Marie has been engrossed in her werewolf studies all day. She breezed through the history of werewolves book as if it were a well-written fantasy novel. Humans have missed the mark on a plethora of supernatural history. Her favorite section was about the Moon Goddess. The pure love she has for all the creatures she created is heartwarming. She feels the most human-like compared to the other gods Marie read about. The depiction of her is someone who is filled with compassion, wisdom, and love. After reading about the Moon Goddess Marie has a newfound love for nature and animals.

By the time Marie moves on to the book dedicated to being a werewolf, she is filled with glee and excitement. She is coming to terms with being more than an average human teenage girl. The knowledge that she will have a lifelong companion, her wolf, makes life feel less lonely. Her wolf and her were destined to live out life together. It should scare her but it is comforting instead. When Marie reaches the topic of mates she marvels at the idea. The book that mentions it is vague on the topic of mates and it leaves her with more questions than answers.

She decides to direct her questions on this topic to Mrs. Leane. She pulls out her flip phone and begins texting out her questions. Her first question took painstakingly long and she realized this would take all day for her to text all of it out. She instead decided to message Mrs. Leane to find out if she was free to talk.

Marie: Mrs. Leane I had some questions but typing them out on this phone is hard

Marie: Are you free to chat in person?

Mrs. Leane: Sure Marie come to my office.

With the green light, Marie heads to her office. She knocks before entering and takes a seat.

"So, Marie what questions do you have for me?" Mrs. Leane clasps her hands together giving Marie her undivided attention.

"I specifically had questions on mates. The book mentions them but doesn't go into details. All it says is they are someone you are fated to be with. Created or chosen for you by the Moon Goddess. But that's it." Marie rambles out before asking "What does it mean to have a mate?"

"The Moon Goddess bestowed upon every werewolf someone who is their other half. There is one person out there who completes you in all the ways that matter." Mrs. Leane gets a wistful look in her eyes. "When you turn 16 and have your first shift you also gain the ability to know who your mate is. When you see them there is an instant connection."

Mrs. Leane sits back and looks up thoughtfully. Marie leans forward hanging on to her every word. "There is a phenomenon that occurs called a mate bond. This bond or connection brings fated mates together. You feel the butterflies of a crush tenfold. There are sparks whenever you touch. You are mentally, spiritually, and emotionally connected as well as tethered to the other person the moment you meet." Marie is enthralled by the magic of Mrs. Leane's words. The notion of mates sounds like a fairy tale.

"When you first find your mate most werewolves immediately complete the mating ritual. Which strengthens their connection with one another. You can feel what the other feels and so much more. Others choose to wait and build a personal connection first. But the mate bond doesn't allow mates to wait too long. The pull between the pair will grow stronger until they can't wait any longer." Mrs. Leane says with a faraway look in her eyes.

"How do you complete the mating ritual?" Marie asks her curiosity growing.

Mrs. Leane gives a small chuckle. "I have another book to give you that goes into details like that. I'll let you read it and then you can ask me more questions about that later." Marie is slightly disappointed but is glad she has more books to read.

"Do you have a mate Mrs. Leane? You are married aren't you?" Marie asks innocently.

Mrs. Leane knew this question was bound to come. It takes her a minute before she responds. "Now having a mate is one of the most amazing feelings in the world. But it also makes you vulnerable." Mrs. Leane looks past Marie for a few seconds. Lost in a memory. Marie feels like she shouldn't have asked because of the way Mrs. Leane is not quite answering her question.

"I had a mate." The way she phrased it made Marie regret her question even more. "When you lose your mate you lose half of your soul with them. The pain is so intense and encompassing." Mrs. Leane's voice cracked but she fought through the growing pain to finish. "When I lost Kavon, I wanted to die. I almost did. I didn't eat, drink, or sleep for weeks. But one day I was in bed thinking Kavon wouldn't want me to waste away like this."

Marie's heart broke for Mrs. Leane. "That's why I live and work full time here. It gave me purpose and I feel like you kids are the children Kavon and I never had the chance to have." When she was done Marie had even more respect and admiration for Mrs. Leane.

"Now, I didn't tell you that to discourage you from wanting to find and be with your mate. I just wanted to show you how important your mate becomes to you. You should not take them for granted and you should cherish them." Marie couldn't help the smile that formed on her face. Knowing that if she found her mate she would love them dearly.

"Thank you for sharing your story with me and for answering my questions." She fidgeted in her seat for a bit. "I could tell by the way you spoke of him you really loved your husband. I hope to have someone who loves me like that."

"You will Marie. I believe you will." Mrs. Leane picks up a book from the side of her desk. "This is the book I mentioned earlier." Marie takes the book from her hand. They say goodbye and Marie walks back to her room.

~

Marie takes a break from studying after a couple more hours. Her body is starting to feel restless again. She goes for another jog. On her way back from taking several laps around she sees the girls get back from school. They are climbing out of the van and heading to the entrance. She holds the front door open for them to walk in.

"Hey guys, how was school?" Marie asks.

"It was okay. We miss your presence there." Cleo says.

"Yeah, it's just not the same," Cassandra adds, and the rest nod in agreement. They all walk to the study hall together. Millie taps Marie on the shoulder to get her attention.

'Oh Marie I have something for you.' Millie pulls out a piece of paper from her backpack and hands it to Marie. 'Kaden wanted me to give you his number.'

Shocked, Marie opens the folded paper and investigates it. Sure enough, it is a phone number written in Kaden's handwriting. For some reason this makes her heart beat faster. Before they walk into the study room she stops and steps to the side. She looks at the paper in her hand and then at the girls. She clears her throat and looks back towards the paper with uncertainty.

"I should ... um ... put his number in and give him a call so he also has my number." The girls share a look of mischief and giggle as they walk inside giving her space. Feeling embarrassed and shy Marie is still grateful they left her alone. She types in his number and saves it under Kaden with a purple heart emoji. She wonders if she should just text him to make it easier for her nerves. She hesitates over the call button but decides to press it anyway. The phone rings in her ear and on the third ring he answers.

She is chilled by his voice. It feels like a cold bucket of water is dumped on her as her senses are awakened. It dawns on her how long it's been since she has heard him speak. The time away from him becomes painfully clear when she feels immediately calmed when he says hello. Realizing she hasn't responded she clears the frog that's taken residence in her throat.

"Hi, is this Kaden?" She asks, even though she knows just from his silky voice it's him. That and he did entrust Millie to give her his phone number. But you can never be too sure.

"Marie is that you?" Kaden instantly picks up on that it's her. It fills her with a strange sensation.

"Yes, it's me. Millie gave me your number. I decided to call so you could have my number. I hope that's okay." The doubt starts seeping in that this was a bad idea and she should have just texted him.

"Yes, that is perfectly fine. I am glad you are feeling better." His voice takes on a softer tone. "I am glad to hear your voice." That caused heat to rise up her face. "I missed you." Those three words struck her. The reigning thought in her head was the talk she had with Mrs. Leane earlier.

"I missed you too."