South Mountain Pack Ch. 03

"Oh, and watch out for 'the move', Joe had this move that he would do every time that I came over for dinner. He told Frank and Carlo about it and they tried it out too, so I'm sure that it is being passed onto the younger generation. When I would be at the sink or in the kitchen to help clean up the mess that he made, he would casually put his hand on my waist and then lean into me and reach for something. He would sniff my neck and hair and whisper something inane into my ear," Annie said laughing, "I knew exactly what he was up to, but I just played along and it made him feel better. Every now and then, if he got too close, I would hit him upside the head. I really enjoyed that part of it."

Both girls dutifully wrote -- watch out for 'the move' and hit him upside the head if needed.

"Mama, I've seen Daddy still do that to you," said Maria with a giggle, "sometimes you laugh and sometimes you still hit him upside the head." Everyone in the room laughed along with Maria and her mother.

"Do you have any questions so far?" asked Rose to both Sophia and Maria.

"No ma'am," they both replied.

"Okay, next thing we are going to discuss is your training. As we said previously, all underage female Weres are taught self-defense classes, but all females in our Pack are also taught combat training. The reason for this is we wanted to make sure that not only could you defend yourselves against an attack, but taking the offensive would throw your attacker off kilter for a few moments, allowing time for reinforcements to come in to help or allow you time to escape," said Madame Alpha Gina, "What phrase do Frank and Joe teach you?"

"The best defense is a good offense," stated Sophia and Maria in unison, "and working hard and working together will always make us winners no matter what the eventual outcome, and make sure that we kick their ass, before they kick ours."

"Frank and Joe sure have a way with words," Gina said with a laugh. Rose and Annie hung their heads down laughing, they knew the first part of the motto, but had never heard the last line before that night.

"Well, I guess that covers your training. It seems that Frank and Joe have things well in hand. Now comes the most serious part of the discussion," said Madame Alpha Gina. "Dating and the rules that must be followed, I'll let your mothers handle most of the discussion and comment when appropriate."

Both girls wrote -- follow our motto and kick some ass when needed.

"Before we start, I do want to say that I am happy that you are Anthony's chosen mate; I could not imagine him with a lovelier young lady and hope that the both of you are extremely happy. Finding your mate, especially at such a young age, is extremely difficult, but the final result will be its own reward. For your mother and me, that final result will be grandkids, but that will be years and years down the road. Many, many years," said Madame Alpha Gina with a twinkle in her eye.

"Thank you ma'am," said Sophia with a blush on her face at the thought of having children with Anthony and what that meant. Maria looked at her and the two girls leaned into each other and started giggling.

"Girls, the rules are something that must be followed at all times. Maria, these rules will apply to you when your intended mate is found," said Annie with a smile, "and I bet that your father is hoping that is years in the future. So for now, we will address everything to Sophia."

"Sophia, you will never be allowed to be alone with your intended mate. Knowing your father, I'm sure that he will make sure that you will be accompanied by at least two of your brothers or cousins at all times, plus Maria since you are usually together. Please follow this dictate, for temptation can be great and the consequences dire if something unforeseen happens," stated Rose with a calm gentle voice.

Both girls wrote -- NEVER be alone with our intended mate; ALWAYS have at least two family members. Follow rules, temptation is great but consequences dire if not followed.

"Both of you were brought to the Pack Doctor for a complete physical the morning of your 15^th birthday and were given an internal exam. This was done to ensure your purity. This exam will be done every morning on your birthday up to and including your 18^th birthday. If you have been found to be breached, then you and your partner will both be expelled from the pack. You must remain pure until your 18^th birthday, this is not only a Pack mandate, but a Council mandate and must be obeyed," stated Madame Alpha, "the only other reason why you would be breached would be rape. If that happens, you of course would be protected and not blamed, but the penalty for the male committing the rape would be death."

Both girls looked at each other and wrote -- MUST REMAIN PURE UNTIL 18^TH BIRTHDAY, WILL BE EXPELLED FROM PACK IF FOUND OTHERWISE.

