Have you ever heard the phrase "fight like a girl or act like a boy"? Well, in my family, we fight like wolves, no matter if you are a girl or a guy, and we fight dirty, especially in training. Training is especially significant, as we practice every day to maintain our skills, strength, and fitness. In my pack, we have special pack members called warriors who function like bodyguards. Their job is to be badass, particularly protecting us from hunters who want to end our family line and ensure every werewolf in the world is extinct.

Being the female Alpha had its rewards with training, such as training the younger kids while my twin brother helped train the warriors. My pack has had a rule for many years that only male wolves are allowed to be warriors. There was never a female warrior until my mother dominated the warrior tryouts and kicked every single wolf, including my father. The funny thing is, she was the smallest and shortest wolf in the whole class. There is a story about how my parents met during that warrior's tanning class.

There was something magical about my parents' meeting, but it was just a modern-day fairy tale. Teenagers participated in it once. It happened about twenty years ago when my father trained me to become an alpha. My mother was destined to become a warrior due to her family's heritage. Anyway, my mom comes from a family with all-male warriors but never a female. She always gets teased about how small and weak she is in her wolf form. However, she learned to stand up for herself by proving everyone wrong. My dad has had this huge crush on her since he was a young kid. This was from the first moment he saw her on the first day of kindergarten.

My father always told me stories about them when they were children. It took them from playing with one another to mating, which I find gross, but it is part of growing up. He always told it most romantically and cutely, like he always gave her a flower and some candy on random days, walked her to class or the lunchroom, held her books when she needed them, or did anything else she needed; he was always there for her no matter what. Usually, young pups never find out who their mate is until they are teenagers, but my dad knew right away that she was his mate. Sometimes, if you are from the Alpha or Beta families, you can identify who your mate is earlier than usual. My grandparents on my father's side were happy when my dad matched his mate as a child, but on my mother's side, my parents were not too thrilled until they found out my dad was next in line to be the alpha of the strongest, most powerful, and oldest werewolf pack in the county.

Anyway, I love training days for several reasons. However, one of my favorites is pinning my brother down on the mat for a while when he is not looking in a gym. This is while I watch. It helps get unlimited payback when he messes with me all the time, due to us being twins and him being older. However, he never wins because he is easily distracted by food, hot girls, and a poor body image in the mirror. This is a true statement. My mom and Aunt Karen make the best breakfast on training days. They take it all out for protein, fruits, and plenty of other things that make you drool when you smell the kitchen.

Today is Saturday, which means Hazel finally gets to watch training. If she does not get injured by the other wolves fighting in wolf or human form, Mom will never forgive us if she gets hurt or ends up dead because Hazel is her baby girl and the last daughter she has. I woke up to coffee, pancakes, bacon hash, and eggs with cheese. When I got up, I went to get ready for training and found Hazel, who usually sleeps in my bed with me, but she was not in bed, so I went to check her room, which was empty. I thought of checking Colton's room for her, and there she was sleeping with her feet right by his face and snoring like there was no tomorrow.

I walked into his room to wake them both up because they had training and breakfast was ready. I was about to remove the covers when suddenly I heard Colton yelling "BOO!" while popping out of the blankets on his bed.

Upon waking up, Hazel screamed because he feared her and grabbed her. She slapped him so hard that he almost yelled in pain.

"How many times did I tell you to never scare me like that, especially when I sleep knowing punishment is coming?" "Just make sure you speak my words," Hazel said while running her eyes and slowly getting up from the bed.

"Sorry, sweetie, but today is a special day for you, and I hope you know what today is." I said this while lifting her into my arms for a morning hug.

"Today is my first day of training." On my days, I can watch but not fight. This stinks because I need to get back at another pup who took my cookie at lunch yesterday. "Mom says I am not allowed to punch or kick anyone, but Dad says opponent for it," Hazel said while hanging on to me.

"Well, tell me who it is, and I will take Alpha on their butt," Colton said while getting up to stretch and put some clothes on.

