I collapsed against the wall of the classroom. We had been working for the last three hours straight and I was fatigued. I hadn't even really done anything other than stand and stare at Skye for the majority of it. For whatever reason I couldn't get the hang of the communicating in my wolf form. Skye had told me that it would take time and that this was only my first day of class. Maren told me that each wolf has things that they get the hang of easier than others. But both told me this when we were in our wolf forms so it really only succeeded in annoying me. "Kye! You coming?" Skye asked. I looked up at her. She was standing in front of me and I could tell by the look on her face she had been trying to get my attention for a few minutes. I thought back to the the last message that I had received when I was in my wolf form: "Stay after" it was a message from Corrigan, who had been standing off to the side of the room, still in her human form. "You can go ahead I need to use the bathroom and maybe go take a shower. I will come find you later." I told Skye. She nodded and left the room Ryan following after her. I glanced around the room, no one else was here. Corrigan and Maren where the first to leave, the others had already shifted and changed by the time I finally gave up, for today, on communicating. "You stayed," Corrigan said. She walked into the room alone, her hair untied and falling in waves around her face. "You told me to." I replied. She nodded and motioned for me to get up. "Did you mention this to anyone?" She asked. "No, I figured you didn't want me to otherwise you would have just asked after class." I explained.
We left the room instead of going down the stairs like I expected she pushed away a section of the wall next to the stairs to reveal another set of stairs leading up. "You think things through," she said. "What do you mean?" She motioned back to the room we just left. "When you were trying to tell us apart you couldn't figure it out, then you thought to use your nose. When I told you not to think when it came to the shift it took you a minute but you figured it out. Now tell me smart little pup why can't you figure out how to communicate as a wolf?" She asked. I stared at her back as we climbed up the stairs. Her question tumbling through my mind. "I'm...not sure" I finally said. Corrigan stopped and turned to look down at me. "Then let me give you a clue. Communicating takes a connection to the wolf you are trying to 'speak' to. As a pack we already have a connection in place: the bond. So half the work is already done for you, you have the connection so why is it so hard for some wolves to use that bond and communicate?" She asked. Our bond is what marked us as pack. It connected the entire pack and let us feel each other: where we were, how we all felt, and if Corrigan was right it let us speak to each other. Some wolves purposely blocked information coming from the bond, others blocked it unconsciously. As far as I knew only the Alpha kept the bond completely open at all times. "People have trouble with communicating because they don't let their connection with the bond open?" I asked. Corrigan smiled down at me. "Andrea is great at communicating she understood it easily. However she is still having trouble shifting, why?" Corrigan asked. I thought about everything I knew about the shift and about Andrea. "She can't let go of the control being human gives us," I said confidently. Corrigan arched an eyebrow and didn't answer. She turned around and started back up the stairs. When the stairs ended the floor laid open before us just like the second floor. The room made me think of an attic hideaway lounge. There were couches and bean bag chairs strewn across the floor a giant flat screen tv was bolted to the right side wall to my left there was a kitchenette and along the back all was a book shelf that ran the length of the room. At the end was a end table with three laptops piled on it. "What is this place?" I asked Corrigan. She moved away from the stairs and claimed a dark red bean bag. "This it 'the lair' the getaway for Betas." Corrigan said. "There are hidden niches like this all over the compound for the different Gammas, the omegas, pups, and even the Alpha has one." Corrigan explained. "Why?" I asked. "Didn't I just get done telling you to use your head? When pups shift for the first time they need help, mentors, as a pup you really only know other pups. These hideaways give you a place to go to get away from everyone if you need and it's a place you can meet and befriend older wolfs in the same position you are in. Everyone with access to this room will be a Beta." Corrigan said. After Corrigan explained it I realized it made sense to have something like this. It had to be helpful to all new wolves. I finally moved away from the door and plopped down on the couch not far from Corrigan. "Good, now before you go and relax I didn't bring you here to laze around." Corrigan said. I shifted uncomfortable under her gaze. "You need more training then the rest of those pups, as a beta it is now your responsibility to protect the pack from harm," Corrigan told me.
"I thought that was the Alpha's job?"
"Most people do. And their right to an extent. Tell me what happens if the Alpha was to be hurt? Or be killed?"
"The pack would be vulnerable." I said.
