When they were done eating to their hearts' content, Magnolia footed the pill and even tipped the waiter who thanked her gratefully.
Now that they were outside the restaurant building, Lavana found that the little one was rather latched to Magnolia.
"Who's her big sister? Maggie or me?" she thought.
"2nd big sis, where are we going next." Beatrix swayed Magnolia's hand from side to side.
"So you still put me in your eyes, Beatrix." Lavana couldn't help but speak.
"Big sis..." Beatrix ran over to her and hugged her leg.
"What now? You already have a new big sis."
"Come on, big sis. Don't be like this. Can we visit her place?" she said.
"Eh? What did you say?" Lavana looked at Magnolia who simply smiled 'innocently'.
"Maggie, what did you bribe her with?"
"Er... Does a super-duper plushie of her choice, a visit to the amusement park and delicious food like the one we just consumed.... do all these things count as a... bribe?" Magnolia asked, while adjusting her glasses.
"Seriously? You sold yourself to her over those things?"
"Big sis, do you know what an amusement pack is, you know how beautiful plushies are? Well, even you can't resist delicious food. A thief shouting 'thief!'."
"You..."
"Lava, look, you're just visiting my place for a while until you two figure things out. It's actually a win-win situation for you guys. Come on."
"I'll be allowed to leave whenever I want with my little sis, without any barriers." Lavana stated her condition.
"Yes, Lavana. And I guarantee, you'll like my family." Magnolia said with a big smile.
"I agree to check out your place. If it's safe, then we'll stay. But we'll do the chores as a thank you. Don't like freeloading." Lavana compromised.
Yeah, she did promise to get Beatrix back home in one piece but she couldn't even take care of her while they hadn't found her home. Here, a she-wolf wants to take them in. In this life, one has to bite the bullet sometimes.
However, if Magnolia turns out to be an evil person, freezing or burning her to death would be justified and she'd escape with the little one.
Magnolia smiled at Lavana's acceptance but she saw that Lavana's eyes were giving warning signs. Seems her guard against her was still high. It was normal for a lonely Omega like her not to simply trust anyone. Maybe she was even on the run and then was scared that she Magnolia might be a spy sent by her enemy or something.
But she knew herself. She was no spy.
Just a normal she-wolf looking out for a stray wolf and her little sis.
Maybe after she sees her small family, maybe she'll drop her guard a little. When she went to foot the bill earlier, she asked Beatrix to go with her. In the short time they spent in private, she was able to convince the little girl that she wasn't a bad lady. At least, they should come to try and see for themselves.
At the mention of the beautiful things a little girl like her would love, she already gave in. Now at least the big sister has agreed to follow them, at least on the outside. They left the restaurant and headed to the parking lot.
Some few minutes later, they were all in the car and Magnolia drove out of the premises.
*
*
*
3 hours later, they drove into the woods along a man-made neat path.
"Miss Maggie, your home is in the woods?" Beatrix couldn't help but ask.
"Yup. We are werewolves. I don't think the humans would feel safe knowing there are some gigantic wolves in a particular house. The forest is good for hiding our secrets and also a good place to stretch our legs. The air here is top quality and the chances of a human finding out our truth is 0.1%. Basically, all shifter races feel at home in the forest but it depends on them, though."
"Oh." Beatrix stopped asking.
Magnolia thought about why Beatrix was so ignorant. Though she was little and there was about a decade left before she shifted, at least she should know the fact that werewolves have to be in the forest.
Now that she thought about it, these two didn't look alike in any way. Probably they escaped together from the old pack and swore to be sisters forever.
Finally, after another 10 minutes of driving, they saw a very huge clearing along with some nice houses separated from each other at a considerable gap.
There were 4 muscled men (one of who had curly, pale green hair)standing guard at the entrance of the gate. The fence was not too high and this was why Lavana and Beatrix were able to see the houses. These four tan-skinned men were holding either spears or swords, every ready in case of a sudden attack, which was unlikely to happen each day. Their upper body was nude and their solid packs and firm muscles were there for one to see.
Their job was to guard the pack. They shifted every 5 hours to allow a set to either rest or train their prowess further.
Magnolia got out of the car and a little boy ran out of a house excitedly.
"Aunt Maggie. Aunt Maggie!" he squealed.
"Son!" a lady came out of the house together with 4 adults- two males and females.
"Aunt Maggie, you're back. I missed you." the boy said as he hugged her thigh, refusing to let go.
The adults walked over to Magnolia and just smiled.
"You finally remember that we are alive, eh?" one of the ladies said.
"Er... It's not my fault. I had some fun, more than the day I planned on going away for."
At this moment, Beatrix got down from the car and closed the door, attracting the attention of the others.
"Oh my. Such a pretty girl." the boy with red hair and green eyes exclaimed. His eyes were sparkling. A beautiful playmate has being delivered right next to his door. How could he not jubiliate?
