The Runaway Breeder

I sit in front of my mirror, my reflection stunning with my straight chestnut-colored hair, my off-the-shoulder blush-colored crop top, and my high-waisted mini skirt. Last month, I had turned sixteen, the age a wolf finds their role in their pack and, possibly, their mate. Since I had missed out on last month's roll distribution, considering my birthday was just after it, today I would be given my position in the pack, now that I'm sixteen and had shifted. I can't help but smile, both in excitement at my reflection and at the picture taped to the mirror of my cousin and I. Just after my birthday, Chris and I had gone for a run in the forest that surrounds our territory. His black wolf towered over me while my blue-white fur with black-tipped paws glowed in the warm early spring sunlight of May.

"Laina, let's go before we're late," Chris yells up to my room from the bottom of the steps. Taking one last look at myself, I sigh, slip on my knee-high black boots, and grab my cellphone and black handbag before heading out into the second-floor hallway.

"Coming!" I yell back to my cousin, hurrying down the stairs to where he waited. One thing that annoys me about Chris is his need to always be on time. One time we really wanted to see the live-action Beauty and the Beast, and Chris made us wait at the theater two hours before the movie even started just so that we could get the best seats and snacks. Needless to say, my popcorn was soggy by the time the movie started.

"You look amazing," he gushes as I stand before Chris, doing a small turn so my cousin could approve of my outfit. His mate, Jack, saunters over, giving me a once over and a wink before snuggling into Chris's side with a content smile on his face.

"Thank you, you two look amazing as well," I say, laughing. Jack and Chris were the first openly gay mates in the pack. They had come out about ten years ago. This started a little bit of a rift in the pack, but the previous Alpha had stopped it, declaring that same-sex mates are allowed. It was the Moon Goddess' blessing and intent to pair mates of the same sex together, so who was the pack to judge. With that, more and more wolves who said they hadn't found their mates soon came out. It became normal to see openly gay and lesbian couples around the pack, and I couldn't help but beam with pride at how accepting my pack is to change. Chris and jack's relationship is quite sweet. It was a Romeo and Juliet kind of story in the beginning, with their families and pack members being against it, but they persevered and kept strong. The only difference from Shakespeare's Romeo and Juliet is that no one died in our pack for my cousin to be happy.

"Now let's hurry up before we are late. That is no way to start off as a working member of this pack." Jack states and grabs both Chris's and my wrist, dragging us out the door and into the car. The pack house is about half an hour's drive from where we live. It functions as a space for meetings, special occasions, and for the warriors and wolves without mates live. If it weren't for Chris and Jack being my family and guardians, I would have been living at the pack house long ago, ever since my parents' deaths. Slowly the big mansion comes into view, and the drive comes to an end, with the car coming to a stop in the parking lot, the three of us getting out in front of the old Victorian building.

"Remember, you are to mingle with the other wolves while the Alpha assigns you to your position. Who knows, maybe you can be his mate," Chris says, kissing my forehead before he and Jake walk away to join the other parents and guardians. I sigh sadly as I watch wolves my age talk to their parents one last time, wishing for once that my own had survived the rogue attack eight years ago. Shaking my head, I take a deep breath, sighing wistfully one last time before turning towards the building and heading into it with a brave smile on my face.

The first thing that hits me is the amount of wolves; the second is how they are dressed. Everyone wants to make a good impression since they are aiming for the highest position possible, even the girls are trying to stay away from one position that no one wants, the breeder.

Breeders are the girls assigned to become the pup-making machines in the pack. Their job is to be bred and fucked senseless by the warriors who are mateless. It is to add more wolves to our pack population and bring about stronger wolves in the next generation. It is a barbaric way to increase the pack's population, but none of us has a say in it. To say I am nervous is an understatement, and knowing that whoever gets the breeder position will be a slave and will be screwed daily 'till she births twenty pups isn't helping my mood.

