The Human in the Wolf Pack

She-Human 2

"C'mon Vera! The Autumn moon festival is this Saturday and you don't have anything in your closet that is even close to appealing," My best friend Rose remarked, her eyes rolling dramatically as she tugged away the blanket that once covered me.

I groaned lazily.

"No way Rose, I'll just wear what I wore last year."

"And the year before that! Jesus H Christ, that thing looks like something you'd get for a 12 year old at Old Navy."

"That's basically what it is."

She feigned a look of utter disgust, her nose turning up at my utter lack of taste in fashion.

"No. No no no no no. Ver, we are going shopping, even if I have to drag your miserable ass with me!"

I gave her the look. The Are you really going to make me do this look.She pierced me with the H to the E double hockey sticks I am look. I sighed, resigned. Rose was as stubborn as they come, and I knew no amount of arguing would get me out of this. My eyes turned to the dress in question, hanging solemnly on a hanger on my closet door. The fabric had faded, but had once been a bright turquoise. It looked like something out of a 2014 nightmare, with a thick, satin sash and a cheaply bedazzled bosom. I winced, knowing Rose was justified in her actions.

"Fine, lets go," I grumbled unhappily, reluctantly leaving the warm comfort of my bed.

Rose squealed excitedly as she skipped merrily out of my disaster of a room, and towards the garage. I hesitated, giving my bed one last longing look.

"C'mon Vera! I don't have all day," she sang all too sweetly from the garage.

I sent a quick prayer up to the heavens that I would survive this mess, then slowly dragged my unwilling body out to meet Rose in the garage. 

.....

"Lighten up, Ver! You look like you're being sent to the s*******r," Rose commented as she parked her car.

"It sure feels like it," I grumbled glumly.

"Oh shush! It's not that bad."

"Ok, fine. But I don't want to be here too long, Rose. Seriously, three hours tops!" I tell her sternly.

She laughs.

"Fine, fine. three hours tops!" She said, but for some reason I didn't believe her. She brushed off my suspicious glare with an innocent smile.

We got out of the car and started walking in the mall. It was a large building, that housed close to a hundred different stores. Even though the place seemed excessively huge, it was the only mall in a forty mile radius, and an establishment I had become regrettably accustomed to due tomy friendship with Rose. Usually, I prefered to go to little boutiques, help out small businesses you know, but Rose is quite the opposite.

She's all about high quality and the newest thing. She's pretty stylish for someone who rips, looses or trashes her clothes practically every time she shifts. Suddenly there's a buzzing noise, and I look over to Rose curiously. She has her phone out and she's already taking the call.

"Hello? Oh, hey Jer! What's up?" I felt my mood darken as I turned away.

Honestly, I don't want to be jealous of Rose, but she has something I never will. A mate. It didn't take me long to realize that I wasn't like the rest of my pack. I wasn't a werewolf. I'm just human. When I was 3, a member of the pack found me lost, scared and crying in the woods.

They took me back to the pack house, where the Alpha and Luna, the two people I now call Mom and dad, decided to adopt me. They had always wanted a daughter, but Mom had a hard time being pregnant and had almost died giving birth to Ripley, so dad didn't want to risk it.

They saw it as a sign that I was brought to them and mom loved me as soon as she set her sights on me. I'm seventeen now, soon to be eighteen, and even though I loved my family completely, it was hard living in the pack. When I was eleven, my parents told me the truth. That I was human, and all the mating, shifting, all that werewolf stuff,  wouldn't happen to me. Not that I hadn't guessed, but I suppose some part of me always had hoped I was wrong. The pack had always treated me differently. The adults were either awkward or cold, and the kids always treated me as if I had the plague.

Apart of me was heart broken, but what can I do? This is who I am. Plus, there was Rose. She didn't care that I was different, and there were those like her who treated me kindly, but the flip side of the coin was that there were also people like Rider. He was Ripley's best friends growing up and he used to torment me constantly. A lot of people in the pack don't like me because I'm human, but Rider despised me.

He moved back to his Pack shortly after Ripley and him had a falling out, but they started texting and made up. Ripley is in college now, he goes to the same school as Rider, or so I heard. Rider doesn't come around, even if Ripley and he are friends. 

"Jeremy is going to meet us here," Rose chirped happily, breaking me out of my train of thought.

I plastered on an excited smile.

"Great," I said tightly.

She gave me a funny look, but started walking towards the food court. I followed taking a deep breath. I will not be envious or ugly towards my best friend because she's blessed with something I'm not. I will be happy for her.

We ordered some fries and a pizza as we waited on Rose's mate, Jeremy. When his light haired head came into view, Rose leaped up and tackled him in a hug, plopping a wet kiss on his cheek, causing him to tickle her. I gagged playfully at them as the two sat down. They talked mostly, but I would chime in occasionally. Jeremy was the type of pack member who was on the fence about my existence. He wasn't friendly, but he didn't harass me. Most of the time, he just avoided me. We finished our food then start the painful process of shopping. 

....

"Rose please stop! I don't want to try on any more!" I whined like a baby, a pink monstrosity squeezing the life out of me. Could this even be labelled as clothes?

"Grow a pair, Vera! C'mon, just one more!" She begged.

I whined some more until finally agreeing to one more. Her eye scanned the shelves of the store carefully until finally brightening.

"This one!" She cried out victoriously.

I eyed it suspiciously. It didn't look too dangerous. It was actually kind of beautiful. It was a nice color and had flowy, non constricting fabric. The translucent lace that attached to the bosom and connected at the neck, left a small window at the back. That small detail gave the dress an elegant and modest feel, but still seemed cute and flirty.

I took it reluctantly and went to the changing room for hopefully the last time. The fabric felt comfortable against my skin as it slid on. I sighed. It fit perfectly. I looked in the mirror and had to do a double take.

It looks awesome! It hit mid thigh and hugged my curves in the right places. It was cute, slightly sexy but still modest, as I had hoped. The light blue color was also safe, so I wouldn't stand out too much.

"Let me see!" Rose yelled eagerly from the other side of the changing room door.

I shyly opened the door, twiddling my finger in front of me. Rose was silent for a moment.

"It's.... Perfect! You look gorgeous. We're getting it," she decided stubbornly.

I smiled, silently agreeing with her. We picked out some simple jewelry and a pair of nude heels with small rhinestones coating the heels. Finally we could go home.