THE ALTERNATIVE PRESENTS ITSELF

17 FEBRUARY, WEDNESDAY, BEFORE DAWN

After such an emotionally charged decision like that, I don't know why I was surprised to find myself dreaming one of those running in the forest dreams again.

Except I would like to file an official complaint to the Goddess Office. Why did she have to recycle and reuse my dream?

I mean, I was all for saving the world and reducing waste, but to replay the exact same dream all over again, scene for scene? Seriously?

So I was running under the moonless sky. The stars were shining and then they started to sing, "Twinkle, twinkle, little star..."

And then like the stoopid that I was, I started to wonder why the stars would sing something like that. Why would they wonder what they were?

This was the point I realised that I had this dream before.

But despite my realization, my dream was determined to play itself out to the end.

Then the stars sang again, at first in ancient Lycan, and then the words sort of got translated through the dream - exactly as it did before:

"Little puppy, do not cry

Keep on fighting with a smile

Though the world is full of pain

With love and kindness it will laugh again

Little puppy, do not fear

Your mate will always be very near"

Yes, you've said already!

"Little puppy, do not cry

Keep on smiling till you die

Though the world is suffering

Be brave and true, like a clear bell ring

Little puppy, don't shed a tear

Your mate will crush the things you fear"

Yeah, I think that's his plan too.

"Little puppy, do not cry

War is only for a while

Though the world is hurt and raw

The blood and tears will be no more

Little puppy, persevere

Your mate will shield what you hold dear"

Wth. Yeah, yeah, I got it the first time. My mate will do this, my mate will do that. But what about me? What did I get to do? I'm not a little puppy! I'm not going to cry! What? Did you think I'll be hiding behind my big strong mate crying? As if! I'll show you, goddess!

I stopped running. I refused to take part in this stupid dream. Stupid stupid stupid! I looked around me. The stars were silent now, but they kept shining, twinkling, taunting.

Grrr... I shifted, right there and then in my dream. Ha! How's that for disrupting the replay? I'd show you! Grrrr....

But you couldn't fight the stars, or the goddess either, it would seem, because no sooner had I looked about for something in the dream to rebel against, I was booted out. I woke up, in wolf form, in the middle of my torn up bed. My hackles were still raised, my large claws cut through the mattress, scrapping on the individually pocketed springs which were no longer individually pocketed. Grrrr...

I just ruined another perfectly good mattress.

Goddess... I know you are goddess and everything! But seriously! That wasn't fair!

And then my alarm went off. It was another new day. Granted, maybe my dream ended simply because time was up, but this didn't ease my growling, my wolf, still irate, hopped off the golden clamshell bed and paced the plush pale pink carpet.

What was that? What was that?

They say the goddess didn't make mistakes. So this replayed dream wasn't an accident. Then what was it?

Grrr.... I hated being slow like this.

Oh, wait. Was the dream played a second time because I didn't get it the first time? Grrrr... Even the goddess thought I was slow. This slowness of mine was frustrating me to no end.

I shifted out, back to my human form, and entered the bathroom to shower and start my day. Think, Sam, think! What was it that I didn't get?

Okay, the other time a dream "went wrong" was when the goddess "accidentally" showed me mate's dream of the Underground Army.

In the dream, I wasn't there. I was watching from Mate's POV. But in reality, when it happened, I was there. Everything else happened exactly as the dream showed, except that I was there.

Which was a mistake too, wasn't it? Technically, I wasn't supposed to be there that night. But Stephan said the assembly was called for the warriors to meet me, so the event I wasn't supposed to be at, ended up being organized for me...

Because I accelerated the timeline. At least Ben was accusing me to speeding things up too quickly. Who raised an entire Underground army in a few weeks?

Standing in the shower I let the hot water run while I shampooed.

Okay, so I was a kind of catalyst. I wasn't a genius science student but I knew because my textbook had said, "A catalyst affects a chemical reaction by accelerating it. It also offers an alternative way for the reaction to happen that lowers the amount of energy needed."

I guess the Underground Army formed in the "alternative way."

Think, Sam, think! I was so close! I could feel the answer was just behind the door. My lucky sense of direction was whirring at full speed now. 

It was supposed to be Mate's army, but now it was mine. If the Underground Army could happen in an alternative way, then there was more than one path?

What else did I have to work with? Mate's prophesy! That's where the underground army was prophesized.

"At the ring of the bell

His name would be Rebel

His army so fearsome

You will cower at his return

Master to the ring of vampire

Brother to the warlock's fire

He will not take a Luna mate.

The Last Lorent Alpha will be his fate."

Okay, the bell rang the day he was born. Check. He led the Underground Army of Blue Demon Warriors. Check. His deltas were definitely panicked at his return. Check.

