Chapter 10: Home
"Wake up middle schoolers!" I hear my dad call.
I sit up and look around my room. 6th grade! I still wake up sometimes smiling my life changed so much 5 years ago. Ruby is a pain. She went from best friend to sister over night. Its annoying.
"Wake up you little turd!" She yells throwing my shoes at me. I tie thim together to make them easy to carry so I get hit twice.
"Hay leave my stuff alone dog breath!" I yell back.
"If you'd Stop living like a pig and clean your room I wouldn't have anything to throw!" She responds and runs off.
I look around again. She is right I need to clean up.
"Alaric down here now!" Dad yells.
"Coming!" I call down to him.
I hop out of bed. I nearly trip over my dirty clothes in my haste to get downstairs. I run as fast as I can skidding to a stop in the kitchen my socks make me slide and I slam into the counter.
"Careful pup!" Dad says as he gives me a plate. "Eat quick and get ready you guys are running late."
"I'm not! I've been ready for an hour. I can't wait! We actually get schedules and more than one classroom! It's like we are in high school!" She says bouncing. I can see she is already dressed with her hair in a braid.
"Not so fast little wolf... I'm not ready for high school!" Dad says to her.
I eat as fast as I can. "Thanks dad!" I say as I run out of the kitchen and back to my room. I pull a random shirt from my closet and pick up a pair of jeans from the floor. I give them a snif... woh! Not those ones! I throw them down and find a cleaner pair. I run to the bathroom wash my face and get dressed. As I remove my shirt I see the three lines that cut across my torso.
Why did mom take me away when I was little? Why didn't Dad come? Why were we Attacked?
These questions plagued me for the last few years. At first I was just happy to be here but now... now I want answers.
"Alic come on! The group is ready to leave!" Dad yells up to me.
"Coming!" I yell back. I throw a shirt on and run some gel in my hair spiking it. Dad hates it but I think it looks cool. I throw my shoes over my shoulder and run downstairs. "Bye dad love you!" I say giving a quick hug.
"Alic wait socks!" Dad says as I jump off the porch. I turn and he tosses me a wad of socks.
"Thanks dad!" I yell as I run to catch up to the group.
"Hay Alic!" Ti says as I join them. He was kinda a jerk at first... still is sometimes but he's my best friend. We're stuck together alot with my dad being Beta. Mrs. Whitman watches us alot. I kinda feel bad for her 4 kids! Ti, Malak, and Ruby are 13 and I'm 12. I don't think we need watching as much any more but depending on the day we still get dropped with her.
"Hay Ti!" I say hopping on one foot as I put a shoe on. "How was your summer?"
"Good!... grandpa helped us run faster. He's old but man is he quick! Must be because he was an Alpha... I think I could take you now!" He says.
"Dream on! I will always whop you Alpha training or not... you're just too slow... I guess it's a good thing you'll have me as Beta!" I tell him.
"That's what you think!" He responds "once I became Alpha I'll be the strongest wolf in the world just like my dad! I came from two Alphas how can I not be the best?"
"Umm I think you two are forgetting something... Malak might get the Alpha!" Ruby says.
"Yea right!" Ti says "I was born first and I'm stronger!"
"Your dad was second born." Ruby counters.
"Yea... what ever! I wasn't talking to you anyhow!" He answers.
We make it to the school Ruby ignores us and talks to Malak most of the way.
"Alright pups no lolly gaging meet up here right after school I don't want to wait for you!" Cindy says. She is a senior and hates getting stuck with us. "Hurry up now I don't want to get in trouble because you all are late GO!"
We all run off. This year I get to go with Ti to the middle school. Last year sucked being in different buildings.
"Catch me at lunch!" He says as he heads to his class. I look at my schedule and find my first room.
I jump inside as the bell rings. Most of these kids look familiar but I see a few new faces. Now that I have more than one class I'll get to see more kids. The teacher calls role then stands in front of the class.
"Brian Dunn, Alaric Grayson, Ruby Grayson, Emily O'connor." She says. "You four are to report to room 207" we all stand up looking at each other. "Get a move on I have a class to teach!"
We walk into the hallway and shut the door.
"What is this about?" Brian links me and Ruby. The Emily girl isn't a wolf or he'd just talk to us. He is shy around non pack members.
"Don't know Bri." I link back.
"Come on dodo head!" Ruby links "we are top of the class... I bet they are gonna put us in a special class!"
Only Ruby would be happy about that. I don't want made fun of any more than I already am. I like learning. After Alpha Brayden told me he was in college at 14 I wanted to see what I could do. Plus I need to do some research to find out about my mom so I study. Brian looks mortified he doesn't like it when people pay attention to him.
"Don't worry Bri." I link to him "Ruby thinks everything is about how smart she is... and even if she is right I'll stick with ya." He gives me a half hearted smile.
"Here we are." Emily says as we reach the room. We stand there for a moment before Ruby opens the door.
