~ A M E L I A ~Morning jogs had been my favourite thing lately. The sun warmed my cheeks as it rose to warm the earth, and the gentle breeze triggered soft prickles up my arms, down my back and down to escape the base of my feet as they thudded against the ground whilst I pushed harder and harder to keep my pace. And nothing would beat a jog in the woods. Breathing in that fresh and crisp air, away from the noise of the world and allowing you space to ground yourself…There was just something about nature. It was the same feeling I got at night. I felt more connected with myself.‘I’m home!’ I announced as I wobbled through the door, kicking my trainers off as I removed my jacket. It was a little after 8 in the morning and I was severely impressed with the sudden increase in my stamina. Especially considering, not even a month ago I was suffering with the worst flu I had ever experienced. I was surprised my parents didn’t think I was being overly dramatic when I said I felt like I
~ A M E L I A ~Just open it, Amelia. Open the letter.My parents’ encouragement echoed in my ears as I continued to stare at the letter on top of the package, which was now taking over my desk in my room. Apparently, I owed it to myself to at least read the letter to know my birth father’s last words. Words he intended for me. But why now? If he had something so important to tell me, why couldn’t he have come and told me himself while he was still alive? The whole day had passed by, and I’d done nothing but stare at this package and letter all day. All still unopened. The only thing I managed to do was change into comfier clothes.There were no more tears left in me. I still didn’t fully understand why my heart ached for someone I never even knew, for someone who chose to give me up instead of caring for me as their own.He didn’t deserve the attention, and I’d given him enough already. Rip the letter. My inner thoughts appeared so sudden and violent in the back of my mind. Burn
~ A M E L I A ~Jolting up and gasping for air, I patted my throat to see where the wolf sunk its teeth into me. My mind slowly reconnected with my body, and I released a huge relieving sigh as I steadied my breath.I fell asleep. It was only a dream. It almost reminded me of one of the recurring nightmares I had as a child. Looking up at the sky, which was now completely dark, just like in my dream, I rolled my eyes. Great, my mind was playing jokes on me now. Nothing seemed right with me, especially in recent months. Ever since I got sick, feeling like I was dying, then suddenly recovering with more energy than I ever remember having. My mind was in hyperdrive all the time. Not to mention, I’d been getting these wild urges, so intense that it made me want to break something if I didn’t get what I wanted. And that dream, it felt so real.What was happening to me?The comfort I would get at night, when the moon was out, or when I was outside in nature, was different to a human co
~ ONE MONTH LATER ~~ A M E L I A ~By some crazy miracle, I did it. I found the village. It proved to be more difficult to find than I had hoped. Nonetheless, I was here! Langdale - the name given to this village to be able to hide in plain sight, concealing their true identity from the outside world full of humans. A genius move made by whoever was in charge way back when the village, and more specifically the pack, was still growing. With the help of my birth father and all the information he supplied to me, though it wasn’t much, it was just enough to help me find my way here.Now I was here, in Langdale, which was really home to the Silver Moon pack; the pack I was apparently born in before being whisked away to be raised by humans, totally unaware of what secrets were hiding away in my own blood. A month had passed since receiving the letters from my birth father, who I referred to as “E” at times since that was all I knew about him so far. It took time to get things in or
~ A M E L I A ~I was still in a small state of shock that the school allowed me to attend this late in the academic year; having exceeding grades in most of my classes helped. Plus, I mentioned to them that I was at a human school but that I am a pure-blood werewolf, so perhaps they felt inclined to have me be in a school with my own kind. Truthfully, I should have been thankful that they didn’t ask too many questions. After a failed introduction with the head teacher, who was frantically organising paperwork he had mistakenly dropped and mixed with another set of paperwork, I took a folder full of documents I required from the receptionist and scurried away to find my locker. Once found, I opened my locker shoved my bag inside and pulled out a sheet of paper from the folder with my class schedule on it to see what I had first. Health - 9am to 10am. A compulsory subject, so I was told, which felt quite odd given I was in Year 13, my final year of school. Surely we’d learnt all
~ A M E L I A ~Never again.I didn’t want to endure what I witnessed ever again in that class.That’s how intense transforming into a werewolf is.And I thought the video of a woman giving birth that my old school made us watch was bad.Gripping my notebook against my chest, making my way down the hallway to my next class. I was speechless. How was I going to handle that when the time came?‘That was traumatising.’The voice jolted me, I looked to my side, ‘Oh, Sammy,’ I forced a chuckle, ‘Yeah, not what I was expecting on my first day.’Sammy laughed nervously, scratching her neck, ‘I’m not looking forward to experiencing that.’
