Rebecca rose and walked over to embrace her daughter.  They spent the rest of the night talking about Blaine, her father, and what they would do when she turned eighteen.  It had already been decided that they were moving into the forest on her eighteenth birthday.  Jora and her mother would leave all their belongings and move to the forest.  They would just “disappear” on October 28.  It was odd how well Jora was taking it, but she was just beginning to understand who she really was.       On the morning of October 28 Jora was awaken by the methodic tapping of rain on the roof of the cottage.  She rolled over in the bed to look at her mother sleeping peacefully beside her.  Jora was searching herself for any signs that she had changed.  She was eighteen now, but so far she still felt like the same Jora.  She rose gracefully and walked over to the window to see that the rain was now just a light drizzle.       “Honey, are you ready to begin you new life?” Her mother asked as Jora jumped with surprise.       “Yes, I suppose, but I still don’t feel any different,” Jora answered her mother while walking back over to the bed.       “The change is gradual, but you’ll know when it happens.  For some it starts on their birthday, and they don’t complete the transformation for about a month. It’s different for everyone.” Her mother said.       They finished their packing taking just a few of their belongings, clothes, blankets, and a little food.     But the rest they had to leave.  They had to make it look like they had just disappeared into the night.  As they walked out, Jora took one last look at the house she’d always known and the town she’d never fit into.  With the rain leaving droplets on her jacket, Jora and her mother walked towards the forest, and at the edge was their new life because at the edge the wolf was waiting.  The beast’s green eyes glistening in the first ray of sunlight.