Raven's POV

I woke up the following day in a better mood. I wasn't going to allow the Luna and Maggot to dampen my morale that week. If I could not get a deserving birthday celebration, I could at least be allowed to be happy before and on my day.

I would be eighteen in two days and finally get to meet my wolf. No matter how weak or small it was going to be, I was ready to accept it. My wolf will be an addition to what I could call mine. I already had Bella and April, but with my wolf joining the train, I was going to be very happy.

I walked into the Omegas' meeting room to wait for those I would be cleaning with. I wasn't happy with the heavy burden placed on me but I had no option. If I refused to work then I might face more dire consequences.

'What is this curse doing here?' Lina one of the Omega girls asked once she entered the meeting room.

'Who knows? Maybe she is here to make her curse pour on the ground like rain,' another girl said.

'I just hope she is not in the group,' Lina said again.

I just bowed my head refusing to look up at them. I was used to their bullying. Sometimes they hit me as well. April or Bella wasn't there to defend me so I had to stay out of their way. Bella was in the group to serve food and drinks during the ball while April was in the final clean-up group.

There was a time that I would have responded and fought if need be. But since the day I fought one of the girls and I was reported to the Luna, I had stopped letting them provoke me since then. That day the Luna refused to hear my side of the story and asked one of the soldiers to flog me. I was given twenty strokes of a horsewhip.

I almost couldn't walk the following day. Bella had tended my wounds with tears in her eyes while April sobbed quietly. April would not stop asking me why I fought the girl in the first place. A question I couldn't answer myself. I could have just walked away.

To avoid a recurrence of that day, I avoided them and took their bullying without complaint. I knew the Luna wanted to kill me but she couldn't due to the Alpha's insistence on sparing me.

'What are you doing here?' The head of the cleaning team asked. I was startled because I was lost in thought.

I quickly stood up and apologized. 'I am sorry ma'am I was waiting for instructions,' I nearly stammered.

'You were put on the cleaning team this year? Why?'

'I am also on the hospitality list and also the cleaning up team.'

She was silent for a while. I looked at her to see that she was deep in thought. She was one of the few people who paid me no mind. She neither showed me love nor hate.

'How old are you?' She asked quietly as if trying to avoid being heard.

'I will be eighteen in two days ma'am,' I answered quietly too.

She came closer to me and held me by the shoulder. 'A major event is about to take place in your life. The journey will be tough and rough but when the storm starts be more weary of the enemy within than the one outside,' she said in a voice so low that only I could hear and understand her clearly.

She left me thereafter and divided us into smaller units to get the work done. I was the only one in my unit. I guess the head cleaner was trying to save me from being bullied by the other girls.

I diligently did my work and when I was through, it was inspected by the head cleaner. She was pleased with my work and she asked me to go and report the next morning without coming late.

April and I had agreed to go to the stream when we were through with our work to have a thorough bath. We only cleaned necessary parts in the morning before going for our duty so we made it a point to go to the stream to bathe once a week.

Bella, April's mum insisted on following us so we had to wait for her to finish up in the kitchen before we could set out.

When we got to the stream, we took out our bar of soap that was handed to us once a month. There was no long hair to wash as all Omegas were expected to keep their hair cut low both young and old. Even Maggot's hair was cut low.

When we were through with our bath, we sat relaxing by the stream when I remembered the head cleaners talking about the enemy within so I decided to ask Bella about it.

'Mum'

'Yes?' She answered giving me her perfect attention immediately. I wonder most times how she was able to love me as much as she loved her biological daughter.

'What is the meaning of the enemy within?'

'It can mean a lot. Why are you asking?'

'The head cleaner today told me that a storm was coming and that I should be more wary of the enemy within.'

'The head cleaner?' April asked. She was previously not paying much attention but when I started talking about the head cleaner she paid attention.

'Yes,' I answered her.

Bella took a deep breath. 'I have heard rumors around the pack that the head cleaner has the gift of vision.'

'Really' I asked looking surprised. 'I thought an Omega was not supposed to amount to anything.'

