BABY SAM STORIES

Left alone again, I blinked at my surroundings. Okay, mum will be home soon. I took off the cap and hung up the jacket in my wardrobe. I put the other clothes in the dresser. Yes, even the white dress, though I knew it would wrinkle. Don't judge me. I've got to start on homework! Plus there's project work to prepare for the meeting tomorrow.

It was quiet and the cool air outside was nice. This was mostly as a werewolf, I didn't mind the cold too much, but the sun shining into the room helped a lot too. It almost felt like spring was here, only that I knew it wasn't. Our weather was going bonkers again. But I'm not going to complain, I've learned to just take each day and it's random weather as it came.

Suddenly, I heard a commotion enter our apartment. They were back. I looked up from my work surprised at the passage of time. It was already 7pm and dark outside. It was also too cold even for me. I get up to shut the windows.

My stomach complained loudly about my neglect. I popped my head out of the room.

Mum was home. And Savy. And Killion. And Harvey. And fried chicken... If there ever was a bait for werewolves, it had to be fried chicken. I was out of my room in a heartbeat.

Harvey put the buckets of chicken and cans of soda on the dining room table. Everywhere else was covered with bags. I paddled through the shopping bags to the table. Why was it Pepsi?

"I'm bushed!" Mum exclaimed. Harvey pulled out a chair for her. Killion busied himself clearing up the bags. Savy had managed to bring more bags into our room before emerging back out at the table, lured by fried chicken no doubt.

Dad was home in a minute flat and at the table too. I guess there that was one of the advantages when your apartment was just above your office.

"We still have Friday training later." Harvey reminded us. He looked exhausted.

Poor guys. Mum, Mrs Beta, Laura, Savy, and Lizzy were like S-Class bargain hunters. If they could hunt rogues the way they could track down a good deal, I was sure our continent would be rogue free. And anyone who had ever shopped with them would know, it was not easy to keep up. Poor, poor guys. They must be exhausted. I'm gonna trash them during the training later. Muahahaha.

For the first part of dinner, nobody spoke. We just popped the cans of soda and ate. I guess everyone was starving. Shopping did that to you. But the second half of dinner, after everyone had downed two or more pieces of chicken, it became more civil.

"This place really brings back memories." Mum said. And then she proceeded to share them... For some reason most of them revolved around me getting into some kind of trouble until either one of my parents, or Beta Lucas, came to the rescue.

The worst part of it was how everyone would laugh and do those terribly surprised expressions which only encouraged Mum more.

I'm sure it was all made up. I mean, after the tale about how I fluttered from table to table drinking everyone's orange soda at pack dinners, Mum probably ran out of material and just starred me every other kid's childhood misadventure. I mean, I couldn't have been that bad.

Because if what my mum said was true, I must have been a monster.

Apparently, I would smile at everyone when I was a baby. And after charming them, I would pinch the ladies if they tried to pick me up.

I also liked to ride on Beta Lucas and Dad. I couldn't talk then, but I would point where I wanted them to go. If they went the wrong way, I would kick them and pull their hair out.

I liked to climb furniture the moment I learned to crawl. I also liked to chew furniture. The dark wood sofa legs had my teeth mark on them, as did some of the dining chairs we were sitting on.

I also liked to throw things down the laundry chute. The packhouse ladies found everything from half eaten baby biscuits in the flavor I didn't like, to my mum's purse in the Alpha's laundry.

I climbed out of my cot and slept on the floor most nights. Either that or I tried to climb out and fell headfirst and concussed. But Mum and Dad would wake up and put me back in the cot, only to find me on the floor again in the morning.

In the end, they let me sleep on a mattress on the floor. Even though I was still on the floor the next morning, at least they didn't worry about the high fall.

I ate grass and was determined to try every type. Then I got angry that it tasted bad and cry.

When I cried it was so loud Gamma Harry could hear it from his house, which was a 5 minutes drive from the pack house.

I regularly emptied the garbage bin to search for food. My mum suspected I thought it was a fridge. My dad suspected I was actually a racoon. I probably had rabies.

