Forest Pack Community Book One

chapter 11

The next day they went to the seamstress and told her about the party. They ended up spending the day looking at fabrics and different styles. Embellishments and linings. They also had to be measured so that the seamstress could make the right size. Goldie went for a tight mermaid style. It was a super sparkly gold top down to the thigh, then it fanned out with shimmery gold tulle. She’d wear gold-colored shoes to go with the dress. Hair and jewelry were up to her.

Felicia’s body type was curvy, so she needed an A-line. But there were many A-line designs. She really liked the sweetheart neckline, whereas Goldie and Niomi got halter tops. She could make the skirt poofy, like a princess gown, or design something entirely different. Felicia wanted to make her curves stand out. But still left some things to the imagination. Goldie suggested that Felicia show off her waist and, instead of super poofy. Just do a simple tulle A-line. With a shimmer, of course. Felicia thought about it and liked that idea. The fabric she wanted was taffeta-type, and as with Niomi, she was going to do the top without tulle. But the other girls talked her into a tulle shell that had a pretty button so she could take it off. The seamstress thought that was a perfect idea. So that is what she did.

Finally, there was Niomi, with her sage-green dress. She decided she wanted a high-low dress. The front would come to her calves and be longer in the back, long enough to drag a little, but not so long she’d trip. She wanted her top to be off the shoulder. She chose satin for the main fabric, with a layer of shimmery tulle from the waist down to match the high low design.

After all measurements were double-checked for the dresses they had ordered, the girls all left and met up with their parents to tell them all about it. All the parents gave the girls jewelry sets to go with their dresses. Their dads just rolled their eyes, but the moms gushed over their dress choices. After dinner, the girls got back together and reported their moms’ reactions.

Felicia asked her friends, “Have you guys shifted yet?” Both said no. Felicia asked, “When do you think that will happen?”

Goldie responded, “I hear it's sometime between sixteen and 18. Wouldn’t it be outstanding if we all ended up shifting together?”

Felicia and Niomi smiled big. “It would, but we’ll see.” Felicia was unsure because her wolf had been asleep for so long. She decided to ask Azella later. Felicia felt self-conscious all day because of her situation. Now she wasn’t even sure if she should ask Azella because she didn’t want to sound like she didn’t know about such a simple thing. But she wanted to know. So maybe she’d ask Joy…no, that’d be even worse. Aunt Lissa maybe. She would be most knowledgeable; so she would be an expert. So, she said, "Catch you at dinner, alright?"

Goldie’s brow furrowed. "Hey, are you alright?"

“Yeah, I just have some questions I need to get answered.”

“Can we help?” asked Niomi.

“I’ll just meet you later,” Felicia said and ran off. Goldie and Niomi looked at each other quizzically.

“I wonder what’s going on. Should we tell Beta Joy about it?” asked Niomi.

“I don’t know; on one hand, I think we should out of concern; then again, what if she didn’t want her to know about it yet? Or it was something she was insecure about?” The girls talked for a few more seconds and decided it was best to fill Joy in just in case. So that’s what they did. They mind-linked Joy and asked where she was, and she said she was at home. So, they hotfooted it to Joy’s suite and knocked on her door. Joy showed up right away since Goldie and Niomi rarely showed up without Felicia.

“What’s going on, girls?” Joy asked.

The girls looked at each other, and Goldie asked, “Can we come in? It’s about Felicia. She was acting funny after we left the seamstress.”

“Of course, dears. Let’s go have some cookies and milk; I’ve always got some.”

Once they sat down, they told Joy about shifting together and then Felicia’s reaction. Goldie said, “We asked if we could help, and she told us she didn’t think so and that she’d meet us later. She then just ran off. Did she come to you?”

“No, but I might have an idea. But it sounds as if she’s embarrassed about it, so let’s not embarrass her further and wait for her to feel comfortable. I’m going to tell you something I’m not sure she mentioned, but you should know so it makes sense.” After watching her parents die right in front of her, her wolf disappeared for two months. It took Aliza and me, mostly Aliza, to bring her wolf back, and that wasn’t until the day of her parents’ funeral ceremony; she may be feeling a bit unsure of herself. Finish your cookies and milk. I need to find her a gift for her birthday, anyway. I never did get her that little black dress that was ruined in the crash.”

“Can we help?” asked Niomi.

“If you girls want to. Just make sure it’s ok with your mothers.” Joy responded.

Meanwhile, in the back garden, Felicia mind-links her Aunt Lissa, who is also the Luna. ‘Aunt Lissa? It’s Felicia. Are you busy? I have a question.’

‘No, I’m not busy. Where are you?’ asked Lissa.

‘I’m in the back garden. Can you meet me, or do you want me to come to you?’

Lissa answered. ‘Well, I’m in my office, which is soundproof, so if it is a sensitive subject, this might be a good place to be.’

‘I’ll come there. Is it on the first floor or up on the Alpha’s floor?’

‘First floor, dear. You’ll see desks outside. The first door is your uncle's, mine is the second, and the last one is Uncle Ben’s. See you soon.’

At that, they cut the mind link, and Felicia went straight there, trying to avoid as many people as possible, which she had no problem doing because she had spent some time doing that before she met Goldie and then Niomi. Even when she first got acquainted with Goldie, she sometimes hid from people. But Goldie always had a knack for finding her and pulling her out of her and into the world of people. Once she got to the second door. She knocked quickly. She heard Luna’s voice say, come in.

Once Lissa pushed a button that locked the door and turned on the soundproofing. She then led her over to the couch and said, “Let’s sit here; we’ll be more comfortable. Now tell me what’s going on. Start from the beginning.”

“Well, Aunt Lissa…because you are the Luna, I thought you’d be able to help more. I was going to ask my wolf but didn’t want to sound dumb (of course that’s when Azella perked up, dumb isn’t talking to me, I’m listening now), Oh great she just perked up now she’s in on this.” She said, as she rolled her eyes. Lissa just smiled and waited, knowing she’d get there cause it must be important if she didn’t feel like she could go to Joy.

“Go on, dear.”

“Well, I didn’t want to feel dumb, and I wasn’t sure if my aunt could help. But I knew you were Luna, and you’re supposed to understand these things better. We were walking and started talking about shifting. One of us asked if the other two had shifted yet, and none of us had. Someone said it wouldn’t be cool if we all shifted together! I said, uh yeah, sure, but that we’d see. I asked when you usually shift. One of the other girls said she heard it was between sixteen and eighteen. I got nervous because my wolf well…my wolf disappeared for two months, so with those two months gone, we didn’t have the same amount of bonding time together as others did.” Felicia finished.