'That is a very bad way of viewing your present condition, Raven. Irrespective of the condition one is in, one must be optimistic,' Bella reprimanded me.

'I am sorry Mum. I just feel very hopeless sometimes.'

'You don't have to feel hopeless. Truthfully our present condition is hopeless yet we must not give up.'

I nodded and apologized for my words again.

'Now to what the head cleaner told you. You must not forget when you begin to face the storm. Do not trust anyone. The enemy within is the person close to you like your friend who in the actual sense is an enemy.'

'Close friends?' I asked.

'Yes. They are the ones who know your strong points and your weak points. They are the ones that can easily sell you to the external enemy. All the head cleaner is trying to tell you is that, you should trust no one when the time comes.'

' Thanks, Mum,' I said smiling happily at her.

We decided to head back to the pack's house in case we were needed there since the preparations for the upcoming ball was all everyone could think of.

As we arrived at the pack's house, we caught sight of Luna Laura talking to Maggot about something. She was gesticulating angrily. Bella immediately changed our destination.

We dodged the Luna and Maggot because the Luna would have something to say about us walking around aimlessly. I am not proud to say that my Luna was mean and arrogant. The thought of what the head cleaner said crossed my mind. Since Luna Laura had always been my enemy, could she be the enemy within?

Raven's POV

'Happy birthday sweetheart,' Bella sang.

I turned to my side not believing it was morning yet.

'Wake up sleepy head. It is your birthday,' April said laughing and throwing herself at me.

I jumped to a sitting position while glaring at April but I was taken aback by the light illuminating the room from the candles on the cake Bella was holding.

'Am I dreaming?' I asked rubbing my face which made both Bella and April start laughing.

'You are not dreaming my darling, it is indeed your birthday and this is your birthday cake,' Bella said smiling lovingly.

I couldn't help but burst into tears. I felt so blessed to have both of them. If only the circumstances could change, I would happily have wanted Bella to formally adopt me so that I could call her mum in the presence of everybody. She deserved it!

' Thank you so much, mum. Thank you, April. I love you both,' I said sobbing.

'Aww, such a crybaby,' April said hugging me. Mum also placed the cake on the floor carefully to join and turn it into a group hug.

' Where are the cake and candles from?' I asked after my sob had subsided.

'Actually, that is a little bit of here and there,' Mum said looking as guilty as sin.

' Let's just say we have been picking it from here and there just to make your big day special,' April explained.

She didn't have to say much, I understood what she meant. They must have been sneaking the ingredients for the cake out of the kitchen just to surprise me. I knew what the consequences could be if they were caught and they knew too. Yet they chose to put smiles on my face not minding what the consequences of their actions could be.

'Thank you, I am so grateful to both of you. I don't know what my life would have been like without the both of you,' I said as fresh tears sprang to my eyes.

'We are not here to make you cry. It is past midnight. Your wolf will soon be here, that was why we came earlier. Make a wish and blow off the candle,' Mum said.

My wolf is expected to show up at one o'clock but I must be alone. I must shift into my wolf in solitude for the first time. It applied to all wolves no matter the status.

I had never made a wish in my life. I never wished for anything. I just wanted to live my life. Simply put, I just existed with no aspirations because candidly I had always believed I would never amount to anything, not with my status.

But that day for the first time I wished for something special. I wished for a mate who would come and take me away from my mystery and make me happy.

After making the wish, I opened my eyes and blew the candles off. April and Mum clapped and sang me the normal birthday song.

We talked for some time while eating the cake. The cake wasn't bad but it sure could have used more sugar. We talked about everything. We talked about what would happen if April found her mate and he was not from the pack. We discussed mine too before they both eventually left.

I waited anxiously. I had always wanted to meet my wolf. I had always thought that maybe if I had a wolf too, the bullying would reduce even if they didn't stop.

Suddenly I felt a twist in my stomach as if I ate something bad. I wondered if it was the cake. Then I began to feel pain in my neck. Before I could fully process that, the pain was all over my body.

