Gosh, this took me a long time. What do you think? Does it meet with
expectations? All opinions gratefully received. And at least one secret
is now out. And in answer to a question - hopefully I should be able to
update over Xmas. And if not - Merry Christmas everyone!
Chapter 13
Sophia ran a final brushstroke through her hair and put the brush down steadily, distantly pleased that her hand wasn't shaking. So many things would change tonight, for her, her daughter, for the whole Pack, and she wasn't sure what she really thought about it. Yes, it meant that she would truly come home, but after a life time of living away from Wolf Lake she wasn't sure if she would be able to handle the incessant closeness of small town life. When she had been freed before she had run as fast and far as she could, spurred on by pain and rejection. But she had finally stopped and looked around she had realised she liked being Outside. She had loved the freedom, the anonymity, the fact that her action only affected her and her child. She had been a fledging eagle and they unintentionally gave her space to fly. And now she was bringing herself back to the eyrie.
"Sophia."
She looked to see her father standing in the door to her old bedroom. Tonight would be a night of change for him as well, although he didn't know it yet.
"It's time, sweetheart. Are you ready?"
She looked up and met his eyes.
"I'm ready Dad."
*Here I come, Wolf Lake - ready or not - *
Cat mentally cursed as her foot cracked down on yet another pesky twig. At her twitch her mother momentarily squeezed her hand before continuing on, slipping through the woods like a shadow. Why, oh why couldn't she have some of her Wolven characteristics right now?! I mean, was it too much just to get that oh-so useful enhanced eyesight a little early? Instead she had to get dragged through the woods by her Mom and Grandpa, like a piece of baggage. And did they have to go so fast? She continued to grumble to herself as she followed Matt and Sophia through the woods, terribly conscious of the mental whispers of hundreds of Wolven and the occasional noise as they, their mates and cubs, pre, and post-flip slowly made their way through the forest to the meeting place. When she was a little girl her Mom had told her stories of this place, made it sound like Pack Rock out of the Jungle Book and she had so desperately wanted to go there. But now she was, all she wanted to do was turn tail and run back to the safety of the Wolf Sanctuary in Colorado, where wolf howls held no human meaning and nobody stared at her like a bug under the microscope. She was scared. And so she grumped.
Abruptly the tree cover ceased and they were standing on the edge of a rough clearing, punctuated only at one side by a pile of flat topped rocks, the highest stretching out to dominate the space. The gray stone contrasted clearly with the rich colour of the silk draping it. Royal scarlet. No purple for the Wolven, instead they honoured the richness of scarlet, the colour of life and death, of birth and mating - the colour of blood.
Currently it was empty but all around the clearing the gathered Wolven made up for the lack of their leader.
Cat stopped on the edge of the trees and just gawked. There were hundreds of wolves of every colour, from grey-silver to black, fading through fawn, gold, chestnut, russet, brown, even slightly patchwork, skewbald like a husky, all bathed in the light of the full moon that hung, seemingly immobile, over the clearing. And then there were the people, fat, thin, in between, young, old, children through to elders whose hair (and pelts) glistened grizzled silver. Pregnant women gathered litters of children to them, fathers scolded errant sons, teenagers gathered in gossiping groups, half in Wolven form, many being eyed enviously by their friends who had yet to flip. All in all it was an amazing cornucopia of wild humanity, normal divisions such as skin colour and sex as nothing in the face of the overwhelming bond that made them as one, that made them Pack.
She glanced up at her mother. Sophia's face was set, her eyes slightly narrowed, obviously reluctant to face the assembled company. Her father murmured something in her ear, and she nodded tightly, her movements clipped. Then she raised her chin with a characteristically stubborn gesture and stepped out from the safety of the trees, her two followers like guards at her back.
At first no one seemed to notice them and then ripples of stillness spread, like a stone dropped into water, radiating outwards as the assembly noticed the strangers in their midst. For a moment all was still, the quiet only shattered by the high wail of a baby and then a woman's voice broke the silence.
