Lunar Eclipse

Chapter 1


“Come on you two, or we’ll be late for the sacrifice again this year.’, mom always had a way of making me feel bad, all I really wanted was for once to have my birthday to myself.

“Can’t I just go to Matt’s house? He said his mom wanted me to come over after the sacrifice to celebrate my birthday.” I whined hoping it might work Matt and I were friends and our mothers were so close that most people thought they were sisters separated at birth, no matter how unlikely.

“Key words in that sentence are?” She asked me, not missing a beat. “Demi! Hurry up and get down here! Your brother and I are waiting on you!” she called upstairs.

“After the sacrifice.” I answered defeated. She always knew just how to find a way to still be right.

“I’m coming,” my sister said as she hurled herself down the stairs skipping one each step and jumping on the last one. “I couldn’t find my Lisa Frank purse, turns out it was in the bathroom.” She walked into the kitchen, her face covered in deep and dark makeup, she looked like a clown and I couldn’t help but laugh.

Mom turned around then and saw her face, “Demitria Amber Hewitt, you march right back up there and take all of that off right now. I’ve told you a thousand times before that you are not allowed to wear makeup out of the house until you are fourteen.” She had a harsh tone of voice, but her face struggled not to laugh or smile along with me.

Demi you look like a clown. I thought to her. I may be a twin, but I knew well enough that we didn’t have any special abilities that existed only for us; I simply could read minds and broadcast my thoughts to other werewolves, a trait I inherited from my grandfather, who was also a twin.

Another thing I inherited was the necklace that was always wear, and no, not one of those flowery girly necklaces. It’s a leather string with a charm hanging from it; a bursting golden star encircled with a silver moonstone cut into a crescent moon behind the gold. Grandpa used to go on about Apollo’s and Artemis’ children and so did his sister. They both died the same day which also happens to be the day Demi and I were born.

Just like I had inherited the necklace and telepathy, Demi had inherited a necklace of her own and teleporting from my great aunt. It seems to run in the family that twins are special, yet no one knows why. Twins are also regarded highly by the Lycoan society. So, since our family has a history of twins, we kind of wind up higher on the ladder than most families.

Shut up *edit your post and this will go away* face! Just because you didn’t get to skip out on the sacrifice doesn’t mean you get to call me names! She thought back to me, thirteen years together and she was only just getting the hang of forming full sentences without stray thoughts. It didn’t help much that she had just barely started puberty, and boy did I hate that day. Whoever it was that said that girls think with both sides of their brain was right and it sucked being a guy and having to hear it all.

The day she started was hell. I was in my room, two doors down from the bathroom when my head started pounding with a scream not even vocal cords could replicate. The scream was followed shortly by my sister’s wailing for my mother to help her. In the three minutes that one that she waited for my mother to come to her aid a thousand questions as well as their answers flew through her head about boys, becoming a woman, and a very lengthy set of pros and cons on pads vs. tampons, which pads won out, after my mother’s input and vast amounts of experience, all of which I don’t or rather didn’t want to know anything about, and still have nightmares of.

Of course, recently, my sister does much better about not thinking too loudly. It only took a few days of me sending her thoughts just as she was about to fall asleep keeping her awake, or constantly reminding her that now that she’s hit puberty her flawless skin is probably going to become plagued with blemishes.

I chose to ignore her instead of giving her the satisfaction of a fight and just shrugged and continued lacing my shoes and looking at them intently.

“Enough arguing you two, and get ready, we need to get going. Demi, go upstairs and get that makeup off your face now.” Mother told us looking back and forth from me to Demi with her hands on her hips waiting for one of us to move.

“What? I’m getting ready.” I said as I tied the knots on my shoes, “And I wasn’t arguing. I said one thing, talk to death-stare over there, she’s sending me wave after wave of insults and trying to goat me.” I said one of the pleasures of being the only one to read minds and the “honest” one was that she could believe that what I said was true, and at times I played on that.

“Na-uh!” Demi retorted, “He was galling me a clown!” She cried. “Please mama,” she pleaded, “Just this time?” she clasped her hands together and put her best puppy dog eyes and face on.

Mom tried not to laugh but she couldn’t help but smile at my comment. “Demi, you aren’t allowed to wear makeup and my decision is final, go clean up.” She said with finality to her and walked towards her shoeing up the stairs.