~ A M E L I A ~Flopping my body on my bed, I released a massive sigh, ‘What a day,’ I said to my ceiling.My phone thunders a vibration. Rolling over to lay on my stomach, I answered the video call request, ‘Hi Mum!’‘Darling! How was your first day?’ Mum smiled. Her eyes were slightly red, it looked like she’d been crying.I let out an exaggerated sigh, ‘It was intense, but a good start I think! Have you been crying again?’‘No!’ She responded almost instantly, pulling out a tissue and dabbing the inner corners of her eyes.Rolling my eyes, I laughed, ‘Mum, please, I’ll be coming back once I find out the truth about my birth parents and learn how to control my wolf abilities better. I’ve already learnt so much about being a wolf in one day—maybe more than I want to know—but it’s still more than before!’Mum sighed, ‘I know, sweetie, but I just wish your dad and I could’ve come there with you, but with his work and mine—‘‘I know, Mum, it’s OK. You raised me to be independent and tau
~ A M E L I A ~A short and somewhat clement gasp escaped Sammy’s mouth. Eyes wide at first, then suddenly blinking over and over again as the arrow stands still right in front of her face. Whatever alcohol she has consumed, in combination with her shock, has numbed her enough to be motionless.My breathing was heavy, but overflowing with relief. My eyes locked onto my fist, clenched around the shaft of the arrow, astounded at my own reflexes kicking in so fast, despite my mind running so slowly.I knew the transition to becoming a werewolf was to gain enhanced abilities, but I didn’t expect it to be to this extent. I’ve been severely underestimating everything so far. How much stronger could I possibly become? ‘Holy fuck…’ Sammy uttered in an exhalation, so quietly that if it wasn’t for my heightened hearing, I surely wouldn’t
~ E V E R E T T ~‘What the hell is going on?’ I asked in a panic as the candle flame began to burn more aggressively, melting the wax representing Amelia’s life force that much faster.Sybil watched the candle in amazement. ‘Her journey through the spirit world has been far too impactful on her body. She’s too weak.’‘No,’ I cooed as I looked back at the small amount of wax that remained of the candle. Squeezing Amelia’s hand, I looked at her and hoped she could hear me in her state of unconsciousness, ‘Listen to me. You are not dying, do you hear me? It’s not your time. It’s not your—‘The room became eerily chilled as the candle flame was snuffed out. I refused to turn around to confirm, hearing Sybil’s saddened sigh was confirmation enough. ‘No… Amelia,’ I cupped a hand on her cheek, ‘wake up. Wake up!’‘Alpha-son, she’s gone.’ Sybil stood and lowered her head, staring at the ground. She also looked heartbroken by this loss. Stepping away from Amelia and towards Sybil, I snapped,
~ A M E L I A ~Panic surged through me. My father’s demise… it was at the hands of his best friend? The Moon Goddess brought us to the time of the battle. As she did, all the magic it took to travel through time was taking a huge toll on my spiritual body. I collapsed to the ground and whimpered, ‘What’s happening to me?’Kneeling beside me, the Moon Goddess helped me up, ‘You don’t have much time, we need to send you back very soon.’I groaned, feeling myself lose the connection and hold I had still back in the land of the living, I couldn’t feel warmth… I couldn’t feel anything. ‘How much longer do I have?’‘Enough time to see this last glimpse into the past.’Holding myself up with all my remaining strength, I watched as the events played out. My father and his best friend were standing head to head under the starry night sky. Many members of the pack, especially the council members, were bearing witness to the fight, awaiting to see who would triumph. ‘Are you sure you want to
~ A M E L I A ~‘What happened after that? How did Draven become Alpha?’The Moon Goddess had brought me back to her moonflower garden, her hand on my back rubbing back and forth soothing me, ‘My dear, you’ve witnessed a lot, are you sure you don’t want to take a break?’I shook my head, ‘I don’t have time for a break! You said yourself that I’ve got a limited amount of time left back in the human world, I can’t waste it.’She nodded, ‘I know, but I can sense your pain and suffering, and things only get darker from here…’Swallowing thickly, I stood tall, ‘Show me.’‘Very well.’~ ~ ~ Following the events of the hospital fire, the next day was sombre. It wasn’t just the families who were directly involved in the fire who were grieving, it was the entire pack. They were all traumatised and scared for what was to come. The funerals for the newborns were held all together, the Alpha and Luna ensured that they were all treated with equal respect and care during the entire process, as we
~ A M E L I A ~It began to rain. First a trickle, then a complete downpour. The Alpha and Luna looked out to the rain, a perfect resemblance of their sorrow, and knew that they had no more time to waste. They had to say their final goodbyes to their daughter and commence with their plan before people became aware. When they had finally said their goodbyes, Kali had come to terms that she would not be the one to venture out to take their daughter to the person they’d hope would be the one and only person they could entrust to take her outside of the pack and to her new human family. In her state of only recently giving birth, her werewolf healing was depleting her energy, plus her sudden disappearance from the fire would raise suspicions. They had to take their next steps carefully and mindfully.Enzo sent Kali back to the hospital, where she would have to act as though she had lost her baby in that fire, along with all the other mothers who lost their babies. Such a foul and disgus
