Awakening the Silver Wolf

June.

“Rise and shine, little sister.”

I groaned, pulling the thick quilt over my head. The voice was too loud, too cheerful.

“Go away, Finn,” I mumbled into the darkness of my cocoon.

“Not a chance. It’s the big day. Eighteen. You’re officially an adult. Legally allowed to do all the boring things you’ve been doing for years.”

The mattress dipped as he sat on the edge of my bed. I felt him tug at the blankets.

“Five more minutes.”

“Nope. Mom’s making your favorite. Silvercrest pancakes. She’s using the good syrup, not the stuff we give the pack pups.”

That got my attention. I peeked one eye out from under the quilt. My older brother grinned down at me, his brown hair a messy mop. He was already dressed in his training gear.

“Is she really?”

“Cross my heart,” he said, tapping his chest. “Dad’s already pacing downstairs. He’s more nervous than you are.”

My stomach did a nervous flip, and the brief excitement over pancakes vanished. “Don’t say that.”

Finn’s smile softened. “Hey. It’s going to be fine.”

“You don’t know that,” I whispered, sitting up. The quilt fell into my lap. “No one in the history of the Moonstone Pack has ever been wolfless past their eighteenth birthday. Ever.”

“So you’ll be the first. You’ll be a legend.” He tried to keep his tone light, but I saw the worry in his eyes. He was a terrible liar.

“I’ll be a liability,” I corrected him. “The Beta’s daughter. A human burden in a pack of warriors.”

“Stop it. You are not a burden.”

“Finn, the Games are coming up. The pack needs every strong body it can get. What am I going to do? Cheer from the sidelines? Offer everyone water bottles?”

“You’re smarter than half the shifters in this territory, June. Your brain is a weapon.”

“A weapon that can’t heal in seconds or rip a rogue’s throat out.”

He sighed, running a hand through his hair. “I hate when you get like this.”

“I hate being like this,” I shot back, my voice cracking.

“It will happen,” he said, his voice firm, full of the conviction I so desperately lacked. “Tonight, at midnight, you’ll shift. And your wolf will be so fierce it’ll scare the crap out of all of us.”

I wanted to believe him. I really did.

Downstairs, the scent of pancakes and melting butter filled the air. Mom and Dad were waiting at the table. Mom rushed over, pulling me into a hug that smelled like cinnamon and home.

“There’s my birthday girl,” she said, kissing my forehead. “Eighteen. I can hardly believe it.”

“Happy birthday, sweetheart,” Dad said, his deep Beta voice usually a comfort, but today it just added to the pressure. He stood tall and proud, his presence filling the room. “Ready for tonight?”

“I’m nervous, Dad.”

“Nonsense,” he boomed, though his eyes were gentle. “Whatever happens, you are a Calloway. You are Moonstone blood. That means more than any wolf.”

It was what he always said. It was meant to be comforting, but it felt like a consolation prize. You might not be like us, but at least your last name is good.

“Your father is right,” Mom added, setting a heaping plate in front of me. “We love you, wolf or no wolf.”

“But the pack won’t,” I said quietly, poking at my food.

Finn sat down across from me. “The pack loves you. You’re the wolfless wonder. Our good luck charm.”

“I don’t want to be a charm. I want to be a wolf.”

Just then, the front door opened, and a voice that made my heart stumble over itself echoed from the hall.

“Smells like a celebration in here.”

Owen. The Alpha’s son. Finn’s best friend. My everything.

He walked into the kitchen, and the whole room seemed to get brighter. He was golden. Golden hair, tanned skin, and eyes the color of warm honey. He moved with the easy confidence of a future Alpha, a king in waiting.

“Owen, you’re early for patrol,” my dad said, smiling.

“Couldn’t miss wishing the birthday girl a good morning,” he replied, but his eyes were on me. That intense, searing gaze made my skin feel too warm.

“Happy birthday, June.”

“Thanks, Owen,” I managed, my voice barely a squeak.

Finn rolled his eyes. “Don’t mind her. She’s just overwhelmed by her adCallowayd age.”

I kicked him under the table.

Owen chuckled, a low, melodic sound. He leaned against the counter, crossing his muscular arms over his chest. “Big night.”

I nodded, unable to speak. All my fears felt amplified under his stare.

“I have a good feeling about it,” he said, his voice dropping a little, making it a private promise just for me. “A really good feeling.”

My heart soared. He had a good feeling. Owen, who was destined for greatness, believed in me.

“You should have seen the training session this morning,” Finn said to him, oblivious to the silent conversation happening across the table. “The trainees for the Games are looking sharp.”

Owen’s attention snapped to my brother. “Sharp isn’t good enough. The Obsidian Pack has been making moves at the borders. Rogues. Scum. We need killers, not athletes.”

The casual brutality in his voice sent a shiver down my spine. That was the Alpha talking. Not the boy I grew up with.

“We’re ready for them,” my father assured him.

Owen’s eyes drifted back to me. His expression softened again, becoming the boy I knew. “We will be. Especially after tonight.”

He winked at me.

“Just imagine it, June,” he said, his voice a low hum that vibrated through the floor. “Your wolf, finally running beside mine. Leading the pack together.”

My breath hitched. Leading the pack. Together. It was the future I painted for myself in my dreams, a fantasy I never dared speak aloud.

“And if… if it doesn’t happen?” I had to ask. I had to know.

The air in the room grew still. Finn stopped eating. My parents looked down at their plates.

Owen’s perfect smile tightened for just a second, a flicker of something hard and cold in his eyes before it was gone.

“It will,” he said, the confidence back, absolute and unyielding. “The Moon Goddess wouldn’t deny her chosen Alpha a worthy pack.”

He didn't say 'a worthy mate'. He didn't even say 'a worthy friend'.

He said 'a worthy pack'.

My place in his future, I realized with a sudden, chilling clarity, was not as a person. It was as an asset.

“I have to get to the patrol,” he announced, clapping Finn on the shoulder. “Don’t be late. And June?”

I looked up at him.

“Don’t disappoint me,” he said, flashing a brilliant smile. It was meant to be a joke, a playful command.

But as he walked out the door, all I could hear was the threat underneath.