UPDATE!
This chapter was a bit rushed. Any issues with this chapter please alert me about it! I focused more on trying to really portray Mallory as a character in this chapter. Promise that Next chapter has more Talia.
HAPPY READINGx
Mallory scrubbed at the plate in her hand with little concentration, her mind instead lost to thoughts on how her life currently was. She knew herself, knew her desires and what she was capable of, Mallory knew her mind. Growing up she had made a vow as a child. Never would she let other's dictate her choices in how she would live. She had grown up too fast and lost too much at such a young age. So when Alpha Delco had taken her in, she pledged her loyalty and never thought a day would come where she would regret it. Yet it had and if she could she would ensure she had never made such a pledge when she had been so young. When she had been so blind and played like the strings of a guitar, manipulated to sing a certain tune.
*CRACK*
The sound of the plate in her hands snapping jolted her from the angry torrent her thoughts were on the verge of taking. Quietly she disposed of the broken plate and swept to make sure there were no chances of glass being left.
"Mommy are you okay?" a high pitched voice queried from the kitchen doorway.
Deliberately inhaling the smell of strawberries and undertones of wood Mallory smiled. At the doorway peering with perplexed curiosity was her anchor. The sight of dark midnight locks identical to that of her husband's instantly calming her.
"I'm fine baby. Mommy just broke a plate"
"Are you okay?"
"Of course Sweetie why don't you go get ready for bed, Mommy will be with you soon"
Talia, her precious baby girl
The four old year old girl looked at her with a pout and groaned dramatically before she began trudging up the stairs towards her room. As soon as Mallory lost sight of her daughter her smile disappeared and her face was blank.
Thomas was a good man, one she definitely didn't deserve, not her. He only ever saw the good, was so very optimistic and made the best of everything he had. It was why she had fallen for the silly man, the fact that he was handsome was just a bonus. Thomas was everything she knew she wasn't but that was why she loved him. She hated herself more than anything for loving him because she was a selfish woman. A selfish woman who had condemned him to life as an omega.
*Knock Knock*
Mallory made her way to open the backdoor as she did every Saturday night. She steeled herself in preparation for what she may see and refused to acknowledge the tears that burned to fall.
"It's the worse he's had Mal"
Joshua Quinn, the Delco Pack's first beta. He was a striking man, with broad shoulders and light blonde hair paired with a set of sky blue eyes. If it had been any other woman than Mallory they would be too transfixed with the man's looks to even think coherently. No Mallory instead had her attention fixated on the man Joshua struggled to support. His dark locks drenched in what smelt of blood and sweat. The coppery scent overwhelming her senses more so than ever before. His face was pale, unnaturally pale for his light olive coloured skin and specks of dried and fresh blood stained his face. Hurriedly Mallory rushed to her husband's side and hauled him into the guest room not too far from the door. Joshua said nothing as she went about tending to her mate.
"Mal….. Mallory….Wha-"
"Shh! don't speak"
Thomas was a wreck. His clothes had numerous tears and rips and were reduced to rags. His skin mauled in some places and was slowly trying to knit itself back together. Mallory knew that he would heal but it would take longer than usual. As was the case when up against an Alpha.
"How long was he in the ring this time?"
Joshua shivered at the cold tone coming from the woman in front of him. Mallory Delco was an unpredictable variable within the pack and Joshua knew that she was dangerous. The Delco pack had forgotten just what Mallory had been before she and her mate had been reduced to the pack Omega's. Even Thomas, despite his current status was still a worry.
"Nine hours" Joshua reluctantly answered.
The glass Mallory had been using to re-hydrate her husband broke within her grasp, and without even blinking, he watched her wounds heal despite the small shards still residing in them. He knew that she would have to break the skin and properly fish out the glass pieces if she truly wanted the wound to get better.
"How many"
It wasn't a question, it was an order. Despite her being an omega Joshua straightened and answered her just as he used to before. In that moment he was reporting to his superior, to his mentor not the pack omega.
