Let’s begin the Awakening.
After their conversation, Rita and Melissa continued talking until Camilla entered the house. She appeared exhausted and asked if she could use the bath. Rita agreed with a smile, apologising for her treatment.
“It’s fine. I totally understand.” Camilla said with a tired smile.
Rita gave an awkward smile, letting Camilla pass to have her bath.
“I wonder what’s up with her?” Rita thought. Even though she had been a little confrontational toward her, Camilla wasn’t the type to get worked up over something like that. Rita decided to let it go, perhaps she was just being too paranoid.
“Let’s not overthink things,” She told herself.
Rita suddenly remembered that she had forgotten to ask Camilla about the reason for her visit. It was possible that she merely came for a friendly visit, but she doubted it. Someone of Camilla’s standing wouldn’t come all the way to their pack, alone and in the middle of winter just for a cup of tea.
There had to be something else, and the fact that Camilla had not brought it up made Rita think about it even more.
“You said my mom went to procure some things for the ‘Awakening’, but is that really fine? I mean, she’s an outsider, isn’t she? Besides, Asher made it abundantly clear that he didn’t even want her here, to begin with, right? Will she be allowed to do something like that on her own?” Roxanne suddenly asked in curiosity.
“Shhh!!!” Rita quickly said, making signs of caution and pointing to the bathroom where Camilla was currently occupying.
“O-Oh, my bad” Roxanne said with a whisper, quickly understanding what Rita meant.
Camilla didn’t know about Roxanne and her mother, at least not the details. It would be best not to give any slip-ups about their connection to Asher.
Rita shook her head slowly and shaped her hand on her forehead with a slight groan. Roxanne looked at her gesture innocently, but Rita didn’t want to start explaining that whispering did her no good against a werewolf’s ears.
“It’s fine. Your mom isn’t alone. She has escorts with her. They’re there to show her to the places she will need to get the materials, plus they are keeping an eye on her. It’s a mutually beneficial arrangement.” Rita explained.
“O-Ohhh… That makes sense” Roxanne commented.
“I wouldn’t worry about Miss Melissa if I were you right now, Roxanne. It’s going to take some time before she gets here. You should spend your time more productively. I’ll be busy with Camilla too, so you have free time.” Rita started.
“Yeah, like there’s anything fun to do,” Roxanne mumbled.
Just as Rita said, Melissa didn’t arrive until evening. Roxanne had given up on waiting for her and instead occupied herself with other things. Things like taking more walks around the village and interacting more with the pack. She tried to find Lenard, or even his son Larry, all to no avail.
After giving up on seeing them, she decided to make do with the rest. By doing so, she found out many interesting things about this wonderful new being she was about to become.
Meanwhile, Rita took Camilla to see Asher, as was the usual procedure when a visitor visited the lake, especially one from the Alpha family. This gave Roxanne and Melissa more than enough time to discuss more important matters.
“Okay, mom. I’m ready!” Roxanne said to her mom, after listening to her explanation for the umpteenth time.
Melissa smiled and looked at her daughter proudly. If she had known Roxanne would take it so well, she wouldn’t have kept it as a secret for so long. It seemed she was afraid of nothing.
“Alright. Get some rest, eat well and sleep. You’ll need it for tonight” Melissa said.
Roxanne did as her mother said. However, it was not an easy thing to simply fall asleep after hearing what would happen in some hours’ time. Nervous did not even begin to describe how Roxanne felt.
“Just calm down and sleep,” She told herself.
Before she knew when, she was already dozing on her bed, after all, she had eaten quite the heavy meal.
“Roxanne… Roxanne…”
She heard a voice calling for her. Roxanne stirred, not wanting to leave her comfy pillow and her feeling of bliss while she slept.
“Roxanne… Wake up. It’s time!” The voice nudged at her.
Roxanne opened her eyes slowly as she saw the blurry image of a person. Slowly she began to come to, remembering the events of before she went to bed.
“The Awakening…” She muttered.
