by S Bolanos
“Morning,” I announced as I entered the kitchen.
“Good morning, sweetie. How did you sleep?” Tom asked as he turned to help Peter with a plate of bacon. He placed it at the breakfast table next to a precarious tower of pancakes. He noted my look. “As usual, your dad has taken having a guest as an opportunity to show off.” I didn’t have the heart to tell them this was nowhere near enough food. I’d have to sneak a snack or two later.
“I heard that,” Peter replied over his shoulder. The pan gave a wonderful sizzle as he added sausage. “So, little one, how did you sleep?”
“Not very well.” They exchanged a knowing look. “I don’t suppose either of you has seen Michael this morning?”
“He was down here when I came in to start breakfast,” Peter said. The grease popped and he quickly devoted his attention to the pan.
“Where is he now?”
“He asked about the woods,” Peter responded as I sat at the table. “Even asked if I would mind if he took a stroll before breakfast.”
We all looked out the windows at the woods that came up as close as they dared to the house. No more than fifty feet from the back door, trees closed in like they were closing ranks. Many people had gotten very lost in those woods, including apparently Tom. Not that I had any fear that Michael would get lost, more a fear that he would want to be.
Tom sat next to me and wrapped an arm around my shoulders. “Sweetie, what’s going on between you two?”
“Oh, Daddy, I think I’ve really messed things up.”
Moments later, Peter joined us at the table steadily loading my plate with the various options. “Well let’s hear it. One of us is actually good at relationship advice. You can decide which one at the end.”
I sighed and picked up a fork.
“You can start with whether or not you two are actually dating,” Tom deadpanned.
“I noticed he slept in the guest room,” Peter added.
I flinched. “That’s hard to explain.”
“It’s really not.” There was zero forgiveness in Tom’s tone, not that I could blame him after keeping them in the dark about everything else.
“I don’t know. No. Yes? It’s all a muddled mess.”
“Why don’t you try starting at the beginning,” Peter suggested as he took a seat.
I took a deep breath then let it out in a defeated huff. “After the attack he began this crusade to get to know me. It was weird and out of the blue. He kept asking me out, but they always felt like pity luncheons. You know? Turns out, he was really working up the nerve to tell me what I'd become. Except he didn’t. Not in time anyway.”
“What do you mean?” Tom asked.
“I'd no idea what was happening when I had my first full moon. The change is awful and I thought I was dying. When I came to, I panicked and blindly ran across town. Through a series of several horrific events, the least of which was nearly being run over, I ended up at his place.”
“The universe has a way of giving us what we need when we need it,” Peter said, giving my hand a squeeze. He and Tom shared a look.
I pulled my hand back. “This isn’t destiny or fate, Dad. It was a horrible tragedy that nearly killed me, still could, if we’re being honest. Besides, there’s nothing sweet about why I essentially had to move in with him. Michael is basically my jailer. Everything that followed was for show.” I paused. “Until it wasn’t. I knew I would fall for him, for the image we were creating.”
“So, you are dating.”
“Daddy!”
“What? It’s an honest assumption.”
“If we are, I don’t feel I can trust it. Yes, I really like him and to hear him tell it, he’s liked me for a while.” I quickly dismissed telling them about what he’d said during his fever, it seemed stupid to share something I didn’t believe myself. “But what does any of that mean? I have all of these new senses and instincts and urges. I don’t even know how to process most of them.”
“Urges?” Peter asked flatly. Tom smacked him.
“It seems to me that he truly liked you before any of this started,” Tom began. “Yes, I know what you said.”
“Why are you so convinced that he can’t like you beyond all of this?” Peter followed up.
“Because the whole situation is beyond outrageous.”
“What you have to decide is if you like him outside of these exceptional circumstances,” Tom said.
Peter nodded knowingly and for the briefest moment I could have sworn my old imaginary friend, Helga, was sitting at the table also nodding sagely along. I blinked and she was gone. Clearly lack of sleep and ghost stories were getting to me.
“Sara, you're smart, resourceful, and beautiful. Now I know at least two of those are subject to parental bias, but I’ve seen the way he looks at you. I don’t understand how you can’t see it too.”
I slumped in my chair. “Why is it so important to label everything now? I need time to absorb what’s happening to me.”
“Then tell him that,” Tom said. “People can’t understand what’s holding you back if you don’t tell them.” Peter looked down at the table and Tom reached out to place a comforting hand on his shoulder without looking away from me.
“I always wanted a love like yours.” My words drifted like a light wind across the table.
“Destiny or not, all love must be fought for. Love may feel like magic, but it’s faith and perseverance that makes it happen,” Peter said, looking back up.
“You don’t have to decide your entire future in a couple weeks,” Tom said. “There’s always time.”
“It doesn’t feel like it,” I grumbled.
“Then stop wasting it.”
I'd already torn through several yards of underbrush before I stopped to consider the futility of my current search tactics. Morning sunlight fell in dappled patches tinged with green. Growing up, I hadn’t been afraid of the woods, but I hadn’t been altogether fond of them either. I didn’t know them as well as my dad, who’d spent his childhood roving them and learning every path and pebble. But I had other talents I could use besides an inherent knowledge of the area.
