***11 Years ago***

Rhiannon's POV:

I woke up to yelling and screaming in the middle of the night. I was only 10yrs old; I saw flashes of light and fire coming from my window. I began to panic as one of the guards burst into my room telling me we needed to run. "Princess, we need to get you to safety!" He whispered as we snuck through the castle's hidden passageways.

"Where's mommy and daddy?" I asked terrified. He looked at me with sympathy as tears continued to sting my eyes. "I want my mommy and daddy, I'm not going anywhere without them! We need to go back for them!" I was finding it hard to breathe. I was having a panic attack and my mom and dad always knew how to settle them. I couldn't seem to stop crying either.

The guard crouched down to my level and asked me, "Rhiannon, do you remember a couple of years ago, when you found yourself lost in the woods? When we found you, what did your mother tell you?" I nodded, unable to find my voice. "She told you that no matter what happened just remember that she and your father will always be with you. She told you that you were very strong, and because of that a lot of people wanted you and would do anything in their power to get to you, but never forget they would always be there for you in some way or another... Right?" Again I nodded.

I started to see where he was going with this... "Mommy and daddy are coming are they?" I said, barely a whisper, more of a squeak. He didn't get a chance to respond as the sounds of the same people who attacked my pack began getting closer. The guard grabbed me and began running. We came to an opening, he set me down and told me to run as fast as I could. "I can't, I need you." I cried out not wanting to go by myself.

"Princess Rhiannon, I need to stay behind to give you a head start. NOW RUN!!!" I saw the shadows of the dangerous people getting closer. I looked at him one last time before booking it out of the small opening. I ran as fast and as far as I could! I came to a big cave as my legs began to give out. I did my best to get into the cave before I officially passed out.

As I entered I saw a big black wolf, but something about his presence made me feel safe. Last thing I remembered before everything went black, was this wolf coming over as I went down.

Vasiliy's POV:

It's been a week since the rogue attack on my pack; the one that killed my mother and father. I'm only 15, I wasn't supposed to become Alpha until I was at least 18. But alas, I'm stuck having to rush learning everything to be alpha at 15 so my pack can keep running and get stronger. I was out on my nightly run that I do when I get too stressed out. I had found this cave a few years back. It's my favorite place to hide, because it's quiet and I can enjoy the moonlight without anyone being able to find me. And since my first shift happened sooner than it was meant to, it gave me time to get to know my wolf. Most wolves don't shift until their 18th birthday, but I ended up having a forced shift a few weeks ago during the attack. It was very painful, and I was scared I was going to die, like most wolves who ended up having an early force shift due to trauma.

As I laid in my usual spot, enjoying the peace and quiet under the moonlight, I heard heavy breathing and running feet. I stood up ready to protect myself, when from the shadows came a little girl. She looked to be only 9 or 10. She had been crying and had fear and terror written all over her face. She froze when she saw me, but then she began to sway. I'm not sure who she was, or where she came from, but something told me to get her to safety. My wolf caught her as she passed out from sheer exhaustion.

We brought her further into the cave out of sight. We sniffed at her and could smell her wolf. She laid still, out of breath and energy. She was only a pup. My wolf, Jax, said we needed to protect her. So we got her covered so she'd be warm and protected, until we could return with more help. After we were satisfied that she'd be safe we ran back to the pack house in search of help.

It took an hour to get back to the packhouse, then an hour to get back, with about 30 minutes in between to gather the necessary assistance. When we arrived back at the cave the little girl was gone. I felt dread. I was worried about that poor pup, she had the same look of sadness and fear I had when I found out my parents were killed. I had my pack warriors spread out and search the forest for her... 'There's no way she could've gotten far on her own.' I thought to myself. My stomach dropped further when the warriors came back empty handed.

I need to find that girl. I'm not sure why, but my wolf and I feel so connected to her. Like we're meant to protect her no matter what. After 5 hrs with no results, I had the warriors head back to the pack house. I'm not sure where she would've gone, but I pray to Moon Goddess that wherever she had gone she'd be safe.

