Do you know the stories of werewolves, the beings that shift into wolf form on full moons with no choice in the matter, whose animal instincts take over, with bloodshed inevitable? Those stories are true...well, everything but the full moon bullshit.
My name is Amberle Crest. I'm supposed to be a Beta or Head Tracker due to my bloodline, but you would never have known that otherwise. I come from a modest pack, Forest Paw. It's a stupid name, I know. My pack is situated in the middle of the forest in northwestern Ontario, close to a place humans call Sauble Beach.
The thing about my pack is that it's supposed to be a family; people loved you no matter who you were or what happened. Everyone is family, and we help each other in times of need, or so they say.
I've never had any sort of family relationship past the age of eleven. The only familial love I felt in my life came from the Alpha named Blue. He treated me like family when I wasn't busy with meetings or pack business that involved travel. But when he was out of pack territory, my life was a living hell. Since I was eleven, I knew a lot about how a pack could turn on you, even at such a tender age. It was a horrible experience.
After a painful twist of fate made everything fall apart for so long, my life finally took a turn for the better when I turned eighteen. But before I get ahead of myself, how about I start from the beginning?
The First Shift
I whimper as my bones break and realign themselves. I remember waking up feeling sick and mother and father saying I could stay home from school for the day. About an hour ago, I went to the kitchen for a drink, and that's when it started. My ankle somehow broke on its own, and I let out a blood-curdling scream, causing my parents to dash into the kitchen towards me. It was then we realized that I was shifting.
"She's only six! She shouldn't be shifting until she's sixteen!" My mother's voice is laced with fear and worry. I then realize that the fever I had since last night wasn't a cold or flu. My body has decided that now would be the time to shift into my wolf form for the first time.
SNAP
I cry out, my voice mixing with a howl. How could anyone expect a six-year-old to handle so much pain in one go? I know the risks of an early shift. Father made sure that we knew that the first shift would be a painful process, but he reassured my siblings and me that we would be fine when it happens at sixteen. But I'm shifting now at only six years old.
All I want at this moment is the pack doctor to come and help me. Tears are forming in my eyes as I helplessly look towards my mother and father, begging for help.
"It just means our little Amber will be mated to an Alpha one day, maybe even a Royal." My father says with pride as he reassures my mom that everything will be alright. He hugs her briefly before bending down and holding a bottle of water with a straw to my lips.
"Drink, Amberle. It'll help." I do as he says, and I quickly drink as much of the cold liquid as fast as I can despite the tiny straw. He's right; it does help the burning feeling inside. But my skin feels like it's on fire, like when I accidentally burnt my foot with hot tea, but ten times worse. More bones break and shatter before reforming, the pain causing me to retch up any fluids inside my stomach.
SNAP
My body contorts with pain as I shift to all fours, changing from human to wolf. The pain is way more unbearable than before. Tears were streaming down my face as my jaw becomes longer to form a snout, my teeth sharpen unnaturally, and fur covers my skin.
SNAP
My mother leaves the room in tears, knowing that the possibility of me making it through the shift at this age is low. I could die today just from the shift.
GROWL
My father wipes away the sweat and blood from my forehead, caused by the fur that continues to pierce my skin like sharp needles. The ears that now shifted to the top of my head flatten with pain.
SNAP
WHIMPER
SNAP
After what feels like an eternity of pain, I slowly open my eyes to a new sensation. The house is quiet, but I could sense my parents in the room. Their presence is calling to me like a GPS signal. Something instinctual told me to listen too.
"Honey, are you okay?" My mother's worried voice carries from across the room from where I was hiding. I whimper slightly, wanting to answer but finding I couldn't. It took me a moment until my mind wrapped around the fact that I was in wolf form. My tail thumps gently, and I let out a soft whine. It was clear my parents were giving me space to learn about my second body, letting me test my limbs and focus on the new sensation of being lower to the ground. Feeling brave, I stand on wobbly legs, taking my first step before crashing to the floor and out of the safety of my hiding spot behind the kitchen island.
My parents gasp, and I stare at their faces. Their eyes widen with awe as they carefully watch my movements. I struggle to stand again, my mother quickly helping me up and letting me use her body as support to stand.
"Amberle, you're beautiful. Maxwell, grab the full mirror from the hallway for our daughter to see herself." My mother exclaims happily, her hands in my fur and softly petting me. I give her a puzzled look as my father walks away to proceed with my mother's request. After a few minutes, he returns with the mirror, the glass portion hidden from my view. Curiously, I follow his movements until my mom covers my eyes. The sounds of the mirror being set up make my ears perk up. Finally, things quiet down as I feel my small body being led to a spot, curiosity causing me to grow impatient. I want to see what I look like.
"Tah-dah!" My mother exclaims, taking her hands off of my eyes and moving out of the way. I face my reflection with shock and curiosity as a fluff ball of fur stares back at me. From what I can see, I'm the size of a full-grown medium-sized dog. I look smaller than most werewolves who shift for the first time, but I still look bigger than I expected. In all honesty, I should not have shifted at all for another ten years since that is when a werewolf is strong enough to handle the pain of the first shift. The wolf in the mirror has fur that is red like fire, and it is this fur that mesmerizes me the most, as my striking blue eyes stand out against it. Like the surface of the sun with multiple shades of oranges, reds, and yellows, it holds my attention in the reflection of the mirror. Each time I moved, strands of fur swayed and glistened as if I were a living ball of fire.
I am beautiful and I know it, even if I am only six.
For a while, I just stare at myself, moving my tail and paws to watch my pretty fur. My whole being fascinates me. Hours have passed, and my parents left me to watch my reflection alone as I sit quietly on the kitchen floor. Every now and then, they would remind me to drink water or eat food that they place in bowls for me to eat. I refuse to shift into my skin and go back to walking around on two legs like a normal, everyday human would.
"We're home!" My sister calls out as she and my brother slam the front door closed. School must have ended for the day as their loud footsteps announce their way to the kitchen.
"How is Amber doin-" My brother stops his question when he catches sight of me, only to stare at my form, my tail wagging with happiness to see my siblings. Both my siblings had shifted early, Zack at age ten and Mia at age nine. Zack is now fourteen, and Mia is eleven. Both have more experience as wolves over me and know the pain of an early shift. My brother was considered a prodigy when he shifted. It meant his life would be hard since his shift was early, the same as Mia's and now mine.
"Is that… Amberle?" Mia asks in awe, her eyes staying on me.
"Yes, apparently, the fever she had this morning was her starting to shift." My father answers, taking the mirror away from me. I whimper in protest, biting the cuff of his pants gently and giving him puppy dog eyes.
"Sorry, Amber, but you've sat in front of that mirror almost all afternoon. You need to get up and move around more first to get used to your wolf side." I whimper again as I move to follow him so I can keep staring at myself. I know Father is right. My clumsy attempts to keep the image of my fur in front of me has my body tripping and slipping on the hardwood floor every few steps until father and the mirror were both too far to catch up. I can hear gasps from my siblings, turning to see their eyes still trained on me, on my fire-like fur. Their wolf forms were dull compared to mine. Zack is a beige wolf with a white spot over his left eye, and Mia is a soft russet-brown wolf with black-tipped paws. They have the same colours as my parents' wolves.
But I am unique.
I am different.
And I am determined to stay that way.