Chapter 7: Birthday Party - Amelia

Before I knew it, it was quarter to six and the party was about to start. I get up and slip my shoes back on and take my hair down which now has a natural wave in it from drying while up in my hair clip. I once again make the journey downstairs to the back of the packhouse and down to the training grounds and holy crap! It looks like an outdoor club.

I’ll say this for my mother, she knows how to throw a party.

The smell of different types of foods is permeating the air making me salivate and my stomach is instantly ready to pig out again. If I weren’t a wolf I’d be the size of an elephant, I swear.

The training ground is almost unrecognisable except for the bleachers. The track and sparring field has been covered by a massive light-up dancefloor that can fit the whole pack. Tall speakers surround the dancefloor and down the far end, a DJ booth has been set up. Closer to the packhouse are tables with all assortments of foods and I even notice there are strobe lights mounted into the trees pointed towards the training ground.

This has to be the coolest 21^st birthday in the history of 21^st birthdays.

As soon as I get towards the dancefloor I spot Torie down at the DJ booth, she gives me a smile, a nod and starts the music. She’s awesome.

She’s twenty-six, has brown hair down to her bustline that is combed over to the side while the left side of her head is shaved clean. She also has this tribal design of a wolf tattooed onto her scalp where her hair is shaved off. She’s wearing her usual black tank top, black skinny jeans, and probably leather boots. She’s 5’3”, has pale skin with a peachy hue to it and she is built like a linebacker. Broad shoulders, thick thighs, just head to toe muscle. She has forest green eyes and an armband tattoo around her right bicep. She looks like a stereotypical badass, and honestly, she is.

People often don’t believe she’s an Omega, maybe that’s why she worked so hard to bulk up, but that’s not my business. She picks up the microphone and holds it close to her mouth.

“Come on Invictus Pack, time to get on the dancefloor and wish the birthday girl a happy twenty-first birthday!” she shouts, pumping everyone up. The grounds erupt into cheers as I watch my pack members merge in from everywhere and start occupying the dancefloor.

I’m immediately swarmed by my best friends, but I notice no Mei. That’s okay, her coming to lunch was a big step and I was very grateful for it, but I know a party like this would have been too much. I dance my way over to Chris.

“You don’t have to stay here. Don’t feel like you have to choose between us and Mei,” I tell him. He gives me a smile.

“She and I talked about it. I want to be here, and she encouraged me to have some fun. She felt proud that she took steps forward today, but it was still overwhelming for her, so she wants some time alone and partying with my favourite people will help me not to stress about being away from her,” he explains as I nod in understanding.

“Then party it up and return when you’re ready,” I tell him, but he blindsides me and pulls me into a hug. I rub his back taken aback by the gesture. “Are you okay?” I ask him, feeling concerned. He nods and briefly presses his forehead to mine. This may seem overly intimate, but this is how wolves show affection, it’s not inappropriate for us.

“Thank you, Amelia. For how supportive and welcoming you have been to her. She warms up around you and it means everything to me. I’ll be very proud to call you my Alpha tomorrow,” he says, each word more heartfelt than the last and I can’t help but well up with tears.

“See, this is why I didn’t wear make-up,” I joke while wiping my eyes as he laughs. “I promise we will keep her safe. Anyone messes with her they answer to me. But that’s assuming I survive tomorrow,” I say with a playful wink, but he immediately stiffens and obviously the others were listening because they surround me instantly.

“What do you mean if you survive tomorrow?” Evalyn asks worriedly. I sigh. Well, that joke backfired.

“The Alpha told her to expect multiple challenges at the ceremony tomorrow,” Vitali answers for me, eliciting growls from Chris, Tyson, and Evalyn.

“Dicks!” Tyson exclaims. “I know it’s tradition and keeps us fair but it’s disrespectful as hell. Name another pack that has had multiple challenges during a single ceremony,” he spits in indignation.

“Alpha Bruce of the Messis Luna Pack had two challenges in a single night. Lost to the second challenger which led to Alpha Edwin taking over the pack,” I say casually. Tyson rolls his eyes.

“Alpha Bruce was an asshole, half the Alphas in the country wanted to challenge him. But that was for the betterment of his pack. This is different,” he says sardonically.

“They’re only doing this because you’re a woman,” huffs Evalyn.

And there it is.

Yes, I am very well aware of their reasons, but it doesn’t matter and I’m choosing not to care because it changes nothing.

