I stared at the frightening note until my hands shook. Red ink. Like blood. The words burned into my brain: You don't belong here, rogue.
Someone had crept to my door in the darkness. Someone wanted me gone.
A sharp knock made me jump. I shoved the paper under my mattress just as Emma's happy voice called out.
"Breakfast time! Don't want to be late on your first day!"
I opened the door to find her bouncing on her toes, arms full of clean clothes.
"These are from the lost and found," she whispered, looking around nervously. "They'll fit better than... well, than what you're wearing."
I looked down at my torn pants and faded shirt. Ten years of living rough showed in every thread. "Thank you."
"Hurry! Pack breakfast starts in fifteen minutes, and trust me, you don't want to walk in late. Everyone stares."
They'll stare anyway, I thought, but I took the clothes.
The pants were too big and the sweater had a small hole in the elbow, but they were clean. They smelled like lavender instead of forest dirt and distress.
Emma waited outside while I changed, then nearly dragged me down the stairs.
"Okay, quick rules," she said as we rushed through hallways filled with pack members going to breakfast. "Don't sit at the head table unless asked. Don't speak unless spoken to during statements. Always let ranked dogs eat first. And whatever you do, don't mention your wild years."
"Why not?"
"Because half these wolves lost family to rogue attacks. They won't care that you were alone, not dangerous. To them, rogue equals enemy."
My stomach twisted. Great. Another reason for them to hate me.
The dining hall was huge, filled with long wooden tables and the smell of bacon and coffee. Conversations died as I walked in. Dozens of eyes tracked my movement like I was prey entering a lion's den.
Emma led me to a table near the back, far from the raised platform where Kael sat with his senior wolves. He didn't look at me. Not once.
"That's the Alpha table," Emma whispered, pointing to where Kael's dark head was bent over his plate. "Beta Ronan sits there, and the head warrior, and the pack doctor..."
"And the Alpha's mate?" I asked.
Emma's face fell. "Well... usually. But you're not officially recognized yet."
Of course not. I was the dirty secret tucked away in the corner.
A woman with gray hair and sharp eyes sat down across from me. Her expensive clothes and perfect stance screamed high rank.
"So you're the rogue," she said loudly enough for nearby tables to hear. "I'm Margaret Stone, head of the pack council."
"Nice to meet you," I managed.
"Is it?" Her smile was cold as winter wind. "Tell me, what exactly do you bring to this pack? What skills? What value?"
Heat crept up my neck. "I survived ten years alone in the wilderness."
"Yes, like a feral animal." Margaret's voice dripped disdain. "But this is polite society. We have rules here. Structure. Things you clearly know nothing about."
Other wolves turned to watch. Some nodded in agreement. Others looked awkward but said nothing.
"I can learn," I said, trying to keep my voice steady.
"Can you? Because from what I hear, you've already made quite the stir. Poor Alpha Kael, stuck with broken goods when he deserves so much better."
My hands clenched under the table. "I'm his mate."
"Biology isn't everything, dear. A true Luna needs grace, wisdom, breeding. She needs to command respect." Margaret looked me up and down like I was something stuck to her shoe. "You inspire pity at best."
Emma kicked my leg under the table, warning me to stay quiet. But rage burned in my chest like fire.
"You're right," I said, standing up slowly. "I don't know your rules. I don't have fancy clothes or perfect habits. But I know how to fight for what counts. And I know the difference between power and cruelty."
Margaret's eyes narrowed. "Are you calling me cruel?"
"I'm saying a real leader lifts others up instead of tearing them down."
The eating hall went dead silent. Even the computers stopped moving. At the head table, Kael's head snapped up, his dark eyes finding mine across the room.
Margaret stood too, her face flushed with anger. "How dare you"
"Margaret." Ronan's voice cut through the stress like a blade. He'd appeared beside our table, his usually kind face hard as stone. "Is there a problem here?"
"Just educating our new... addition... about pack hierarchy," Margaret said sweetly.
"I see." Ronan's gaze swept the watching crowd. "And I suppose everyone else was helping with this education?"
Uncomfortable shuffles. Guilty looks. No one met his eyes.
"Funny," Ronan continued. "Because I remember when you first joined this pack, Margaret. Fresh from your father's bankruptcy, desperate for a new house. I don't remember the pack tearing you apart on your first morning."
Margaret's face went white. "That's completely different"
"Is it?" Ronan helped me gather my unfinished breakfast. "Come on, Aria. Let's eat somewhere more polite."
As we walked toward the exit, whispers exploded behind us.
"Did you see her face?"
"Can't believe she talked back to Margaret Stone."
"Rogue showing her true colors."
"Bold move, but stupid."
My cheeks burned with shame and anger. In the hallway, Ronan stopped and turned to me.
"You okay?"
"Fantastic," I said sadly. "Nothing like making enemies on day one."
"Margaret Stone has been trying to control pack politics for years. Someone needed to put her in her place."
"But not me. Not the rogue who doesn't fit."
Ronan studied my face. "Who told you that?" I almost mentioned the note, then stopped. He was already doing too much for me. "Everyone. Their faces say it all."
"Give them time."
"Time for what? To find new ways to tell me I'm worthless?"
Before Ronan could answer, footsteps echoed down the hall. Kael appeared, his face thunderous.
"What happened in there?" he asked. "Your pack council member decided to welcome Aria properly," Ronan said dryly.
Kael's jaw clenched. "Margaret can be... direct."
"Direct?" I laughed harshly. "She basically called me feral trash."
"Maybe if you hadn't caused a scene"
"I caused a scene?" Fire burst in my chest. "I was sitting quietly while she tore me apart in front of everyone!"
"You confronted a senior pack member on your first day. What did you expect?" His coldness hit me like a slap. "I expected my mate to have my back."
Something flickered in Kael's eyes, but his words stayed ice-cold. "You're not officially my mate yet. And actions like this makes me question if you ever will be."
The words cut deeper than any claw. Ronan stepped forward, anger coming from him.
"Kael"
"Enough." Kael's Alpha power filled the hallway, making both Ronan and me step back. "Aria, you'll attend etiquette lessons with the pack instructor starting tomorrow. Learn how things work here before you embarrass yourself again."
He walked away without another word.
I stood there, shaking with hurt and rage. Etiquette lessons. Like I was some wild animal that needed training.
"He doesn't mean it," Ronan said quietly.
"Yes, he does." My voice came out broken. "He's ashamed of me."
"No. He's scared. There's a difference." "Same result either way."
That afternoon, I tried to explore the pack house, hoping to find somewhere I fit. But everywhere I went, talks stopped. People stared. Some were interested, others hostile, most just uncomfortable.
I found the library and tried to read about pack customs. A group of teenage girls whispered in the corner, giving me nasty looks.
I visited the exercise grounds. Warriors stopped sparring to watch me, their faces ranging from skeptical to amused.
I even tried the garden, thinking plants couldn't judge me. But the head gardener took one look at my face and found important work elsewhere.
By evening, I was tired and heartsick. I climbed the stairs to my tiny room, each step heavier than the last.
At my door, I found another note.
This one wasn't slipped underneath. It was taped right to the wood where anyone could see it.
My hands trembled as I read the blood-red words:
Three days. Then you leave, or we make you leave.
But it was the signature that made my blood freeze.
A friend.