"Exactly, metaphorically speaking the Alpha is like the Brain and the blood of the pack. She touches everyone and leads us. We Betas are the muscle and skin, we protect the pack and keep us bound together, safe. Gammas are the bones they are the core and keep us rooted. Omegas are the heart keeping peace between us all and care for us all." Corrigan explained.
"Each part of the pack has their own roles to play,"
"Yes, and our role is to make sure that everything runs smoothly and if there is a complication we make sure it doesn't reach the pack."
"How?"
"We run the border patrol, we're in charge of the contact with town, and we protect the Alpha. You need to learn the basics like all new wolves but you also need to learn this. To do this though you need to become a dedicated part of this pack, when your ready for that come find me." Corrigan said.
After that she stood up and walked out of the room leaving me to my thoughts.
***
I left the school building after awhile, when I stepped outside rain poured down. I hadn't even realized that it was raining and I should have been able to hear it before I reached the outside. I stepped out from under the protection of the school's roof and started walking back towards the barracks. The cold rain hit my skin soaking through my t-shirt. Movement in the forest off to my left captured my attention. I turned to see a dark figure standing half hidden by the rain and foliage. My heart beat spiked and I thought of the vampire that had attacked my family. The figure moved forward breaking free of the shadows. Andrea stepped out of the trees just enough so that I could see her. She had to have been waiting awhile her shirt was soaked through and I could see her Lacey black bra through her light blue t-shirt. I stared for a moment just taking in the sight of a rain drenched Andrea, which was more erotic than I expected after previously glimpsing her nude. "Are you going to just stand there all day?" Andrea asked silently. I snapped out of it and walked over to her, as soon as I was only a few feet away she turned and moved further into the forest. We walked silently for a few minutes until Andrea suddenly disappeared. The rain was still coming down and there wasn't enough enough coverage to block it. Andrea had only been a figure moving through the rain one second then she vanished. When I reached the spot she disappeared I realized that she ducked underneath the boughs of a very large white pine. I pushed aside the boughs and entered the enclosed space. It was larger than I thought it would be and I could easily stand without having to worry about the branches. Andrea was standing by the trunk of the tree her back to me. "You know it's not safe to be under a tree during a storm?" I asked breaking the silence. "I wasn't expecting rain and by the time it started I didn't know where else to go." She explained. "Why are we here?" I asked. I was uncomfortable being here with her but I was unsure why. I had been alone with Andrea before and as unpleasant as those encounters usually were I was never uncomfortable around her. "I needed to talk to you in private where no one else would hear. This tree is never used anymore so I figured it would be a good place to go." I glanced around at the space beneath the tree there were some worn strings tied to some of the branches above. Words an symbols were carved into the tree in different places. Whatever this tree used to be it was a popular place. "What is this?" I asked her. Andrea turned around her left hand resting on the trunk, her eyes distant as she thought about the past. "This was where our age group use to hang out when we were pups. The pups now have some cave off on the west side of the forest by the river." She told me.
Her words summoned a memory to my mind. Before me the scene changed Andrea was younger about 9 her face distorted in anger in her fist she clenched the letters that Ryan had nailed to the trunk of the tree. Ryan had told Skye and me about this prank a few weeks ago but had conveniently forgot to mention who he was playing the prank on. I had come to the hideaway to have some fun only to be met with Andrea's anger, the cowardly little prankster had pushed the blame off on me. I was going to kill him later, Andrea was one of the stronger older pups and the Alpha's niece. We never really got along, she unquestioningly followed all the rules, while I enjoyed taking a more subjective interpretation to the rules. which seemed to be all the proof Andrea needed to think I was actually the guilty party. Sadie, my older cousin and Andrea's best friend was going to rip me a new one when she saw me. I really was going to kill Ryan for this.
"Everyone stopped using this tree a few years ago so it's perfect." Andrea continued pulling me out of the memory. "Andrea, why are we here?" I asked again. The memory had made me feel even more uncomfortable and I just wanted to leave. "I wanted to talk to you about this morning. Something is happening that Raiza's not mentioning. I want to figure out what it is she isn't saying, but I need help." She said. "Ok so why am I here. I mean I am...curious but if she isn't saying anything than maybe it is something that we should stay out of," I replied. "Your here because I am under orders not to tell anyone about what was discussed this morning. Seeing as you were there you already know and your only curious? Since when do you think before you act? You were always getting into trouble it was you favorite pass time." She accused. "Don't you even care about what is happening with that vampire? With the pack? Since you've been back you spent the majority of your time hiding or with your human friends. When was the last time you actually spoke with someone? Other than your cousin and her friends? And have you even had a real conversation with them? Got to know them? You've been sulking since you got here and taking absolutely no action. Whether you remember or not, whether you like it or not you are part of this pack. Don't you think it's time you started acting like it?" She spat out with venom. Everything she had been wanting to say since she laid eyes on me seemed to spill from her mouth.