“So what? Guys, a challenge is a rite of passage, whatever their reasons it doesn’t matter, a challenge must be upheld, and I say bring it on. Unless you four think I can’t handle it.” I say raising my eyebrow in question at them. They each scoff.

“Don’t be ridiculous,” Tyson says.

“Of course, we think you can win; we just don’t appreciate a bunch of morons disrespecting our Alpha,” Chris says scornfully.

The moment he says that I watch as each of their eyes begin to glow, like neon orbs shining in the dark. This happens when their wolves show their presence and I can see it in their faces, their respect for me, their future Alpha. I swallow the lump in my throat at the sight of the people I cherish most accepting and acknowledging me as their Alpha.

“We have amazing friends,” Zara tells me, equally choked up.

“We sure do, Zara. We sure do,” I reply pulling my friends into a big group hug.

“Having the support of you guys gives me more strength than you will ever know,” I tell them.

“Trust us, we know. But we promise you will always have our support,” Evalyn tells me. I beam at each of them. It’s also good to see they’ve relaxed, and their eyes have returned to normal. But I have to admit, seeing four wolf spirits push forward in solidarity with you feels amazing.

“What’s with the group hug?” asks a tinkly voice behind me. I smile as I turn and see Jennifer; instantly everyone’s mood improves. I walk over and pull her into a hug.

“Oh, they were just being all sooky. Don’t worry about it,” I tell her with a wink as she returns my hug while giggling up at me.

“Happy Birthday Alpha,” she says gleefully, making me chuckle.

“I’m not Alpha yet, Jen, but thank you all the same,” I tell her.

Jennifer is an absolute treasure of a person, not just to me but to our pack. She’s an Omega and sadly much weaker than the average one. In some packs, she would be considered a runt, but everyone adores her. She was the pack’s miracle pup.

She’s 4’8” – which for a wolf is extremely short – she’s got short curly light brown hair with blonde highlights that reach her chin, piercing blue eyes, cute chubby cheeks, and pouty lips. She has cream skin and a narrow waist but is surprisingly busty and she looks beautiful in a soft pink blouse and black leggings.

“Are you excited for the Vernal Ball?” I ask her. Her face breaks into the most radiant smile as she nods excitedly, the others behind me chuckle.

“You’re eighteen now, Jen, time to find your animai and break the heart of every other man out there,” Vitali tells her with a wink making her look down and blush. “That blush could stop hearts you know,” He says flirtatiously making her blush even more. Evalyn elbows him in the ribs making him wince.

“Don’t mind Vitali,” I tell her. “But he’s not wrong, whoever he is he’ll be lucky to have you,” I say warmly.

“You really think so?” she asks, her eyes alight with excitement. I nod unable to stop smiling.

“Absolutely. But if he ever gives you grief he’ll answer to me,” I tell her seriously, but that makes her smile more.

“You’re the best, Alpha.” I smile shaking my head. She gives me a tight hug and then runs off when some friends call her. I smile watching her skip away.

“Aww the little runt found herself some friends,” says a shrill voice to my left. Growls resound from all around, and I turn to face the culprit.

“Jealousy looks about as good on you as that makeup, Jane,” I comment brightly.

Jane Lahde. A proverbial pain in my ass. She’s like the female version of Ryker. Thinks she’s the Gods’ gift to men and thinks she’s the most special person in this pack. She’s not even good enough to lick my boots. Jane could be beautiful if she wasn’t such a raging bitch plus she’s wearing enough makeup to make a clown blush.

“What’s wrong with my makeup?” she hisses. My friends are instantly pissed off because she’s openly talking back and disrespecting hers and their future Alpha. It’s a big no, no when it comes to pack etiquette and is a punishable offence. Ryker gets away with it because he’s too pathetic for me to acknowledge and the whole, his dad is the Beta, thing.

The pack members around us are a mix of pissed off and excited. They’re listening in, probably looking for a fight to entertain them.

“Where do I even begin?” I say rolling my eyes. I can’t wait for the day she gives me a reason to kick her out of the pack.

“I think the reason you’re friends with that runt is because you can relate to her. Face it, Amelia, you’re a wannabe Alpha that nobody wants. I’d say you should stick to being a Luna, but I don’t even think you’d be good at that either,” she sneers and there are several gasps around us. Despite the music, this is all easy to hear thanks to our advanced hearing.

Zara is growling like crazy in my head at the disrespect and pushing forward but I remain calm as I take slow steps towards her while projecting my Alpha Spirit onto her.