"6 betas, 4 bitten, 3 feral and the Alpha"
The room was still with silence, nothing but heavy silence. Thomas lay battered and unconscious on the bed, blood leaking and soaking into the sheets, the only sign that he was still breathing was the rising of his chest. Mallory stared at him with blazing eyes, eyes that promised retribution. Joshua refused to twitch, refused to break the heavy silence in case he triggered something he knew he would not be able to save himself from.
"Mommy?"
The soft tone that broke the uncomfortable silence left Joshua's shoulder's sagging in relief. He watched as Mallory's blazing gaze dulled and darted towards the closed door. The both of them could hear the soft pitted patters of feet on the floor boards heading towards the stairs. Standing up and heading for the doors Mallory left, leaving Joshua alone with the broken body of Thomas.
He decided not to listen to Mallory talk to her daughter and come up with an excuse as to why her father couldn't read her a story. It would remind him that he too had a son, a child, and it would kill him to have his own child see him as torn and beaten as Thomas. Joshua made his way to Thomas's side and grasped the unconscious man's hand. Once again the guilt of not having helped ate at him and he berated himself for being so cowardly in his mind. Closing his eyes Joshua prepared to leech away the pain that Thomas was probably feeling. He had done as such every time he would be ordered by Alpha Delco to take the 'pathetic omega' home. He would convince himself that this was the only help he could offer. As the veins on his arms turned black, Joshua involuntarily let out a painful gasp. It was so much stronger than anything he had ever leeched before. The crippling amount of pain, sadness and angry all too much. Yet determinedly Joshua held on.
When Mallory returned her face was once more a cold blank mask. She didn't bat an eye at the shaking and gasping form that sat beside her husband. She could see the bulging veins that crawled higher on the skin of the pack's first beta, and hear his grunts of pain. Mallory knew what would happen to a wolf if they took away or shared too much pain, if they went over the amount their bodies and minds could handle. She knew but she didn't care to stop Joshua. Instead she settled beside her husband's still form and watched as Joshua's painful grunts got louder. Finally it was too much for the First beta and he let go of Thomas's hand immediately. As he struggled to regain his breath and slow his heart, Mallory calmly took his place and shared Thomas's pain without a single wince.
"You may leave Quinn. Your presence is no longer needed"
As Joshua staggered to his feet and forced himself to move, Mallory didn't even acknowledge his departure. When Joshua got home he collapsed onto his sofa and began to cry, ratchet chest heaving sobs that racked his frame. The pain he had taken was too much, too overwhelming, all it did was remind him just how big of a sacrifice Thomas Hale had made when he had chosen Mallory as a mate. Joshua cried because he knew he would never be as great a wolf or man as Thomas Hale, sobbed because compared to him, Joshua was weak.
Talia's Pov
Things were a lot easier now. I wasn't confused anymore.
Emily West was a 17 year old girl who died saving a little boy from being run over with a car. She was dead but her memories weren't. Talia Delco was a werewolf born to the apparent omega wolf couple of the Delco pack. On her third birthday she discovered Emily's memories and unlocked them. Two minds, two SOULS cannot share one body, especially one of a child's. So the memories merged in order to make one soul, one mind.
I am Emily and I am Talia, we are one.
It was strange, being able to think like an adult whilst stuck in a child's body, unusually strange but not impossible. After my third birthday I had spent a lot of time sorting through my mind, studying all my memories, both as Emily and Talia. After I had done that I had taken a moment to thank whatever powerful beings were responsible for not letting my adult mind awaken during my new-born years as Talia. I would not have been able to live down the shame of having someone wipe my ass clean. That was all sorts of 'Hell No' on so many levels.
An entire year had passed since my 'awakening' and settling into my new life was interesting to say the least. It was rather scary how easily I took to acting like a three year old. It was also rather daunting to see just how much of an advantage a child had, how much information they were capable of gathering if they simply had the attention span to take note of it. When I had sorted through my memories I took note of all the things that stood out the most. It was the first step I took in figuring out if being born a werewolf would mean drastic differences to being born a human.
