by Karen Ruth
I just looked at him and shrugged my shoulders. He looked away from me and focused his attention back on Seth. I followed his lead and did the same. I couldn’t believe everyone could be so mellow about attacking others. It isn’t like we are defending our territory. We don’t even own this part of the woods. Technically, we don’t own ANY part of the woods. We just keep scent markers on it so other werewolves will stay away.
“Ok everybody, let us transform,” said Seth.
Before I knew it everybody began to take off their clothes. I myself am not comfortable changing in front of others. For this reason, I begin to turn around to go behind one of the trees for cover.
“Where do you think you’re going, Nina?” Said Seth.
“Just behind the tree, I will be back in one minute.”
This made Seth laugh. “You don’t have to be embarrassed, I mean you don’t have the best body I’ve seen but it’s not too bad either.”
This statement made my cheeks flush red in embarrassment. I had no idea as to whether take this as a compliment or be upset that he said my body wasn’t that good looking. I continued on my way as the others laughed and whistled. Oh, how I wished they could learn to at least respect me.
Standing behind one of the tall maple trees, I began to slowly take off my leather outfit. I can’t believe they are making me do this. Invading someone else’s territory to expand our own. This is wrong to me on so many different levels. Once I took off my outfit, I began to force my body into the change. The first thing that happens to my body is my eyes begin to change to their shimmery blue color. Then my nails begin to grow in size and shape. Tremors rock my entire body causing agonizing pain. Since I’m still new to this process, my body takes a while longer than the rest of them to change. Spasms of my muscles cause my body to fall onto my hands and knees. In the distance, I hear Andrew call out in his wolf form,
“Hurry up Nina, it’s not that hard!”
My eyesight goes black from the pain and before I know it I’m transformed into my wolf.
I come out from behind the trees to rejoin my pack. Every one of them was in their wolf form just sitting there impatiently for me. It wasn’t like it took me that long to transform, I’m just not into the whole rip-off our clothes and go type of person. All of their eyes were on me as I made my trek towards the center of the group.
“Did it take you long enough?” Said Donavan.
I just rolled my wolf eyes and sat down with my tail wrapped around my front white paws.
It seems to me like the most popular wolf fur color is grey. Thorn, Andrew, and Donovan all have grey coats. There are some minor differences between the three. Andrew’s coat contains the most amount of black, then thorn, and finally Donavan. Rafiq has a beautiful reddish coat that seems to shine in the sunlight. I’ve seen other images of werewolves around and most of the time they are all grey with a few reddish fur coats. I honestly hardly ever see black and even more rarely, white. I feel as though having a white coat is a disadvantage. Well at least in the summer. It seems like I’m so easily spotted out for my coat color and that the others hate my white coat. It makes me feel ugly inside. Personally, I love having a white coat, but to the others, they find it more of an annoyance.
Before I realized it, everyone was already on their way entering the new territory. I must have been too busy thinking about my fur coat I didn’t even realize everyone left.
“Get moving Nina!” Seth’s voice breaking my thoughts.
Quickly, I scurried to my feet and began running towards them. How could I always be so dumb? The others hate me enough, well except for Rafiq. I need to learn how to focus on them better. I can’t keep making mistakes like this. The more mistakes I make the more they will think that I’m worthless.
Entering the enemy territory, I was hit with a wave of werewolf smell. There was no way that the others didn’t smell this. It was overwhelming. Whoever put this here did not want anyone trespassing on it.
“Seth!” My voice yelled out. “We shouldn’t be here; can’t you smell the territory marker?”
He just turned his big black wolf head and me and gave me a smirk.
“I told you it’s ours now just ignore the markers," Seth said smirking.
I opened my mouth in dismay. My entire gut instinct was telling me this was wrong, that we didn’t belong here. I knew that danger must be near. Every bone, every nerve in my body could sense it.
The others went to smell the nearby tress and mask up the unknown groups' smell with ours. They looked as if it didn’t bother them at all taking over a property that wasn’t ours. Donovan even had a smile masking his face. I couldn’t believe them, especially Rafiq. This was not like him at all, or so I thought. This was the first mission I’ve ever been on with them. Usually, they keep me at home not wanting me to interfere with their work. It was “Man” work, or so they claimed. They probably didn’t want me to voice my opinion on things that were wrong.
Since I’ve only been a werewolf for a few months, I’m still learning all the rules and regulations. From the little I know, this is definitely going against the law. Werewolves are supposed to abide by others' scent markers, not destroy them. All werewolves try to be a friendly and independent group, sticking to their packs for socialization. Usually, there is no conflict between packs as long as everyone does what they are supposed to do. Well, at least this is what I’ve been told by the group members, who knows if it’s true at all.
All of a sudden, my senses tingled. My ears pricked forward and I became alert standing in my defense position. I smelled the air, a scent that I knew of quite well. A pack of werewolves was coming, the ones who own this land. At least eight of them, two more than our pack.
Seth’s voice broke out “Someone’s coming!” “Attack!” he screamed.
Before thinking my body went into automatic. Instead of running towards the enemies, I dove in the front of our group blocking their onset to attack.