"For the first year, until your 16^th birthday, the only physical contact that you will be allowed will be for Anthony to sniff your neck and hair and pull you into his side, never fully against your front or back. When you are watching TV or at the movies, you will be allowed to sit next to him and he will be allowed to hold your hand or put his arm over your shoulder and you may lay your head on his shoulder. Am I clear on this?" Rose asked looking Sophia straight in the eye.

"Yes, mama," said Sophia and wondered when their first official date would be and what they would do. She was so excited that she hoped that she would be able to sleep tonight. She was glad that Maria was staying overnight; at least they would be able to talk about this privately.

Dutifully both girls wrote -- sniffing allowed, able to hold hands and have his arms around our shoulder, embrace from the side only, no hugging from the front or back. NO KISSING. Sophia followed the 'no kissing' rule with a frownie face and when Maria saw it she grinned.

"By now, I'm sure that most of the Pack knows about the declaration since the entire football and cheerleading team was here as well as most of your school. The Pack grapevine will take care of the rest I'm sure, but Alpha Carlo will make the formal announcement at the next Full Moon Ceremony. Your teachers at South Mountain High will also be made aware of the situation and they will also be keeping an eye on the two of you. What you need to worry about more then that though is your brothers and cousins," said Rose, "and I'm sure that they will do everything to make sure that the rules are followed to the letter, if not make up their own rules."

Both girls wrote -- teachers will be aware, watch out for brothers and cousins being even more overprotective then usual. Follow our motto and kick some ass if needed.

"We will have to discuss with your father what exactly he is permitting Anthony to do as far as his courtship with you. I'm sure that they are discussing you driving to school with Anthony and coming over for dinner and other things. Once the men figure out what they will allow, we will look at what rules they put into place and we will change them and add some as we see fit," Rose said with a smile at her daughter.

"Don't let my son dictate to you what you can or cannot do Sophia. If you want to do something, then do it, as long as it doesn't put you into danger. Male Weres can be dominating, but if you explain to them that you want to do something, they will generally fall over themselves to make you happy. And if all else fails, then look at him with tears in your eyes, and say 'Please Anthony' in a pleading voice. It is a typical female trick to get what we want, but it works every time," said Gina.

"You know that trick very well Sophia, you use it on your father and brothers all of the time," said Rose with a laugh, "and Maria, I've seen you give that look a hundred times too, we have both taught you well."

Both girls giggled as they wrote -- don't put up with dominating behavior from our mate, explain what we want and if we don't get our way, use 'the pouty look' with tears.

"We will have more meetings as things progress with your courtship, just remember to relax and have fun. Do either of you have any questions?" asked Rose.

"Mama, do you think that Daddy will let Anthony come over to the house as much as he did before?" Sophia asked.

"I'm sure that he will, remember Anthony was best friends with Gianni, Marcus, Lorenzo and Damian before he felt the mating pull. As long as he follows the rules, I'm sure that he will be allowed to see you as much as he wants," said Rose with a smile at her only daughter.

"Madame Gina, does Anthony like to go shopping? Maria and I go shopping every Saturday morning, and I wonder if he would like to come with us. We usually go out to lunch and depending on the boy's schedules, sometimes we go bowling or to the movies afterwards too," asked Sophia with a shy look on her face.

"I'm sure that Anthony would love to go to spend time with you. I'll be honest, he has no interest in shopping and I bet that he hasn't been to the mall in years, but I bet he changes his mind pretty quick especially if both you and food are involved," Madame Gina said with a smile to Sophia, "that boy loves to eat."

"Can you tell me what his favorite foods are, especially cookies," asked Sophia.

"Sure, Anthony likes Peanut Butter Blossoms; you know those peanut butter cookies with the Hershey's Kiss on them. As far as food, the boy will eat anything that you put in front of him, but he seems to favor steak and au gratin potatoes. He also likes to drink Sweet Tea, but without lemon."

Sophia wrote in her notebook -- bribe Anthony with food if needed, likes to eat. Cookies -- peanut butter blossoms. Food -- steak and au gratins. Drink -- sweet tea without lemon, try and get him to like lemon.