Master to the ring of vampire - oh the Ciara Ring! Mate was wearing it. It was like a literal ring. Haha. Check.

Brother to the warlock's fire... Okay. This hadn't happen yet. I fingered the crystal around my neck. I had a bad feeling that this would've been the next thing I was about to catalyse.

Maybe I should take Ben's advice, and try to hold back?

Wait, was I supposed to use this as a checklist? Maybe it was a bucket list? Was it in chronological order? That seemed too convenient. What would happen if I really accelerated the warlock fire part of it?

"He would not take a Luna Mate."

What if that's because I died?

"The Last Lorent Alpha will be his fate."

And then he died? Omo.

Grrr... No, no, no... Stupid prophecy!

I was all ready to shift again and throw another wolf tantrum. Grrr!

This was a stupid ending, goddess! I didn't want this ending!

But life wasn't a which-way book, it's not like I could go back and pick another route - or could I?

And at this moment, a light bulb went off in my head. What if - I know it's crazy, but stick with me here, what if the goddess WANTED me to choose a different ending?

It's not like I had ever played along the cliche lines of her dreams. (No offense goddess, but you need new material.)

So the answer was in finding the alternative way thus leading to a different ending to fulfill the prophecy! Yay! Ding Ding Ding! And oh...

Arughhhh! I figured out the answer - only to reach another question. Which way was the "alternative way" that would lead to the "and they all live happily ever after" ending?

I got into my uniform, school pin, ribbon, pulled up my hair into a quick ponytail with a navy blue ribbon clip. As usual, everything was laid out on my dresser in a little shell-shaped plate.

Then I picked up my phone and slid it into my bag. I didn't bother to check it, I knew the battery would be fully charged. But I did check my bag and my old phone was gone. Beta magic was running as usual.

My homework was still sitting outside where I had left it yesterday, opps. Almost left it behind.

Then I ran down the steps and plopped down at my seat at the breakfast table. Woah.... the whole fam was here. Mum, Dad, Savy, Sabre, Ki, and even Mate, Harvey, and Ben (betas were family too). I'm guessing the guys pulled an all night meeting (without me, but what else was new?)

"Good morning, goddess." Ki put a steaming plate of bacon and scrambled eggs. The bacon was rolled up in the shape of roses, and it came with those little roasted tomatoes on the side, sliced apple, and a warm mug of sweet milky tea. Just the way I liked it.

And then he started serving the other betas. Oh, they were waiting for me. Poor betas. My Luna though, had no such qualms. He had an empty plate that had  runny yolk smeared across the bottom and bits of bread crumbs.

"More coffee, please." He said as Ki passed him.

"Certainly, Luna." Ki smiled, "Would you like anything else to go with it?"

"No thanks." Mate shrugged without looking up from his phone.

"More for me too, if you don't mind." Dad added, also while looking at his phone.

"It would be my pleasure, Alpha." Ki obliged.

Ben gave up waiting for his meal, and went to fetch it from the kitchen himself. Harvey made himself useful and poured the coffee for everyone while Ki fetched more milk and sugar.

That was the life of a beta. Poor betas. But eventually everyone was settled with breakfast and/or fresh coffee.

"You're in a good mood." Mum noticed.

"Yep." I had to agree. How could I not be when I was eating something yummy?

"I told you it'll blow over." Savy told Mum.

"What are you talking about?" I looked up sharply. Me? Cos it sounded like they were discussing me, in front of me, again... But that didn't make it okay.

"You were just feeling rather stormy since last night, but I'm glad it blew over." Mum explained lightly.

Wait, so my little emo moment leaked out to them too? Here's hoping it stayed in the family!

"Yeah, I had a bad dream." I said. I tried to brush it off so no one would worry, "I was running and the stars were singing, you know...all the usual stuff."

This should have been Savy's cue to huff and ask how that was a bad dream. And I imagined I'd make some kind of lame excuse and everyone would laugh. Maybe about how creepy singing stars were.

I think Savy was about to, but Mum beat her to it. 

"Stars?" Mum sounded far more concerned than necessary.  

"What did the stars sing?" Sabre wanted to know.

She was a preschooler, I didn't remember being so attentive to adult conversation when I was her age.

"Twinkle, twinkle, little star~" I sang.

Sabre nodded earnestly, "Yes, they like to sing that."

I imagined she'd think so with all the preschool music videos Mum had been playing on the TV. Dad had to watch the news at his office nowadays.

Savy was just about to chime in, but Mum beat her to it again.

"Sam, this is serious, what did the stars say?" Mum asked.

Even Dad had put down his phone, "What did you dream Sam?"