~

At the sacrifice we all sat together, dad and mom with me and Demi on either side, each year a sacrifice is given to Apollo and Artemis, a fox to Artemis and hawk to Apollo, then each of us take a small morsel of meat from other animals caught by each family before the sacrifice. We also all drink wine, but only white wine, the Sibley pours red wine for Artemis and pours red wine for Artemis and gives her the freshly killed fox, and the Nabi pours a different red wine for Apollo as well as presenting the recently killed hawk. Each Lycoan enters the temple in full wolf form, presenting themselves to the Gods in the form we were changed to, symbolizing their thankfulness to be able to transform at free will. I usually hated being dragged to the sacrifice because I always picked up on the nervousness from all the humans that attended the rite, the ones who had married into a family of Lycoan and were attending a sacrifice for the first time. Their thoughts usually unsettled me and for some, their feelings overwhelmed me. This year was no different, this time I sat right next to one. His name was Stan and he had gotten married late last year, just barely missing out on last year’s sacrifice. He sat as most humans do when they attend, knees bent sitting on his feet and his hands in his lap, and his eyes wandered around the room as the rite is performed trying to gather from any other human s around what he should be doing. His mind is what interested me the most though.

This isn’t right. Jesus. Catholic school. Wrong. Help. Gotta run. Hide. No, they’ll chase me and tear me to shreds!

I interjected trying to help him calm down. It’s okay, just stand up and walk down the aisle and out of the building, we understand don’t mind. We won’t attack you or anything. That’s not our way. Big mistake that only freaked him out hard core, not to mention the fact that he started looking around frantically, finally resting his eyes on me and noticing I was looking at him with the eye on my right staring straight at him my head still looking forward, I could literally smell the fear on him and boy does it give off a big scent on humans, especially to be hit right away. Then he started sweating and his thoughts went way haywire, so badly that I let out a soft whine having to hear him call me thousands of names, one in particular that it was more insane to stay than to run he quickly, and tripping over his own shoes, ran from the building screaming of monsters and devil worshipers. I responded by putting my ears back after staring at him and lowering my head a little then turning to face my father who was glaring at me having put two and two together quite fast.

You know better than to speak to a human when they don’t know if he will ever recover from an episode like this one. Now turn back to the sacrifice, we can’t have that disrupting it. His tone was harsh and upset, but really he only spared a few minutes though on his lingering wonders of what he may have done in my shoes before devoting himself fully to the sacrifice.

When it all ended, many of the families went to console Anna, the wife of the human I had terrified. She held her own though, no tears and fluff that most girls had, she knew that marrying a human came at a cost, and this was part of that, not all humans accepted their lovers for who they were and obviously Stan was going to be like that. Needless to say I avoided eye contact when we came by.

Sometimes I wish that grandpa could have been here to help me learn to deal with this so called “gift.” I projected to both of my parents. Both looked at each other, questions of who should go first in their thoughts and their eyes when my dad turned to me and answered my mom tried her best not to cry, as she did from time to time over her father’s death.

“You know he would have loved to help you son, but the Gods thought it right that he and his sister leave this earth before that. We have to accept that and try our best to live up to what he would have wanted for us.” He barely knew what he was saying, but he hoped it would help me at least a little bit.

Demi jumped into the spot next to me and looked at my mom and dad eyes pleading as she clasped her hands together, “Can I spend the night at Allie’s house? Please daddy, I want to ride her horses tonight.” She sapped up to my dad as much as she could muster and as usual he had to give in.

“Well I-“ I just rolled my eyes at my dad’s weakness but I started laughing halfway through it when I heard my mom’s thoughts.

“Demitria! How many times have we told you no teleporting in public? We may be among other Lycoan, but there are humans present and we’ve had enough of them scared away today.” She scolded, Mom to the rescue, I thought to myself, she won’t get away with it this time. I turned and started heading over to where Matt and his dad were standing.

“Just us boys tonight Devin?” Mr. Wellington asked me as I came up to him.

“Yeah, but I think my mom and Mrs. Wellington wanted to do a cake first…….girls.” I shivered, he laughed and matt just sighed.

“Can’t live with them, can’t live without them.” We all said in unison as we walked to his car.

Chapter 2



Four years later...

My dream ended abruptly as the first rays of golden sunlight danced across my face, kissing my eyes awake. Demi was still snoring in the room across the hall, happy to have the room facing the west. I quickly dressed and went up the stairs to the attic and though my secret opening to the roof. I was always outside before Matt, but today he was the one sitting comfortably, taking in the rays and thinking deeply, while waiting for me to join him. I squared myself away in my usual corner of the roof where the house made its “L” shape, connecting the two sides of the house and sighed deeply.

“Have you ever wondered why we love the sun so much, or why we both have an unexplainable need to get up at sunrise?” Matt asked as I laid back resting on my hands taking in the view.



“I’ve never really thought about it.” I said, “I mean, yeah, I’ve noticed that we both have the urge and no one else we know has it, but I never really thought much past that.” I stole a quick glance at him, “Where are you going with this anyway?” I asked.

