The only thing that upset me was the fact that I didn’t manage to spread. The she-wolf and I spent a lot of time in meditation, sitting in a clearing, in the habitat of the inner beast, but we did not achieve any results. It was time to admit - I do not know how to spread. At all. And the worst thing about my situation is that I have absolutely no one to turn to for help. Once, after another unsuccessful attempt to change the hypostasis, the idea came to my mind to find some exiled alpha and ask him for help. The idea was absurd, I would even say that it was completely reckless, but the she-wolf liked it! And, from that day on, she defiantly pointed to me with her paw at an imaginary door in the middle of the clearing. Like, go Mira, FIG knows where, but find us an alpha there, who will immediately teach us how to switch. Without further questions happy and kind! Yeah.

All my arguments, about the fact that I have no idea where to look for the expelled, the she-wolf did not take into account at all. As well as my assurances that in principle I don’t know such alphas at all, as well as cases with the expulsion of alphas.

But here I was a little deceitful, after all, I heard one such story, since it happened in our community, though long before my birth. The leader of the pack died without leaving any heirs. Fortunately, at that time there were two more alphas in the pack - Arseny, the current leader and father of my Arthur, and Stanislav. About the latter, I only know that in a fair duel for the place of the leader, he was defeated, and, as happens in such cases, was expelled from the pack. Although now, knowing and taking into account some of the features of Arseniy's character, this fight may not have been entirely fair. The leader is too proud of this, remembering the story of his becoming a leader, starting with the narration of this fight, every speech at the holidays of the community.

The she-wolf, closely following the course of my thoughts, drew herself up, and began to point towards the door with both paws. Well, let's say I go looking for Stanislav. Suppose I even find it (which I doubt very much!), And then what? Even if I manage to persuade him to help me and teach me how to change my hypostasis, how to do all this without my guards noticing anything? Yes, I don’t argue, they don’t always follow me on my heels, but ... yes, there’s more than one “but”, there are a whole hundred of them here!

You need to know exactly where to look for Stanislav, fully calculate the route to him, go to him when Igor and Oleg will not be watching me and somehow manage not to fall into the eyes of the wolves assigned to the exile himself. I can imagine how surprised Stanislav's guards will be when they see me next to him! No amount of luck in this case will help me to hide the fact of the restored memory. And then Arseniy will definitely kill me.

Gods! This whole idea is not feasible at all! The she-wolf strongly disagreed with my pessimistic reasoning, assuring me that we could handle everything. It's easy for her to talk! Obscurantism! Maybe really try to break into the territory of the pack and meet with Arthur? What if he remembers everything just by looking at me?

- That's right, obscurantism! I exclaimed out loud, barely realizing that I had no idea where my former community was!

Before initiation, we are guarded like unintelligent chicks, and we are never allowed to go far from the settlement! No, of course, like all children, I secretly went outside the houses, but we never went far into the forest! Not to mention going beyond the border. Gods! Yes, I have never come close to the borders of the pack! And where can I find it?

No, of course, I understand that my former community is located somewhere on the territory of the Leningrad Region, like two other foreign communities, but where exactly? We had our own school where we received secondary education, there was also geography with maps, lessons on survival in the forest and orientation, but our location never appeared there! All this was studied later, after initiation and gaining the ability to change hypostasis. Separate lessons were added on other packs and communities, their territories and borders. Then there was a division by specialty, training courses for beaters and security guards, as well as practice and training in cities. Moreover, many young werewolves moved to the cities, and received a special and higher education among people. But I did not live up to this bright hour of gaining new knowledge. Kicked out a little earlier. And how to be?! I can't find my community like any other. In fact, as an exile, I am not allowed to cross the borders of any werewolf community at all. I have the right to dwell only in neutral territories. Here a new problem arises - where are the neutral lands?! Well, all the cities inhabited by people - this is understandable. What about in the forests?

The she-wolf began to bounce with impatience, offering to simply go to the forest, outside the city, and there we will deal with all the difficulties in fact. Yeah. Easier nowhere! What if I accidentally cross the border of the community? And not necessarily your own, you can also someone else's - what then? The punishment for all those expelled for attempting to return to their pack without the invitation of a leader, or to join a new community, is death. Gods! Why didn't I think of this when I was thinking about how to get into my community?! Although, in this case, Arseniy will finish me anyway. If I had been sure that I could see Arthur, I would have risked it without hesitation! And so ... and so you need to carefully think through everything before climbing straight into the jaws of the leader.

Yielding to the persuasion of the she-wolf, I decided to go for a walk in the forest. The risk, I do not argue, is huge, but if you do not go far from some small town or village in the region, then everything can end well. I hope. There were several reasons for panic. Despite the fact that the cities were mostly inhabited by ordinary people, the chance to stumble upon someone from my former community was great. Especially if I'm "lucky" to choose a town for a walk near the habitat of my flock. And I'm afraid, if this happens, my acting skills, so as not to give myself away by recognizing anyone, will not be enough for me.

