Chapter 3
The gentle warmth of the winter sun high in the sky breaks through the chilled air around LaLune Manor.
The grand estate lies in the middle of an open field, surrounded by an evergreen forest on both sides and the back.
A paved road leads up to the main house, ending in a driveway crowned with a three tiered fountain.
The playful bubble of the water feature entices small birds and critters from the surrounding woodlands to come enjoy a fresh drink.
A small woman in a plush winter coat sits along the fountain’s edge, tossing out small handfuls of nuts and seeds to welcome all the forest’s creatures who wish to partake.
The sound of breaking twigs, the crumple of leaves and the quick footed padding of paws along the ground causes the small creatures to scatter. The distinct howl of wolves breaks through the noon air, and the shout of a man follows shortly
“UMMA! Michael and Sarah went full wolf and will not let up. HELP!”
The woman lets out a tired sigh and brushes herself off as she stands from her perch on the fountain’s ledge.
Around the side of the estate a large man with light skin, disheveled black hair and flushed cheeks races across the front of the manor, his large arms pumping at his side and legs in a full sprint as he runs from two large, light brown wolves chasing from behind, playfully nipping at his side.
A scowling Eddie is very much not amused by the scenario.
“Michael! Sarah! I can see the dirt and scrapes on Eddie’s face from here.
Please let your brother breathe and change back.
It’s time for lunch anyway and I made fried chicken and bulgogi.
” A lunch of heavy proteins was always a favorite in a house full of wolves, and Janice Seung-LaLune treats her kids well.
Eddie slows to a stop as the two wolves trot past him, hands on his knees, trying to catch his breath.
After they both change back into human form, they take a moment to stretch out their limbs.
Michael and Sarah Seung-LaLune, both older than Eddie’s twenty five years by five and three years respectively, share their father’s wide frame like Eddie, but their chestnut hair is a distinct feature only they share with their father.
And while Eddie has eyes like the waters of the ocean, Michael and Sarah share their mother’s deep black eyes.
The change can cause a slight stiffness, a welcome ache after a fulfilling run.
They both wear simple running gear, same gray as Eddie’s, and are thankful for the warmth they provide against the chilly December air.
LaLune brand exercise wear has enchantments woven into the fibers. The magic allows for clothes to change and meld into a shifters beast form, allowing people to avoid awkward nakedness.
Michael strolls to his brother Eddie; who is still trying to catch his breath, and pats him roughly on the back. “Sorry, Eddie, we got carried away. A run in the fields doesn’t feel right without our wolves. Right, Sarah?”
As he calls out to their sister, Sarah has already begun to head back up the stairs to the house’s main entrance. “Yeah, sorry baby brother. We got a little carried away, forgive us?” she says with a little pout and puppy dog eyes.
Eddie rolls his eyes and straightens, arching his back to stretch it out, the fabric tightening around his hard stomach.
“All is forgiven as long as I get the biggest piece of chicken for lunch. I’m owed that much after being so callously assaulted by two wolves in my own home.
” He places a hand over his chest to feign heartbreak.
Sarah gives an exaggerated gasp. “Assaulted?! Umma, do you hear this slander, this assault on my character. Michael’s too, but more importantly mine!”
Their mother shakes her head and chuckles to herself.
She walks up the stairs to the manor and pats her youngest daughter’s shoulder.
“If you can’t pay the fine, don’t do the crime, my dear.
Now all of you come in. I can’t stand the cold like the three of you can.
Your father and Amelia should be done with their call and will be joining us for lunch. ”
LaLune Manor has a large entrance area, grand staircases leading from both sides to the upper floor.
A balcony overlooks the entrance from the second floor where two figures stand chatting idly as Janice and the three younger LaLune siblings come inside.
A tall, barrel chested man with a full head of wavy chestnut hair, sprinkled with gray, all combed into place.
Deep blue eyes and a sculpted beard frame his strong jaw.
Across from him is a woman who stands proud on six inch heels.
She has a slender frame and dark brown hair that falls to the middle of her back.
The eldest daughter of the LaLune house, Amelia Seung-LaLune, shares her mother’s frame and dark eyes but can rival her father in business acumen.
She loves her family dearly but is cold, precise and scary when it comes to the board room.
“Umma!” Amelia taps her father’s shoulder, chuckling as she points to her mother and siblings. “Appa, look what the wolf dragged in.” All three of her siblings roll their eyes at the comment.
Christopher goes down the steps to greet his wife with a kiss. “Hello, dearest, lunch smells amazing. Kids, go wash up. You reek of sweat.” Christopher leads Janice to the dining room as the three younger LaLune siblings quickly go to wash up.
