Idon'twannadothis, Idon'twannadothis, Idon'twannadothis!!

  My mind is reeling a million miles per minute, my thoughts all jumbled, as we sneak towards the hybrid base. Not away from, like any sane people would, but towards.

  And it was my idea!

  I swear, I knew I was a little crazy, but I didn't realize I was absolutely insane!

What the h3ll am I doing right now?

"So, Maria, which way should we start off with?" Happy spoke quietly. "You can sense them the best," he reasoned.

I have no freaking idea.

"Let's go the direction with the least foliage, that's usually a sign of people."

That makes sense, right?

I have this habit of stating my opinion as facts, and people just go with it.

"Alright, so this direction?" Stephan spoke up.

Sure, why not?

"Yeah," I nodded.

"Alright, lets go," Brandon decided to take the lead.

See. State your opinion confident enough and people will just believe you.

Luckily, my plans usually work out.

I watched the group walk off after Brandon and was about to start following, but Wolfie stopped me with a hand on my wrist.

"Hey, can I talk with you for a sec?"

  I looked after the group as Rose and Brandon turned around to find the hold up.

  I waved them on and turned to Wolfie.

  "Yeah, I guess, but make it quick. We don't want to get separated from the group," I said, wiggling my wrist from his hand. His touch is far too distracting.

He cleared his throat and my eyes followed the sound and froze on my mark.

I hate to say this.

I really do.

But I love the way it looks there.

It makes my heart clench and my eyes sting at the way it happened, but at the same time, when I see it, it gives me a sense of calm. Like everything is how it's supposed to be.

When I hear Wolfie sigh I come back to reality, "Were you even listening?"

  To my surprise, it wasn't snippy, or impatient. It just sounded very. . . Tired.

  I shook my thoughts away, "No, sorry," I looked back up at him.

  Why does he have to be so beautiful?

  After a deep breath, he squared his feet and gently but firmly held my shoulders, so I was looking directly at him. "How about you stay behind or head back for this part," he said to me.

  I sighed and opened my mouth to speak but he spoke first.

  "Please, Maria. It's not that I think you're incapable," he pleaded, "it's just that if anything happened to you," he caressed my face with one hand with scared eyes, "I don't know what I'd do."

  He shook his head, "I'd never forgive myself if I knew there was something I could have done to stop you."

  I gave him a sad, regretful smile, "but there is nothing." I cupped his cheek gently, "Because I can't leave you to fight this alone either. If you, or Brandon, or Rosy died. . . and there was something that I could have done to prevent it. . . I. . . I wouldn't be able to live with myself," I got choked up at the end.

  Wolfie's head hung sadly and his hand fell back to my shoulder. "Please, Maria," he begged one last time. "I know I haven't been good to you. . . And that I don't even deserve you, but—"

  "But nothing," I interrupted softly. "This isn't about us. This is about protecting the people I love," I placed my other hand on his chest.

  He finally lifted his head, and when I saw his beautiful silver and gold gaze, I held it.

  Yeah, you, I wanted to tell him.

  But we don't have time for that.

  "Also, if I were to try and find my way back on my own there's no doubt I'd be killed by either hybrids or rouges, so I wouldn't do that even if I didn't give a crap about any of you." I joked to try and lighten the mood.

  He cracked a sad smile, "Fine. . ." He sighed. "But you better live long enough for me to treat you and your house right," he rubbed my cheek.

  This almost made my smile falter.

"Right," I tried to keep my voice steady.

I gently pulled out of his grip and started to head in the direction of the group with him following behind.

  His pack should be feeling the affects of the supplies cut offs by now.

He won't have my house long enough to treat it right.

  When this is all smoothed over I need to talk to him about getting better and more loyal allies.

  One phone call and some incentive and they were all too happy to gradually stop providing food and weapons.

  Another thing I need to talk to him about, being more self reliant.

  The only thing my house doesn't make ourselves is weapons and we make sure to stalk up on those.

  And then there's the need for human blood, but we don't talk about that. . . There's always a forest of animals if things get any worse than they already have.

Moments like this, when he's trying. . . I wish I could let this all go.

Let him think he's doing the right thing, and let myself forgive him.

And maybe if it was just him and I, I could.

But it's not.

The people he's working with are as close to evil as you can get without being a hybrid.

And after thinking about it for a while.

I know exactly what Abaddon has planned.

I think he did the same thing to my father.

  I heard the story a long time ago, and he didn't give names or many details, but the familiarity just came to me.

  "Someone", who I now figure is Abaddon, convinced my father, when he was young and naive, to take over another house. Then, after a few months, challenged my father for the position of House Master of both houses.

  My father nearly lost.

  H3ll, he did lose.

  But he escaped with his life, and came back for his house when he met my mother.

  That's all the detail I have.

  But now it's about to happen to Wolfie.

  And like with my father, his mate is going to have to save the day.

  Oh how history repeats itself.

  I internally giggled at the thought of my father, the strongest man I've ever known, being the damsel in distress.

  Ha, he was anything but when I knew him.

  But Abaddon was a force to be reckoned with, and is possibly even more of one now that he's older and more experienced, dealing with a younger and inexperienced alpha.

  If Wolfie won't give my house all its weapons and warriors back, and take back all his guards, we won't stand a chance against Abaddon and the company he'll bring.

  If only Abaddon hadn't targeted my house.

  We've been long time enemies, even longer than I thought if I'm right about him and my father, and his house and mine have always been competitors.

  But if he could have just kept his paws off long enough for me to turn eighteen and take over my house for real, my aunt and uncle wouldn't have had to die.

  Maybe I would have been there to stop them from invading, or realized Wolfie was my mate and been able to talk him out of it.

  But no.

  He did the smart thing and had it taken over before I could.

  I shook my head angrily.

  Abaddon's the reason my aunt and uncle are dead.

  He's the reason I can't love my mate completely.

  I'm sorry you are in the middle of this, Wolfie.

  But if I need to take you down to protect both of our territories from Abaddon, I will.

  I thought I knew this all along, but now that it's approaching, I'm having second thoughts.

  There's no more 'crossing the bridge when we come to it', with the hybrids or my territory.

  It's freaking here.

  And it freaking sucks.

  But I freaking have to do it.

  He'll forgive me right?

 
  He has to.

  I'll be gentle about it.

~~~~~~~~~~
(A/N)

  Short and late again:) oops.

  Please tell me what you think! I rly love reading comments:).

  So, it's crunch time for Maria and the gang. What ever will happen next?

  Find out in our next installment of. . . *queue action music* Big Bad Wolfie!

 
  Thanks for reading!

~ The Awkward Chick.