Chapter 5 Four

Ivy stirred and opened her eyes as dawn came shining in through the window, the first bits of light spilling in through the thin curtains. She'd spent the night in one of the special guest rooms in the Alpha's residence. Preparations had fallen behind the day before to welcome her into her new home, so she had to make do with staying in the guest room for one night. Meredith brought some of her old stuff for her to use: blankets, sweaters, some dresses, and thank goodness, comfy shoes.

She'd wanted to hug her, but she held back, thinking it'd be too emotional or too much for Meredith. She'd long since learnt that not everyone liked physical contact. So, she kept her hands to herself.

Wearing one of the simple summer dresses with flowery designs and a cute ball hand Meredith had given her the night before, she donned her slippers and headed out of the room.

Blake.

Instead of coming face to face with the bare wall opposite her room door in the hallway, she came face to face with Blake.

He cleared his throat and dropped his hand. He looked like he was just about to knock when she pulled the door open.

He shot her a smile. "Good morning, Ivy."

She managed a weak smile in return. "Good morning, Alpha Blake."

"Did you sleep well?"

She nodded, suddenly unable to get the words to get past the lump in her throat and make it past her lips.

"Uhm, the family you're staying with. They're here to get you." He scratched his neck. "Remember I mentioned Elder Baker last night?"

He hadn't mentioned the particular Elder's name, but she nodded instead of arguing. "He's here to take you into his home. He has three children and a nice wife. Plus you. That would make them altogether six. That is, until you can move out and live on your own."

She nodded for the umpteenth time.

He stood there.

She waited, blinking at him.

Then, as if tired of waiting for her response or thereabout, he cleared his throat and said, "Gather your things and come to the living room soon so you don't keep him waiting. He's a good Elder. You'll enjoy your stay there."

With that, he disappeared down the hallway, the direction that led to the living room, to the person waiting to take her to her new home.

She entered the room, scanning the area, and getting a feel of the first place to lay her head in this foreign pack. Then, bending with resignation, she began to fold the things Meredith had given her into a duffel bag. Soon, she had showered, dressed and was ready to go.

By the time she came out, quite a number of werewolves were in the living room. She knew some of them from the team who'd rescued her, but a number of them looked familiar. Some were staring at her openly, just like the day before. She bent her head, avoiding eye contact with them.

Blake spotted her soon and came to stand beside her. She hadn't noticed before, maybe because she'd not yet showered, but he smelled good. She sniffed subconsciously to get in more of his scent.

"Elder Baker, she's here."

"Oh, good. I thought she'd never come," said a pale looking man sitting on the sofa at the edge of the living room, close to the door. He looked so out of place with the others in the room.

Most of the men were sporting a healthy tan, but his skin was so pale, she was tempted to ask Blake if he really was a werewolf. He looked like a vampire.

He stood up and began to head to the door. She remained transfixed on the spot, staring at him. After taking two or three steps, he stopped and turned around. "Oh, good Lord, girl, let's get going."

Blake nudged her and she moved forward, following him closely behind.

When they stepped out of Alpha Blake's living room through the front door, Meredith was on the porch with her brother, Neil, a broody wolf. It seemed like one of two things: either she'd made quite the headlines and the wolves wanted to see her go into her new home or many people hang around the Alpha's house regularly.

Meredith's brother was staring at her oddly, making her skin crawl. What was his deal? She lingered awkwardly at the door. Meredith came to give her a hug, one she was happy to have.

"See you around," she said.

"See you around."

Alpha Blake shook her and gave her a curt wave. His own form of saying goodbye. Her fingers tingled where he'd touched them and she squeezed it tight to keep from overthinking it.

With that, she went forward and tried her best to walk side by side with Elder Baker. The elder was walking too fast. But, as she went further, she couldn't shake off the feeling that someone was looking at her. When she turned back, Neil was staring right at her. She shivered.

