The Normal Life
By Didi

Disclaimer: I don't own the characters that are recognizable and I certainly don't own the show. Don't sue me cause all you're going to get is lent, and not much of that either.

Note: I apologize for the delay in getting this out. Life decided to throw a little more work at me and I had to take care of business.

Rating: R for restricted under 17.
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-Sophia's POV-

When I asked Luke what it was like, he replied by putting the paddle to the metal. That sudden rush of adrenaline didn't even come close to describing the kind of euphoria that one experiences when you feel the earth crunch under your paws.

Paws... wow.

I think rebirth would be an appropriate word here. You see the world in such a different world way. Like what we see with human eyes a mere façade compared to what the primitive eyes sees. Humans contaminate earth; we kill it slowly. Animals, they live in harmony with Mother Nature. And now I was one of them.

It is always assumed by me that I would be afraid of this part. No, it's not being the wolf that scares me. It's being a human trapped in the wolf that scared the hell out of me. Okay, I can't even explain that right in my own mind. I feel and know as Sophia. But this shape that I occupy, this four-legged vessel that I inhabit, it feels... good. It feels good.

So I have to wonder which one of these shapes is me? The glasses-wearing human? Or the...

I took a moment to stop running and glanced down at myself. I hadn't really paid attention to what I look like, only knew that I was no longer human, walking on two legs.

*Sophia, what's wrong?*

My head whipped around to star at the gray wolf with those intense eyes. *Luke, what color am I?*

*What?*

Even through our mind link I can hear the surprise in his voice. Poor Luke, he seems more dazed than I am. But I guess it would kind of hard to tell what color someone is when color doesn't really matter, not to a wolf. Everything was seen in intensity and heat.

*Where's my dad? Is he okay?* I asked suddenly remembering what night it still was. The meeting would have to be over by now. The fate of the clan, my fate, now rests on someone's shoulder. But who? Oh god, please don't let it be Tyler Creed.

*Your dad is fine,* he nuzzled me with his muzzle. *Everything is going to be perfect from now on.*

I can tell the way serenity in his voice that he truly believes it. Me? I'm not too sure about. After all, I may have flipped but I'm still half human. How the rest of the pack is going to treat that little tid bit is still up in the air. Okay, at least I know since I've flipped, whoever the new Alpha is would be less tempted to kill me now. Not that it's any reassurance.

*You need to relax.*

I swung my elongated nose toward him. *Relax? You expect me to relax after that?*

Do wolves smirk? Cause I could have sworn he smirked. I just know that had he been in human form, that shit eating grin would have been fully in place. *I was that good?*

I did not deemed it necessary to answer him on that. Seriously, the boy was incorrigible.

*This way, Sophia.* The red wolf appeared almost out of nowhere. I had heard the others someone in the back of my head but I hadn't been paying too much attention to them until now. They were everywhere.

The silence of the night, the stillness of the woods that have always been so eerie to me in the past, was completely crowded and alive now. It's like downtown square on Fourth of July. Frightening how I never knew how many people were watching me as I took my walk through the woods, sometimes alone at night. Definitely need to rethink my periodic outlets.

*Where are we going?* I asked naively. The pack was out in hordes tonight. I guess with a new leader, they are out celebrating.... Or killing.

Eyes that glowed in the darkness met mine before the red wolf answered. *To see the Alpha.*

Great! It's like trial by fire for me. First Luke and his... well, his little act of kindness I suppose. Don't get me wrong; I have no doubt in my mind that he enjoyed it. I just even thought my first time would be... in the in-between realms of reality. So much for having a semi normal life around here.

*Will you please just relax? I see how tense you are even from here.* Luke moved over and nudged me with his nose. His pelt of soft fur brushed against mine and ever follicle seem to stand up on end. It was an incredible sensation, feeling every molecule in your body become aware.

We near the edge of the woods and I see a line of sentry pacing the area. Guards to the king. The vote must have been close, or even contentious. They were expecting an attack. They were expecting this to be bloody. And if the scent of violence that I smell in the air was any indication, there had been an attack.

Strange how I can detect violence in the winds when I've never felt it in my life. Perhaps Jung was right when he said that we all have archetypes that we... oh just listen to me! I could die the minute I step through that door and all I can think about is analyzing psychology theories. Freud would have a field day with me.

