The Hybrid

Have you ever woken up to the sound of an earthquake happening? No? Well, I just did.

My eyes snap open and I jolt up, only to slam back into the bed with a groan. We had decided to take a nap whilst Vulcan drives to the motel but, I had barely slept thinking about how angry he’s going to be once he sees me. I had also been thinking of excuses I could say to justify myself. Raising my head, I see Caia sleeping horizontally on my body with Nikolai’s feet on her back as he sleeps at the end of the bed. Confused at where the noise came from, I look around to meet complete black eyes that flash red once they land on me.

My jaw drops when I notice the broken door on the ground, pieces of plaster crumbling from the walls. I am so not paying for that, I think to myself.

“Oh, you are so screwed!” Indigo laughs with glee as he steps over a large chunk that has broken out of the wall.

I look back to Vulcan, whose features are tense with fists clenched tightly and form shaking as he stands there. I don’t move to get up, not because I don’t want to but because I simply can’t. The air has become heavy and thick and I don’t want Vulcan exploding the second I talk. So, I stay quiet, snickering when Indigo slaps Nikolai awake from his sleep and shoves him off the bed. Caia wakes up above me with a start and looks around, smiling sheepishly when she realizes that I had been a pillow for her nap.

I smile back at her as she lifts herself off me. I’m about to get up when I’m pulled and my back slams into a chest. Tingles erupt on my skin and a pleasant feeling grows in my stomach as Vulcan nuzzles his nose into the crook of my neck. My eyes instantly close and relish in how warm he is. That’s another unusual thing about him, his temperature always seems constant. I, however, am freezing in the dress I wore to school, my bare legs don’t do much to warm me up like he does.

Suddenly, I’m being carried bridal style out of the now broken doorway. I see Caia grab my backpack and the bag of food whilst Nikolai rubs his eyes sleepily, grabbing the other plastic bag. Pushing myself up and over his shoulder, I signal to Caia for my bag but before I can grab it Vulcan pulls my body back and wraps my legs around his waist. He skims his nose along the curve of my neck, breathing deeply as his arms tighten across my back.

“I uh...I can walk you know.” I mumble, pushing on his chest to let me down. He pulls me back into his chest with a stern look, his arms encasing my body once more.

“Vulcan, I’m wearing a dress. Put me down.” I whisper to him, watching his eyes change back to a dark green.

“No!” He growls back, pulling my head to his chest.

“Vulcan,” I whine, swatting his hand away and struggling to break free from his grasp. “I don’t want to flash anyone.”

He snarls loudly making me jump in surprise, his eyes flash red as he grabs my coat from Indigo and wraps it around me. Making sure I’m covered, I tighten my legs around his waist and snuggle into his chest reluctantly with a defeated sigh. Why won’t he put me down? I wonder, turning around to look at the others behind us.

Everyone walks down the stairs with me grinning at Indigo over Vulcan’s shoulder. I unwrap my arms from his neck and poke the air near his head as if my hand is a needle. Moving my hands away, I pretend his head has exploded which makes everyone behind me chuckle, even the four, strange men dressed in all black.

“Aurora, stop it.” Vulcan mutters, walking past reception.

“What did I do?” I pull back to face him with a pout before smiling sheepishly at the man who stands in shock at the table.

I look back to see him groan lowly while the others snicker behind us. We walk out of the hotel, heading towards the two sleek, black cars standing on the driveway. Just when Vulcan puts me back on my own two feet, a group of men emerge from the trees to our far left. Before I can even get a good look of them, I’m pulled behind Vulcan’s body, the four guards crowding around behind me. A tall, burly man walks up to us with the group following behind him as if he’s some sort of leader. His golden blonde hair blows in the cool breeze, light blue eyes narrow and menacing as they take us in.

“Judging by how you’re hiding the girl behind you, I’m assuming Vulcan Romanov has finally found the right one.” He sneers, crossing his arms making his muscles bulge as he walks closer to where we stand.

Vulcan growls loudly in reply, his form shaking once again. My hand instinctively rises to rub his back in small circles, too busy staring at the men to notice him calm down instantly at my touch.

“Tell me, did Romanov here tell you who he truly is? What kind of a monster he is?” The man addresses me.

“You better shut your fucking mouth.” Vulcan warns, his voice deadly as my hand slips from his back.

“No? Never noticed the growling, the snarling...like a wolf?” My mind goes back to the times he has growled and snarled, when his eyes have switched to different colors, how he seems almost protective over me. What the hell is going on?I wonder, my gaze on Vulcan.

Vulcan steps forward, the muscles in his back tensed and strained against his shirt. “Don’t you dare, Adriano.”

