TRICK 7: LITTLE ALPHA GHOST GETS A SCARE

27 FEBRUARY, SATURDAY MORNING

Was it bad that there was a bunch of people dressed in black suits and dark dresses gathered around the settees and landing outside my bedroom?

Inside my room was worse, Mama had burst into tears the moment she stepped in. Alpha James came over to my bedside to check. Like Ki and Bell, he placed a hand on the forehead of my sleeping body for a moment and then straightened, "She seems to be just sleeping."

He looked at Ki and Bell as if for confirmation, but neither man smiled back. Ki's usually smiling mouth was pressed down exactly like Bell's. In many ways these two were made for each other.

"Tell us something we don't know, old man." Bell muttered under his breath.

Alpha James sighed, "Why did you link your lifeline to hers?"

And that was enough to get a rise out of Bell, "You have no right to ask me that. You did the same yourself."

"Wh...what...do...do you mean?" Luna Edith asked.

Alpha James' expression darkened and Bell shrugged, "Nothing. Pretend I didn't say anything."

"Why won't she wake up?" Mum cried.

Ah! Don't cry Mum! I'll wake up! I'll wake up! And then to my horror, I realized I had no idea how. What should I do?

I tried going back to my body, but I just kept going through it. I frowned, how did this kind of thing work?

Dad placed his large hand on Mum's shoulder, and then everyone left my room. I followed them anxiously. Why won't I wake up?

"Alpha Kingsley and Alpha Lorent and their lunas are here." Beta Lucas announced, and everyone stood up. My betas, Dad's betas, Lady Amber, Roy, Delta Oran, Mrs Beta and the girls, Savy, Lizzy, and little Sabre, all three of them in matching black turtle necks, woolen skirts, and black stockings.

Savy had River's stone around her neck as well as a bright silver colored mating bangle. She also had River and Alpha Gunter and his Beta next to her. I looked at the two elder snow wolves, their long straight silver white pony tails like blades against the black suits they were wearing. Even River was in a black suit.

Wait... why was everyone dressed for a funeral? WAS IT MY FUNERAL? o,o!

"Well, the good news is that she is in every sense just sleeping." Alpha James announced. Yeah! I'm just sleeping! Don't do anything rash, people!

And then he proceeded to explain how Bell had linked our lifelines, for that reason, I will not be able to die unless he did. This was apparently something powerful healer wolves could do with an existing strong bond such as a mating bond, but it was a forbidden technique because it was considered a type of resurrection art.

"The bad news is that there's very little we can do. Her body will be preserved in optimal condition physically by their mating bond and lifelink my son inserted into it." Alpha James eyed Bell with deep disapproval, "The link will hold as long as my son's life force is able to support it. Unfortunately, it requires substantial power to sustain. I'm afraid all we can do is wait. Eventually, she'll wake up or he'll fall asleep too, and then..."

Alpha James didn't continue. He reached out and took Luna Edith's hand and squeezed it. Were those tears in his eyes.

"It's not like I'd die from something like this." Bell boasted, "I don't even feel the strain."

"For now. But how long more? A month? Maybe two?" Alpha James said, "Believe me, it will take its toll."

"You'd know." Bell growled lowly.

Alpha James' expression darkened again, Luna Edith looked confused, and Father and Son resorted glaring silently at each other.

"The thing I want to know is how did she die?" Beta Lucas blurted out.

"She's not dead." Bell growled.

Willow swatted her mate's arm.

"I mean, how she FELL ASLEEP." Beta Lucas corrected himself.

Everyone looked at everyone else, and then Alpha James growled, "It's Fount's Curse."

Did he mean the prophecy Fount gave on the way Bell was born?

For the sound of the bell

His name would be Rebel

For 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.

Because it's been pretty much outlining the events of my recent life, I already knew it by heart. Oh cool, Bell had become "brother to the warlock's fire". Let's see, all that's left was "He will not take a Luna mate. The Last Lorent Alpha will be his fate."

Oh. So that's what it was supposed to end? I'm dead, and his life line had been linked to mine, so I'll be draining him bit by bit. Bell would be invested officially as the Lorent Alpha next full moon. And then he'll run out of juice to support the both of us, and that'll be the fulfillment of the prophecy.

That was like the WORST ending I ever heard!