I wasn't stupid. I knew that by being a part of a pack meant every behavioural action and habit would be noticed. Werewolves were more advanced than humans, harder to fool. If I had begun to act as if scenting was an uncomfortable action, or that the sight of half shifted faces scared me, people within the pack would wander why. They would scrutinise me, watch me like vultures hovering round their meals. A shift in attitude would draw too much attention. If I had awoken and began to question and panic about everything there could have been a possibility the pack would assume I was possessed.
I had taken great care in how I presented myself, especially in front of my new parents.
Having already accepted that I was both Talia and Emily, it didn't feel wrong or like a form of betrayal, to love my new parent's. Thomas and Mallory Delco were my new mommy and daddy and that was that. The two days I spent sorting through my memories was an easy feat to accomplish. Exaggeratingly yawning and slumping somewhere comfortable and feigning sleep was fondly accepted by my new mother.
My new mother was a goddess in my child mind. She was a bright Beacon of love and warmth. She didn't work and dedicated herself to caring for me 24 hours. The only time she would not be presently taking care of me was when she was called for Pack things.
My new Father though was my hero. Thomas Delco was a dedicated family man. Every night since I had 'awakened' he would come home and hug me tight and cuddle me close. We'd spend the evening playing games, reading stories and talking about everything and anything. At the end of the night he would tuck me into bed and read me a bedtime story, kiss my forehead and wish me sweet dreams. The love he would shower me with was astonishing, something my life as Emily never fully got to experience. Not with how hard Vincent West would work.
Had I been a 'normal' child that would be all that would stand out to me. That would be all I would notice about my family and instead my thoughts would be filled with childish wants. Clouded with thoughts of playing with the other pack pups, becoming a strong wolf, of fighting hunters and chasing fairies. But I wasn't a child, not in terms of mentality.
So I noticed how out casted and isolated my little family was from the rest of the pack. I saw the sneers and depreciated looks the rest of the pack women would level at my mother when we shopped. I heard the undertone of insults they weaved into their conversations when they smiled falsely at her. Because my mind never wondered or spaced out with creative imaginative adventures it was easier to hear and keep track of the pointed whispers that would circulate about my mother. But my mother was a goddess, and she would continue with her duties and such like she never noticed what was speculated about her. Most often I believe she would be too busy trying to keep me from noticing the way the pack treated us to even bother acknowledging their treatment of her.
But all that didn't compare to the treatment of my father.
They tried, I knew they did, to keep me from smelling the coppery scent of blood every Friday Father would come home. Faked many smiles when I would question Father's injuries. How Father would brush off the purposely hard shoving several of the Pack males would inflict on him when he would take me to the park.
With Mother all they did was verbally abuse her but Father suffered more.
Mallory and Thomas were the pack Omega's and the Delco pack refused to let them forget it.
It was definitely a change from the way I was treated as Emily. Miranda and Vincent West were high ranked and praised people. As Emily everyone went out of their way to be nice to me all to gain favour with my parents. Here it was the opposite. Mallory and Thomas were at the bottom of the food chain and so everyone treated me as a nuisance, as if I was nothing but a spoilt brat. All I could think was 'so this was what life was like on the other side'.
So for 4 weeks I learned and studied everything I could about my new life, about werewolves and about my pack. I carefully ensured that my behavioural patterns were not sudden but a gradual development. Eased my way into becoming more comfortable with the unrestrained amount of personal bubble invasion the rest of the pack pups would go about doing. Played my part as the naïve omega spawn.
Before I had known it, a year had already passed I had turned 4. Unlike when I was 3, there was no birthday party held for me. Instead it was a small gathering of other reluctant pack pups at the pack house and that was all. It didn't bother me. I had no interest in celebrating birthdays anymore, not after dying.
*CRACK*
My head swivelled towards the direction of the kitchen. The sound had shaken me out of my contemplating musing and I gave up my false exterior of being distracted by the child's book in front of me.