“Or what? I must say, your mate is quite delectable, more so than the first. I wouldn’t mind taking her up to the nearest wall and fuck -”

The man is cut off by Vulcan’s sudden roar. I gasp when he charges forward, everyone behind me running past to join in the fight. My feet are glued to the spot, forcing me to watch the punches and kicks thrown back and forth until I lose count and everyone is just a blur of mass. Breathing heavily, I try to block out my conscious. Now that I think about it, Vulcan’s actions are like an animal...a wolf. But he’s human...isn’t he? I question myself weakly, willing my brain to give me a logical explanation of why Vulcan behaves so inhumanely at times.

Seems like my brain isn’t on my side just like the universe.

I look back in time to see what I wish I hadn’t. Vulcan roars one last time before his clothes rip, fur sprouting to replace his skin. I watch in horror as his nails elongate to claws, his jaw widening to reveal sharp canines when he snarls. Vulcan Romanov, the man who I thought was human, the man who had stolen my first kiss, turned into a wolf right before my eyes.

I look up at the sky in disbelief. “God, if you’re up there please transport me back to my room.”

I know it’s never going to happen though. Watching every single person that was once fighting in human form transform into huge wolves, I laugh hysterically. And then I run. Sprinting towards one of the cars behind me, I grab my bag on the way and pull the door open.

Throwing my backpack without abandon, I breathe a sigh of relief when I see the keys dangling from their spot. I start the engine, reversing quickly. Looking back to my left, I see a few wolves on the ground, an incredibly large wolf standing in the center with blood dripping from his muzzle.

With a shiny black coat of fur, he has the two unique eyes that are now staring at me in panic. I marvel over the blue and green eyes before snapping out of it when the wolf starts running towards me. Accelerating and speeding down the road, I hear multiple howls behind me.

I increase the speed once I see them running on either side of the car. Beads of sweat line my forehead as I turn around the corner, my breathing coming out in short, quick pants. I thought I had escaped them when I didn’t see them anymore but I was so wrong.

A wolf, I now recognize as Vulcan, jumps out on the road ahead making me scream. Slamming my foot on the brake, I breathe a sigh of relief when the car halts, barely touching the fur on his skin. We stare at each other for a long while before I try to go around him but he only blocks my way.

I rev the engine, hoping it will freak him for a moment so I can drive past but it doesn’t. I try everything yet it’s futile and eventually I burst into tears from the panic and fear rising within me.

Turning around in my seat, I scramble to the back of the car when I notice everyone is crowded around the front. Sobbing, I reach out to open the door, scooting to the other side of the car when it opens for me. Vulcan, wearing only jeans, leans in with his hand slightly outstretched.

As soon as his knee meets the seat, I hurry to open the door behind me, screaming when I see two wolves blocking my exit. I crawl back to the center and pull my knees up to my chest, hiding my face in my hands as I cry. My heart drops to my stomach when the car jostles and two hands grab my legs, pulling me to my right. I let Vulcan pull me out of the car and walk a few steps further to create some distance between us.

“I-I...you j-just...” I stutter, trailing off when I can’t form a proper sentence.

“Aurora,” He starts cautiously, holding his hands out. “Listen to me, baby.”

“What are you?” I croak, turning around to face him.

“Aurora, calm down.” He orders when I start breathing harshly, not being able to wrap my head around what had just occurred.

I push him away when he tries to wrap his arms around me. “How can you just turn into a w-wolf? It’s not normal, you’re not normal. A-And you just attacked those men and -”

“That bastard needed to know you’re mine and if I ever find any other man disrespecting you again, I won’t hesitate to rip them apart.” He utters coldly before cupping my face with both hands. “I’m so sorry you found out this way, I planned to ease you into my world.”

I stumble back slightly, feeling my head spin. Wide eyed, Vulcan catches me and pulls me back, making me shudder as I rest my head against his chest. This is too overwhelming, I need time to process this.

“You know when I said I’m totally cool with dating an alien?” I murmur weakly, tilting my head to look up at him.

“Yes?” He frowns, but the panic and worry in his beautiful green eyes still remains.

“I’m totally cool with dating a wolf too.” I groan when I feel myself getting dizzy and weak. “But, we’ll have to talk about this after I wake up.”

“Shit!” He curses just as my knees buckle, catching me just in time. “Aurora!”

When I wake up, I’m not outside the motel anymore. It’s Vulcan’s bedroom, I realize suddenly. Looking at my reflection in the mirror, I wince when I see puffy eyes that sting and a slightly red nose. My head throbs painfully from crying. The silk covers slip off me and I shiver. I’m still in my clothes, which is a denim shirt dress reaching to mid-thigh. Goosebumps line my skin from the chilly air and I yank my feet back when they touch the cold floor.

