Page 99 of Plug and Tame

Mark’s jaw dropped. By the time he closed it, Kira had shifted her attention to the rest of the pack, sending a gentle, persuasive thought along her tendrils of magic.

“Look at us,” Kira said. “We are wolves, but look at what we have become. We are meant for so much more than…” she gestured at the first years sitting on the dusty gym mats on the stage, “…Than this. We have allowed ourselves to be kept under the thumb of vampires…to be their food, their playthings. Some have done so willingly. Others have had no choice.”

She thought of Susie’s relationship with Professor Arken and the reprehensible way it had started. Squaring her shoulders, she continued. “I stand before you all, not to judge you, but to remind you of what we wolves have forgotten: that we are meant for much greater things.”

The pack listened, entranced.

Some of them were so moved that they’d morphed into wolves, and at least one of the alphas was erect. He adjusted himself through his trousers, and Kira had to conclude that his reaction was a good sign, even if it wasn’t the kind of arousal she’d intended to cause with her speech.

To her surprise, the first person to speak was not an alpha, but Chelsea. She slow-clapped as she approached Kira, coming to a standstill before her. “Wow. That was a lot of awkward bullshit you just served.”

Well, maybe not so surprising.

“Where’s your Master, pet? Does he know you’re in here giving big speeches?”

“Yes,” Kira answered simply.

“A little hypocritical, don’t you think?”

“I am proud to be a vampire’s submissive,” Kira said firmly. “Just as I am proud to be a wolf. It makes me no less deserving of either respect or greatness.”

Chelsea scoffed, but she was amongst the few. Like Kira, most of the shifters present had been intimately involved with a vampire at one time or another, and more than a few seemed roused at her words.

“You’re new to the pack,” Chelsea continued, “And you skipped our induction meeting this morning, so let me clear something up. You are nothing, and you do not give orders. You are the lowest of the low, and once our initiation is complete, you will still be the lowest of the low. I will make sure of that.”

Kira drew a deep breath, then exhaled slowly, regretfully. “I didn’t want to do this…”

Chelsea’s eyes narrowed. “Do what—”

A bolt of magic struck Chelsea’s mind, causing her to leap backwards with a yelp. She looked around her wildly. “What the fuck was that?!”

Kira hadn’t harmed Chelsea, only scared her. She’d learnt through her experimenting that her magic was most effective when used subtly—just like Nathaniel had recommended. Gentle persuasion was by far the most effective way to influence others. Whereas a strong burst of magic was about as useful as shaking somebody by the shoulders—it had the opposite effect to what she intended.

Still, the burst of magic had shocked Chelsea, momentarily shattering her offensive stance and putting her on guard.

“What did you do?” Chelsea cried, jabbing a finger at Kira.

“I didn’t do anything,” she replied, emulating that thought so it resonated in the rest of the pack members’ minds. “Chelsea is overreacting.”

“Chels is overreacting,” someone muttered.

“This bitch is crazy!” Chelsea exclaimed, looking to the others for confirmation, but they exchanged uneasy looks behind her back.

“Overreacting,” Kira pressed.

Her words echoed softly in the wolves’ minds, duplicating like a rippling pond until each person repeated the thought of their own volition.

Mark rested a hand on Chelsea’s shoulder. “Let me handle this, Chels.”

Chelsea bristled and retreated, crossing her arms unhappily.

“Kira, you can’t just come in here behaving like an alpha,” Mark began, making an obvious effort to sound reasonable, but he stopped talking as a wolf brushed past him.

And another wolf.

And then another.

One by one, the majority of the pack moved to stand by Kira. She gave Mark a helpless shrug before pivoting.