almost marble texture of the box as I walked back to my car where I carefully placed both on the passenger seat. The box occupied my mind, but the familiar internal grumbling still resonated when I reminded myself that there was an envelope as well, which meant there was a task.
Back when I first began my dealings with the Wyrd Sisters, when everything was new, shiny, and saving the world, I called them missions. Over time, over lives, my views on the entire thing degraded. At that point they were just tasks. My mind kept skipping around while I drove. I wondered what was in the box and went back and forth over whether it would be a good thing or a bad thing. I found my fingers kept slipping back over its smooth surface while I was driving, before I had to snatch the steering wheel and make it around a corner. I didn't stay on my side of the road for the entire journey, but I didn't hit anyone either, so I considered it a success, overall. I parked back in what I'd claimed as my spot on the driveway in front of the house. I tried to remind myself that it was home, but that word and concept refused to sit right with me. It was the house, the place where my comfortable bed was.
I allowed myself a little time to find peace and calm. This was going to be a big moment, whether I wanted it to be or not. I had no choice but to accept who and what I was, my role in things. I wasn’t even close to ready, but I had to try. I closed my eyes for a brief moment and allowed the wolf forward. It wasn't often that I had the wolf at the front, but given the males were all canine of one shade or another and I had to pull them together for the task, it had to be done. My life had changed, again. I had to do my best to accept that, to embrace it and to make the most of what I had. I found myself holding my head higher. My back stiffened, and my lips pulled back from my teeth a little. I was as ready as I could be.
I slipped the box into my bag. There was no reason to allow the cubs near my box. I walked slowly over to the front door, keeping my ears pricked just in case. I tried not to snarl when Dan met me at the door. He’d startled me, but it wasn't his fault. There was no use reprimanding simple things. He didn't do anything wrong. He stepped back and held the door for me as I walked in. His dark blue eyes shifted slightly, showing amber in response to my own wolf. I gave him a toothy smile and kept the eye-contact for a moment before walking into the living room. It was my moment, but I didn’t want to claim it.
Alex lifted his chin and looked down at me. "Where did you go? You know we can’t afford to take risks."
He couldn't keep the slight worry from his voice, poor thing. I shrugged and held out the envelope. It was none of his business where I chose to roam. I could have taken centre stage and made a big thing of it, but that would mean truly acknowledging things, taking the blame for what was to come. I wasn’t going to do that.
"I bumped into one of the Sisters. It looks like we've been given the first task."
Alex closed his eyes and squeezed the bridge of his nose with his thumb and forefinger while his coyote aspect rippled through his energies. He opened his eyes showing pale green mixed in with the usual ice blue. He couldn't help responding to my own wolf side. It was interesting that he settled into his coyote aspect, though. That was a change from the old days.
"Have you opened it?"
The cubs were starting to crowd around us. Their tails were practically wagging with anticipation. I bared my teeth at Nik and Ryan. They lowered their eyes and took a step back. They needed to learn respect. Alex slipped his finger under the flap of the envelope and opened it without any damage. He was always so meticulous, a perfectionist. It contained a single piece of heavy white paper with pitch-black script-type writing on it. How very them .
Alex cleared his throat and said, "We're leaving for Overdark in three
Back when I first began my dealings with the Wyrd Sisters, when everything was new, shiny, and saving the world, I called them missions. Over time, over lives, my views on the entire thing degraded. At that point they were just tasks. My mind kept skipping around while I drove. I wondered what was in the box and went back and forth over whether it would be a good thing or a bad thing. I found my fingers kept slipping back over its smooth surface while I was driving, before I had to snatch the steering wheel and make it around a corner. I didn't stay on my side of the road for the entire journey, but I didn't hit anyone either, so I considered it a success, overall. I parked back in what I'd claimed as my spot on the driveway in front of the house. I tried to remind myself that it was home, but that word and concept refused to sit right with me. It was the house, the place where my comfortable bed was.
I allowed myself a little time to find peace and calm. This was going to be a big moment, whether I wanted it to be or not. I had no choice but to accept who and what I was, my role in things. I wasn’t even close to ready, but I had to try. I closed my eyes for a brief moment and allowed the wolf forward. It wasn't often that I had the wolf at the front, but given the males were all canine of one shade or another and I had to pull them together for the task, it had to be done. My life had changed, again. I had to do my best to accept that, to embrace it and to make the most of what I had. I found myself holding my head higher. My back stiffened, and my lips pulled back from my teeth a little. I was as ready as I could be.
I slipped the box into my bag. There was no reason to allow the cubs near my box. I walked slowly over to the front door, keeping my ears pricked just in case. I tried not to snarl when Dan met me at the door. He’d startled me, but it wasn't his fault. There was no use reprimanding simple things. He didn't do anything wrong. He stepped back and held the door for me as I walked in. His dark blue eyes shifted slightly, showing amber in response to my own wolf. I gave him a toothy smile and kept the eye-contact for a moment before walking into the living room. It was my moment, but I didn’t want to claim it.
Alex lifted his chin and looked down at me. "Where did you go? You know we can’t afford to take risks."
He couldn't keep the slight worry from his voice, poor thing. I shrugged and held out the envelope. It was none of his business where I chose to roam. I could have taken centre stage and made a big thing of it, but that would mean truly acknowledging things, taking the blame for what was to come. I wasn’t going to do that.
"I bumped into one of the Sisters. It looks like we've been given the first task."
Alex closed his eyes and squeezed the bridge of his nose with his thumb and forefinger while his coyote aspect rippled through his energies. He opened his eyes showing pale green mixed in with the usual ice blue. He couldn't help responding to my own wolf side. It was interesting that he settled into his coyote aspect, though. That was a change from the old days.
"Have you opened it?"
The cubs were starting to crowd around us. Their tails were practically wagging with anticipation. I bared my teeth at Nik and Ryan. They lowered their eyes and took a step back. They needed to learn respect. Alex slipped his finger under the flap of the envelope and opened it without any damage. He was always so meticulous, a perfectionist. It contained a single piece of heavy white paper with pitch-black script-type writing on it. How very them .
Alex cleared his throat and said, "We're leaving for Overdark in three
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