"You are the most impressive colt I have ever seen." His name is Lucas, and he likes my cookies every time mom puts some in my lunch bag. He is in a small cubby where he looks like he needs to exercise and run. "This is to lose some weight." Hazel laughed.

"Whoa, Haz, that was rude to say about him." Wouldn't it be nice if we ate breakfast and went to the packhorse gym to start training after breakfast? "You can help Uncle Ian and Dad teach," I said while adjusting her to my back.

We all walked downstairs to eat breakfast. Hazel was so excited that she stuffed her cheeks with all the food on her plate. She sneaked coffee from anyone around her to feel older. About twenty minutes later, we were done. Mom told us not to clean up and to go straight to the gym. Colton gave Hazel a piggyback ride while Kaylie and I ran to see who had reached the packhouse. I could hear Hazel cheering and laughing while she held on for dear life. This is because Colton was in his wolf form, running after us. Once we arrived at the Packhouse gym, we saw everyone getting ready to train. Colton shifted back into his wolf form and walked to the other pack wolves who were training to be warriors. Kaylie and I walked over to the pups that had just shifted recently and were ready for training.

Hazel was standing by Uncle Ian and Dad in a hat that said, "Assistant trainer." She even had an adorable toy whistle, which is the cutest thing I ever saw. They thought it would help her feel more comfortable with training, especially because she is shy around other pups. Every so often, she walked around, watching everyone fight and watching the young pups learn to shift back and forth from wolf to human form. She also learned many other skills. Hazel seemed unhappy watching her friends enjoy pack training. She is the last in her class to shift into a wolf pup. Lucky for her, her birthday is on the same day as Harvest Fest, where she should be able to shift into her wolf form for the first time. For now, she will just have to observe and help us teach other pack members. I grab my small walkie-talkie that we all have, so we can talk to her and play games with her. It would be fun for her to play a game with other wolf pups if she came by. While walking towards us, one of her classmates, the same kid who stole her cookies at lunch, came straight up to her, pushed her to the ground, and said...

"You shouldn't even be here; this is only for you, and real wolves aren't even wolves yet, so why don't you run home to your big house and play with dolls or color with your crayons?" he said, and then laughed while Hazel was on the ground crying. When I heard Hazel crying and she was on the ground, I yelled for Colton's help. Kaylie and Hunter took over tutoring our groups while Uncle Ian and Dad were back in the pack house for a meeting.

We ran so fast that our legs hurt from the burning feeling of running. Once we arrived, I picked her up and held her close to me while Colton yelled at Lucas in his Alpha tone. He said...

"Lucas, why did you push my little sister down on the ground and tell her she shouldn't be here when she has the right to be here?" She is part of the Alpha and Beta families. She is our omega, which means she oversees you and the other pups. So, if I were you, I would apologize, or you would be in detention for a month. "Since you started so many problems, you will have to spend some time with her and help her out with anything she needs," Colton said while looking him in the eyes with his arms crossed.

"But she should not be here." She has not even arrived yet, and it is unfair. "She can be the omega when there is no one," he said with some attitude.

After checking Hazel's body for injuries, Colt said, "Don't have an Alpha attitude." "Just say you're sorry, and you'll sit out for the rest of today's training."

"Fine, Hazel I am sorry I pushed you down and told you you could not be here. I am sorry for Alpha's attitude. "I will go sit on the beach and watch," Lucas said while looking down at the ground and making a few circles with his feet in the dirt.

"I hope you learned your lesson, Lucas; we would not bully anyone regardless of whether she shifted or not." "We never bully anyone differently," I told Lucas while shifting Hazel into my arms.

"Now you should sit on the bench and think about what you said or did." "Let me know when you are ready to talk," Colt said, grabbing Hazel out of my arms.