"Madame Gina, is Anthony still planning on going to the University of Maryland? I remember him talking to my brothers about going and he wanted to study Business Administration. I hope that doesn't change, since that is where I am planning on going too," asked Sophia, "Maria and I want to study Landscape Architecture and Management and work with our fathers after we graduate. Right now, all the landscaping is done with subcontractors, but after we graduate it will be a subdivision of Carlucci Construction."

"Yes Sophia, Anthony is planning on attending MD, as all Pack members do who want to go to college. South Mountain Pack has a lot of influence at U of MD, but you still need to keep your grades up to ensure admission. The future of the Pack depends on the younger generation," stated Madame Gina, "We already have Pack members as Doctors, lawyers, business leaders and even the Chief of Police and most of his department, not to mention a State Senator. Our Pack is much more diverse then other packs, but Alpha Rossi and the Beta's feel that it is in our best interest to assimilate ourselves into positions of power in the human world to further Pack interests. These positions of power enable us to maintain our secret and enhance our Packs safety."

"Is there anything else before we rejoin the men? It's almost 12:45 AM, and I'm sure that Anthony would like to say goodnight to you before he leaves," asked Rose with a smile aimed towards Sophia and Maria.

"No ma'am," both girls responded and jumped up and started fixing Sophia's hair and Maria tried smoothing the wrinkles out of her dress.

"Mama, do you think I have time to run-up and get myself fixed up a little before the men come upstairs?" asked Sophia as the two best friends edged towards the door.

"Make it quick, I'm sure that Anthony is in a hurry to see you," responded Rose, but both girls were already running down the hallway giggling.

"Oh my," said Rose as she threw herself back on the sofa. "That was one of the most difficult things that I have done as a mother. At least when Maria goes through this, she will already be familiar with the process and hopefully it will make it easier on you Annie."

"I think that you did a marvelous job Rose. Sophia and Maria are both wonderful girls and if my little Angelica had lived, I hope that she would have been just like them," said Gina with tears in her eyes. Both women came over and hugged her, the heartbreak both women felt for their friend hadn't diminished in the fourteen years since her only daughters' stillbirth.

"I'm so sorry Gina, I never even thought about how hard this must be for you," said Rose with tears streaming down her face, "Please forgive me."

"The two of you have been my best friends since we were toddlers and you have always offered me comfort in my deepest sorrow," said Gina, quietly sobbing as she was held by Rose and Annie. "Sometimes the only comfort that I have been able to feel is to watch your daughters grow into the women that I hoped my Angelica would have become. I've always considered myself as a second mother to both of your girls, and I thank you for allowing me that."

As the women held each other and cried quietly, they strengthened their bond as women, friends and mothers. Gina allowed her memories and images of Angelica to wash over them through the mental bond, the joy that was felt upon learning of her pregnancy, the first sonogram, seeing Anthony rub his moms belly and talk to his sister, Carlo in a children's store picking out little dresses with a smile on his face. Then the darker memories and images came.

Gina and Anthony on the way to the Rossi's store, going through the intersection and getting hit broadside by someone who ran the red light. The pain was intense, but it only caused the women to hold each other tighter, then darkness descended. Followed by the bright lights of the operating room as they tried to save Gina and Angelica, but there was no hope for the beautiful little girl.

Gina allowed Rose and Annie to see the memories and images that she had never shared before, Carlo holding his little girl with tears streaming down his face and whispering words of love and comfort that she would never hear, telling his precious daughter that she would be called Angelica, because she would always be his little Angel in heaven. Carlo whispering that she shouldn't be scared because her grandparents were waiting for her in heaven and would take care of her until her mommy and daddy got there and that he would love her always, then bringing her little body up to his face and memorizing her scent knowing that it would be the last time that he held his precious little girl.

The three friends quietly held on to each other as their sobs slowly lessened. No words were needed between the lifelong friends as they felt the love and companionship flow between them.

They gradually heard sounds of laughter, footsteps on the stairs, the refrigerator opening and their children and mates talking. They looked at each other and smiled knowing that no matter what heartache presented itself, they would get through it together as always. With a last look at each other, they wiped their faces with the tissues that Rose provided and prepared to join their families.

"Where is Sophia?" was the first thing that the women heard clearly. They looked at each other, smiled and held hands tightly as they entered the kitchen.