“Ae!” A little boy called out running to greet his friend.

“Har-ow!” ‘Ae’, the little girl, grinned.

“Harold, don’t run!” The boy’s mother tut-tutted.

“But I haven’t seen my mate in so long!” Harold protested; his father shaking his head.

“Oh dear, Honey what did you tell our son?” Harold’s father scratched his neck anxiously, looking at his mate sheepishly.

“He asked me what a ‘mate’ is and I told him it’s someone you like very much and can’t live without, once you found the person you mark them with a bite to show others that they are yours. I swear, that was it!” His mate sighed.

“Honestly Rodrick, Honey, don’t you think you could have explained it a little better?”

“Well then you’ll just have to do the explaining once we go back home.” Again his mate sighed going to kneel beside her son.

“Harold, darling, Aegis isn’t your mate, you can only know who your mate will really be when you turn sixteen, because there’s a special bond, an invisible tether that will bind you two together. You’ll be able to feel how the other feels without ever needing to touch or hear it from them or able to see them, you’ll be able to sense where the other is at any time.” She tried explaining to him, Aegis staring at her confused.

“But Har-ow awedy maked me, see he bit me wight here!” She turned around to show her shoulder, there was no mark or even any scarring, but she still seemed proud of ‘it’. Harold’s mother laughed, the two was inseparable but playing 'mate' this was the first time she knew any pups to pursue this 'game'.

"Leave them be, we already tried explaining it to them after Harold bit her."

"Vanessa..." Harold's mother seemed defeated but still she smiled. Next to Vanessa stood her own mate Andrew, with their two boys and a very grumpy Valerie.

“Sure sweet-pea, then until you are sixteen the two of you can be ‘mates’ and continue being best friends forever after that.” She ruffled the little girls fiery head of auburn hair and kissed Harold on his cheek.

“Now go have fun, while we and your parents work.” The two children ran of hand-in-hand to where Aegis previously was playing with a ball al by her lonesome.

“Har-ow! Catch!” Aegis shouted as she threw the ball back trying to throw it harder every time, but the more she did the more skew she threw it, causing Harold to run zig-zag to get to the ball. The three older children, Aegis' brothers and sister all left to go do their own thing.

“Ae! You’re supposed to throw it to me, not away!” Harold huffed.

“But tis way you pwaktis rwanning!”

“Wow you two are such babies!” A boy older than them finally burst out laughing having watched the scene unfold.

“Am not!” Aegis spin around and scrunched up her little button nose.

“Are too! See you can’t even talk properly, never mind throw a ball straight!”

“I can too talk pwabably!” Aegis said, proving a point, the boy started laughing again.

“Don’t laugh at my mate!” Harold growled.

“She’s not your mate, doofus!” The boy snapped out of his laughing fit, pushing himself off his seat on the fence and landing on his feet.

“She is, and I won’t let you talk to her like that!” Harold stepped in front of Aegis protectively, this simple act seemingly angering the boy as he balled his hands into fists and punch Harold once, twice, three times before pushing him to the ground.

“Don’t hurr my maid! You big boowee!” Aegis rushed up and started hitting the boy on his chest, her little fist too soft and weak to actually hurt him. He puffed out his chest as to prove that she was pathetic. He grinned and as a last ditch effort to ‘defend’ her friend’s honor she slapped the boy across the face…

The boy was shocked, but it didn’t last long before his dark eyes glazed over, a fire hidden in its depths, he lunged at Aegis and bit down hard on her arm, her screaming did not seem to faze him - he never let go.

His eyes becoming more fierce… red with rage… Aegis though wasn’t going to let it slide as she jumped bit down just as hard into the crook of the boy’s in the crook. The smell of iron and blood swept into the air as the two refused to let go of each other.

“What is going on here?” A man’s voice bellowed as another pulled the boy off from Aegis, the smell of ‘blood and iron’ having alerted them.

“It seems he fought with Alpha Rodrick’s son and must have tasted his blood and ended up attacking the girl.” The man that held a feisty snarling boy in his arms explained as he quickly surveyed the area and noted Harold with the busted lip and bleeding nose. And then the girl, her chubby fierce gaze was calm and collected…

“Where’s their parents now?”

“They are in a meeting with Alpha Gaius regarding recent rogue attacks.”

“I’ll inform them, you get the children patched up.” The burly man ordered and the one still struggling to keep the boy secured in his arms nodded before saying “Yes Beta!”

…

“I’m sorry for my son’s temper.” Alpha Gaius said, no one seemed to suspect anything, but Aegis hid behind her mother seeking her protection as her father and Harold’s talked with the Alpha. She shivered when his gaze landed on her, the look in his eyes telling her he wasn’t a ‘good’ man…

Something very feral in her stirred, growling and whimpering at the Alpha's gaze on her, but why didn't it put her own parents and Harold's on edge? She wondered clutching tighter onto Vanessa's clothes. 

“It’s no problem, it’ll teach Harold to pick his fights better in the future!” Alpha Rodrick said, as he ruffled his son’s hair.

“And Beta Andrew, you are here on behalf of your Pack, to help out ours, I cannot express how regretful I am that my son would have bitten your little girl. I ask you to forgive my son, he lost control, and it doesn’t excuse his actions for biting her.”

“All’s forgiven, her brothers and sister were supposed to keep an eye out on her and Harold, I’ll have to have a talk with them tonight and besides Aegis heals fast, give another hour or so and there won’t even be a scar left!” Beta Andrew, Aegis’ father boasted.

“I doubt it, he is an Alpha after all.” Andrew shook his head, waving off any further concern for Aegis from the Alpha.

“Three weeks ago Harold bit Aegis, to ‘mark’ her and it healed in less than four hours. They’re still playing ‘mate’, we tried explaining, but it seems they are convinced they are soul-mates.” At the mention of ‘soul-mates’ the boy crossed his arms with a loud ‘hmpft’!

“Apologize now!” The boy’s father snapped, not about to take his son's disrespect for their 'guests'.

“I’m not going to, not until she does first! She slapped me!” The boy complained, his father releasing a terrifying presence quickly made the boy whimper, but he refused to submit.

“That is a shame, especially since you two will be attending the same school. Which gives me an idea, Beta Andrew, would you allow Aegis to join my son for training with my most trusted Delta? He trains our most talented pups every second or third day.” He pointed to the man who had previously pulled the raging boy off of Aegis.

“No! Aegis can’t stay here!” Harold interjected.

“Harold, this isn’t up for discussion, it’s something Andrew’s Alpha asked him to do, they are staying here for at least next year or two and besides you’ll be starting training of your own and attending school from next month onwards, so you’ll be too busy to play with Aegis anyways.” His father silenced him.

“I’m not training with her!” The boy hissed and ran off, Alpha Gaius looked furious, but kept his calm only sighing and shaking his head at his son’s lack of manners.

“I think it’ll benefit her, she has energy to spare, and doesn’t seem to listen to me anyways, so perhaps you can do better in instructing her?” Andrew turned to face the Delta, not at all bothered by the boy, it was afterall just children fighting; come tomorrow they’ll be playing together like nothing ever happened.

“I will do my best, to make a fine little warrior of her!” The Delta replied.

“Excellent!”