"Finally the rest of the students are here!" The teacher says "have a seat!" The room has 16 other kids in it. We come in and find seats. The rest of the kids are human except for the three of us and Markie Bliss I see in the back.
"What's going on?" She links me as I sit down.
"I don't know Marker." I link back. Why do they assume I know anything?
"Alright children settle down!" I turn around to face the teacher. "You are the top 20 students starting middle school this year. We decided to do a placement test to gauge your current level and place you accordingly... do your best on this test but there is no pressure. You can't fail so just fill in what you know." She says.
They hand out a testing booklet. It says grades 6-12 Mathematics.
"You have one hour. Begin." The teacher says.
"Hay I don't get 27." I link to Ruby.
"No cheating numb skull" she links back.
"Geez love you too sis!" I respond and she blocks me out. Oh well... I haven't studied ahead too much in math but I'll make up for it in reading and writing... I'm no slouch in science or history either.
The test takes all day. It was sooo boring and I didn't even get to have lunch with Ti.
"What happened to you?" He asks on our way home.
"Placement testing... it took alllll day!" I answer.
"Yea I had to do that last year. I purposefully got some wrong so they wouldn't move me. They kept Malak in the same grade but he is in advanced classes. They moved some kids up a grade or two." Ti says.
"Wow... I didn't realize they would do all that! Now I'm nervous." I say.
"Don't be!" He tells me "your smart maybe you'll show up your sister... imagine her little brother a year ahead of her in school!" I laugh at that one. No way I'd beat her.
"Never gonna happen Ti... he didn't even know that 27 was B." Ruby taunts elbowing me in the side.
"That's just Math!" I yell after her as she skips away. "I bet I destroyed you in history!"
"Don't listen to her I'm sure you did great!" Ti says.
When we get home I go straight to my room and start cleaning up. When I'm nervous I like to stay busy. Usually I read but right now that will only exasperate the problem. I start picking up my clothes and throwing them in my hamper when I hear a knock at my door.
"Who are you and what happened to my son?" Dad says as he walks across my freshly cleared floor and sits on my bed. He sniffs the air then my pillow and coughs "change your sheets too they reek" he says and gets up walking over to my desk chair and moving my book on ancient mythology he sits down.
"What do you want dad?" I ask.
"My my the teenage attitude coming in early... I'd like my son to talk to me and show a little respect." He says eyeing me as I strip my bed. I stop and walk over to him. I sit on the foot of my bed facing him.
"Sorry dad... I'm a little freaked out." I tell him.
"I figured Ruby is beaming. Already planning a graduation speech if I were to guess." He jokes. I laugh. It wouldn't surprise me if she was."So how are you doing pup." I stand up and start picking up my bed clothes.
"I don't know dad." I say throwing them on top of my overly full hamper. I have more dirty clothes than clean right now. "I want to prove myself but... I don't know if I can do it! What if they move me and I fail?" Alpha Brayden listed my ridiculous honesty among strengths but sometimes I wish I could keep my insecurities hidden.
"Stop." Dad says grabbing my hand and turning me to face him. He places his hands on my shoulders and looks me in the eye. "You won't fail... they don't move kids more than one or two grades so they stay close to kids their own age so unless you passed every question it won't be too bad." He says and I nod looking away from him.
"Thanks Dad." I say and he pulls me into a hug. He always knows what to say. He pulls away and heads to the door.
"Finish cleaning up in here tho" he says turning back to me as he reaches the door. "How can you live like this?... I'd think the smell alone would drive your wolf bonkers!... I want this room spotless and fresh as a daisy by dinner. You don't eat until it's done so I'd hurry if I were you."
I spend all day cleaning and doing laundry. I am hanging the last of my clothes when dad comes back. He takes a big whiff as he enters.
"Under the bead?" He asks
"Clear." I say lifting the comforter.
"Closet?"
"Nothing but clothes." I answer.
He walks around my room breathing deeply.
"Ok come on!" He says putting me in a head lock and running his knuckles through my hair.
"Knock it off dad!" I yell pushing him. He laughs and lets go.
"Hurry up I'm hungry." He says pushing me he takes off running down the stairs.
"Hay! Not fair!" I yell and chase after him.
We have a big dinner and dad sends us to bed saying it's a school night. I take a shower and lay in bed trying to sleep.
"Hay Ruby you still up?" I link
"What do you want I'm trying to sleep." She responds.
"Nothing sorry." I say.
"What's up Alic?" She asks.
"I'm nervous." I answer.
"Don't be... I helped you study you can't have done too horribly." She says.
"Yea I guess." I respond staring at the ceiling.
"Go to sleep Alic... no sense worrying about things you can't control... we will find out more tomorrow." She links.
"Thanks sis." I say.
"No problem bro... go to sleep." With that she cuts the link.
I lay in bed willing myself to sleep. "Tomorrow." The word rings through my mind. We shall see.
Weekly Power Status
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Ranking 
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