If I didn't know better, I would have screamed. I endured the pain and refused to scream even as I fell to the floor of my hut. I writhed on the floor trying to get solace from the pain by stretching. I could hear my bones snapping noisily.

Suddenly the pain stopped and I attempted to get up but I suddenly discovered that instead of hands I saw paws. I tried to shout excitedly but I only yelped.

I stood up carefully trying to get used to walking on four legs. I had been told that Omega wolves were weak but I felt strong and powerful.

I made my way to the broken mirror April and I had salvaged using the cello tape we got in one of our cleanings to tape together. I would have screamed if I had my voice.

I saw a powerful-looking wolf with black as-midnight fur. On my right side, a part of the fur was pure white. I shook my head trying to dispell the image. I walked away from the mirror, gave myself some seconds, and walked back but I still saw the same thing.

I walked to the door and stood near it, trying to measure the height of my wolf. I was surprised when my back touched the door knob. I nearly fainted. That was about the size of any male Alpha wolf.

I went back to the mirror. Thinking maybe it was projecting the wrong image because it was broken.

Suddenly I remembered that I could communicate with my wolf.

'Hello. Are you there?' I asked my wolf.

'I should be the one asking you if you were in there, Raven. We are in my form,' My wolf answered.

' I am Raven, what is your name?'

'My name is Rave,' My wolf answered.

''Rave? That is the short form of my name?' I asked surprised.

'We are the same. Why do we need different names?'

'You are right, Rave. But why are you so big? You are supposed to be an Omega wolf.'

'I am not an ordinary wolf, Raven. Abandoning us and fleeing was the only way our parents could save us,' Rave explained.

'What do you mean?'

'There is a lot we have to talk about Raven. But for now, you need to pretend as if you are weak. I will be emitting the aura of weakness to keep us safe till the appointed time of our reveal. Remember you can't trust anybody with our secret,' Rave explained and warned me.

'What of April and Mum,' I asked, feeling bad already that I had to lie to them about my wolf.

'It is no longer a secret when you tell someone else. Be wise,' Rave said. 'April and Bella are on their way here. I am going to do my part, Raven. Do yours.'

Before I could question her any further I suddenly found myself back on the floor in my human form just before April and Mum burst through the door. Mum quickly rushed to my side.

'Are you ok?' April asked, worry dripping from every word. I didn't have to look at Mum to know she was worried.

'Did you shift at all?' Mum asked. I nodded and she sighed with relief.' It is ok if your wolf is very weak. You have gone through a lot that could have broken anyone plus the fact that you are an Omega, so it is normal if your wolf was too weak to even stay in form for long,' Mum consoled me.

'Don't worry. Your wolf would improve with time, trust me,' April chipped in.

I felt like a very bad person. I had never thought that a day would come when I would lie to April and her mum. But then, I barely understood the whole situation myself.

I never thought my birthday would turn out to be a day of surprises. First the cake then my wolf. I could just hope the surprises ended because I doubted if my heart could take more.

Raven's POV

April and I couldn't talk about anything else but the ball. We were excited because we were in the group that would do the final cleanup.

We could get things like clothes and even if we were lucky gold chains or bracelets that could be sold in exchange for money and that meant money to enjoy.

The rich spend lavishly. Some even deliberately give you money when you help clean the room they slept in and carry their luggage to their cars.

It is also rumored that some Omega girls sleep with people who come from other packs for money. Lina and her friend Queen had been accused of the act oftentimes. But since there was no rule against doing that, no one has ever said anything against them.

It was also rumored that Luna Laura offered some of the girls to visit Alphas and other high-ranking officers from other packs. It was all rumored, none established.

April had once said that none of the girls Luna Laura used would dare to tell anyone since all the Omegas knew exactly what it felt like to have the wrath of Luna Laura directed at them. The Luna was mean but no one dared say it to her face.

'I wish the Luna would pick me as one of the girls she would give to the foreign Alphas or Beta or whatever,' April said a day to the ball.

' What?' I screamed surprised enough to keep screaming.

