Howl At The Moon

H- "When in rome, do like the romans do."

(Owl Hoots)

Hoot!

hoot!

hoot!

"Arrgh!" Helena groaned, flinging a spare pillow over her head.

(Owl continues)

Hoot!

HOOT!

HOOT!

"Arrrrgh!" .."Somebody please shut that thing up!!" Helena groaned.

Hoot!

Hoot!

Hoot!

"UghHh! forget it!" Helena scoffed, kicking off her raggedy brown blanket in defeat and planting her feet down on the ground. One after the other she slipped into her blue converse sneakers that she had kicked off just hours before. Sitting up on her worn-down mattress in the corner of her "Rooftop oasis", or so she liked to call it. It was only just an empty supply closet, roomy sure if you count the cage where they used to store the old generator that now sits empty in one corner of the room next to the big glass window or the old dusty mattress they brought up from the dungeon when they captured her all those years ago.

Helena hopped up off her bed and threw on her big yellow oversized sweater, turning her back to the big glass window, then headed out the door, exiting the rooftop oasis leading her to the empty roof. The gravel underneath her feet began to make scraping and crushing noises as soon as her feet touched the gravel as she walked out, shutting her bedroom door behind her. It was the middle of the night and practically a ghost town outside around that hour. But that's just how Helena liked it. No one was around to pester her and bark orders or push her around like they were during the daylight. At night it was peaceful and everything remained just as it was. It was much easier for Helena to get her chores done with the kitchen empty. In the mornings there were 15 Elder wolves rushing around each other all trying to cook, clean, fold and sort out the washing of all the laundry for the pack members every day before they woke up and began their own day. with all the drama and chaos included in the morning rush, it was simply just easier to clean the whole entire kitchen alone each night washing all the dishes she collected from the dinner table and taking out the trash.

Helena made her way down the East staircase located on the east side of the Roman pack house. It was also the only staircase that led up to the roof and not many people bothered to use it unless it was out of pure convenience, so Helena practically had it all to herself. She began walking down the quiet metal staircase (Thump Thump thump thump thump ). Her footsteps echoed through the darkness as she made her way down five flights of stairs all the way to the first floor. As she reached the bottom of the stairs she stopped at the door leading to the kitchen, creaking the door open slowly just enough to peek in. Once she knew the coast was clear, Helena pushed her way into the abandoned kitchen, cutting on the lights. She grabbed an old serving tray from the top of the cabinet, resting it down on the counter in front of her. It was a decent serving tray but it had cracked in the middle, making it less appealing when being served. The Luna insisted that we keep it out of sight when serving guests, so it's normally just used around the kitchen for lugging things around and cleaning up spills. She turned on the faucet and ran the hot water until it steamed, then plugged up the sink letting the water rise, turning to the counter she picked up her server tray and headed out the swinging doors and over to the dining hall. when she reached the big white marble table covered in discarded food and dirty dishes, Helena scooped up each plate setting collecting filthy plates, bowls, knives, spoons, and crusty forks and stacking them up on the tray as she tried to keep her balance distributing the weight of each stack evenly so it wouldn't flip over. After the table was clear, she carried the heavy tray into the kitchen, plopping each dish into the sink to soak. Shutting off the water before returning to the dining hall with her cleaning rag and a bucket of clean and sudsy water. She placed the bucket on the table she reached in submerging the rag deep in the water, then lathered her rag in soap while ringing it out before tossing it on the center of the table.

(plop)

The rag landed on the table dripping soapy water across the middle of the table. Helena grabbed her rag with a balled-up fist and began scrubbing at the dry flakes of mashed potatoes someone must have spilled earlier. Scraping away at the leftover table scraps, she was wiping onto one corner of the marble table. She then scraped them into the bucket as she wiped off the remaining sludge that caked onto the table. Soon the table was spotless and it was time to pull the chairs out and sweep out any crumbs that could have possibly slid under the table. Which was always a substantial amount due to the number of wolves in the house, who are fed like kings but eat like slobs. She hurriedly swept the dining hall, leaving the room spotless and presentable as she returned to the kitchen to wash up the plates and silverware. Scrubbing the dishes clean took no time at all with the help of the hot water they soaked in for about an hour. Pretty soon the sun would be rising and all that was left to do was wipe some countertops and do a quick sweep of the kitchen floor before she was done for the day. So Helena got to it. She scrubbed down the counters and swept the floor as fast as her little legs would let her. She had 40 minutes of alone time left and intended on using every second of it. Helena turned off the kitchen lights swiftly as she exited the pack house, quietly shutting the door behind her so it wouldn't slam shut, waking anyone. The pack members were mean and especially the ones who had been woken up early. As the saying goes, "Nobody likes a cranky wolf".

