I woke up confused. A small female lay in my arms and I tried to remember what happened. I shifted in the bed, looking down at the small female laying curled up in my arms, her white strip of hair catching my attention. It was the witch. I frowned slightly, shifting a bit underneath her and she let out a small whimper that had me immediately stopping my movements. It only added to my confusion as I looked down at her. I rubbed at my face and winced as I shifted my left leg.

I immediately paused. That sharp pain followed by a dull ache was the only pain that went through me. My mouth went dry at the realization. I immediately thought of Amanda but there was no crippling sadness or despair that came with the memories of her. I was saddened by her passing but it was a fleeting feeling, something that I had endured but made my way out of. I felt an acceptance of her passing, a sadness but it no longer crushed me underneath its weight.

The pain of her was simply gone, replaced by something, or someone, else.

I inhaled sharply at that, immediately looking down at the little witch, tracing her peaceful features with my eyes before my gaze landed on the red bite mark on the crook of her neck. I blinked at it, swallowing hard. I remembered now. I had brought her to Mene, traded my soul for her life and then we had... I rubbed at my mouth, blinking rapidly as it sunk in. She was my mate.

I closed my eyes, searching for it and there it was, like a beacon of brilliant white light in a terrible darkness. A feeling of connection between our two souls. It was vastly different to my bond with Amanda, that one had felt simple, this one had an intensity to it that I was not sure I could explain.

I shook my head in shock at the gift I had been given before a familiar stirring in my mind made me freeze once more. My wolf uncurled from his position, stretching with a yawn. He was there with me, right there. He gave a small whine, nudging me to hold onto the little female tighter. Possession radiated off of him thickly and there was a feral gleam to his eyes. A promise that if anything dared to take this female from him that he would go to the depths of hell and drag them down with him.

I mentally reached out, stroking his fur, emotion saturating my chest and body at the familiar feel of him within my mind. He was right there. He nudged at me, giving another huff before he lay down, his head on his paws as he watched our new female intently. I joined him in the action as I reached out and brushed her silky hair from her face.

Her features were delicate and her skin reminded me of a beach with the golden light of sun kissing it. I brushed my thumb across her high cheekbone, relishing in the feeling of her soft skin beneath my fingertips. Her dark lashes created crescents underneath her eyes and she breathed rhythmically against my chest. I couldn't believe I had once thought her attitude detracted from her beauty. She was magnificent, from her white striped hair down to the long and pale fingernails that topped her fingers.

I grasped one of her hands, feeling the delicate bones underneath her skin. She curled her hand around mine slightly, as if the bond worked on her in wanting me closer. I gave a small smile at the thought. She was just perfect. I shifted a tad more, wrapping my arm underneath her to pull her closer. She made a faint grumbling sound in her throat but settled her head onto my chest without another sound.

I turned my head and looked out the curtained window, the light of the full moon peeked through the torn and threadbare fabric. I could feel a warmth of mischief to the goddess' light, as if she were anticipating the reaction to her little trick. I had asked for her to save the witch, told her I would give her my soul in payment for hers and in the end Mene had removed the pain by tying the witch to me. She had saved us both with one move.

"Thank you." I couldn't help but say it as I looked at the pieces of moonlight that shone into the dusty room. My grip on Lynn grew a little tighter. I doubted a mere thank you would truly pay for what Mene had done for me but I knew it was a decent start. I knew the goddess would take my soul as payment but I didn't mind. She had removed my pain, saved the witch, and gave me a new female. My soul seemed an inadequate payment for that but I wasn't going to point it out.

I tightened my grip on Lynn's waist, holding her close. I had forgotten how it felt to be close to one's mate, how it felt to have one in my arms. It settled me deep inside, made me feel content in the first time in nearly a year. I had been stuck in a haze of fog and pain, never relaxing, never feeling happy or content. It had drug me down until I felt like I couldn't go on anymore. But like her bond with me, there was a beacon of brightness in the hellish darkness that let me know the time of despair was at it's end.

I reached over and brushed her hair back from her face, letting my fingers linger on her skin, relishing the feeling of her warmth and the soothing heat it brought me. I lingered with it for a few moments before a sudden flaring of guilt shoved it all away. I blinked rapidly, it was as if a spell had been broken over me. I ignored my wolf's growls and bared teeth as I slowly moved away from the witch.