He ran to her and introduced himself.
"Hello, I'm pedro. Nice to meet you. Do you want to be my playmate? I promise, I'm a fun person."
he took her hand and swayed it from side to side.
"Ahem... don't scare her." Maggie chided.
"No, I'm not." Pedro defended.
"Pedro, I'm Beatrix and I'm glad to meet you. You have nice hair." said Beatrix with a giggle.
"Really! Thank you. Thank you." the little boy replied in excitement.
"See that boy? I told him several times that his hair was good looking and not once did he say thank you."
"Aunt Gina, I told you thank you."
"But you only said it once." Regina said with folded arms.
Pedro sighed.
How could his aunt Gina, a big adult be jealous because he said thank you to a beautiful girl twice?
"Wait, Maggie, who else is in the car. I smell wolf." said Rolandro.
"Uh? Someone else is in the car? Is it another beautiful playmate?" Pedro asked. If that was true, then it's an added bonus.
"Yeah, I do smell a wolf. An Omega to be precise." Mel said. The others felt the same way.
If it was a shifted Omega, then it means she wasn't some little playmate that Pedro was expecting. Nevertheless, they were curious to see her. Why didn't she come out when Beatrix did? Was she shy?
Magnolia walked over to Lavana's side and opened the door.
"Oh, honey. Are you shy? Come on, don't be. I told you we are a family, didn't I? Come, let's go see my family." she said in a soothing voice and Lavana sighed.
"Come on, you'll be fine. See, Beatrix is fine, isn't she?"
At this point, Lavana decided to also come out. Even though she hated being in a pack due to the bad memories but at least this one was small and she kinda had the warm feeling in her heart when she got here.
"Hello everyone." she waved. "I'm called Lavana, Lava for short." she greeted with the smile she could pull up.
Everyone could see how skinny she was compared to Beatrix and they began to think what tragic backstory she had. Although Omegas are a weaker wolf kind, but it doesn't mean that have to be slim say less of being so skinny like this young lady before them.
She made them want to surround her and protect her. Despite her malnourished look, her beauty was still showing. If she is nurtured back to health, damn! How many heads would she turn?
Since she was here, they were going to keep her and pamper her.
Pedro, when he heard uncle Mel mention that the person inside was an Omega, his mind returned to that day when the innocent Omega lady got killed by those damn vampires all in a bid to save him. She was successful in saving him but she got killed and her body was taken away by more than one vampire. He was blaming himself a lot but he recalled that soon, her statue would be made and erected in the pack soon.
Then he can sit by her side.
He curiously watched the lady alight from the car and walk over from the other side of the car to the spot where everyone could see her and then she greeted.
His eyes widened in shock, then they reddened.
"Miss..." he exclaimed and ran toward her. Reaching her in no time, he hugged her thigh.
"Miss... you are alive. You are alive." he cried.
His reaction stunned everyone.
What was happening?
Lavana was surprised as to why a little boy would hug her thigh and cry.
Thinking back to when she was alone in the forest, the first innocent person she met and saved was a boy. Remembering his hair color, she gasped and squatted to his level.
She could see his face well now.
This was the boy that she saved that day. He made it. Thank heavens!
Her eyes teared up.
"I'm glad you're okay now, Pedro." she said with emotion.
She'd heard his name when he introduced himself excitedly to Beatrix earlier.
"I'm sorry. We couldn't come on time. I swear I really ran fast that night. But I wasn't fast enough, I guess." he sniffed with
"No, honey, you did your best. You helped a lot by running to safety. Don't I see you here in one piece now? I'm also in one piece too." she said and brought him into a warm hug.
She was right to take a gamble that night. Though it wasn't easy for her but in life, you need to be brave.
This little boy reminded her of her late playmate, Austin Cararner. He would have been as big as her now if he were still alive. If that bastard Alpha Blake didn't come to claim their lives for no just reason.
She patted Pedro's back gently.
Seeing this, the two couples had a hunch. This must be the Omega lady who put her life on the line to save their little boy that night in the forest.
Her statue was due to be delivered in two days; to be erected in the pack and now she was here in the flesh! How miraculous. Now their son would no longer be so moody and crying; feeling guilty for causing someone's premature death. She was alive and hugging the boy. Haha, this is great.
They walked to her and all went to their knees.
Then they kowtowed.
"Eh? What are you guys doing?" Magnolia asked in shock at their strange actions.
Did they want to scare this Lavana (who she tried hard to convince and bring here) away? What the heck was going on in their brains? Had they lost it?
"Stop thjis and stand up." she said to them but they kept kowtowing.
"Thank you saving, Pedro." Rolandro said after they stopped kowtowing.
Lavana saw he had red hair just like Pedro so this must be his father. He was a carbon copy of him. The lady next to him must be his wife then and Pedro's mother. The other two should be pack members who are close to the boy.
