Night and Day: The Alpha Nomad

Night - “What do you want to do today, my little princess?” My mother asked lovingly. “Ice cream!” I yelled jumping up and down excitedly. “I want to make ice cream!!” My mother laughed softly, “your wish is my command, my Night princess. What kind of ice cream should we make?” “Chocolate cookie dough,” I stomped with a certainty. “Yes m’am!” Mother picked me up and we headed into the kitchen to begin our project. My mother was the best, and she never said no to me no matter how ridiculous my requests were. She was just as fair in her Luna duties as she was as a mother. Everyone loved her and respected her decisions. We had the ingredients for the concoction mixed together and in the hand-churn ice cream maker when my aunt entered the kitchen with a worried look on her face. Mother looked at Aunty Marnie for a couple minutes before turning to me. “Keep mixing, sweetie, I’ll be right back,” mother kissed the top of my head as my aunt and mother stepped out the sliding doors to the patio. While I was mixing and dancing a little happy dance, I noticed mother sigh heavily and shake her head with her hands covering her face. She was so happy before Aunty came over now she looked so sad. I felt myself pout a little, but kept mixing like mother requested. What could Aunty have told mom to make her so sad? Aunty stuck her head in the sliding glass door briefly to tell me, “Night, I’ll be right back with your mother. If you need anything the Omegas should be nearby to help you, okay?” I nodded with the pout still on my face. I wanted to spend the day with mother today, where was she going? She always spent Sundays with me and I got to do whatever I wanted. Why was today any different, I didn’t understand what was going on. An omega appeared from the hallway suddenly and bent down next to me, “how is the ice cream coming? Let’s check it.” I must have been mixing for a while, because the liquidy concoction was starting to thicken up into a chocolatey ice cream. The omega took the ice cream maker to finish churning it to the perfect consistency. Once it was firm enough to scoop she served me a bowl and finished scooping the rest into another container to put away in the freezer. “Let’s go find a movie to watch, what do you want to watch, little Luna?” The omega asked me. “I want mommy,” I whimpered. “She’ll be back, pumpkin,” the omega assured. “In the meantime let’s find a movie to watch, okay?” I didn’t want to watch a movie, I wanted to follow my mother. I walked over to the sliding glass door, but the omega held my hand and led me into the theater room to keep me preoccupied until mother returned. The omega put on my favorite movie, Balto, and brought out some toys to add to the distraction. Mother didn’t return until the second movie, Spirit, was finishing up. I must have drifted off to sleep, but when mother picked me up to lay me down for a nap I stirred and hugged her hard. I felt tears threatening to fall, but mother hushed me and rubbed my back. “It’s okay, my little princess, I’m here now.” She hugged me back. “Just a little pack business to settle, Nightingale, don’t you worry. The rest of the day is all dedicated to you.” ………… Later that afternoon, after mother laid me down to sleep, I heard her and daddy talking loudly. I couldn’t sleep so I snuck down to their office to eavesdrop on their conversation. It sounded like daddy was angry, why would he be angry with mother? “We can’t let them hunt us to extinction! We can’t afford any more losses, Reina!” He exclaimed furiously. “Soon they’ll know where the pack lives and they’ll take us all out!” “I know, Logan, but we have to think about our child. We can’t just go after them without a plan, they would kill us and then what would happen to Night?” Mother warned. “I love our little girl, but I am the Alpha and have to think about the safety of the pack too,” daddy sighed deeply. “I’m going to need a run to cool off tonight.” “We can arrange that, but we should bring others just in case,” Mother suggested. Once the tone of the conversation cooled off I felt more at ease. The floorboard beneath me creaked, which alerted my parents of my presence. “Why hello, kiddo,” daddy scooped me up. “Did you enjoy your nap?” “I couldn’t sleep, I heard you arguing.” I confessed. “No, honey, we were just discussing pack business. I’m sorry if we woke you up,” daddy apologized sincerely. “Let’s go play outside while mommy cooks us some yummy dinner okay?” I nodded with a big smile. I loved chasing daddy around the yard. I knew he was letting me win but I loved playing tag and hide and seek with him. He would scoop me up