Never ownED myself

Chapter 7 : show of force

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Believe you can and
You are half way there.
By Theodore Roosevelt
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A shiver ran down her spine, her heart beating loudly between her ears. Behind her at the bottom of the hill lay a large, cheerful crowd. Annie clenched her fists, she was always bad at speeches and now she was standing in front of so many eyes, waiting for a great moment.

"Leah?" Her wolf's happy and chatty personality seemed to disappear from her head the moment Annie stepped forward to face the crowd. She was alone.

These were the oppressed. People like Tom, Lina and Annie, they didn't belong in the human realm or the supernatural land. They were the runways. Worse, at home they were punished for being magical beings among humans, while the king of the magical realm wanted to bend them to his will. Wherever they went, they couldn't be themselves. They had to erase a part of themselves to fit in. They had no country to call home. For them, she was the answer to their prayers when they knew so little about themselves and the magical world.

Using Lina's teachings, Annie had a magical conversation with Tom. It was to remain between them."Tom, a smile won't convince them that I'm good enough to be kept around."Awkwardly, she bent her head and waved sloppily at the crowd.

"Show them your magic, your wolf, and your transformation." Tom had an assertive voice in her head. Did he know that the last time she had turned into a werewolf, it had been pure luck? She froze at the thought and took a deep breath.

"Easy. We can do this!!! We already did!" Leah cheered Annie up. "How hard can it be?"Annie sighed, knowing that Leah's overconfidence was only because of Tom. She had to be strong for him.

"Leah...!!? Are you ready to share your space, because that transition only happened after our heart-to-heart talk.""I will!" Her voice was strangely confident.

Annie nodded and looked steadily at her hand. "Visualize and believe." Those had been her father's words in the lost memory she had recovered only a few months ago. Warmth spread through her core. Even though he wasn't there, his words always came back when she needed them most.

Her eyelashes flickered and her fingers had grown longer. They were bony rage in the back. Her nails were now claws of disproportionate size, but her body remained human.

People gasped and screamed in excitement, just like the elves did in the middle of the forest."That's not enough," Tom said into Annie's head through the link. "Partial transformations are new, but it's not enough to convince the elders that you're strong enough to face Davon. Magic. Do magic."

"Easier said than done! May I remind you that I only did it once!" Annie's hands returned to human form. Doubt crippled her inside. She would fail the test in front of all those people. Her hands trembled.

"Girls...just this once, please. I know it is a lot to ask, but we need it, they need it. How are we going to convince them to get it from the wolf's mouth? You know that getting to your father is a deadly mission. Just remember what happened to the informant and what he showed you. Blow them away. "Tom's words triggered memories in her mind that weren't hers. The informant had downloaded his memories into hers. They came and went wherever a word was spoken.

A castle was protected by many layers of security. A list of unfamiliar names made quick images: people suffering under various spells and traps."Annie? Are you okay?" Leah brought her back. Annie was the only one who could see them. Sometimes she had trouble coming back to reality. These memories were a maze of information.Annie smiled weakly.