Lost.

After werewolves ceased to get paired up by the Moon Goddess, all hell broke loose.

Suddenly we had lost our sense of self, our protection from above. Why were we forsaken by Her? Have we truly pushed Her over the edge? How in the hell could we have brought this upon ourselves?

Unfortunately, no amount of prayer could restore Her faith in us, nothing seemed to persuade Her that we deserved Her protection and blessings.

People fast. Prayed. Revered. Sacrificed.

Nothing seemed to be enough to restore Her faith in us and resume the mate pairings. For so long, discontent teens all over the world wished that they could choose their own partners instead of having that choice made for them.

But when that actually happened, every single last one of them regretted ever wishing that was an option.

Without the mate bond, relationships barely lasted the first four years. Alphas and Lunas were no longer a united front. The entire succession of the pack's leadership was called into question.

There was no more sanctity of mated relationships, no guarantees that the person you chose for your Luna would remain faithful to you. It was a mess.

Everywhere we looked for answers, nobody was doing any better. It was the collapse of werewolf society. We have been reduced to humankind regarding relationships.

My grandparents have been together for more than 40 years. They were a part of the last generation that got mated.

It was very hard for my mom to lose that, given the example that she had growing up. Extremely difficult.

She thought she would have that type of relationship with my father, who she loved very much, but he just broke her heart instead. She was devastated to be left alone and pregnant but persevered with the help of her parents.

She never blamed any of this on me. He was just a bastard who abandoned her with a child to raise. Nothing new in the world, just new to wolf kind.

My grandparents helped her a lot, not only financially but offering mom all the support she needed with a new baby. I love my grandparents.

Grandpa filled the void with a much needed decent male figure in my life. He was the one who taught me how to be a man. A decent man who stands by his word and does his duty.

After I arrived at Ravenwood Academy, I was oriented to go to the dormitory where I was greeted by Professor Roberts who explained to me how the dorm works.

I was joined by a bunch of other students who were there with me as more vans brought teens from all over America.

We were just about to enter the dormitory when we were disturbed by a helicopter approaching the school. After it landed, we were baffled to see the Stronghold twins walking their way to the dormitory with a valet carrying their luggage for them.

I didn't even know that was allowed here. Nor did I know anyone could land a helicopter on the school. But I guess when you have enough money, you can do pretty much anything you want.

There is a small town in Texas that was founded by werewolves a long time ago. They managed to retain most of the properties around town to one single family, their Alpha.

The Stronghold pack is known for two things. First, it is the only werewolf pack that is named after its Alpha. Second, a long time ago, they found oil in one of their properties.

Nowadays, they are the most powerful werewolf pack in the country and the richest. It's no surprise that their heirs arrived here in style.

I tiredly walked the long hall of the Gamma House to find the room I was assigned to. As I did, dozens of teenagers were doing the same all over the three-story building.

Finally, I reached my room and swiped my card to enter it. I was mesmerized to see two large beds, a wardrobe in each corner of the room, two nightstands with lamps on them, and a computer desk, everything so tastefully decorated.

At the back of the room, there was a small bathroom, which meant that I would have to shower elsewhere.

I was just about to start unpacking when I heard the swiping of another card. I was gobsmacked to see none other than Seth Stronghold.

He looked surprised to see me there.

"What are you doing here? This is my room!" He asked me in an accusatory tone as if I were a stalker.

"It's the room I was assigned at the front desk. I don't think people get singles here." I replied, baffled to be spoken to this way.

"I am going to speak to the Headmaster. My father demanded I get a single!" He protested, whining like a spoiled brat.

Oh Goddess, this is exactly why I didn't want to come here in the first place. But I didn't think I would find such entitlement this soon.

"Good luck with that!" I rolled my eyes in annoyance and resumed what I was doing.

Unceremoniously, Seth walked inside the room and called his valet to bring his luggage. Then he said goodbye to him, who still had to take his brother's bags upstairs to the third floor.

"I thought you weren't going to stay here with me because you wanted a single." I commented, surprised to see him settling in.

Seth laughed at my statement.