As Amelia passes her siblings, Michael and Sarah both make a face at her. She sticks her tongue out playfully and goes to stop Eddie with an arm in the crook of his elbow. “Eddie,” Amelia regards her brother with a soft gaze, mild concern in her tone. “You okay? I know those two can get rough.”
Eddie pats his sister’s hand gently to reassure her. “I’m okay, Amy. I can handle a chase every now and then. Just because I can’t shift like those two doesn’t mean I’m made of glass.”
Amelia draws back at her brother’s comment. “Eddie, that’s not what I-”
He holds up a hand to cut her off. “I know, Amy.” He offers a cheeky smile to ease her worry. “I’m fine, I promise. Plus it means I get the biggest piece of Umma’s chicken so I’ll gladly run from wolves any time.”
He chuckles, his gym built chest bouncing a bit, which eases Amelia’s frown, the lines on her face smoothing out.
“Okay then. You get cleaned up, just because us siblings have conceded the biggest piece to you doesn’t mean Appa is aware of your prize.”
A panicked look erupts over Eddie’s face as he realizes his sister is right. “Shit! Right! See you at the table, love ya!”
He rushes past Amelia to the bathroom after planting a quick kiss on her cheek. Amelia laughs at the gesture, shaking her head, before going to join her parents in the dining room.
* * *
After manor staff clean up the plates from a successful lunch, the LaLune family relaxes in the living room with tea and a selection of Korean snacks Janice had imported from the human world.
It always made the sibling’s mother reminisce of the life she once had.
The familiar flavours always stirred gentle memories of the life she once lived.
“Darling, are you alright?” Christopher wipes away a single tear that has managed to fall from Janice’s eyes onto her cheek with a gentle brush of a calloused hand.
The four siblings turn from their snacks and conversation to look at their mother.
Before they can echo their father’s concern, Janice holds up a hand and laughs to herself.
“Yes, Yeo-bo, I’m fine. They’re happy tears.
I was just thinking about the day we met in the park – another cold December morning like this one. ”
She leans in and gives her husband a sweet kiss on his lips.
Christopher’s face breaks into a warm smile and he kisses his wife heartily in return.
The LaLune siblings groan and roll their eyes at their parent’s P.D.A, earning all of them a glare from their mother that could stop the mightiest beast in its tracks.
A deep chuckle comes from Christopher as he watches his children squirm under their mother’s gaze.
“I never expected a business trip to the human world would end in me finding my fated mate, the other half of my soul that would finally make me whole. Fate is truly a funny and fickle thing.”
A fated mate pair is said to be filled with love and trust like no other bond could ever recreate. The souls of mates were drawn to one another, a yearning that tugged at their hearts.
Like how Christopher had found Janice, Amelia and Michael have both been fortunate enough to find their mates in recent years.
About three years ago Amelia met a new accountant hired by the LaLune group, an arcanist woman by the name of Courtney James.
Michael’s experience was slightly different than his older sister’s.
He went to a tech expo last year, where he met Meghan Willow, a bear shifter who worked in I.T.
Eddie looks around the room at his family, at the joy, warmth and laughter they filled his life with, and can’t help as melancholy blooms in his chest. A shadowed bitterness curls in his gut.
His eldest sister and brother had someone waiting at their homes for them.
His mother and father had found each other despite being from separate worlds in the most literal sense.
He hoped with all his heart Sarah would find her mate soon.
They all deserved the happiness that came from finding their one true mate.
Left apart from both beast and magic, Eddie knows he will never have a mate of his own.
A twist of jealousy, one he constantly forces down, brews in his heart.
Though he shared in his family’s gift of strength and speed, a shifter he was not.
No fur ever tore through his skin, no claws ever pushed from his fingers.
There was no beast within looking for release.
He wasn’t even blessed in druidic magics like some other shifters, his father and Amelia prime example of those who command both beast and earth. No, Eddie was just… Eddie.
Eddie’s father is powerful, a werewolf like the Lycan of legends, that led tribes and armies, though he does not possess mantle of alpha. The community believed if anyone could give life to the Lycan–an alpha born of werewolf blood and mortal flesh–it would be Christopher LaLune and his human mate.
Three strong pups they had, but no Lycan. Then came Eddie, no wolf, practically no magic.
His family loves him but in their eyes he can see it. The shadow of pity that haunts his family’s loving gaze. Eddie resents himself for not even being a proper shifter, no matter how much assurance his family offered. He wishes he could be stronger, he wishes to be more, he wishes to be…
Whole.