Claiming The Werewolf Princess

Esmeralda's POV

It was amazing, everything was perfect, I was having the best birthday a thirteen years old kid can ever ask for, there was laughter and a joyful mood in the air. Everyone had come to wish the alpha's daughter a happy birthday, nothing could possibly ruin this day, so I thought. It was my birthday so what could possibly go wrong.

All of a sudden two men strolled to the lawn where the party was being held, the music stopped and everywhere became quiet, dead silent, I didn't understand what was going on but one thing I knew for sure, was that the men presence meant anything else but good.

My father growled loudly, breaking the silence "James! Why are you here? I thought we had a deal."

One of the men, probably the one named James chuckled lightly. "I know Alpha. I just wanted check in to make sure our deal is still on, I wouldn't want you to change your mind at the last minute."

I was so confused, while he replied my father, I noticed his eyes were fixed on me and it gave me the creeps. My mother suddenly appeared before me, shielding me from his gaze, an action I was grateful for because, from the stares he was giving me, I felt so uncomfortable, and it made me want to throw up.

"The deal is still on." I heard my father say. They were speaking in codes, it made me curious about what they meant.

What deal? I wasn't having a good feeling about it.

"Happy birthday sweetie." With that, the man turned around to leave. Even after he was gone, the tension in the air was still very thick.

My dad let out a breath he had been holding and a smile appeared on his face. "Don't worry everyone, let the party continue." He and my mother shared a glance that I knew too well, a glance that meant something was terribly wrong but of course, they could not say it out loud, they could mindlink each other.

The party went on but I had lost interest, I had to keep a huge smile on my face to prove that I am happy but on the inside, I was wondering about the deal and who the creepy man was. So many hours later, it was finally over, I could finally change out of my outfit to something more comfortable.

"Mera, it's time for dinner." My mum informed me from the other side of my locked door, she had tried to come in but after twisting the knob a few times to figure out that it was locked, she left. Soon after, I got out of my bed, unlocked my door and went down the stairs to have dinner with my parents.

Dinner was oddly quiet, both my parents looked lost in thoughts. The silence was stifling, I could no longer bear it. "Mum?" I called out to her.

"Yes sugarplum," She smiled at me.

"Everything would be fine." I smiled back at her, at that moment, I stopped thinking about what the deal meant. I don't know what it was and how bad it is but as long as I had my parents, I would be happy.

"What do you mean honey?" She tried to look confused but she failed at it, I could see through her, I could see that she was so worried about something and I hated it.

"The man that came today, the deal? Don't worry about it, Dad would handle it. He can handle anything because he's the alpha!." I was such a child, I had a strong faith in my father. I was wrong but I just didn't realize it at that moment.

"Don't worry about it Barb." My Dad added, he pulled her closer for a kiss and I giggled at the sight of it.

After dinner, I was so exhausted from all the birthday thrills, my parents both came to my room to tuck me in for the night. "Good night sweetie." They both kissed my forehead, my mum's gaze lingered on me longer than usual before she left with my Dad.

I finally closed my eyes and allowed sleep to take me into Dreamland. My name is Esmeralda Weston, daughter and only child of the Alpha of Blue Moon park. First and foremost, supernatural are real, not scientific fiction because they do exist.

The powerful races of the supernatural world includes werewolves, vampires and witches but the weaker races consists of Sirens, banshees, fae, fairies, mermaids and even elves. Some of this races had gone extinct over the past few years due to wars and stronger predators. I'm a werewolf and since werewolves are known to be very territorial, we live in packs. A park is like a small town on its own, it is lead by an Alpha and a Luna.

There is actually a ranking, some are born to rule, others to follow. An alpha has the highest rank, they set the rules and lead the pack, he is the head of every pack and the Luna is his mate, she is the mother figure of the pack and able to calm the alpha when he is distressed. If the Luna is taken or killed, it weakens the alpha and the pack, it was his main weakness. The second in command was the beta, he has the second highest rank. He worked directly with the Alpha and was in charge when the Alpha and Luna are unavailable. There's also, the pack warriors and the Delta is the head of them, there are also park healers, they work in the infirmary. Then the last but not least are the Omegas, they are the weakest wolves in the pack, they are called the runts. Some of them are often bullied and maltreated.

Centuries ago, in order to ensure peace in the werewolf community, the Moon Goddess divided our souls into two. We call the other half of us soulmates. Once a wolf is eighteen and above, he or she would be able sense his soulmate either by a touch or scent or just by staring into their eyes, every werewolf have their soulmates. My parents were so loving, that was the perks of being together with your soulmate. The adults said that it was an unbreakable bond and I grew everything about being a werewolf drilled into my mind.

Some mates get to meet one another by chance, others are during the Mating Ceremony where different wolves come together in an inhabited territory to try to find their mates, sometimes you have to roam half the world to find your mate. Sometimes the female from a different pack might have to move to her male's pack but it all depends on the strength and power of her mate. It's vice versa. Mates would remain together for the rest of their lives and if one of them dies, it takes a lot of hope that the other doesn't go crazy and die too.

To trespass on an habited territory was a declaration of war sometimes, other times it's a challenge on the existing alpha and it was a fight to the death. An alpha can also challenge another alpha for his land and people and if the challenged alpha loses or surrenders, he has to leave the pack because it was a symbol of disgrace while the winning alpha takes over.