"No, I was just messing with you! You thought I would be a stuck up spoiled brat, am I right?" He revealed in a joking tone.

Wait, what? That was an act? Wow, call the Academy people because he deserves an Oscar.

"Well..." I trailed off, uncomfortable to admit this to him.

"I get that. But there is nothing like being referred to as 'the defective twin' all your life to keep you humble." He admitted vulnerably and I gasped in shock.

"Oh my Goddess, that is horrible! Just because you are an Omega?" I gaped at him, baffled by this revelation.

"Yeah..." He admitted, feeling self-conscious. This is so not what I thought I was going to get from him. I knew he was an Omega like me otherwise he would never have been assigned this room or even this floor, but still...

"I am so sorry." I hugged him in a surprise move, but he was nice enough to welcome my embrace.

"Nobody should ever be told they are defective just because they were born an Omega. We are a gift from the Goddess." I reassured him, sympathizing. I felt this way too at one point growing up, especially having no father present. I blamed myself for his absence, even though I had nothing to do with his departure. He was just a heartless bastard.

"Thank you for saying that. Nice to meet you, I'm Seth Stronghold." He stretched out his hand for me to shake with a kind smile.

"Nice to meet you, my name is Jake Anderson." I shook his hand. Then we started to unpack our bags, used the restroom, and before we knew it was almost time for dinner.

Seth and I got to talking and he is much easier to talk to than I could ever imagine. I really thought I would be getting an entitled brat for a roommate, but I was surprised by his show of vulnerability as soon as we met. He probably figured another Omega would relate to him and he was right, I may not be a twin but I do.

I guess this is why they separate us according to wolf breed. I mean, among other things...

The assembly hall was packed with more than a hundred students. Teens from all fifty states were gathered here to find a potential partner. A chosen mate if you will, though we do not use that word.

The talking was loud and the flirting already started between boys and girls. But the most coveted boy amongst them all could not be bothered to flirt with anyone. Instead, Skylar was talking to other Alphas.

"Wow. I did not expect so many Alphas to be here. It's making my wolf get restless." I commented in a whisper to Seth, who was walking beside me to find a seat in the large auditorium.

"I know, right? There must be 60 Alphas here or more." He noted, feeling apprehensive. Alphas and Omegas have a long history together, so their presence here stirs our inner wolves.

"I saved you a seat here, Seth." A tall, tanned boy with dazzling green eyes and a beautiful smile caught our attention, though he was definitely not looking at me.

Seth blushed as we looked around to find two empty seats for us.

"That's okay, I am going to sit next to my roommate, but thanks for the offer." He declined, flustered by the flirtatious offer.

The boy was not discouraged by his denial and remained optimistic.

"That's okay. Just know that I am here for you, if you need me." He winked at him as we distanced ourselves from his seat.

"You are being flirted with already?! Damn! That was fast!" I gasped in shock at how much attention he was getting this soon.

"Judging by his accent, he's from Mississippi. I am not moving there." Seth declared, frowning.

Wow. It must be nice to have options. I am invisible by his side with nobody batting an eye for me or even acknowledging my presence here. Seth being an Omega means that whoever claims him most likely will bring him back to his pack. It is very unlikely that he'll find a partner from his home state and definitely not from his pack since only he and his brother were admitted from there.

Finally, we found two seats by the front and an assembly of men and women started forming on the stage in front of us.

While students kept whispering, talking, getting to know each other, and ignoring others like me in the process, a tall handsome man in his late fifties commanded our attention with a microphone and his majestic presence.

"Good evening, students. I am Alpha Lockwood of the White Claw pack. I am the Headmaster of Ravenwood Academy." He introduced himself next to his peers on the stage.

The crowd responded by greeting him back.

"I want to officially welcome you all to the Ravenwood Academy. If you are here, that means you represent the finest young werewolves of your generation, the future of our kind." He continued, receiving a round of applause.

"I understand you must be hungry for dinner, so I will not extend myself much. But I will remind you of the house rules." He raised his voice in a commanding way.

