Black Box Red Rose (ON HOLD)

Ch 1: Part 1: Black Box

I started living on my own a few months after I turned thirteen. My parents wanted me to be a part of the pack and they even had my mate picked out. I definitely did not like having anyone, even if it were my own parents, deciding who I would be with. Not to mention that if I became part of the pack, I would have been stuck with not only the annoying mind bond with my family, but a bond with everyone who was a member of the pack. I have to admit, humans are lucky. They don't have to deal with anyone else knowing every thought they are thinking when they aren't keeping a barrier up. Unless a witch decides to poke around in their mind that is.

When I decided to leave and become a lone wolf, my mother knew instantly because she couldn't sense me anymore. Her howl of distress echoed for miles while my father did his best to track my scent. It was difficult getting away from him, especially because he was one of the best in our pack at tracking, but I knew that running in rivers and covering myself in mud would cover my scent. I also had an advantage, being a young wolf, which meant my strength was at its peak. That's another thing about werewolves, between the ages of thirteen to sixteen, we are stronger than at any other point in our life. Most people would think that wouldn't be right, that the older you are the stronger you should be. That's not quite the case.

I would have to agree that this logic would make better sense, yet it just doesn't happen with us wolves. We have about a three year period of being stronger than our elders and then we live the rest of our lives at about two-thirds of that strength. Of course this does help find out who is better suited to become the next Alpha, even though being Alpha doesn't always rely on strength. From what I can remember, the wolves who were picked as new Alphas were smart and knew how to control that amazing burst of strength they had. That definitely didn't mean they were the weakest one of the group though. 

Going on that aspect, I would have possibly been made a Beta if I had stayed. Instead, I decided to run away, not wanting to be part of a pack and be mated to someone I barely knew. I enjoyed the idea of being on my own, with no one to read my every thought. Being able to decide when I wanted to sleep, shift, or hunt. As a member of a pack I would have had to listen to every command my Alpha gave, even if I didn't want to. 

The relationship between Alpha and pack is simple: the Alpha tells you what to do and you do it. Unless you want to deal with extreme pain. Not pain like being punched in the face, but pain like being run over by a train going sixty miles per hour. At least that's what I had been taught by my mother, who currently serves as Beta to her pack. "Even a Beta feels the pain when they disobey, and it's said to be even worse," She had told me when I had just turned thirteen and it had been decided I had the strength and smarts to be a Beta wolf. She figured this would help me to understand that I would have to follow willingly and blindly for the rest of my life. Instead, it gave me another reason to leave, to run away from my family forever. 

I remember running for hours before I finally came across a small, abandoned shack that used to belong to some hunters. By the smells inside, I figured nothing but rodents had been inside of it for years. The only furniture inside was a bed with the metal springs showing, a small dresser that was missing a leg, and a sink that looked like it held more rust than it could water. I have to admit that it wasn't a grand or magnificent mansion, but I made it my home for the next five years.

In those five years, I hunted my food as either a wolf or by using a handmade bow that took me months to make. It took even longer to get good enough with the bow to hit a moving target. All the furs I collected went into making clothes and fixing the bed. It got to the point that I had so much fur that I decided to venture towards a town close by to see about selling them. Looking back, I realize that it might not have been such a good idea. 

After spending hours running in different directions, I found a small town. When I say small, I mean small. With a population of maybe forty to fifty people, I figured nothing too strange could happen. I went back to my little shack and the next day returned with a pile of furs from different animals. As I walked into the town, the people looked at me strangely, until I finally had the guts to ask an old man if there was anywhere I could sell my furs. He looked at me through squinted eyes before pointing to a small building towards the end of the town. I remember smiling and thanking him before walking down to the building he had pointed at. I soon discovered that it had a big, hand-painted sign in the window, proclaiming this building to be a "Store". 

A bell jingled when I entered, making my head hurt slightly, since my ears were very sensitive to sounds. Not only did the sound cause my head to hurt a little, but it had also gained the attention of a little, round woman who looked to be in her mid-thirties. She jumped up and strode over to me with a huge smile on her face and I couldn't help but smile in return. 

"Hello my dear! How could I possibly help you? Oh dear, I haven't introduced myself! My name is Bell, spelled the same way as you would that annoying bell in the doorway." She continued to ramble on as I set my pile of furs down and waited for her to stop talking. When she had finally finished, after making me laugh quite a few times, I managed to ask her if she would possibly buy my furs. She smiled even bigger and started to inspect the furs, telling me how she was just making sure they were in good condition.

"Well dear I'll buy your furs, but the thing is we don't really use money here unless it's to order new supplies. How about I trade you instead? For this pile of furs, you're welcome to any of my merchandise!" Bell said happily, while running her fingers against the fur of a white bunny I had hunted close to a month ago. 

I realized that it was a better idea to trade anyways, since I was living in the middle of nowhere and had no use for money. So as I began to wander around the little store, I quickly noticed a small CD player and a pack of batteries. I picked it up and started to inspect it, as if it was something I had never seen before. Which to be honest it was, since I hadn't seen any form of electronic device since I had ran away from my family. 

"Take it my dear, and here is a pile of CD's that can go with it! I'm not sure if you'll like any of them, but I can order you some more if you would like," Bell said as she pulled out a small stack of CD's. 

I set the CD player on the counter next to the furs I had brought before turning around to look for something else I might want. I couldn't think of anything I really needed since I was pretty self-sufficient, but after a while I finally decided on the CD player, with the CD's, a small pocket knife, and a pretty, white shirt with some torn, but good looking jeans. 

Bell smiled as she put my new things into a paper bag and yet again I couldn't help but smile back. After she finished, I picked up the bag and started to walk towards the door when I heard her call out a question. My mind was distracted and I didn't hear her, so I asked her to repeat it for me. 

"What's your name dear?" She asked. 

"Emily. Thank you for trading me," I said before walking out, the bell jingling behind me. 

I ran into the woods and started to walk for a good hour, before stopping and setting my supplies down. I slowly pulled my clothes off and stuffed them into the paper bag, looking around feeling slightly uneasy. I closed my eyes then, feeling the change in my body as I started to turn into my wolf form. It's hard to describe how it feels when you turn. The only way I can describe it is like you've  been standing up all day and then you finally get to lay down and rest. 

All the cares in the world seem to just slip away. You start to see the world like you wouldn't see it as a human. Insects amaze you instead of seeming like something annoying that you need to crush. Of course my sight and hearing didn't change much, but I became more in tuned with my instincts. Every sound I heard registered as either a threat or not and smells weren't as muddled as before. I felt free, but more cautious than when I'm in my human form. I guess that might explain why I prefer to be a wolf than a human. 

I grabbed the paper bag with my mouth, being careful to not rip the bag with my canines. I looked around to make sure nothing was following me before starting to run in the direction of my home. The bag swung slightly as I picked up my pace, running faster as I tried to beat the setting sun.

_____________________________________________________________________________End of Chapter 1: Part 1: Black Box

Well I Guess It's Time To Say My Thank You's To Everyone. So... Thank You To Everyone Who Reads This. Thank You Bro For Doing All The Editing Work, Because If You Didn't, Grammar Freaks Would Be Going Insane.  Also, I Would Like To Send A Quick Shout Out To My Lovely Friend Aussie (You Know Who You Are)! Thanks Aussie For Always Being There Supporting Me Through The Bad Times And The Good.