"Sophia! Sophia Donner! You've come home!"
Sophia staggered back a bit as she was met by an armful of laughing woman.
"Sarah! Sarah Walton!"
"It's Thompson now, but - yup!"
Conversations started up again as the Pack recognised the lack of threat, although the return of the elusive, runaway half breed certainly added a certain fillip to the proceedings. But whatever she was, she was no threat to them and so the Pack could get on with the important business of gossiping, arguing, grooming and living, albeit with the occasional glance at the small but growing knot of people surrounding the returning prodigal.
In the middle of the knot Sophia found herself slightly overwhelmed as old friends she had known, and half she hadn't, turned up to say hello. In deference to her non flip state they had changed into human form but a number wore the long robes the Wolven used when quick change was likely. She had expected to be shunned but instead she was surrounded by friendly faces, all wanting to know how she had been , where she had been, how was Outside - her eyes felt suspiciously moist as she took in the strength and genuine nature of the welcome that surrounded her. Maybe she had been missed after all.
Behind her, her daughter and her father leaned against each other, Cat huddled slightly in the shelter of her grandfather's arm. It was faintly scary really, all these people, and she didn't know any of them. She had caught a glimpse of Jamie, surrounded by a huge posse of teenagers, but she was far too intimidated to push her way through that crowd. And anyway her Mom and Sherman had asked her to stay close, with her having such a central role in the drama to come.
There was movement near the Pack rock as a number of huge wolves padded out from the shadows to surround it, sitting on their haunches and surveying the crowd suspiciously. Then silence slowly fell as the tall figure of Luke Cates strode out from the edges of the forest, with Sherman and his mother at his back. He nodded to one of his bodyguards and the russet wolf threw back his head and howled, the sound hanging eerily on the moonlight air. From the mountains around them came a chorus of answering howls as the sentries checked in, assuring the Wolven of Wolf Lake that once again their Gathering would go unnoticed by the human world.
Silence fell as the Alpha swept his gaze over the assembled Pack.
"My friends. My kin, blood of my blood. We are gathered here at the request of our Keeper, Sherman, who believes that there is a clear and present danger to our Pack."
Murmurs rose around the clearing as parents looked at each other anxiously and checked for the whereabouts of their children, and the young ones huddled together.
"As Sherman is the best informed of us on this, I pass the telling of it over to him. However I will have it known that I have heard his words, and I believe his story, and that of his messenger."
His eyes locked with Sophia's across the clearing, until she clenched her jaw and looked sideways and away. If that was what he thought made an apology he had a lot to learn.
"Sherman."
He moved to one side as the Keeper came forward, still as changeless as ever, his coyote eyes gleaming in the moonlight.
"Wolven of Wolf Lake. I speak as the Keeper. I speak of time past and time still to come. Listen well, because it may mean our survival is at stake."
The silence became absolute as each Wolven strained to hear the Keeper's quiet voice.
***************
When he had finished there was a moments silence and then Luke strode forward again.
"As this concerns all of our lives it is only appropriate that we should all discuss it. Wolven of Wolf Lake - the debate is open."
And the quiet was shattered as bedlam descended.
After 10 minutes of furious, incoherent, argument, with everyone talking over each other, and half the time making no sense at all, Luke decided to take action. When his first verbal yells for quiet went unheeded he shook his head in annoyance and unleashed his more formidable arsenal.
*QUIET!*
The mental and physical bellow caused every attendee to cringe and abruptly shut up. Comparative silence fell as parents shushed their young offspring hastily and they all turned their attention to their now irritated leader.
"Right - as you obviously can't be trusted to discuss this sensibly we are going to do it in order. You will speak when I tell you to speak," he glared at them all, "and not before. And you will shut up when I tell you as well. Got it?"
The low buzz of the affirmative - *Yes Alpha* murmured throughout the crowd.