“Well, you’re right that we have the urge, but I know someone else now too, he started school last month. He was always out in a tree at sunrise just like me but I didn’t think too much of it till I came home for break. It was kinda nice to have someone else out there with me, but it was also kinda weird.” He scrunched up his face, his signature facial expression of confusion, and I couldn’t help but laugh. He may be the older one by three months, but he was diffidently not the smarter one. He turned to face me resting on his right elbow still looking for the right elbow still looking for the words to say when the light reflected off his necklace. Ever since his secret rite he had worn the family crest with pride, especially since his family was so well known, he was a wellington, a family known for the generations of council and protector roles. His father, Mark Wellington was the Alpha Male of the Texas Protectors, or rather, the Section 5 Protectors, which in truth were: Texas, Arkansas, Oklahoma and Louisiana. His mother, however, was a council treasurer, Kristina Wellington. Even though she was married, she was well sought after by most men. So, by wearing that talisman he basically got any and everything he asked for at most Lycoan run places, as did his sister Illianna. Though for her it wasn’t because of the family crest, she inherited her mother’s beauty and grace, and everyone that met her fell in love, even some girls.

However Illianna had already chosen someone special but no one knew who it was, well except for her family and the person she was with, which so happens to be me.

“What’s his name?” I asked, interrupting his internal battle.

“Huh? Oh! His name was Justin Xanther, you know his dad, he is in the pack with your dad for the Hunting Games.” He smiled having probably forgotten all about his internal war on what was probably a simple question with an equally simple answer.

“Oh really I’ve heard that Justin is as good a leader as his dad, maybe we can head off for Alpha for the school team” There are two things you learn as a “pup”; One: Everyone has a pack, even if it’s just for the Hunting Games, and two: everyone wants to be Alpha, so if you really want it, you’ll have to train hard. The Hunting Games were a series of challenges followed by a hunt to catch a white stag for it’s fetish. The white stag is a very rare, very sacred stag, only two are born each year and everyone wants its fetish. A Fetish is the heart of an animal that has been killed by a pack, specifically you sun-dry it and soak it with herbs after. Then once you’re ready to go on hunt, each member of the pack, on wolf form of course, consumes a piece of the heart, giving them each special features from the animal killed. The normal stag will give the Alpha male and Female all the abilities that each of their pack get, as well as the ability to hear the thoughts of their pack. The Beta Male and female get an extraordinary hearing as well as a boost in brute strength. The Runner is given a higher agility as well as balance. Lastly, the Tracker is given a keener sense of scent and the ability to feel their surroundings, almost like a sixth sense of what is going on around them. However the white stag is slightly different, it’s fetish allows the pack that takes it down to keep themselves in complete control when their birthdays come around, as well as the “Time of the Month” that we all experience, but it only works for one full year, 365 days exactly.



“Nope, he said his whole family has gone to Pherike Temples and he wants a fresh start, so he’s going to go to the Cadmus Temples starting this month, so no luck in that, but his family is moving to Rockwall, maybe we can go with Illianna next time she goes shopping and drop by to say ‘Hi’.” He suggested lightly, but I knew he hated to go with Illianna to shop.

“That’s fine man; I’ll meet him another time, maybe once I have my own car.” I laughed knowing that wouldn’t be anytime soon.

~

Its basic tradition that Lycoans turning 17 open their gifts after their secret rite, and before midnight that night. My parents, however, were probably the only ones who didn’t follow tradition. We had all had breakfast together and I could see my mom was holding as steady as possible with her thoughts around me so she wouldn’t give it away, it was easier for dad. After breakfast we were brought outside and into the car for “a drive” when we finally got to Planet Storage, our storage company, we were brought to the third floor and pulled up to the second to the last garage door in the tunnel.

“Number 324. This one is yours Demi, and this one is yours Devin, number 314.” Dad said, handing both of us keys and smiling.

I’m first. Demi thought to herself smugly before she spoke.

In your dreams. I laughed mentally as I shouted, “Shotgun!” and started over to my door.

“Actually, younger goes first this time Devin. My family tradition for twins you see.” Mom smiled and turned to Demi while I just stood there padlock in hand and shock written all over my face.

Demi mirrored my amazement before walking over to her door and clicking her lock undone. She pulled the door up and the light kicked on. She shrieked, both mentally and physically, before I could even get a look at what was in the compartment, followed by a stream of mental images from looking online and at people who had what she now owned. A corvette. Blue with pink stripes down the sides and pink rims. Her first real words were more understandable mentally tan they were physically Oh my Gods! Screeched through my name as it ripped through my ears as well as my parents who looked at me for translation

“Oh my Gods.” I told them rubbing my temples and rolling my eyes.

She jumped in and started up the engine continuing to squeal and freaked out even more when she realized that the displays had all been customized to her two favorite colors as well. The numbers for the speed and the letters for service and fuel were all in pink and the dials in blue. The music started on the radio and the speakers perked up with blue lighting to go with the music which only added to her overjoyed shrieks.

“Now can I go?” I asked wincing in-between words at her mental attack and decided to raise my shield so that I didn’t have to be attacked.

