Bound to the Gamma - Battle Lines

As Tatiana scrambled down the front porch steps, she threw her backpack over her shoulder. She yelled goodbye to her father over her shoulder. The school bus was just pulling up to the stop at the end of her driveway. She broke into a jog and clamored up the bus steps. She flashed the bus driver a quick smile, "Hello, Mrs. Rogers." The bus driver nodded, smiling at her as she pulled the doors shut behind her. The bus lurched into motion as Tatiana scanned for an empty seat while clutching the seatbacks on either side to steady herself. Her heart sank as she noticed the only open seat was next to Burke, the school bully who seemed to think she was his girlfriend. As she plopped down in the seat next to him, he winked at his friends behind him.

"Hello, Beautiful!"

Tatiana sighed, "Hello, Burke."

"Some of us are going to meet at the riverbed after practice. Are you going to join us?"

The riverbed was not a riverbed. It was a muddy clearing in the forest torn up by generations of teens in their pickup trucks. The local kids would meet to have bonfires, desecrate the land further with their vehicles, and drink beer. It was hardly a pleasant prospect.

"I have to work at the Café, and then I need to study for my history test."

Max chimed in from the backseat, "Well, that is more beer for us then."

Tatiana shot him a glance and then turned to look out the window. Burke chattered on with his friends about tonight, but she tuned them out. Being the only werewolf in school, the humans around her sensed something but did not understand what it was. They subconsciously felt her power, and sensing Tia was different made them uneasy. They kept their distance. Burke, however, seemed clueless to any nuances and kept pushing himself on her. Tia acceded to it partially out of loneliness and partly because she loved to fool around with him.

Burke's hands woke her body from her prepubescent slumber and thrust her right into the frying pan. Her wolf Talia loved it also. It was a dangerous line to walk, keeping Talia in check. His hands were her version of catnip. Sex was entirely off the table. It would make it impossible to keep her wolf under control. Despite the presence of several surrounding packs, Tia had no false notions of finding a mate. Growing up with and living amongst humans made her a leper to the wolf community. She was considered the lowest form of a werewolf, a Rogue. If a Rogue were dumb enough to enter pack territory, it would be destroyed. The mate bond was not meant for rogues like her. It was meant to strengthen the pack structure. Tia knew her only options were a fellow Rogue or a sympathetic human, and the chances of finding her destined mate were nearly impossible.

The school bus brakes hissed as it shuddered to a stop in front of the high school. The students noisily filed out of the bus and headed to class. Tatiana was stuck in limbo, living secretly among humans and shunned by her own kind. Her hope was to move to Seattle once she graduated high school. It would be her best chance of finding humans that would accept her for who and what she was. Tatiana heard stories of rogues building a life and even finding love in the city. Her only chance of getting off the Olympic Peninsula was to earn a scholarship to the University of Washington. Her Dad was a fisherman. The declining fish runs left them barely scraping by. Her job at the Café was the only thing putting food other than fish on the table. There was no money for college, but Tia was bright. Her father had always impressed upon her the importance of her education. As a freshman, she was currently at the top of her class. She loved books and reading. Her happiest memories were being holed up in the library, devouring a book, or letting Tia out to run.

William's POV

Once the boat was docked, William looked over his dismal catch for the day. It was hardly worth going out. Unfortunately, he was also feeling off all day. His strength was down, and he felt slightly nauseous. He hoped he was not getting the flu. He brought his load of fish to the scales using the wheelbarrow.

"Hello, Mark." William and Mark went way back. They started as greenhorns together back in the early '80s. Here he was still fishing, and Mark was the buyer. The most honest buyer in the lot, which is why most guys brought their fish to him.

"William, looks like pretty slim pickins today, egh?"

William nodded.

Mark sighed, "You are not the only one. Jameson and his crew quit today. His boat is going up to auction next week."

"Jameson! Really? What a shame. He was a pain in my ass but a good fisherman."

Mark nodded, "I bought his last load. It was not much more than yours. If it keeps up like this, we will both be out of a job."

Mark looked up and eyed William for a bit, "You ain't looking too good bud, you feeling okay?"

"Yes, I am fine. It has just been a long day."

Mark shrugged as he passed over the cash, "Here you go, Will. Take it easy tonight, and say hi to that pretty daughter of yours."

"Sure thing Mark! See you tomorrow."

He stuffed the fistful of cash in his pocket and headed out to his truck. He just wanted to head home to sleep. Tatiana would not be home until after her shift at the Cafe. It would give him some time to rest up before she got home.

He loved that girl more than he ever imagined possible. The best part of his day was when he went home to her. Werewolf or not, Tia had him wrapped around her finger. He wished he could give her more. She deserved more. She deserved the world as far as he was concerned. He wanted to continue fishing until she was ready to graduate, then he would sell his boat and use the money to send her to college. However, the quotas and licensing restrictions made it darn near impossible to continue making a living fishing for salmon. He couldn't give up now because he had no other skills. What does an old fisherman do in the real world?

Once he walked into the door, he threw his keys and the cash on the table and opened up the refrigerator to grab himself a beer. Suddenly he felt woozy but caught himself before his knees buckled. Forgetting about the beer, he made his way to his bedroom and collapsed onto the bed. Then, too tired to change his own clothes, he fell asleep.

Tatiana's POV

After Tia's shift at the Cafe, she decided to let Talia out for a run before going home. She called her Dad to let him know before she left. As she stripped out of her clothes, her wolf took over, and she shifted mid-run. The feeling of the soft soil beneath her paws was delicious. Her wolf Talia needed to run. Tatiana needed it also. She needed to feel the forest's breath through her paws. The wind rustled her white fur and sent a shiver down her back. She felt alive for the first time in weeks. The sounds and smells of the forest filled her senses and fed her soul. The sun slowly faded, giving way to shadows and depth. She ran with no predetermined destination, but when she arrived at the coast, she was home. The low grumble of the waves pulled her closer, and she slowed to a tiptoe. Trees gave way to tantalizing pockets of the sky. As the waves crashed at the shore, the water pitched to a glowing cerulean blue on the sand. As Talia's big paws padded onto the sand, she let out a howl to the moon goddess.

The salty spray of the ocean cooled her warm skin. She loved visiting the sea at night. The glowing blue waves from the bioluminescent creatures and the pounding of the surf helped her put everything into perspective. No matter how bad her problems seemed when faced with the power of nature and the ocean, it was all relative. She laid back on the sand and looked up at the stars, wishing she didn't have to go home. She would much prefer to sleep out here.

She did not see her father when she returned home. His door was shut, but she knew he was home. He left money on the table for her to pay the bills. She scooped it up and put it in the coffee can in the cupboard. She then quickly made herself a cup of tea and headed into her room to study.