"Right," he said, somewhat mollified at this rapid capitulation to authority. "You, Jemson. You go first."
As the first querulous question rose on the night air Sophia raised an eyebrow in surprise at her father.
"When did *Luke* learn to be so diplomatic?"
He favoured her with a slow smile.
"You'll be surprised at what ten years of negotiation and compromise and five years as Alpha can do. Did you know he was virtually uncontested for the leadership? Or that it was the first totally bloodless contest we've ever had? I know you have bad memories - but, and I can't believe I'm saying this to you - he's changed, Sophia. He really has."
She frowned, unconvinced. One negotiation did not make a change of attitude. He would have to do a hell of a lot more to win back HER respect. Her attention snapped back to the debate as an aggressive male voice demanded to know exactly where Sherman had got his information. With narrowed eyes she recognised the voice of Brad Peterson, who had been two years ahead of her at school. He had been a thug and a bully then and it didn't look as if things had changed much.
"Where's your source for this pile of crap? Where's your proof, Sherman?"
Sophia stiffened. Here it came. She rolled her shoulders back and paced out into the middle of the clearing, conscious of the increasing numbers of eyes on her as her presence registered. Her voice rang out into the night air.
"Still causing trouble, Brad? Well you can stop that right now. I'm his proof."
Across the clearing Luke closed his eyes in despair. He had really, really hoped she wouldn't do this. Even he couldn't keep her from the combined scorn and judgement of the Pack.
"You?" Brad's voice rang with scorn and disbelief. "You - the half-breed are the source for all this," he gestured around at the frightened faces, "crap?"
"Technically, yes."
She leaned her head to one side as she regarded him coolly.
"I brought this matter to the attention of Sherman a number of years ago. However it is only recently that he believed it urgent enough to place in front of the whole Pack."
Brad sneered at her.
"And where did a mongrel like you get such - important- information?"
His voice rang with sarcasm and disbelief and the murmurs around the clearing grew louder. Sophia gestured to Cat, and the young girl padded out from the shelter of her increasingly aggravated grandfather's arms. How dare they call his daughter a mongrel?
Cat moved skittishly to her mother's side and nestled there as Sophia put a protective arm around her shoulders.
"This is my daughter. She saw the things that threaten our Pack. She is a Seer - "
anything else she would have said was drowned out by the rising cacophony as the residents of Wolf Lake voiced their worry and disbelief. Sophia pulled Cat in front of her protectively, eyes narrow for the first sign of danger, body tensed. Let them just try to hurt her child. Just as things seemed about to get out of hand another deafening bellow rang out.
*SILENCE!!*
There was an audible whine of pain as the sheer force of the mental blast hit their collective mental pathways. Then as they cringed Luke took the opportunity to regain control.
"You WILL be quiet. And you WILL listen to what Sherman has to say. Otherwise we will have a PROBLEM! DO I MAKE MYSELF CLEAR?"
The assenting mutter was almost silent, as Sherman stepped forward.
"It is true that this Pack has not had a Seer for over 200 years. But just because we have not - does not mean that the Gods could not send us one now. I can attest that Catrina Donner, daughter of Sophia Donner, granddaughter to Mathew Donner, is indeed a Seer."
A single voice rang out from the back of the crowd.
"But how can you tell? And how do we know that what she sees is true?"
Sherman gazed out over he crowd, his expression inscrutable.
"I have known this child since she was merely an infant. Her mother first called me when she first started having vivid, disturbing dreams. It quickly became clear to me, through a number of small incidents, that Catrina was indeed, dreaming true. The Gods had sent us a Seer again."
He put up a hand.
"And before you ask, the line between dreaming and true dreaming is a very clear one. What Catrina says will come true, sooner or later, will, unless we alter the path that events presently take."
Brad Petersen's voice rang out again, ugly with rage and fear.
"I'll not listen to the mad dreams of a mongrel's bastard get. She's not even one of us. How can we trust her? Even her mother's a failure. She can't flip. She's practically an ungulate!"
