Aspen County

I'm smiling before I open my eyes.

I can't help it. I have too much to be happy about. I'm back with the girl that I love with her wrapped in my arms, both of us content and neither of us at risk of insanity any longer. We're in our own home with nothing to do except be nauseatingly—to our friends—in love and get through today: the first day of the rest of our lives.

It may seem clichéd, but that's what the Mating Ceremony is for werewolves. Louve and I will be recognized as belonging with each other and to each other until the day that we die.

I sigh, not wanting to let go of her. I decide to make the moment last a little longer and lean over to kiss her. She immediately wakes up and returns the kiss without hesitation.

I finally pull away and rest my head on her chest, listening to her steady heartbeat as she runs her fingers soothingly through my thick hair.

"I love you," she whispers. It still thrills me to hear her say that and to know that it's her and no one else in her head.

"I love you too. More than I can ever prove." I begin gently running my hand up and down her side.

"Don't worry, you prove plenty," she teases. "Every night, I see proof of how much you love me, sometimes more than once."

I wink up at her. "Only because of how much I love you."

"Of course. You're so selfless." She smiles seductively at me, and I growl and raise myself up to kiss her again. When we finally manage to pry ourselves away from each other again, she playfully slaps me on the chest. "Stop it; they'll be here any minute, and you know how the girls are."

I roll my eyes and get out of bed, knowing she's right. While I tug a long-sleeved t-shirt over my head and a pair of jeans, she quickly slips into a similar outfit and we both done a pair of shoes to keep our feet dry from the snow. Not bothering with her hair, she just pulls it up in a ponytail on her head, allowing the thick, wavy locks to sway freely.

We walk out into the living room, grabbing only a snack from the kitchen, to wait for our friends, knowing that they'll be here soon enough to snatch her away from me. Sure enough, she soon says in a regretful voice, "They're here."

Moments later, Zeeva, Rudi, and Nyx barge in and gaze slyly at us. "Say your final goodbyes until tonight and let's go," Zeeva commands softly.

Louve rolls her eyes at our friends and lifts herself on her toes to kiss me goodbye. "I love you," she whispers, caressing the side of my face.

"I love you too," I murmur back, running my finger along the black lock of hair on her head. I'll never be used to that being there, but it just shows everything that the two of us have endured and how far we've come to finally be able to be together in peace.

"Alright, let's go," Rudi orders, intervening and looping her arm through Louve's. The girls whisk her away, allowing Louve to only wave goodbye before the door closes behind her as Rudi complains about how she didn't even make an effort at untangling her messy hair.

I sigh and fall to the couch with nothing else to do for now. The girls are going to be spending the day dressing Louve in some ceremonious gown and doing her hair to perfection, the advantage of Rudi’s mom having worked in a hair salon.

Soon, my hunting party arrives, and I shake my head at our crew of misfits. It's tradition for the male and the male members of the Pack to hunt for the largest game they can find prior to the Mating Ceremony as tribute to their partner. It would just be Lovett, Eyulf, Nox, and me, but I decided that inviting Keene along would be a nice bonus for Lovett, and I really do want to be nice to him because of how little he sees his sister these days with how busy I keep her; although, I'm sure that Keene probably keeps him plenty busy as well. Besides, I've really come to like Keene—he really is a good guy and is nice to talk to.

I grab a spear by the door that the village's blacksmith made me a few weeks ago, and follow the guys out, noticing that Keene looks especially tired today. "You okay, man?" I ask, placing my hand on his shoulder.

He jumps and nods. "Yes, I've had to help grandmother a lot the past few weeks and haven't been sleeping well. I'm just tired." Lovett offers him a sympathetic look and grabs his hand but says nothing.

I leave them alone, and Eyulf falls back to walk beside me, a mischievous grin on his face. "So, today's the day. You ready?"

"I was born ready," I joke. We reach the edge of the forest. "But seriously, Louve is the only girl for me; I'll gladly spend the rest of my life with her, no problem."

"You better because you know—"

"—the person I take as my official mate at the Ceremony will be the person I'm mated to for the rest of my life, no backing out."

Nox joins us. "Leave him alone, Eyulf. He'll be fine. Ryder loves Louve more than anything; that was obvious even to me when I first you all."

"Well she is the only one who can actually tolerate my mood swings."

"Oh yeah, I remember those," Eyulf mutters nervously. He shakes his head. "Those were bad."

"Were you really as bad as everyone says you were back when Louve first Turned you?" Nox asks in a scholarly tone.

"He may have actually been worse," Eyulf replies analytically, studying me. "He was pretty bad."

"Thanks so much, Eyulf. It's not like I'm standing right here."

"Hey, I voted to let you stay, didn't I?" He shrugs and pretends to be looking around the forest for prey.

I shake my head at him and sniff the air, trying to find something for us to hunt down. The sooner we locate food, the sooner we can return to the village and the sooner my Mating Ceremony will occur.

"How did Lovett actually let you stay?" Nox inquires curiously, glancing at my 'brother-in-law' to be. Lovett glances at us at hearing his name but shakes his head at us, figuring that whatever we're talking about is less important than what's going on with his mate.

"I honestly have no clue. But I'm just really glad that he did."