A quick glance back towards the house revealed nothing but dense foliage. Without delay, I stripped down, not bothering to hide my clothes. I took a deep breath and started the change. For once, there was nothing to fight.
Incredible how much acceptance alone eased the transformation. The pain was still excruciating, but I wanted to get to the other side and I had complete faith that I would be alright once I got there. I stole a few moments to adjust to the growingly familiar form.
My pads barely whispered against the dense layer of fallen leaves as I made my way back to the edge of the forest. Beyond the foliage, the Sheppard ancestral home arose both familiar and strange to dominate the horizon.
I lowered my nose to the ground and walked along the line of trees where they abruptly lost their battle to Peter’s strict boundary. Picking out a woodsy scent in the woods seemed like an impossible task, until I found it. Michael’s smell was indeed very similar, but there were nuances that I'd never appreciated before, like the undercurrent of leather and jasmine or that it made me think of an autumn afternoon. With the scent solidified in my mind, there was no question which way he’d gone.
Michael’s scent meandered across clear-cut paths in favor of more unchecked wilderness. I abandoned the path, trusting my senses to guide me. The constant flood of new and conflicting scents ensured that I went slowly lest I lose the one I was following. I knew without a doubt that if I lost it now, it would be swallowed by the myriad of smells and I’d never be able to pick it back up again.
The sun hung almost directly overhead when I found him sitting on a large boulder that looked like it had been there for at least a century. It sat in a small clearing that had enough space between the overarching canopies to allow a full circle of light to stretch out on the ground next to him. He lifted his head, recognizing that I was near, but otherwise didn’t
move.
I doubled back a short distance and returned to my human form. When I walked out into the clearing, I was still coated in a faint sheen of sweat that quickly cooled in the chill air.
“Hey,” I said, suddenly nervous.
Michael stared at me completely nonplussed by my nakedness. “I’m impressed. I didn’t think you would change.”
“Why wouldn’t I? This is what I am. I won’t deny it anymore.” I chewed my bottom lip a moment before giving voice to something I’d been reluctant to admit to myself. “I’m actually becoming quite proud of it.” My words sent a ripple of surprise through him that I could almost smell.
“Why are you here, Sara?”
“You’re missing breakfast.” He gave me a look. “Fine. I wanted to apologize.”
His ears seemed to twitch, but that could have been the product of a hopeful imagination. When he didn’t say anything, I took a step closer.
“This has been really hard for me.”
“I know it’s a lot, but—”
“Would you let me finish?” I cut him off.
His mouth snapped shut, a huff of air misting in front of him.
“I’m not talking about the werewolf part.”
His eyes widened in surprise.
“I’m talking about us.” When he began to say something, I held up a hand. “You don’t get it. Yes, my parents are wonderful, I love them dearly and they are pretty much my whole world. But when I found out at fourteen that I was adopted, it did something to me. I went from being a carefree kid to being a shell without an identity. I recognize how silly that sounds, but it doesn’t change that that’s exactly what happened. Who was I if I wasn’t theirs?”
The breeze shifted, causing the dappled light to play across his face. He continued to sit quietly waiting for me to go on. This was everything I'd never been brave enough to admit to myself and now I was saying it out loud. It was every bit as hard as I thought it’d be.
“Then you came along. I don’t know if you were telling the truth about how long you’ve liked me and quite frankly it doesn’t matter. What I do know, is that I’ve had a crush on you since you sauntered into the PR department with market projections two years ago.”
Surprise flickered in his eyes.
I gave him a crooked smile. “You’re kind of hard not to like.” My grin slipped. “As I got to know the real you, that changed. I’m not even sure when. Then you were attacked and you told me…” I couldn’t finish.
The dark tan of his face colored slightly.
“Yeah, that. With everything else going on, it was a lot to take in. I’m not saying I don’t or that I can’t return those feelings. All I’m asking is for time to figure them out. I need to understand myself—the old and the new—before I try to give it away to someone. Can you give me that? Can you give me time?”
The silence stretched around us. My new senses picked out the sounds of tiny scurrying feet and the smell of pending spring in the air. The slight breeze tickled my bare skin, reminding me that I was completely naked. I gave an involuntary shiver and tried not to overthink his lack of a response.
“So, what you’re saying is, you like me.”
My sound of pure exasperation startled several birds into flight. When the noise and the leaves cleared, Michael had abandoned his perch and was standing in front of me.
“Is that all you heard? I’m kind of baring my soul here.”
“I heard all of it. You’re right, all of this is going really fast, even for me. There are so many things you don’t know. Things I need to tell you, but…” His words trailed off as he brushed a thumb gently across my cheek.
I blinked at him, holding my peace.
“I’ll try to slow down, but I can’t make any promises. I meant what I said, I’m in love with you. Stars help me, I have been for a while. But as dangerous as I know that is, I can’t stop.” His fingers danced along my cheek to tuck a strand of hair behind my ear as his eyes searched mine. “Think you can put up with me while you decide if I’m worth loving back?”
