"No."
It was a simple, yet powerful two letter word, one which was often used to disapprove and disobey. However, for me, it was a word I never had the privilege of uttering, and thus a form of power I could never possess. My whole life I had been taught to be one thing and one thing only- obedient. However, this all changed completely the day I turned eighteen, when my world as I knew it shattered completely, and the secrets I thought I knew, became deceivingly truthful lies.
The day started off as any other, with me completing my morning ritual of avoiding conversation with anyone and everyone in the pack by avoiding eye-contact, and then stumbling quickly behind my father so I wouldn't need to speak. My father, the usually friendly Alpha was, however too pre-occupied to carry the burden of making conversation on my behalf and instead held his phone to his ear and silently nodded and uttered:
"Yes."
"No."
"Well, I didn't say she should."
After I attempted to strategically dodge about the fifth person, my father grew annoyed at my shyness and shoved me gently. I looked up at him and judged by his perfectly raised, stern brow that it was a little hint for me to actually speak up. I obeyed, albeit reluctantly and mustered up a smile and a wave.
"Well then, just ensure that everything is ready for tonight. We can't have the other packs coming here and dancing in darkness," he said and then put the phone down and shoved it in his pocket in burning frustration. He turned to me and shook his head saying, "The most powerful Alpha known to werewolf-kind, and I'm stuck here trying to organise tonight's party. Can Jillian not just do her job properly, because I didn't even know what a fricken streamer was until this morning!"
Hearing this, I gave a small smile and said, "I think she might just be a little busy dad. She does have five other children to look after..." I then suddenly fell silent, and he gave me a look of concern.
"What is it Nixxie?" I immediately blushed red at his affectionate nickname which he had said out so loudly. The other pack members chuckled, and I felt a sudden nauseating lurch in my stomach. Slowly I began playing with my fingers, not only embarrassed by the name he called me, but also nervous to voice my own personal feelings regarding this massive party we were going to be holding.
"Dad, I asked you not to call me that in public." I uttered softly.
"Now now little Nixxie, I will call you whatever I want, besides I think it's a cute name. Now, tell me why you fell so silent just now? Is there something wrong?"
I took in a deep breath before looking up and gazing into his intimidating brown eyes. "Do I really have to go to the party tonight, dad? I mean, can't I just stay at home and spend time with you and Ferdinand?"
He raised an eyebrow at me and ran his fingers through his dark brown hair while chuckling. "Of course, you have to be there. It is your eighteenth birthday party and I've invited every single pack here."
"That's the problem..." I whispered under my breath. I'd never been a big fan of having many people around me. Just being around my pack had me in a dreadfully anxious mess. In fact, I preferred the confines of my very luxurious, very safe room in comparison to wild parties. But of course, what my dad said, I obeyed.
"Okay dad, but can I at least leave at exactly twelve?" I asked shyly.
He gave a deep sigh and ruffled my hair up. "Fine, if you really are not enjoying the party, then I give you leeway to leave at twelve. But make sure no one sees you!"
I nodded profusely and he motioned for us to continue walking. Where we were walking to, I had no idea. It was supposedly a birthday surprise for me. Eighteenth birthdays were the most important birthdays in my pack. It was the human equivalent of a sweet sixteen, only it involved more booze, nudity, sparring and of course, sex.
Once my dad had reached the end of the pack grounds, he waited a moment, took in a breath of fresh air and then continued to walk into the woods which surrounded our gorgeous, Eden-like pack grounds on either side. I enjoyed this carefree behaviour of his and the small smile which lingered on his face. My legs, however, did not apporve of all of this walking, especially this early in the morning.
"Oh my Goddess, more walking?" I whined. My dad nodded and held out a hand for me to take. I did and let him drag me the rest of the way. Eventually we made our way to a clearing and my dad sat down cross-legged on the ground and motioned for me to do the same.
"This is the place your mother and I first met-" he let out a nervous chuckle and continued, "-back then we hated each other's guts, and she almost tried to kill me. But, in all honesty I tried to do the exact same. Who would have thought that we'd fall in love, and I'd have you..."
I smiled up at him and a tear fell down my cheek. My dad and I barely spoke about my mother since the topic made us too sad. But today seemed appropriate enough for us to get all sentimental and sad. "I want you to always remember Phoenix, your mother died protecting others. She died a good, kind woman."
I nodded and began wiping my tears and he did the same. Eventually he chuckled and said, "Look at me becoming a big softie here. I'm getting off track now. The reason I brought you here, to the first place I met your mother is because of this."
He dug in his pocket and then pulled out a small envelope and a beautiful blue gift box. I opened it up and saw that in it lay a beautiful ruby necklace tied to a pure silver chain.