"Er... please get up. I can't accept your bowing to me." Lavana said, looking flustered.
The two couples rose and looked at her carefully.
They were thinking about how to make her fat now. She was way too skinny up close!
The little boy's saviour indeed can't be like this.
"Once again, thank you for saving our little Pedro. Without your help, we don't know where or what state we'll be in by now. Thank you very much, Lavana." Carmelia said as she pulled Lavana into an embrace.
Lavana felt warmth. She remembered when her mum would give her this big, loving hug.
When they broke the hug, Lavana looked like she'd zoned out.
The others just waited for her to come back to reality.
She must have a really tragic backstory. A hug from Carmelia made her zone out like this. Well, she deserved their waiting.
Beatrix walked to Lavana and held her hand, successfully bringing her back to reality.
"Beatrix..." Lavana called out softly.
"I'm here, big sis."
Beatrix knew that if she didn't bring her out of that spaced-out state in time, her aura (which could turn sinister) would be felt by all of them since they were all supernatural beings. Her aura was something an Omega wolf shouldn't have.
Yes, these people seemed kind and warm but none can tell their reaction if they find out that she was not even a hybrid but a tribrid!
"I'm sorry for zoning out. I just haven't felt this way in a long time. I got reminded of my late mum." Lavana said, wiping a stray tear off.
"Oh, dear. What ordeal you must have been through. Why are we standing here? Let's go in." Carmelia said, pointing to her home.
Look at how flat Lavana's tummy is, she must not have eaten anything at all, same as the little Beatrix.
"Thank you for receiving me and my little sister kindly. To be honest, I was quite nervous on the way here," said Lavana.
"Oh, don't be, young lady. Here everyone is our family. You are welcome to stay here as long as you like." said Mel.
"Uh, thank you, sir."
"Hahaha. Don't call me that. Just call me by my name. I'm Mel. This is my beautiful wife and soulmate, Regina." he introduced with his arm around his smiling wife.
"Mr Mel and Mrs Regina."
"Remove the title," said Regina as she left her husband's embrace. She walked to Lavana and took her right hand, tenderly stroking it.
"Just call me Regina, young lady," she said in a soothing voice.
Before Lavana knew it, Regina had led her into the house, with the others following after them.
Pedro took Beatrix to his room to show her the toys and fun things that he possessed.
He was happy to get a playmate that was this cute. It's not like there were no other kids his age in the pack. He just wanted a cute playmate from his favourite people. Now his aunt Magnolia had brought a cute little playmate for him. How could he not be happy? She also brought his saviour and ended the pain and guilt he felt in his little heart. This Beatrix was his saviour's little sister. Of course, he must treat her super well.
"Beatrix, from now on, whatever you ask, I'll give it to you," he said to her as they played with his fascinating toys.
"I want this bike. It's pink and stylish." Beatrix said, stroking the toy bike of her choice.
"Hehe. That's one of my favourites. But since you like it. Then it's yours. When mom takes me shopping later, I'll bring you along. You'll see many things," he said to her excitedly.
She nodded and started playing with her newly gifted bike.
Back home, she was never allowed to play with these. She had to be serious and learn how to master basic things for an apprentice witch like her. Being a noble young lady wasn't all bed and roses. While others in the witch academy were allowed fun time, she was tutored alone in a class by selected highly praised teachers. After that, she would meet up with her main teacher. Her meals were on a so-called healthy strict routine.
"So, Lava, um, do you mind if I ask? If you do, then you can just skip it." Rolandro looked uncertain as this was a sensitive question. Mel had gone out with a pack member who requested his help on certain issues.
Lavana was offered a herbal drink that Carmelia said was good for werewolves’ vitality.
She'd seen some pack members of the Ralton pack, especially the warriors, drink something; a slightly thick liquid drunk from either a mug or small bowl, though it was not very often that they did this. This liquid was reddish in color but the one here was yellowish and didn't give off the rich fragrance of the one she saw in that damn pack. But she having a chance to drink something like this was an enormous fortune for her. It also showed their sincerity.
"As long as it's not offensive, I will answer," she replied to Rolandro.
"Okay." Rolandro rubbed his palms together ”So when we got there we couldn’t find you nor the vampires.”
“How did you know it was more than one vampire?” Lavana asked.
“The scent,” he replied. "It's thicker than usual, so we knew it has to be at least two."
“That disgusting smell.” she scrunched her nose at the memory of those three rotten undead beings she encountered. Good thing she got rid of them or else they’d continue to do more evil.
“Vampires are naturally faster than our kind. How did you escape from their grasp?” Rolandro asked.
“I escaped with my own capacity.” was Lavana’s reply. She did not seem like she was going to elaborate on what happened. Rolandro thought she felt unobligated to answer his question. Maybe someone saved her but weirdly advised her not to say a word? Anything could be the case but at least this Omega wolf had arrived and she must add some meat while in their pack. This was a mission!