“She’s still got more to go.” Mom answered me happy as all could be as Demi spazzed out over every contraption possible that she could find in her new car. Dad walked over and cut the engine after a few minutes taking the key out of the ignition and giving her astern look that said Step out for a moment so we can discuss the rules first. To which there was an instant eye roll as she got out of her shiny new car.

“There are restrictions that come with this gift. First, you keep your grades up. Second, no unnecessary fights. Third, you’ll pay for your own gas and half the insurance. And lastly,” he paused to look over at mom, ”You’ll have fun. He smiled as she ran into his arms for a huge hug.

“I promise daddy.” She said sweetly, which only managed to bring shivers down my spine. During the hug however she spotted the other gifts wrapped and waiting for her to open. Which is exactly what she rushed over to do. She opened several car accessories from various family and friends who had known about her gift, things like an iPod holder, a GPS (From Illianna and Matt’s family), a steering wheel cover, seat covers, and floor mats. Once that was finally over I sat up from the ground and dusted off my pants.

“Now can I go?” I asked looking at mom hopefully.

“Yes.” She smiled as she turned her attention to me.

I walked over to the lock, key in hand and unlocked it and began opening the door. The lights clicked on inside the shed and I froze.

Inside was a Kawasaki ZX 14R customized exactly to match my drawings, a lightning orb centered itself on the bike with blue lightning and a green over coat allowing small swirls in the green to expose the lighting. The windshield was tinted green and the handles were full silver. The tires had already been switched to wide and the helmet sat next to it perfectly setting on the pile of gifts that came with my birthday.

Airbrushed on the side was “Devin” in the same emerald green as my bike with the identical lightning orb behind the lettering. I looked underneath the helmet at my pile of accessories, only they were more geared towards fixing my bike rather than everyday use. A tire patch kit, spare spark plugs, a spare clutch cable, a bike lock, JB Weld, a tiny tire pump were amongst the gathering of allen wrenches, screwdriver sets, crescent wrenches, socket sets, and multi-directional 1/4 drives.

I couldn't help myself; I stepped up to my new bike and hopped on, starting the engine and revving it for good measure.

Race Ya. Demi thought to me. Loser stays back with mom for her long lists of goodbye wishes and hugs. I looked over at her and saw her raise an eyebrow at me.

You're on. I smiled and turned to dad. "Can I take it for a run?" I asked sweetly enough.

"Yeah daddy please? I want to see how awesome I look in my car..." she passed him her digital camera, "Take some pictures of me?"

Nice touch.

You should've thought of it, since you seem to think you're the pro at conning them. To the gas station down the street? Straight stretch.

Mom took the camera from her hands and smiled giving dad the look that said 'Why not?' and that was all it took for a yes from him. I gave Demi a simple nod and we both pulled ourselves out of the storage area and onto the street, with only seconds to spare before they caught on we took off.

Both of us peeled out of the drive leaving our marks on the ground and the smell of rubber in the air, I was happier than happy can be wind in my hair, racing my sister, and of course winning doesn't hurt. She was a whole motorcycle's length behind me as we neared the station and in the blink of an eye she wasn't. She shifted gears and pulled past me in seconds making the win and like that I was in shock.

"You lose brother, and now you'll get to stick around while mom does her check lists of don't forgets." she smiled and walked into the store pulling out her purse before locking the doors of the car. I walked in after her and grabbed a Dr. Pepper as she went for a Big Blue. "I think loser should pay." she smirked at me and held up the drink...

"Yeah right. You've got more cash than I do anyway."

"You so would have pulled this on me if I had lost so don't try it, I'll be in my car." she shoved the drink in my hands and walked out the door humming to herself.

"I swear, sometimes..." right at that moment a hand clasped down on my shoulder making me jump.

"Hey, saw you're race, sorry you lost." the guy smiled at me and let go of my shoulder realizing how odd it was to hold another guy's shoulder when you don't know him.

"Yeah, thanks." I said, dusting off my shoulder as I got in line.

"Names Justin, and though we won't be going to the same school, we're going to be great friends..." he said so casually but yet his eyes bored into mine.

"Sure dude, whatever you say..." I looked away hoping he'd stop talking.

"You'll understand better next year don't worry." he smiled and finally ended his creepy talk.

"Four seventy-two. Would you like to add any candies for a dollar?" The clerk referenced the basket next to the register holding multiple candies.

"Yeah, why not." I grabbed a Cookies and Cream bar and paid the new total walking out just as mom and dad pulled up.

"I'm going to let that one go since it's your birthdays and they are new." Dad said with a large amount of restraint shocking me to my core, but upon hearing the conversation he and mom just had on the drive over I could see it was mom who had chosen this idea. "But know this: If I ever catch either of you two racing in these vehicles again you will no longer have them. Do I make myself clear?"Now that was the dad I was expecting. "Now, let's head home and get ready for the Rite." he said taking my DP and walking away. Demi came up during my shock of my loss of DP and took her Big Blue leaving me standing in the parking lot holding nothing at all, mouth closed, jaw clenched in frustration.