When we turned around to walk away with Hazel in Colton's arms, she turned around and blew raspberries at Lucas while giggling. Hazel has cuts and bruises on her knees. Colton took her straight to the hospital, where Mom and Aunt Karen, who oversees the hospital's clinic, met. I rushed back to the training center to tell Kaylie and Hunter what had happened. The hospital clinic provided Hazel with ice and pink and purple Band-Aids, which were her favorite colors. Mom arranged for Lucas to talk to his mom, who also works at the clinic.

When Hazel came back with Mom, Mom told us to watch us train with each other. This was going to be the most memorable moment when I took down Colton in a fight for payback. Hazel had a first-aid bag because someone needed it. We ended up getting into a fight to the point where someone was taken to the hospital for a few hours. Colton and I were paired up, while Kaylie was paired up with her twin brother, Hunter. She even had a bucket of popcorn and sports drinks in her other arm. She was ready for a fight show. She always loved watching us fight and helping us with first aid. I swear she would be an outstanding pack nurse or doctor when she was old enough. One day, she will realize her dream of working in an upscale hospital.

Colton started the fight by tackling me onto the mat. He was holding on to me in a position where I had no chance of flipping him onto his back and pinning him down. I shifted to my strong side and flipped him. He looked surprised to find that he was stronger at lifting weights and training harder. Hazel saw me pinning down Colton and then watching Kaylie tackle Hunter swiftly; she also noticed she was getting faster and more powerful in training. Hazel cheered for everyone because she was a collaborator, so she did not want to make anyone feel down or worthless. We took turns switching partners, and she stuffed her face with popcorn and chewed like a cow with her mouth wide open. She watched every single movement we made, so she knew what it was like to be in the older group of trainees. We fought for an hour or two, losing track of time. We all got hurt from fighting dirty. However, Hazel helped us with first aid and gave us some of her popcorn because she loves sharing it with us.

Once we were all fixed up, we returned to our house to shower and eat. Hazel took a bubble bath with Mom, who splashed her with bubbly water and lots of rubber ducks. Everyone pitched in to cook and set up the table. Hazel came down in her pajamas and walked to her spot at the table. She got into her booster seat while everyone tried to squeeze into the space with food and other things. Once everyone was finally sitting down at the table, my mom asked me:

"So, how was training today?" "I can see everyone has some of Hazel's Band-Aids on, and you all look like you need sleep," Mom said while putting food on Hazel's plate.

"Well, there was some trouble with one of the pups today with Hazel, but we managed it." "No one messes with our mighty omega and gets away with it," Colton said while ruffling her hair.

"Pup named Lucas has a crush on her and didn't know what to say or do around here, so he had to act tough around her to make her like him," I said while scooping some pasta onto my plate.

"Ewe. Gross. I dislike that kid, and he smells weird." Why do kids my age smell different before and after the first shift?" Hazel wondered while looking at the food on her plate and making a hungry face.

"Sweetie, your order changes when you shift." It is part of being a wolf. As soon as you become a teenager, your body will change, and you will be on your way to finding your mate. "This would be perfect to discuss later," Mom said while pouring wine into her glass.

"Yeah, we do not need to talk for a while." Thank God we do not have to have that type of talk with her. "Isn't that right, Ian?" Dad asked, looking away to avoid eye contact.

"Damn right, no offense to you women, but the body changes way differently than ours, and well, you girls have to carry babies and all that stuff." Uncle Ian said this while moving pasta around his plate without eye contact.

"How about we stop talking about this and save it for another time?" "Due to the look on the boy's face, I do not think they want to hear more of this conversation while eating." Aunt Karen said.

"So anyway, Hazel came in with some minor injuries," Mom said while pouring more milk into Hazel's cup.

"Well, that kid Lucas was mean to her." He pushed her down and said some mean things, but we took care of it, Mom. "There should not be any more problems unless something else comes up," Colton said, getting another helping of food onto his plate.

"That's terrific, and I hope no one messes with my baby, especially since her birthday and special day are coming up," Mom said while cleaning up some dishes on the table.

After dinner, we cleaned up, had some dessert, and then watched a few movies. After watching some movies, we all decided to go to bed.