Rori-POV
I followed phoebe in silence as she walked ahead of me. I'v been entertaining the idea of turning back from the very moment we set out to go south. Even though the thought of turning around and running back to the comforts of our house was tempting, i still stuck around because i know phoebe is counting on me.
Even if she is using the whole 'i can't control my powers' thing but in whole honesty, i can tell she also needs me for mental support.

I have seen her hands shake once or twice and when she thinks i'm not looking, she'd close her eyes to keep her tears at bay. That is when i know how much she is being pressured.
I looked back to the road we just came from before walking fast to catch up to her.
"Doesn't the council even know that you don't use magic anymore?" I asked as i gave her a side glance.
"Yes. They do know i don't practice anymore." She answered without looking at me.
"Then why did they ask you to replace the dead witch?" I adjusted my arrow quiver over my shoulder. Phoebe has made me wrap the quiver and bow in thick leather so it wouldn't affect any werewolfs we might come in contact with.
"I'm not sure myself. But i'm sure we will find out soon enough. We're almost there." She answered as she tried to cover the shakeing of the hands by tucking them in her jacket pocket.

She kept saying she doesn't know why she was asked to fill in but she seams to forget that i'm a shifter and i can smell lies. I know she has a hunch or two about her sudden invitation and that she is lying to me, but i don't want to call her out on it. At least not yet.
Both of us chose to remain silent for the rest of the journy until we came across a bus going south. I can smell the magic coming out of that bus like thick cheeze in the air. And it seems phoebe had caught the same feelings too. So, she sticks he thumb out by the side of the road.
The bus comes to a slow stop and the windows roll down.
A giant man with full beard and stricking green eyes sticks his head out the window and glares down at us. I know, without a doubt that he is a shifter. I'm just not sure what exactly he is.

Phoebe walks closer to the bus as i look the bus over. It has a big glitery words across it, spelling 'Beam Academy' on the side of it.
"Excuse me." Phoebe softly calls towards the grumpy stranger as some of the people inside of the bus started to pick out to see us.
"I noticed you were going south. Could you please give us a lift?"
The grumpy giant just stares at phoebe and me with a frown on his face. Phoebe cleared her throat before she spoke agian.
"Please, sir..." she stopped so he could tell her his name.
"Beam." The guy mummbled.
"Mr. Beam. My friend and i have been traveling by leg for three days. We would really be greatful if you could give us a ride. You can drop us off at a brown bus stop..."
"You're going to silver fang pack?" A young girl asked after she popped her head out next to the giant stranger.
"Darla!" The man who just introdused him self as Mr. Beam warned her but she just shoved his broad shoulder away to make herself more space.
"Relax dad." She rolled her eyes at the man before turning her attention to phoebe.
"So. Is it silver fang pack?" She asked again and phoebe nodded her head.
"See..." the young woman looked over to the giant stranger whom is apparently her father. "We're heading there. What's the harm in giving them a ride?"
The giant man sighed before he turned away from the window. "Great. Hop in." Darla, the young woman calls out as one of the students opened the bus door for the two of us.
We thanked them and made our way in to the giant bus. The front of the bus was filled with childeren, some i can tell are shifters while other felt different yet powerful. At the middle, sat the teenagers and some that looked old enough to be teachers.
Darla and Mr. Beam were at the very front of the bus sitting right behind the driver. And at the very end, sat a small woman.
Phoebe went to sit next to Darla and her father to thank them for giving us a ride while i walked to the back of the bus to sit next to the single woman who looked too...out of place.
"Hello?" She greats me almost as if she was asking if it was okay for her to speak to me.
"Hi." I quickly answered with a smile. After a few minutes of silence, the woman spoke again.
"So...Are you really heading over to the silver fang pack?" She asked seeming so unsure if she should talk to me or just keep silent.
I looked around the bus to see that not a single soul cared about the small girl sitting next to a stranger at the back of the bus and i couldn't help but wounder if she was some what similar to me.
I nodded my head. "Yeah. My friend got invited and she likes to take me everywhere."
The girl chuckls before extending her hand towards me.
"I'm Sithy."
I shook her hand. "Nice to meet you, Sithy. I'm Rori and my friend over there is Phoebe."
Sithy beams at me as she shook my hand. Her grip felt weak and too fragile that i was scared that i might break her hand. She's short, shorter that me and as thin and small as i was when i was still in my old pack.
"So, are you a student?" I asked and the smile on her face instantly drops. I tensed when i heard a few snickers and snorts from the teacher who sat far infront of us. With how they had their heads tilted back, i can tell that they were listening in to our conversation.
I looked over to Sithy and saw that she had her hands balled into a tight fist.
"No. I'm not a student. I'm a professor at the academy."
Her words made me stop for a moment and i couldn't help but look over to the other students. She looked smaller than most of the teenagers and yet she's a professor?
"I'm a dear shifter." She whispered and i looked over at her. A dear shifter? I suddenly remember all the dear i hunted in my lioness form and guilt rushed through my bones. None of those i hunted were shifters, were they?
"Wow." I breath out and she flinched. "I don't mean wow in a bad way. I mean, i'v never met a dear shifter before. I'v seen wolf shifters but never dears."
She shook her head and gave me a weak smile. "It's fine. I...prey shifters are usualy smaller."
"I didn't mean to offend you..."
She quickly shook her head "you didn't offend me. Honestly, only the kids like having me around. The rest..." she looked over to the front of the car and i followed her gaze over to Mr. Beam, the giant man for a second before she averted her eyes.
I really wanted to know her story but she turned her head to look out the window and i knew i upset her.
Four years since i met another person that wasn't phoebe and i already feel like an ass. Great start, Rori.
***
The ride was short and we made it past the border to the territory of silver fang pack after we presented our invitations to the boarder patrols.
As we stepped out of the bus, we were met by a couple of workers who i assume are the omegas of the pack. They took the bags and gifts brought for the pack.
When as omega asked me to give her my quiver, i kindly refuesd. Even though it looks like a bag full of clothe or other possessions because of the thick leather, i will rather die than let another touch my arrows and bow other than phoebe.
"The alpah is out by the front of the main pack house. Please follow me."
One of the girls commented before moving away. As the childern scattered away, phoebe, Mr. Beam, Darla a couple of professors and myself followed the omega to the front of the pack house.
This isn't as bad as i thought it would be. Or so i though until an intoxicating scent hits me so hard that i almost stumbled back. I know that scent. It is the very scent that sometimes haunts me at night. Its not too close or too far away. My mouth waters at the scent of cinomen and strawberrys and my heart starts to skip a beat by ever step i took. This was not part of the plan...
When we got to the front of the pack house, my entire world crashed down and fail at the feet of the one who broke me.
There he stood, with his plain gray t-shirt, huge leather jacket and giant commbat boots. The very wolf who shattered my world and turned it upside down.
Adalwolf.