I watched mutely as Andrea turned and walked away. I should have stopped her, went after, or said something, but I couldn't move. She was right and I hated that she was right. When the sounds of her footsteps faded I slumped against the trunk of the tree. I had been hiding ever since I came here, but Andrea only knew half of it. I had also been hiding from dad and my friends in his unit. I pulled my cell phone out of my pocket and scrolled through my contacts. I wasn't sure why I was doing this whether it was because I was angry that Andrea was right or of it was because I didn't like the look of disappointment and betrayal in her eyes.
I raised the phone to my ear irrationally nervous, it rang three times before someone picked it up. "Hello?" My dad asked over the line. "Hey dad," I managed to get out. "Kye! I was wondering when you would call. I heard you had a pretty rough first shift. I tried calling on your birthday but when you didn't pick up or answer any of my texts I got worried and called Laura." He told me. "I should have called sooner dad, I'm sorry. Ever since I got here I've just been scared." I admitted. "Scared of what, honey?" He asked. "I...I felt like I couldn't be me. I wasn't who everyone here remembered and I was scared that who they expected me to be would change who I had become. I'm not the same person they remember. I just wished I could remember I thought then I would feel more secure about who I was, but... when I shifted it unblocked all my memories and now I am even more unsure of who I am than before." I told him. "Oh Kye, of course your not the same and they don't expect you to be. Even if you didn't loose your memories you have been gone for 8 years, no one would be the same person. Remembering the past doesn't change who you've become or the life you have lived since then. You have Family and friends who care about you, in the pack and my unit. You've always been self conscious over your lost memories but you shouldn't be. You were an amazing young girl and now you are an even more amazing young adult. Who needs to let go of her past and find her place in the pack and in the world. Kye, don't let the shadows of your past darken the bright path of your future." He told me. " Tears slid down my cheeks quietly. "Ok," I managed to choke out but even I could hear the determination in my voice. Dad was right, as was Andrea, it was time to stop sulking.
***
I didn't spend long talking to my dad after that but before I hung up I promised to actually him and some of the others later. Talking with him had given me the final push I needed, sadly I would have to thank Andrea later for giving me the original push. I didn't hesitate as I made my way through the forest, memories coming unbidden to my mind. When I was a kid I had pent hours wandering this forest learning every inch of it and those memories came in handy now. Without them I still would have found my way back but it would have taken longer and I would have had to rely on the pack bond. Now I walked confidently through the forest past plants and trees that I could name by their common name or their Latin name. My mother had spent hours teaching me the names and uses of the plants in the forest. She had been one of the best healers in the pack, and always used natural remedies first. I broke through the trees into the clearing, few wolves were outside most were in the cafeteria. Diner was about to start luckily the wolf I was searching for wasn't there otherwise this would have been harder.
The meeting house was fairly empty this time of night my footsteps echoed on the floorboards. I could sense through the bond that the wolf I was seeking was waiting for me in one of the side rooms. technically all wolves have the right to go wherever they want on pack grounds whenever they want, still some rooms were viewed as off limits to some of the younger or less dominate wolves. This room was one of those it was the command station for the Betas. the hideaway Corrigan had shown me earlier might have been where they relaxed but this room was used for official business. I opened the door to the room and stepped inside. Corrigan was waiting for me behind the largest desk at the center of the room. The desk that belonged t the Alpha's second in command, the leader of the Betas. Her desk. Corrigan had been the second in command even when I was a kid, when I first saw her I thought she was closer to my age but she wasn't. I had spent too much time around humans who aged ridiculously fast, wolves weren't considered middle age even until 70. Werewolves lived easily into their 140s unless they died of unnatural causes first. Raiza was only 96, and Corrigan was around 53.
"Yes?" Corrigan asked as I stood quietly before her. "I...I want to-" I stopped. I wasn't about to change my mind anytime soon but saying the next words would make it final. I took in a deep breath and looked Corrigan straight in the eye.
"Corrigan, what are the words to the Servari's vow?"