Chapter 1: The Forgotten Twin
1596 Words
Chapter 1: The Forgotten Twin
The basement always felt colder in the mornings, as if the stone walls hoarded the night’s chill and refused to release it. Brittany woke to the faint drip of condensation sliding down the far wall, each drop echoing like a reminder of where she belonged. Her breath fogged in the air as she pushed herself upright, rubbing her arms to chase away the cold. The thin blanket pooled around her waist, offering no comfort.
Something soft brushed her leg. A folded sweater sat at the foot of her cot. New. Warm. Her size. Her heart stuttered. She looked around the dim basement, half expecting someone to step out of the shadows. No one did. The house above her was waking. Footsteps. Running water. Bianca’s laughter drifts down the stairs like a bright, cruel melody.
Brittany touched the sweater again, hesitant. It felt too soft to be real.
Bellatrix stirred inside her, a soft rumble of curiosity. Bellatrix whispered, 'Someone brought this for you. Someone who cares.' “No one cares,” Brittany murmured, pulling her hand back as if the sweater might burn her. Bellatrix answered, 'You are wrong.'
But Brittany did not dare take it. She left the sweater where it was. She had learned her lesson the hard way. Vivienne had found the extra blanket and accused her of stealing from Bianca. Bianca had slapped her across the face and called her a parasite. Vivienne had made her sleep without a blanket for a week. Brittany left the sweater where it was. She dressed quickly, pulling on her faded jeans and thin shirt. She tied her hair back, grabbed the laundry basket, and climbed the stairs quietly, avoiding the step that squeaked. Silence was safer. Silence kept her invisible.
As she reached the top of the stairs, she paused. Voices drifted from the kitchen. Vivienne’s sharp tone. Bianca’s laughter. Someone muttering about omegas knowing their place.
Brittany swallowed the memory of last night’s punishment and stepped into the kitchen.
Warmth greeted her first, followed by the scent of coffee and toasted bread. Brittany moved automatically, setting plates, pouring juice, and starting breakfast. Her hands knew the rhythm better than her heart did. She cracked eggs into a bowl, whisking them with practiced precision. The sizzle of the pan filled the room.
Bianca swept in like she owned the air itself. Her perfume arrived first, sweet and sharp. She wore a pale pink top that hugged her perfectly, her hair curled in soft waves. She did not look at Brittany. She looked through her.
“Do not burn them again,” Bianca said, sliding onto a stool. “You ruin everything you touch.”
“They are fine,” Brittany murmured.
“They better be.”
Vivienne entered moments later, her smile blooming instantly when she saw Bianca. “Darling, you look beautiful. Ready for school?” She kissed Bianca’s cheek, smoothing a strand of hair that did not need smoothing.
She did not look at Brittany at all.
Brittany set a plate in front of Bianca. Bianca wrinkled her nose. “This looks greasy.”
“It is the same as everyone else’s,” Brittany said softly.
Bianca scoffed. “Then make mine better.”
Vivienne nodded approvingly. “Listen to your sister.”
Brittany swallowed her frustration and returned to the stove.
Alpha Marcus entered last. His presence filled the room even before he spoke. Tall, broad-shouldered, with dark hair threaded with silver at the temples, he carried authority like a second skin. He sat at the head of the table, silent but commanding.
When Brittany set a plate before him, his gaze flicked to her. Brief. Searching. Concerned.
Not pity. Not dismissal. Something else.
Something she did not understand.
His eyes dropped to her thin shirt. His jaw tightened. He looked away quickly, as if the sight pained him.
Bellatrix murmured, 'He knows you are cold. He hates it.'
Brittany ignored her.
As she stepped back, she felt Marcus’s gaze linger longer than usual. It prickled across her skin, not unkind, but heavy with something she could not decipher. She dared a glance upward.
His eyes were darker than she remembered, thoughtful, almost guilty.
The moment stretched, silent and strange, until Bianca’s voice broke it.
“Alpha Marcus, can you pass the butter?”
He blinked, the connection severed, and Brittany retreated quickly to the stove. Her heartbeat was faster than it should have been. Bellatrix hummed, 'He is trying to help you. He does not know how.'
“He barely knows I exist,” Brittany whispered.
Bellatrix answered, 'You would be surprised.'
