by D Wolfe
Darine smiled. “Great! Follow me!” She cried excitedly. She then led Ellie out of the room.
Darian waited until Ellie was out of the room before he turned to Denthro and Demeter. “What’s the latest on Jared?” He asked.
Demeter shook her head. “He hasn’t been seen since he was here at the camp looking for Ellie.” Denthro told Darian.
“The police don’t know where they should try looking for him as of now. They’ve looked at all of his usual hangouts.” Demeter added. "And unfortunately the police back in their old town refuses to help us. They won't explain why but whatever it is, Jared has power in their old town."
Denthro cleared his voice. “There’s also another armored wolf child near us. She shifted without any control and is now hiding in the camp. Daniella, David and I are planning on finding her and bring her here.” He told Darian.
Darian looked at Denthro. “I’ll go with you.” He said. Ellie was safe with Darine and the others. He had responsibilities to his family and other armored wolves.
Outside, Danielle and David were waiting when Darian and Denthro showed up. The two looked at Darian. They were surprised to see him there. They had thought that he was going to stay inside with Ellie to help her feel safe but they didn’t say anything.
“Is the new armored wolf still in the same place that we last spotted her in?” Denthro asked. David nodded. “Let’s go get her then.” Denthro said. They took off for the forest and shifted into armored wolves before entering the forest.
Darian looked at Denthro. “ Who exactly is this new armored wolf?” He thought to Denthro.
Denthro looked at him. “I’m not sure. She came on Sunday and has been hiding in the forest ever since. We’ve tried to reach out to her but she doesn’t reply to us.” Denthro replied in Darian’s mind.
“Danielle and I nearly had her but then we got pulled away with trying to find Jared and we didn’t want him to find her.” David added in Darian’s mind. “She would have just gotten hurt if Jared got too close to her.”
Danielle rolled her eyes. “No duh. She’s scared and would have thought that Jared could help her.” She said in the others’ minds.
Darian looked ahead. “Maybe Denthro and I could try to reach out to her.” He told Danielle and David in their minds. They entered a small clearing and Darian saw the new armored wolf. She was pretty small. Her armor was white. Her fur was silver. Her brown eyes were wide and she backed away. A little whimper bark came out from her mouth.
Darian looked at the others. “Let me.” He told them in their minds. He wasn’t sure if the new armored wolf could hear him or not. He then took a step towards the little armored wolf. “Who are you?” He asked the new armored wolf in her mind. The armored wolf looked at him but didn’t answer. Darian could tell though that she had heard him. Her brown eyes had widened even more. Darian tilted his head. “Can’t you speak?” He asked. The armored wolf shook her head and barked again.
Darian shifted into his human form. “She can’t do mind speech.” He told the other armored wolves. What he didn’t add was that the armored wolf seemed to be freaked out by the others being armored wolves as well. Maybe a human presence would be better for the new armored wolf.
Darian slowly went up to the new armored wolf. The armored wolf backed up a little and little out a small bark again. Darian raised his hands up. “Easy.” He told her in a gentle voice. “It’ll be okay.” He continued to walk up to her. “We don’t want to hurt you.”
The armored wolf looked at him with her large brown eyes. Darian got down on one knee. “Trust us.” He said to her. The armored wolf slowly went up to him. She looked at Darian’s hand before she raised her head and touched the hand. Darian could sense that she felt safe the minute she had touched his hand.
The armored wolf shifted into a little girl. Her hair was black and in a ponytail. Her eyes were a chocolate brown. She sat up and looked at her hands. “What happened to me?” She asked in a surprised yet small voice.
Darian looked at her. She wasn’t ready yet to learn what had happened to her. She was brand new to all of this. “What’s your name?” He asked her. “It’ll help us be able to answer your questions.”
The child looked at him. “I’m Devoni.” She answered after a few seconds.
Chapter Thirteen
Ellie and Darine were still in Darine’s room looking for the right clothes for Ellie to wear. Ellie looked at Darine. “You have a lot of clothes.” She commented. She never thought an armored wolf, immortal or not, would need so many clothes.
