The Darkness Within

08 - Pack Visitors

The day after the Moon Ceremony, everyone slept through the day. After stuffing herself with food the night before, Ciara was not hungry and was able to sleep peacefully through the day and next night. Evelyn had informed her that no one would be making large meals the next day either, so if she had been hungry, she would have had to cook her own food.

The day after that, at breakfast, Alpha Wilson stood to make an announcement. Everything at the pack had gone back to normal, the black-and-silver decorations had been once again stored away, the werewolves wore their usual attire, and normal routines had been taken up again.

"Grey Forest pack, we will be receiving some visitors tomorrow from the Red Star pack. They will be staying with us until the next full moon. Their Alpha will be visiting as well and I expect everyone to be on their best behavior." The Alpha's presence was commanding, and Ciara realized that his strong aura increased when giving commands and talking to the whole pack. After a chorus of 'yes Alpha,' the male werewolf sat down again and the meal continued.

The rest of the day went without a change in the usual routine Ciara had developed, she trained with Gamma Claire, ate lunch, read in the library, and trained Tala for a bit before the werewolf pups came out to play. She finished the bows for the three pups and made them a set of blunt arrows that they enjoyed playing with, attempting to shoot one another.

Even though she wasn't a werewolf, Ciara now felt at home with the strange werewolf people. They were simple and kind and Ciara appreciated the ease at which she fit into their world. Nothing was expected of her, so when she did join in a task the werewolves were always encouraging. She had yet to meet a werewolf that was rude or hateful towards her and she returned their kindness. However, she was unable to force herself to stop maintaining her somewhat distant demeanor with most of them.

The pups that had previously been shooting their newly made arrows at one another put the bows to the side and climbed atop Tala who had been laying down in the snow. The wolf-pup was big enough to carry the small children now, but one look at the wolf's proportions was obvious that she was nowhere near done growing. The wolf didn't even fit under the dinner table anymore and chose to sit behind Ciara's seat at mealtimes instead.

Ciara laughed as she watched Tala stand up, leaving only Clay on her, the other two falling off. Ciara had learned that the two female pups' names were Robin and Mika, and she watched as they rolled around in the snow laughing. Tala seemed to enjoy having Clay on her back and started a game of tag with the female pups, letting Clay guide her in directions as they ran around. Ciara could see that the boy was enjoying this, especially since he hadn't been able to truly play tag because of his injuries.

After a while, the pups were called back inside by Lila and dinner started soon after. As usual, the room was extremely lively and actually quite loud. The meal was delicious and Tala received a huge plate of uncooked venison from the latest hunt.

"When are the wolves from the Red Star pack arriving tomorrow?" Evelyn asked her father, her alpha nature shining through.

"Before breakfast tomorrow morning," the Alpha responded and then looked at the human girl at the table. "Ciara, the pack's Alpha will be dining at our table so I suggest you remain courteous. The Alpha won't be disrespectful but werewolves are wary of humans so please be understanding."

Ciara nodded her head and the conversation returned to the day's events.

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Despite Alpha Wilson's assurances that the other pack's Alpha would be courteous, Ciara was nervous the next morning as she headed to breakfast. Meeting new people made her anxious in general, and someone powerful like an Alpha werewolf made her even more so.