"So when will you and Zeeva decide to become an official mated pair?" Nox directs at Eyulf as I continue looking around.

"She and I have actually discussed that," Eyulf responds, his voice becoming dreamy. "We're thinking about the spring. It's her favorite season. What about you and Rudi?"

"We haven't decided yet. We're in no rush; we still have our entire lives together, and we know that we're meant to be together. That's all that matters to us."

I gaze at Lovett and Keene at the front of the group. Keene has his head hung low, and Lovett has his arm wrapped around his mate's shoulders, whispering something to him. Ignoring social protocol, I interrupt. "Has our fabulously same-sex couple at the front thought about it?" I call up to them in a flamboyant voice.

They separate slightly and look back at us, their faces slightly red. "Thought about what?" Lovett asks, glancing warily at me.

Eyulf, Nox, and I laugh and catch up with them. "Have you guys thought about being official yet? I mean, I know you're literally the only two wolves out there for each other, but as major figures in our community, one would assume that you guys of all people would've considered having your official Mating Ceremony."

"There's a lot going on right now, especially with your Ceremony tonight," Lovett says evasively. "We'll probably discuss it—privately—later on when things calm down." The warning ring to Lovett's tone when he says 'privately' is like telling the others and me to back off for now, and we obey, not wanting to get on Lovett's bad side, especially since Eyulf and I know how bad he can be to deal with when you piss him off.

Eventually, the tension cools, and the guys and I feel as though we truly are one with nature. Hunting feels like a sixth sense, and when we return to the village a few hours later, the guys each have one or two dead rabbits in hand, and I strut to the Judgment Room with a heavy, healthy—if freshly dead—buck weighing down on my shoulders. All that's left now is to get ready for tonight and become mated to the love of my life.
* * * * *
When I return to the Judgment Room for the Ceremony later that night, I'm wearing a suit that one of the women in the village made for me last week. The material is softer than that of any tailored suit I ever wore as a human, and I'm completely comfortable, if not entirely at ease. It's not that I'm anxious; Louve and I love each other. Everything that we've endured together has led us to this moment. I'm just excited. I'm worried that I'm not worthy of her. It's like I told her the first time I professed my love: she's strong, and I only hope that I can draw from that strength and prove myself to her in the years to come.

When I walk in, she's already standing at the front of the dome unlike a human wedding, and my breath catches because she just looks so beautiful. Her hair is wrapped up in a braided bun with the black lock pulled back and wrapped around the rest of the hair as if it's just decoration. She's wearing a dark, elegant green dress that pools on the floor at her feet. Her shoulders are bare, but the dress has long sleeves that turns into a triangle at her wrist and continues down the back of her hand, forming rings to attach to her middle fingers. Rudi managed to run to town last week to get make-up to make Louve's eyes and lips pop. The dark eyeliner and mascara makes her bright green eyes seem to shine against the dark shadows of the make-up. The torso of the deer I caught and killed this afternoon is in the center of the room on a table.

I take a deep breath and make my way around the deer to stand in front of Louve. The Elders are in their respective chairs with Egeria holding her head high and Keene standing before her on the floor, his hands clasped in front of him. Our Pack sits on the edge of the Elders' U-shaped platform, pleased grins on their faces—even though we've cut off the actual Bond since Nyx, Nox, and Rudi returned from Greece, we all still spend the first night of the Cycle together and refer to each other as our Pack. Some residents of the village, including Cyrene, sit on benches around the dome, and others sit on the floor, all of them excited. Even more stand or sit outside, pushing to stare through the doorway at us.

I ignore everyone though. All I can focus on is Louve and her beauty and the look of pure love on her face meant only for me. Keene unfortunately drags us out of our blissful oblivion of what's going on around us.

"Ryder and Louve", he begins, "the epitome of dedication, honor, and love. You have set an example that werewolves will struggle to follow for years to come. You have both survived more chaos and dividing forces than any of us could begin to imagine, yet you have overcome these obstacles for the sake of each other, and that is the pure definition of love. It is because of your devotion that so many have gathered here today to witness the eternal Bond between you two be formed. Please hold out your right hands."

Louve and I gaze longingly into each other's eyes and lift our hands, palms up, at the same time, our middle fingertips touching lightly.

Keene holds up a silver knife and clutches both of our hands in one of his. He drags the blade up the center of Louve's palm, and I watch the blood well in the cut as he does the same to my hand. He places the knife on the floor and turns our hands so that our fingers point to the ceiling. He presses our palms together, and Louve and I instinctively wrap our thumbs around each other's hands. The blood mixes together as the cuts begin to heal.

When Keene pulls our hands away from each other, Louve and I gasp at the strange sensation. It's almost like when I finally accepted her as a Pack mate, and it makes it feel as if we really are just one person. "From this day and forevermore, this mated pair will share the sacred Bond that can never be broken, and they will be together from this world and this lifetime to the next. Let us rejoice and celebrate with our great Chosen one and the one who will never lose hope!"

Everyone, both inside and outside, begins to cheer and whoop, jumping out of their seats and clapping their hands loudly. Louve throws herself into my arms and our lips meld together as if that's the way it was always meant to be.

And it truly feels like it is.