April quickly used her hand to cover my mouth to stop me from further screaming. We were in my hut which was directly opposite theirs and of course, her mother was in the hut.

'Why are you shouting like that, you want mum to come in here and behead me?' She asked as quietly as she could.

'So you know that your mother can behead you for saying that?'

'Look I know what I wish for is bad, like bad bad but look at Lina for example. Sometimes it is as if she is not even an Omega. Her clothes may not be that expensive but they are neat.'

'Have you thought that she might be getting the clothes from a kind-hearted high-ranking wolf?'

'That is a big fat lie. People have seen her buying clothes from those selling second-hand clothes. I am very sure that she is definitely one of the girls Luna Laura uses to please men,' April said hissing like a snake.

April hated Lina and her friends and she didn't do much to hide it. In fact, she had shown them how much she detested them several times.

'Ok fine. Let's say it is true she whores herself to non-pack members for money to buy clothes. Why must you join them? If you sell your dignity because of immaterial things and your mate finally comes around, what would you do then?' I asked.

'I am just tired of the way we live Raven. My mum deserves happiness. She is a young woman yet she looks older than her age,' April said with tears in her eyes, she bowed her head in sorrow.

I placed a placating hand on her bowed head. It hurt me to see her so downcast. 'Your mate is an Alpha April, you must be patient till he finds you,' I said but my voice seemed off. It sounded so unlike me.

'Who talked just now,' April asked raising her head in surprise.

'I did,' I answered.

'The voice didn't sound like yours,' she said not believing me.

'I was the one who spoke April, stop being dramatic,' I said rolling my eyes at her.

'Why would you say my mate is an Alpha? Have you joined those who keep daydreaming about something that can never be?' She asked looking at me with feigned annoyance.

'Do not think what I said cannot come to pass. There is always this regal aura around you sometimes that mimics that of a Luna,' I tried explaining myself to her.

'You know what? I think this whole ball thing is beginning to get into your head just as it got to me,' she said.

'If I am daydreaming positive things because the ball got to me, then it is good. You thinking of whoring yourself to Alphas and other high-ranking wolves from other packs is pure undiluted madness,' I said making April close her eyes in shame.

'Mum can never hear of this Raven, ever,' she said pulling my right ear.

'That is painful April, stop,' I cried out.

'Is your wolf that weak that you can't take this little pain?' April asked and laughed.

Ever since I got my wolf, April has been tormenting me. The things she wouldn't do to me before, are things she does now. According to her my ability to withstand pain should be greater than before.

'It doesn't pain at all sis,' I said laughing.

April dropped my ear immediately as if it was too hot to hold. She looked at me with something caught between fear and surprise.

'What?' I asked her when I saw her face.

'Who spoke just now?' She asked with the same expression.

'If you are trying to spook me it won't work,' I said to her thinking she was trying to scare me.

'I am serious, Raven if it was you that spoke, it didn't sound like you at all. Besides you never call me sister.

It then suddenly dawned on me. It must have been Rave my wolf. I got angry at her. How could she ask me to keep us a secret when she was trying to communicate with April?

We both shrugged the matter off. We continued talking about the ball. What we knew the very rich wolves would wear and the amount of food we would be able to bring home and eat.

April's mum called us to come for food so we had to cut our discussion short to heed her. The food was nothing special. Be it breakfast, lunch, or dinner but since April's mum worked in the kitchen, there were days we were able to get leftovers of some well-prepared food.

We ate in relative quiet since April and I had practically discussed all we could about the ball. I glanced at April's mum and saw a kind of unhappiness in her eyes. She was like that every year before the ball and during the ball. After the ball and everyone had returned to their packs, she would then cheer up.

While I was younger I had always thought it was the workload that came with the ball that dampened her mood but on closer look, it seemed there was something attached to the ball that made her sad.

I wanted to ask her but I didn't want to worsen things for her in case she had something bothering her. So I decided I was going to ask her after the ball tomorrow. If only I knew what tomorrow held, I wouldn't have made any plans of my own.