"I could never touch the damn thing, so I thought it best to give it to you." I smiled and unclipped the clasp and then re-clipped it as I tied it around my neck. Slowly I grasped on the ruby and caressed my thumb against it. "It's beautiful, dad. Thanks." He nodded, and then stood up.
"I'm going to head back, but you can stay here if you'd like some alone time before the party. But remember, it starts at six, so be ready before then, okay?" I nodded. "I love you Phoenix."
"I love you too, dad."
I was happy he'd brought me here. My dad was often strict, especially on me, but he knew what I needed and when. It was quite suffocating being a werewolf sometimes. We lived by title, and the power vested within these titles. Family name, reputation, honour and 'knowing your place' were the virtues and principles we stood by. It was, according to what we had seen and witnessed over the years, the only way to separate and keep us from the destruction of human beings. But such principles also could take its toll on us. My father and I were living proof of that.
I hadn't read the letter in the envelope my father had given to me. I was not ready for it, and perhaps I never would be. I felt it best, most of the time, to forget I even had a mother. It made living much easier and I had spent most of my childhood years and high school career playing this game of pretend. I'd pretend I didn't have a mother to show up to fetch me from school, to warn me to be careful around those no-good human boys, or even to take my picture for prom night. Pretending that she never existed was much easier that way.
I spent about an hour in the woods, just sitting down and taking in the soothing comfort of the shade and the scents which surrounded me and then lay back on the ground beneath me, dirtying my purple sweatshirt. Peaceful. That was what this all was, absolutely peaceful. It was a sort of peace which you could soak in, wrap yourself around and forget you were even alive. My peace was, however, disturbed when I heard the sound of my phone buzzing in my pocket. I hesitated before answering it, but as soon as I read the caller ID, I knew this would not be the last call if I chose to ignore it.
"Alice?"
"Where the hell are you? I just asked your Aunt Stacy and she said you and your dad went off somewhere, but I just saw your dad walking around here and now I'm worried that you-"
"Calm down, Alice. I'm just in the woods, I'll be back in an hour." I said, once again reclining into the comfort of the cool dirt.
"An hour! No, I need you here now. Do you know how long it takes to get someone like you ready for formal occasions? Where do I start. I'm going to have to do your hair, make-up, try and squeeze you into that dress your father bought you, pluck your eyebrows, force you to shave your legs-"
"Okay, I think I've got it. Can you just give me five minutes please?"
She huffed but agreed and then put down the phone. Alice was my best friend and, what I considered to be my only friend. She was the only person who actually liked me for me and not the fact that my dad was the most powerful Alpha of all time. She was honest, loud and unapologetically herself and that's what made me like her so much. I couldn't even count the years we were friends for, it seemed as though she had been in my life the moment I began it.
When I got home, I was greeted by my father's sister, Stacy, who was standing over in the kitchen, burning rice on the stove. Moon Goddess save us from her cooking! Next to her was my dog Ferdinand who hovered around, sniffing the floor, until he saw me. I held a hand up, commanding him to keep quiet and he obeyed, sitting down neatly and wagging his tail. I really didn’t feel like being smothered by Stacy.
Alice was already in my room with her own clothing neatly pressed and placed carefully on my bed. Her soft cherry red hair was styled beautifully into a messy bun, and she already had some make-up on, making her beautiful features stand out even more. Clearly, she'd learnt from last time that it was absolutely crucial for her to already prep herself first before coming and fixing me up. It was not that I was not beautiful, then again, all people were beautiful. It was just that I did not really care about looking after my appearance. To me, I was happy being less than average looking, with less than average brown hair, less than average golden eyes and a less than average body.
"Hey, it's the birthday girl!" She exclaimed pulling me into a tight, bone crushing hug. She then reached for something in her bag and pulled out a small, golden gift box. I opened it and inside saw the most beautiful golden charm. This charm was in the shape of the number eighteen and beautiful intricate patterns carved into it. I took it out gently and clasped the charm into the golden bracelet which hung around my wrist, already almost full of charms. "Thank you, Alice, I love it." I smiled and gave her another hug.
"Okay, now that gift time is over, we have more work to do!"
"Why don't you get dressed and ready first and I can just lie here... sleep a little... wake up... and then the party will be over!" I asked. She folded her arms and shook her head no.
"I'm not going to let you ruin another party for me Phoenix Selene Ackerman! You are going, and that is final."
I sighed and gave up. It seemed I would be going to this brute of a party today whether I liked it or not. Hopefully it would just be a boring night of smile and wave. But little did I know that fate had other plans for me, and its golden thread was beginning to unravel around the spool of destiny.
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First chapter! Hope it's not too long-winded!