The murmurs started to rise to a roar again and Luke and Vivian exchanged worried glances. This could get ugly very quickly. Luke tensed to run forward and drag Sophia out of there. Then he stopped, puzzled, as he focused on what she was doing.
Standing in the middle of the circle, Cat back in her grandfather's protective embrace, Sophia was slowly, methodically, stripping, showing none of the self consciousness he remembered from earlier days. The noise lessened by degrees as the mob realised what she was doing and confused, focused its attention on her. She continued to strip until she stood nude before them, the slight breeze lifting her light brown hair. Luke wasn't the only male whose eyes narrowed appreciatively at the sight. Slowly she rotated, arms out at her sides, palms up, exposing every inch of her lithe form to their inquisitive gaze. Luke frowned in confusion. What was she doing?
She finished her rotation and faced the rock, her arms still held out by her sides, like a supplicant.
"I come before you by right of blood."
Luke frowned even harder. What was she doing? That old ritual hadn't been used for centuries.
"I come before you by right of blood. I come before you with the right to speak."
The murmurs started again as members of the crowd recognised the atavistic ritual.
"By my blood I bind you to listen."
A lone voice rang out in the disturbance.
" You can't invoke that. You're not even Pack." She ignored him and continued.
"By the colour of my coat I bind you to obey."
By the colour of her coat? What did she mean? She didn't even have a coat. She had never even flipped. And no one's coat bound anyone to obey. Unless -
Matt leaned forwardly suddenly. Could she mean - ?
At the other side of the clearing Luke stared in dawning outrage and comprehension.
"Causa mei pellis est albus."
And while they were still taking in the meaning of the ancient phrase she shed her skin as easily as a too large robe and shifted joyfully into her sister soul.
********
Luke coughed, choking, reached out to use the rock behind him to steady himself, only to discover his mother doing exactly the same thing. They both exchanged wild eyed looks of total shock as they turned to look back to the proud Wolven form that stood in the middle of the clearing and arrogantly surveyed the bedlam her actions had caused. She was white. Gleaming, snowy white. From the tip of her elegant, black nosed muzzle to the last hair on her luxuriant tail, she gleamed in front of them like moonlight on snow made incarnate. But it was impossible. Two white Wolven? Could it be a trick of the light? Was it really the mysterious Ruby, slipped in by some sleight of hand? Because how could a half-breed, an ungulate's daughter for God's sake, how could she be a White Wolf?
That hope was quickly dashed as the mysterious Ruby herself came pacing out of the trees to stand beside Sophia, placing a reassuring hand on her elegant, snowy head.
"This is my sister. Her blood is mine. You all know me - I am White Wolven. And I tell you that this is no trick, nor deception."
She paused to survey the hushed and subdued crowd.
"The Goddess never sends a White Wolven unless there is dire need. I have often wondered at my purpose here, as I have never been called upon as we might have expected. I now believe my purpose could not be fulfilled until I could welcome my sister home, back where she belongs."
Sophia surveyed the crowd imperiously, her muzzled raised. Let them mock her family now. Her eyes fell on her father and softened. His pale face showed his utter shock. He had been suspicious that she had flipped, but had not wanted to enquire too deeply. And now she had hit him with a double weight all at once. She glanced momentarily at Luke, who was standing, his face a set mask of pale resolution, leaning against Pack Rock. Then she listened again as Ruby continued.
"The Goddess has given us both this task. To protect and defend this Pack against those who would harm it. This we gladly accept. But we require your obedience in order to succeed. Not your argument or your dissent, but your obedience. We claim it in the name of the coats we share. We are White Wolven. And by the colour of our coats we bind you to obey."
And before any noise of dissent could arise, the air was spilt by a great, echoing howl. On top of Pack Rock, in the place kept for judgement or accession, the great silver wolf that was their Alpha looked down at the upturned faces of the crowd and gave his verdict.