"Here, I hate Dr. Pepper but I bought one anyway." Justin's voice sounded behind me making me jump once again.

"What the-?" I was at, yet again, a loss for words. "Thanks." was all I could muster and he just nodded and walked off getting onto his bike and pulling out. What a bike it was too, an Indian, and if I had to name a year I'd say an 07 chief. Talk about a sweet bike.

Chapter 3



Illianna walked up as I roared the engine to my new bike and I smiled happily as her eyes sparked with appreciation. It was why we had first decided to date, we were both at the bike shop in Greenville, me going along to see the bikes and her to go shopping, while her dad bought a new set of tires. That was when we had clicked, I was taken aback by her steady knowledge of the bike I was pining over and she was impressed with my choice.

Now though, she was impressed I could hear her mentally appraising each detail of the bike which only worked to broaden my smile. Hey, how was your day? She asked, knowing I had tuned into her thought waves.

I looked at the bike then back to her, Do you really need to ask? I looked her up and down appraising the simplistic look of the white tank top cut high enough to show her new key shaped belly button ring and low-rider jeans with holes in the knees down to the normal black flip flips then back up to her neck line where her family crest sat perfectly above her chest, then straight into her dazzling blue eyes needing no makeup to show her beauty with curly blonde hair.

She giggled slightly and slung her bag over her shoulder, I guess I need to get my helmet from the garage? She thought to me before turning towards the house.

Nope. I turned and picked up the second helmet from the ground where I had hidden it. I had run by Greenville before coming back to pick her up. Don’t you think I would have thought of your safety? I smiled and handed her the customized headgear. Her eyes lit up again as she read her name on the side of the helmet in baby blue and silver with the same lightning behind it.

Let’s ride. She settled herself behind me strapping her helmet into place and wrapping her arms around me.

We drove off, using our sense of smell to guide us for dinner, it was her way of a happy birthday, and we finally settled for Chilli’s near Greenville.

“How many today? Just two?” the hostess asked happily.

“Yes, tow today.” Illianna smiled at her as she laced her arm into mine possessively.

Wow Illy, since when are you jealous of humans? I asked her as we went to our table.Am not, just happy to be able to freely hold you for a change, all this stupidity of staying single to help build my future is driving me madd. For once I’d like to spend a normal evening with my boyfriend and celebrate his birthday.


~

I pushed the chalk marker, forming the second circle and pulling out my items, placing them where they belonged. To the west I placed my first item, the key to my soul, which was my house key. To the north, I set down my prayer string, a knot for each friend in a different color, to represent my relationships. At the eastern side of the outer circle, I placed a set of ear plugs, chuckling slightly to myself for having come up with something so clever for protection since that was how I had finally learned to tune out everyone’s thoughts. I finished off the circle and placed my last item, my necklace and soon to be collar, in the northern place for spiritual growth.

While I placed my items counter clockwise, Demi placed hers clockwise, starting at the eastern side of the inside circle with a brick from the corner of our house, her necklace, a simple mirror from her room, and finished with a bracelet she had gotten from Jack earlier that day.

After both circles were put together we went to the center where four satchels of sand were tied together with string and insence burned sweet smelling sandalwood and sage through the air. It was time, 11:30 PM on the day before our 17^th birthday, a new moon over our heads and a soft breeze blowing any clouds away.

Remember, its Hectate and Belenus, not Appollo and Artemis tonight. Don’t screw this up! I reminded Demi as we took our places and our parents shifted around the barrier, Matt and Illianna had come, per my request, to fill the eastern and western spots outside the circle, since Allie wasn’t able to come. Usually a friend of each twin will fill eastern and western positions, but even though Illianna wasn’t Demi’s best friend, they were still friends enough.

To most Lycoan, only one circle is drawn and two friends are asked to join, as well as the mother to the North and father to the south, but in the case of twins, or a litter, there are more lines constructed and more people added to its perimeter.

Illy smiled at me before going to stand behind my house key and Demi and shifted into her wolf form. Matt did the same behind me next to my ear plugs and me and gave Demi a quick wink. Demi sat first and I quickly followed, starting the ritual by mirroring my movements with Demi as we raised our hands I spoke. “Belenus, God of the eclipsed sun, we ask that you join us.”

“Hectate, Goddess of the dark moon, we beseech you, we humbly ask your blessing.” Demi followed.

“Allow these things that represent us to take shape and form.”

“Preserve our life as we are re-born.”

“With the blessing of the twins,”

“and the curse of Zeus.”

“We ask of you to bind a truce.”

“To our family, Carline and Wes,”

“and to our friends Illianna and Matt,”

“We bind ourselves through items here.”

“The north, mother earth, keeper of relationships.” Picked up a handful of blue sand and released it as the wind carried it north.

“The south, father time, helper of spiritual growth.” This time we released a fistful of black sands.