I gave a strangled cry of frustration. “I never said—”
“I know, I know. I’m teasing you,” he chuckled.
“You have to be the most infuriating man I’ve ever met.”
“And you're probably the most stubborn woman I’ve met. That’s part of why I love you.” He leaned forward and pressed his lips against mine.
I didn’t argue. I wanted this, wanted us. The gentle kiss deepened as he placed his hand on the back of my neck.
“Let’s go for a run,” I suggested breathlessly. He gave me a look. “Give me a little credit. I know I can’t change again so soon.”
He smiled. “And where are your clothes, my brazen werewolf?”
“Somewhere else,” I replied wickedly before racing towards the heart of the forest. The crash of leaves behind me suggested he was hot on my heels.
25
20 Questions
When we returned to the house, shadows stretched like fingers across the garden. There was no comment about our extended absence, only welcoming waves. What was worth noting was the truly impressive amount of food prepared for dinner.
“Wow, Dad, you’ve really outdone yourself.”
“Smells amazing, Peter.”
“Not to say that Tom is right, but I do rarely get an opportunity to show off.”
As if summoned by his name, Tom came in to gather dishes. Michael and I eagerly began helping. After spending hours running, we were both in need of a substantial meal. That aside, it was a far different quantity than what I'd seen this morning.
“Hey, Daddy, that seems like an awful lot of food.”
“Surely you didn’t think that we would be idle while we waited for you two to return from your…romp in the woods.”
Color surged up my neck in a wave of heat to cover my face at the very noticeable pause before romp. Someone coughed behind me and I turned to see an equally embarrassed Michael. Tom spared a look for each of us and returned to the kitchen.
“Oh, Peter, my love, the children are wondering about the sudden presence of so much food.” Dutifully, we followed him back into the kitchen, though there wasn’t much left to retrieve.
Upon our entry, Peter turned. “Surely you didn’t think we’d be idle until you returned from doing heaven-knows-what in the woods,” he said in a near perfect echo of his partner. The heat in my cheeks intensified. “Come on, Sara, you’re a grown woman and from what we’ve looked up, werewolves aren’t exactly shy.”
“What you looked up?” I squeaked.
“It seemed prudent to try and understand a little more about your new life. Granted, a lot of what we found was pure nonsense, and some of it was downright disturbing, but some things remained consistent.” Peter gestured at the plethora of food.
I could easily picture the two of them huddled around Tom’s computer with horrified expressions at the images that would inevitably pop up under the search: My daughter is a werewolf. I groaned, too low for them to hear, but not low enough to escape Michael.
“If you want, I’d be more than happy to answer any questions you have.”
The rest of us looked at him. We all knew how likely those questions would be to escalate from modest curiosity to outright invasiveness.
“I’m serious, I won’t take offense to any question you ask. Plus, it will be another learning opportunity for Sara.”
I grabbed Michael’s arm tightly. He shot me a questioning look as I addressed my parents. “Will you excuse us?”
“Dinner in five, young lady.”
“Yes, Dad,” I responded quickly before dragging Michael into the hall.
“What was that about?” Michael asked the moment they were out of sight.
“Are you out of your mind?” I hissed.
“Sara, it’s only fair that we answer as many of their questions as we can. It’s a good thing they want to understand.” Michael glanced back toward the dining room at the scrape of a cha
ir. “It’ll be fine,” he offered reassuringly as he laced his fingers through mine.
I shook my head and tightened my fingers around his. “I know they have a right to know, and I love that they want to be supportive, but you have no idea the kind of blanket permission you gave them.”
He leaned in and placed a kiss on my forehead. “Have a little faith.”
Easy for you to say, you don’t know my parents.
“This is gonna be one hell of a dinner,” I mumbled, then squared my shoulders and let Michael lead us into the dining room.
Mercifully, we were given a chance to eat before the game of Twenty Questions began. Peter and Michael cleared the table while I helped Tom set out the dessert options, cookies and a chocolate cake from the bakery in town. Once everyone settled back down with their plate of decadence and a cup of coffee, it was clear the blessed delay was at an end.
Michael set his fork down, cake untouched, and addressed the elephant in the room. “I’m assuming that from your research you surmised that werewolves have a slightly larger appetite. By the way, dinner was wonderful, thank you.”
A small smile tugged at Peter’s mouth. “You’re welcome.”
“Showoff,” Tom snickered. Before the conversation could degrade into their usual banter, Michael spoke up.
“I confess, I haven’t searched ‘werewolves’ recently, but I doubt much of it was more than gore and teenage fantasy.” Tom and Peter shared a look that confirmed my worst suspicions as to what they’d found. “In light of that, I’m anticipating some interesting questions. Now, who wants to go first?”
There was the smallest of interludes before the volley was set loose.
“Does silver kill you?”
“What are your abilities?”
“Do you turn into a wolf or something kind of like a wolf?”
“Do you have a pack?”
“Do you have an alpha?”
“Is your bite lethal?”
“Does wolfsbane do anything to you?”
“Do you have any special powers?”
