Chapter 3 He's Our Mate

• Selvara’s POV
• It was just a dream. That relieved me.
• I breathed out as I walked up to the table just a few steps from my bed. My throat was dry, so I tried pouring water from the jug into the cup I held, but the jug was empty.
• "Just what I needed" I hissed, banging my leg on the table angrily. "Ouch, that hurts."
• I grabbed the jug and went to the kitchen. It was only five in the morning, so I started my chores while the other omegas dragged themselves in one after the other.
• “Are you fine, Selvara?” Ravennna asked. She noticed things quickly. She noticed my shaky hands while I washed rice for breakfast.
• “Just a headache,” I lied. I didn’t dare tell her the truth. “I’ll get some medicine from my room.”
• Because it wasn’t just a headache. My heat had come earlier than it was supposed to. My body burned, my skin prickled. I needed to get to my room, fast, before anyone noticed my scent. The potion I’d been using to suppress it was hidden there.
• I rushed back, heart racing. But the second I opened the door, I froze. Queen Celine was inside, and she wasn’t alone. A wolf stood beside her. It was a stranger. Definitely an omega, but not from our pack, I’d never seen him before.
• I bowed slightly. “Good morning, Luna.”
• She didn’t answer right away. Her eyes scanned me from head to toe.Then her lips curved in that cold smile I hated. “You don’t look well, Selvara.”
• “I’m fine.” My voice cracked.
• The stranger tilted his head. “This is her?” His tone was flat and unimpressed.
• “Yes,” Queen Celine said casually.
• She didn’t even look at me when she added, “She’ll do what she’s told.”
• My stomach dropped. Do what? I wanted to ask, but I swallowed it back. The man’s eyes were still on me, and my wolf growled low inside, restless. I forced a smile, pretending I was calm.
• “I’ll leave you two to… talk.” Queen Celine said. My stomach sank.
• “Luna...” I started, but she left the room before I could say anything further. Shutting the door behind her.
• The stranger’s eyes shifted back to me. “So you’re the one.” He stepped closer, his gaze trailing slowly over my body. “You’ll make a fine mate.”
• My throat dried. “Excuse me?”
• He smirked. “Don’t act shy. Your Luna told me already, you need someone. Someone to… handle you before you become a problem.” His hand brushed my arm. My skin crawled. I stepped back fast.
• “Don’t touch me.”
• But he followed. “You don’t have a choice. No one would accept you, just take the chance you have.”
• My wolf growled inside me, furious. When his hand reached for my waist, something in me snapped. My palm flew before I could think. I slapped him and left the room angrily. I didn’t even let myself think about what just happened. I had no time. Because by dawn, the omegas were dragged out for training.
• Our training wasn’t glorious like the warriors’. For us, it was punishment disguised as practice. Carrying logs, running laps around the yard, kneeling in the dirt until our knees burned. The instructors shouted at us, whipping anyone at the slightest mistake. My arms shook from lifting buckets filled with sand.
• Next to me, Ravenna hissed. “Keep up, Selvara,” as if she wasn’t shaking herself. I faked a smile. While running, I stumbled once, the bucket slipping. The sand spilled, and everyone laughed.
• One of the overseers cracked his stick near my feet, barking, “Are you so pathetic you can't carry a bucket now?"
• I bit my tongue and picked it up again. My palms stung, but I forced myself to finish. I couldn’t give them more reason to mock me.
• When training ended, sweat dripping down our backs, we weren’t allowed to rest. We were ordered to go serve the Alphas their meals. So we cleaned ourselves quickly, grabbed trays of roasted meat and wine, and headed to the yard where the Alphas sat under the tall pavilion.
• My tray felt too heavy, my hands unsteady. I tried to focus only on the plates, on setting them down without spilling. My wolf pressed against my skin at the sight of Zyros.
• I set the plate down fast and stepped back, my heart hammering. But his gaze didn’t leave me. It lingered. Oh my God! He must've noticed.
• I rushed away, pretending I didn’t feel my pulse racing, pretending nothing happened. But deep down, I knew he had seen it. He had felt it too.
• That night, I locked myself in my small room. My body still burned faintly from the suppressed heat, but it was the potion failing me. I sat on the edge of my bed, gripping my blanket tight, trying to calm the wild thumping of my heart.
• And then I heard my wolf’s voice clear and loud for the first time. My wolf has always been whispering or silent, but it talked this time.
• “He is our mate.”
• I gasped out loud, clutching my chest. I was scared, it was loud so I wondered if I was the only one that heard that.
• I scrambled to silence my wolf, pressing my hands over my ears as if that would help. My breathing was shallow. My ears twitched as I heard footsteps. I could pick even distant sounds.
• The floor creaked, and I froze. Slowly, I turned my head.
• Through the gap under the door, I saw his shadow. It was Zyros! He was listening.
• ______