Rhiannon POV:

I'm not sure how long I was out, but when I woke up I felt like I wasn't actually awake at first. I couldn't really move, so I started to look around and realize I was inside my own mind. As I started retrace my steps and actions and wondering if maybe I was in a coma I saw a beautiful white wolf with streaks of red and gold. She saw me begin to panic and dropped down. Laying on her stomach with her head on her paws like she was trying to tell me that she was no threat. I tilted my head with curiosity. She began to army crawl toward me as I slowly got down to her level trying to let her know I was no threat to her either. As she reached me she nudged me with her nose, so I took that as an invite to pet her head.

Her fur was so soft and comforting. I asked her if she was lost like me and she just shook her head no. She let out a little huff sound like she was laughing at my question, then I remember I'm in my own head. "Right..." I chuckled nervously at myself. "Who are you and why am I in my own head? Am I in a coma, or worse dead?" I began to ramble a bunch of questions not really wanting the answers, but knowing I needed them.

As I began to lose myself in my panicked rambling, she put her paw on my leg to stop me. She then gave me a serious look like she was trying to read my soul or tell me something telepathically. After a few minutes I began to hear her speaking to me. "Rhiannon, my name is Calypso. I'm your wolf. I've been taking care of us for the last couple of days. I felt you begin to stir so I'm here to check on you." Her voice was so soft and gentle. But then I got confused.

"My wolf? I'm not supposed to get my wolf until I'm 16." Most wolves get their wolf at 18, but me being a royal meant my wolf would come a couple of years early, but I was only 10.

"Yes, that's how it's supposed to go, but you just dealt with a very traumatic experience. Trauma can cause a forced shift a lot sooner than its meant to. Luckily for you, I did my best to hold back until you got as far as you could. I didn't want to hurt you, and if I had come out sooner you would've definitely been hurt really bad." She was keeping her voice soft trying not to scare me, especially when I'm pretty sure my panic was visible on my face at the thought of what could've gone wrong had she been like other wolves and came out to protect me in the moment. "I promise, we're still very much alive, especially thanks to the wolf that hid you before he left."

I remembered the wolf she was talking about. But then I began to wonder... "Wait, where did he go?" Something about him made me feel safe. So I had some questions for him.

She looked at me with an unreadable expression. "I honestly don't remember much after you went down, I was slightly busy working my way to the surface. Although, I think he mentioned something about going to get help. I'm not going to lie to you, I wasn't sure whether or not he was trust worthy, so once I was out I took off. I didn't want to risk us getting her or being put in danger. I felt safe around him too, but I didn't want to take the risk." As she finished she looked to the floor like she was ashamed of her decision, or like she was worried I'd be mad.

"It's okay Calypso, I understand. If anything I should thank you." I gave her small smile as she looked up at me. "So, where are we out there? is it safe for me to come out?" She licked my face happy to hear that I wasn't upset with her.

"We're nearing a little human village I had sniffed out. I figured humans would be safer for us for a while. We can switch soon, I just want to get us as close as possible first. But once we switch you'll have to stay in human form for a while. I will be with you at all times, but I won't be able to come out as often, at least not without sneaking away. Although, any time we're not in this village, I feel like it was be safest with me out, because no one knows who I am because I'm technically not supposed to exist for another 6 years." She had a good point in both aspects.

Once we got to the outskirts of the village, we found a safe hiding spot to shift. She had found some clothes for me to change into afterwards. Once I was dressed, I snuck into the village and did my best to act like I belonged. I snuck into the classes to attempt to continue my education. Once I hit my teenage years I was able to join a gym. I even made some friends who when they learned about my past, well enough to know that I had trauma and that I was both homeless and an orphan, they would take turns having me spend the nights with them and they introduced me to this dojo instructor who helped me learn self-defense as well as how to stay one step ahead at all times.