Well, do not forget about Igor and Oleg. Guards are assigned for a reason. And even if they sometimes go about their own business, instead of spying on me, they are still the main problem. Even if I manage to catch a moment when they are not around, I strongly doubt that they will ignore the fact of my long absence.

If, before the return of my memory, I wandered around for part-time jobs, and really spent little time in the apartment, now I rarely go away. And the very duration of my trips to the store is an hour, well, a maximum of two! Walking through the forest will take many times more time. It only takes four hours to get there and back. How can I cover my absence so as not to arouse suspicion? Plus, my guards, unlike me, have developed instincts. Including scent. And the forest from me (if everything goes well, and I return back without incident) will not just smell, but, I would say, it will stink! They will certainly have questions. Still would! What, in their opinion, did I, Maria, a simple city girl, suddenly need in the forest?

At survival lessons, we were once told about herbs that interrupt the smell of a wolf, but they promised to tell us in more detail after initiation. It's a shame, of course, but that's not what matters. If there is a way to cover the smell of the beast, then there must be a way to do the same with all smells. But how? Rather, what? What can cover the smell of the forest, in which I will stay for at least an hour? And most importantly, that Igor and Oleg do not sniff out anything superfluous?

The first thought was to pour a few bottles of any cloying perfume, with the most pungent smells, on myself, but this is not at all an option. Such a train can also raise questions, and it will not explain in any way where I was for several hours. Maybe doused with bleach, or some other cleaning agent? Pretend to take a job as a cleaning lady and hope they don't track me at work? Might work. All floor and wall cleaners usually contain chlorine, and we cannot stand this smell. Even I, after finding a she-wolf, began to react sharply to the smell of a floor cleaner, and these are my instincts and my sense of smell are not developed at all! Yes, and chlorine in the composition of just nothing.

- Bleach! Here it is! she shouted out loud, finding the obvious solution to all my problems.

Swimming pool! I just need to sign up for the pool! This will explain the time that I will actually spend in the forest, and will beat off all unnecessary smells! The main thing is to really go there for some time to lull the guards and ensure that they don’t follow me there! They definitely won’t go inside the building - they won’t want to breathe bleach, for the same reason they won’t sniff me either. And there is no doubt that the smell of bleach from my body and hair will block the smell of the forest from my clothes! The main thing is to somehow endure these trips to the pool, without completely repulsing your scent. But it's okay, I can handle it! This is the case when the end justifies the means!

Not postponing everything, I turned on the laptop that had miraculously survived during my initiation, and began to actively google all the pools of the city. I was only interested in those that were within walking distance of bus stations and railway stations. Only one fully met my request, which was part of the fitness center under the intriguing name "Paradise for the muscles." Well, for the most part, the name was deeply parallel to me, and judging by the photographs of the object of interest to me and a brief description of the swimming programs, it was exactly what I needed. The list of things you need to visit the pool posted on the site was also pleasantly pleased with its unpretentiousness. I had a bathing suit, a towel and rubber slippers. I was also pleased with the information section, in which there were assurances that the water passes all degrees of purification, including disinfection with chlorine. The she-wolf defiantly wrinkled her nose, after which she plugged it with her two paws, showing the attitude of her sensitive sense of smell to such smells. I understand, dear, but what is left for you and me? You'll have to be patient if you really want to run through the woods. And if the Gods are on our side, then who knows, maybe we can really find help and learn how to change our hypostasis.

Quickly filling out the registration form on the site, I chose the twenty-four by seven free visit program for myself. If I understood everything correctly, then by paying for a certain period of time, I can freely visit the pool, enjoying some water as much as my darling wants. Exactly what is needed! The price tag, of course, by my standards, they broke a very high price, but let Arseniy be sad about this. Still, it will be the pack's money that will be spent, not my own. And in general, if you really look at things, I never had my own money. But these are not my sorrows! That is why, having paid for a subscription for six months through the site, and rewriting the number assigned to me, I moved on to the next item on my list with peace of mind.

ou need to choose a small town, or a village surrounded by forest. At the same time, buses or trains often went to and from him. This task was much more difficult. No, there were a lot of such towns and villages, the problem was pure luck - will I be lucky to choose a settlement at a sufficient distance from the packs, or, according to the law of meanness, I will choose a city located at the junction of the borders of any community. Moving the map on the screen from side to side, I looked from one settlement to another, not finding an answer to the question - which one to choose?

The wolf inside impatiently moved her paws, as if this could somehow help me decide! As a result, deciding to rely on luck, I chose one small settlement, through which a bus passes every twenty to thirty minutes, both to and from the city. If, upon arriving at the place, it turns out that luck is not on my side, I can leave there relatively quickly. There was only a little left to do - to really go to the pool, to withdraw cash from the card little by little, so that there was something to pay for the road to the settlement I had chosen and to catch the moment when the guards would not go to accompany me to the pool.