*I am Alpha. Hear me. This is as written. You shall obey.*
And the two white Wolven stood proudly in the middle of a silent, assenting crowd.
Chapter 13
Sophia ran a final brushstroke through her hair and put the brush down steadily, distantly pleased that her hand wasn't shaking. So many things would change tonight, for her, her daughter, for the whole Pack, and she wasn't sure what she really thought about it. Yes, it meant that she would truly come home, but after a life time of living away from Wolf Lake she wasn't sure if she would be able to handle the incessant closeness of small town life. When she had been freed before she had run as fast and far as she could, spurred on by pain and rejection. But she had finally stopped and looked around she had realised she liked being Outside. She had loved the freedom, the anonymity, the fact that her action only affected her and her child. She had been a fledging eagle and they unintentionally gave her space to fly. And now she was bringing herself back to the eyrie.
"Sophia."
She looked to see her father standing in the door to her old bedroom. Tonight would be a night of change for him as well, although he didn't know it yet.
"It's time, sweetheart. Are you ready?"
She looked up and met his eyes.
"I'm ready Dad."
*Here I come, Wolf Lake - ready or not - *
Cat mentally cursed as her foot cracked down on yet another pesky twig. At her twitch her mother momentarily squeezed her hand before continuing on, slipping through the woods like a shadow. Why, oh why couldn't she have some of her Wolven characteristics right now?! I mean, was it too much just to get that oh-so useful enhanced eyesight a little early? Instead she had to get dragged through the woods by her Mom and Grandpa, like a piece of baggage. And did they have to go so fast? She continued to grumble to herself as she followed Matt and Sophia through the woods, terribly conscious of the mental whispers of hundreds of Wolven and the occasional noise as they, their mates and cubs, pre, and post-flip slowly made their way through the forest to the meeting place. When she was a little girl her Mom had told her stories of this place, made it sound like Pack Rock out of the Jungle Book and she had so desperately wanted to go there. But now she was, all she wanted to do was turn tail and run back to the safety of the Wolf Sanctuary in Colorado, where wolf howls held no human meaning and nobody stared at her like a bug under the microscope. She was scared. And so she grumped.
Abruptly the tree cover ceased and they were standing on the edge of a rough clearing, punctuated only at one side by a pile of flat topped rocks, the highest stretching out to dominate the space. The gray stone contrasted clearly with the rich colour of the silk draping it. Royal scarlet. No purple for the Wolven, instead they honoured the richness of scarlet, the colour of life and death, of birth and mating - the colour of blood.
Currently it was empty but all around the clearing the gathered Wolven made up for the lack of their leader.
Cat stopped on the edge of the trees and just gawked. There were hundreds of wolves of every colour, from grey-silver to black, fading through fawn, gold, chestnut, russet, brown, even slightly patchwork, skewbald like a husky, all bathed in the light of the full moon that hung, seemingly immobile, over the clearing. And then there were the people, fat, thin, in between, young, old, children through to elders whose hair (and pelts) glistened grizzled silver. Pregnant women gathered litters of children to them, fathers scolded errant sons, teenagers gathered in gossiping groups, half in Wolven form, many being eyed enviously by their friends who had yet to flip. All in all it was an amazing cornucopia of wild humanity, normal divisions such as skin colour and sex as nothing in the face of the overwhelming bond that made them as one, that made them Pack.
She glanced up at her mother. Sophia's face was set, her eyes slightly narrowed, obviously reluctant to face the assembled company. Her father murmured something in her ear, and she nodded tightly, her movements clipped. Then she raised her chin with a characteristically stubborn gesture and stepped out from the safety of the trees, her two followers like guards at her back.
At first no one seemed to notice them and then ripples of stillness spread, like a stone dropped into water, radiating outwards as the assembly noticed the strangers in their midst. For a moment all was still, the quiet only shattered by the high wail of a baby and then a woman's voice broke the silence.
"Sophia! Sophia Donner! You've come home!"