I slid across the mattress and moved my legs so they were over the edge. My left leg ached and pain flared through me at it. I rubbed at my scars, feeling the deformed flesh underneath my fingers for a moment before I stood up. I needed to clear my head and as I ran a hand through my hair I realized having a shower would do just that. It would give me time to think away from Lynn because I knew I wouldn't be able to focus with the bond hanging on me so heavily.

I limped towards the door, resisting the urge to look back at the witch with every fibre of my being. My wolf snarled in my head, the sound vibrating my own throat but I shoved him off as I made my way to the bathroom. There was stillness to the dark that surrounded me as I walked through the rundown house, it was almost eerie. I shoved it away, focusing on my task because I knew that if I didn't then I would find myself wrapped up in the witch called Lynn once more.

The bathroom was dingy and the light flickered as I turned it on but I knew it worked well enough. I turned the shower on, not giving it time to warm up before I stepped under the icy spray. My wolf growled low in his throat, his agitation with me clear but I couldn't find it in myself to do as he wished. I felt guilty, the realization that I had so easily replaced Amanda drug me down. It was a harsh thing, having someone you loved with your everything abruptly replaced by another person.

She had been gone not even a year and I had another female to replace her. It didn't matter that Mene had given Lynn to me to bind to, it didn't matter that the bond had been evoked by forces outside of my control. There was a part of me that part hated how easily my wolf and I could move on from Amanda. I guess that part of me wanted me to suffer because I deserved to after she died and I didn't.

It was so strange. I loved Amanda, I still did. I loved her and suddenly there was another person right where she used to be and all my focus was now on her. I had marked her, fallen underneath the spell of the fresh bond Mene had given me, and she stood as a beacon that I would forever be drawn to. The entire time she stood in that spot there was the echoes of Amanda, the female that I still loved. I didn't particularly have a choice in that anymore. Lynn was there and Amanda was long gone but it didn't stop me from feeling as I did. A faint feeling of discontent with my situation.

I rested my palms against the shower wall, shivering underneath the ice cold water that came from the shower head. No matter how I felt and how hard I struggled internally, the hard truth was that it needed to be figured out. I needed to figure out what I was going to do and how I was going to move on from this point. Mene had bound me and Lynn together, saving Lynn from her brothers and me from the pain. She had closed the hole that Amanda had left in my soul by putting Lynn's soul there instead.

I knew I couldn't change what happened between Lynn and I. I had claimed her, solidified our bond, and there was no way to go back from that. I had to do as I would have with Amanda, as much as the thought made that slight feeling of discontent to grow. The choice had been made, Mene had done as she had. I thought it was impossible for another mate to be an option but Mene did as she wished and she worked in death. Both Lynn and I had been close to that point.

I glanced at my wrists where the silver had slashed deep but there were no markings left. I had brought myself to the point of death and Mene had done as she believed was right. I simply had to push forward with the circumstances given to me. I knew being with Lynn would be a learning curve. I had no clue as to what our bond would hold. She was a witch, all but mundane, she wasn't a werewolf. So any of the knowledge I had about bonds and matings were out the window. I had to learn about this bond as it happened and it was rather frightening for me.

I let out a heavy sigh. There was one thing I knew though, it was that I had to trust that what Mene did was what had been right. That her decision to tie Lynn and I together had been the best possible outcome for our situation. True, Mene was a frightening and a borderline brutal and cruel creature but she was our eternal mother and all that she did was for the good of us as her children.

I slumped my shoulders, trying to ignore the disquiet that was starting to grow within me. I had to wait for the witch to wake up before I could evaluate our relationship further. I knew the inevitable outcome of her being by my side for the rest of our lives but I wanted to make sure. Even if it was to just see her reaction to it all. I didn't know her, Mene had been right, but she was a good female. She had a chance to escape but she stayed with me instead, comforting me when I wanted nothing but death. It had to count for something.

With that thought, I quickly washed up, washing my shaggy hair thoroughly before I left the shower. It was just starting getting warm but I ignored it as I shut the water off, drying off with a threadbare towel. I wrapped it around my waist as I grabbed another towel and started to dry my hair. It was getting too long but I didn't have the patience to try and cut it.