I refused to brush my teeth. I ruined most of those expensive baby toothbrushes by clamping down hard on the toothbrush and not ever letting go.

I liked to play in puddles. If there were no puddles, I would make my own, from cold tea left in a teacup, or water from a vase, and many other unthinkable sources. The color of the puddle did not bother me.

All this even before I could walk or talk.

"What was Savy like?" I asked, wanting to turn the heat of the spotlight onto someone else.

"Savy?" Mum thought about it, "She was an angel. Never cried, played quietly in her cot for hours."

Humph.

Savy beamed at that.

"I don't think we could've handled it any other way." Mum admitted. "Even your Dad had to babysit."

More stories now because that line sucked Dad down memory lane, and once there, he would have to make his way out...aloud.

Dad alleged that I would eat his documents, or throw them out of his window. I also liked to draw on everything. The documents, the floors, my legs... Particularly with permanent marker. Seriously, who thought it was a good idea to arm a 2 year old with permanent marker? (Answer: Beta Lucas.)

I stapled Dad hand once. Who would give a two year old a stapler? (Answer: Beta Lucas).

In Beta Lucas' defense, he hadn't had experience with kids yet. At that time, Ben and Lizzy were still safely cocooned in Mrs Beta's belly.

I sat on a roller chair and nearly crashed it through a window. Beta Lucas had jumped and intercepted the chair. But really, I doubt it would really have crashed through. It's not easy to crash through a window with a roller chair.

I know this because I remembered trying it when I was older, not that anyone knew, because it was really hard to break a window. You need to hit it with a lot of force, and a blunt thing like a roller chair or a elementary school body just didn't cut it. Who thought it was a good idea to show me old police action movies? (Answer: Beta Lucas)

I don't know why Mum and Dad let Beta Lucas babysit me so much. Maybe they didn't really have a choice.

I also continued to enjoy making puddles out of various liquids. It came to a point liquids of any sort were forbidden in the alpha's office.

One particularly outstanding puddle made by yours truly was a hidden coffee puddle in a gap behind the potted tree, between the sofa and the wall. I would crawl in with whatever leftover coffee mug I found and empty it there. It went unnoticed for several weeks. Eventually the smell got so bad, Dad looked behind the plant.

It got worse when I started school. From drawing in Lycan books to using them as building blocks. I also locked dad out of his own office, and pushed small furniture against the door so even after they found the key, they couldn't push the door through.

Eventually, Dad climbed in through the open window.

I couldn't reach the white board in the conference room, so I drew on the wall under it.

I decided to help cut Savy's hair.

I decided to try out mum's lipstick... But not on myself, of course. Just on all my stuffed animals.

I was deathly afraid of dolls. This was because we visited Grandpa Alpha when I was three and he told me (as a joke) that dolls woke up when you are sleeping at night. Adults can sometimes be so cruel.

I received a lot of dolls when I was little and mum had to hide all of them so I won't see them. Or else I would freak out.

But I was very protective of my stuffed animals. They all had names and lived on my bed and no matter what condition they were in, they absolutely must not be thrown away.

I even took attendance every evening so Mum could not sneak any of them off to "stuffed animal heaven".

This was Beta Lucas' fault for showing me Toy Story too many times.

Actually, I still had them stored in the drawers under my bed... up until the fire anyway.

Fine, I'm sure we could spend all night chronicling Sam's childhood year by year. Why are all these stories coming out now?

"Don't we have to go for training?" I asked, attempting to stop the dam from bursting and my life of mishaps to gush out all at once.

Some things were best left in the past.

"Yes, yes, you better go." Dad said. He was still smiling. He was in a good mood.

Killion dug around the shopping bags to find some water bottles. He took out four bottles. It looked like Mum decided to standardize the water bottles in the household. All of them were exactly the same. Then he went to the kitchen.

Savy left to get changed. I just waited at the table, "Oh yeah, Dad, why do I have Anemia?"

"Hm?" Dad raised a brow and I realized from his expression, this was news to him too.

"Someone told all the teachers who told my whole class that I had some long term anemia." I informed my parents.

"Oh my." Mum said.

"Your daughter is now a Warlock Princess from the North who has anemia." I elaborated just to throw them off further.

