Chapter One

Today is my last day of school. At least the last normal day since I'm going "home" the day after tomorrow and on top of that I have to start a new school, I sighed. I don't really want to return to this so-called family, but well, I can't help it... Nev my wolf has no idea how to behave, because this will be the first time in 4 years that we will see real werewolves again. Until now we have never met any, only normal wolves with extraordinary powers, which was not to our displeasure.

At least they didn't criticize us or even humiliate us because of our differences! Moreover, they even accepted us in their pack and considered us as one of them. This surprised me a lot, because Nev and I don't really have a place in the hierarchy of wolves and we are completely different from them. After all, we are a werewolf so why would they accept us into their pack! While thinking about this and not forgetting that in exactly less than two days, I should leave, I look at the time displayed on my phone.

Damn, I'm late for school, and I can already hear Elie coming up the stairs to find out what's happening to me. This is seriously starting to piss me off, I sighed.

I'm sick of all those unanswered questions, I said, inwardly! Just before Elie's foot hit the last step of the stairs, I put on a neutral face with a smile, otherwise she'd ask me what was going on. Just as Elie was finishing her ascent to the top of the last step, I opened the door in a hurry and gave her a kiss on the cheek while mumbling an apology, because I was late and ran towards the door where I hit Tom head on. After hitting him, I ended up on the floor with all four irons in the air, a position as graceful as possible...

"Ouch, sh*t, that hurts" hissed

"Neiliana, how many times should I tell you to stop saying insults all the times, he sighed.

"Sorry, I mumbled in my beard."

"I'm late so I was in a hurry and I didn't see you coming," I told him louder.

"Did you have breakfast?" Tom asked me.

"Hum an apple and a glass of juice... does that count?"

"Neil, he sighed, you can't..."

"Tom, leave it there, okay the Elie cut him off. It's already late and don't worry sweet heart. I had already planned everything," she said to him with a wink.

The young woman headed to the kitchen, then returned with a bag and a bottle of water.

"Here you go honey," Elie said.

"This is your breakfast, you can eat it on your way to school."

"But... Elie," I began to grumble.

"There's no buts, young lad, you do this to us every morning," she scolded me.

"Now, you take this bag and eat what I've prepared for you. Moreover, you are not really late," she said while laughing.

"What do you mean I'm not?"

"Well, she began, I knew that as usual you would be plunged in your thoughts, so I took the liberty to change the time of your phone... look," she smiled while showing me her own phone and said, "It's only 8:25 and your class starts at 9:00."

"But... How, when and how come I didn't notice anything?" I asked her, surprised to have been tricked so easily. Tom, still standing in the middle of the hallway, a smile on his face and laughing eyes, took me by the shoulders and led me to the door so that I wouldn't stay too long or I'd really be late this time.

"How did I do it? By taking your phone. When? When you were training with Tom in the garden. Then to answer your last question, sweetie, I'm much smarter than you think and also older than you, so I know how to avoid being spotted, and I had an excellent sidekick," she said, still laughing and looking at Tom at the corner of her eye, who was looking up at the sky as if there were something interesting up there.

I joined in my foster mother's laughter until Tom grumbled something and told me to leave or I would be late. I gave them both a hug and left with my breakfast in my bag.

As I turned into the street behind my house, a rather classy car pulled up next to me and a huge guy got out and stomped towards me. Pretending not to see him, but still watching for his every move, I continued on my way until he called out to me. Of course, not having a habit of answering strangers, I continued to walk, but this time with a faster step, but the stranger managed to catch up with me in a few steps, forcing me to stop and turn towards him. That's when I realized it wasn't just anyone... This huge man, about six feet tall, was a werewolf. And from the aura surrounding him, he was a beta. I didn't like the way he was acting toward me and even more when he was on our territory. Nev and I growled to warn the stranger to let go of us, then we spoke.

"Who are you and what are you doing on my territory," I growled!

"Easy, easy, tigress," he said with a smirk on his face as he stepped back slightly to give me some space.

"Don't call me that, we're not even acquaintance," I said, annoyed by his behavior. "Who are you and what are you doing on my territory," I repeated, annoyed.

~ No but...who the f**k does he think he is?! And why does he look at us like that, this motherf**ker? I am going to make him eat his eyes, you will see! Neil let me settle his account! Come on, please, ~ she begged.

