Amelia met her mother back at their cabin, and Jax accompanied her all the way. He would never leave her alone to the wolves, no pun intended. They made small talk as they walked back, Jax asked her why she was in the clearing that day. And she explained her weekly routine of going down to the stream to 'speak' with her mother. Hoping against all hope that she would find her there alive.
There was an air of sadness on both of their behalf as they reached her mother's cabin. Neither wanted to leave the other's side. Their bond was already so strong. It honestly frightened them both. The one not knowing what the other felt. Both were too afraid to say anything about it. They secretly kept their feelings to themselves.
Lucia's cabin was the perfect size for the two of them. It held two bedrooms, a living area, a kitchen, and a bathroom. They needed nothing more for most of their time would be spent either training, in the dining hall, or in the human world. Something that Lucia could now freely do because Amelia knew about her and her new 'life'.
"I can see that you are scared to be here," noted her mother, "and I don't blame you. This is so much to take in all at once. Your life has just been flipped upside down and you have no control over it." Amelia looked like a lost pup in the compound and she didn't blame her for feeling that way. It was a huge adjustment when first joining a pack. Let alone being bitten by a rogue.
"You have no idea how petrified I really am," trembled Amelia as she sighed and sat down at the kitchen counter. Still shocked at all that had happened to her. "Tell me how to do this. How do I simply give up my humanity and become whatever it is that's happening to me?" Amelia was close to tears again, still fighting her internal struggles. Still not believing this all to be true.
"It is overwhelming but you will soon start feeling at home here. It will take time, but I know that you can do it. I've never met anyone stronger and more resilient than you. Just keep an open mind and let the process run its course. I will be with you all of the way and by the looks of it so will Jax. You have nothing to fear but fear itself." Lucia had been in Amelia's shoes and had the exact same response to what Amelia was going through now. She too was at first extremely afraid of what was to become of her when she was bitten. She also felt like an outsider and feared that she would never fit in. But after a few weeks, the compound began to feel like home to her and she noticed that being a wolf wasn't half as bad as it seemed. She'd never felt stronger or more fearless in her life.
"You really seem to have taken to this lifestyle. You look happier than I remember." Amelia's eyes held a sadness to them knowing that for so long she'd longed for her mother, not knowing what had become of her, yet here she was thriving and living with her new pack. She thought that she would never have known the truth had she not been bitten herself.
"Yes, I truly am happy here," smiled Lucia radiantly, as she sat down next to Amelia at the kitchen counter, "but don't get me wrong, I miss your father dearly. I had to make peace that this is now my home and I'm so happy to have you here with me. I was so worried about you all of this time, not knowing if you were okay or not. Wondering what had become of you without us in your life. Alone to fend for yourself." Lucia sighed peacefully knowing that her child was safe and back with her again. Where she belonged. They only had one another now and needed to stick together.
"It was difficult in the beginning. I had no idea what had happened to you and burying an empty casket nearly killed me. I longed for you each day, wondering if you were out there wounded somewhere. You can't believe the relief I have now that I know that you are safe and happy." Amelia felt a sense of jealousy as she realized that her mother had found her happiness without her. But it quickly eased as she saw the love in her mother's eyes when she looked at her.
"I've longed for you so much," confessed Lucia, and a tear slid from her eye. "I cried over you for so many evenings that I no longer felt that I had any more tears left in me." Lucia turned and gave Amelia a hug. "We will get through this together. I will never let you go through this on your own. There is no need for you to feel like an outsider for this is now your pack too and you belong with us. Our Alpha will keep you safe and the other Omegas will soon come around to having a new recruit. Things might seem daunting now, but I promise you that everything will get easier and that you will be okay. We're in this together and that's all that matters."
Lucia hugged her daughter once more. A hug that she'd been dying to give her for the past five years. A hug that she didn't want to end, but it had to for there was much to be done for the festivities that night.
Lucia was the organizer of the festivities for the pack and she absolutely loved it and it happened that there was one to be held in the huge dining hall that night. It made her feel as if she was giving back to the pack for being so good to her when she first arrived as a stranger.
"I need to go and help set up for tonight's celebration. I'm so excited for the pups," said Lucia as she pulled away from her daughter, "there are still many tasks to be done before then."
That night was a special one for they were initiating some pups from Omegas to Betas. But only a small handful had been selected as the pack was very strict on their rules and wanted only the best pups to move up. Those who needed more training would stay as Omegas and carry on trying to prove themselves to their Second, Jax.
Amelia decided to take a nap while her mother went off to help with the celebrations. Drained from the eventful day, she took the stairs slowly, not having much energy to spare.
Exhausted, Amelia fell into a deep sleep.
Racing, her mind saw visions of the attack. She remembered smelling the rogue wolf and how his scent made her ill to her stomach. The stench was unbearable.
Next, she saw herself writing in her diary, but it was as if she were looking at herself through the eyes of the rogue wolf. She felt a hunger to kill. To rip her pray apart. It was all about the chase. She felt such satisfaction from watching such a helpless human being. She knew that her strength outweighed that of the prey. She could already taste her prey's soft flesh as her teeth sunk deep into her prey. Oh, what a feeling of joy that would be. Just what she needed. The perfect ending to her hunt for the day. A human to feast on was always a good day, a good hunt.
Sweating and out of breath, Amelia awoke to the happy sound of pups playing outside the cabin. This seemed to calm her nerves a little, but she struggled to pull herself together after the nightmare. The sight of seeing herself through the rogue's eyes haunted her. It was the strangest feeling she had ever felt. A feeling she never wanted to feel again.
The last thing that Amelia felt like doing was to attend the celebration, but she knew that she had to, even just for her mother's sake.
Amelia changed into a beautiful, gypsy style off the shoulder dress. She outlined her eyes with kohl and stood back to look at herself.
"Here goes nothing," she said to herself before leaving.