Dawn of an alpha.

Dawn Daniels The sound of my alarm pulled me out of an empty dream. I know it’s 4:00 am before I even look at my phone's screen. Yawning, I slowly got out of my bed after a few minutes of rolling around it and walked straight towards the bathroom, taking off my nightgown and leaving it in a dump just outside the bathroom door. I walked straight to the shower stall and turned the shower on, letting the hard spray of cold water clear any sleep from my eyes, fully waking me up. Washing my body, I think of the day ahead of me and I sigh, today is Saturday and it is a very important day for me. But while everyone else in the pack was out running or going about their business, I was stuck with cleaning, which was unfair because I already cleaned every day. But it did not even matter anymore. I had gotten used to being treated this way, being seen as the most useless living being in the pack, so they always gave me degrading chores and prevented me from getting involved in pack activities. I do not stay in the same living quarters as the other werewolves because, after my mother’s death, I was moved from the general living quarters to the old and abandoned janitor building which -with help from Darius- I turned into my home. The goddess knows how grateful I am for it, as it is the one place I can feel at ease and escape with my thoughts without any intrusion. The fact that my wolf, Silver, was refusing to come out did not help matters, but I don’t blame her at all, because this environment I have been in all my life has not been very encouraging. Coming out of the shower, I dry my hair and my body, brush my teeth and walk back into the room, picking up my nightie from the rug and folding it. I woke up this early because the plan was to go and spend some time at my mother’s grave and say some prayers of thanksgiving to the moon goddess since it’s my 18th birthday -which is a big deal- without any disturbance. I dressed up in baggy jeans and a T-shirt then packed my long white hair in a ponytail. Putting my wallet, journal, and sweater into my backpack, I picked it up and slung it over my shoulder as I walked into the kitchen space. I ate an apple and toast for breakfast, then I took two extra apples and put them in a brown paper bag, one for the gatekeeper and the other for me. Walking to the door, I realized it was a little chilly, so I took out the sweater and wore it instead and headed out, to the grave. The gravesite was another place I found comfort. It is located right beside the main gate. Nearing the entrance, I saw Darius the gatekeeper and I took out an apple for him, that had become our regular exchange whenever I came here. Darius was in his 60s but he looked like a fit 40-year-old man. Most of the werewolves in this pack were terrified of him because of his size and reputation as one of the strongest warriors, and even though nobody knew, he had been training me most Sunday mornings and on evenings when I had some free time to myself. He believes it is wrong to decide not to train your wolf, irrespective of how weak or strong it might be. He had also trained my mother, so that is also a reason. He is the only family I have. “Happy birthday, Dawn.” He said, holding out a bouquet with a smile. "You remembered,” I said as I gave him a full gentle hug. “You know I never forget,” he said, handing the flowers over to me and collecting his apple. “now go in, you don’t want to waste time now,” he said, nudging me in as he closed the pedestrian gate behind me. There was actually no time I thought of while checking my phone, it was already 6:07 am. I had to be in the janitor's room ready for work by 7:30 am. I quickened my pace towards my mum’s grave. Getting there, I lowered myself to the floor, placed the flowers beside me, hugged my knees, closed my eyes, and allowed my thoughts and the moist breeze to surround me. Growing up was horrible. I was constantly bullied because I was seen as a weakling, a werewolf with a wolf that was so weak I could not even be marked, something I had no control over. I have no friends here. High school was the worst. My classmates made learning a tedious and traumatizing experience. I was in my last year, so I was grateful I would be done with that soon. Sometimes I wish I had a strong mind, I would have left the pack. It’s not like I was going to be missed, but I was too scared. Sighing, I changed the direction of my thoughts and said a prayer to the moon goddess. I prayed for a better life, for my wolf, and a life-changing new year. I did not want to be ruled by fear anymore. I have heard stories of a few werewolves who shifted late and some of them shifted on or around their 18th. That is why my 18th birthday is such a big deal to me. I prayed it would be the same situation for me. Opening my eyes, I watched the beautiful sunrise on my 18th birthday and decided I was going to make it a happy day for myself. I checked the time on my phone again and it was 6:42 am. I had to get going, then laying my flowers on my mom’s grave I let out a deep breath, and getting up I turned to look at it one last time before walking towards the gate waving to Darius as I left. “ See you later Darius,” “ Sure thing, Kiddo.” I chose to walk through the bushes because nobody ever passed there, thankfully. It took approximately 20 minutes for me to get to the Janitors block. It surprised and scared me to see Dean, the alpha's son, at the entrance of the block. Bowing my head and tightening my hold on my backpack, I pray I am not the reason he is here as I walk past him. “ Good morning Dean” I mumbled as I walked past him. Using more force than he needed to, Dean grabbed my backpack and pulled it back, dragging me along with it, causing me to almost trip in the process. I kept my balance and that surprised me and also excited me. It meant my reflexes had gotten better thanks to my training sessions with Darius. Dean must have been surprised too, because I saw an expression of shock on his face, but almost immediately that expression was replaced by his normal look of contempt. “ Have a good morning, Dark?” he sneered, using the nickname he had given me since we were kids. I hated the fact that I had to engage with this bully on such an important day, but I did not have a choice, or at least that’s what I told myself. “ Please, what do you want, Dean?” “ The Alpha wants to see you in his office in…” he looked at his wristwatch, then continued “...5 minutes.” “5 minutes? The alpha's office is at least a 15-minute walk from here, you could have just texted me earlier, Dean!” and the alpha hated being kept waiting. Everyone knew that. Dean was just trying to get me in trouble. “If you were a real werewolf you could get there in a few seconds, but you’re not, so that’s your problem, Dark.” taking a step closer, he bent and whispered in my ears. “ You won’t be a pack problem soon.” Then he disappeared before I could say anything else. What did that even mean?