"Mommy are you okay?" My high pitched voice squeaked out.
Stumbling to my feet and I softly padded my way to the kitchen doorway and peered around it in curiosity. My mother stood there smiling softly at me, her brown eyes were soft and loving. It filled me with warmth and made me want to purr. Although as a werewolf I wasn't sure if that was normal or more werecat like. Did dogs purr?The kitchen light made her look like an angel, shrouding her like an aura of light. It made her look like a majestic being, one who was incapable of causing harm, or causing destruction.
"I'm fine baby. Mommy just broke a plate"
My eyes trailed down to the snapped ceramic plate in her hands and accepted her explanation. Deliberately keeping my tone soft and worried I asked if she was okay.
"Of course sweetie why don't you go get ready for bed, Mommy will be with you soon"
At the reminder of bedtime I couldn't control the pout that formed on my face. Unfortunately it would seem werewolf children still had bedtimes which officially killed any badass ideals I had about them. Werewolves are so much cooler when you're not one. I made sure to let my displeasure known by groaning dramatically and dragging my feet up the stairs. That was a plus about being a child again, nobody could accuse me of being immature because whining and complaining was expected from a child.
As I slipped into my pyjamas and brushed my teeth I lost myself to my musings again. Thoughts on whether or not it was okay of me to feel so at ease with my situation plagued me. I had read stories about how people thought they would deal with being reborn with their memories intact. All of them recounting how they would most likely freak out, deny and then slowly come to accept their situation. I skipped the first two and simply accepted what had occurred. I saw no point in clinging to my life as Emily because it was over. Emily lived and died. What else could be done about it?
I snuggled into the warmth of my blankets and clutched at the stuffed rabbit toy that smelt of fruits and peppermint. I named her Vira in honour of Miranda and Vincent. She was a gift from Father when I turned 4. She never left my room, and when the other pack pups would come over I would hide her upstairs in the attic. I learned when Mother had gifted me with a new ball that my things could be taken if children such as Jared wanted it. I had given the boy the toy without complaint because I was not a child, not in mind, and it was something minor like a ball. The no eye browed brat could have it if it meant he would leave me alone.
Nuzzling my face more into Vira's neck allowed me to lose myself in her fruity peppermint smell. Father had told me that I smelt of strawberries, fresh strawberries and that Mother smelt of Chocolate. It was why his favourite treat would be Chocolate covered strawberries. In return I told Father he smelt of peppermint. When Father had given me Vira and the smells that clung to her invaded my nostrils he had winked and explained how Vira would help me never feel alone.
I would have drifted off to sleep to Vira's smell if it hadn't been for the faint murmurs that invaded my ears. The walls of our home were built with padding that muffled sounds. It didn't block it completely but muffled words so only murmurs and jumbled sentences could be heard. It was like listening to something from underwater. The sounds were coming from downstairs and my curiosity was more potent as a child despite my adult mind. It was why I fumbled out of bed with Vira in my arms and made my way for the stairs.
"Mommy?"
I called out, glancing at the clock I took note of how late it was and the fact that Father should have been home 20 minutes ago. It was usually around this time that he would be tucking me into bed and kissing me goodnight. My eyes narrowed and inhaled sharply. When the scent of copper registered, my eyes flared open and probably flashed golden yellow. Father was home, evident by the stench of blood. When the sound of the guest room door closing could be heard I schooled my features to seem drowsy and confused.
"Why aren't you in bed baby?"
Mother was looking at me serenely as she crouched down to my level and caressed my cheek. I couldn't help but lean into her touch and whined at how comforting it was. Being sure to speak softly I pouted and clutched tightly at Vira.
