The White Wolf #Wattys2020

Chapter 8

Laura

"And over there to the right of the pack house is our training centre," Taylor explained. She had been guiding us around the area with Ashley the morning after our arrival, showing us where the Elders lived, where the school and clinic were located and lastly the training centre.

"Laura! Laura! Are we going to train there too?" Mira grabbed my hand and pointed at the centre.

The twins gave me a weird look. "Train her? But I though you can't...," Ashley trailed off.

I raised an eyebrow, as if challenging her to finish her sentence. When she didn't, I decided to explain what Mira meant. "No, I don't shift with the rest of you. Mira hasn't reached of age yet, so I train her in ways she can still protect herself in human form. It's also beneficial for in the future, if by any chance she is prevented from being able to shift, for instance wolfsbane or such."

The twins bowed their heads in embarrassment. "We're sorry, we didn't mean to-."

"Don't feel the need to apologise. Your Alpha made it pretty clear that he perceives me as weak. Feel free to do the same, but do not for a minute think I cannot protect Mira."

Their faces grew redder. Before they could further apologise, I turned on my heels and led Mira back to the pack house. It was a little after noon and I knew she would be hungry for a snack before her late lunch.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

As the week went by, I received more stares and awkward looks. I tried to ignore the whispers of the pack members and pretend it wasn't me they were talking about, but it seemed everyone found gossiping about me interesting. The majority of them made sure I didn't feel welcome in the pack, but in all honesty, I didn't care, as long as they accepted Mira. They could call me whatever they wanted, a long as they didn't direct any insults at Mira.

I was walking with Mira from the training centre when a group of young males walked past and one greeted me. "Good afternoon, non-shifter."

I chose to ignore him and his friends, who were now snickering.

"Why do they all think you can't shift? You can," Mira asked, confused. We climbed the stairs to the pack house and I led her to the kitchen.

I lightly pinched her cheek before setting her on a high chair by the kitchen counter. "When I told the Alpha I didn't shift the last full moon, I guess he interpreted it as me not having the ability to shift instead of me have the ability to choose not to shift. Hence the reason why he called me a not "true Werewolf."

She hit her little fist on the counter top, the rage clear in her eyes. "But you can! Why don't you tell them? You're so much stronger than them."

I sighed, placing a plate with ham sandwiches in front of her. I leaned against the counter, standing across from her. "It's better if they believe that instead of having me explain why I don't shift. It prevents any questions being asked."

Just as Roland and Kai came into the kitchen, Mira burst out, "But why are they so mean? It's not fair!"

The two males blinked in surprised by her rage, before Roland took a seat next to her. "What's unfair, sweetie?"

"I told her she can't have ice cream as a meal," I lied quickly. Mira shot me a pout, but didn't say anything. I silently thanked her for not calling me out.