The man who saved me that day was Jeremy Danvers, the Alpha of the North American Wolf Pack. That night when I turned, the pain was so unbearable, I passed out. Jeremy was the one who caught me and brought me to Stonehaven. He, later, explained to me that he knew I was no ordinary wolf. He could scent that I was like him, a werewolf. But he was surprised to find that I was female because there was no record of any female wolves in all of history. Werewolves were not born like him, nor could they survive being bitten. At the time, I was the only of my kind, the first and only female wolf.

Jeremy kept me at Stonehaven. He taught me to walk, to speak, to read, to write, and to fight in my human form. Jeremy hypothesized that I had turned into a wolf when I was very young, maybe as a toddler. Not knowing how to trigger the Change, I remained a wolf, wandering all over the continental US.

During my first few weeks at Stonehaven, I would run away, only for Jeremy to bring me back by force. I would growl and bite him. He was forcing me to wear clothes, which felt uncomfortable on my skin. All the things that a child would learn in their early years by watching their parents, I had to learn from Jeremy when I was eight years old. He taught me to sit and eat with utensils. I complained about everything. I hated the body wash and the shampoo when he would bathe me. I was like a feral dog, biting and fighting him all the time. But Jeremy never lost his patience with me. He had gone through something similar with Clay, the young boy who chased me in the forest.

Clayton was bitten by Jeremy's father, Malcolm Danvers. Clay was alone for a year as a young wolf before Jeremy found him. Jeremy sat for days on a stump, trying to get Clay to trust him before bringing him to Stonehaven ten years ago. Jeremy said I was easy compared to Clay.

Jeremy spent a year teaching me what three-year-olds could understand through observation. At the same time, he kept me hidden. I didn't understand why I always had to smell like wood or charcoal or bacon grease. Whenever someone would come, he told me to remain in my room. He ensured that I never left anything with my scent in the common areas. Wolves or humans, only Jeremy knew I existed. I didn't mind staying out of sight because that was what I did when I was roaming alone. I also didn't like meeting new people either, so I didn't mind being hidden away.

Every time he looked at me, Jeremy had a hint of happiness and worry in his eyes. I knew Jeremy was trying to protect me, but I didn't understand why. Only his closest family and friends knew about me.

A year after living at Stonehaven, Jeremy's friend, Antonio, came to visit with Nick, his son. I stayed in my room as usual, but Clay came to my room because Jeremy summoned me. My heart thundered in my chest with every step I took down the stairs. I was used to the routine. When someone comes, stay in my room. But anxiety filled my heart, thundered as I took in the two new scents in the den. They were also wolves, like me, Clay and Jeremy. But Jeremy did not smell anxious, but relaxed. His voice, I could hear, was joyful and relaxed. Sensing his calmness, I relaxed as I entered the room.

There was a bald man standing with another boy who was maybe the same age as Clay. The bald man smiled widely as he closed the distance between us. He held his hand out to me as he said, "Hello, there. It's nice to finally meet you. Jeremy has told me a lot about you. I'm Antonio. What should I call you?"

I looked at Jeremy who nodded. I smiled at Antonio, placing my small hand in his, and shook it. "Hello. It's very nice to meet you," I said, articulating every word that was almost robotic. "Jeremy calls me Ashley. Please call me Ashley also."

Antonio smiled. "It's nice to meet you, Ashley." Antonio turned and pointed to the boy behind him. "This is my son, Nicholas."

"You can call me Nick." He shook my hand.

"Ashley, Nick is like you and Clay and me and Jeremy. Do you understand?"

I nodded. "We are wolves. But we are also human. We can change forms." Jeremy had explained it to me, to explain why we were different and why we had to keep it a secret from humans, who were not like us.

Antonio nodded. "Why don't you and Nick and Clay go change and play together? I have to talk to Jeremy."

"Okay." I took the hem of my dress, raising it over my head.

"Ashley," Jeremy called my name tersely.