Sophia staggered back a bit as she was met by an armful of laughing woman.
"Sarah! Sarah Walton!"
"It's Thompson now, but - yup!"
Conversations started up again as the Pack recognised the lack of threat, although the return of the elusive, runaway half breed certainly added a certain fillip to the proceedings. But whatever she was, she was no threat to them and so the Pack could get on with the important business of gossiping, arguing, grooming and living, albeit with the occasional glance at the small but growing knot of people surrounding the returning prodigal.
In the middle of the knot Sophia found herself slightly overwhelmed as old friends she had known, and half she hadn't, turned up to say hello. In deference to her non flip state they had changed into human form but a number wore the long robes the Wolven used when quick change was likely. She had expected to be shunned but instead she was surrounded by friendly faces, all wanting to know how she had been , where she had been, how was Outside - her eyes felt suspiciously moist as she took in the strength and genuine nature of the welcome that surrounded her. Maybe she had been missed after all.
Behind her, her daughter and her father leaned against each other, Cat huddled slightly in the shelter of her grandfather's arm. It was faintly scary really, all these people, and she didn't know any of them. She had caught a glimpse of Jamie, surrounded by a huge posse of teenagers, but she was far too intimidated to push her way through that crowd. And anyway her Mom and Sherman had asked her to stay close, with her having such a central role in the drama to come.
There was movement near the Pack rock as a number of huge wolves padded out from the shadows to surround it, sitting on their haunches and surveying the crowd suspiciously. Then silence slowly fell as the tall figure of Luke Cates strode out from the edges of the forest, with Sherman and his mother at his back. He nodded to one of his bodyguards and the russet wolf threw back his head and howled, the sound hanging eerily on the moonlight air. From the mountains around them came a chorus of answering howls as the sentries checked in, assuring the Wolven of Wolf Lake that once again their Gathering would go unnoticed by the human world.
Silence fell as the Alpha swept his gaze over the assembled Pack.
"My friends. My kin, blood of my blood. We are gathered here at the request of our Keeper, Sherman, who believes that there is a clear and present danger to our Pack."
Murmurs rose around the clearing as parents looked at each other anxiously and checked for the whereabouts of their children, and the young ones huddled together.
"As Sherman is the best informed of us on this, I pass the telling of it over to him. However I will have it known that I have heard his words, and I believe his story, and that of his messenger."
His eyes locked with Sophia's across the clearing, until she clenched her jaw and looked sideways and away. If that was what he thought made an apology he had a lot to learn.
"Sherman."
He moved to one side as the Keeper came forward, still as changeless as ever, his coyote eyes gleaming in the moonlight.
"Wolven of Wolf Lake. I speak as the Keeper. I speak of time past and time still to come. Listen well, because it may mean our survival is at stake."
The silence became absolute as each Wolven strained to hear the Keeper's quiet voice.
***************
When he had finished there was a moments silence and then Luke strode forward again.
"As this concerns all of our lives it is only appropriate that we should all discuss it. Wolven of Wolf Lake - the debate is open."
And the quiet was shattered as bedlam descended.
After 10 minutes of furious, incoherent, argument, with everyone talking over each other, and half the time making no sense at all, Luke decided to take action. When his first verbal yells for quiet went unheeded he shook his head in annoyance and unleashed his more formidable arsenal.
*QUIET!*
The mental and physical bellow caused every attendee to cringe and abruptly shut up. Comparative silence fell as parents shushed their young offspring hastily and they all turned their attention to their now irritated leader.
"Right - as you obviously can't be trusted to discuss this sensibly we are going to do it in order. You will speak when I tell you to speak," he glared at them all, "and not before. And you will shut up when I tell you as well. Got it?"
The low buzz of the affirmative - *Yes Alpha* murmured throughout the crowd.
"Right," he said, somewhat mollified at this rapid capitulation to authority. "You, Jemson. You go first."
As the first querulous question rose on the night air Sophia raised an eyebrow in surprise at her father.