“The west, sister moon, keeper of the keys to the soul.” A nice grouping of white sand ran from our fingers into the winds flowing westward.
“To the east, brother sun, protector of our people.” We let loose a group of yellow sand from our fingers and drew in a deep breath as the sands all began to encircle us in a full wall and our items changed. Our necklaces flew over our heads and landed softly onto our necks allowing for us to change into our wolf forms. Almost instantly our senses heightened, a rush of adrenaline pulsing through me as I took in each grain of sand as it blew around us. Both the key to the house and the mirror were transformed into two skeleton keys and the earplugs and brick were changed into identical locks that situated themselves at both ends of a leash that came from our bracelet and prayer knots binding me to my father and Matt and Demi to my mother and Illianna.

Chapter 4



We ran through farm lands, thick forests, and over railroads on our trip to the school, but all my mind could register was that I wanted to get free, needed to run on my own. When we were about a mile out, my father let out a howl alerting the gatekeepers to our arrival. Once we did get inside and through the first gate several men came out to help my father and Matt to undo the tether holding me to them. With both gates closed in front and behind me and so many Lycoans surrounding me I went on attack. My body tensed and began to snap at everyone who came close to me from either in front or behind. In the end it took close to three hours before I was unbound and let loose in West Campus, the allotted area for all students going through Non Compos Mentis, meaning not in control of the mind.

"Back off Devin. Mya was there in an instant filling the space between me and James as his chest began to swell. "Neither of you can afford a fight tonight." her eyes slid back and forth between us.

"Fine." James smoothed a hand over his hair and took a deep breath, looking beyond me at something I couldn't see. "The next time I see you you'd better be ready, I won't stand for a pup getting in my way."

"Watch your own paws and I'll watch mine." I growled, before turning to leave.

It was only my first day and I already had raised fur with someone, great. Dad always said I had a way with people. I chuckled slightly at the thought, he had meant it as a compliment to how well I could convince others to join a group and keep them happy.

Mya walked up to me then, still looking backwards to James. "You know I kinda expected more from you, everyone has always spoken so highly of you, this was never how I wanted to meet." she sighed, now looking at me, a silent plea in her eyes.

"What do you expect me to do? Let him prance over and trample over me because I was in his spot? I'm sorry but you have it all wrong. I'm nice, but not a push-over." I gathered a few bundles of grass together to start a bedding.

"I just thought you'd be more of a man and walk away." she jibed leaning against a nearby rock.

I growled, "Don't assume you know anything!" my voice rose with uncontrollable anger and fury rising in the tones and next thing I knew I was lunging at her as James attacked my hind quarters, trying to throw me off my target. Mya quickly turned, becoming a sandy brown wolf with dark brown patches sporadically placed over her back.

The tussle continued for another few minutes before guardians showed up and pulled us apart, I was brought to the southern most corner of the campus.

"Breathe." the guardian who had brought me said, "Clear your thoughts of anger and focus on something that you love or are passionate about." he had turned back to his human form to speak to me calmly, apparently not knowing I could read his thoughts.

I couldn't hear the whole time he was dragging me here. I thought then focused, like he suggested, on my motorcycle and all the detail work it had, all of my great attachments and tools I had received as gifts. Slowly, my mind rolled over my helmet and its details, bringing my thoughts to Illianna's helmet and all of its details and suddenly I was snapped back back to my surrounding with a loud CRACK as I realized I was once again back to my human form. "What the hell was that?" I asked as the guardian shaking my head, trying to get the ringing in my ears to stop.

"That's what's called reversion, your first lesson to controlling yourself when you go through Mentis. Well done by the way, for your first night here you've managed to tap into something that most teens take months to accomplish." he looked me over quickly accessing who my family was.

"So what would my next lesson in control be Obi-wan?" I jested, giving him a small cocky smirk.

"No. You may have accomplished it on your first try, but that doesn't mean you've mastered it, young Padiwan." he laughed. "You're father is what? A beta right?" he asked.

I looked him over, trying to access if the question was meant as a jibe at my status, or if he was being genuinely curious. "Yes, he runs with the Xanther pack." I still wasn't sure what his motives were, but I could feel a small growl building in my chest, readying itself for my allowance for release, making my chest start to puff out.

"Surprising." he put his hand to his chin and scratching slightly at the stubble there. "I'm Guardian St. Clair by the way. I'll be your mentor." he broke his concentration and extended his arm to clasp.

"What's surprising?" I asked, grasping his forearm in my hand and turning his arm upward in show of respect.

"That a beta father would have an elite Alpha son." he smiled at my show of respect and released my forearm and stepped back.

"Say what?!" I dropped my jaw in shock that my mentor of 3 hours would already be classifying me as an elite alpha. "How in the hell do you come to that conclusion already?"

