The scent hit him first—sweat and fear and something uniquely feminine, all tangled with the unmistakable musk of a newly shifted wolf. Zi Yu's lips curled in a predatory smile as he stepped silently through the trees, his bare feet making no sound on the forest floor.

There she was, half-concealed behind an ancient cedar, body still shuddering from the aftershocks of transformation. Her human form was small, vulnerable, her chest heaving with sobs as she stared at her hands as if they belonged to someone else.

Perfect.

He made his presence known with a soft, deliberate rustle of leaves. Her head snapped up, eyes wide with terror as she stumbled backward, pressing herself against the tree trunk.

"Please... I don't understand what's happening..."

Her voice trembled, but there was a spark in those wide eyes that caught his interest—frightened but not broken.

Zi Yu stepped into the moonlight, allowing her to see him fully. His shirt was gone,丢弃 carelessly somewhere in the forest when the hunt began. His muscles rippled as he moved forward, slow and deliberate like a cat approaching its prey.

"You're a wolf," he said simply, his voice low and hypnotic. "A new one." He tilted his head, eyes raking over her body with open hunger. "And you're mine."

Her eyes widened further. "What... what are you talking about?"

He didn't answer with words. Instead, he closed the distance between them in two long strides, his hands slamming against the tree trunk on either side of her head, trapping her against the rough bark. The sudden movement drew a gasp from her lips.

"The moment you shifted," he murmured, leaning in until his mouth brushed her ear, "you became part of my pack. My territory. My responsibility." His knee slid between her legs, applying just enough pressure to make her gasp again. "And I always take what's mine."

Her hands pressed against his chest, not pushing him away but not pulling him closer either—uncertainty written across her face.

"Please..." she whispered, but the word lacked conviction, her body already betraying her as she leaned into his knee.

Zi Yu's lips curved into a knowing smile against her neck. "Please what?" He nipped gently at her skin, feeling her shiver beneath him. "Please stop? Or please continue?"

His hand slid down her side, gripping her hip possessively as his other tangled in her hair, tilting her head back to expose her throat to his hungry gaze.

"I can smell your fear," he breathed, his free hand moving upward to cup her breast through her thin shirt. "But I can also smell something else..."

He squeezed gently, feeling her nipple harden beneath his palm as a soft whimper escaped her.

"Desire," he finished, his voice a growl now. "You want this. Want me."

It wasn't a question. He could feel it in the way her body responded to his touch, the rapid beat of her heart against his chest, the sweet scent of arousal beginning to overpower her fear.

"The others will feel it soon," he murmured against her skin, his fingers now working the button of her jeans. "The bond forming between us. But make no mistake—you belong to me, and me alone."

His mouth crashed against hers, not gentle or hesitant but hard and demanding, claiming her with teeth and tongue until she was clinging to him, her initial resistance melting away as she kissed him back with equal desperation.

When he finally pulled away, her lips were swollen and her eyes dark with want.

"Welcome to the pack," he whispered, his fingers sliding beneath the waistband of her underwear. "You're going to learn very quickly who your alpha is."

And as his fingers found their target, drawing a sharp gasp from her lips, Zi Yu smiled—a dark, satisfied smile that promised pleasures and pains she couldn't yet imagine.