Werewolf On A Train

Room Without A View

She had a room. Technically, it was a room, and no one else would sleep in it. She even had a mattress to sleep on and a blanket to wrap herself up in. That's pretty much all she had though.

Sure, it was a space of her own, but it was also a storage closet. Piles of assorted janitorial supplies filled the shelves on the walls, and a bunch of brooms had been propped up against the wall in the far corner. The mattress lay directly on the floor and Alene herself sat on the mattress.

Just inside the door, in the only space of open floor left in the room, she'd put her boots and her backpack. Her coat hung on a peg on the door. She didn't want to stand there. Molten snow pooled on the floor, even though she'd done her best to brush off as much as possible before stepping in and locking herself up.

Ohum, the little fylk, had more than once informed her how forgetful he was while at the same time mentioning regulations required that he lock the door to her room. Stupid regulations. The man probably tried to have his heart in the right place, but he just didn't know. In the end she'd told him she liked to keep her door locked, to avoid anyone sneaking up on her. Only then had he left her alone to go look for a mattress.

The mattress would do, and the blanket too. It was all psychological anyway. She could sleep anywhere these days, but having a mattress under her and a blanket to curl up in eased her mind. It gave her a sense of normalcy.

Sure, and sleeping locked up in a storage closet in a wanderer's dorm because the owner thought you might lose your mind and kill the other guests was perfectly normal. She'd get used to it, and he might even be right.

It hadn't happened yet, but on day it might. She'd lost control of the beast a few times already – only for a few short moments, and only a few times – but no one had gotten hurt badly. A few bruises and scratches and a few big scares – mostly for herself. She'd been the one worst off for it.

Just as well that really. If she lost control of the beast and ran amok and started hurting people they'd have to put her down. Eventually, there'd be no avoiding it. Eventually, but not yet. Elkandruvel had been right. If she just kept sharp she'd have decades left before the beast finally beat her. She could live a rich life if she wanted to.

Alene looked around the closet again. So much for a rich life. This wasn't what she'd imagined when she'd thought of seeing the world.