Breakfast passed in a blur of Bianca’s chatter. She talked about her grades, her friends, and her plans for pack training. Vivienne and Marcus listened with pride, nodding and smiling. Brittany ate quietly, unnoticed.
When Bianca mentioned the upcoming pack ceremony, Vivienne clasped her hands together. “You will shine, sweetheart. Everyone will see how special you are.”
“Of course they will,” Bianca said, preening.
Brittany swallowed her juice, the words settling like stones in her stomach. She had never been invited to a ceremony. She was not expected to attend. She was not expected to be anything.
Bellatrix whispered, 'They have no idea who you are becoming.'
After breakfast, Brittany gathered her backpack and slipped out the door before Bianca could find a reason to shove her into a wall. The morning air was crisp, carrying the scent of pine and damp earth. The pack grounds stretched out before her, familiar and distant all at once.
School was a short walk away. Students clustered in groups, laughing and talking. Bianca walked ahead, surrounded by her friends, her confidence radiating like sunlight. Brittany stayed to the side, keeping her head down.
Inside the building, she moved through the halls like a shadow. Teachers greeted Bianca with enthusiasm. Students parted for her as if she were royalty. When Bianca passed Brittany, she leaned in close.
“Do not trip, basement rat,” she whispered, giving Brittany’s shoulder a shove.
Brittany steadied herself against the lockers, her books clutched to her chest. A few students glanced her way, then quickly looked elsewhere, unwilling to risk Bianca’s wrath by showing sympathy. Brittany’s cheeks burned.
She forced herself to walk, each step heavy. She wished she could disappear into the floor, melt into the shadows, anything to escape the humiliation.
Bellatrix’s voice sharpened, 'You are not prey. Stop acting like it.' “I am not strong enough to be anything else,” Brittany whispered. 'Not yet. But you will be.'
At lunch, she sat alone under a tree behind the school. The shade offered a small refuge. She ate slowly, savoring the quiet. The wind rustled the leaves above her, carrying the faint scent of rain.
She watched the other students from a distance. Packs were supposed to be families, united and loyal, but she had never felt like she belonged to this one. She wondered what it would feel like to sit with people who wanted her there, people who laughed with her instead of at her.
A group of girls passed by, giggling about the upcoming ceremony. Brittany lowered her gaze, pretending not to hear.
Bellatrix gently nudged her mind. 'You deserve more than scraps of kindness.'
“I do not know how to get more,” Brittany whispered.
Bellatrix answered, 'You will. The moon is watching you.' Brittany frowned. “What does that mean?”
Bellatrix went quiet, which was never a good sign.
The rest of the day passed without incident. Classes. Hallways. Bianca’s laughter echoed like a reminder of everything Brittany was not. When the final bell rang, Brittany walked home alone, her steps slow.
The house was quiet when she entered. Bianca was out with friends. Vivienne was at a meeting. Marcus was in his office. Brittany slipped downstairs to the basement, closing the door behind her.
The sweater was gone.
Her heart dropped. A note lay on her cot instead. Do not steal from this family. Last warning.
Her hands trembled as she picked it up. She had not stolen anything. She had not even touched the sweater.
Bellatrix growled, 'Vivienne took it. She punished you for something you did not do.' Brittany sank onto the cot, tears burning her eyes. “Why does this keep happening?” 'Because they fear what you will become.'
The small window near the ceiling glowed faintly. Brittany stood and moved closer, resting her hands on the cold stone. The moon hung heavy and silver in the sky, spilling light across her face. It felt warm, almost gentle.
For a moment, she felt it watching her, not with cruelty but with quiet recognition, as if it knew her. As if it understood.
The glow brightened, shifting from silver to a soft, ethereal radiance that wrapped around her like a warm embrace. Brittany inhaled sharply. The air tasted different, charged with something ancient and wild.
Her skin tingled. Her heartbeat synced with a rhythm she had never felt before, steady and powerful, like the earth itself was breathing with her.
Bellatrix’s voice softened, reverent now: 'Do you feel that? That is your birthright calling to you.'
Brittany pressed her palm to the cold stone wall, grounding herself. “What is happening to me?” 'Awakening. Slowly, but surely.'
The glow pulsed once, twice, then faded, leaving Brittany breathless and trembling.
She touched her chest, feeling the echo of something she could not name.
For the first time in her life, she felt seen.
- Writer