“What are you doing?” Said Seth in an unfriendly tone. “Get out of the way or I’ll just run through you.”
“Seriously Nina, move,” said Rafiq.
This stung a little. Usually, Rafiq is nice and gentle to me, not this harsh tone he was possessing. Usually, he would question me about what I was doing before accusing me.
A whistle from behind me diverted my attention. I turned around to see the eight werewolves that emerged from behind the trees. They were bigger than our group of werewolves, much stronger. I knew that we couldn’t win a fight against them even if we tried, and for a fact, I knew that Seth definitely would try. Seth is quite large muscular-wise, but not as big as these. Just like our group, there was one black male, one red male, and the rest all grey. In this group, they didn’t have a female, probably for the fact that a female would be a disgrace to them.
One of the werewolves who whistled, the one with the red coat, voice broke out even though I’m not quite sure where.
“Looks like they got themselves a female, an alpha nonetheless.”
I just gave them a puzzled look and responded with a sarcastic tone.
“So what if I’m a female, and alpha you’re funny, more like omega,” I said laughing that they could be so stupid.
This caused them all to raise their eyebrows with a puzzling look directed toward the wolf in black.
“I didn’t say that out loud did I guys? How did she hear me? The red coat questioned.”
“Umm, how couldn’t I hear you?” I responded. “You pretty much yelled it to me, you might want to work on being a little quieter if you’re going to talk about someone behind their back.”
Rafiq’s voice broke out and said, “Nina, who are you talking to?” “Nobody said anything, are you ok?”
I faced Rafiq and gave him a puzzling look. “Can’t you hear them?” He simply shook his head and looked at me like I was crazy.
The red one opened his mouth once more but the one in black waved his tail towards him.
“Reed that�
��s enough,” he responded taking a step towards me. My pack growling in the process causing the enemies to do the same. “What are you guys doing here?” He said.
“We…” I started before being cut off by Seth who pushed me aside.
“Nina, be quiet you don’t have the authority to talk. Know your place.”
I went silent and lowered my head letting him speak instead.
“We discovered this piece of land, and I decided that we are going to take it from you.” He simply said.
I turned my head towards Seth and said “Seth we can’t…..”
He turned around and growled at me “Nina shut up!” “Do I have to teach you a lesson later?”
I immediately went silent. That “lesson” is not something I want to happen.
The black wolf opened his mouth to speak,
“Ok, here’s a few things. First, you shouldn’t speak to a female like that, it’s against our laws. Second, you can’t be here because this is royal property and you know that. So, I’m going to make you a deal. I will let you go without bloodshed if you leave with a few conditions. First, you must leave this land and not come back. Second, you must let me speak alone with Nina for a few minutes. Don’t worry, nothing will harm her, I promise on behalf of the royal court.”
My mind was spinning, I was so confused. What did they mean by not speaking to a female like that and it is against our laws? Since I’ve been a werewolf all I’ve heard is that females deserve to be spoken to like that. Also, what in the world was this so-called royal court? What could he possibly want to talk to me about? Is he going to give me a lecture about speaking out of terms like all I hear from Seth? If so, I did not want to speak to this man at all. I’m sick of these lectures I get that makes me feel like crap.
Seth took a step forward, earning a growl from the other wolf pack.
“Hmmm, maybe we want to have a little bloodshed. It seems quite entertaining.” He flashed his teeth towards the enemies, licking his dark lips.
In a calm spoken voice, the black alpha simply replied “Do you honestly think that is a good idea, Seth?” “Don’t you remember what happened last time you tried this?” “Besides, there are only six of you and eight of us. Is that really going to work out in your favor?”
I turned my attention to Seth, holding my breath. Whatever he said next could determine whether we fight, and most likely lose, or if we go peacefully. Well if they go peacefully, I’m not quite sure what will happen to me given that I’m part of this peace treaty.
I held my breath. This was the moment that would decide our fate. Time seemed to slow down as I got into my fighting stance along with the other members of both packs. Somewhere I heard the enemy say,
“Only fight those that attack us, don’t fight the innocent ones.”
I turned my head toward them once more, cocking my head sideways, my face giving off how puzzled I was. They just simply gave me back the same puzzled face, all except the alpha.
Seth’s voice broke out silencing our thoughts. “We will leave in peace, you shall have only five minutes with the female.”
The alpha simply replied, “You are in no place to negotiate, but I will follow your wish.”
My heart slammed into my chest beating ever so fast. What could they want with me? I slowly began to walk towards them as they turned around, away from my pack. The alpha went away from the others and signaled me to walk to him. As I approached the alpha, I truly got to see what he looked like for the first time. He had dark midnight black-looking fur, with no other colors evident anywhere on him. It was a beautiful shade that made me think of the midnight sky. His eyes were a bright golden hue that I’ve only ever seen in pictures. His long coat ruffled in the wind as he walked.
When I reached him, I bowed down to him.
“Yes, sir? I asked.”
He looked at me with a small smile etched across his face
“Please, call me Lucas.”
“Hmm, yes, Lucas then?”
This caused him to give out a small chuckle.