"When did *Luke* learn to be so diplomatic?"
He favoured her with a slow smile.
"You'll be surprised at what ten years of negotiation and compromise and five years as Alpha can do. Did you know he was virtually uncontested for the leadership? Or that it was the first totally bloodless contest we've ever had? I know you have bad memories - but, and I can't believe I'm saying this to you - he's changed, Sophia. He really has."
She frowned, unconvinced. One negotiation did not make a change of attitude. He would have to do a hell of a lot more to win back HER respect. Her attention snapped back to the debate as an aggressive male voice demanded to know exactly where Sherman had got his information. With narrowed eyes she recognised the voice of Brad Peterson, who had been two years ahead of her at school. He had been a thug and a bully then and it didn't look as if things had changed much.
"Where's your source for this pile of crap? Where's your proof, Sherman?"
Sophia stiffened. Here it came. She rolled her shoulders back and paced out into the middle of the clearing, conscious of the increasing numbers of eyes on her as her presence registered. Her voice rang out into the night air.
"Still causing trouble, Brad? Well you can stop that right now. I'm his proof."
Across the clearing Luke closed his eyes in despair. He had really, really hoped she wouldn't do this. Even he couldn't keep her from the combined scorn and judgement of the Pack.
"You?" Brad's voice rang with scorn and disbelief. "You - the half-breed are the source for all this," he gestured around at the frightened faces, "crap?"
"Technically, yes."
She leaned her head to one side as she regarded him coolly.
"I brought this matter to the attention of Sherman a number of years ago. However it is only recently that he believed it urgent enough to place in front of the whole Pack."
Brad sneered at her.
"And where did a mongrel like you get such - important- information?"
His voice rang with sarcasm and disbelief and the murmurs around the clearing grew louder. Sophia gestured to Cat, and the young girl padded out from the shelter of her increasingly aggravated grandfather's arms. How dare they call his daughter a mongrel?
Cat moved skittishly to her mother's side and nestled there as Sophia put a protective arm around her shoulders.
"This is my daughter. She saw the things that threaten our Pack. She is a Seer - "
anything else she would have said was drowned out by the rising cacophony as the residents of Wolf Lake voiced their worry and disbelief. Sophia pulled Cat in front of her protectively, eyes narrow for the first sign of danger, body tensed. Let them just try to hurt her child. Just as things seemed about to get out of hand another deafening bellow rang out.
*SILENCE!!*
There was an audible whine of pain as the sheer force of the mental blast hit their collective mental pathways. Then as they cringed Luke took the opportunity to regain control.
"You WILL be quiet. And you WILL listen to what Sherman has to say. Otherwise we will have a PROBLEM! DO I MAKE MYSELF CLEAR?"
The assenting mutter was almost silent, as Sherman stepped forward.
"It is true that this Pack has not had a Seer for over 200 years. But just because we have not - does not mean that the Gods could not send us one now. I can attest that Catrina Donner, daughter of Sophia Donner, granddaughter to Mathew Donner, is indeed a Seer."
A single voice rang out from the back of the crowd.
"But how can you tell? And how do we know that what she sees is true?"
Sherman gazed out over he crowd, his expression inscrutable.
"I have known this child since she was merely an infant. Her mother first called me when she first started having vivid, disturbing dreams. It quickly became clear to me, through a number of small incidents, that Catrina was indeed, dreaming true. The Gods had sent us a Seer again."
He put up a hand.
"And before you ask, the line between dreaming and true dreaming is a very clear one. What Catrina says will come true, sooner or later, will, unless we alter the path that events presently take."
Brad Petersen's voice rang out again, ugly with rage and fear.
"I'll not listen to the mad dreams of a mongrel's bastard get. She's not even one of us. How can we trust her? Even her mother's a failure. She can't flip. She's practically an ungulate!"