"Daddy said he'd read me a story when he got home"
It was only with carefully hidden sharp focus that I noticed the way Mother's eyes steeled and her soft caressing of my cheek faltered. I knew Father was home, could smell that he was hurt but mother didn't want me to know. It was most fascinating to see how my mother's soft brown eyes could change the way she appeared. The moment her eyes steeled in concealed emotion, her soft angelic look disappeared and what was left was the face of a warrior. She no longer seemed so gentle and kind but instead cold and unforgiving, it was a face I imagined the goddess Athena wore when she cursed Medusa. The smile returned but it looked prickly on her warrior face.
"Daddy won't be home till late tonight sweetheart."
"Why?"
"He had to work late with some of the pack"
It was only due to the intense studying I had done of the pack and the noting of certain behaviours that I was able to pick up the blip in her heart beat. In this life I had made the decision of living as long as possible. I knew that as a werewolf life would be more dangerous, it was a given. Movies and books didn't repeatedly tell the tales of how fear influenced humans to hate the unknown simply because it was a popular idea.
"But-but Daddy always kisses me goodnight!" I whimpered
Surprisingly this part was not forced, I felt genuinely disappointed in not getting my goodnight kiss. I wasn't sure if it was because such tradition had not existed between Vincent and Emily or because my wolfie self-yearned for Father. Either way it was real tears forming in my eyes.
"I know sweetie. In the morning I'm sure Daddy will make it up to you. Now let's take you and Vira to bed"
I let Mother carry me to bed and tuck me in. I closed my eyes when she pressed her lips to my forehead and whispered goodnight. After she had left and I was alone in my room in the dark, I lay still and thought hard.
Every Friday morning Father would already be gone before 7 am, Mother would be seated at the breakfast table looking blankly into the distance before she would notice me come in. Every Friday night Father would come home and reside in the guest room for exactly 45 minutes, he would then seek me out and spend the rest of the evening with me smelling of copper. It was routine and the break in the pattern did not settle well with me.
Mallory had left Thomas to heal up after she had changed his clothes and the sheets and dressed his wounds. Majority of his injuries would heal before the sun would rise but he would need longer to heal the deep bites and gashes on his legs, chest and face. She needed to shower, needed to clean his blood from her hands and soak her clothes. The smell of blood if not cleaned soon would stick to her in the morning and she couldn't risk letting Talia smell it. It was while she was standing under the heated spray of water that she let herself transform. Hatred fuelled the blood lust her wolf howled for, wanting revenge for the hurt her mate suffered. This pack had forgotten who she was, forgotten what she was capable of and it would be their mistake. They treated her like she was a weak omega, spineless and a pushover. Assumed that because she did nothing to retaliate that she was feeble and pathetic. The Delco pack have forgotten who had forged their reputation as one of the greater packs of Washington.
She could imagine it, the feeling of blood staining her claws a permanent red, the tortured screams from the mouths of her husband's assaulters. The phantom taste of their blood on her tongue when she rips their throats out with nothing but her teeth. Her mind conjured the image of what their faces would look like, filled with nothing but horror and tears as they pleaded her for mercy. She would relish in it all, but none more than when she ended the life of the man who brought her to this point, the man who would be responsible for the Delco packs unfortunate end. Mallory could feel her lips shaping into a snarl, her claws lengthening and digging into the wall of the shower. Her eyes flashed a blazing golden yellow that unlike most wolves resembled the heated flames of a blazing fire. She would TORTURE him before she took his life. She would see to it that Alpha Delco would die a torturous death.
The burning on her left wrist snapped her out of her transformation and her dark thoughts. Writhing in pain Mallory clutched at her arm biting at her tongue to keep her screams quiet. Her veins felt as if molten lava had been injected into her, her bones snapped to pieces and her spine ripped from her back. None hurt as much as the feeling of drills digging into her skull and brain meat from all sides of her head. For what felt like years Mallory writhed on shower floor before it all came to a stop. She weakly pulled herself up and glared at the marking on her left wrist. The marking that ensured she could never leave, that kept her prisoner to this pack and made her family suffer.
