Violet Waves

O666. Those 4 characters were all that was on the tiny slip in my hand as I waited at the DWP. I groaned at the obvious number and slid further into my chair. 7 hours I had been waiting so far as they called numbers and letters far ahead of mine. The As took the highest importance, as they were the children of Alphas, then Bs for Beta born children, D for the Delta spawn, and finally O… the Omegas. The Department of Werewolf Placement was every werewolves first destination after their first shift. I felt far out of place as most of the wolves around me were in their teens, usually 15-18, but here I was, a single month into being 21 and having shifted for my first time ever. My parents were Omegas so it almost seemed fitting that a wolf as insignificant as me would also be a late bloomer. I pulled myself up in my seat and groaned again as I bent forward to stretch out my back. The screen at the front of the room scrolled through the previously called numbers and the Os were still in the 300s. I sat back up and closed my eyes, maybe a little 15 minute cat nap would do me good. I nestled myself as comfortably as possible in my tiny plastic chair and let my mind wander until I fell asleep. My eyes peeled open after some time and dug into my pocket for my phone. I double tapped the screen to check the time. 6:17 PM. Great. Over 12 hours I'd now been here. I sighed and glanced back up at the screen of the DWP. O664 scrolled by and I had to blink a few times to make sure I was seeing things correctly. My turn was coming and I'd finally be placed in my forever pack with a forever rank and job! My breathing picked up its pace as I started to get more excited. I whole-heartedly believed I'd get placed back into my same pack with my parents so I could continue to work with them in landscaping. It was the only thing that truly brought me happiness. The sun beating down, the smell of grass and the faint breeze that blew as we trimmed shrubs and laid new mulch or pea gravel in the plantings near the main pack house. You'd never know it's what I preferred based on my appearance, but looks can be deceiving. I'm albino, which is a huge rarity among wolves, who are usually very dark in skin tone and hair. I'm white all over. Maybe not white, almost pink. If it weren't for my high SPF and healing abilities, I'd burn to a crisp or not be able to spend quality time outside. O665 scrolled past and I took note that the same window that had been helping the past Os was there again. So there was only one window serving Omegas? Fantastic… I watched a 15 year old boy get up and walk to the window, clasping his number slip tightly as he approached. His voice was hushed as he stated both his parents' names and finally his. The woman at the desk, who I had not paid much attention to before motioned for him to sit on the other side of the plexiglass as she slid him some papers. I watched intently as he filled everything out carefully and asked a few questions on things he wasn't certain about, such as abilities. She seemed kind as she walked him through the questions and helped him answer them correctly. They continued for a few minutes and finally she took the papers from him and pointed him in the direction of the testing rooms. He carefully got up, thanked her and slicked down the hall, entering the first room. O666 popped up on the screen and I jumped up from my seat. I shuffled over quickly, muttering apologies as I squeezed past the other wolves in their seats. I looked back and someone had already sat down in my previous spot. I almost felt jealous, as that chair and I had been well acquainted. My shoulders seemed to shrug on their own and I pressed forward towards the woman in the window. Now closer, I could really examine her. Her skin was dark and placed her in most likely a more southern pack. She was typing on her computer and barely glanced at me before her fingers stopped and she looked up again at me. Finally at the counter, I slid my small piece of paper under the glass to her and she hesitated for a moment to grab it. "O666?" She coughed out. "Yes ma'am, been here all day. I'm very excited." She glanced at the paper and then at me. "Have a seat dear, this won't take very long, I just need a few bits of information from you." I nodded and took a seat, folding my hands onto my lap. "Name please?" "I'm Iris Maeve Antonov. Parents are Dimitri Antonov and Mila Antonov née Bryant of the Sun Stone Pack." "Thank you dear, you answered my next question. Are they both Omegas?" "My whole family has been, going back hundreds of years. We're very hardworking and happy with our station." I gave her a small smile and she nodded. "It's good to see an Omega who truly loves being the root of the tree so to speak. Do you have any abilities?" She eyes me cautiously. "I'm great with plants, my mom is a landscaper and my dad is an arborist. I got the best of both worlds. I went to school briefly for herbal healing, and graduated ahead of my class so I could get back out and help my parents. I've only shifted once so I'm not sure what abilities my wolf has. We don't speak often as I'm rather busy and have no need to shift." She nodded at me again and started pulling a stack of paperwork out for me to fill out. I noticed behind her a few of her coworkers glancing at me and whispering amongst themselves. One of them disappeared and came back with a man in a suit. He tried to wave her off and turn around but spotted me and made a beeline for my case workers desk. His hand landed on her shoulder and he leaned down to whisper in her ear. Her face showed a bit of surprise but she straightened up quickly after seeing some confusion on my face. The paperwork she was about to hand me went back onto her desk and she gave the man a stern nod. "My dear I'm afraid I'm going to have to ask you to go back to the exam room before I can give you this paperwork." The confusion on my face must have amplified and she gave me a reassuring look. "This isn't very out of the ordinary dear, there's nothing to worry about." "Okay, I'll try not to. First door down the hall ma'am?" I noticed that's where all the other Omegas took their exams. "No dear, I'm going to need you to go to the last room on the left." I tried to smile at her as I lifted myself off the chair. "All the way down there?" I pointed and she nodded one last time before placing a 'closed' placard on her desk. My nerves were starting to get to me as I shuffled down the hallway, only slowing as I approached the last room on the left. My hand reached toward the knob and I took one last deep breath before turning it and entering the room.