When his eyes locked on mine with such dominance that I would have turned away if I weren't so shocked, I gulped. In case the wolf tried to attack me, I searched the grass for an object. I had no luck in my search. My dagger was nearby, specifically between my thighs, but it was difficult to reach for it in these garments, especially because I was now lying flat on my back on the ground. I could only look up at it as it drew nearer and looked down at me. The largest werewolf I've ever seen in my life is this one, for crying out loud. Is the size of the wolves in this pack typical? Although it had black fur, it had gold eyes, and it looked down at me with a sinister superiority. I wanted to flee. Fighting in wolf form is not my favorite. Fighting in wolf shape is something I absolutely dislike. I'll use the rest of my poison in my assassin's ring if it gets any closer. I didn't even realize I was holding my breath until it suddenly moved away from me. When the wolf turned to face me once more as I attempted to stand up, I quickly sat back down. The way the moist grass seeped through my pants bothered me. I kept vigilantly observing the wolf. It had not yet attacked me. The enormous black wolf headed for the pond. As I attempted to clean something off my hands, I drew my legs up against my chest. I wasn't sure if I should stand up, move, or just remain seated and observe. I chose to sit down. It must have tried to connect with me and realized it didn't work since if it realized I was innocent, it wouldn't hurt me or believe I was an intruder. The issue is that I can't attack the wolf because if I did, people would realize that I'm not the harmless amnesiac I'm trying to appear to be and that I actually am a risk. The wolf came around to face me again. My eyes opened to what it had in its mouth when it did. It positioned my scarf in front of me by stooping down and shoving it toward me with its snout. I reluctantly grabbed it. I turned to face the wolf and replied, "Thank you. I was only able to hold the shawl in my hand because it was wet from falling into the pond. I didn't put it on. The wolf gave a dismissive nod. I forced myself to stand up after deciding it was time for me to. The wolf reappeared in front of me, but this time my lips parted in shock at what it presented. I was reaching for the lovely pink water lily when I tripped, fell, and had somewhat of a weird accident. The big black wolf once more turned aside before I could answer, but this time it disappeared and vanished from view. Out of sight, I suppose, out of mind. I folded my damp shawl after squeezing the water out of it and reached out to get the lovely water lily. It was so lovely, and while a part of me wished I had thanked the wolf, another part of me questioned why he offered it to me. I reasoned that it undoubtedly noticed me reaching for it. To smell the water lily, I held it up to my nose, and it smelled clean. I enjoyed it. I wanted to keep sniffing it since the smell was unlike anything I had ever experienced. Even though the vivid pink plant was only peaking above the surface, the more I sniffed, the more I felt the desire to sniff. I turned abruptly, a little frightened, as I heard a voice from behind me ask, "What are you doing? "It was a girl whose brilliant hazel eyes focused on the water lily in my fingers and were aflame with what I can only describe as rage. I wanted to hit the girl when she repeated, "I asked you what you think you are doing." in a sarcastic manner. Nobody ever speaks to me in that way. Ever. Except for Mak, who was my supervisor, of course. I said, "Nothing," because I was at a loss for words as I glanced at the shorter female, whose hands on her hips made me feel, if anything, bewildered. She raised her voice at me, her big blue shirt shaking ever so slightly, "Why do you have that in your hands? "I cast my eyes down to the water lily I was holding. What is her issue? I'll give her a harsh lesson if she doesn't exercise caution. I retorted, "Why? " while doing my best to contain my annoyance and avoid rolling my eyes. Welcome, Ava. You are the host. Ignore this short b*tch, please. Before she could speak, she turned before dividing her lips. Tinley and Indigo were there as I turned to look behind her. When she discovered the lily in my hands as well, Indigo's eyes widened a little. I don't comprehend. Did I make a mistake? While Indigo alternated between staring at the other two girls and at me, I could see that the short girl and Tinley were talking to each other in their heads. I gripped the water lily more firmly. The shorter girl appeared to noticeably calm down as Tinley moved in between her and me and put her hands on her shoulders. The girl even sighed, but her lips were turned upward when her eyes found mine once more. The want to strike her only intensified. I was forced to exercise self control. I believed that nobody in this pack speaks. Right now, that girl came off as being quite articulate and fluent. The girl and Indigo then walked away. Indigo waved and smiled at me before leaving, and I returned the gesture. Indigo was given a stern look by the tiny girl, and she quickly turned aside. Tinley looked down at the water lily and questioned, "Where did you get that from? " I indicated the pond. Tinley buried her face in her hands and said, "This is my fault. I hope Fleur doesn't tell Storm. Otherwise, I'll be dinner! " She removed the water lily from me and returned it to the pond before I had a chance to respond. To protest, I held my hands in the air. Tinley picked up my lantern that was at the edge of the pond and said, "No one is permitted to touch this