and twirl me around when I found his hiding place. When mother announced dinner was ready he kissed the top of my head and let me run inside. When they were tucking me in my mother informed me, “Princess, your father and I will be out on a run tonight. If you get scared I will have one of the Omegas here at the house until we return okay? I promise we won’t be too late.” I pouted again defiantly but knew there was nothing that could stop them. I nodded with a grumpy expression on my face. Mother smiled at me and kissed my cheek softly. “Sleep well, my little princess,” Mother turned my night light on and turned off the overhead light before closing the door softly. Little wolves danced across the ceiling from the night light as I drifted off to sleep. Something unsettling made me restless which made me toss and turn in my bed. I was exhausted from my emotional day so sleep took hold of me, but my dreams were unpleasant. “Mommy!” I cried out in my dream. “Don’t leave me mommy! Daddy come back!” No matter how fast I ran, they only got farther away from me. I ran until I was exhausted and couldn’t run any longer. My parents continued to drift farther and farther from me until I could no longer see them. I looked around desperately and finally saw Uncle Beta John. He was laughing maliciously and had this hateful gaze on his face when he looked at me. I didn’t understand it, we was always so nice to me. “Uncle John, where did my parents go?” I asked pulling on his pants. “You won’t be seeing them again,” he smirked viciously. I started crying, then I realized I was in my bedroom. I heard commotion outside the house, which made me get out of bed to check the windows. It was so dark out I could not see very much, but there were lights out in the woods behind the house. Suddenly the omega my mother tasked to babysit me burst through my bedroom door frantically. She scooped me up without any warning and carried me down the stairs. I wiggled in her arms already terrified from the dreams, but her demeanor did not help my anxiety. “Hush, little Luna,” she pleaded. “Please be quiet, I will explain when we are safe.” She was taking me to the cellar of another house I’ve never been in before. The omega cradled me and sobbed silently. Something was not right, what was going on? I looked at the omega fearfully and began to cry. She covered my mouth with her hand to silence my cries. “Hush,” she ordered. Lights swept passed the windows of the cellar. The omega stiffened and held me tight and she appeared to be praying silently. The cellar door jerked violently, but the omega had locked it and wrapped a chain around the handles inside. The jerking continued for another minute before a voice called to the intruder above. “We found some over here,” a male voice called out farther away. Shots rang out in the night, and the omega yelped quietly. She was shaking violently and squeezed me so tight I thought I would suffocate. More shots were heard in the direction of the pack house. Where were my parents? What was happening? It was nearly daybreak when the shots stopped and the men left. The omega refused to let me go despite the silence. It wasn’t until a deep voice called out from above the cellar door did she relax. “Emma, are you down there? It’s John, let me in,” my uncle’s voice called to the omega. “Is she with you? Where is Night?” Omega Emma quickly unchained the door and unlocked the cellar to let Uncle John in. He had a concerned look on his face. It reminded me of the dream I awoke from earlier and sent shivers down my spine. I refused to ascend the cellar steps. “Come on, sweetie,” Emma called to me. “It’s safe now.” I shook my head. “Night come here,” my Uncle ordered. I reluctantly climbed the stairs to him. The sun broke over the horizon when I reached the top of the stairs. He had blood covering his hands and chest. I gasped and started to run away, but he latched onto my shoulder with a painful grasp. Claws dug into my shoulder and I yelped but stopped my retreat. “Night, you need to listen to me,” he told me gruffly. “Your parents are dead, and they killed half of our pack. They killed your Aunt and cousins.” He stifled a sob, and continued, “You are to stay with me in the pack house for now, but I cannot forgive your parents for what they’ve done. I can barely even look at you, but Marnie would want me to take you in regardless.” I broke down in tears and could barely stand after Uncle John told me of my parents death. How did this happen? They wouldn’t kill their own pack, what did he mean? I felt faint and fell, but Uncle John caught me and threw me over his shoulder to take me back home.