Alpha

It's been two weeks since we all got back from Damien's manor. It's been two weeks since I last hear the Voice. After two weeks of peace, she seems to decide it's time to pay me a visit.

'Miss me?' She asks in a voice that sounds alarmingly like my own. Ignoring that, I pause randomly in my conversation with Ryder about how low in food supplies we are. I barely notice that I stopped midsentence.

'What do you want?'

"Louve?" Ryder asks confused.

I blink and look back at him having momentarily forgotten that I had been talking, or even what I’d been talking about. "I'll be right back," I mutter in a daze. Not even waiting for a response, I roll off of his bed and exit his room, leaving him looking very confused.

The Voice just laughs in my head. My laugh. I enter my room and slam the door shut behind me.

'What? What do you want?'

'Calm down my little wolf.'

"Ugh!" I throw myself down on the bed. "What do you want?" I snarl, knowing but not caring that anyone who bothers to pay attention will wonder why I'm talking to myself. I sound insane.

'To just drop in and say hey. You never answered me before.'

"What?"

'Did you miss me?'

"What do you think, psyco?"

'Sticks and stones, Louve?'

"What?" I ask, exasperated.

'I don't know. I was in some fifth grade teacher's head this week. It was apparently anti-bullying week at school.'

I close my eyes and rub my temples. "Then why don't you go back and learn a thing out two?"

'Because you're so fun… And she’s kind of dead.'

"Come on, things are finally getting back to normal. Are you really gonna screw that up. Even you can't be that heartless."

'You're forgetting lovely, I have no heart.'

"Well you have to have come back for a reason. What is it?"

'All in good time.'

"What does that mean? Why can't you just tell me now?"

'Because, that would take all of the fun out of it. You might want to answer that.'

"What?"

"Can I come in?" Ryder asks, tapping softly on my door.

'Stay quiet!' I mentally shout at her, hoping she'll obey for once.

"Yeah, come on in."

'I'm just a fly on the wall.'

'I mean it!'

Ryder enters and closes the door before walking over to the bed and sitting down warily. "Are you okay?" he asks after a few awkward moments.

I swallow and look up at him. "Yeah, why?" I fail at subtlety. The Voice hums in my head, and I struggle to ignore her.

"Louve, I know when something bothers you. That was really weird. What's eating you?"

I contemplate whether to tell him or not. On the one hand, it would be nice to share. On the other it might make me sound nuts...well, more nuts.

"I can’t tell you."

"What? Are you having a melt down or something? Did something happen today? You can't just stop midsentence, leave, and expect me to not care." He grabs my hand gently and gazes softly at me.

I sigh and look away. "It was the Voice," I mutter under my breath. Damn super-wolf hearing.

"I thought that thing stopped bothering you." His voice sounds accusatory, and my hand is no longer encased in his warm, calloused one.

"Well it's not like I can exactly control her, Ryder. We've been over this before. She's just there when she wants to be and she leaves when she gets bored."

"What so now it has a gender."

I huff. "Seriously, Ryder? Yes, she has always been a girl. I guess I'm just finally getting used to it."

"How long has it been going on now?"

"Just today, but she's been gone for two weeks."

"Well, will she leave again?" he demands impatiently.

"Not if we want her to. Like I said, she just leaves when she gets bored."

'Which is definitely not now.'

"For the love of god! Will you please shut up for a minute?"

"What?" he demands, confused but irritated.

"Not you! Her!"

"Wow! You're seriously going to yell at it during an argument?"

I gape at him. "Really, you're getting pissed off that I'm getting angry at this Voice thing. What do you want from me, Ryder? Tell me so that I can do it, please!"

"I just want you to ignore this thing. Maybe it'll stop if you do that."

"Ryder, she has nothing else to do except make people's lives hell. You really think that she doesn't have the time and patience to stick around and harass me whenever she wants to for the rest of my life? Think about it."

"Well I don't know!"

"You know what, just leave." I cross my arms and look away from him. I seriously can not believe that we just had an argument about a voice in my head.

"Fine. Just don't come crying to me the next time that thing is pissing you off!"

"Fine, I won't!"

Ryder snarls and throws my door open, storming out of my room.