Darine smiled. She had expected that from Ellie. “I never wear the same outfit twice. I sell my clothes at garage sales and then use the money to buy new clothes.” She explained to Ellie.
Ellie had never been able to do that. She didn’t have that many clothes to spare. Whenever her mother and her had to buy new clothes, they had to do it in secret because Jared refused to let them buy any new things.
Darien then tossed Ellie a white t-shirt and a blue skirt. “Try those on. They should fit.” She said.
Ellie smiled as she looked at the clothes. “Thanks.” She said before she went to Darine’s restroom. She wasn't sure how Darine knew that but she wasn't complaining.
Darine sat on her bed and looked out the window while waiting for Ellie to finish getting changed. “Darine, do you think Darian would turn me into an armored wolf when I’m his age?” Ellie asked from the bathroom. She was hoping that Darian would do that.
Darine looked towards the bathroom. “I don’t think he would. Why?” She asked. Why did Ellie want to be turned into an armored wolf? Sure it did have benefits but it was also a bit of a curse to have to endure. That was when she realized why Ellie wanted to become an armored wolf when she was older. “You like him!” She cried excitedly. “You’re crushing on my big brother.”
Ellie came out of the bathroom in her new clothes and nodded sheepishly. “I really do have a big crush on him.” She admitted. She was expecting Darine to tease her.
Darine went up to her. “If I know Darian, he might say yes but the reason why I doubt that he will though is because you might end up with someone else by then.” She told Ellie.
Ellie frowned. “Why do you say that?” She asked. Why would she leave Darian to be with someone else? That didn’t make any sense. Darian was the only boy she wanted to be with.
Darine sighed. Obviously Darian never told Ellie why he was always a bit of a loner. “Darian is a hard catch to make. He’s been with the family for a very long time but I’ve never seen him take interest in a girl before. There were a few times that Denthro has even tried to get Darian to date but it never happened. Not even this one time with a cute girl about ten years ago.” She explained to Ellie.
Ellie tilted her head curiously. “What do you mean by that?” She asked. She knew that it wasn't any of her business but she had to know. Who else had been interested in Darian?
Darine looked at her. “Denthro noticed that the rest of us seemed interested in dating but Darian wasn’t at all. It sort of made him look moody and alone. So when Denthro saw this girl that was cute and looked like she might be into Darian, he tried to get Darian into asking that girl out. Darian stayed away for an entire month because of that. When he finally came back after that month, no one tried to talk to him about asking anyone out.
Darine then looked towards the window again. She decided to tell Ellie the whole story. Ellie did deserve that so she would know more about Darian. “Ten years ago, Denthro noticed that there was a girl looking at Darian whenever they were in the same room. Her name was Bonnie. All the guys said she was very cute and it was clear that she had a crush on Darian. Darian never paid any attention though to her. He didn’t pay attention to anyone really. He was always a lone wolfe type of boy. Anyways, Bonnie gave up on trying to get Darian’s attention. Demeter was angry with Darian for that. When they confronted Darian about it that was when he had left for the month.”
Darine then
smiled. “I think that Demeter and Denthro are hoping you’ll be the one who can finally get Darian to fall in love. That is if Darian even is able to love.” She turned to Ellie and gave Ellie a denim jacket. Ellie nodded to her and as she put the jacket on. “I think you’ll do the trick.” Darine said confidently to Ellie.
Ellie smiled. “I hope so.” She said to Darine. She and Darian loved each other. She just hoped that Darian would still love her when she was fifteen.
The front door opened and they heard people talking. “We should go see who that is.” Darine told Ellie. The two of them left the room and went downstairs as they heard the people coming in. Denthro, David, Danielle, Darian and a little girl who looked younger than Ellie. She looked scared.
Demeter came down the stairs as well and went up to the little girl. “So you’re the one who has been hiding out in the camp as an armored wolf.” She said to the little girl.
The little girl nodded. Ellie noticed that she looked scared. She had a feeling that she could understand why. She had been brought into a new world. “What happened to me?” The little girl asked.