Mum looked puzzled, "But warlocks are male."

"Try explaining that to human teenagers." I grumbled, "There was a petition left in my locker today for a snow day next week."

Harvey looked more amused than I thought was necessary.

Dad seemed to have figured it out though, "I asked Principal Laura to deal with your absenteeism."

"I was only absent twice." I argued.

"Within the first month." Dad pointed out.

True that.

"That's not uncommon for future alphas." Dad told me, "In fact, in a Lycan school, it would have been expected for Alphas and even Betas to miss school due to pack duties."

"I'm not sure about the warlock part though." Dad admitted.

"That's what the students thought because of my hair and eyes now." I explained.

"Young humans have such imagination." Dad marveled. I think that was beside the point!

"You don't know the half of it." I shrugged. I had purposely not mentioned anything about the curse that was broken by a kiss from Prince Charming. And I definitely wasn't going to say that Harvey was Prince Charming!

It was embarrassing just to thinking about it.

I got up from the table just as Killion came out with the filled bottles. "I made one for you too Harv." Killion said.

"Thanks Ki." Harv accepted the bottle.

"Thanks." I took a bottle from Ki too.

My bedroom door opened and Savy came out in gym clothes. She had a everything in black and grey except for a dark red gym jacket.

"I call dips on the top bunk." She informed me.

Wait, what?

"Who said you could choose first?" I demanded.

"I didn't. The Moon Goddess decided it." Savy was cackling so I knew something was definitely up.

"What are you talking about?" I stormed over to the room. Grrr....

Savy pushed the door open wider, "Don't blame me. Blame him."

And I knew, even before I looked at what was under the blankets in the bottom bunk. Grrrr... It was all Bell's fault.

"Bell! What are you doing here?" I pretty much exploded. By now, the rest of my family have come to the door. I grabbed the blanket and pulled.

He caught it and sat up, "Princess?" He blinked, "Another dream? What trouble did you get into now?"

At this more than one man in the room dared to laugh. Grrr....

"I'm not in any trouble!" I yelled, "Stop dreaming about me!"

"Not in the fight cage tonight?" Killion asked casually.

Rebel got out of the bed, with nothing but his usual leather pants and boots.

"You wore boots in my bed?" I complained.

Rebel simply soothed a particularly angry and frazzled lock of hair on my head.

In the corner of my eye, I saw Savy's eyes grow wide, "Your mate is a fight dog?"

"Temporarily." Killion assured her. He was rummaging through some of the bags he left at my dresser. He pulled out a tracksuit, "We got clothes for you too." Then he pointed to the attached bathroom.

"Hi." Rebel greeted my parents.

Dad beamed like his favorite son had come home.

"Would you like to join us for training, Luna?" Harvey asked.

"Might as well." Killion decided for Bell, "If you're here, you can't be scheduled for any fights tonight."

"I'm traveling between tour locations." Bell informed us.

"Where's next?" Killion asked.

Bell replied something but I couldn't hear because the both of them shut the bathroom door.

"Is it normal for guys to use the bathroom together?" I asked.

Savy cackled, "I can't believe your mate is a fight dog."

"Oh my." Mum looked rather shocked.

I could hear the two guys inside discussing something. The door opened and Killion stepped out, "Just try to get the female bids there."

"I don't need your advice!" Bell growled.

I decided to pretend I didn't hear anything, "We better go."

I left, knowing the rest would follow behind.

"We have the rogues held captive for questioning. If you're still with us later, Luna, would you like to drop by with Ki and I on the interrogation?" I overheard Harvey ask my mate.

I see, and no one thought to ask me? Grrr...

We took the lift down to the third floor lobby, and then took the stairs down the rest of the way to the basement. I managed to catch sight of the moon from one of the windows. It was full and round and bright.

When I was young, I always felt the moon was smiling at me. Now I think it was mocking me. Moon Goddess, why was my mate popping up every night? And why did you put him on the lower bunk? Grrr...

On the bright side, Bell wasn't at dinner tonight to hear the telling of Baby Sam stories.

One should be thankful for small mercies.