•••

Elder Baker took her to his house close to the edge of the border, a duplex big enough to house him and his family. It was big, white and comely. When she saw his family waiting at the porch from afar, she was taken aback. They were as pale as he was, complete with the white hair. The only exception was his wife whose hair was golden not white. And, they were waiting to welcome her.

How sweet.

When they stepped on the porch, his wife was the first to stand, nudging her three kids to stand, too. "Hello, sweet. Welcome to our pack and to our home. I hope you have a lovely stay in your transitioning into the pack," his wife said, offering her a bright smile on her pale face and pulling her into a hug warmer than she looked.

Still, there was a certain coldness in them. She'd have to ask Meredith about them. Why were they pale and cold? What was so off with them? But, right then, she smiled at Elder Baker as he introduced her to his two teenage kids-twins-that looked like they couldn't be bothered by her presence, and an older boy that smoldered her with his eyes.

When they were done with the dragged out pleasantries, much to Ivy's delight, his wife took her hand and said, "Come, let me take you to where you'll be staying for the meantime. It's not much, but it should be okay. We haven't had anyone transition into our pack for so long, so we don't have adequate amenities for such. But, not to worry, we'll work it all out eventually."

"Thank you," she said as she followed the woman. Mrs Baker was gracious and sweet, yet there was still something cold, something icy to her demeanor. She brushed it off as her instincts trying to mess with her.

Mrs Baker led her through an upstairs hallway that was smaller than the one in the Alpha's house, and towards the guest room situated at the far end of the hallway. She opened a brown door, spread her arms in a bid to make the entrance flourish, and said, "Here's where you'll be staying, sweet."

She nodded unconsciously, scanning the entirety of the small room. She'd been nodding too many times ever since she arrived in this new pack. Given that she had only a duffel bag and, well, herself, the room was big enough for her.

"Do you like it? I arranged it in a hurry. The mattress can be moved closer to the window in case you're not comfortable with its present arrangement. In fact, you can move anything you want." Mrs Baker rambled on.

"No, no. It's fine. Thank you very much. Thank you."

"Are you sure it's fine? You don't look too happy."

She gave the woman a wry smile. "My lips just don't exactly like to obey my brain more often than it should."

"Oh. Then, I guess I'll leave you to get used to your new room, then. In case you need anything, I'm usually in the kitchen just by the side of the living room."

"Alright."

She left, shutting the door.

As soon as Mrs Baker left, Ivy jumped into the bed. If she was going to handle it all, she needed to take a well meaning nap first. And nap did she.

•••

What she hoped was to be a short nap morphed into a deep slumber, and when she opened her eyes, it was close to sunset. She shuffled her way through the hallway, tracing the patterns of the wallpaper as she mapped her way to the kitchen first.

The kitchen wasn't hard to find. She hoped to see Mrs Baker, but she wasn't there, boiling something on the gas cooker as she had said she would.

Ivy moved to the study. Mrs. Baker sat there.

The last streaks of light illuminated her golden curls and Ivy stood for a while admiring it in silence.

Mrs Baker noticed her presence. "Oh, good. You're awake. I wondered where you might be."

She sat down. "Yeah, I took a nap."

"Then I guess you're all set for tonight, then?"

"Tonight?" Her brows creased. "What's happening tonight?"

"You don't know? Oh, goodness gracious! The alpha didn't inform you? We usually go hunting today. You must come. No one stays put when we go hunting. It's always so fun!"

"I think I'll ask to stay out."

Her palms were suddenly sweaty and the room was spinning. She couldn't go to the hunting game or whatever. She just couldn't. Were these the first signs of panic? She tried to calm her breathing by counting odd, random numbers.

When she could speak, she said, "I can't go!" She sounded a bit panic stricken. She cleared her throat again. "I'm sorry, I can't go tonight."

"Why?" Mrs Baker stared at her strangely, trying to deduce what was up with her, she could tell.

"I'm sorry. I'm just not ready yet. I can't attend the hunt."

But, Mrs Baker's words rang simultaneously in her head. It was a thing they did in the pack. She knew she would have to attend.