The murmurs started to rise to a roar again and Luke and Vivian exchanged worried glances. This could get ugly very quickly. Luke tensed to run forward and drag Sophia out of there. Then he stopped, puzzled, as he focused on what she was doing.
Standing in the middle of the circle, Cat back in her grandfather's protective embrace, Sophia was slowly, methodically, stripping, showing none of the self consciousness he remembered from earlier days. The noise lessened by degrees as the mob realised what she was doing and confused, focused its attention on her. She continued to strip until she stood nude before them, the slight breeze lifting her light brown hair. Luke wasn't the only male whose eyes narrowed appreciatively at the sight. Slowly she rotated, arms out at her sides, palms up, exposing every inch of her lithe form to their inquisitive gaze. Luke frowned in confusion. What was she doing?
She finished her rotation and faced the rock, her arms still held out by her sides, like a supplicant.
"I come before you by right of blood."
Luke frowned even harder. What was she doing? That old ritual hadn't been used for centuries.
"I come before you by right of blood. I come before you with the right to speak."
The murmurs started again as members of the crowd recognised the atavistic ritual.
"By my blood I bind you to listen."
A lone voice rang out in the disturbance.
" You can't invoke that. You're not even Pack." She ignored him and continued.
"By the colour of my coat I bind you to obey."
By the colour of her coat? What did she mean? She didn't even have a coat. She had never even flipped. And no one's coat bound anyone to obey. Unless -
Matt leaned forwardly suddenly. Could she mean - ?
At the other side of the clearing Luke stared in dawning outrage and comprehension.
"Causa mei pellis est albus."
And while they were still taking in the meaning of the ancient phrase she shed her skin as easily as a too large robe and shifted joyfully into her sister soul.
********
Luke coughed, choking, reached out to use the rock behind him to steady himself, only to discover his mother doing exactly the same thing. They both exchanged wild eyed looks of total shock as they turned to look back to the proud Wolven form that stood in the middle of the clearing and arrogantly surveyed the bedlam her actions had caused. She was white. Gleaming, snowy white. From the tip of her elegant, black nosed muzzle to the last hair on her luxuriant tail, she gleamed in front of them like moonlight on snow made incarnate. But it was impossible. Two white Wolven? Could it be a trick of the light? Was it really the mysterious Ruby, slipped in by some sleight of hand? Because how could a half-breed, an ungulate's daughter for God's sake, how could she be a White Wolf?
That hope was quickly dashed as the mysterious Ruby herself came pacing out of the trees to stand beside Sophia, placing a reassuring hand on her elegant, snowy head.
"This is my sister. Her blood is mine. You all know me - I am White Wolven. And I tell you that this is no trick, nor deception."
She paused to survey the hushed and subdued crowd.
"The Goddess never sends a White Wolven unless there is dire need. I have often wondered at my purpose here, as I have never been called upon as we might have expected. I now believe my purpose could not be fulfilled until I could welcome my sister home, back where she belongs."
Sophia surveyed the crowd imperiously, her muzzled raised. Let them mock her family now. Her eyes fell on her father and softened. His pale face showed his utter shock. He had been suspicious that she had flipped, but had not wanted to enquire too deeply. And now she had hit him with a double weight all at once. She glanced momentarily at Luke, who was standing, his face a set mask of pale resolution, leaning against Pack Rock. Then she listened again as Ruby continued.
"The Goddess has given us both this task. To protect and defend this Pack against those who would harm it. This we gladly accept. But we require your obedience in order to succeed. Not your argument or your dissent, but your obedience. We claim it in the name of the coats we share. We are White Wolven. And by the colour of our coats we bind you to obey."
And before any noise of dissent could arise, the air was spilt by a great, echoing howl. On top of Pack Rock, in the place kept for judgement or accession, the great silver wolf that was their Alpha looked down at the upturned faces of the crowd and gave his verdict.
*I am Alpha. Hear me. This is as written. You shall obey.*
And the two white Wolven stood proudly in the middle of a silent, assenting crowd.