I limped my way back to the bedroom. I tried hard to organize my thoughts. I knew the first thing was that I needed to start packing things up. With the pain gone I could go back to the pack. I was the heir to the Alpha position and I knew they needed me. I could slip back into the way things were, bulk up a bit. I had gotten as I wanted, it was just a different outcome than I had imagined. I lifted my chin, I had to do what I could with what had been given to me.

I slipped into the bedroom and without my consent my eyes were immediately drawn to the bed where Lynn lay sleeping. Just like that, all of my misgivings disappeared underneath the tidal wave the bond represented. Warm feelings encased me as I watched her sleep. Her black hair was spread out over the pillow and she clutched another to her chest tightly as if she missed having me to cling to. The thought softened me even more than before. No matter how it happened, she was a miracle I hadn't been expecting. The disquiet was there but it faded underneath the truth of it all. I had been given a gift and it wasn't something I should look down upon or feel a sense of obligation to.

Mene had told me that Amanda's soul was content in death. She had no lingering doubts or fears towards me and our bond. She had gone to Mene as light as a feather and the goddess had no reason to lie to me about that. She had shown too much surprise at my admission to appropriately formulate a lie about it. Amanda's spirit was truly content in death. It was an odd feeling and I pressed my lips into a thin line. It stood to reason that if she was content in death then it would be okay for me to be content in life. That small part of me still had its doubts and its guilt but I knew it would go away in time.

I had to move forward and I knew there were worse fates than to be tied to a small and kind creature such as Lynn. She had a good soul and kind hands. Her energy was warm and nearly healing when focused on me. I could do more than survive with her as my mate. In a way I knew I could potentially thrive with her by my side.

I rubbed at my leg as I made it to my cluttered and messy table. My thoughts wandered to her perhaps helping me with my leg, helping it heal properly. I wanted to be a male any female would be proud of and I knew I wasn't anything to look at now. I felt a bit ashamed at my condition and I knew I made a pathetic figure. Before the accident and when I was at my prime, many shifters had bowed underneath my dominance and my presence.

I glanced back at Lynn as her nose scrunched up in a faint look of irritation before the lines disappeared just a quick as she pressed her face into the pillow, heaving out a sigh. I wondered what she would have thought to see me like that. I slowly turned back to my desk, gathering papers into a pile and sorting out my important documents. knew I wasn't much to look at now. I was far underweight for an Alpha Male. I needed to gain over a hundred pounds of muscle to get back up into the range that was normal but I also knew that it would be nearly impossible with my leg as messed up as it was.

I looked down, finally staring at it for the first time since I had left the hospital after the accident. It was a mess of twisted and scarred skin. I knew the bones had healed straight. Everything had been set and I had a team of healers working on making sure my shattered bones had come together perfectly but in their attentiveness to my bones they had neglected the rest. I knew why they had, if they couldn't make the bones straight and strong then I would have lost the leg but the trade off was butchered and misshapen muscles and scar tissue that carried from my ankle all the way to my hip.

It would be a burden and a reminder. Lynn had taken Amanda's place as my mate but the leg would serve as a reminder of the female I had lost. I looked over my shoulder again, tracing the curves and lines of Lynn's body with my eyes. My wolf was content to be where he could see her. He was already possessive over her, unwilling to let her go for a moment and I knew that I would grow to be like that as well. Already I wanted to go back to the bed and hold her in my arms and never let her go.

She was a gift from our goddess, something that had never happened before. No one was ever given a second mate after their first one passed. It was such an impossibility that it wasn't even a thought for discussion. Now I was living in the realm of impossibilities as my new mate shifted on the bed. I had something of pure fiction, I was living and breathing history. It was going to be hard, she wasn't of my kind. She wouldn't understand the ways of our world and I knew I would have to teach her but that seemed honestly minor in the wake of what she represented.

A second chance.

A do over.

Mene had created a precedence with her actions and Lynn and I were like the litmus test for what would happen if a shifter was given a second chance at what we called love. I slowly shook my head and turned back to my organizing. It was a lot to take in, a lot of weight on one's shoulders. We needed to take everything one step at a time and I knew the first step we needed to take was to return to my parents.

There was a part of me that was happy at the prospect of seeing them again but a larger part of me had me once again turning to look at the witch. It was a darkness and a heavy feeling of disquiet because it knew that while my parents loved me completely and totally, Lynn was just too... different and it knew it would be a fight to get them to accept a witch, let alone her.