Shifter Domination Complete Set

There's nothing less human about her just because of her ears and tail, but shifters like her are treated as lesser being, the general population seeing them as something less than human. She has seen shifters like her kept in cages and paraded next to strong Alpha packs like a trophy, shifters who are humiliated in the middle of the streets and made to submit.

She is in the middle of reading the literature textbook by under the dim light when the door to the basement is suddenly yanked open and Alpha Franklin barks down the stairs for her to come up. She picks up the leash and bends a little, presenting the handle to him.

"There's someone who wants to see you," Alpha Franklin says, tugging her towards the living room. Even now, she feels like a child and he's walking too quickly for her. There's something wrong with him, though. He usually takes great pleasure in clipping her collar, pinching her chin and making some tasteless comment about how pretty she's growing up to be. He's walking with a limp that is obvious despite his effort to hide it.

When they reach the living room, she sees their visitors. Her upper lip pulls back immediately, scenting the air. There're a group of men in the large space, men who smell like earth and danger, like metal and blood. She sees the blood on their hands, the bright gleam in their eyes and suddenly, she understands what's happened.

Alpha Franklin has lost in a fight.

She finds the leader of the new pack instantly just because of how impressive he looks. How impressive they both look. She's never seen twins before. It's a little weird. The two men are identical in every way, like they're doing to confuse people on purpose. She knows they're wolf even without having to see their shifts. Their features are sharp and solid, muscles sinewy and perfectly visible even through their dark clothing. She doesn't know if it's black or if it's stained black from blood.

Alpha Franklin stands at the front of the room and she takes her position without prompting, kneeling by his feet with her head bowed, showing the back of her neck.

"Is that her, then?" One of the men asks. His voice is deep and gravelly, half a growl like he can't keep his animal completely contained.

"Yes," Alpha Franklin says.

"Do you make her kneel at your feet all the time?" he asks.

She doesn't look up even though she feels him stiffen. People don't normally ask questions about her. "It's where she belongs," Alpha Franklin says.

She doesn't mean being here so much. Her pack keeps her safe. They take care of her.

"Should I have you kneel by my feet then?"

Her cousins and family snarls, moving forward the same time the wolves do. A loud roar stops all of them in their tracks and she can't help but look up, mesmerized by the power in the roar. The Werewolf Alpha isn't even shifted and yet she can feel the raw power he's oozing, she sheer danger coming from his every pore. There isn't a doubt in her mind that he can take Alpha Franklin down.

Well, down again, it seems, since apparently it's happened already. His twin brother grins, careless and slightly feral. "That's quite enough now," he says. "Come then, Darius beat you fair and square. We'd like out collateral now."

To her surprise, she sees that Alpha Franklin is bowing his head too, though he looks beyond incensed. She scents blood in the air and sees her Alpha clutching her leash tightly enough that his nails are digging into the palms of his hand.

She watches in surprise when Alpha Franklin throws the handle of her leash to one of the men. "You belong to them now, kit," Alpha Franklin growls with a terrible snarl.

Her blood runs cold and she looks back at her Alpha, her pack, her family. "Alpha Franklin?" she whispers.

"You're collateral," he says with barely concealed anger. She knows he's not upset about giving her up. Alpha Franklin doesn't love her even though he's her uncle. He thinks of her as a burden he was saddled with when her parents died. She doesn't love him that much either, but she didn't think he would give her up so easily. She hopes it's a cruel joke. It must be.

But the Alpha holding her leash tugs her towards him and she is forced to turn to him instead.

"Will you come here, Aria?" he asks and there is something oddly familiar about his voice that makes her heart beat a little less erratically.

She frowns at him and closes the distance between them warily.

He is so very tall and she doesn't dare to look up. She bows her head when she is standing in front of him, trying desperately to regulate her breathing so she doesn't panic. Her ears are swiveled back, the fur on her tail bristling, but curled up around her inner thigh where they can't see under her flowing dress.

She grimaces when he pinches her chin and tips her head up. His eyes are so beautiful and she suddenly remembers when she had seen them before with a soft, "Oh." And then. "I know you."

His grin is kind, the corners of his eyes wrinkling with a sincerity that makes the pain she's feeling from being abandoned by her pack so easily a little more bearable. "We've met before, yes," he says. "How would you like me to call you?" he asks.

She thinks for a moment, recalling how her Alpha would call her 'pet' or 'kit' depending on his mood and how her cousins have all started calling her pet instead of her name now. It would be nice if he would call her by her actual name. She decides to be a little brave and says, "My name's Aria."

"Aria is a beautiful name," he says. "Aria, you'll be coming to stay with me from now on, okay?"

She tries to turn back and look at her Alpha, her pack, but his grip on her chin tightens, keeping her from moving her head.

"Don't do that, darling- ah, Aria," he corrects, still smiling, though it looks slightly strained now that her eyes have begun to burn and fill with tears.

"With you?" she whispers.