Darian looked at Ellie. Ellie couldn’t help but smile and wave when she saw that he was looking at her.
Denthro went up to the little girl. “Devoni, try to follow along with what we’re about to tell you. It’s very complicated.” He told her.
Devoni looked at Denthro with her scared eyes. “I want to go home.” She said in her small voice.
Denthro sighed. “That can’t happen. Once you’ve heard what we have to tell you, you’ll understand why.” He then led her to the living room. David and Danielle went after them.
Demeter turned to Ellie. “You look amazing Dear.” She told Ellie.
Ellie smiled and looked down to try to hide her blushing. Darian went up behind Ellie and hugged her. “You look incredibly beautiful.” He whispered in Ellie’s ear and stroked her hair back.
Demeter looked at the two of them before looking at the others. “Get ready for dinner and get the table ready.” She told them.
Darian looked at Denthro and Devoni talking. He had a feeling that Devoni felt unsure about everything that was happening to her He looked at Ellie again. “Do you want to see my room?” He asked her. Ellie nodded. They went back upstairs.
Darine and Demeter looked at each other. “They’re in love with each other, aren’t they?” Darine asked.
Demeter nodded before she looked at her daughter. “Go help set the table.” She told Darine.
Darian led Ellie to the top floor of the house and into a room. Ellie’s eyes widened. There was a balcony opposite from the door. Next to the wall on the left was a bed. On the other side were shelves full of CDs. There was a ladder that went to a trapdoor in the ceiling. Ellie had a feeling that it went to the roof. Ellie went to the CDs. She looked at them. There were a lot of CDs there. Some of the bands she hadn’t even heard of. She looked at Darian. “What do you like to listen to the most?” She asked him, pointing at the CDs.
Darian went up to her and took out a CD. He put it into the CD player. “This song for you.” He told her. A slow dance song started playing.
Ellie looked at Darian. “Can you even dance?” She asked him. Darian didn’t seem like the dancing type.
Darian nodded. He took her out to the center of the room and started dancing with her. “I told you I could dance.” He told her.
Chapter Fourteen
During supper, the entire family, Devoni and Ellie were gathered at the supper table. Ellie looked at Devoni. The little girl hadn’t spoken a single word that entire meal. She would just nod or shake her head if she was asked something. Ellie looked at Denthro. He would keep looking out the window like he was expecting something to arrive.
Ellie looked at Darian before she spoke. “Should we start hunting down Jared soon?” She asked. She wanted to be involved with the hunt for her stepdad even if it was just waiting at the house. They all looked at Ellie. Ellie felt Darian’s hand take her hand.
Devoni then spoke, surprising everyone. “Who is Jared?” She asked. “Is he like you guys?” Ellie couldn’t believe it. Devoni had a soft musical voice.
Denthro looked at Devoni. “Jared was Ellie’s stepfather. He was arrested but he escaped. The police have been hunting him down but they haven’t been able to find him.” He told her. Ellie noticed that Devoni’s face became paled at that sight.
Devoni looked at Ellie. “What did he do?” She asked. Ellie looked down. She didn’t want to tell Devoni how Jared had nearly killed her. Darian squeezed her hand gently. Ellie was happy that Darian was there for her.
Demeter cleared her throat. “Let’s just say that if you ever come across him, you should try to escape or hide.” She told Devoni.
Doug looked at Devoni. “You shouldn’t be thinking about that.” He told her. “You need to learn how to control your changing into an armored wolf and how to do mind speech.”
Darian looked up. “I’ll teach her.” He said. They all looked at him. Darian looked at them. “I’m the one who has been able to do it the best and I learned how to do it faster.” He reminded them. Ellie would be a great addition to have to help Devoni with this.
Denthro nodded. “Very well.” He said before he looked at the others. “Tonight, Darian will train Devoni with controlling her armored wolf abilities.” He looked at Danielle. “You’ll watch Ellie.” He told her. “The rest of us will be on patrol.”
