Hidden Power

The second the word reached Nova's ears she was off. Her toes seemed to barely brush the earth as she moved forward. Leaping over the first obstacle seemed effortless. Her body seemed to already know how to navigate the course as she ran through it.

The power that had flooded her veins before now seemed to pump through her muscles as her senses grew alive. Nova could hear all the birds and the little critters in the surrounding trees, but they seemed distant as her mind focused on her next step. Everything seemed sharper now as she raced onward quickly maneuvering the course.

Then, before she even registered what was happening Nova crossed the finish line. She wanted to keep running but forced herself to come to a stop, but she couldn't quite make herself turn away from the woods.

The desire to hunt grew as she listened to the pitter-patter of little paws and the sounds of the woods. Nova bounced slightly on her toes while she fought the desire as she reminded herself of the dinner. There was sound coming from behind her, but she was so engrossed in the woods it took her a minute to understand.

"Nova, are you okay?" Jay's uncertain voice finally managed to pierce through to her. Nova looked back at him and when their eyes met his furrowed eyes widened. When she didn't say anything Jay asked again, "Nova, are you okay?"

Nova tilted her head to the side slightly and said, "Yeah, I feel really good actually." However, her voice came out different, it sounded rougher and almost guttural. The sound brought her focus further away from the woods and she finally turned fully around to face Jay.

Jay's eyes were wide as he commented, "Are you sure you're okay?" His eyes dropped down to her feet which caused her eyes to follow. Her now bare feet looked slightly longer than they would normally be with her weight on the balls of her feet. Her nails also appeared a little longer and sharper than normal. Next, her eyes flickered to her fingers which also seemed a bit longer than normal and her nails had also grown slightly.

The power hummed through her body and while she knew it wasn't normal, it felt right. No fear filled her as she returned her gaze to Jay's worried eyes. "Yes, I am okay. I don't know exactly what... this is, but it is okay." He nodded, though in his eyes she could see he didn't quite believe her. Nova closed her eyes and took deep breaths while she focused on reining the power back in. Slowly it faded until she felt her heels return to the ground and her senses weaken.

Matt was the first to break the silence after Nova reopened her eyes, "Wow. I don't know what all that was, but that was legit! I mean, did you see her? She was practically flying through that course and she beat Jay!"

They all laughed and Calli declared, "Girl, you've got to show me some of those moves." A massive grin broke out across Nova's face in response and they all turned and headed toward the building.

Just before they went inside though Jay turned to her with a smirk, "Now, are you ready to meet my father?" The thought caused Nova to pale as her stomach suddenly decided to practice making knots. Seeing her wide eyes caused him to chuckle before he turned and entered the building leaving Nova by herself.

Nova glanced back at the woods and found them very welcoming. They could just do this later... or never. She could say she got sick or that the local pack needed her. She could even say that her brother called her and she had to run. Dawn's voice broke her from her daydream as she said, 'As much as I am nervous to meet him too, we cant avoid this. If we want to understand things more and if we want to be with Jay, we are going to have to meet the Alpha.'

With a sigh, Nova responded, 'You're right... but what if he doesn't like me?'

'Then we run and become a vet in some small in the middle of nowhere town,' came Dawn's instant response.

Nova couldn't help but chuckle as she said, 'deal.' She looked back at the door and took a deep breath before finally heading in to change.

Much quicker than she wanted, they were back in the car driving the rest of the way to Jay's house. After a few moments of silence, Jay finally spoke up, "So, that was fun and to think you didn't want to do anything."

Nova looked over at him with a smirk, "You're right beating you was a lot of fun."

That caused him to frown as he tried to defend himself, "Hey, you might be faster than me but I am stronger than you."

"Oh really?" Nova asked him with a raised eyebrow, "Is that a challenge?"

Jay chuckled and told her, "Well, not today but another day maybe. Although, I must warn you that other than my father I am one of the strongest in my pack and I have been training since I was 8."

"And I have been training since I was 4," Nova told him with a grin.

He raised an eyebrow, "You know, I am sure you are quite capable but being trained to dance is one thing, and being trained to fight is a whole other."

That caused Nova to laugh before she asked, "So what are we having for dinner?"

"Nice, we will continue that conversation later just so you know," Jay commented before answering, "But, I believe my mother is making Ham with mashed potatoes and vegetables. I will warn you as well that it was been in the oven slowly cooking since 6 this morning, so the meat is going to fall off the bones, and eating it may just bring death by delight."

"Wow, I am guessing you really like your mother's roast," Nova commented with a raised eyebrow.

Jay just laughed and told her, "Just you wait, you will see what I am talking about when dinner starts." Nova laughed while shaking her head before turning her gaze to the house they were turning into.

It wasn't too far away from where Jay had taken her to the doctor, which seemed to have been in the center of their neighborhood. It was nice the way they had designed everything where people were close enough to get together frequently but had plenty of space and privacy. Nova also imagined some people could live further away if they wanted to.

Jay's house was a beautiful three-story house that had a mixture of stonework and wood accenting the red bricks. There were a lot of arches placed throughout the design which put just enough shape and layer to the house. Nova wanted to just gasp at the house, but she restrained herself. Of course, Jay noticed anyways and sent her a smirk before climbing out of the car and moving quickly to open the door for her.

"You ready?" was all he asked as she climbed out of the car and he shut the door.

Nova looked at him and took a deep breath before turning back to the house and muttering, "As ready as I'll ever be."