arrived at their mansion, and were having a closed door meeting.

Wayne and Randy- who was the Beta in training- were there when we arrived. Emilia had been upstairs, but she sauntered into the room a few minutes later. Anthony was sitting behind his desk, pulling out some files.

“Right now, the plan is to be prepared,” Anthony replied, looking at each of us for a moment.

When his eyes landed on me, there was an expectant look in them.

“It would be good if you became more involved with pack affairs. I was thinking,” Anthony said, his eyes discretely moving towards Emilia.

“Maybe you two should move here, to pack territory,” he finished.

To say I was shocked by his words was putting it mildly. Sebastian even laughed, either knowing or pretending that Anthony was been joking.

“You’re serious?” Sebastian asked.

Emilia didn’t look surprised with Anthony’s proposal.

“If Damien is to take over the pack, he needs to know the territory. And, it would be useful to have you two here in case of an attack,” Anthony explained.

To me, he said, “I can protect my pack, but I want you to start learning how everything works. We have Rogues and Brian to worry about. Among the packs left, we were considered one of the weakest because of our low number in members. Now subtract thirty Wolves from our pack. We’re in bad shape.”

I closed my eyes and sighed loudly. His words just added a lot more pressure. When I opened my eyes, I noticed everyone, except for Sebastian, was starting at me.

“Alright,” I said, sighing once again, just for extra reassurance. “What do we need to do?”

The days that followed were not only the most tiring of my life, but ones where I wanted to rip my wings out and just give up.

But I had also learned so much.

Werewolves were temperamental, yes. It was one of the few things Sebastian and I knew about Wolves. Being with the pack showed both of us that Rogues, at least the ones we had come across, were very different from pack Wolves.

Pack Wolves were aggressive, but they cared. They really were family, in all aspects. And being around them, while Anthony explained things, it was an experience hard to explain.

By the time I went to bed, which was now in Emilia’s home, I couldn’t stop thinking.

Anthony treated me like a son. I hated it, but at the same time, I craved it. It had been driving me crazy.

On Wednesday, he took me to an afternoon training session for the Wolves that had recently shifted, like Randy. Anthony was going to be their trainer for the day, mainly, so that he could show me how it worked.

He used me as an example, and he ended up kicking my ass. It made the kids laugh. During the training, he kept calling me ‘son’ and was practically showing me off. Towards the end, all he did was make me throw things at trees or targets he’d point out. I was doing it with my telekinesis, which ended up being a good way to not only impress the kids but also grab their attention.

I wasn’t a freak to them.

When Saturday came along, we were all prepared for the visit from the two Alphas, Cassidy, and a few of their members accompanying them. Layton told me his father, and Zeverus’ father- he was the other Alpha- were going to take charge of their packs while they were visiting.

Due to how delicate our situation was with the pack, both Anthony and Layton thought it wasn’t a good idea for us to make the trip. Zeverus, the other Alpha, had agreed.

“I’ve waited an entire week for this,” Sebastian said.

He was in my room, throwing a ball in the air- using his mind. I didn’t understand what the fun in that was, but it was something he liked to do. I assumed it was useful somehow, but he had a lot more control over his telekinesis than I did.

“You’ll like her.”

“Oh, I’m sure I will,” Sebastian said, suggestively.

“She has a mate. I’m serious, Seb. I don’t want you messing with her,” I warned him.

I knew how Sebastian was. I wanted Layton and Cassidy in our side, but I also wanted to keep their friendship.

“Is she any different or is she the same as us?” Sebastian asked, completely ignoring the fact that I’d brought up Cassidy having a mate.

“She’s the same. Her wings are smaller though, but I guess it’s because she’s a girl,” I shrugged.

“I’m gonna meet up with Tania before they get here,” Sebastian told me, and he finally got up from the bed.

I had been wondering why he was up so early even though it was Saturday. He had been showered and dressed since I’d woken up, and that had been around six in the morning. Anthony wanted to get things prepared for the visit, and that involved having me awake in case he needed me.

So far, I hadn’t done anything. Emilia was out with Anthony, doing last minute rounds.

I still hadn’t told them about my wings. When I asked Sebastian about it, he gave me a direct ‘no’ for that. He didn’t want them to know anything more than they should.

I was starting to get restless though. My wings wanted out, really bad. I hadn’t brought them out since last Saturday. I had been used to flying at least twice a week, and I hadn’t done any flying this past week.

“You’re thinking about flying, aren’t you?” Sebastian asked me, bringing me out of my thoughts.

I chuckled, and nodded at him.

“We’ll make time for it. Tell your girlfriend to back off once in a while. You two are always sucking face,” Sebastian said.

He threw me the ball he’d been balancing in the air, and left out of the room before I could hit him with it.

There were still a few hours before Cassidy and Layton’s arrival, so I decided to go out for a walk with Luke. The pup was lazily lying down in Sebastian’s room. When I opened the door, he gave me a few barks and hurriedly made his way towards me.

“Missed me, buddy?” I asked, kneeling in front of him, and giving his head a few scratches.

“I was looking for you.” I was surprised to hear Randy’s voice behind me.

“What’s up?” I asked, getting up from the ground.

I opened the door wider, and Luke started running out. I laughed at his enthusiasm. He was probably missing the freedom he had in the apartment. Moving to the mansion had been a big change, especially for the pup.

One of the changes happened to be the fact that Luke could feel Anthony’s Alpha Wolf, even when Anthony was in human form.

