Chapter 4 The Shifting Ceremony

Octavia's POV

"Why the hell would you guys say such a thing? I don't want to ever hear it again or else I will cut ties with you, understood." Lucy scolded in a stern voice and I felt my face lifting into a smile.

I walked forward and held her shoulder to indicate that it was enough and she squeezed my hand.

The ladies harrumphed at us before rolling their eyes and striding away.

Lucy made to follow them with her first raised but I quickly stopped her. "Hey! Leave them be alright?"

"B.. but they are all being mean." She whined like a child and my heart grew softer.

This right here is the reason why I can live on despite the heavy abuses laid on me.

They might not be my real family but Jake and Lucy are the driving force for my life.

"It's alright Luce. Let's go home. I have a shift on patrol later today." I announced and she nodded before interlocking her hands with mine and pulling me forward.

Later, I cooked for Lucy and then made sure she was fine before I headed down to work.

Like usual everyone's mocking eyes were trained on me as I walked into the manor. Riley was the most prominent gaze. I tried my best to ignore them all as we were all assigned to our different posts.

I went off to change into my uniform in a discreet location as the last time I did it with the other girls, Riley had played a very big prank on me.

She had taken my clothes and then forced me to dance. The prank had almost ended with me running out naked but thankfully one of the female superiors had walked in then. She might have hated me for who I was but she would never allow a girl to be humiliated in such a dishonorable way.

She turned her eyes away to the other pranks so far it never escalated to the point of losing my chastity. That was the reason I made a decisions to protect myself by hiding away.

My life felt really pathetic and I felt so angry and sad most times. Those emotions wouldn't help me though, so I kept them buried in the deep crevice of my heart. Suffering both inwardly and outwardly.

I finished changing and then began to pack to leave when I heard footsteps.

I immediately ducked.

What the heck? No one ever comes to this area so who is it? Fuck! If someone sees me here, I'll lose the only place I have to change.

I soon got my answer. "Hey, did you hear about the shifting ceremony that's happening this night?" A voice I recognized to be Riley's minion piped up.

Wait what? Today is the shifting ceremony? Why was it brought forward? Why was I not informed?

"Yeah I did. But what does that have to do with me? I have already gotten my wolf and so have you. Why are you paying attention to news meant for people who just want to get their wolf." Riley's second minion asked, her voice laced with confusion.

"Well that's because I wanted to know about that runt. I wanted to know if they would tell her and if they did, I wanted to know if she would shamelessly go."

They are most definitely talking about me.

Every year, the pack fixed a date when the moon was at it's brightest for a shifting ceremony. They had previously announced that it was two days away but the days change according to the moon's orbit.

Every year, wolves who have come of age would go to the clearing meant for shifting nervously only to emerge with their wolf and status. Thus making a way for them in society.

Last year was that time for me. Or at least it was. A problem arose back then

"Why the hell would she be shameless enough to go? She should just accept her fate after she brought such an embarrassment to us. She should know her place since she is a wolfless runt."

There it is! Last year that was supposed to be a time I finally found my place in society but it turned out to be the day my fate was sealed as a wolfless person.

My life was not this pathetic in the pack. I had a job working in a reputable shop and I even had suitors lined up for me. Well I chose Jake but that didn't mean I wasn't coveted. My father before they died had held a notable position as a pack elder so that gave me quite a lot of benefits. He was also one of the strongest wolves alive.

Everyone was anticipating my shifting ceremony but it didn't end up as planned. My wolf didn't come out like it should have and after that everything just spiraled out of control.

I was seen as an anomaly so everyone abandoned me. Everything I had got snatched away from me. I became the joke and runt of the pack. I was able to get a job as a patrol guard due to how close my father previously was with the alpha.

The issue is that it made everyone hate me even more as they felt that I didn't deserve it. Even the Alpha wasn't fond of me.

Over the past year, I had dedicated my all to proving them wrong but ever since my first failed shifting ceremony, I became weaker than even the lowest omega. No matter what I did, it was a hindrance to everyone.

Everyone wanted to know if I still would go especially after the humiliation from last year.

I would. I had prayed so much to the moon goddess even performing weird and painfully rituals I saw in the books just so she would give me my wolf this year so of course, I would definitely go.

The girls said a few things to each other and then left.

I stood from my crouching position as I bit my lips when I remembered an underlying issue.

I still had a patrol shift this night and the Alpha wasn't one to condone missing shifts without at least a day's notice.

What should I do?