~ No Nev you know well we don't have the right to transform ourselves and even less the right to fight in a public place, ~ I answered her, still concentrated on the unknown individual in front of me.

~ Besides, if he managed to enter the territory of the pack, it would mean that Drake is aware of his presence and has judged that he's not a threat to the pack or to me. ~

~ Hmm, you're right... I'm sorry, you know I'm not usually this violent, but I don't understand why he's looking at us so strangely, it's making me uncomfortable. ~

~ I know, Nev," I replied while hugging her. Don't worry, if he keeps looking at us like that, I promise to hit him where he needs to be hit, ~ I promised her with a wink.

~ It's a deal ~ she replied, laughing.

After my conversation with Nev, I realized that the guy had moved a little closer, so I gave him a warning growl, telling him that if he took another step he would lose a limb or worse...

"Sorry, I didn't catch your name, you say it was...?

"Vincent. My name is Vincent, " he introduced himself.

"Listen Vincent, I don't have all day, I told him, so could you please answer my questions," I ordered him.

"Patience is not your strong point, isn't it princess," he said sarcastically.

I stared at him without even answering his question.

He sighed and asked me if he could drive me to my school. Not being a sissy and knowing full well that a wolf from my pack was watching us and would intervene with reinforcements if necessary, I nodded my acceptance of his proposal without showing any emotion and climbed into the car. A few seconds after I sat down, he did the same, sitting behind the wheel and starting the engine of his Lexus. After a few minutes, I was getting seriously impatient and was about to tell him so, when he started talking.

"As you know, my name is Vincent and I live in Montana. I am a Beta as you may have noticed and I belong to your parents' pack. I am a Beta in training and I..."

"My parents? What do they still want from me?" I cut him in a cold voice.

"I was just coming to that. Your parents want you to come home TODAY," he said.

"First of all, this place is not my home and secondly, it's out of the question! F**k them! I didn't want to go home in the first place! There's no way I'm going home today," I said with a growl in my voice.

Nev wasn't happy either that they imposed it on us and she made me know it with many insults which waited only for a moment of inattention on my part to leave.

"I'm not done, said the blond man with green eyes. They'll leave you until the end of class and then I'll come and get you so I can drive you home. He had just pulled into the parking lot in front of my high school when I told him.

"Listen, you stupid man, there's no way I'm going "home" tonight! I don't want to have to leave when I haven't even spent a full day with the people who raised me! Is that clear?! If I ever get home and find out I can't stay with my parents any longer than I planned, you'll see what happens!"

With that, I opened the car door and got out like a fury. The students present looked at me with a funny expression, as if it was the first time I had a reaction since I was in this school.

~ And they don't even know what we're capable of, so they better stay away, ~ said Nev

They better...Today, I'm not in the mood for their insults! I said inwardly.

As if they had understood that I shouldn't be bothered, my day went relatively well until I came back from school and saw this idiot's car!

~ But what did he not understand in what we said to him, ~ ask me Nev!

"I don't know, but he'll hear me," I mumbled aloud.

When I finally opened the door, I found Tom and Elie sitting in the living room with blondie! I was about to start getting seriously upset when suddenly Elie stood up and walked towards me, a sad smile on her face. I focused on her to see what was wrong and realized that that as**ole Vincent had told them that my so-called parents wanted me back tonight.

Unable to contain myself any longer, I said through clenched teeth that I would not be going to Montana tonight, because tomorrow I planned to spend the day with Tom and Elie!

My foster mom came to me and gave me a warm hug which calmed down Nev's anger as well as mine. When she saw that I had calmed down a bit, she told me in a grumbling voice that it was okay for tomorrow and that we would have another day together.

However, both of us knew that it wouldn't happen again anytime soon.

Hearing his wife's distress, Tom got up from the couch where he was sitting and joined us for a group hug. After our hug, I was in tears, I didn't want to have to leave them so quickly...

Without waiting for someone to speak, I turned around, changed into a wolf and ran into the forest to join my pack and say my goodbye... After running for a few minutes, I changed back into warm and comfortable clothes to move silently on the trees of this huge forest so that this wolf bastard could not follow me by smell, nor track me on the ground. When I arrived at the edge of the forest, I came down from the tree and went towards the cave which was supposed to gather the whole pack or almost. Seeing that there was nobody there, I transformed myself into a silver wolf and let out a howl that only the pack that had adopted me 4 years earlier could recognize, hear, but also find. I didn't have to wait long as the first wolves were already coming running. Drake's pack is composed of about 25 wolves or maybe a bit more, because there have been births recently...

