Change

Helena levitated the large fallen tree out of the road and rested it to the side, the gathered workers looking on with a mix of awe and disbelief.

In the few days she had been using her powers to help get the pack and its surroundings ready for their guests, she has been given fearful, bewildered and fascinated stares by her people.

Her last life had taught her the wide range of reactions her powers elicited, so she had prepared herself for the worst when her father suggested that she use her powers for simple but focus demanding chores, to help her control it better.

"Last night's storm was a beast but it's no match for our resident witch, eh?" Joked the man overseeing today's work with a playful nudge that nearly sent Helena crashing to the ground.

She smiled with a small wince, thankful that they had all gotten to the stage where they could laugh about her powers (though there were still a handful of people who refused to do much as make skin contact with her).

"This is the last of it, right?" Helena questioned as she squinted at the messy road covered in twigs, rocks and fallen leaves.

A smog had settled over the pack by the time the day's had work began, making it difficult for her to see too far into the distance but Helena didn't let it stop her.

Before she could get any pack to join her in the fight against Rigel, her pack was her first and most important ally and she hoped to prove herself to them by doing what past Helena had shuddered at the thought of: working alongside them.

"Uh..." He surveyed the area with a slow nod that grew more confident when he found what he was looking for. "Yeah. My group will clean this up before the packs start arriving so you can go on ahead."

"Thank Goddess. Bye, Jim." She muttered with a tired wave, smiling at the enthusiastic waves she got from him and the other workers as she turned around and walked away.

Helena walked down the large, deserted road that led out of the pack, nodding to the busy members she walked past and enjoying the scenery.

By dinner time, their guests would have all arrived and the gentle peace would broken by constant chatter and the many festivities that would stake place to demonstrate the Lunae Lumen's pack famous hospitality.

Thanks to her dad's brutal and extreme training, her powers had progressed faster than it had in her last life. She was confident that when the time came to fight Rigel, she would be as powerful (maybe even more powerful) as she had been at the time of her death.

A cold breeze ruffled her hair and sunk into her skin through her thin jacket, and Helena shivered, wrapping her arms around herself to fight off the chill.

She continued walking against the wind that grew stronger by the second, struggling to warm herself up with her powers that were slightly drained from days of constant use.

The wind grew even more intense, whipping her hair around, angrily and soon Helena found herself unable to move and struggling to stand.

Her purple eyes flitted around in panic, searching for something she could hold on to and she yelped when she was suddenly swept off her feet and into the air.

Helena struggled against the invisible force, her powers coming out in short bursts of purple light as she fought to gain control and get back to the ground. A task that proved impossible as she could no longer see the ground beneath her.

All too soon, she stopped rising and came to a stop, the wind swirled around her, gently and Helena suddenly felt physically and emotionally better than she had since she was reborn

The brunette spun around, clumsily with her hands flapping around to try and stay upright, the never-ending field of clouds appearing familiar to her, though she could not remember why.

~There has been a change~

A voice said and Helena gasped as a memory came rushing back to her

~It can be a good change, if you choose to see it as such but it can also be detrimental to your mission~

Helena blinked and struggled to get ahold of herself. "What do you mean?" She questioned, dumbly then shook her head. "I mean, what changed and how badly will it affect me?"

~I can not tell~

Helena frowned, knowing if she was anywhere else but in the Goddess' kingdom of clouds she would have been feeling worried, helpless and anxious.

~But I am not one to go against my words~

She added, giving Helena some relief.

~I said that happiness awaits you and it shall be, young Helena~

~But it is up to you to accept that happiness~

"I don't understand," she said with a soft shake of her head, her face pinched.

~You will before the sun sets~

The deity answered, simply.

The wind began to pick up again and Helena grew panicked at the thought of not getting an answer and being forced to face the unknown without the deity's help.

"Wait!" She screamed while flapping her arms around trying to fight off the powerful force. "Why can't you just tell me what's going to happen? You sent me back to fix things and make sure they don't go to hell again, the least you can do is tell me what changed!"

The wind paused and the cloudy area grew still like the deity was thinking.

~This change is not of mine but that of a more powerful being's doing, so I can not reveal anything~

~But know this, Helena, as long as the moon shines brightly at night and the stars worship its might, I will always be with you~

Helena dropped, faster than she could scream or fight and she soon found her feet touching the ground, far too gently for the way she had plummeted.

Purple eyes tracked the movement of people and the occasional animal, all ignorant of her exit and sudden entrance.

"Well, shxt," she muttered as she slapped her cheeks twice to snap out of her daze.

When she shook off the disorientation of being tossed around, the brunette made her way down the road to escape the strange looks she was receiving, a determination in her step.

A normal person would take some time to freak out over what had just happen but after being burned alive and hopping back in time, very few things could move Helena.

Noise washed over her as she made her way deeper into town, the excitement that came with hosting the meeting, a contagious fever that infected every member of the pack.

Colourful decorations and various ornamental plants lined the roads and corners and if Helena wasn't so unsettled, she would have taken the time to appreciate the pleasing sight.

All her chances of defeating Rigel relied heavily on everything happening the way it did in her last life. One change might seem minuscule when compared to the major events but Helena knew that it was the little things that led to those big things.

If what was to come did have a monumental impact on the future's events, all her planning will be useless and she was less confident in her victory.

A running child bumped into her, knocking her out of her thoughts and Helena stumbled, no match for a young shifter's strength.

"Sorry!" The young boy screeched in apology and continued on his way, a group of children chasing after him with cheerful giggles.

"How am I going to defeat him if I'm no match for a child." She murmured as she watched the group of pups go while rubbing her bruised side.

"Defeat who?" Charon whispered into her ear and she startled, swivelling around her to look at him.

Sweat poured down his naked form in bucketfuls and the mud covering his body let her know he had just returned from training.

"No one." She whispered with a small shake of her head, her gaze flitting over to the she-wolves shamelessly staring at her unaware brother.

"Dad wants you back home." He said as he grabbed her hand and began tugging her along without waiting for a response.

"Why so early? We still have six hours until the packs start arriving." She pointed out and frowned when she noticed the way his jaw clenched.

"You're upset. Did something happen?" She demanded, jogging after him when his steps quickened.

"It's more about what dad expects to happen." He explained, cryptically, appearing unsettled about the situation and said no more as they made their way home.