I make my way around the large bed, my feet digging into the soft carpet before it meets the cold floor again. Opening the door quietly, I make my way across the hallway and down the stairs until I’m just about to step out to where the main staircase is. I freeze when I hear my name. Pulling back against the wall, I lean forward slightly to see Damon, his parents, Sophia and Indigo in the lounge room with the four Romanov siblings.

“Why the hell didn’t you control your beast? We planned to tell Aurora later!” Damon says, his face scrunched up in frustration as he paces behind the sofa his parents are sitting on.

“Oh, I apologize for not controlling my anger when that bastard had the nerve to disrespect my mate!” Vulcan seethes, standing up abruptly with his fists clenched and eyes blazing as he glares at Damon.

“Well, you should have!”

“As if you wouldn’t hit me if I called Sophia something right now!” He thunders, equally as frustrated as Damon.

“Guys.” I call softly, capturing their attention as I step out from behind the wall. “Please, stop fighting.”

“Honey, are you okay?” Theia stands, concern shining in her eyes.

I smile tiredly and nod before meeting Vulcan’s gaze that has been boring holes into the side of my head ever since I made my presence known. “Can we talk in private, please?”

He nods stiffly, taking my hand and guiding me out of the room. We end up outside, sitting beside each other in silence. Now that I’m face to face with Vulcan, all my questions and thoughts have disappeared.

“I guess I should start explaining, huh?” He sighs, making me smile sheepishly.

“Yes, I seem to have forgotten all my questions.”

He chuckles before his expression turns serious. “I’m a Lycanthrope; a werewolf. We have co-existed with humans for centuries, always hidden in the woods. Lycans are descendants of pure blood werewolves who were born, not bitten and turned.”

“What makes Lycans different to werewolves?” I frown in confusion, hugging my knees to my chest.

“Both Lycans and werewolves are taller than normal, attractive to the human eye, more graceful and elegant. We possess superhuman strength, speed and senses, and our movements, should we choose to use our abilities, are like a blur. We can also heal quicker than a human ever could, wounds sealing up within a few hours and broken bones taking a week to mend.” He explains, taking my hand and absentmindedly caressing my skin with his thumb. “But these abilities are heightened for Lycans. We have ten times the strength, speed and sharper senses. Our healing abilities take mere minutes as opposed to hours; it’s instantaneous.”

“When you transform into your wolf, how does that work? What’s the process?” I ask, wanting to take in as much information as I can.

“On our sixteenth birthday, no matter if we are a werewolf or a Lycan, our bones break one by one to facilitate the change from human to animal. It’s a grueling process that takes hours but in the end, we shift into our new form. Overtime, it’s as easy as breathing.” He turns his head to look at me, as if wanting to reassure himself that I’m still here.

“That sounds horrible.” I shudder, wondering the amount of pain a person would be in as all their bones broke. “But Vulcan, where do I fit in all of this? I’m just a human, aren’t you all supposed to keep this a secret from me?”

“You are my mate, Aurora.” He smiles gently, looking at me in adoration.

“Mate as in...”

“Soul mates, yes. Mates are chosen for werewolves by the Moon Goddess. They are our other half, our soulmate and are made especially for us, like the perfect mold. For us, they are the most important person in our lives as we are to them. They can calm us down in an instant or rile us up just as easily, like you.″ He chuckles, his body vibrating against mine. “You are also my Luna.”

“What’s that?” I question curiously, letting him pull me onto his lap.

“The world of Lycans and werewolves is based on a hierarchical system. You have the Alpha, which is me, who runs the pack and makes decisions, ensuring that his pack members are comfortable. The Luna is a motherly figure to the pack and has a stronger bond with every member, she also helps the Alpha with work concerning the pack. Without a Luna, the pack and the Alpha are incomplete.” He rests his forehead on my shoulder, wrapping his arms around my waist. “The Beta and Beta Female are next, they are there to lessen the workload of both the leaders. In our case, they are Indigo and his mate Vanessa.”

“Wow...” I mutter, feeling swamped with information. “This is a lot to take in.”

I feel his body tense and it’s like he almost hesitates, as if he’s dreading what he’s going to say next. Turning slightly, I stare at him expectantly, causing him to sigh and rub the back of his neck in a nervous fashion.

“I’m also a King of the Lycan Kingdom.” He rushes, eyes wide in worry.

“Yeah...” I trail off, feeling myself starting to panic at the realization that I will be a Queen. “I’m going to need more time to process this, buddy.”