His Howl That Moonlit Night

Ch.1 Lyla

Lyla

The sun shone through the gaps in the shades and danced all over the room as I felt its warmth.

Most of the days I would have woken up to an alarm but today that wasn't the case. It was the second howl that morning that was quickly followed by another that made me bid farewell to my sleep.

" They never let me sleep in. " I grumbled as I wriggled out of my warm bed and sulked as I  made my way to the bathroom to freshen up.

In a few minutes, I quickly finished getting ready and made myself a sandwich as I threw my jacket on.

Another howl followed, and by now I was growling in annoyance. I stormed out of the house and headed to the back while chomping down my sandwich.

" You guys do realise that I'm part human and that I have chores to do right?! " I growled crankily at the pack of wolves in front of me.

The group fell silent at once and the young ones that had been howling for me to arrive immediately cowered in fear as they backed up a bit.

Instantly I felt a pang of guilt go through me when I realised that I had used my alpha voice.

It had been two years since I met the pack and became their Alpha but I still struggled to switch between my tones when I was angry.

Daen, the massive and majestic grey coated wolf approached me and barked in a low voice.

" They were just excited to show your their kill, Ninya. It's the first time they've ever gotten something that big. " She had said.

My original name was Lyla, but Ninya was what the wolves of my pack called me lovingly.

" I'm sorry, guys. " I said as I quickly finished my sandwich while I switched into my wolf form and jumped over to nuzzle the two young ones.

My wolf form was massive compared to theirs and they seemed like mere pups as they pawed my red grey coat for attention.

The other wolves around us seeing that the tense atmosphere was now no more, greeted me with a bark and went on with what they were doing.

I greeted them back as the pups dragged me to show off their proud kill.

Chuckling to myself lightly, I remembered the time when I was their size.

And before I knew it gloom set in as I dug up memories of my first shifting.

It was a few weeks before my sixteenth birthday when it first happened. You see till then I had led a normal life or whatever an orphan's normal life supposedly was.

I moved around from foster home to foster home and went to school like everyone else. But the only thing that bothered me then was that nobody had wanted me.

And when I thought I was fitting in and had finally found a forever home, the shifting happened, changing my life in ways I could not have fathomed before.

" Ninya, you okay? " Hyun, the grey and white-coated pup asked in a whine as he and the other pup stopped and looked at me with big worried eyes.

Shaking my thoughts away I put on a smile and nodded at them.

...

Hours passed and the night weather was absolutely beautiful. The wind embraced us with the smell of a pleasant drizzle from far away.

My pack of eight wolves lay around lazily as they enjoyed it too. Curled up behind me was Daen, who was also my trusty right hand.

" Thinking about work? " She asked as I rested against her soft fur in my human form.

" Hm... Yeah. I guess. It's family appreciation week at school the next week, so the kids are all preparing for that. " I said as I sighed.

Being a teacher was not easy when half the time I had the urge to pounce outside and run through the forest whenever the behaviour in the class got too unruly.

But then again, I was just grateful that they had given me a job.

" I will never understand these humans. " Daen said with a huff as she rested her head back on the grass.

" I wish I could take my family and show them off too. " I said as I sighed once again.

Daen perked up and looked at me without saying a word.

" I meant the pack, Daen. You guys are my only family. " I said with a laugh as I saw jealousy and protectiveness in her eyes.

We watched the pups chase one another with a smile and a familiar voice came from behind us.

" I wish every day was Sunday. " Pedro, a gorgeous white and grey wolf growled as he walked towards us. " Yes. Having our Alpha laze around with us is what helps the entire pack feel safe. " Daen said as she agreed with her mate.

" I know, I know. But I have to keep the house running too right. So I'll need a job and - " I started and Pedro cut me off in the middle.

" Our safety is not the only thing we worry about, Alpha. " He said as he looked into my eyes with worry and sat next to us and looked around, doing his routine check.

This was why we were more of a family than just a hierarchical pack. I worried about them just as much as they worried about me.

And just as I got up to stretch, we heard a distinct howl.

A different howl.

And we were the only pack in the area.

Immediately everyone tensed and instinctively crouched and waited for my command. I narrowed my eyes and shifted again as I walked to the lead of the group.

" You know the drill. Meria and the pups, guard the house. Daen and Pedro lead your teams into the search. Assess the situation and get back to me immediately. Do not engage in any situation. " I growled as my alpha voice radiated through their bones.

This was the first time in all my leadership that we had encountered another wolf.

My pack had always lived an isolated life with no contact with the others and it was peaceful this way. We liked it. But that didn't prevent us from training and practising our drills as a pack.

We parted our ways as we charged into the woods.

With Genir, a dusky brown wolf at my heels, we charged towards the north of the forest and in a minute we heard a pained growl from the other wolf shake the trees near us as we closed in on it.