I stopped, looking around me, slowly taking in the room. Right. Jeremy told me not to do that. I didn't understand the difference between men and women. "Sorry." I left the room, removing my clothes as I left the house, feeling liberated as I removed my dress and underwear throwing them on the ground. Even after a year, I still couldn't get used to wearing clothes and looking for any chance to remove them. I preferred wearing dresses because they were easy to remove and did not stay too close to my skin.

I relished the chance to Change every few days. I was still more comfortable in my wolf form than my human one. After I Changed a few more times, the Change was no longer as painful as the first time. Frankly, I relished the feeling of my wolf breaking through the surface. As I took off running into the forest, I could hear Clay and Nick behind me, running in their wolf form. Clay was stronger and faster than me and quickly overtook me. He ran ahead just as Nick also passed me. I ran after them, pushing my legs to their limits as I tackled Nick from behind before I ran after Clay. I tried to tackle him but he dodged me, running zig-zag to avoid me. I caught up with him, I jumped on him, but he did not fall. He bit me in the scruff of my neck, to remove me from his back. I whined, frustrated by my weakness.

Jeremy always said that I was so much smaller than Clay, not because I was female, but because of my diet when I was a wolf. And Clay was just a freak of nature because he was also very big for his age. He was larger than Nick too, I noticed.

When we returned to the manor, my clothes were gone from where I left them. I Changed and walked in through the back door, sneaking on my toes toward the stairs. "Did you forget something?" I stopped when I heard Jeremy's voice behind me. I turned around to face him, as he held my dress out to me. "I told you not to leave your clothes on the doorstep."

"Sorry." I grabbed my clothes and ran back up the stairs.

That night at dinner, Jeremy told me what he and Antonio were talking about. Jeremy wanted to adopt me as he had done with Clay. Because I had no history, Jeremy had called Antonio to create an official history for me and legally adopt me. Jeremy would be my father and Clay my elder brother. But, Jeremy did not want to force me to do anything, especially not family. He made it clear to me that even if I did not want to, I would still have a home at Stonehaven.

Frankly, I didn't understand what would be different from now and after he adopted me so I just said yes. Jeremy was the first person I met that I trusted completely. More than anything, I understood that everything he did was for my sake, even if I didn't understand it. When he was doing something, if I felt uncomfortable, he respected my wishes. The most important thing I understood was that he protected me. And I trusted him with my life.

I became Ashley Danvers. Our family grew over the years. Logan and Pete came along then Clay brought Elena home. They were the only ones who knew who and what I was. They gave me a family, raised me, and protected me. I loved them and I was completely loyal to them, more so to Jeremy. I ate well and grew healthily, training my body in Martial Arts. I learned to see and hear and smell as a human just as well as I did as a wolf. I decided that just as Jeremy had protected me, I would become stronger to protect him. To protect my family, there is nothing I would not do. That was the promise I made to myself.

As I went on in my teenage years, I slowly began to realize why Jeremy and Clay trained so much. Our world was full of violence. As Alpha, Jeremy was the target for many wolves who sought to take his place. Clay became his enforcer, keeping the Mutts in their place. Sometimes they would leave and return home with horrible wounds that brought them close to death. And the sight horrified me. I cried for the first time in a long time as Jeremy would guide me through dressing his wounds. I think my tears made his wounds even worse. I slept in Jeremy's room that night. Being close to him, to his scent, was the only way I kept the anxiety at bay. I didn't want him to disappear.

The next morning, I decided to become a nurse. But when I turned 16, I changed my mind. I decided to become a veterinarian instead because I wouldn't have to work with too many people. Working with animals would be better for me in terms of the difference in anatomy between humans and wolves. The surgical procedures that applied to animals could also be applied to humans. And veterinary hospitals attracted less attention than human hospitals. I went to the Bear Valley Veterinary hospital and got a job as a receptionist, working and watching the licensed vets while stealing some of their medical supplies for home.