Not only was it like sad because we end up dead, it would be like super anticlimatic. I mean seriously! I'm not sleeping us both to death! I refuse!

"That would explain why she suddenly fell asleep." Alpha Gunter spoke now, "Blue wolves never live beyond their purpose. Perhaps her work here is done and the goddess has called her home."

At this the women burst into tears. I'm not exaggerating. Mum was the only one who cried aloud though. Luna Edith covered her face in Alpha James' shoulder. Lady Amber covered her mouth as the tears fell out of her eyes. Mrs Beta hugged Mum and cried with her.

And like synchronize fountains, suddenly there wasn't a dry eye in the room. Even Ben looked distraught. Okay, I cried too, and I wasn't even dead! Like seriously, stop! All your emotions were messing with me! I didn't get called home by the goddess! I was right here!

Oh, f...I mean, pop it.

Stop crying! My heart feels like it was being broken repeatedly with your tears.

I roughly swiped the tears out of my eyes and turned to go back to my room to escape the drowning feeling, and if at all possible, to return to my body. Enough was enough. I mean, being a ghost for a night was fun, but I didn't actually want to be stuck like this for months - especially not to watch everyone miserable like this.

But at this point, Savy spoke up, "Actually, there's something I should probably have told you."

Mum stopped crying and blinked. Savy almost never spoke aloud, especially not in front of people - and right now was a lot of very grown up and serious people.

Lizzy quickly took out her phone.

"We saw Sam last night." Savy said, "Mum, maybe you should sit down first. "

So the girls did keep my secret! But now because my life was on the line, Savy had decided to break her silence and tell my parents, and Alpha James and Alpha Gunter too... Anyone who could probably be able to help figure out how to save me.

Savy and Lizzy took turns to recount what happened last night. They passed around Lizzy's phone so everyone can examine the photo. I peered over Ben's shoulder to look.

"Well, it doesn't look photoshopped." Ben muttered.

Lizzy slapped him hard on the back, "Don't be a doofus! Why would we make something like that up?"

Mum's face visibly paled when she saw the photo, she covered her mouth, and then started tearing up again, "Oh my poor Sam!"

I looked at the photo of me floating and grinning with peace signs above the girls' heads. I didn't look like I was suffering in the least.

"I should've said something sooner..." Savy regretted deeply, "But the moon looked really full last night, so I thought she might have been dream traveling or something."

"Tonight's the full moon though." Lizzy said thoughtfully, "So the night before could look really round too."

"I did notice an irregularity with the moon myself." Alpha Gunter admitted, "But I had not stopped to consider it's implications."

"Maybe if we can catch her ghost, we can put it back into her body." River suggested.

Yeah! Someone help put me back inside!

"Perhaps, but catching a ghost isn't a straightforward matter, nor is reintegrating her spirit to her body." Alpha Gunter cautioned.

Roy raised his hand here, "I... I mean, beg your pardons alphas, but I... I have an invention..."

Roy stopped speaking when he realized everyone was looking at him.

"Go on, they're listening." Lady Amber nudged Roy reassuringly.

"Yes, speak. I won't bite." Alpha James said.

Roy didn't look convince in the slightest.

"Come, my friend, if you have an idea to help my daughter, I'd gladly hear it." Dad said.

"Yeah, royboy." Beta Lucas chipped in, "Tell us what you've got."

Thus encouraged, Roy bobbed his head, "Well, yes. I built a machine based on some very old blueprints in a book from Fount's library... urm... yeah, but mine had been modified to transfuse certain inherent magical essence into plants, particularly roses, but... it is urm... technically, the machine was first designed to extract and transfer a wolf's soul into another being. Urm... I think ah... Fount was researching a bit... urm... on the possibilities..."

"My goddess. He wanted to become a Tyger." Dad realized suddenly, "He had asked quite a bit about it. I hadn't quite understood why an intellectual like him would be so interested about a mythical creature..."

And then Dad looked at Bell, who was now the said mythical creature.

"Ah... yeah, about that King..." Roy decided to speak up for Fount, "I think Fount gave up the idea too... he uh... he didn't... he laughed at me when I borrowed the books. But I made a working prototype, and created some fascinating rose hybrids...."

"Wait... Royboy... what are you saying here?" Beta Lucas raised his hand to interrupt, "Do you want to use your machine to..."