He took a few more steps back and in the blink of an eye he turned, and was jumping at me, claws extended, a perfect pounce. My body instantly reacted, turning myself, and skirting slightly to my left and pushing for my own pinning from his left shoulder and pushing towards the ground. A second surprise waited for me in that move as he turned to angle our forepaws together so that we both hit the ground on our sides with a loud THUDand scrambled back to all fours a low feral snarl rippling from deep within me as we began a clockwise circular motion, watching each other steadily. Eyes locked in a battle all their own. St. Clair then sat himself down still focused intensely on mine as I followed suit, the hair still risen on the back of my neck and a low hum of a growl still rolling out of my throat. All the while he still kept his growls, snarls and jaw snapping in check.

A full two hours passed with our staring contest still in play with no other attacks, growls or moves. The only thing able to move either of us from our dead-eye battle was the soft rustle of bushes on my right side, our ears twitching first and with the snap of a twig behind me I finally broke the connection to snap to my left as another wolf pounded into my warmed patch of grass. My concentration shifted then from confused wolf in front of me to St. Clair charging me from my left my jaws quickly snapped in his direction close enough to his muzzle to feel his hot breath on my nose. He froze in place and quickly turned back and stepped backwards slowly, not putting his arms down or his back to me.

"I wasn't there to attack Devin, I was trying to separate you and James." he motioned to my right at the wolf who now was growling at me, hackles raised.

I gave James all my attention in that moment allowing my wolf to continue his charge in battle, since obviously he had been doing well so far. I charged him in that moment, ducking my head down to the right as his jaws snapped at me and using his own outstretched neck to duck my head under that and his front right paw and quickly pushing him to my right and up, throwing him over on to his back as I went straight for his ear, paw pressing tightly on his throat. A loud whimper chimed as my canine pierced his ear and his body relaxed under me, a victory in my name as he exposed his throat to me. I released and moved off of him turning back with slow deliberate concentration on my part and quickly St. Clair rushed to James' side, speaking in whispers to him trying to coax him out of his Mentis and holding the piercing in his hand to slow the blood flow.

"Devin. Go, get a Guardian and have him grab the aid-kit and tell him where we are, then get Guardian Donne, that's James' mentor." he spoke quick and curtly.

I ran, turning mid stride to quicken the trip, a clipped howl coming from the area I just left. Guardians surged towards me as I approached the gate one of them already carrying the aid-kit. "To the clearing on the west side of the lake, the one with the cave ten feet from it." I said to her quickly and turned to another Guardian. "I need to find Guardian Donne, it was James. " A quick nod from the youngest looking Guardian I had ever seen, before he led me to a very grey-haired man with scars on the tops of his arms.

"James again?" he asked as he looked down at me.

I stared for a moment and nodded my head, realizing this guy was at the very least, seven feet tall.

"Take me to him then." he turned into a grey shaggy wolf, keeping many of the scars he had as a human , and nodding for me to do the same.

I quickly followed suit and headed in the direction I had just left. When we got there, James was back in human form, an ace bandage wrapping being placed on his head to hold his ear in place and stop the bleeding. To my left a low wolfish chuckle sounded before Guardian Donne turned back and began guffawing at James and his pathetic state.

"Which whelp do I thank for fianally putting you in place?" he said, looking at his ear and continuing to laugh. A glare was his only answer, James' eyes fixated on me as I turned back. "This guy?!" he laughed even harder then, "You got placed by a pup on his first night?" his attention turned to me at that moment, a smile on his face. "Congratulations son, you just became Pack Alpha on the hunt."

"What do you mean? I thought I had to challenge him and that it has to be off Mentis?" I was thoroughly confused which only seemed to further his laughter.

"All you need is A challenge, which he issued on you by attacking you first after his last choice of words." a small knowing smiling trickled over his features.

"How did you know he challenged me?" I asked, flustered that I couldn't just hear his thoughts. Then I remembered how James was staring beyond me when he said that, and realized he must have been staring at Donne.

"My duty is to watch James and keep note of his behavior, and even if he hadn't challenged you, he would have lost his title for starting yet another fight, and, since you won against him you would have inherited it, if you hadn't, it would have meant a tournament battle for the Alpha position." he patted my head and took over James' medical needs, leaving St. Clair to come to my side and pat my shoulder.

"Like I said. Elite."

Chapter 6



After we looked at the bike we split ways, she had some dance she needed to practice with 'the girls' and she took off as quickly as she had come. So I had taken it upon myself to go walking around to see if I could find Matt or Illi.

“Who is he?” I could hear the desperation in the boy’s tone from down the hall. “Who are you seeing? I’ll prove to you I’m better, just name who I need to beat!” It was James Marks, the same guy who chased after Illianna around all last year. He was at it again, only this time he was pushing it with his abrasiveness towards my girl.