When all the wolves were together, Drake and his mate were still missing, but that was normal. Since the birth of their two cubs, Drake has been overprotective towards his female and her cubs, so he usually makes sure that they are fine even if it meant arriving late to a pack meeting. To my surprise, Drake arrived faster than usual with two cute fur balls and his mate. The first time I met them they couldn't stop shaking, because I was the biggest wolf they had ever seen. But after proper introductions, now they come to me without fear. When they saw me, they wanted to play, but I told them that for the moment I couldn't, because I had to talk to their father. Of course, being young, they didn't understand why I couldn't come to play with them, so they started to whine. Drake didn't like his kids acting like spoiled cubs, so he scolded them and sent them to their mother.

When he was sure they were safe with their mother, he turned to me and asked why I had called an emergency meeting. I didn't answer right away, and that worried Drake. He looked me straight in the eye and said.

"What's wrong with you, lil pup?"

I groaned at these words full of affection. Drake looked at me strangely, because it was the first time I had ever whined in front of him and the pack members. Drake is "older" than me in wolf age, so he sees me as his daughter, and I see him as my wolf father. Seeing that I kept crying, Drake came closer to me, lay against my side and waited for me to calm down. Hearing me whimper, the cubs and their mother came running to me and lay against me as well. Seeing the Alphas near me, the pack members came closer one after the other, showing me their support even though they didn't know why I was wailing. Seeing them support me in this way reassured me, calmed me down and saddened me even more, because I didn't want to abandon them either, not after all they had done for me...

Once I calmed down, I told him about my day, I told him that I didn't want to leave them, him, the pack and Tom and Elie. That I wished to live longer with them, that the past 4 years spent with the pack, and my adoptive family, that I had been able to live with them... That I loved them and in no case, I wanted to abandon them. The silver white wolf listened to me without ever interrupting me and then at the end of my speech, he stood up, looked at me with eyes full of sadness and asked me to stand up. After I had got up, I noticed that all the members of the pack surrounded us and each in turn they had came to rub against me, showing their attachment to Nev and me. If I had been in my human form, my tears could have created a new lake.

Once the last wolf of the pack had passed, it was the turn of the Alphas and their pups who didn't hesitate to come. Drake and his mate Kailee surrounded me and gave me an alpha hug which is to show to all the wolves in the pack that even if one of them leaves, they will go with him wherever he is, not on the physical plane, but on the astral plane as well as through the heart. Yes, you might have understood by now these wolves are not simple wolves.

They are wolves mages, and I'm glad I was able to be part of their pack, because they taught me more in 4 years than when I lived in my old pack where everyone hated me because I was different. When the Alpha hug was over, Drake told me that if there was a problem they would always be there and then he raised his muzzle towards the moon which was strangely full and let out a beautiful howl, quickly followed by the rest of the pack.

This howl was so beautiful that it gave me the impression of seeing like micro spangles which reflected the glare of the Moon, silver filaments connected each wolf to the alphas. Unable to hold back, we raised our muzzles to howl for the last time in unison with my pack. It was a song so heartwarming, that it made me cry inside. I was so distracted by the sweet music that echoed through me that I didn't even feel Drake's bite on my shoulder. I only felt my blood flowing like a stream on my coat, then I felt convulsions and fell on the cold floor of the cave, I couldn't see anything except this silver glow that reminded me of the moon.

The blood on my coat evaporated, then I suddenly heard a distant voice telling me not to trust anyone but the members of my pack. It also told me to always listen to my instinct, that I was a unique being and that it would be constantly there for me. After these words, a hand brushed my fur, then the light and the voice slowly faded away and I fell asleep.

When I opened my eyes again, I was lying in my bed, surrounded by my adoptive parents who were looking at me with eyes full of sadness and worry. I couldn't remember the night before, the only thing I remembered very clearly was when I called the pack for an emergency meeting until the moment Drake bit my shoulder and finally THE voice. That melodious voice, was resonating inside me till now mixed with the pack's song. Then, nothing, it was black out. I tried to contact Nev via our link, but nothing... I was about to get seriously worried when Elie spoke up. I focused on her, trying to understand what she was saying despite the headache that was gripping my brain like a vise.

