Searching for Always and Forever

Chapter 5

The next two weeks were difficult for everyone. Grace dealt with a handful of bottled up anger and as a newly triggered wolf, she let all her rage out on the closest person to her, on her older sister. Hope tried to tolerate her at first, telling herself that it was a normal behaviour, but she didn't have the patience for her sister's nonsense, and their days usually ended up with yelling, screaming, fighting. Sometimes it even got physical among the two wolf girls. Never got to the point where they actually hurt each other though. The constant fighting was hard on Riley and Jack too. Even though the oldest ones tried to exclude them as much as they could, the kids saw everything and felt the tense atmosphere around them, which made them super whiny and it made them extra hard to deal with. Hope just hoped that the mood would calm after Grace's first turn. It should... It's not like Hope was always calm and collected, but the transition always helped soothe the growing rage inside her.

They always made up by the evening, Hope never let them go to sleep with trouble between them. But the nights were difficult too, and the lack of sleep didn't help with their daily conflict. The nightmares didn't let Grace's mind settle. Hope held her through the night and that was how they usually gained some sleep.

The day of the full moon came fast. Grace didn't show her fear, not in front of the kids, but she was terrified, Hope knew that. Hope was terrified on the day of her transition too. Her parents talked about the turn to their two eldest girls. They heard it would be excruciatingly painful, that every single bone in their body would break at once. Hope thought she was prepared for the pain, but what she experienced was much worse than any of her thoughts. She tried to prepare Grace, tell her what to do, how to finish the transition as fast as it was possible. Hope turned multiple times before she learned the best way, to keep the pain minimal... well as minimal as breaking bones could be. It was manageable after three years. Hope wanted to be with Grace and comfort her during her turn, she would have loved to turn with her, run with her in their wolf forms... but she couldn't let the kids alone at night. The best she could do was to put Riley and Jack to sleep, lock them in the cabin and let Grace transition in front of their house, that way she could keep an eye on everyone.

Grace was anxious and fidgety that day. Hope tried her best to make her comfortable all day. She made her favorite food, she let her read her favorite fantasy books while Hope took care of the house and the little ones all day. As soon as it got dark, Grace sat in the window and stared at the sky.

"You still have hours Grace, come have dinner with us." Hope suggested, as she served dinner to Riley and Jack at the table, then she sat to eat with them as well.

"I don't think I could keep any of it down." Grace replied anxiously.

"When am I gonna turn to a wolf?" Riley asked Hope curiously. Hope told the little ones that it was gonna be Grace's first transition, but Riley and Jack obviously didn't know what happened. They knew they were all werewolves, but the older girls haven't yet shared how the wolf curse truly worked. They just knew it would happen, when they are old enough.

"Not for a very long time." Hope replied. "And you know, it might never happen. Not everyone with the wolf gene has to go through the transition."

"It will happen! Don't lie to her." Grace added bitterly.

"I'm not lying Grace, it doesn't have to happen."

"Well, it happened to you and me. Killing is in our genes, it just comes with the wolf... no wonder people are hunting us."

"Grace!" Hope said firmly, eying her sister, who was still staring outside the window.

"Killing?" Riley repeated Grace's words slowly.