of grass. Our pack's scents grew stronger.
My wolf called out to them.
Joyful howls sounded in return. All except Jet's.
He would get over it.
Our pace slowed as we neared the others. We were near the Faeble, a lively bar open to all supernatural creatures. Often, after shifting back to human form, we would stop in for something to drink to relax after the grueling changes of shifting. The owner let us keep spare clothing around back.
I, for one, was ready for both shifting back and a strong drink.
One quick glance at the moon told me it would be a while. My wolf urged me to go on a hunt.
Wouldn't you rather curl up and sleep? Busy day tomorrow.
He growled. I would have, too, if I could only be in my preferred form one day a month.
I lowered our nose to our chest.
My wolf burst into a run, sniffing for something to chase. Our mouth watered and our stomach growled at the thought. He wanted to go after a deer, always preferring the thrill of getting a larger animal.
I couldn't stop thinking about Victoria in the arms of that feline. None of it made any sense. Obviously, she didn't remember me, but what else had changed? One didn't just stop being a werewolf. Sure, we could fall in love with other species, but not become one.
As my wolf ran through the woods, I blocked him out and tried to make sense of everything. The more I thought about it, the more it made my brain hurt. Or wait…
No, that was the familiar ache of the impending shift.
My wolf's disappointment ran through us. It was so strong, it nearly felt like my own, except that I was all too aware of how badly I wanted back into my human form.
I had to find out what was going on with Victoria.
Pain shot through our spine. I gave into it, eager to be human for the next month. My wolf fought it.
Next time, we need to get on the same page.
His resistance ran through me.
In this form, our uniting was on me. When I gave into the monthly change and went with the flow, it was as though we were one and the same. Times like this reminded me that we were two forming one.
Our front legs ached. It was about to happen. I looked around. We weren't as near the Faeble as I would have liked. Sure, I was comfortable in my own skin, and my pack was plenty used to seeing each other in the nude given the nature of our changes, but I avoided running through the woods without any clothes if I could.
I'd run into people more often than I preferred—and they weren't nearly so forgiving about guys running around naked.
Clumps of fur dropped to the ground. I fought the bone pain and ran toward the bar.
I could smell the others nearby. Some were already in human form while others were still changing. The younger ones tended to have less control over the changes and often turned first.
Being over a century myself, it was unusual for my wolf and me to be at such odds. We were old friends and had been through a lot together, including loving and losing Victoria.
My wolf stopped us and put our nose to the dirt. Pain ran from the tip of our tail upwards through our spine, spread out to all four extremities and finally crashed into our neck and skull. The crunching was so loud, I couldn't tell where the shift began. It was easy to know when it had ended, though. Rocks and twigs dug into my sensitive human flesh.
I stood and pulled some leaves from my side. Stinging nettle. Great. I pulled some more off and thanked my wolf for his choice of where to stop.
The sounds of conversation reached me from nearby. The Faeble was only a hundred yards away. I ran for the back, where the spare clothes were stashed in some old lockers.
Jet was already getting dressed. He stared at my side. "Run into trouble?"
"Stinging nettle. I'll be fine."
He punched me in the arm. "What doesn't kill you, right?"
"Yeah, I'm sure this'll make me plenty stronger." I opened the locker where I'd stored some of my clothes and got dressed. "I could sure use a drink."
"You and your wolf were at odds
My wolf called out to them.
Joyful howls sounded in return. All except Jet's.
He would get over it.
Our pace slowed as we neared the others. We were near the Faeble, a lively bar open to all supernatural creatures. Often, after shifting back to human form, we would stop in for something to drink to relax after the grueling changes of shifting. The owner let us keep spare clothing around back.
I, for one, was ready for both shifting back and a strong drink.
One quick glance at the moon told me it would be a while. My wolf urged me to go on a hunt.
Wouldn't you rather curl up and sleep? Busy day tomorrow.
He growled. I would have, too, if I could only be in my preferred form one day a month.
I lowered our nose to our chest.
My wolf burst into a run, sniffing for something to chase. Our mouth watered and our stomach growled at the thought. He wanted to go after a deer, always preferring the thrill of getting a larger animal.
I couldn't stop thinking about Victoria in the arms of that feline. None of it made any sense. Obviously, she didn't remember me, but what else had changed? One didn't just stop being a werewolf. Sure, we could fall in love with other species, but not become one.
As my wolf ran through the woods, I blocked him out and tried to make sense of everything. The more I thought about it, the more it made my brain hurt. Or wait…
No, that was the familiar ache of the impending shift.
My wolf's disappointment ran through us. It was so strong, it nearly felt like my own, except that I was all too aware of how badly I wanted back into my human form.
I had to find out what was going on with Victoria.
Pain shot through our spine. I gave into it, eager to be human for the next month. My wolf fought it.
Next time, we need to get on the same page.
His resistance ran through me.
In this form, our uniting was on me. When I gave into the monthly change and went with the flow, it was as though we were one and the same. Times like this reminded me that we were two forming one.
Our front legs ached. It was about to happen. I looked around. We weren't as near the Faeble as I would have liked. Sure, I was comfortable in my own skin, and my pack was plenty used to seeing each other in the nude given the nature of our changes, but I avoided running through the woods without any clothes if I could.
I'd run into people more often than I preferred—and they weren't nearly so forgiving about guys running around naked.
Clumps of fur dropped to the ground. I fought the bone pain and ran toward the bar.
I could smell the others nearby. Some were already in human form while others were still changing. The younger ones tended to have less control over the changes and often turned first.
Being over a century myself, it was unusual for my wolf and me to be at such odds. We were old friends and had been through a lot together, including loving and losing Victoria.
My wolf stopped us and put our nose to the dirt. Pain ran from the tip of our tail upwards through our spine, spread out to all four extremities and finally crashed into our neck and skull. The crunching was so loud, I couldn't tell where the shift began. It was easy to know when it had ended, though. Rocks and twigs dug into my sensitive human flesh.
I stood and pulled some leaves from my side. Stinging nettle. Great. I pulled some more off and thanked my wolf for his choice of where to stop.
The sounds of conversation reached me from nearby. The Faeble was only a hundred yards away. I ran for the back, where the spare clothes were stashed in some old lockers.
Jet was already getting dressed. He stared at my side. "Run into trouble?"
"Stinging nettle. I'll be fine."
He punched me in the arm. "What doesn't kill you, right?"
"Yeah, I'm sure this'll make me plenty stronger." I opened the locker where I'd stored some of my clothes and got dressed. "I could sure use a drink."
"You and your wolf were at odds
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