An Alpha Spirit is like an energy that an Alpha can exude that can intimidate lower wolves, bring wolves to heel or even make them follow commands. I may not be Alpha yet, but due to being of Alpha blood, I’m able to do this.

Jane immediately whimpers and her head drops in submission.

“Say that again. I’m not sure everyone heard you,” I say in an amused voice as I continue to project my spirit onto her. I can feel her and her wolf cowering under its force. She says nothing. “What happened, Jane? You were more than happy to openly disrespect your future Alpha in front of your entire pack, surely you can do it again. Perhaps you’d even like to challenge me at the ceremony tomorrow.” My voice continues to sound amused, but there’s a sadistic smile on my face.

Her eyes nearly bug out of her skull and even under all that makeup, I can tell the blood has drained from her face since she reeks of fear.

“No?” I ask her. She rapidly shakes her head. I step up to her, getting into her personal space and now she’s full-on trembling, which Zara and I take great satisfaction in. “Disrespect me or a member of this pack again and see what happens,” I whisper calmly in her ear. She shivers and audibly gulps. “Say ‘yes, Alpha’,” I tell her.

“Yes, Alpha,” she says through gritted teeth.

“Louder,” I command.

“Yes, Alpha!” she says loud and clear.

“Good. Now run along,” I say, like a parent to a child. She quickly rushes off.

“I can’t tell if she’s crazy or has gigantic balls,” says Tyson.

“Or maybe she has a death wish,” says Vitali.

These two.

“She’s not worth the headache. Let’s just enjoy the rest of the evening,” I encourage.

The drinks are flowing, the food is disappearing, and I am dancing up a storm on the dancefloor. A couple of hiccups here and there and the occasional fight needing to be broken up but overall I’m having an absolute blast.

I’m just finishing my umpteenth drink when the music comes to an abrupt stop. People start to whine but then I see the crowd part as my parents carry out a massive six-tier birthday cake with sparklers on it.

I smile wide as everyone starts singing me happy birthday. The cake is absolutely stunning, too pretty to even eat. It’s a white cake with gold swirls decorated over the white and each tier base is surrounded by roses. I get close to it, and it smells…oh my Goddess it smells divine. There’s a white buttercream frosting but on the inside, I can smell chocolate and…caramel. Oh yes! Caramel is my absolute favourite.

I hug and kiss my parents thank you as they set the cake down and hand me a knife. Taking the knife I make my way over to Torie and borrow the mic from her as she throws me a wink. I turn and address the pack.

“I just want to say thank you to every single one of you for the birthday wishes, the gifts and for celebrating with me tonight. This birthday wouldn’t be the same without all of you to share it with,” I declare, and am met with cheers and howls of joy. “Before I cut this cake could Leo Meyer, Daniel Owens and Joanna Johnson please join me up here,” I request.

Slowly the people I called make their way over to me with big smiles. I smile back at them as I lead the pack in another round of ‘happy birthday,’ but this time directed at Leo, Daniel, and Joanna. Joanna looks embarrassed, Leo looks relaxed, and Daniel looks proud. I hand the mic back to Torie and walk over to the cake. I motion for the other three to join me. I have them place their hand on the knife along with mine and the four of us cut the cake together as the pack cheers.

“Happy Birthday you guys,” I tell them with a wide smile they return.

“Happy Birthday Alpha,” they say in unison.

Obviously, I was not the only person in this pack born on February 21^st. Having big parties in your honour is a pretty cool perk of being the Alpha’s daughter, but it’s just not in me to ignore my pack members who share my birthday. I mean they’re here, why not celebrate it together? It’s not like I have a monopoly on birthdays.

“Have I told you how proud I am to have been paired with you?” Zara tells me, her voice full of pride.

“Once or twice,” I say cheekily.

Torie starts the music back up and I help my parents distribute cake amongst everyone, setting aside an extra slice for Chris to take to Mei. Once everyone who wants one gets a piece I go and take a seat on the bleachers with my friends. We smile, crack jokes, and enjoy each other’s company.

I bask in the moment, taking in all the happiness around me because as of tomorrow a lot is going to change. I’m ready for all the challenges that await me, literal and metaphorical. I don’t expect the road ahead to be an easy one, but it’s the one I’m proudly taking. I just hope I can do my pack the justice it deserves and bring us into a new era, and if I can’t, I’ll at least die trying.