Luke barked at him, but one hard stare from Anthony or even a playful movement made the poor pup cower back. He usually ended up running away, with his tail between his legs, while whining loudly all the way. Sebastian got annoyed with it, so he ended up shoving the little husky in his room or mine.

“You busy?” Randy asked me.

I shook my head, and waited for him to speak. He was looking nervous, which was more or less strange from him.

With the exception of Anthony and Emilia, Randy was probably my favorite person in the pack. Despite being only thirteen, the kid had guts.

I always thought about Sebastian and me whenever I looked at Randy. We had been kicked out when we turned thirteen, and the things we did and saw at that age were not something we should’ve experienced so early in life.

These days, the pack was practically forcing every kid to mature so young. The trainings had become more intense than before, and they were going on for much longer.

Randy knew about the fight that Brian might start against the pack, and he wanted in on it. He wanted to fight alongside everyone else.

“Not really,” I replied, and motioned down at pup, who I had decided to take out for a walk.

Anthony was out with Wayne, so I was in the clear with Luke. I wasn’t looking forward to freaking out the pup by taking him out.

“I was wondering,” Randy said, running his hand nervously through his hair.

“I heard your dad doesn’t want you present during the meeting,” I commented.

“Yeah, I was hoping you could convince the Alpha to let me stay. If Alpha Anthony says I should be there, my dad won’t say no to it.”

Sneaky, I thought to myself. I chuckled and shook my head at him.

“Do you know why Wayne doesn’t want you there?” I asked him.

“Because he’s scared?”

“Partly,” I said.

“I’m going to be your Beta.”

“I’m aware of that.”

“I think I should be there, you know, just in case.”

“In case of what?”

“In case the Alphas are just tricking us and want to attack. I can protect you and the Luna,” he said, referring to Emilia.

“Don’t do that. If anything happens, protect yourself first. We’re going to be your Alphas. We’re the ones who need to protect you,” I told him.

“Does that mean you’ll…?”

I laughed at the hopeful look in his face and the teasing grin he was throwing at me. “I’ll talk to Anthony,” I told him.

“Awesome!” He left me stunned for a moment when he fist-pumped the air, before running off into the woods and shifting into his Wolf in the process.

Only a few Wolves from the pack were allowed in the mansion to welcome the visitors.

Wayne, along with an excited Randy had been waiting outside for their arrival. Julius, who had been the pack’s tracker, was there and had taken over the third in command position. He was firmly standing outside the mansion doors, guarding it… or something. Alex, Sergio, Tyron, Oscar, and Eugene, who according to Anthony and Brian were the best fighters in the pack, were standing guard outside.

The rest of the pack all had a job to do, and it would be like that for as long as the visit lasted. Three groups, five Wolves per group, were doing rounds at all times.

Emilia, Sebastian, Anthony, and I were in the study, making sure we had everything worked out.

“They’re here,” Anthony said, standing up from his chair. His entire expression and posture changed. He allowed more of his Wolf control. I felt the power emanating from him, even though he wasn’t doing anything.

“Come on,” Sebastian said, jumping up from his chair.

Cassidy was the only reason he was excited about the meeting. He wanted to meet the only other Legen we knew about.

“Wait,” Anthony said.

Emilia and I hadn’t made a move towards the door yet. Sebastian, who was excited about going outside, looked at Anthony impatiently.

We were all quickly learning that Sebastian didn’t really care if Anthony was Alpha of the pack. He didn’t change his way of being to suit Anthony, which sometimes got on Anthony’s last nerve.

“What is it?” I asked.

“I won’t get a chance to say this later, and I should’ve brought it up before,” Anthony said, looking at the three of us seriously.

“Anytime now would be good,” Sebastian said, his hand rattling the door handle.

Anthony growled at him, but ignored his comment otherwise.

“If we make an agreement with Layton and Zeverus, we are also taking on their enemies.”

I widened my eyes in surprise. It was the last thing I expected Anthony to say. Sebastian even walked back into the room.

“I didn’t know they had enemies,” Sebastian said.

“Alpha Layton is feuding with one of the packs we have ties with,” Emilia explained.

“The ties come from?” I asked.

“Wayne’s daughter is the mate of their third in command. I’ve spoken with Wayne about this. We need this deal with Layton and Zeverus to work out, and Wayne knows and accepts it,” Anthony said.

He seemed to be waiting for me to say something, because his eyes were concentrated on me, and the room had gone quiet.

I narrowed my eyes at that, but looked away from both Emilia and Anthony. When my eyes landed on Sebastian, he nodded at me.

“I could honestly care less,” Sebastian assured me.

“Cassidy’s a Legen, and Layton is willing to back us up. We’re fine with whatever comes with the package,” I told Anthony, not knowing if that was what he wanted me to say.

“Good,” Anthony told me, walking over to my side and patting my back.

“That was it?” I asked, feeling slightly put down that he’d made us wait for something so trivial.

Anthony was just about to walk out of the office, but he turned back when I spoke out.

“The pack Layton is feuding with is the biggest pack in the US. I just wanted you to know that this alliance will have benefits, but also downfalls,” Anthony said, giving me a short nod, before walking out.

“That’s probably not good,” I mumbled, more to myself.

When I turned to Sebastian, he just rolled his eyes.

“Oh come on, Damy, they’re just Wolves. Strongest pack or not, we’re freaken Legens. They’re the ones that should be scared,” Sebastian said, chuckling, like if the idea of having someone stronger than us was crazy.

“You ready for this?” Emilia asked, taking my hand.

I sighed, and nodded, “I’m ready.”