The Omega Best Friend – “Honey, we got another letter,” Mom said, holding up a red envelope like it might explode if she loosened her grip. I slowly set my bowl of oatmeal on the table and stared at it. “Again? I didn’t even apply.” She only shrugged. For weeks now, letters from the Shifter Academy had been arriving one after another. At first I thought it was a stupid prank and tossed the first one aside. But they kept coming, piling up on the kitchen counter. “Sweetheart, maybe we should at least consider it,” Mom said gently. “Mom, I can’t shift.” The words felt heavy in my mouth. I was eighteen. If I had a wolf, she would’ve shown up by now. Everyone else had already felt the change, the pull, the connection. I had felt nothing. “You just haven’t done it yet,” she insisted, still squeezing the envelope like it carried hope inside. “I’m not a wolf,” I said quietly. “I’m done pretending I might be.” I picked up my bowl and walked to the sink, turning on the water to drown out the silence between us.
Through the kitchen window East Wood looked peaceful in the morning light, just another neat little neighborhood. But everyone here had a wolf except me. I grew up in a community of shifters, surrounded by howls and pack runs and stories about first transformations. Mom wasn’t a shifter, and after Dad vanished, living among wolves always made her uneasy. I think she stayed for me, hoping I would turn out like them. But as I stood there, watching the water swirl down the drain, I felt the truth settle deeper inside me. I wasn’t like everyone else. “The school is requesting you be there by tomorrow Gabbie. They’ve been asking for you for weeks. I thought they would go away if I didn’t answer.” I settled back on the table. I knew about the mysterious shifter Academy. “I just turned eighteen,” I crossed my arms over my chest. “From what I know, most shifters turn before eighteen. They probably assume I’ve already shifted.
I can walk in there, let them test me,” I said with a forced shrug. “And when nothing happens, they’ll send me back. Case closed.” I couldn’t count how many people I knew left town to attend the Academy. When I was fifteen my best friend Alex left town to attend. Well… he’s no ordinary wolf. He’s the son of the Alpha. I haven’t seen him since or heard anything about him. Mom settled on the empty chair to my right. I didn’t want to leave her here alone. Not that this was a dangerous pack. The Alpha was friends with my dad once upon a time so I’d like to think we’re protected. I don’t want her to be lonely. “It says here they’re sending a bus for you. You’ll be there by tomorrow,” Mom said, scanning the letter like it held all the answers. My stomach dropped. Mom cupped my face lightly. “The Academy exists to help shifters find their wolf. Maybe yours just needs a different push.” I looked away, not wanting her to see how much I wanted to believe that. “They’ll help you,” she repeated, more quietly this time. I bit my lip. The kids here were terrible enough.
Everyone was expecting me to shift but I didn’t. I always wonder if there’s something wrong with me. I signed, “Maybe at least I will see Alex again….” I felt my cheeks blush a little. I could imagine he was totally different on the outside, I was hoping he was just the same on the inside. She got up and wandered into the living room. She struggled with the drawer on the table that carried a massive ugly lamp my grandmother gave her. She got it open and rummaged inside until she pulled out a chain. “What’s that?” I asked. She held the shiny silver chain out for me. “It was your dad’s. I think you should take it. I think he left it for you. He never took that thing off.” It had a pendant of an arrow and an axe crossed together. I let the cold metal fall in my palm. I remembered it dangling on his chest when I was a kid. “You should get ready Gabbie,” Mom said softly. *** The bus ride felt like five hours. I fell asleep while listening to music. The rock of the bus woke me up. The lights came on and I had to blink to adjust to the light. “Final stop young lady.” The bus driver rasped.
I slung my bag over my shoulder and wobbled out of the bus. Well, here was home. A medieval castle that looked possessed by demons. Better yet people turned into fury beasts. The lights from the bus illuminated the entrance. A woman in a long dark gown and an old-fashioned bucket hat stood in front of the door like she had been waiting there for centuries. For a second, my heart jumped into my throat. “Welcome, Miss Chambers. I am Headmistress Athena,” she said, straightening her spine with quiet authority. She turned without another word and gestured for me to follow. I hesitated only a second before stepping inside. “School officially begins tomorrow,” she said as we walked down a wide marble corridor. “New students stay in Helene Hall for the night before being assigned to their proper dormitories. Unfortunately, you are the only new arrival this term.” “The only one?” I asked, my voice echoing slightly against the polished floors. “Why?” “Some students arrive on the first day,” she replied smoothly. “And some years, we have no new students at all.” That did not make me feel better. “Headmistress…” I swallowed, my throat suddenly dry. “I don’t think I should be here.
I’ve never shifted. I don’t even know why I was invited.” She stopped walking. Slowly, she turned to face me. Her eyes were sharp, assessing, but not unkind. “Just because you have not shifted,” she said evenly, “does not mean you are not a wolf. And it certainly does not mean you do not belong.” She resumed walking, clearly expecting me to keep up. “What happens if I can’t shift?” I asked quietly. She did not look back this time. “We will address that possibility when it becomes relevant, Miss Chambers. For now, you should rest. Tomorrow will be… significant.” Significant. That word followed me all the way down the corridor.