"Sweetie, where were you last night? We've been looking everywhere for you and even that young man Vincent couldn't find you!"

"Elie..." called Tom

"Why were you so strange last night? What happened to make you seem so out of touch?"

"Elie!" repeated him a little louder.

"WHAT?!" She faced him with tears in her eyes. It was the first time I'd seen her so vulnerable. She had never screamed since I've known her and was literally exploding.

"Calm down sweetheart," he said. "One question at a time okay, I guess our little one must be in bad shape, look at her face."

Elie turned to me and looked at me carefully, then she let out a soul-splitting sigh and apologized for her behavior. I took her hands and told her that she had nothing to apologize for, because she was reacting as any loving mother would.

"You...you really think of me as your mother?" She asked.

I gave her a small, shy smile, which says a lot about how I felt about her and Tom, and I hoped they both understood how much I loved them. As well as how much I blame myself, because I'm not a girl who easily expresses her feelings like love. I have feelings for my foster mother and father, but I don't know how to express them. In fact, I regret not being able to do it. This regret is so great that I feel my cheeks moisten, and I cry quietly. Seeing my distress, Elie took me in her arms and told me not to worry about them, because they knew how much I loved them and how much I would do anything to protect them. Tom joined us on the bed and hugged us as if we were the two most precious things in the world, in his world. When I calmed down, they kissed me on the forehead and then stepped back to observe me in detail. I took a deep breath and began to recount the events of last night, leaving out a few details like the bite, the silver glow, THE voice and what it was saying to me. When I finished my story, Elie seemed reassured, while Tom looked at me as if he knew I was hiding something from them.

He looked at me intensely, but said nothing. Sometimes I forgot that my dear foster father was an outstanding fighter and that he knew how to decipher every expression and body language. I could feel that he wanted to ask me some questions too, but I gave him a pleading look so that he wouldn't do anything. Just as he was about to ask me what had really happened, that idiot Vincent entered my room without knocking. Seeing him enter like that, as if he was on a conquered ground, I started to growl to dissuade him from going further. And Nev looked at the intruder as if she was going to eat him.

~ NEV! Where have you been, what happened? I couldn't feel you and you didn't answer me either...~ I said to her

I felt that since the voice had spoken to us, something had changed in me, and from the sensations I felt through Nev, I felt that she had changed too. But... I couldn't tell if it was for good or bad.

~ I was probably asleep, because I don't remember you calling Neil, ~ she said, still concentrating on that Vincent.

~ It must have been quite a sleep then...~ I said in spite of everything, annoyed that she didn't answer me because she was "sleeping".

I closed the link which allowed me to speak to her and concentrated again on our undesirable guest.

"Neilliana, it's time to leave, we have already lost enough time as it is, he said displeased.

"That's none of my problem, I said, I wanted to stay longer and I warned you," I replied sarcastically.

Tom and Elie followed our conversation in silence as if they were watching a tennis match.

"Stop acting like a child. Let's just get it over with!

"First I behave the way I want and secondly, I don't know you, why should I follow you, I said calmly.

"Neil is right, what proves us that you are the one that you say you are? Said Tom

Elie looked at us attentively without saying anything.

"Well, I have Alpha Shadow's number, he said proudly. I rolled my eyes.

"Wow, what a proud dogie," I said ironically. "What does it matter that you've his number? What if it's not even his number and you want to roll us in flour... Instead of answering, this idiot started to giggle like a turkey.

"What?" I asked, annoyed that he was laughing at me.

He looked me in the eye and said.

"We don't say to be rolled in flour, but to be rolled in the MUD and even that I'm not sure that it sounds normal hahahaha."

"Are you dumb or something?" I replied, even more annoyed that he was trying to correct me on a detail. "It's a French idiom, sure it doesn't sound right in english but seeing how smart you are, I shouldn't have hoped for you to understand it... I guess the fact that you could at least understand what I wanted to convey should make you a bit smarter, congrats," I said while clapping in my hands.

While Vincent and I were still quarreling, Elie got up from my bed and stood next to her husband, she then looked at me, smiled and said.