Once outside, Helena made her way into the woods. She walked fast as she pushed through the low-hanging branches, reaching out to her like open arms inviting her in. The forest was always so comforting for Helena, as if it was her only safe space. She reached a large boulder that towered over her at least 3times her size. It sat in between two oak trees, one slightly bigger than the other, surrounded by tall, overlooked, and overgrown shrubs and bushes restricting the view of what lies behind it.

A small hidden waterfall poured out from between these two black rocks and flowed into a shallow river bed that flowed around in a large circle and in the middle of the river sat a small island growing its own paradise of rare plants and flowers. It was beautiful but best of all it was a secret place that only she found. It was peaceful there. Even the crickets seemed at peace as their song had way more of a mellow and relaxed melody than the ones outside the pack house. The sky was so dark that night that it was almost a dark purple, the only thing providing light was the flickering green lights of the passing fireflies. Helena deeply inhaled, taking in the fresh air as she kicked off her shoes and stepped into the cold river water. Pulling her yellow cotton sweater over her head and off her arms one after the other, Helena then tossed it on the grass behind her and leaped forward, plunging head first into the deeper end of the water. She swam up to the waterfall and went under, letting the water wash away the stress and filth of the day. There were some Awapuhi flowers growing on the little floating island in the middle that Helena used to shampoo and wash up with. When she would squeeze the pine cone-looking flower a soapy substance would emerge from the insides providing a spice-scented soap that was more than convenient for her midnight shower in the woods. Helena squeezed one of the Awapuhi flowers and began washing her hair and body as she hummed out loudly a tune she sometimes sang to herself. She wasn't sure where she heard it, just that it had always been with her stored in the back of her mind. The wind began to pick up, bringing a chill with it. She decided it was time to wash off and get out before the next blow of wind. Helena picked up the pace and held her breath before submerging her head under the water to get the remaining soap off quicker. As she pulled her head out from under the water gasping for the first breath of air, she was smacked by another cold wind blowing harder past her face. But this time the wind brought an unfamiliar sent with it. Helena's eyes opened wide when the sent crossed her nose. She knew someone had to be close by, close enough that their mere essence was strong enough to reach her. Helena dashed through the water as it splashed around her feet. She reached the flowerbed where her sweater landed, bent down, and scooped it up, pulling it over her head and stretching it down her legs, still dripping with water. Then proceeded to pick up her sneakers one by one. Once fully dressed, Helena began to sneak out of her hidden paradise as she did every night, trying to carefully step through the woods without making any sounds that might draw any attention or alert anyone near to her whereabouts. Her worst fear would come true if somebody ever discovered her secret and sacred space. It was the only thing she felt was put on this planet just for her. Like as if the moon goddess herself created a secret spot with just Helena in mind. And she cherished it. There was never any litter or trash floating in that river, everything was just clean and treated with respect and grown with love just as nature was intended to be. That wouldn't have happened if anyone else found out about that spot. That's why she had to protect it.

Back at the pack house, Helena made it back just in time to reach her room before all the elders began their morning work.

She was now lying down on top of her bed fully clothed and smelling of fresh spice and morning due. It was almost 6:00 am and Helena had school in an hour. She was going to be a junior this year and had already completed her assignments and all the extra credit reading for the summer. She was a bit excited about this year because last year she declared to herself that this year would be her year. The year Helena becomes a new person, no longer looked at as a loser and treated like the stuff at the bottom of her shoe. She was a person too and wanted to be treated like it, no more being pushed around, tripped, and laughed at. This was a year of change and she wasn't about to let that go to waste. Because today is Helena's 16th Moon. And normally, on a wolf's 16th moon day, they become an adult when the young wolf has met his or her wolf spirit. Or "wolf guide". The new wolf becomes wiser in comparison to the wolf they were the day before. Due to its new shared wisdom. Then, of course, what comes next is usually the mating, which can only occur if said wolf meets his or her mate on their 16th moon. Today is Helena's turn.