While everyone else mingles, I stick to myself and head to a corner of the room as I spot the Alpha talking to a few girls, two warriors with him at all times. Those warriors are the ones everyone fears. They are the ones waiting for the girl who will be the newest breeder, and they are the ones who will handle the newest breeder because they chose to never find their mates just to be able to have their pick of the breeder populace in the pack. They are the warriors that love being able to screw any girl as they please without repercussion and are a she-wolf's worst nightmare.

Finally the Alpha turns in my direction and begins to make his way towards me. I can't help but smile at our young Alpha. At twenty, the man has yet to find a mate to rule beside him as his Luna and is the most eligible bachelor of our pack.

"Laina, how ni—." He stops mid-greeting and sniffs the air, moving closer to me. Excitement bubbles inside me with the possibility this brings. His scent wafts over me, and a feeling of calmness runs through every nerve ending. Could I possibly be his mate? Quietly I wait for his next statement, which will decide my fate and role.

"Breeder." His voice is filled with desire as his hands shift to grope my large breasts, a smirk playing at his lips. I gasp in surprise, fear spreading through me with this one word. This isn't possible, right?

The two warriors' stoic faces soon fill with smirks as their eyes scan me from head to toe. The one with dreadlocks winks at me, and I know he will want to take his go at me first. His partner reaches out to grab my left arm as the dreadlock guy takes my right, and they begin to lead me out of the room. Whispers and sympathetic gazes are sent my way, but I hold my head high and my gaze steady. I will not show weakness to them.

Everyone knows what happens after you are assigned as breeder. You will be whisked away from your family and forced to stay in a cottage guarded day and night, only able to garden in the medium-sized yard given to you. But the truth is you are nothing but a slave, and this is my future.

I feel numb inside as I am led to a separate area just to the left of the pack house, a black car coming into view. In moments, Chris and Jake will be told my position, and they will be given half an hour to talk to me as my legal guardians before I am taken away to what will be my prison for the next twenty or so years.

They will be here in Queue a sobbing Chris.

"Laina, are you okay?" Chris's voice fills my ears, and his arms hold me in a tight hug. I watch as the guards walk away to give us privacy. Since this is my last free moment, the guards are not allowed to listen in at all. A few minutes of silence falls between us, and I can't stand it, my mind just can't wrap around the situation I am in.

"I...I don't know what to do," I whisper, feeling Jack wipe away the stray tears that had fallen from my eyes.

"What you do is behave, wait for a free moment, and run. Run towards the old treehouse, look for something pink, grab it, and keep running." I don't understand what Chris is saying, my fuzzy mind unable to comprehend his words before I am ripped away from him and pushed into the car, the door slamming in my face and the engine coming to life.

I watch in the rear-view mirror as my life fades away from me, the tears now flowing freely.

Is this how Katniss felt when she was whisked away from her family in District 12?

As the pack territory slowly passes by, I decide to rest my eyes. Breeders are given an area on the far west of the territory, where no one will be able to disturb them, which is guarded day and night with patrols. It will be the community I call home. Hope slowly slips out of my grasp the further away I travel from the pack and the closer I get to the cottage that will be my prison. At sixteen, I should be enjoying life, not being sentenced to life as a mother. Sighing, I decide to let the comfort of sleep take over. It is too painful to continue watching out the window.

Sometime later, I feel the car come to a stop. I open my tired eyes and take in my surroundings. In front of me is a gorgeous grey brick cottage, a small porch welcoming me to sit and read during the day. Light-blue widow trimming, front door, and roof give the cottage a fairy-tale look, something I would have loved to live in under any other circumstances. The garden needs some work and care, but the white picket fence that seems to run around the perimeter gives the final touch this place needs. It will be my new home—more like prison—from now on.

Slowly the door to the car opens, and the guards wait on either side for me to get out. I can't help but sigh in defeat while I climb out of the backseat and step onto the simple driveway. Surrounding my new home is the forest I so loved to run in. I can't see any other cottages, but the rise of smoke from many chimneys tells me that this area holds a few breeders. Maybe the guards guarding me will let me visit them and allow me out of the cottage for a bit.

I know what comes next: Every female wolf is drilled in the breeder rules in case they become one. I am given three days to explore the house and design it the way I want, including painting any and all walls, decorating the interior, and doing some landscaping.

