Crystal was running, surrounded by giggles as three of her packmates, six to eight years of age, ran with her across the field behind the community center. The sun beat down on her sun-burnt face as she wiped the sweat from her brow.
Her former best friend, Tamarack—Tammy in childhood and Tam since her first shift—pointed to the group of trees on the other side of the pond and decided they should go explore it like strong, brave wolves.
They all agreed and off they ran, their fists pumping and feet pounding against the earth.
They entered the shadowy canopy of the trees. They were so much bigger than she remembered and she stopped to stare up at the sheer height of the towering trunks in awe.
"Come on, Beta!"
Crystal giggled and ran after the others.
The forest thickened and grew into a deep woods and soon they were lost. Crystal became anxious, but the others laughed in excitement and urged her farther into the woods.
A large wooden cabin appeared and her packmates ran inside, uninhibited by fears of monsters or getting in trouble with their parents for wandering so far into the woods.
They called out to her, laughing, telling her to come on and not to be a wimpy wolf.
She sucked air into her lungs, grumbling that she wasn't a wimpy wolf, and climbed up the creaky wooden steps to the front door of the cabin that grew in size to a large mansion with each step she took up.
When she finally walked in the front door, the mansion was dark and cluttered with cobweb-covered junk. Boxes piled high, overflowing with random different items—ripped teddy bears with stuffing protruding, missing eyes, twisted slinkies, broken lamps of all sizes, stacks of dusty old newspapers, broken and ripped furniture—so much junk crowded together that there was only a narrow pathway to move through it.
She couldn't see over the mountain of junk and called out to Tammy and her packmates, but no one answered.
Holding herself, she walked through the giant house. The wooden floorboards groaned underneath her and she thought about turning back before she got lost in the rubble.
She called out to them again but got no answer.
Why didn't they wait for me?
A tear dribbled down her cheek and she wiped it away with a sniffle and turned around to retrace her steps back to the front door.
Passing by a cracked mirror, she paused and stared at her reflection before looking down at herself. She was fourteen or fifteen now, dressed in her usual high school ensemble—black jeans and a long-sleeve black shirt
"Chickening out already, Cris?"
Gasping, she whirled around and saw her former best friend and two other packmates blocking both ends of the path. She had her arms crossed over her chest, her body starting to fill out with muscle and curves like a normal fifteen-year-old werewolf, while Crystal was still a short, shapeless beanpole.
Crystal flinched and hung her head. "N-No, I was just looking for you guys."
"Maybe you should leave. This is no place for a runt."
Rubbing her arms, the pain in Crystal's chest was more than she could bear.
Moments ago, this same female was laughing and calling her 'Beta' of their make-believe pack of four. This was the same female Crystal used to have sleepovers with, talk for hours on the phone with, learned to swim and climb trees with, and now she looked down her nose at her and wanted nothing to do with her. This was the same female who had a silly crush on Justin and hoped to be his mate despite the nine-year age gap. She followed him around like a love-sick puppy until he found his mate when she was ten and threw a temper tantrum that lasted for weeks.
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Heart of a Beast
Werewolf[COMPLETE] "There's no love in coercion." --- Crystal was an omega born of beta blood. A werewolf without a wolf. A burden on the pack and unworthy of love. Tiberius was a rogue on a rampage. A lycan trapped in his beast form. A curse bound to destr...
