Adira woke up before the sun. Her tiny cabin at the edge of the pack lands was cold. She pulled her thin blanket tighter and sighed. Another day of being nobody.
She splashed water on her face from the cracked bowl on her wooden table. Her reflection stared back - dark brown eyes, long black hair, and a face that nobody ever noticed. That's how it was for Omegas in the Silver Moon Pack. They were the lowest rank. They worked hard. They stayed quiet.
"Just get through today," Adira whispered to herself. She pulled on her faded blue dress and tied back her hair with a piece of string.
Outside, the early morning air bit at her skin. Other wolves were starting to wake up. The pack land had dozens of cabins spread through the forest clearing. Smoke puffed from chimneys as families made breakfast. Adira's stomach growled. She would eat later, after her morning chores.
She hurried to the pack kitchen, a large wooden building where meals were prepared for important pack members. As an Omega, Adira's job was to peel potatoes, scrub pots, and clean up after others had eaten.
"You're late," snapped Greta, the head cook. She was a Beta wolf, stronger and more important than Adira.
"Sorry," Adira mumbled, keeping her eyes down. She hadn't been late at all, but arguing would only make things worse.
"Take these scraps to the compost pile, then start on the breakfast dishes," Greta ordered, shoving a heavy bucket into Adira's arms.
The bucket stank of rotten food. Adira carried it outside, trying not to spill the slimy contents on her dress. Some of the Alpha and Beta children playing nearby held their noses and laughed.
"Stinky Omega! Stinky Omega!" they chanted.
Adira pretended not to hear. Showing any reaction would just make them tease her more. That was the first rule of being an Omega - don't draw attention.
After dumping the scraps, she headed back to the kitchen. That's when she saw him.
Lucian, son of the pack Alpha, was walking with his friends. Tall with broad shoulders and dark hair that fell across his forehead, he looked every bit the future leader. The other wolves around him laughed at something he said.
Adira quickly stepped off the path. Omegas always moved aside for higher ranks. She kept her head down, hoping to become invisible.
But as the group passed, she felt someone watching. She peeked up.
Lucian was looking right at her. And he was smiling.
Her heart skipped. Why would the future Alpha notice her? She must have imagined it. She hurried back to the kitchen, her cheeks hot.
"What took you so long?" Greta demanded.
"Nothing. Sorry," Adira said, grabbing a towel to dry the wet dishes.
All morning, she thought about that smile. Had it really happened? Surely not. Lucian probably wasn't even looking at her. Why would he? She was just a shadow in the pack. Nobody.
After finishing in the kitchen, Adira moved on to her next chore - washing clothes in the stream. The cold water made her fingers ache, but she worked quickly. Next, she would need to sweep the pack meeting hall, gather firewood, and help prepare lunch.
The sun climbed higher as she worked. Her stomach growled, but she ignored it. Omegas ate last, after everyone else finished.
As she carried an armful of firewood to the meeting hall, she heard shouting. A group of young Beta wolves were laughing and pushing each other around. One of them spotted her.
"Hey, Omega!" a boy called out. It was Damon, known for being cruel to lower-ranked wolves. "Come here!"
Adira kept walking, pretending not to hear.
"I said COME HERE!" Damon shouted.
She stopped, trapped. Ignoring a direct order from a higher rank was against pack law. Slowly, she turned.
"We need someone for target practice," Damon said with an ugly smile. His friends laughed. "Stand over there and hold this." He picked up an apple from the ground.
Adira knew what was coming. They would throw stones at the apple - or at her. It had happened before.
"I have chores for the Alpha," she lied, hoping the mention of their leader would scare them off.
"The Alpha doesn't even know you exist," Damon sneered. "No one does."
The words hurt because they were true. Adira was nothing in this pack. Just an extra pair of hands. Someone to do the work no one else wanted.
"Leave her alone."
The deep voice cut through the air like thunder. Everyone froze.
Lucian stood at the edge of the clearing, arms crossed over his chest. Even from a distance, his power was clear. Future Alpha. Born leader.
Damon's face went pale. "We were just playing around, Lucian."
"Find another game," Lucian said coldly. "Now."
The Betas scattered like leaves in the wind. Adira stood still, clutching her firewood, heart racing.
For a moment, Lucian's eyes met hers. Then he nodded once and walked away.
Twice in one day. Twice he had seen her when no one else did.
Adira hurried to the meeting hall, her mind spinning. Why would the future Alpha step in to help her? It didn't make sense.
That night, after all her chores were done, Adira finally got to eat - cold leftovers from the pack dinner. She sat alone outside her cabin, watching the stars appear one by one.
In the distance, she could hear music and laughter. The higher ranks were having a bonfire celebration. Omegas weren't invited to such things.
But tonight, for the first time in years, Adira wondered what it would be like to join them. To be seen. To matter.
"Silly dreams," she whispered to herself. Yet she couldn't forget Lucian's smile. The way he had stood up for her.
As she was about to go inside, a twig snapped in the forest behind her cabin. Adira froze. Her cabin was at the very edge of pack territory. Beyond the trees was the border with the Shadow Claw Pack - their enemies.
Another snap. Closer.
The hair on her arms stood up. Something was watching her from the darkness between the trees.
She squinted, trying to see. Two glowing eyes stared back at her from the shadows.
Not a pack wolf. This was something else.
The eyes blinked once. Then whatever it was turned and disappeared into the deeper forest.
Adira's heart hammered in her chest. She should report this to the pack guards. Any stranger near their borders could be dangerous.
But who would listen to an Omega?
As she hurried inside her cabin and locked the door, Adira couldn't shake the feeling that those eyes had been searching for something.
Or someone.
She fell asleep wondering about Lucian's strange kindness and the mysterious watcher in the woods. For the first time in years, her dreams weren't about escape.
They were about possibility.