I couldn’t help myself, “If you think Ms. Wellington will be won over by buffoonery and idiocy by all means go ahead and make a fool of yourself, but if it’s merely a match you’re looking for, I’m up for a good challenge for alpha at tryouts. That is, if you’re wolf enough to try.” I edged my words pushing for a rise out of him and getting one eagerly, as he puffed out his chest and stood as tall as he could manage. Illianna rolled her eyes at both of us and turned to walk away, only the question in her look made me realize that she was talking to me, only, I couldn’t hear it! James’ arm shot out then and grabbed Illianna by the elbow and turned her back around, which, only served to make me growl a low and feral growl.

That’s when it hit me, fierce and strong, graceful and defiantly, my body changed and moved on its own. Pouncing onto James with full force and pushing him to the ground with a thud as his backpack landed onto the marble flooring and he too changed.

Everything around me grew sharper, more precise; I could hear each breath and every step as a crowd of nearby students formed a circle around us. James kicked his behind legs to throw me off but I barely budged. I had the perfect position and my body knew it. I went straight for his neck only to stop midway as another wolf lunged at my head and my body reacted with just the right speed to nab their tail and get them off balance. When I saw the jade eyes look back at me hurt and confused, a small whimper escaping the sandy blonde muzzle as she looked directly at me, my body finally gave way to my commands and changed back to human and got off James.

“That’s enough!” barked Professor Harvey as he split the crowd and went straight to me and chained his collar to mine. Two other professors come up to both Illianna and James and escorted them away before I could even talk to either of them.

Harvey walked in silence, his head hanging slightly disappointment was apparent. It was me who finally broke the quiet, “Just say it.”

“I don’t know where to start,” he said looking at me now, “First, you leave the west campus before your week is up, then you-“

“Whoa, wait! Mya told me that my week was up already! I thought it was the 14th. That’s why I left, I didn’t know it wasn’t. I swear.” I plead my case to him but he shook his head, unsure.

“We’ll have to look into this.” Is all I got for an answer as we approached the west campus. The clouds slightly wavering above me gave the full moon space to gleam down on us.

A quick movement to my right put me on high alert at once with a soft grown I started to shift again, but this time I’m chained to Harvey and he shifted too, taking us into a run straight into the now open gates of West Campus. My body ridged and primal instincts taking over, trying to free myself from my binds and attacking Harvey. The gate quickly shuts and dozen more wolves arrive on the scene, all attempting to pin me, and while the real me knows what they are trying to do and that it’s a good thing, the wolf has taken charge and isn’t letting go or giving up the fight.



I finally gave up trying to fight the wolf and decided instead to focus on trying to hear their thoughts as they went for me, but only catching bits and pieces as if they weren't really thinking at all, so much as allowing primal instinct to take over.

Good, he's been caught, wonder who he messed with while he was loose. They'll never let him tryout for Alpha now.

I hear the thoughts but can't pinpoint who could have said them, having no control over which way I look I quietly observe the area as my body wrestles with the others. A small quick flash of green is all I retrieve from my vision as my head turns, but that's more than enough to see Mya, tree behind her wind blowing her white fur back away from me. Smart. I thought to myself as I realize her strategic placement. No one here will even realize that you're watching the show you've created, I'd even bed it was you who ran past me knowing it would spook me into changing. I think to myself and am startled to get a reply.

Who was that?! Who's there? She was probably high-tailing it out of the area with that tid-bit. Why could she hear me, and why can't I understand Illy? I thought once again to myself as my body finally became pinned and the fight ended. I could hear the audible click as they released my collar and as one bounded off of me, and backed away slowly never turning their heads away.

I growled lowly limping on my front right paw, where apparently someone had bitten me on the left, and as soon as the wolf felt it right to take off he did. I let go of watching and fell deep into sleep, dreaming of how I could tell Illy I was sorry. I was happy later when I saw her actually appear.

"What the hell was that about?!" she demanded as she walked up to me. She was a dream-walker, something that was known by many and usually meant you were destined to become a Sibley, which, is what she was studying to become, hence the 'no boyfriend' clause.

"I was lied to, I thought my week was sup and so I came looking for you. I'm sorry that I hurt you and got you in trouble." I shake my head "How did you handle your first week?" I ask voice slightly shaking as I look up at her.

"That's not what I meant. Why did you ignore my warnings and walk away? Why did you push yourself? I even told you that you were out a day early but you ignored me!" She screams, tears streaming down her face.

"Oh Illy," I go to and hold her, comforting her, but she pulls away not wanting me to touch her right now. "I wasn't ignoring you, I really couldn't hear you, and not just you, anyone. Well anyone except Mya." And just as the words leave my mouth I know that I shouldn't've said them.

"MYA!" she wails, "MYA?! You can't hear me, but you can hear her?!" she rounds on her heel and walks away from me, opening the portal to leave my dreams.

"Wait! She's the one who tricked me! She's up to something, something about Alpha tryouts" but it's too late, she's done listening and she's gone. Leaving me to wallow for another day alone.