pond. "It's holy." I was upset that she took the water lily away from me and said, "Why?" I slammed my hands together and clenched them tightly in irritation. Tinley cried out. When Storm's parents got married, Storm's father gave her this pond and planted the most exquisite and rare water lilies in it because Storm's mother's name was Lily. She spent every twilight here watching the sunset over the pond, and after she passed away, Storm was so devastated that he forbade anyone from touching this pond or the lilies in it because it was his mother's favorite place in the world. She approaches me and then grabs hold of my hands. You're new here, so I understand, but Storm is very strict about it, and nobody else is allowed near this pond. If anyone sees you holding one of these water lilies in your hands, they might accuse you of stealing, and I don't know how Storm would react to that, but I do know that my cousin would be very angry at me because I brought you here without realizing it," the man said. I grabbed her hands in mine since she has desperate-looking eyes. Tinley stated with anguish in her voice, "I know Fleur will tell him. She's trying to get into his good books. Then, Tinley, let's explain to him before she does that it was an error and that he would understand. She gives me my lamp with a nod of the head. We both walk back to the mansion when I accept it. Why is everything in this pack prohibited? It's a flower, my god. Even though it was one of the most gorgeous flowers I've ever seen, it was only a flower. Tinley is all worked up and unhappy because she believes Storm would be angry with her over the fact that I had it in my possession, but how could this be such a huge deal? Well, perhaps he will, but why all the hoopla over a flower? a blossom? If Storm is keeping this pond secret from everyone out of respect for his mother's memories, then he must have loved his mother very much. Storm is a family man, I think. Okay, I guess I should show off my fictitious sense of compassion to appeal to his sentiments. That shouldn't be too difficult; at least, I hope not. For the duration of our trip back to my room, Tinley is quiet. That black wolf is entirely to blame. I'm hoping that the useless black wolf didn't just manage to ruin the helpful friendship Tinley and I are attempting to forge. She's the most helpful person here; therefore, I have to keep her no matter what. She is the key to unlocking the secrets of this pack and, ideally, Storm. That wolf gave me that flower, despite my being aware that it was against the rules to take that flower. Now that Tinley is furious, all I want to do is track down that wolf in human form and strangle it. When we get to my door, Tinley is standing there as I open it to enter, holding onto strands of her long, black hair, her face still etched with worry. I hold her hand in mine and smile at her to reassure her, "Tinley, it will be fine. If you want, then I can talk to Storm for you. I'll explain everything. If he's who you have told me about, then I am sure that he'll understand." She makes a head motion. She pulls her hand back and says, "No, it's alright. Before I forget, Storm requested that I invite you to join us for breakfast the next morning at 8 a.m. Indigo will bring you down if you like to attend. I feign an annoyed scowl while nodding in agreement. 8 am? They are eating breakfast at such a ridiculous hour. Do they attend school? Tinley says "goodnight," and I chime in before we both shut the door. *** Running felt as though I couldn't feel my feet. Breakfast was scheduled to start at 8 a.m. I didn't realize Tinley meant to bring me down rather than wake me when she said she would send Indigo up at 8. I was dozing off like a baby and experiencing the most restful sleep ever when Indigo came to fetch me down. I sprang out of bed prepared to descend with Indigo, but she reluctantly reminded me that this pack had yet another ridiculous rule, just like usual. Apparently, no one in this pack is allowed to eat their first meal in front of other people before taking a bath. When I heard this, I wanted to yell until I was exhausted. If you ate breakfast before taking a shower, you had to do it by yourself. What sort of rule is this when breakfast time is set for 8 am? Indigo told me, so I hastened to take a bath. It happened so quickly that I was certain I still had soap traces on my skin, but I had to get ready for breakfast because Storm had invited me and I didn't think he would appreciate my declining, especially since I was meant to be demonstrating my thoughtfulness to him. It was 8:20 am when I finished taking a bath and got ready. I almost couldn't stop myself when I reached the dining table after sprinting through the front room and down the stairs. When I bump into a glass vase filled with recently plucked irises, it's unavoidable. My entrance was signaled by the vase falling to the ground. All eyes immediately shifted to me. At least 40 people were seated in the dining room. Even the hall seemed spacious despite the dining table that stretched from one end of the room to the other. Because of this, the vase's impact with the ground caused one of the loudest noises I've ever heard. It was a thunderous bang that reverberated down the hallway. Ava, you're awesome. You're a dripping mess that arrived late, and you also just made a big entry. How incredible! I think it's the standard Ava look. No one will ever be able to describe myself as conventional, I suppose. As all of the eyes in the room focused on me, I resisted the impulse to facepalm. Storm, who was seated at the head of the table and had observant black eyes, was