Basic Elements

Ava

            The sound of my footsteps echoed through the hall, shattering the silence of the dark of the night. All the sane people of this world were tucked away in their beds, happily unaware in the bliss of sleep, but I wasn’t sane in the least. Sleep held no appeal to me. It brought me no peace or comfort. No, in the dim, silvery light of the half moon and the quiet of the sleeping universe is where I found my relief. The cool air of early autumn kissed my skin, and the sparkling stars hanging in the black, satin backdrop of the sky called to me.

           Answering the summon, my wolf took over. My muscles stretched, and my bones cracked. When my silky, black fur was fully shimmering in the dull light, I took off. The air whipped my skin as I ran faster and faster, relishing in the stillness of the night. I ran and ran, my worries left behind as I soundlessly wove between the towering trees and leapt over logs shrouded in the darkness.

            After a few hours of hard running, I finally felt myself tire. The tension I had felt faded away, and I felt at peace. Sure I would finally be able to sleep, I made my way back to the house I lived in. House was probably an understatement. While Silver Night was the smallest pack in existence at only ten members, we all shared a home. So, the house was more like a mansion that gave each of us our own space. We may be a pack, but that didn’t mean we always wanted to be on top of each other. The mansion with its shiny wooden floors, plush carpets, flower filled courtyards, brilliant architecture, and the huge walls that surrounded it was a sight to behold, showing off our wealth. Remember how we are the smallest pack in existence? Well, we are just as rich as most, but our money was divided between only twenty members instead of the hundred of a normal pack.

          I crept back into the mansion I called home and found my way to my apartment. Not sparing a glance to my meticulously cleaned and organized surroundings, I fell into bed, welcoming the blissful unawareness of sleep.

The next morning, I awoke to my alarm blaring. After trying to burrow into my blankets and let it ring itself out (which the stupid alarm refused to do), I gave up and smacked the off button. Admitting that I was awake, I got out of bed and quickly went through my morning ritual: brush teeth, comb hair, get dressed, eat breakfast. Just another boring, mundane day. The only exciting thing that would be happening today was my first day at the human high school. Well, if you want to call it exciting. I already knew all the curriculum, and humans didn’t really interest me. The only perk would be interacting with members from the other pack that attended the school, but I didn’t particularly want to do that, either. I had duties here with my own back, and the entire school thing was just a waste of time.

            Since I had to go, I took the time to spare a glance in the mirror. My long, platinum blonde hair was messily braided, the dark skinny jeans I wore hugged my thin legs, and the grey, half zipped hoodie I wore over a tank top covered my thin shoulders. Satisfied that this was the best I was going to look, I snagged my bag, shuffled my way over to the garage, muttering “Good mornings” to my packmates I passed, and finally made it to the car. The drive wasn’t very interesting. I passed through the gate in the wall that guarded my home and spent a good chunk of the time on a road that wove through the forest that surrounded the complex. When the school came into view, I didn’t know if I should jump with joy or turn around and go home. The boring drive was over, but the boring day stretched before me. The entire going to school thing was just for looks, after all. I wouldn’t even be learning anything important.

            I sighed. Here’s to doing things for looks.

            The second I climbed out of my car, I caught sight of my packmates that had already been attending the school for the past few weeks, and I set course for the picnic table they had claimed. Besides me, four other wolves from my pack were in high school. Chase, a senior like me, was sprawled on top of the table, his mess of dark curls untidy as always. Lily, a junior and his mate, was seated on the table’s bench, playing with Chase’s hand. Next to her sat Charlotte. She was a junior like Lily and always had her nose buried in a book. Finally, there was Luke. The youngest member of the pack, he was a freshman and, based on the faces of the others, he was making some sort of lame joke.

            Chase was the first to notice me. “Alpha,” he said lazily. “Greetings.”

            “Greetings, Fluffy,” I said, sitting next to Luke. At seventeen, I was the Alpha of the pack. Well, technically, I was Luna, but without a mate, the pack was left in my care, and I was, for all intensive purposes, Alpha. Even with the Alpha title, I wasn’t very strict with my packmates. They were, after all, my family, and I loved them. There was no need for the formalities some Alphas demanded in larger packs.

            “Nice of you to join us in jail,” Luke said.

            I glanced around and had to agree. The building itself looked drab and rather run down. The kids that milled around waiting for the bell to ring didn’t seem to be doing anything exciting, besides looking at me—the new kid—if they had even noticed me yet. The landscaping consisted of old, wooden picnic tables, overgrown flowerbeds, and fallen leaves. “Should I be scared of what lies inside?” I asked.

            Lily shook her head. “He’s being dramatic. It really isn’t that bad.”

            “She’s lying. It’s horrible in there.” Chase said, earning a glare from his mate.

            We’ll see about that. “Anyways, I have to go get my schedule and stuff.” I looked at Luke. “You can bring me to the office.”

            Luke stood with a mock salute. “Right away, boss.”

            Rolling my eyes, I stood and let the over eager freshman pull me into the depths of the school. This would be… interesting.