Chapter Four: Visit

At month's end, Winnie was at the top of her flying class. The only one close to flying as well as she could was a blue tinted boy with brown hair and pink eyes. He was cocky but funny and he really liked pushing her buttons.

"You know, I think I'm going to overtake you in the next test. You're looking a little pale there." Nick shouted over the wind.

"Keep dreaming, you're destined to forever be in second place. How does that make you feel." Winnie laughed.

"Please, my wings have gotten a lot stronger and now I can show what I'm really capable of. They might even bump me up a year." He grinned.

"How delusional can you be? If they haven't bumped me, they're definitely not going to give you any favors." She replied.

Winnie gracefully arced around the posts and darted toward the ground to land. He smoothly followed after. Both of them walked across campus to get some lunch. They walked into a café and quickly got in line, looking at the overhead menu. There were only two people in front of them in line and eventually made it to the counter to order.

"Hello, what can I get you today." the cashier asked, smiling pleasantly.

"Hi, I'll get a tall Chai Latte and a chicken wrap, please." Winnie answered.

"I'll get a tall black coffee and also a chicken wrap, please." Nick answered.

"All right. Will that be for here or to go?" the girl asked again.

"Here, thank you." Nick replied

"That will be 21.54 and it will be ready soon, can I have a name for the order?" she said

"Thank you." They both respond together.

"Nick," he winked.

They both go to sit down at a table by the windows to wait for their order to be ready. He smiles softly at her as she looks outside at the clouds drifting by. Her gorgeous hair looks perfect against her pale fuchsia skin. He also loves looking at her stormy eyes. In his opinion they are her best feature.

"Why are you staring at me?" She asked.

"You're absolutely beautiful. Very picturesque, looking out the window like that." He answered.

Winnie blushed and rolled her eyes. "Thank you." she smiled.

"What would you say to this being a first date?" Nick asked.

"I...what? You can't be serious...you're serious! Wow...I...okay" Winnie stammered and blushed more.

"I've admired you for a while and I'm glad we are both the same form. I didn't want to say anything before because I was scared you would be a werewolf." He replied nervously.

"Why would that have mattered? I would still be me. We could have still talked to each other at the very least." She said.

"We would rarely see each other. Can you honestly say a romantic relationship could work long term when you and your partner are on different sides of the territory. Besides, different forms have different needs and wants for the future." Nick cajoled.

"We can still be friends with people of different forms." Winnie sighed.

"Is this about Simonelli and Samson? It's been a whole month and they haven't contacted you either." Nick sighed.

"They are busy. So am I, I actually was planning on visiting the ranch soon. I wanted to get accustomed to classes first." Winnie answered.

"You can go but I highly doubt they are going to just let you into their sanctuary." Nick shakes his head.

"Can we not fight? I want a pleasant first date." Winnie admonished.

"Nick" a worker shouts out.

"I'll go get our food and drinks." He answers.

The rest of the date went by smoothly and Winnie grabbed his hand as they left the café. They both head off to the dorms to get ready for their afternoon classes. Luckily it's the end of the week so she planned on visiting her old friends tomorrow.

She woke up early and got dressed quickly. Angelica was still asleep under her three blankets. She shook her head but wasn't one to talk. She gets cold quite easily too. Yesterday she looked up where the ranch was located. It's like Nick said, all the way across the western territory, in the forests bordering the northern territory. She packed a bag of snacks and took her phone and headed out the door.

As she was flying it started to rain so she started to hum under her breath, creating a shield around her to keep her dry. She didn't want to show up looking like a drowned rat. It also started getting colder the farther north she traveled. Finally after two hours of flying, the ranch started coming into view. It was a large wooden structure that was illuminated by a setup of lanterns. There were also different outbuildings scattered around. She softly touched down at the door of the compound and banged on the door. A statuesque figure opened the door and looked down at her.

"What is a tiny pixie doing at our ranch?" The female werewolf asked.

"Hello, I was wondering if I could visit my friends? They are new to the Pack, Marco Simonelli and Felicity Samson." Winnie squeaks out.

"I didn't realize they had pixie friends." The woman gives her an odd look. "I'll go get them, wait here."

"Oh hey, Winnie. When Monique told us that there was a pixie at the door asking for us, I should have realized it was you." Marco smiled slightly.

"I'm sorry, maybe I should have called or something first. I have just been so busy and I figured you guys were too so I wanted to wait to visit until everything was settled." Winnie explained.

"We visited your dorm a few weeks ago and the woman in the entry hall said you didn't want to be overwhelmed." Felicity said, raising an eyebrow.

"What? I didn't know. Nobody told me you visited. I'm so sorry." Winnie apologized, eyes wide.

"It's fine, you decided to visit us. We are glad you did...right?" Marco replied, giving a look at Felicity.

"Of course, we can hang out here, show you around. Exchange numbers if they have changed." Felicity sighed.

They walked into the courtyard and Felicity started pointing out different things like the mess hall and the dorms. It was explained that they mostly had class outside in the surrounding woods. Winnie told them about her classes and how she was the best flier in their year. She told them about Nick and him asking her out on a date. They were happy for her but also seemed kind of sad. They wished they could see each other all the time. They went into the mess hall when they got hungry. It was open at all hours for the entire pack and seemed to have everything. Marco and Felicity grabbed some curry and rice while Winnie grabbed a chopped salad. It was kind of awkward having several pairs of eyes on her, being the only pixie in the hall but she just focused on her food and her friends. The visit was enjoyable but it had to end soon or she wouldn't make it back home before dark.

"Here are our numbers, it's changed. It's a pack thing." Marco explained, handing her a piece of paper.

"Thanks, I still have the same number. I'll give you guys a text when I get home." Winnie smiled back.

"It was great seeing you. Hopefully we can do this again or even come visit you next time." Felicity beamed. She seemed to have gotten over her annoyance from being turned away the first time.

"Yeah, just give me a text and I'll meet you and show you around. We could go out for lunch or dinner and you can meet my roommate, Angie, and maybe Nick too." Winnie replied.

They waved and watched as she took off into the sky. It seemed like it took less time to get home than it did getting home. When she moved through the entry hall of the dorms she gave a side-eyed glare at the woman behind the help counter. The woman didn't seem to notice as she was typing something on the computer. Winnie went up to her room to get toiletries for a shower. As soon as she got back to the room, Angie pounced.

"Where have you been all day? The girls and I wanted to go to the park but we couldn't find you." Angie complained.

"Oh, I went to the Western Pack Ranch for a visit. They told me that they visited the first week but were turned away. We had a fun time though." Winnie explained.

"They let you in? Wow! I would be too scared to visit there." Angie sighed.

"It was a lot of fun. I got to take a tour and ate lunch in the mess hall. It was kind of creepy being watched. I was the only pixie there." Winnie responded.

"It's unnerving just thinking about it." Angie cringed.

"They aren't bad people Ang. Sure, most of them are huge but they are all really friendly. I obviously wouldn't say this around them but they act more like a pack of puppies than wolves." Winnie laughed. "Well, I'm going to bed. We could all go back to the park tomorrow, right?"

"Right, that sounds like a good plan." Angie smiled slightly. "Goodnight."