"Honey, you know we love you with all our hearts," she started.

I nodded my head in agreement.

"Moreover, you know we want what's best for you," she added.

"Yes..."

"Then you'll understand that we want you to go with this young man without a second thought."

"But Elie!" I pleaded, "we are not sure that he is really part of THEIR pack, why would they send a Beta to pick me up, why didn't they come themselves if it's that urgent?! Tell her Tom, tell her I'm right."

"Of course, you're right. But you also know that when Elie feels that everything will work out, it always does, right?"

"Yes...always," I whispered.

"Amazing!" said Vincent. "Can we finally go now, Princess?"

"Yes, I began, but... I have to prepare my things first." I finished while looking in the void.

I thought of all the moments I had spent in this room, in this house. All the joys, all the sorrows I had undergone. All for what?! To return to a pack that never loved me... I regret being born there, but not being different. Sometimes I wonder why Tom and Elie aren't my real parents. I waited for them all to come out of the room where I had lived for 4 years and I started to sob. I know, I'm acting like a child but... I don't want to leave. I don't want to abandon my family and my pack... They have each in turn brought me different emotions. And the two most dominant emotions of my 9 years here were joy and then... The feeling of finally being loved for what I am, for who I am... Not feeling different from others for 9 years really changed me. And when I saw that all those feelings that I finally gained were going to disappear in thin air like nothing ever happened, I started to cry a little harder and collapsed on the bed where I had spent so many good moments. I don't know how long I had been crying, but I suddenly felt a hand stroking my hair. When I looked up, I saw that it was my mother. She looked at me and opened her arms to me like when I was crying as a child. She continued to stroke my hair until I calmed down completely. Then she spoke.

"Sweetie, don't cry anymore, I don't like to see you like this," she said. "You don't have to worry about us, Neil. Besides, we will never be far from you. If you need us, you can just come and visit us."

"But, Elie I can't, even though I'm a wolf, you know well that my sense of direction is real sh*t, I tell her.

She looked at me with kind eyes and smiled and said.

"I know, that's why we're moving. When we heard that you had to go back home, I mean to your real family," she added sadly, "Tom and I decided to move quite closer to you. You are our daughter Neilliana, even if we are not your real parents, we love you and would do anything for you, even if it means moving, she said with great conviction. Never doubt our love for you! It's real and pure," she added, pulling me away from her slightly to look into my eyes.

I didn't know what to say.

I was moved, but I didn't have any tears left, so I did something that surprised both of us. Something I had never done before.

"I...I love you, and I consider you like my real parents," I said, hugging her like a castaway clings to a life preserver.

After saying that, Elie started crying, but they were tears of joy. Following this very emotional moment, we talked about everything and nothing as we used to do and we put away my things (clothes, toiletries...).

After we were done packing my things, we took my lugages down and went to join Tom and the silly man who was keeping him company. I could see that Vincent was getting impatient, but I didn't care. I walked into the kitchen past him without even giving him a glance and went to the refrigerator to make myself something for the road. He tried to grab my harm, so we could hit the road right away, but I growled at him and he quickly walked away, seeing that I wasn't in the mood. After finishing making two sandwiches, it has come the time to say goodbye to my foster parents.

Tom looked at me with sad eyes, but despite that he gave me an encouraging smile, while Elie was shedding a few tears. I took her in my arms for our last hug and then it was Tom's turn. He asked me to wait a few seconds before leaving towards the garage. When he came back, he had a box in his hand. He then gave me the box and told me that what was inside was very fragile, so I had to handle it gently and carefully, then he took me in his bear arms to give me a warm hug. In his giant arms, I had the impression that all this was only a dream and that everything would go back to the way it was... Unfortunately, when he gently pulled me away from his body and told me that we would see each other again soon, I had to accept the fact that everything was real...

After getting into Vincent's car, I waved goodbye to my adoptive parents until I could no longer see them. About 30 minutes later, I heard a squeaking sound. Thinking it was Vincent, I turned to him and saw that he was also looking at me. And from the look on his face, he too was wondering the same question as I was. A few minutes passed, then we heard the strange sound again, but this time, it was coming from the box Tom had given me. I opened it carefully and when I saw what was in the box, I froze and a tear ran down my right cheek.