The fight rages on.

So far, my mother and uncle have waged a war of arguments pro and con for me to take part in the upcoming tournament that will decide the next in line for the throne.

My mom thinks it is a lost battle because the King already has a nephew who everybody knows will be appointed as his successor anyway. No one really knows why the King is resistant to making that public, but it has been suggested that Lucius is not a fan of his nephew.

My uncle thinks it is a great opportunity to further advance my career. In his words, I could stay here and be the Alpha of my father's pack, or I could potentially be the next King of one of the most powerful nations on Earth.

I would only have to beat hundreds if not thousands of other Alphas from all across the country, some of them even older than me since the contest is valid for people up to 25 years of age. What's not to fear?

To be fair, my uncle has been preparing me for this day ever since my father died with incessant training sessions under the ruse of preparing me for Alpha. He has a political mind that I do not possess, so I suspect that he always knew this day would arrive, and he prepared me for it.

The question remains, would I even want to be King? It's not something one can aspire to, you have to be born for it. Had the King been able to have any children of his own, they would be King or Queen. For my money, we could benefit from having a Queen instead of a King. Just saying...

My mother basically has just accused me of wanting to leave her and my sisters to fend for themselves to go get killed in a frivolous pursuit. She is mad, but so am I at the lack of consideration on her part. I am not a child anymore.

I got up from the table and walked out of the kitchen in silence, stomping the ground in fury. She always does this, guilt trips me when she is out of legitimate arguments to convince me. I absolutely hate it. I know she has a point, but shooting me down without a proper discussion is not the way to go.

The days of people deciding my fate are long gone. I am my own man now.

I got into my car and drove to my best friend's place. He works for a living, but hopefully, he hasn't left for work just yet and I can talk with him briefly. Unfortunately, at my age, most of my friends are either working to help out their family or away at college. I am the only one at a crossroads.

I am not at college and also not working to make a living. My father left me some money in his will that I would only access when I become of legal age — last year — but it's nothing remotely like a trust fund. It's just enough money to buy my own clothes and go out to the local mall before I can start contributing at home.

My mother also works at a business downtown, but we will be in a bind when she runs out of my dad's insurance money. I know she counts on me to pitch in the future, and I want that too. But while my uncle doesn't book my ascension ceremony, there is nothing for me to do except for training.

Before I managed to leave the house, my uncle left me with some words of wisdom:

"Keep in mind that your father only got mated when he left his home in Alabama. You're already 19. If you stay here, you will NEVER get mated!"

His voice echoed throughout the house while my mother furiously stared at him reprehensibly. She would slap him, but that is against the law — hitting mated people is a serious offense in the werewolf world. It could lead to the death penalty in extreme cases.

And there you have it. The most compelling argument that anyone could make. My father left Alabama when he signed up to be part of the Royal Army. My uncle also met his mate when he visited the Capital on a trip after he graduated from college.

The bottom line here is that if I were to find my mate here in my pack, I would have already found them by now. I am 19 years old, as my uncle stated, so I had a year's worth of opportunities for that to happen - you become able to find your mate when you turn 18, but you can only find them if they are at least 17. It clearly didn't happen for me. Now what?

Both men in my family met their mates at the Capital. I am many things, but I could never be called obtuse. The writing is on the wall. If I stay here, I will never be mated. What kind of Alpha doesn't have a Luna? My pack may be small, but they are all family folks.

I need to have someone with me when I ascend as the next Alpha of my pack, or that could count for nothing. I mean, what is a man without someone to love? I am not desperate for companionship now, but I wouldn't say no to a mate. After all, I am a werewolf, that's what our people do at my age.

If you are not a noble, of course. Those people rarely get mated unless they fulfill some type of challenge. I am not so sure about how that came about. What I am sure is that I have a lot to think about.

Could I go there, find my mate, and return here without ever trying out for the tournament?

I would be known as a coward and forever tarnish the Pendragon surname my father worked his entire life to build, but that could be doable. Sure, why not?

Can you imagine the look of disappointment on my uncle's face?

Even my mother would judge me for it. Goddess forbids! My reputation would be destroyed even before I ascended as Alpha. What good would that do?

I talked to my best friend while having breakfast at his house. He lives close by, but it's faster by car. He agreed with my mother that it is a fool's errand and the nobles would never allow anyone who is not a descendant of the royal blood to rule our country.

But he also agreed with my uncle that I would likely never meet my mate here in this town. He met his mate during high school; she is now in college. He stayed behind because he needed to help out on his family's farm. They could not spare him, but they visit each other constantly because she goes to the State University.

When I returned home for my training session, I had a lot on my mind. What would I do?

Stay here, continue my training to become Alpha whenever my uncle sees fit.

Or do I risk it all in a somehow frivolous pursuit with the chance to find my mate?

I have to admit one thing, my uncle does know how to build a compelling case. It's probably the lawyer in him. At the end of my training session, my uncle was once again trying to persuade me to go with him to the Capital and shoot my shot at being the next King.

Can you imagine a common-born as the next Lycan King of the United States?

I am having a tough time picturing it, to be honest, but it does have a certain ring to it.

Now what will I do?

A|N:  What will he do?

I guess no one can escape from their fate.

Love,

Léo.