“Tell me, what are you doing with this crowd of wolves? You don’t belong with them.”
“Well, Seth was here for me when I needed someone the most. You see, my mom and sister are both normal and I had no idea what was wrong with me. If you don’t mind me asking, what do you mean I don’t belong with this pack?”
“Tell me, can you hear what they are thinking?”
“Uh…… no? Why would I be able to hear their thinking? That’s kind of ridiculous, isn’t it?”
I thought this alpha lost his mind. Nobody can hear anyone talking in their head. That’s like a children’s story.
“But you heard us earlier, didn’t you?” He gave me a questioning look.
“Yes, because you guys were pretty much yelling in my ear,” I responded.
“The easiest way to tell if you belong in a pack together is if you can hear each other’s thoughts. A long time ago, werewolves were having a hard time finding a pack that fit them. To solve this issue, our elders blessed us with the ability to hear each other’s thoughts. Only those that belong in a pack will be able to hear them. That’s why when you were talking to us earlier, your group members thought you were crazy. They couldn’t hear us, but you could. You don’t belong in their group, you belong in ours. I know this is crazy and I’m not going to go force you to join us. I want you to come when you want or need to. Just know that if you ever need me just call my name.”
My head was spinning. Was all of this true? Could any of this be true? I guess it made sense for the fact that I could hear them, but Rafiq couldn’t and he thought I was crazy.
“How do I know what you are saying is true?” I asked puzzled.
Lucas answered, “you don’t, but just know that if you have any questions, just ask.”
“I’m supposed to just call your name? How are you supposed to hear me?”
“Trust me, I will, you don’t even have to say it out loud. I’ll be listening.”
“That’s kinda creepy don’t you think?” I gave him a smile which caused him to laugh.
“Everything about us is a little creepy. Now go back to your pack before they begin to worry.”
I turned around to head back to my pack. Reading the expressions on their face they looked worried, especially Seth to my surprise. Why would he be worried? He could see me the entire time, so he knew I was safe. He was the last one who I would expect to be worried about me. Rafiq was the one who I thought cared the most.
“Oh and Nina?” I heard Lucas call from behind me. I turned my head to look at him. “White means alpha.”
What did he mean by that? White means alpha? White what? I gave him a puzzling look but he just turned around and went back into the woods where he came from with his pack.
Chapter 2
I headed back to my pack entering their circle. Their strong muscles began to relax when the others left. For once everyone was silent and Thorn didn’t have a sarcastic remark to say. It was almost nice.
Seth broke the silence by demanding “What did he talk to you about?”
For some reason, I didn’t know if I should trust him anymore.
I decided on saying “he wanted to tell me that I need to respect the alpha male more. I guess he wanted to make sure I learn to follow orders more. It was pretty annoying.”
“Uh-huh sure,” Seth responded. “What was that whole white means alpha thing?”
“Honestly, I wish I knew,” I responded.
Which was actually very true. I did wish I knew what he was talking about.
We all started heading back to where we left our clothes. I went behind the tree once more to transform back into my human counterpart. My wolf was disappointed, she really wanted to run and feel the soft breeze brush her face as she ran through the forest. Usually, I would have let her have her wish, but I just couldn’t today. It has been a tremendously long day, I just needed to go back home and make sure my family is ok. Thinking of my family ca
used my heart to wrench. I have no idea if my mom has forgiven me for what happened earlier or not. I’m actually terrified to go back home. To face her after the problems that I caused. Hopefully, Catherine was there to calm her down. My sister has always been my mother’s favorite even though she’d never admit it. She’s like the goody-two-shoes in the family always watching over her. Honestly, I wish I could do what she does. I envy what she can do, take care of our mother, and just be a normal human. She also sees the good in everybody. No matter if they do her wrong she would always have their back. I could never be this person, I hold too many grudges and my sarcastic attitude tends to get me into trouble too much.
Once I got changed back into my clothes, I stepped out from behind the tree. Once more everyone was waiting for me.
“What?!” I yelled. “Do you realize I have more clothes to put on than the rest of you? I don’t think any of you guys wear a bra now do you?”
This fueled Thorn’s immature attitude.
“Well, no one asked you to wear one. In fact, I think if we had it our way you wouldn’t even be wearing anything at all.”
For this remark, I walked up to him and punched him in the arm, and not very lightly. This caused him to jump back and yell “Ouch, what was that for?”
“You know what that was for,” I said while I walked away from him and left it at that.
Heading back to my house, Rafiq came with me and everyone else went their separate ways, no need to stay together anymore. “Honestly Nina, what did Lucas say? You can trust me, I won’t tell Seth.”
I looked at Rafiq’s face. He has a childish look on his face that makes him look ever so young and innocent. He’s always been the one I trusted with everything. My gut wrenched trying to tell me not to tell him. I decided to ignore my gut feeling. Rafiq has never betrayed my trust and I don’t think he would start now.
“He said that I don’t belong with you guys. He said if I did I’d be able to hear your thoughts, which I can’t.”
I decided to leave out the whole part about belonging with them. I still haven’t decided if I believe that or not. He looked at me and gave me a small nod of the head.
