Because of Weres' particular ability to sense emotions in others, the bond was considered sacred and taken much more seriously than humans acknowledged the idea of soul mates.
Being a 'bonded mate' was the term for when those two potential mates got together and consummated the relationship, becoming official mates. That was the difficult and, perhaps for some relieving, part about the whole thing. Just because they could be your mate, didn't make it set in stone. Lora wished it was, so she knew for sure Nik would feel the same way. That she could claim him as hers and no one would ever dare touch him.
If only she didn't have feelings for the one man that had a demon lingering over him like a storm cloud over the earth, waiting precariously to strike whatever tree happened to be rooted into it, with lightning. Nik is the earth, and I'm the tree. The storm cloud demon is Fraya Hummel, Lora thought with a frown.
Lora couldn't imagine getting along with her even if Fraya wasn't so jealous and bitter because Lora was getting close to the one man Fraya couldn't.
Nik had never taken any real interest in Fraya, though she had had a long-lasting desire for him since not long after her partner, Thor, had died. Lora had never met Thor or his family. He'd died before she'd moved to Deer Creek. He'd been from a different Pack, but from what she'd heard, he had been a good man.
It made Lora wonder how someone as messed-up as Fraya could have got an apparently great man like Thor? She'd always wondered if perhaps Fraya hadn't always been like this. It was the only thing stopping her from going straight to Nik and complaining about her. That and the fact she wasn't the type to complain about anyone. She thought it made her a 'grass' and people would dislike her for it.
She'd met Fraya the second day she'd arrived. Fraya had been very welcoming and friendly to her but things changed very swiftly after that.
Looking back, Lora suspected it happened some time after she saw the Weres in true form one night. The shock overwhelmed her. Though the community were supportive and understanding about it, she couldn't shake her terror. Outwardly she learnt to repress it. Only Nik was able to see the wariness in her eyes though he never mentioned it.
After that awkward start, Nik took it upon himself to show her the ropes. He took her out at night, spending hours -days- talking to her about the Change, the process, anything she wanted to know. He answered her questions with patience. He even showed her how he Changed. It shocked and paralyzed her with consuming fear but she never uttered a word of it to him. He told her that when he witnessed how she concealed her emotions, no matter what was going on inside her head, it was then that he'd fallen in love with her. And the knowledge soon spread. Quicker than wild fire, though Lora didn't know how.
And then Fraya turned into Lora's own personal, walking nightmare. Following her, insulting her.
Earlier today, Fraya had attacked her. They passed each other in the woods and Lora looked up to find Fraya glaring at her. In those eyes, Lora saw the jealousy, that swiftly turned to rage. She froze, only just having enough time to curl up into a foetal position before Fraya kicked and punched her anger out on her. Then Fraya made the mistake of catching Lora in the face and it left a nasty mark.
Bleeding from her eyebrow and grasping her cheek, she gaped at Fraya. Fraya looked equally as shocked before turning around and marching in the other direction.
Lora knew she couldn't hide her injuries from Nik. So she'd escaped to the library, sinking in and out of her novel, contemplating when she should go and see him.
He made that decision for her by finding her there.
She was the only one there. It was getting dark, and she was perched on the window sill with her feet on the chair by the desk. The desk lamp was on and he spotted it before he saw her. She tried to hide her left side from his sight but the low light from the window and the brighter glow of the lamp made it difficult.
Even though she'd dabbed her bloody cheek and brow with a wet cloth it was an awful sight. The moment his eyes fell on her face he swore and demanded her to tell him what had happened.
She didn't want to lie to him, but she couldn't tell him who had done it. Even after everything she still felt sorry for Fraya and knew she'd been in trouble before for being violent. When Thor had died it had really affected Fraya and though the Council were understanding before, they wouldn't continue to make excuses for her. Lora knew Nik would see to that. She knew how ruthless the laws of the Pack were but wasn't sure what they would do to Fraya if Nik was in the driving seat. She didn't want that on her conscience.