“Em… okay. That’s good.” he nodded in understanding. “What’s important is that you are well and now we met you. You’re welcome to stay at our little Blood star pack,” said Rolandro with a smile.
"Thank you for your hospitality. I promise, my little sis and I will not be freeloaders," said Lavana.
"No. You aren't freeloaders here. You are a guest-turned-family. Don't have such thoughts again, Lava." said Carmelia, who had just arrived in the living room with some refreshments for Lavana. She’d already delivered Beatrix’s share to her in Pedro’s room. They were chatting excitedly and she didn’t want to ruin their fun.
She also gave some checkerboard cookies to her son. Werewolves can’t stomach chocolate after their first shift but they can before that, so it was safe for him to eat it. But she planned to stop giving him chocolate at 10. Or else even after he shifted, he would find it hard to resist eating the appetizing chocolate products.
The cookies she brought for Lavana were different. They were flavored with vanilla and little milk. After shifting, werewolves can’t take too much milk in their system. So a little occasionally is recommended.
Being a tribrid, Lavana will have to discover what she can and can’t eat as soon as possible to avoid poisoning. She only knew wolves didn’t eat this or that. What about her other two forms?
When all spirits were fully awake, she would have a long conversation with them. But to trigger the next (third) stage of her dragon transformation, she might need to find her second chance mate soon. But where to start from? In any case, she had to bring Beatrix to her home.
“Thank you, Carmelia. They taste great.” Lavana thanked Rolandro’s wife.
“It’s good you like them. Regina and I will go prepare the main meal. You will be shown your room soon and have a tour of the pack. It's small so it will be easy to walk around it.” said Carmelia before turning to go back into the kitchen."
“Um, Rolandro.” Lavana rose and walked over to sit on the couch where he was seated but maintained a distance from him.
“Um… please don’t think of any other meaning in my actions. I just want to know. Do you know anything about the Atlantes family?” she asked in a rather low voice.
“Atlantes family? Is that your family?” he asked with a raised eyebrow.
Wasn’t she and her little sister omegas; one shifted and the other still a decade away from shifting? Why was she asking about the Atlantes family?
Lavana shook her head.
“I’m an Omega,” she replied. “I’m just curious if you know something.”
“Um… yeah. But why? Do you have anything to do with them?”
“Um… Are they humans?” she asked, even though she already knew the answer.
“Nope. They are from a clan that practices witchcraft. They live in the next town but their location is uncertain. But that family is powerful. An Alpha would have a hard time if he encounters a highly skilled witch or wizard. He might even die if it’s a serious case. We have no Alpha here. We haven’t been able to produce anyone good enough to receive the Alpha title in years. Our last chance is in less than a month’s time during a competition.”
“Are women allowed in that competition?”
“Yup. The bracket is from age 16 till 29.” Rolandro said.
“Mind if I ask? Have you competed in that competition before?”
“I and Mel had to do so but we lost.”
“How about I compete then?” she asked with sparkling eyes.
She knew the competition that was being talked about. Though she’d never gone there before but she knew it wasn’t a fight to the death but to see who’s strong enough to beat an Alpha. If one does and he is already an Alpha’s son, his pack would be rewarded greatly but if it is from an Alpha-less pack like Blood star, that person could become Alpha. But she didn’t want the Alpha position. She could easily hand it over to someone else later. She wanted to see Chase one more time and deal with him. Play by the rules? Would he survive her fireballs? Once he was out, then she can go ahead and wipe out his pack. But she had to get stronger first and…
Her mind was already going somewhere with grand ambitions, but Rolandro cleared his throat a few times before she returned to reality.
Rolandro had never seen an Omega space out this much and be so hard to wake up to reality. He recalled that Beatrix only needed to touch her hand to wake her up from her zoned-out state. Blood is really thick!
“Em… sorry about that. So you said their location… you aren’t sure of it?”
“Nope. Besides, their clan and our kind are at odds. It’s best we don’t cross each other’s path.” Rolandro warned.
“Oh, really!” Lavana said with a nod.
“Thank you for the information,” she said before going back to her seat.
The witch clan and werewolves were at odds?
If she brought the little one back to her family, would she be detained? Why was there a feud between the two clans? Did Beatrix know about this? Maybe she might not. She was just a kid.
This piece of information was not good news to her and wouldn't be so for the little one either.
"You seem troubled. Is there anything wrong?" Rolandro asked.
'N-No. I'm alright." Lavana retreated back to the chair that she was seated on earlier and put a cookie into her mouth. Just like the first one she took earlier, this one tasted really great too.
As she chewed on it, her mind went to other things.
Rolandro felt that this Omega was kind of weird. Whatever, he was in no position to forcefully pry into her life. She saved his son!