Melissa smiled at her daughter as she stirred up from her bed.
Slowly, the drowsiness of her body left her and she began to feel more like herself. Energy flowed and her full sight returned. Still, everywhere was dark because of the night. The only source of illumination for Roxanne was the lantern her mother carried.
“Yes, the Awakening. Hurry on now” Melissa said.
Roxanne obeyed. She took off her Panama’s and put on a more conducive outfit for the cold. After all, the ceremony was going to take place outside, in the cold. After she wore her very insulated coat, they both proceeded to the living room to get their boots and exit the house.
From the looks of things, Rita and Dax we’re most likely asleep. This made Roxanne curious about the time.
“It’s 11:09” Melissa answered when Roxanne asked her.
The Awakening ceremony was to be held at midnight. Calculating the time it would take for them to reach the site of the event, and set everything up, they were right on schedule.
“Okay, Roxanne. Are you ready?” Melissa asked.
Roxanne nodded with determination.
This wasn’t the first time she would steal away in the middle of the night. The inky difference between what she did in the past was that this time she wasn’t alone, she was with her mother. Oh, and also the fact that she previously went for wrestling, unlike this time where she was going for a ritual that would turn her into a wolf.
They left the house and ventured into the far end of the village, to the woods. Since it had to be a segregated place, they decided to move even further from the settlement. They also needed high ground, a place closer to the sky where the moon’s brilliance could radiate more on her.
Roxanne stared at the sky and watched the milky white circle in the sky. She felt like it followed her wherever she went, and while she found it to be a little creepy, she couldn’t help but smile at the comfort of it.
They finally arrived at high ground, a hill just further in the woods. It was already a cleared area, which made Roxanne assume that this was a site regularly used by the other members of the pack for their own Awakening.
“Now then… Let us begin.” Melissa said.
Melissa started to prepare the materials she bought. Roxanne stared at them, and there were a lot of things she didn’t recognize. She knew the use of some though. There was chalk, some sort of muddy water, wolf skin, bone, and the rest that Roxanne classified as mostly plants and weed she didn’t recognize.
“A wolf is a creature of the tundra, of the woods, the snow, the plains, the forest, and the desert. The wolves are usually at the apex of the food chain wherever they exist. That is why we will proceed with this ceremony with these ingredients, obtained from each and every part of the wolf’s habitat. In order to call out your ‘Inner Wolf’, it must sense familiar territory. We will make such a territory here. I will set things up. You should start too…” Melissa stated.
Roxanne knew what this meant. It was time to strip. Strangely, she didn’t feel any of the embarrassment she felt previously. She felt she could do anything at this point. Was it due to the excitement she was feeling or was it thanks to the high of the moon? She didn’t know, but she didn’t care either.
Her mother gave her an ointment to rub on her body before she took off her garments. While she did this, Melissa prepared the ingredients, arranging them in a circle. She poured the salt to make a circle, connecting the various ingredients she brought. After doing this, she made a smaller circle in the middle. Roxanne guessed that was where she would be staying.
After rubbing the ointment, Roxanne let go of her clothes, entirely naked under the moonlight. Her fair body glistened as she approached her mother with a stern look of resolve.
Initially, she was worried about the cold and how it would affect her if she was not wearing anything, but thanks to the ointment, she felt warm all over her body. Roxanne couldn’t explain how it worked, but that didn’t matter.
Looking at the circle Melissa made, it was easy to suspect it to be some sort of creepy cult ritual of voodoo practises. The Roxanne of the past would definitely freak out if she saw something like this and was told to participate in such a ceremony. However, in just the span of a few days, a lot of things about her had changed. And now, even more would change.
“Step into the circle, Roxanne. Let us begin the Awakening” Melissa said.
Roxanne did as she was told and slowly walked into the centre of the circle, feeling a strange sensation within her as she did so. A warm feeling enveloped her insides. It was finally time.
The moon hung in the sky, serving as a witness to the bizarre event to occur.