It was only a few minutes later that saw to her drying herself and changing into something more comfortable. The mark carefully hidden so she could forget. It was as she passed Talia's room that she noticed the lack of soft breathing and gentle snores. She couldn't hear her daughter sleeping. Immediately she opened the door to her daughter's room and almost panicked at the sight of an empty bed. Shifting in fear and worry she raced down the stairs to check on her mate. It was only then she froze and slowly relaxed.
The guest room door was open and she could hear two heartbeats resounding from the room. Steeling herself Mallory approached the room.
Seated on the chair next to the bed was Talia. Her little girl was staring at the broken and wounded form of her father with a face Mallory recognised. It was a face she knew well because she could remember seeing it in the mirror every day since the day Mallory was 9. It looked wrong on a 4 year old.
"Daddy is the Omega of the pack isn't he"
Mallory didn't answer because she was too busy watching the way her daughter seemed to change right before her eyes. It was one of the more horrific things to see for a mother, to watch the innocence of your child bleed away.
"You're an Omega too"
Still Mallory said nothing. She didn't have to because her daughter was smart. Talia had inherited a lot from Thomas. She had his optimism, his ability to see the good in people. She took more to Thomas's facial features than hers. Talia was indeed Thomas's daughter, but she was also Mallory's. Half her DNA came from Mallory which meant she inherited some of her traits. It was because of this Mallory didn't have to speak or ask to understand what Talia was thinking. She could see it. She could see the anger and the protective hold her baby girl had on Thomas's arm. As Talia crawled onto the bed to lean over and kiss Thomas's head, Mallory straightened with the next words her daughter spoke
"We are not weak"
Despite the clench at witnessing her daughter's innocence bleed away, Mallory felt pride. She could hear the determination to prove the statement true in her little girl's voice. Her little girl was a fighter, stubborn and intelligent. Mallory had known since Talia had turned 3 that she was different, that she was more in tuned with what was happening than most children. She knew that Talia was special and not as naïve as other children her age. Saw it in the way her daughter's eyes would narrow when they would go shopping and the women would gossip about them. The way Talia's ears would twitch and the dazed and thoughtful expression she would dawn when Thomas would talk to her.
So as Mallory approached her slumbering, recovering husband she didn't bother to hide the proud smirk on her face. Not once did she let her eyes stray from her daughter's. The sight of her baby girls dark locks, identical to Thomas's, and the pursed shape of her pale pink lips were nothing short of determined. It was Talia's eyes that really stood out to Mallory though. Her eyes glowing a blazing golden yellow that unlike most wolves resembled the heated flames of a blazing fire…. Identical to her own. It was the only thing Talia had received from her gene pool in terms of physical appearance, they shared the same eyes.
That night Talia had made a decision, one she didn't know would change and influence everything. It was the night Talia Delco, the daughter of the Delco pack Omega's, would begin to cease and the legend that will become Talia Hale would form.
Brief Chapter Purpose:
Okay so this was so you could get a feel of Mallory's character and make conclusions' on why Thomas and Mallory don't just leave. If it ain't clear enough Thomas is really a Hale but he doesn't go by the Hale name for reasons (will be explained later). Emily/Talia are the same person! From this point on my OC will be referred to as Talia, Emily will be mentioned as past tense!
Reminder's
Miranda and Vincent West: Emily's parents
Mallory and Thomas Delco (Hale): Talia's/Emily's new parents
Joshua Quinn: First Beta of Delco Pack
Jared Delco: Joshua's son but has taken Alpha's last name because he was chosen as next Alpha to be.
Vira: Talia's stuffed rabbit named after Emily's parent's. Was a gift from Thomas on her 4th birthday. ([VI]ncent-mi[RA]nda)
Note: Any question's will be answered! This chapter was a bit rushed. Talia and Mallory's relationship will be the key focus whilst Talia is aged 4-8.
Out of curiosity:
What do you think of Mallory's character?
Thoughts on Talia so far?
Thoughts on Delco pack?
Why are Thomas and Mallory considered Omega's?
How do you think this story could be improved?
What do wish to happen?
Thank you for the follows and Faves 3
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