in the center of it all. He looked at me more intently than the other forty individuals put together. I could only speculate as to what was going through everyone's minds towards me. Tinley, who was sat next to Indigo, caught my attention. Her lips were pursed together, and her eyes were wide. She got up. As expected, there was a protracted period of stillness, so I knelt down to try to clean up the mess I had just made because I was at a loss for what to do next. From across the hallway, Storm's voice yelled, "Don't do that! " Tinley was standing next to me when I turned. "Come, have breakfast. Someone else will clean it up," she said. When Tinley yanked at my hand to rise up, I did so, stepping away from the shambles I had just made. I was constantly in everyone's eyes, but I didn't care even if their looks were uncannily similar to my mother's critical ones. The very idea made me uncomfortable. I said, "I'm sorry," out loud, but of course nobody answered. Tinley showed me where everyone was seated at the table. All chairs but two were occupied: the one Tinley had been sitting in earlier and the one between a woman feeding her crying toddler and a woman with long blonde hair. I sat close to the woman holding the young child. Everyone was looking at me as I seated. Unable to comprehend what was so amusing about me, I longed to tear out their eyes. Gosh, accidents do happen! When I literally fell in, everyone had stopped eating, but when I turned to glance around, everyone had just finished breakfast. They resumed eating after a short while. My wet hair was dripping water onto my pants. I regret not drying it because I was in a rush and didn't have time. When I turned to look around, all I could hear was the clatter of dishes and the cries of children who were also eating breakfast. My neighbor, a young child, kicked me. I was aggravated twice. Oh, kids. "Sorry," his mother muttered as she yanked her wailing infant farther inside of herself and away from me. Children were generally a lot of labor, but I have to admit that this particular child looks like a real nightmare. Between an elderly woman and Indigo, Tinley took a seat. The elder woman gave me a blatant glare, her upper lip curled in annoyance, and her eyes narrowed. I fixed my gaze on Indigo, who was seated next to me. She frowned at me as Fleur stood next to her. Each person ate. I resisted the impulse to make rude gestures. Storm beckoned to me, "Have some breakfast please," and for the first time since I had sat down, I looked at him. Don't be timid. I blinked. On Storm's left side, which was the side I was occupying, there was a man seated next to him. The woman with the young child was next, and I was last. The elder woman was on Storm's right on the other side, followed by Tinley, Indigo, and Fleur. This continued till the end of the table, which I only briefly glanced at because everyone was still staring at me as if they were all trying to get my attention and I didn't want them to know I was interested. I fought the impulse to look them all in the eye. Unfortunately, naive girls over here are shy and soft-spoken like Indigo, so I had to maintain this innocent persona. I had a sigh in mind. When you've been up since eight in the morning and are somewhat sleep deprived, pretending can be a lot of work. I went for the bread as Indigo rose up to pour porridge onto my plate. I smiled at her and told her thank you. I felt as though the polka-dot dress I was wearing today was consuming me. However, everyone in this room was dressed in typical pack way, so I didn't feel particularly out of place. I was uncomfortable, though, because of the way my hair looked. The hair on everyone in this bunch was extremely long. Although neither as thick or as long as mine used to be, no girl you see nowadays has hair that is shorter than half the length of their back. I tugged my short hair back, remembering how much I missed having long hair that could have easily competed with any of these beauties. In any case, it will soon grow again. It constantly does. I ate my meal. Good and extremely creamy. I'm used to having salads for breakfast, but ever since I joined this pack, it seems like they prefer omelettes, oatmeal, and bread. Everything was wonderful, but I was worried that I might gain weight. Can you picture an obese Ava? No? That's good since I can't either, for sure. Most of the diners soon finished their meals and got up to go. They all bowed to Storm before they departed, and Storm reciprocated with a nod. Almost everyone had left except for Tinley, the elderly woman, the girl with the toddler who had managed to calm down, and a few other people I didn't know when the man seated next to Storm gave Storm a handshake and left. Except for Storm, everyone who had departed was still having breakfast. Even when he was finished, he stayed. Perhaps leaving the table last after a meal is something that only Alphas do. I ate gradually. Tinley's eyes told me she had something to say, but I had no idea what it may be. Storm remarked, "You don't like the food? , and I shook my head. I mumbled, "It's good," and took another spoonful. "I just feel full," "Are you sure? Because if you don't like the food here, you could always request something that you would like to eat. We'd be happy to meet your needs as best we can or at least try to." I tried to seem timid and said, "No, it's fine," in a low voice. I removed the food. "I'm just full, nothing more," he said after turning to face the dish and me. Then I can finally claim that I waited for you to complete eating because I needed to chat with you about something since you are finished.