Chapter 182: The Impossible Morning

Chapter 182: The Impossible Morning
Sierra's POV

I woke up to Alexander screaming like something was tearing him apart from the inside. My heart stopped. I threw the blankets off and ran to his nursery. Adrian was already there. He stood frozen by the crib.

"Adrian what's wrong?" I pushed past him and looked down at our baby. Alexander was writhing. His little body was twisting in ways that shouldn't be possible. His back arched. His fingers curled like claws. Then I saw it. Fur. Tiny patches of silver fur were sprouting along his arms.

"No." The word came out as a whisper. "No no no. He's too young. He's only six months old." 

Adrian grabbed my shoulders. "Sierra, call Dr. Mara now." But I couldn't move. My baby was shifting and he was too small. His bones weren't strong enough. This could kill him.

Alexander screamed again. The sound changed. It became higher, more animal than human. His face started to change. His nose pushed forward. His ears moved up the sides of his head. I watched my son disappear into something else. "Make it stop," I begged Adrian. "Please make it stop."

Adrian's hands were shaking. "I don't know how." He reached for Alexander but pulled back. "What if I hurt him? What if touching him makes it worse?" 

The nursery door burst open. Dr. Mara ran in. Her medical bag bounced against her hip. She took one look at Alexander and her eyes went wide.

"How long has this been happening?" she asked. Her voice was calm but her hands moved fast. She pulled out a stethoscope. "Two minutes maybe," Adrian said. 

"Is he dying? Tell me he's not dying." Dr. Mara pressed the stethoscope to Alexander's chest. His tiny body was still changing and twisting.

"His heartbeat is strong," Dr. Mara said. She looked at me. "Sierra, I need you to breathe. Can you do that for me?" I shook my head. 

"My baby is turning into a wolf. He's six months old. This isn't supposed to happen until he's at least five years old." 

Dr. Mara put her hand on my arm. "Alpha heirs are different. Some shift very early. I've seen it twice before in my career."

Alexander's screaming stopped. The silence was worse than the noise. I leaned over the crib where my baby had been, there was now a tiny wolf pup. He was the size of a kitten. His fur was silver like mine. His eyes were still the same brown but they looked huge in his small wolf face. He made a little whimpering sound.

"Oh god," I whispered. 

"He's okay," Dr. Mara said. She was actually smiling. 

"Look at him, Sierra. He's perfect." 

Perfect? My six-month-old baby just turned into a wolf. Nothing about this was perfect.

The wolf pup stumbled. His legs were wobbly like a newborn deer. He tried to walk toward me but his paws got tangled. He fell on his face then he tried again. My heart broke and mended at the same time. 

"Can he change back?" I asked. "Please tell me he can change back."

Dr. Mara nodded. "He will. First shifts don't last long in babies. His body isn't strong enough to hold the wolf form for more than a few minutes." 

As if he heard her, Alexander's body started to shimmer. The fur disappeared. His face changed back. His little hands returned within seconds my human baby was lying in the crib again. He looked exhausted. His eyes were half-closed.

I picked him up. He was so warm and small. 

"You scared mama," I whispered against his hair. "Don't ever do that again." But I knew he would. This was just the beginning. Adrian wrapped his arms around both of us. "We need to prepare," he said. "If he can shift this young we need to baby-proof everything. Make sure he can't hurt himself when it happens again."

Dr. Mara was writing notes in a small book. "I'll stay here for a few days to monitor him and teach you both what to watch for." 

She looked up. "This is rare but it's not bad. It means Alexander is incredibly strong. His wolf is powerful enough to emerge early. That's something to celebrate, not fear."

Celebrate? I wanted to laugh or cry. How was I supposed to celebrate my baby turning into a wolf before he could even walk? 

"How do I parent this?" I asked. My voice cracked. "How do I keep him safe when I don't know what's normal anymore?"

Adrian kissed my forehead. "We figure it out together like everything else." 

Over the next week Alexander shifted three more times. Each time lasted longer and each time he seemed more comfortable in his wolf form. 

Dr. Mara taught us how to handle him, to keep him calm and how to recognize the signs before a shift started. 

"His eyes will glow," she explained. "About thirty seconds before the change. That's your warning."

Two weeks after Alexander's first shift Elder Maya requested a meeting. 

"It's time," she said when she arrived at our house. "Time for what?" Adrian asked. Maya smiled. "Time for the Christening. Alexander has shown his wolf. According to tradition he must be presented to the pack officially. Given his wolf name."

My stomach dropped. "A ceremony? Now? He's barely seven months old." 

Maya nodded. "The ceremony is especially important for Alpha heirs who shift early. The pack needs to witness his strength and accept him as future Alpha." 

"When?" Adrian asked.

"Three days," Maya said. "That gives us time to prepare. The Christening must happen under the full moon." 

She handed me a scroll. "These are the traditional words. You and Adrian will speak them together." I unrolled the scroll. The words were old. Written in a language I barely understood. "I can't read this," I said.

Maya touched my hand. "I'll teach you. The Christening is sacred Sierra. It's the moment your son becomes more than just a baby. He becomes part of the pack's future and its soul."