14 Years Ago...
Flames and smoke. The scent of it hung heavy in the air, causing Jessica to drop the fire wood she was told to collect. This couldn't be happening. Panic filled the young pup's heart as she turned and rushed back to the pack den.
"Maman! Papa!" Jessica called out, ignoring the cold of the snow that crunched through her human feet. It was too silent. Far too silent, and Jessica couldn't reach her parents' minds; it was as if everything was an empty void when she reached out to them. She should have shifted to make it home faster. She shoulder have listened to her other self's instincts that told her something was wrong. She should never left in the first place.
"Alpha! Madame Alpha!" She brushed through the trees, her heart pounding in her head as she suddenly stopped her eyes full of pure devastation and horror at the sight that lay before her. The den, the manor that sheltered the entire pack, it wasn't just burnt down to ashes and charred wood. Her friends, her family, everyone lay dead in the northern snow, their blood staining the ice red. She covered her sensitive nose as she moved closer warily, fighting a battle within herself not retch and not to cry.
What caused this...?
Who would do this...?
A familiar smell wandered into her covered nostrils, making her snap her head toward it and take off into a sprint, "Maman?! Papa?!"
She stopped, seeing their bodies that copied the others in their lifeless state. The tears that were fighting against her will finally won as Jessica fell to her knees at their limp bodies, "N-non... Maman...papa..." She reached out with shaky hands toward their bodies, scared to touch them in fear and denial that that was them, "Pourquoi? Pourquoi est-ce arrivé...?"
As she touched their heated fur, she wiped the ash a little of her parents' pelts, her 10-year-old form shook violently against them before she leaned back and cried in agony. "POURQUOI?!?" Her cries echoed into the night sky as they soon turned into howls.
~*~*~*~
14 years later...
"Now arriving in Jackson!" A man in the front of the bus bellowed, immediately waking Jessica from her sleep, her sensitive ears made her other self want to growl in annoyance. She lazily looked out the window, seeing the town and all of its surroundings for the first time. She inhaled deeply, blinking her orange to blue-grey eyes as she sat up in her winter clothes she brought from Illinois.
"...I should have stayed in Cheyenne," She thought to herself, but quickly shook her head of the thought. She needed to get out of Wyoming—in fact any mountain ranges—period. As a lone wolf, a young omega lone wolf, she couldn't risk being in such a place where she always had to have her hackles up.
She brushed her dark auburn hair back, making sure the rest was safely tucked in her navy blue knitted beanie. She wrapped her matching scarf around tighter and put her backpack on. She really didn't need it as a wolf, but in January winter, it would look awfully abnormal to be seen in summer or even fall clothes.
As she exited the bus station, she looked around, sniffing the air once again, trying to make it look as normal to humans as possible without seeming strange or paranoid. If any packs were in this area, she needed to know. As a native werewolf from Quebec, she's traveled way too far to die now.
Knowing if there were other wolves around would let her know if she had a few months or a few hours to get out of there. Only problem now was that she was nearly fresh out of cash. If she needed to leave, she would have to do so in her wolf form. However, that was far more risky that using human transportation and she didn't want another experience like before.
"C'est tiguidou," She thought as she let out a sigh of relief, her wolf inside her too seemed to relax finally after the 7-8 hour long bus ride. She hadn't smelt any wolves.
Yet.
She opened her wallet and checked. Only $127 left. Enough to get out of town, but since she didn't smell any wolves, right now would be a good time to start earning more money, just in case the next town or city had any. She walked through the town, taking in more of the surrounding sights and scents, looking for help and wanted signs.
She slowed when she saw one in a small café. She gave a slight smile as she walked in, people chatting away, ignoring her existence past a curious glance to see who came in.
She walked timidly up to the counter and sat down, trying her best not to look around and sniff the air again. A blonde and busty middle aged waitress approached her with a smile, her tall frame seemed full of confidence and cheerfulness as she walked, "Can I get you anything, hon?"
"No thank you," Jessica replied politely. Without a second look, the waitress turned on her heel. "Wait, ma'am," Jessica stopped her, "Actually I was...looking for a job here."
"A job?" The blonde came back.
"Yes please. I'm a bit new to Jackson, and I was wondering if I can have a job at least for awhile, or do you know anywhere that could hire me," Jessica told her.
"For awhile?" The blonde stared and then smirked, "You're gonna have to talk to the manager, hon. Sounds like you're unreliable."