I stared at my reflection in the cracked mirror, barely recognizing the person staring back at me. My eyes, once a warm brown, now glowed with an eerie amber light. Canines too sharp for a human mouth peeked out from behind my lips. And my skin... I ran a hand over my arm, feeling the soft fur that now covered my body.
"Shit," I muttered, my voice a low growl even to my own ears.
It had been three days since I last managed to shift back to my human form. Three days of being stuck in this half-wolf, half-human hybrid state. Three days of hiding from my pack, from Liam, from everyone.
A knock on the door made me jump. "Skye?" Jake's voice, tinged with worry. "You okay in there?"
I closed my eyes, taking a deep breath. "Yeah," I called back, wincing at the roughness in my voice. "Just... give me a minute."
"Skye, come on. You've been in there for hours. The pack needs you. I need you."
Guilt gnawed at me. I knew I was letting everyone down, but how could I lead like this? How could I be the Alpha they needed when I couldn't even control my own shift?
"I'll be out soon," I lied, turning away from the mirror. "Just need to freshen up."
Jake's sigh was audible even through the thick wooden door. "Alright. But Liam's back, and he's got news. Important news. We need our Alpha, Skye."
My heart skipped a beat at the mention of Liam. He'd been gone for days, searching for a cure to whatever was happening to me. If he was back...
"I'll be right there," I said, this time meaning it.
I heard Jake's footsteps retreat down the hall. Turning back to the mirror, I steeled myself. Alpha up, Skye, I thought. Your pack needs you.
Taking a deep breath, I focused on shifting back to human form. I pictured myself as I used to be - smooth skin, normal eyes, no fangs. For a moment, I felt the familiar tingle of the shift beginning. Hope surged through me.
Then, just as quickly, it faded. My reflection remained unchanged.
"Dammit!" I snarled, slamming my fist into the wall. The plaster cracked under the impact, and I pulled my hand back, staring at the unblemished skin. Great. Super strength to go with everything else.
No more stalling. I had to face my pack, like it or not.
Grabbing a hoodie, I pulled it on, tugging the hood low over my face. It wouldn't hide everything, but it was better than nothing.
As I stepped out into the hallway, the scents and sounds of the pack house hit me like a wave. Normally, my wolf senses were strong, but this... this was overwhelming. I could hear heartbeats, smell emotions. Fear, worry, anger - they all had distinct scents that made my nose twitch.
I made my way down to the main room, where I could hear voices gathered. As I entered, conversation died. All eyes turned to me.
Liam stood at the center of the room, looking haggard but determined. His eyes widened as they met mine, a mix of emotions flashing across his face too quickly for me to decipher.
"Skye," he breathed, taking a step towards me.
I held up a hand, stopping him. "You said you had news?"
Liam nodded, visibly pulling himself together. "Right. I found something. A potential cure for... for what's happening to you."
Hope flared in my chest, quickly tempered by caution. We'd been down this road before, chasing cures that turned out to be dead ends.
"What kind of cure?" I asked, trying to keep my voice steady.
Liam glanced around the room, then back to me. "It's... complicated. And dangerous. But it might be our only shot."
I nodded, gesturing for him to continue.
"There's a ritual," Liam said, his voice low. "Ancient magic, older than werewolves themselves. It's designed to... reset a shifter's nature. To strip away all the magic and start fresh."
Murmurs broke out around the room. I held up a hand, silencing them. "And the catch?"
Liam's eyes met mine, filled with a pain that made my heart ache. "If it works, you'll be human. Completely, irreversibly human. No wolf, no bird, no... whatever this is now. Just human."
The words hit me like a physical blow. Human. Normal. No more pack, no more shifts, no more... me. Everything that made me who I was, gone.
"And if it doesn't work?" I asked, already dreading the answer.
Liam swallowed hard. "If it doesn't work... it'll kill you."
Silence fell over the room, heavy and oppressive. I could feel the weight of everyone's stares, their fear and hope and worry all pressing down on me.
"No," Jake said, stepping forward. "No way. It's too risky. We'll find another way."
Others joined in, voices rising in a cacophony of arguments. But I tuned them out, my eyes locked with Liam's.
"How sure are you?" I asked quietly.
He understood what I was really asking. How sure are you that it'll work? How sure are you that I'll survive?
"Seventy percent," he said, just as quietly. "Maybe eighty. But Skye... even if it works, you won't be you anymore. Not really."
I nodded, turning his words over in my mind. A part of me wanted to agree with Jake, to keep searching for another solution. But I knew we were running out of time. Whatever was happening to me was getting worse. Soon, there might not be enough of me left to save.
"Okay," I said, my voice cutting through the arguing. The room fell silent once more. "I'll do it."
Protests erupted immediately, but I silenced them with a look. Even in this hybrid form, I was still their Alpha.
"This isn't up for debate," I said firmly. "It's my choice. My risk to take."
I turned back to Liam. "What do we need for this ritual?"
He hesitated, then said, "There's one more thing. The ritual... it requires a sacrifice. A life freely given to power the magic."
My blood ran cold. "Whose life?"
Liam's eyes never left mine as he answered, "Mine."
The room erupted into chaos, but I barely heard it. All I could see was Liam, his face set in grim determination. All I could think was: How did we end up here?
As the arguments raged around us, a howl pierced the night - a howl of pain and fear that made every hair on my body stand on end.
"The border patrol," Jake gasped, already moving towards the door.
I nodded, pushing aside the shock of Liam's revelation. "Let's go."
As we raced out into the night, my mind whirled. A ritual that could make me human or kill me. Liam offering his life to save mine. And now, a new threat to my pack.
Whatever was waiting for us in the dark, I knew one thing for certain: After tonight, nothing would ever be the same.