"First off, don't bother the resident monitors asking them to change your room or worse to change roommates. Unless your roommate is of another breed than yours, we will not change rooms or the people in it. Period." He declared to an annoyed crowd who grunted in discontentment.

"You are all consenting adults here. I am sure I don't need to remind you fellas that 'no' means no." He continued and all the women gave him a round of applause.

"You are free to talk and get to know each other, but please be respectful of people's boundaries. No one will be forced into anything here, much less claiming. Your best chance of making a good match here is to respect your partner and find a person compatible with you." He stared down the crowd as he said that.

"When you entered this Academy, you agreed to a pact. You know what is expected of us and we will do our best to provide it for you." He said with a polite smile.

"If you need any assistance settling in, each house has a resident advisor, a hall monitor that you can call if you need to. That person should introduce themselves to you shortly if they haven't already." He stated, looking at the two men and a woman standing by the other side of the auditorium.

"Kindly respect that we do not allow opposite gender roommates in this Academy, nor is it permitted for a person who is not your roommate to sleep in your room. There are cameras everywhere in this castle and infractions are subjected to penalties that go from detention to expulsion."

Everybody gulped at his not-so-veiled threat. By his tone, we could tell he was being serious. In fact, he has yet to relax his inflection. I don't think this Alpha is the joking type...

"Speaking of penalties..." He raised his voice once again, startling the people whispering and distracted.

"Like I said before, there is no touching anyone without consent in this place. Our Omega students are off limits to anyone thinking they can be a distraction or a plaything. In this Academy, if you copulate with an Omega there are only two possible outcomes. One, you claim them at the end of the school year and live happily ever after with a ten-year binding contract." He announced, grabbing my attention now more than ever.

"If you don't want to take on that responsibility or if you made a 'mistake' - he air quoted that word - you can pay a one million dollars fine to relinquish yourself from the claiming obligation. These are the choices that are available to you." He stated in a dead serious tone.

Seth and I looked at each other wide-eyed, as did all the other students, especially the Omegas like us.

"Is there a third option?" A male student asked in a joking tone, laughing nervously.

"DEATH!" Alpha Lockwood replied in a reprehensible tone. Literally, the whole room gasped in shock.

"We are not here to play around, ladies and gentlemen. This is a serious establishment with a clear purpose. We do not have time to waste with anyone who is not committed to our objective. If you do not have the money to pay the fine, then I suggest you choose very carefully who you want to spend time with. The Omegas, just like any other students here, are the finest examples of the brightest young men and women that this country has to offer and they will NOT be taken for granted." He asserted, his voice reverberating all across the packed hall.

Honestly, I wanted to applaud him standing but I was too nervous to do so.

"Oh and before I forget, you cannot claim Omegas' heats as an excuse for your actions. If you scent an Omega in heat, call a teacher or any of the school employees. They are prepared to deal with the situation. In no way should you approach them. You should stab yourself in the leg before using heat as an excuse in this Academy. You have been warned. Dismissed." He concluded and all of us were reeling from his incendiary declarations.

It is a very big deal to do what he just did and threaten kids with death, but something tells me this is not a new policy. This is a serious place and Omegas are the most fertile werewolves of our kind. Especially the males like me who don't have a birth control pill that they can take.

As we start to file out of the crowded room, everybody is talking about the rules, especially the protection for Omegas. There are so many reported cases of our breed being used as a plaything or breeding against our wishes. Not even my old high school had such a comprehensive policy and certainly not anything that carries a death penalty.

But the last thing I would ever want is to be claimed against my will, to be taken advantage of. I have a good grip on my heat and I know when it will strike me, but there is no guarantee that it won't come early. I don't want to be left vulnerable to being 'claimed' by a random student.

I guess there will be no treating us like a dirty secret. It is past time we Omegas get the respect that we deserve. Now I am thrilled to have decided to attend Ravenwood. At the very least, I know I will be safe. With these many Alphas walking around the place it is definitely a good feeling.

I'd never have thought they would be so protective of us, but I am here for it. No more treating us like the runt of the litter. It is time for us to rise and be respected as we deserve.