Ellie looked at Darian. She wanted to stay with him but whatever the training was that Devoni had to go through, it must have been a sacred thing only for armored wolves. Darian looked at Ellie and smiled at her. His eyes told her that it would be okay.
Darian had wanted Ellie to be with him when he trained Devoni but he figured that he could trust his sister with watching after Ellie. Danielle could also answer questions that Ellie might still have.
After dinner, Darian led Devoni into the backyard. They were alone back there. “Denthro told you what happens basically, right?” He asked.
Devoni nodded. “Not sure though if I understand all of it still.” She admitted.
Darian turned to Devoni. “There is an alpha in our family.” He told her. “I’m the alpha in ours because I am a direct descendant of the first armored wolf. If it wasn’t for me though, Denthro would be the alpha because he’s the oldest.” He explained to her.
Devoni frowned. That part didn’t really help explain anything to her. “How do I control myself though?” She asked. “How do I control the changing?”
Darian went up to her. “We shift only if someone is in danger that is close. If we need to get somewhere fast, we shift.” He told her. “For mind speech, you must clear our mind of all other thoughts and focus on speaking. Think what you want to say before saying it. Now shift just to get used to it.” He told her before he changed into an armored wolf.
Devoni changed right after him. Darian looked at the smaller armored wolf. She was trying to stay on all four paws and wasn’t doing a good job of it.
Darian went up to her. “Spread your paws out to maintain balance.” He told Devoni in her mind. Devoni looked at him and took a small step. She stumbled a bit before she got her balance. She then looked up at Darian as she stood up straight.
Darian nodded. “Very good. Now shift back into your human form. Think of your human feelings and what it’s like to be human.” He told Devoni in her mind before he changed back into his human form.
Devoni closed her eyes and focused. It took a few minutes but then she finally did it. She looked at Darian and smiled a little. “With practice, you’ll be able to do it more quickly.” Darian told Devoni.
In the house, Ellie was with Danielle in the main room. Danielle was watching the television. Ellie was thinking when she looked at Danielle. “Danielle, are there alphas in armored wolves?” She asked.
Danielle looked at her. “Yes. And the alpha in our family is Darian.” She answered.
Ellie frowned. Darian was? But th
at didn’t make sense. He wasn’t the oldest in the family. “Why isn’t Denthro the alpha? He’s the father of the group here.” She said.
Danielle smiled and laughed. “Under normal circumstances, Denthro would be the alpha. Darian though was born as a direct descendant of the original armored wolf. The direct descendants, not that there’s many of them left, are the alphas of the groups.” She explained.
Ellie looked outside. She saw the others running into the forest. “Don’t worry. Jared won’t be able to get you. There are ten armored wolves here and once Devoni is trained in our ways, there will be eleven of us.” Danielle told Ellie.
Ellie looked at Danielle. She didn’t realize that Danielle had seen the worried look on her face. “Would Jared leave me alone if I became one of you?” She asked. She hoped that Jared would leave her alone. She also was hoping that Danielle would say that Darian would change her into an armored wolf.
Danielle looked at Ellie and frowned. “Why would you want to become an armored wolf?” She asked. Wouldn’t Ellie rather go back to her mom’s side of the family once Jared was gone? If Danielle had the chance, she would have gone to see her old family again.
Ellie looked at her. “Because of Darian.” She answered quietly.
Danielle tilted her head curiously. Why would Ellie want to become an armored wolf for Darian? “You’re in love, aren’t you?” She asked. That was the only reason she could of.
Ellie nodded but she didn’t say that it was Darian. “You’re in love with Darian, aren’t you?” Danielle asked. Ellie nodded and got ready for the teasing to begin. Danielle smiled. “That explains his strange behavior and why he can’t leave you alone.” She said. Ellie nodded and blushed.
Danielle then became serious. “You are a couple years younger than Darian right now by human years. It would be a little weird if he changed you right now. You might want to wait a few years before asking him to change you into an armored wolf.” Sure Ellie was thirteen and Darian was fifteen but she seriously doubted that Ellie would like being an armored wolf and stuck at the age of thirteen.