Okay, here's a better question to ask myself. What the hell is my father? A slow unnerving fear began to wound its way around her heart. Dad has been on the outs with he pack for some time now. What if.... What if something decided to do something about it? What if it's not me they wanted but my dad? What if....

*Go in,* the red wolf suggested as two others stepped away from the entrance to admit me. *Don't keep the Alpha waiting.*

I suppose that would probably be bad for my health.

Luke came over and have me a push with his nose. The boy was just so eager to get me in the door wasn't he? To think, I was actually afraid for him earlier! And I... with him too! Oh damn it. I'm scaring myself. And I don't even have anything to back it up. For all I know, the new leader just wants to welcome me into the pack.

Right! And pigs fly south with the geese. I better tell the rest of the pack to watch out for that wonderful phenomenon.

It was quiet as I entered the foyer, none of the others followed except for Luke. No one had bothered to turn on the light in Kanin's cabin, no one I know needs it. The smell of blood from two different people was thick in the air. And a motley of scent, human's and wolf's, crowded the entranceway. A shiver a fear made it's way to the surface.

*Come on,* Luke whispered encouragingly as he took the lead toward the living room where a murmur of voices could be heard.

Bracing myself, I stepped tentatively into the room.

The silence hit me like a brick wall. Five pairs of eyes, eyes that were unnaturally bright in intensity, turned as one toward me. I was stunned for a moment to see the brightness in Kanin's eyes that I failed to notice my father's reaction. And when I finally did, I wished to hell that I had kept my gaze on Kanin's face.

The look of shock and horror that decorated his face, though slightly distorted by my wolven vision, was still clear enough see. The pain from the first flip was bad, but this... this look on my father's face, it is a hundred times worse. I wanted to hide, I wanted to cry, I wanted to...

"Sophia!" my name came out like a breathless whisper as he dropped to his eyes, hands held out to me.

I was frightened. *Daddy?*

There were tears in his eyes. I've never seen my father cry. "My little girl," he was beckoning me now. And like all children of earth, we always go home to our parents. I stepped forward, allowing his hands to touch my head. Putting his arms around me, he hugged me close until I could feel his heart beating against my cheek. "I'm so sorry."

*Why, Daddy?* I licked the tears away, tasting the salt on my sensitive tongue. *I'm all right now.*

"That's Sophia?" Kanin asked in a near whisper from somewhere to my right.

Turning, I watched him watch me. Ruby had one hand resting on his shoulder, like a queen by his king. The quiet power in him that everyone always sensed was more at the surface now. There was a coil of tension in his shoulders. But it was more now, like some great weight was on them more now. The sense of awareness came though me like lighting. Kanin was changing, slowly but surely. *Good evening, Detective.*

He looked almost disgruntled. Looks like someone told him the truth. And from the way his eyes were now bright with something more than human curiosity, I would say that it was the Alpha that had the unpleasant task. Speaking of Alphas....

"Welcome to the family, Sophia." I turned and looked up, way up, to the slightly smiling face of Vivian Cates. "Luke," she rested her hands on Luke's gray head. "You've chosen well."

Somehow, I didn't exactly like the sound of that little possessive term. *Dad?*

I had been so absorbed by Vivian's Cate's sudden friendliness toward me that I had failed to notice my father's movements. He was on the ground, crouched before me. His distinguished face lined with wary wrinkles that only added to his sense of power. But behind all that, there was this tension of fear that I could almost taste in the air. The night is still young and the danger isn't over yet. "What is it Sophia?" he asked quietly, his hand lightly stroking my head.

*What happened tonight?* I anxiously to Kanin and Ruby then at my father again. *Dad, the guy outside said that that Alpha wanted to see me. What is he going to do?* Surprise rippled through the air, like waves on a pond. *What? What did I say?*

"Sophia, didn't you know?" Vivian asked quietly as she moved by my father's side.

I watched her carefully, not exactly liking the way her hand rested so comfortably on my father's shoulder. *Know what?*

Luke nudged me with his nose to get my attention. *Sophia, I thought you knew.*

I swung my nose toward my father again, fear racing through my veins. *Dad, who is it?*

"Sophia..."

"So," Sherman Blackstone called out as he entered the room. "The Alpha and his daughter. What is a sweet little scene we have here!"

I think I fainted after that.

TBC...
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Next up, Vivian's point of view.