On the fourth day of being here, the doctor assigned to the care of all breeders and the Alpha will come to do a check-up and make sure I am healthy. If I am a virgin, it is the Alpha's duty to take measures into his own hands by fucking me as much as he wants on that day—thank god he will be using a condom, as per the rules. After that, I am given three days to be pampered and given a dose of the medication I am to take to make sure my body is ready to start my new "job." On the eighth day, the top mateless warrior is sent to me and will come every day to fuck me like a cheap whore until I become pregnant. This is the new life I've been thrown into, without concern for my own wellbeing. The warrior who is chosen to breed with me will continue this process until he finds his mate. Then, I will be given a new breeding partner, and the cycle will repeat until I birth twenty pups. Of course, there are exceptions. Warriors who chose never to find a mate are given the chance to pick any breeder they want, whenever they want, and are allowed to fuck them as much as they want. They are the ones many she-wolves avoid on a regular day, but as a breeder, all I can do is spread my legs and allow them to do as they please.

The sad part about this is once the pups are weaned, they will be taken to wolves that can't have pups so that they can raise them as their own. I will never get to be a mother to my own babies. I can't help but break down and cry as I realize this, falling to my knees and hugging myself. The guards must feel sorry for me because they back away and leave me to myself. I am thankful for their consideration. My dreams of finding my mate and raising a family have now gone into oblivion, scattered on the winds of my pain. I will never have my freedom ever again.

Soon, my cries become sobs, until I am left gasping for breath. I want to run far away and escape my fate, but I can't. I would be caught in a heartbeat and punished. So, instead, I dry my eyes as best as I can and stand up, determination filling me while I march into the cottage, turning around and stopping the guards from entering.

"This is my house now! The only time I have no say in who comes in is when the Alpha or the warrior who will breed with me comes in. Other than that, you two stay outside." They growl at my disrespectful behavior, and I growl back just as loud. I may have had a moment of weakness earlier, but I will be dammed if they disrespect me. I may be a breeder, but Alpha and Beta blood courses through my body thanks to my parents. No one will take my courage and the status of my bloodline away from me. Watching the warriors bend to my growl and back away, I give them a triumphant smirk before slamming the door shut. I will allow no one into this place unless they are the Alpha, the doctor, my breeding partner, or someone I trust.

Turning around and leaning against the blue door, I notice how dusty the place is and frown. The first thing to be done is a cleaning from top to bottom. I refuse to live in a dirty, dusty home. I quickly explore the cottage, finding a large room that has cleaning supplies and looks to be a laundry room, with a state-of-the-art washer and dryer waiting to be used. The idiots remembered to stock up cleaning supplies but forgot to clean the place.

I smile and leave the stuff there so I can continue exploring the other rooms, finding an unused state-of-the-art kitchen, with a fully stocked refrigerator and pantry, three plain bedrooms, a master bedroom with a master bath, and a small bathroom. I am actually quite shocked to see how big the cottage is inside but sad that there is no basement. It would be nice to turn a basement into a workout room. I come to another door just beside the entryway and peer inside, shocked to find a garage. I guess the wall covered in vines on the outside is actually a garage door. With a smile, I decide to turn this into my home gym. I will need someplace to keep in shape if I am to have multiple children.

Getting to work, I run through the two-story cottage once again, searching through all the closets to find linen, bedspreads, towels, and any other cloth and clothing that will need to be cleaned. It takes a couple of trips, but soon I have everything in my laundry room sorted into multiple baskets, with a load already being washed. I had a lot of work to do.

With the laundry done, I begin to rush around once more, opening all the windows and the glass door to the backyard to allow fresh air to blow inside while I start cleaning. I know the clothes I am wearing will be ruined, but I would rather have a clean prison than clean clothes right now. I can always change later, when my clothes are sent to me.

I hate knowing that I only have three days to clean and prepare my new home. I make sure that today, no matter how late I get to bed, this place is clean and dust free. It sucks, but the cleaning has to be done.