There's also a different kind of wolves. The rogues, they attack packs unnecessarily and every pack has to be on alert in case of an unnecessary intrusion.

Late in the night, around eleven, I heard screams. At first, I totally ignored it thinking it was just some dream effect but it became louder and I jerked awake. It was no dream "WE ARE UNDER ATTACK!" I threw off my bed covers and rushed to the windows, I saw wolves fighting and people running. Even though, I haven't had my first shift, my senses were more sharper than werewolves my age.

I was scared.

I felt a new kind of emotion for the first time; fear. It was not a good feeling, it made your heart beat erratically and it makes you feel panicked and at loss for what to do because you couldn't think straight anymore.

Fear. It was one of those shitty things that wrapped it's claws around you and made you feel like you're drowning in darkness or swimming in deep dark waters, unable to get free. Once its engraved in your head, it brings the worst kinds of thought to mind. I had an intuition, something was definitely going on, this isn't the first time my park is being attacked but something just didn't feel right about it, it brought back the thought of the men who had intruded my party and the deal.

My door was sudden kicked open, my mum entered the room and I could see the same fear swirling in her eyes. "Mera, we are under attack, do you understand?" I nodded quickly and rushed to her side. " Come with me, let's get you to somewhere safe, do not panic or pass out. Be a good girl for momma, okay?"

I nodded and rushed to her side, she immediately punched into one side of the wall and a hole appeared, she stuck her hand in and brought out a bag. She lets out a sigh, grabbed my hands and we began running through the mass of werewolves who are engaged in a fight. I was so scared, it was so different from the training I usually watched the pack warriors do.

I could see the bodies of dead wolves, blood and chunks of flesh around me, I recognized some pack warriors, they were riddled with wounds but they were still fighting with all of their strength and will power, there were howling and growling in each corner and everywhere was a mess. Some enemy wolves thought of approaching my mum but she quickly ended them with the swipe of her sharp claws, she kept me very close to her and tried to protect me from their sharp fangs.

Under the torrents of attack, she shifted to her brown wolf form, she held onto the bag with her teeth as I climbed on her back. She charged out of the circle so fast that I hand to hold on to handfuls of her fur tightly so that I won't be thrown of by the wind. Some of the enemy wolves chased after us but we're not able to catch up, my mum was training a warrior leader of a different pack but after meeting her mate; my father, since he was Alpha, she had to switch to becoming Luna and she was great at it.

She went deep into the woods before she stopped, she came to a halt in an opening, my mum shifted back to her human form, she cleared a pile of dead leaves at a spot to reveal a small round door, it was almost unnoticeable unless you looked closely. She opened it and looked at me. "Get in."

Ay this point I could not hold back my questions anymore. "Mum what's going on, please tell me what's wrong."

"Esmeralda my child, once you're older, you will understand." Tears started rolling down her cheeks, she looked reluctant about the choice she was making but was forced to make it.

I didn't want to wait till I was older, I wanted to understand it now. "No mum, I want to know now. What is happening? Where is dad?!"

"MERA! We are under attack and we might not make it out in one piece. I need you to understand that we might not be able to survive this." She squatted until she was my level and cupped my face lovingly. "Your father is out there fighting for you, for us and our future together and he would be worried if you aren't safe."

"Is this about the deal?"

My mum was stunned for a moment but she nodded. "There is no time to spare, you must leave after thirty hours," She led me towards the opening and since I knew that it was about me, I didn't try to resist anymore. "My child, you must promise to stay safe, your father and I will come get you when it's all over."

I hugged her and she reciprocated. "I love you mum."

"I love you more Esmeralda, my little princess." I didn't want to let go and she must have noticed so she forcefully broke the hug and carried me into the opening. It wasn't very deep and I could easily get out if I was standing. "You are mummy's brave princess, consider this a game of hide and seek. Don't be scared, okay?"

"I won't," I wanted to make a good impression and I sat down, my mum also threw the bag down.

"There are snacks in there in case you get hungry," She smiled at me. "Your dad and I will come get you soon, don't be scared." With that, she closed the opening and must have replaced the dried leaves on top of it like we had met it.

I was such a child, I was so stupid and should have seen the bigger picture. I took things as they told me and never for once thought of the what ifs? I never for once thought my parents were lying because I trusted them and when have they ever broken their words? Mum said they'll come get me.

I waited and waited and waited, Inside the bag were my favorite snacks so I ate when I was hungry and drank from a bottle that was in the bag, there was also a watch set to timer and an outfit to change into. The hole wasn't spacious but it wasn't tight either, it was just right for my size. I could still hear occasionally howling and since the thirty hours wasn't over, I stayed put and kept waiting. I must have fallen asleep at some point.

The soft beeping of the watch woke me up, the thirty hours were over. To pass these days, I had developed a routine; eat then sleep, there was nothing else to do aside waiting. I didn't come out of the hole immediately, I was waiting for my parents, since they promised to come get me, I assumed that they might be on their way.

I couldn't wait to see the looks on their face when they saw that I had been very obedient, I waited for about an hour but no one showed up. Dread settled at the pit of my stomach, I was becoming nervous and the hole felt like it was smaller and tighter, threatening to constrict me. I was having a panic attack but this time, none of my parents were close by to help me.