Dreaming of Fate

Chapter 2

I woke up, once again, in excruciating pain. At least I think I was awake. My arms, legs, back, ribs, neck, everything felt as if it were on fire. I tried to scream, but my voice wouldn't leave my throat as my lungs refused to contract. Where am I? I can't see, my eyes are closed, or perhaps I'm simply blind?

After a minute of feeling as if I were being suffocated, I finally gasped in fresh oxygen and felt my head begin to clear slightly, but I was still in the dark. How do you open your eyes again? My brain searched for the answer and almost came up empty, but my eyes cracked open. I was in a dark room, drenched in sweat, aching from my crown to my toenails, but I wasn't dead.

"Riley, are you up?" came a familiar voice. I glanced down the bed to see Emily sitting at the foot of it.

"Why is it dark?" I asked.

"Because you would not appreciate waking up to the hospital lights shining in your eyes right now" she responded, without even a hint of sarcasm.

"Where am I?" I tried to drape my arm over my eyes, but I didn't even get it off the bed before the pain shot through me.

"You're in our private hospital" she said as she stood up to walk around the side of the bed to be closer to me. "Do you mind if I take you through a few tests? I know you're hurting, but please bear with me" she paused and then chuckled at her own comment.

I tried to shrug, then gave up "sure"

"Take a breath in please, can you smell anything?"

I breathed in through my nose, the sharp smells of medical equipment stung, but underneath I could smell coffee, some floral scent, and lip balm of all things. I relayed that to Emily and she smiled.

"good, very good. Brace yourself, I need to look at your eyes." She said as she held a light to my eyes, then shone it in each ear, and then she got out a thermometer and I assumed she was checking my temperature, and then she gently grabbed my hand.

"I'm going to prick your finger to check your blood" she said as she grabbed a needle and vial, "if you're feeling sick or lightheaded, just let me know."

She pressed the needle into my skin, and I winced slightly, but it barely hurt, then she removed the lancet, placed it in the vial, and put a drop of blood on the slide.

"I'm going to leave this room and send it off to the lab. Are you going to be okay?"

"Yeah" I responded, a little bewildered, her bedside manner was cautious, as if she was worried I would bite her or something, but also kind and empathetic.

I flexed my hands, the sharp pains were becoming a dull ache. I worked my way up my arms, moving the muscles, rolling my shoulders, and rocking my head back and forth. I swear I felt like I was dying moments ago.

Emily came back in and immediately began tidying up the room. "Do you think you could sit up at all?"

"I think I'd be willing to try, no promises though" I responded. I felt the muscles in my back flex as I pulled myself to a sitting position, funny what pain will make you notice, and worked on stretching out my arms a bit more. "That wasn't so bad, have my cells calmed down yet?"

She stopped tidying up to look at me in confusion before the comment seemed to suddenly make sense. She laughed, or was it a chuckle? It sounded like she had laughed loudly, but I barely would have known she laughed if she hadn't moved her hand to cover her mouth.

"Unfortunately, your cells will be partying for the rest of your life"

"You mean to tell me a dog gave me cancer?"

She laughed. This time it was obvious she was laughing. "I suppose in a sense yes, but don't worry, I think you'll take this in stride."

"I don't know anyone who takes the news that they have cancer, then goes for a skip in the park" I retorted.

"Luckily it's not cancer, Riley, or rabies, that mutt that bit you was a werewolf."

I blinked, her bedside manner was all over the place, I'm getting punk'd, I have to be getting punk'd.

"Haha, jokes! Very funny. I was never actually in the hospital, was I? Great prank, I'm going home now"

Emily cringed "I'm sorry, I got excited, it's been a while since we've had a new changeling on the grounds."

"I don't know what you're talking about, but I think I want to go home now."

She sighed "Okay, let me at least call for someone to talk to you first.” She turned around to grab a phone off the wall and started dialing.

I stood up from the bed and walked to the door. "Don't bother, I have two legs and a fully functioning brain, I think I can make it home myself" I reached the door and turned back to look at her. "Also, that joke was in poor taste. I didn't find it funny at all"

Her head snapped up as she realized what I was doing. "Riley, wait."

"No thanks, goodbye" I said, wrenching the door open and marching down the hallway.

* * *

The hallway was empty. I didn't understand where everyone was. Wasn't there supposed to be people all over the place in a hospital? The only sound was the sound of my shoes hitting the floor with every step.

I felt weird. My body felt weird. My head was swimming, and I felt dizzy, like I was about to fall over at any moment. I could feel my heart pounding in my chest, and my veins burning as they pumped blood through my body. I could even smell the antiseptic on the floor.

I stopped in the middle of the hallway and held my head. Something wasn't right. I was feeling everything way too intensely.

"Riley Carter!" A voice echoed down the hall.

I looked up and saw Emily running towards me. I couldn't help but stare at her. Her hair was wild, her eyes were wide, and her skin was flushed.

"What's going on?" I asked her.

"You shouldn't have been able to move" she said, panting. "You need to lie down before you hurt yourself."

I shook my head. "I don't feel bad, I feel great, I think I need to get out of here" I said.

She reached me and grabbed my arms. "You're delirious, come with me."

She pulled me along behind her as she ran back towards my room. I pulled my hand from her grasp with ease and stepped back in time with the buzzing of the lights above my head. "Shoot, Riley please, I'm sorry I made such a poor joke, your fever is back, and it looks bad. Please come back to the room before I have to do something drastic"

My head spun again as I tried to turn around, and I found myself facing her again, or wait, that wasn't Emily. I looked at the tall woman in front of me. Her skin was nicely tanned but covered in sweat, and her long black hair was pulled back in a ponytail. She rushed forward to catch me as I toppled toward the ground and I ended up being held in her arms.

"You have beautiful skin" I heard myself mumble, and a part of me cringed.

Her laugh rumbled through her chest and I felt myself relax "rest Riley, you need the rest" as if compelled my body went limp, though I didn't quite fall asleep. "Thank goddess I was nearby, you can't get so excited, she needs a higher ranking wolf to ease her into it" the woman said as she lifted me easily off the ground.

The bi panic set in, and I felt my whole body flush. I swear I saw her grin at me through my eyelashes.

"I'm sorry Linda, it's not even every year we get a changeling that survives. I just thought that maybe she'd be better able to handle it."

"I understand Em, but it's always safer to have a ranking wolf with you. She could have attacked, and fresh turns are always stronger because their muscles don't know how to restrain their new strength," she paused "this is all the stuff you told me when we found Alex."

Emily made a noise that sounded almost shameful as we passed the threshold of my room.

"Linda, you're very pretty" I murmured into her shoulder as she placed me on the bed.

"Thank you, Riley, So are you" she was smiling at me when my eyes fluttered open, and I felt my heart thundering loudly.

"Am I really a werewolf?" I asked pitifully.

"Yes" she said simply, "now go to sleep". The authority in her voice compelled my eyes to close, and I drifted off to sleep.