Grayson (Completed)

Thirteen

My ears buzzed with the new influx of everything, and I actually had to shake my head a few times to get used to the odd feeling.  It was weird how I could move my ears, tilting them back and then pricking them up at different times; not to mention, the whole "four legs" thing was the oddest of all.  I was standing, I guess you could say, and when I tried to take a step forward I lost my balance and tipped, my head plummeting to the ground.

This was going to be a learning experience.

As I tried to shake leaves out of my fur, which I noticed was a reddish-brown color like Grayson had said, I heard some sort of chuffing noise, kind of like a laugh.  My head snapped up, sluggishly as I wasn't used to the size, and I saw Grayson – in wolf form – sitting in front of me.

The bastard was laughing at me!  That was just mean.  A growl came from my throat before I could stop it, and it startled me.  I blinked when I was finished, unsure that it was even me that had made the noise.  Eyeing Grayson, he shook his head a bit and padded over to me, coming up and rubbing his side against mine in a comforting way.  He buried his nose into the fur around my neck (such a weird thing to think) and sniffed for a second before pulling away.

He prodded at me with his nose, trying to get me to move, pushing against me with his head, some playful whines and barks escaping him.  I braved my new body and stood up again, taking a few careful steps before I attempted to full-out walk.  Baby steps, Jonah.  Baby steps.

I got the hang of everything quickly though, as if I had been able to do it my entire life, and soon Grayson and I were running through the forest as fast as we could.  I understood what he meant about feeling the freedom, but to be honest, I liked the feeling of being in his arms better.

We ran around for at least an hour, maybe two, but because I was new to the whole thing, I began to get tired faster than Grayson.  I could tell that he was a little disappointed not to be out longer, but at least he realized that I hadn't been doing this as long as he had.  He Shifted back before me, and I was ladylike and turned my eyes away as he got dressed again. 

No matter how much I wanted to peek.

"I'm really proud of you, Jonah," he said as he walked over to me.  I cocked my head as I looked at him, hearing the odd way that the words were distorted in this form.  I could still process everything like I normally would as a human, but now there was some sort of animalistic instinct added on top of that. 

He put a hand on top of my head, and when he rubbed my ears, I understood why he had leaned into my hand.  The feeling of it was really nice, comforting even, and I enjoyed it.  "Okay," he sighed, "time for you to change back.  We have more to talk about.  When you Shift back, just think about what it is that you like about being human that makes you want to return."

I sighed, or tried too, but it came out as more of a huff, and it made Grayson chuckle.  With one last rub at my ears, he turned and walked away from me, giving me some privacy.  I padded over to the towel that was still on the ground and nudged it with my nose.  Focusing on what Grayson had said, I thought about all the things I loved about being human, being me.

I thought about my family, my crazy, bat-shit insane mother and sisters.  I thought about my dad and how I enjoyed working with him.  I thought about Edgar; how I loved him no matter how much of a little bastard he was to me.  I thought about the feeling of being wrapped in Grayson's arms, and before I knew it, I was standing on two legs in the forest, buck-ass naked.  Wrapping the towel around myself quickly, I slid on the clothes that Grayson had left for me. 

He was waiting for me just at the edge of the trees, his frame illuminated by the bright sunlight.  It made a halo around his dark head, lightening the color a little bit.