~ A M E L I A ~They arrived back at Rieka Manor, successfully unseen by anyone else. Enzo placed Kali gently on their bed and began to pace up and down the room, muttering to himself. ‘Enzo,’ she was almost hyperventilating, ‘my love, please talk to me! What is going on?’ Kali spoke quietly, trying not to awaken their baby, who had finally fallen asleep soundly, but concern was laced throughout her voice.Yet he didn’t stop pacing, deep in his thoughts, ‘It can’t be them… They wouldn’t… They couldn’t betray us like that!’‘Who?’He shook his head, ’No, no, no!’ He slammed his fist against the wall, shaking the entire room, ‘These bastards,’ he muttered through gritted teeth before sitting next to his mate and wrapping his arms around her, embracing the love of his life and their newborn daughter.‘My love, my Alpha,’ Kali continued to cry silently, ‘Please. Talk to me.’Enzo looked at his mate, holding her face softly as he wiped away her tears with his thumb, ‘My radiant Luna…’ he
~ A M E L I A ~Devastated was an understatement for how I felt, but I was not surprised at all. Those men had been stuck in traditions for so long they were blind to the facts that were right in front of them. That women wanted to show their strength and power, to prove that they are equally as powerful as they are. Yet these men just have to prove themselves to be the best. The Moon Goddess took me later in the day. The sun was slowly going down, dimming the light sky and introducing us to the upcoming night. We walked down the long hallways of the hospital, and the sterile aroma of my surroundings was hard to ignore. We finally made it to the private room that was dedicated to my birth mother, Kali. She was in her hospital bed, sitting up while holding her baby girl, me. With one finger, she bounced my small hand up and down until I clasped my tiny fist around her finger. ‘I can already sense that you’re a strong one, aren’t you, little wolf?’ Kali smiled. Even after giving bir
~ A M E L I A ~My expression faded. That was not going to be easy to get used to, but I nodded and followed her towards my birth parents’ manor. ‘Most of the pack is slumbering away, nursing their hangovers or resting in whichever ways they seem fit,’ the Moon Goddess informed me as we walked through the manor grounds and phased through the door to enter the home. ‘However, Alpha Enzo knew the importance of caring for the pack, and always prioritised his duties before anything else. So, as his mate rested in the hospital and was learning to nurse you, he was back to his duties. They were still recovering from a recent conflict they encountered with another enemy pack. I believe you’re already aware of some people of the Shadow pack?’I nodded as we phased through another set of doors. Inside the room was a grand table. Sitting around it were men, mostly middle-aged but some older and some younger, but a handful of them I recognised from the present day in the Silver Moon pack. It wa
~ A M E L I A ~A wave of dizziness hit me as I reopened my eyes and took in my surroundings. The Moon Goddess and I were no longer in her garden of moon flowers, but deep within a forest. It was so familiar, yet different all at once. In the distance was a gentle glow emitting from lanterns.‘Where are we?’ I asked.The Moon Goddess linked her arm with mine, holding me close to her, ‘We’re in the village of the Silver Moon pack…’ she began walking me towards the lights, where noise and music began to tickle my ears, ‘…18 years ago.’I froze in place and looked at her, ‘Before I was born?’She nodded, ‘In fact, the day I brought you back to is your birthday.’Drawing my gaze back towards where the noise grew, it sounded like there was a huge celebration going on. This was it, this was finally the time I was going to learn everything. I was going to learn the truth and finally be able to understand who I am. But, for some reason, I could not move.‘Are you sure you want to do this?’ T
~ A M E L I A ~It was so cold and dark…Where am I? What is going on?My eyes slowly peeled open, feeling the weight of my drowsiness, meeting the night sky above me. There was not a star to be seen, which was unusual for the Silver Moon pack. No matter where you are, you’d always be able to see stars at night. It was one of my favourite things about the pack. Scanning my surroundings briefly without moving my head, there were trees all around me. How did I end up in the forest? Where was I last? Pushing myself to sit up slowly, my head felt heavy as I tried to recall what happened. Everett had told me to come see him… The Alpha ambushed me… pain… so much pain…My lip quivered as I examined and patted down my entire body, but there wasn’t a cut to be seen.Am I dreaming? What the hell is going on?A rustle behind me caught my attention. Twirling onto all fours and pushing myself to stand, I felt too alert and concerned for what was out there. ‘Who’s there?’ I said sharply. No re