Vihaan didn’t want him, and he might never be happy, but the dream remained. Home. Where his family lived. Where his memories rooted deep into the ground. Where his heart remained. As beautiful as Dnara was, Vihaan haunted him. Whispering promises of a better life. Offering the impossible, if he fought for what he wanted.
Standing, fighting, Keon had a glimmer of hope. Every change began somewhere. Vihaan’s change would start at home.
*
AFTER INSPECTING THEperimeter of their land and speaking with the guards, Keon slipped into his house, showered, dressed, and retreated without being seen. Reassured his pack was safe, the perimeter was protected, and Thatcher hadn’t made trouble, he could go about his day.
Curiosity refused to fade. He walked through the village, nodding to familiar faces, helping if someone was struggling, checking in. Unlike his first day, smiles and greetings brightened his morning. People were starting to accept his return to the pack, if not his position as Alpha.
At the square, he paused at the well and poured a cup of water to provide a reason to linger. He perched on the stone wall surrounding the well and sipped, eyeing the two wooden boards Weston had erected by the podium. The new laws had been printed and hammered into the boards. A crowd of six teenagers had gathered, talking and laughing amongst themselves.
Though he hated to eavesdrop, Keon needed to know their reaction, as the process to document them had been excruciating. Three days spent sorting Simeon’s paperwork, revoking his laws and redacting. Weston had notarised them, every documentation requiring three signatures. Of course, laws required copies in triplicate: one for the pack to keep, one for Farley, and a third for the official records keeper of foame.
Keon focused on the teenagers who crowded the law boards, the inspiration for his new laws, common-sense decisions for an Alpha of the modern age to help the pack grow into the future.
Laws created by Alpha Keon must be revoked only with the cooperation of the pack and the Meskli.
Any mating performed during the reign of Alpha Keon cannot be rejected or revoked without the consent of both parties.
No one is required to accept their true mate. If a justifiable reason can be given to refuse the match, the Alpha will agree. Counselling or a period of separation, in questionable circumstances, may be suggested.
No limitations will be given to matings, as long as they’re conducted with full and conscious consent. Including, but not limited to, multiple partners, same-sex relationships, and aromantic/asexual members who choose not to mate.
All members of the pack are, and will always be treated as, equal. Abuse will not be tolerated. Including, but not limited to, discrimination against the infirm, transgender, same-sex couples, disabled, elderly, or the mentally impaired.
Domestic abuse of psychological, emotional, or physical means will not be tolerated. Those suffering abuse will be given immediate sanctuary. A dissolution of a mating or family ties, and relocation to a place of safety, is guaranteed for severe cases.
The pack is a family unit. When one member is sick, in need, or struggling, the others will rally to provide. Including, but not limited to, comfort, care, food, companionship, and compassion.
