Howling Daughters

Chapter Two

Chapter 2-

Two Days...

There's a measly two day's left before the fight and Dana, the pup guardian of our pack and one of our many territory warriors, is losing her mind.

"Alrighty! Out into the yard young lady! We've got a lesson!" She announces as she stroll's through the house and into the back yard.

"A lesson in what?" I ask as I follow her outside, drop onto the grass and cross the backyard towards her.

She keeps her back to me "In fighting of course."

She turn's around and leap's into the air, her body rippling and rolling as her bones shift into another body shape under her tanned skin. Scrap's of the clothes she was wearing flutter to the floor beneath her like torn flower petals.

And then her body slam's into me, sending me sprawling onto my back. Her wolf's body shakes with a silent laugh as she trot's a slow circle around me.

"You have to be constantly alert, or you'll end up dead." She says.

I pull myself onto my hands and knee's just as she slam's into me again.

I hit the frozen ground with a painful moan. She trot's around me, her head held high.

"And you'll have to change quickly, or you'll end up dead."

She charges towards me but I roll out her way before her extended claw's can catch my skin. A furious growl rumbles out of my throat and into the chilly air. I unleash my wolf, remove the chains that hold her locked up inside me and allow her control. My clothes tear and fall to the ground as my wolf explodes to life in the surface of my skin.

"Atta girl!" Laughs Dana.

She bound's toward me and I roll out of her way again, avoiding her snapping teeth.

"You and I both know Delilah has changed, and she won't hesitate to kill you if she get's the chance."

Dana's word's are painfully true. Delilah has changed, everything she's done in the last three day's has been to do with the pack. It's like she can't even breath without making sure the pack's okay with it. Yesterday afternoon Hayley, her best friend since kindergarten, came to visit. Delilah said she didn't have time for tiny minded freaks like her and slammed the door in her face. My mouth hung open and my eye's bulged as she climbed the stair's and disappeared into her room. I could hear Hayley crying from the driveway as she got into her car and drove away.

"Try to strike me."

I charge towards Dana and as I lift my paw's up to slam them into her ribs, she slap's a clawed paw across the side of my head, slicing my skin and pushing me aside.

"You'll have to be a little more cunning than that. A blind human could see that attack coming from a hundred miles away."

I roll my eyes and shake my head as I walk back to the house.

"Hey! Where do you think you're going! We're still training!" She yells after me.

I slow my pace as her paw's pound the ground behind me. When I estimate her to be close to a meter away, I swing around and dive into her unexpecting figure. Her back hit's the ground and I press my paw's against her chest as I hold her down, my jaw open, revealing my many sharp teeth.

"How was that masterful teacher? Was that up to your standards?" I ask.

She chuckles beneath me and I release her from my grasp. She rolls over and jumps to her feet, a wide wolfy grin stretching across her face.

"You have much to learn young grasshopper."

★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★

When sundown finally arrives, I collapse onto the kitchen floor with barely enough energy to change back to my human self. I lay my head on my paw's and close my eyes as my lung's suck in sweet oxygen.

"Daughter Mia?" Asks a familiar voice.

I lift my head from the cold tile and find Dad's former Beta standing in the front doorway. I huff out air through my nose and close my eyes again, passing off his presence.

"Fine, just listen to me then. Delilah has asked to move the fight forward a day."

My head flicks up to his face and he simply nods.

"I thought you might like to hear this. I'll give you a minute to change so we can talk."

I pull myself off the couch and with my sudden burst of energy, bound up the stair's and into my room.

I shift back into human form and pull on a blue bath robe before running down stairs to talk to the Beta.

"She want's to move the fight forward? Your kidding me right!" I exclaim as I tie the belt around my waist.

He shakes his head "I'm telling you the truth. She say's there's no point in waiting and that your swift death shouldn't have to wait."

I real back. "My death?" I ask, hurt and anger filling my voice. "She's certain I will be the one to die?"

He nods and I fume. "Well, you can tell her to shove that idea up her arrogant furry butt! If she's so certain she will be the victor than she can wait another day!"

I stomp over to the front door as he walk's into the front yard. He turns to face me.

"She will show no mercy Mia. She has changed, everyone knows it and everyone can see it."

"Your not the first person to tell me that." I slam the front door then walk upstairs and into my bedroom.

I flop backwards onto my bed and throw an arm over my face.

I'm dreading the day when I'll have to step into that fighting circle. The day when I might possibly have to kill my one and only sister.