"To fuse the little princess' soul back into her body. Yes." In his excitement, Roy was suddenly able to speak properly again, his eyes gleamed at the possibility,"Theoretically, it is entirely possible. Ruby had made me convert my machine to transfer the blue wolf powers to her, and then later demanded to have her soul transferred into the little princess completely."

Dad growled, and Roy quickly retracted, "Of course I did not do as she instructed, I had purposely left out certain mechanisms so that the process would only extract a very little amount of vitality... ah... uh.. well, its hard to explain, but the idea was to falsify a successful transfer and remove the little princess to safety should the procedure be unavoidable.... urm... ah, but that was all in the past, Ruby is dead. She was a terrifying woman, completely mad you know... after her fight dog lover dumped her... ah..."

Roy now looked up at Bell like a deer caught in headlights, "I mean, its not... urm... its probably for the better. I don't really know anything."

I looked at Bell who folded his arms but otherwise looked completely impassive to the implied relationship.

Ki was much more proactive in the PR department, "It was a purely one-sided relationship, our Luna Bell had never more than a professional working relationship with Ruby."

"Yeah, whatever a 'professional working relationship' entailed for a fight dog." Ben smirked.

"This... this is crazy." Alpha James declared.

"So crazy that it might actually work..." Dad said. He looked at Alpha James, "What do you really think?"

Wait, no... you guys can't seriously be considering this!

"I think... its not impossible." Alpha James admitted reluctantly, "With enough healer support, very few things are impossible, but untested methods would naturally run with unprecedented risks and unexpected results."

Alpha Gunter looked thoughtful, "I have a good friend who might be able to assist in this operation. If I ask the favor naturally, it would only be for his assistance."

"Wait, we're really doing this?" River burst out, "But isn't this dangerous? What would happen to Sam if anything goes wrong?"

Yes, exactly! I can't believe I was totally agreeing with River on this.

"At this point, son, there is very little to lose in trying, son." Alpha Gunter said, "The longer we wait it out, the weaker the Young Alpha Lorent would become. At any rate, with the right healers involved, any pain or backlash can be subverted and remedied."

Alpha James shook his head, "So we have come to this."

"But... " River frowned.

"I'll provide the core healers for this operation." Alpha James decided, "Alpha Gunter, if your friend is willing to lend his assitance, I'll be grateful for his help."

"Can you gather enough healers, Alpha Lorent?" Alpha Gunter asked.

"They will come." Alpha James said solemnly, "The future of our packlands is at stake. No matter what the cost, my wolves know their duty is always first to their alpha."

Alpha Gunter nodded, "A necessary sacrifice."

I was liking the sound of this conversation less and less. I looked around the room for someone to say something, but no one was speaking. I tried to mindlink Dad, Bell, Ben, Savy... Some one please say "STOP!" and "That's wrong! Sam won't want any wolf to be sacrificed!" but my mindlink wasn't working. Why wasn't my mindlink working?

Okay, now I started panicking a little. Was Boo even still around?

{Hm?}

I had never felt so relieved to sense my wolf. Okay, I know, we were one and the same, at least we were supposed to be, but sometimes that's hard to reconcile. Boo was always smarter, and sharper, and scarier...and Boo, I mean I, I felt quite sure I wasn't dead.

Ki raised his hand first, "I will be the key sacrifice."

Alpha James nodded, "Thank you, Ki. We are indebted to you."

"It is my honor." Ki demurred.

"Then that's settled." Bell decided.

NO! DON'T SETTLE ON THAT! STOP YOU STOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOPIDS!!!!

"So all we need to do is get some cameras and hunt Sam's ghost down?" Ben asked.

Savy shook her head, but it was Lizzy who corrected her brother, "Wrong. We have Sabre remember?"

Now everyone turned to the little girl. Poor Sabre hid behind Mum's dress.

"Baby, can you help us find Sam?" Mum asked, "We need to help her wake up."

Sabre's large eyes immediately turned to me.

I flared, "No! Don't tell them I'm here!"

"Baby? Can you help us?" Mum asked again.

"But Sam says to not tell you she's here." Sabre answered honestly.

Now everyone was looking about.

"So she's been here all along?" Ben smirked.

"Okay. That was easy." Beta Lucas nodded, "Now how do we catch her?"

Everyone had gone mad! WTH! What was going on? Why was this happening?

So I did what I always did when I was in over my head. I ran away.