A little bit of animal

April 23rd-30th 2016

I awoke with a groan. Nightmares still plagued my sleep of the blade cutting into my skin. The acid running through my veins. All of it. It had gotten better over the months. Margaret was worse. She needed to be with her mate. He had marked her but she refused. She was terribly sick and I feared she could die. She loathed him though. I heard Layla singing on the other side of the door. It was a Saturday. The past months were uneventful. I had recovered and gone back to school. Jake had moved positions. I had learned about the shifters without actually shifting. I was looking forward to my birthday this year.
One:I would find my mate
Two:even though it was three days early I would. Shift.
I flipped on the T.V. And watched deciding today was marathon Saturday. Layla tried to enter. She was sent away to retrieve popcorn. Besides Supernatural was too scary. I had one other friend here besides Margaret, her name was Faith. Her main shift was a snowy owl named Ivy. She came and watched with me. Soon we needed real food though. By soon I mean five hours. We wandered downstairs and made omelets. I was told I made omelets the best. After they had cooked we were covered in egg. Layla came down and I had made one for her. We ate and talked. I got an idea.
"Hey why don't we go give an an omelet to Mar? Maybe it will cheer her up!?" I questioned the group. I got a chorus of cheers. We immediately set to work doing this. I cracked two was in a pan while Faith cut up vegetables and cooked the bacon. Layla ran around giving us orders and got to sprinkle it all into the cooking omelet. I let her have the spatula. I bad idea but it was fun. After it was finished we were covered in cheese when Faith threw the bag at me and Layla for messing up. Laughing we grabbed the omelet and took it to the infirmary where Margaret was. She lay on her bed her face sunken and hollow. Her skin was pale. I walked over a smile still on my face. We made you some food Mar!" I explained in my hushed excited voice. She managed a small smile but winced. I grabbed the fork and shook my head. Some cheese fell from my head. Margaret managed a small laugh. Giggling I took a bit of omelet and fed it to her. She chewed slightly before swallowing she seemed to wince back from that small action. Then she managed to say:
"I love you all. Thank you..." She trailed off into a coughing fit that produced blood. I silently handed her a napkin.
"You know we can take you to Jake. If you really wanted you can track him with your mind link?" I asked her knowing the answer already
"I would rather die than be with him!!" She explained before coughing up more blood.
"We will kill Jake first and you will be placed with another mate." I stated. It hasn't been a year since he marked you. If it had been less than a year after the marking and one mate died the other half would be placed with another in the next six months. She nodded silently. I leaned over and hugged her silently the omelet forgotten. Faith too came and hugged her. Layla slunk near the back. An idea suddenly formed in my head. After we left I brought Layla and Faith into my room and quietly explained the plan. Faith quickly agreed. Layla needed a little more persuading. She eventually agreed. Giggling we hurriedly got prepared. All we needed was to wait for the 30th before we could lay it into action. I hoped Margaret managed to live long enough.

The next couple of days were uneventful.

It was now April 29th 2016 the day Faith got her mate. She sat on the chair in front of me looking into a mirror. I fixed her hair. I made her hair wavy so it flowed down to about mid-back and placed some mascara and eye shadow on. After an hour and a half she was stunning. Smiling she stood up and hugged me. I tightly hugged her back. "You ready?" I whispered ini her ear.
"As I'll ever be." She whispered back. Before pulling away. I grabbed Layla's hand and we walked out to the field at the front. A large group was already gathered. Faith mumbled something incoherent under her breath before shifting into her snow owl and taking to the sky. She returned several agonizing minutes later with an eagle. The eagle soared a few feet above her before they both landed and shifted. Her mate had ruffled brown hair and bright hazel eyes that sparkled as he looked around. Faith smiled and walked over to me. Her mate followed seeming to understand. God I wished I had the mind link but nope it was shut down. Once Faith and her mate were by me and Layla she said "Ali, Layla this is Ryder"
Ryder smiled softly. "Pleasure to meet you. Who's Ali and who's Layla?" He questioned tilting he head to the side.
"I'm Ali" I said nodding my head.
Layla jumped up and down "I'm Layla!!" She squealed over and over. Ryder laughed and bent down shaking Layla's hand "pleasure to meet you. Is this your big sister?" He asked her motioning to me.
"I'm adopted" I stayed still not comfortable to the idea.
"Oh okay. I'm assuming it was this Jake I was informed of" Ryder said. I nodded silently. After Faith and Ryder were congratulated by the pack we headed inside. We got final preparations then we went to sleep. Layla slept with me.

The next morning Layla, Faith, Ryder, and me met outside in the hall. I walked to Margaret's room alone and wished her luck then we headed off bags slung over our shoulders. Ryder shifted into his eagle and Layla climbed on his back. Faith shifted into Panther with wings and I climbed on her back. An owl would never hold me. We were going to find Jake. No matter how long it took. Faith sniffed the air and took a sharp right. I clung on. Ryder turned much gentler due to Layla.

~Faith's P.O.V.~
I smelled the tang of chemicals and took a sharp right. My mate followed. I had informed him of everything going on last night. He had been slow to accept but was doing well. The chemical tang got stronger.
Do you smell that. I questioned Ryder. I saw him nod his head. We landed and shifted back.
"This way. It smells the the chemicals that were inserted in you" I said to Ali walking forward. She sighed and followed I could tell she felt helpless. We walked forward for hours following the scent. Ali was constantly asking questions and was trying to get to know Ryder. I stayed focused on finding Jake. Eventually it got dark and we were forced into hiding to sleep.