Wolves of Alverton

Chapter 6

When I arrived at school on Friday morning, Austin and Samir were acting like children. They were overflowing with energy, and they were wrestling with each other. I strolled over to them and chuckled under my breath. I hadn't seen them this worked up since the last full moon. They both glanced at me and smirked. Then they ran towards me, picked me up, and spun me around. We were all having a blast when Jet jogged over to us. He body-slammed into us and we all laughed. He told us to settle down and not draw too much attention to ourselves. All day I could feel my energy levels rising, and soon it became impossible to sit still in class. My legs were bouncing and I was tapping my fingers on my desk impatiently. It was my last class of the day, and all I could do was stare intensely at the clock.

I listened closely as it ticked with each passing second. I waited, and waited, until the bell finally rang at the end of class, releasing everyone for the weekend. I bolted out of class and took off towards the club building. When I got there, Jet, Austin, and Samir were waiting for me. We were all on the brink of exploding with energy, so we sprinted over to the park, which was behind the school, to blow off some steam. We raced around the playground and baseball fields at least twice, and once we finally depleted our energy, we walked over to some benches and collapsed.

"Are you having fun, Brooke?" asked Austin. I smiled at him and he nudged my arm in a playful manner. I was wedged in-between Austin and Samir when Jet stood up.

"Samir, are you and Austin riding together?" asked Jet. Samir nodded. "Remember, we are meeting at the park on the east side of town around 8. Please be on-time," said Jet. We all left the park and went home. Kelly greeted me when I got home with a warm embrace. I waited in my room until Jet came to pick me up. When the doorbell rang I shouted,

"I got it!" and said goodbye to the Davenport's. I walked down the front porch and over to Jet's car. He rolled down his window and shouted,

"Hurry the fuck up!" I jogged over to his car and climbed in the front-passenger seat. When I closed the door, he looked at me and smiled. "Are you ready?"

"I think so," I said with an exasperated breath. We pulled away from the curb and drove for a few miles. I stared out the window and watched as we drove up to the park. I remember how anxious I was to experience a full moon for the first time. When we arrived, Austin and Samir were already out on the playground, blowing off steam. Jet chuckled softly and parked the car. He looked at me and smiled reassuringly. We got out of the car and walked with the boys out to the soccer field. Off in the distance, we could see people leaving the park. The field was just dark enough that they were safe to transform. As we reached a far enough distance from the parking lot, we stopped near the far edge of the field. The boys looked at me and smiled.

"Are you sure this is safe, Jet?" asked Austin. Jet glanced at the boys, noticing the uneasiness in their eyes.

"Well, to be honest, we've always transformed outside; so, in all fairness, we've never really been 'safe'." The boys nodded with slight uncertainty and paused. They all shifted their gaze towards me and smiled. Jet had explained to me earlier in the car that once they transformed, we would have to run off into the desert, so as not to risk being spotted. As the final moments dawned upon us, we formed a circle. I stood with the desert to my back, and had Austin on one side, and Jet on the other. Samir stood across from me. I looked up at the night sky and watched as the clouds parted and exposed the moon. My heart rate began to increase and the boys must have heard it, for both Jet and Austin grabbed a hold of one of my hands. I looked at them and they told me to calm down and not to worry. I took a deep breath and calmed myself. Samir turned towards Jet and said,

"It's time." The two boys continued to hold onto my hands as Samir backed away from the group. He looked up at the moon as the clouds parted, and began to transform. It was unbelievable to watch, as Samir crouched down on his hands and knees and allowed the moon to bring out his wolf-self. It was only a matter of seconds before Samir completed his transformation. When he finished, he looked up at us excitedly and we all smiled. He sat down and waited patiently for the other boys to transform. Austin was next to go. He let go of my hand and nodded silently one last time before he transformed. I watched as he too got down on his hands and knees and allowed the moon to bring out his wolf-self. After he transformed, Samir walked over to him. They nuzzled each other and sat down, awaiting Jet's transformation. Before he let go of my hand, he stared directly into my eyes and said,

"Remember, we won't hurt you. Take us to the desert and everything will be fine. If anything happens, follow me, and I will lead us to safety." He let go of my hand, and gave in to the moon's pull. Before I knew it, there were wolves on all sides of me. I smiled calmly as they all trotted over to me. Each one nuzzled me gently and got my scent. I ran my fingers through each of their coats and embraced them, allowing my face to get lost in their warm fur. I stood up and began walking towards the desert. It was incredible to watch them follow me without fear. Once the park was out of sight, I searched for a place to sit down and rest. Jet could sense that I was fatigued so he aided my search.

Eventually, we stumbled upon a perfect spot that was secluded and peaceful. I settled down on a boulder and let out a small, but exasperated sigh. Austin and Samir chased each other around in the bushes while Jet remained by my side. Jet's wolf had long, jet-black fur that was cut off around his legs by shorter, cream-colored fur. When I looked over at Austin and Samir, I noticed that Samir's wolf had long, dark brown fur, with a black tail and light-brown legs. Since all the boys had different fur colors, it would be easy to tell them apart. After resting for a while, I became bored. As I observed the boys wrestling and playing, I felt a twinge of sadness, since I hadn't transformed with them. As the night dragged on, I became drowsy. I would yawn and doze off on occasion, which would catch the attention of one of the boys, and they would trot over to me and lick my hand to wake me up. At one point, I remember lying on the rock, with my arm dangling over the edge. I had my eyes closed only for a few seconds, and was greeted with a wet tongue. I opened my eyes and noticed the jet-black wolf standing in front of me. I grumbled, and Jet walked towards me and sat down beside me. I looked for Austin and Samir and watched as one of them initiated a game of chase. I heard a small yip of excitement come from Jet, so I looked down at him.

He returned my gaze before taking off after the boys. When he ran into them, they chased him and I couldn't help but laugh a little. No sooner had he run off, then I fell asleep. I used one arm as a pillow, and allowed the other one to lay limp off the end of the boulder. It was quite uncomfortable, but the exhaustion outweighed the discomfort. I heard the pitter-patter of one of the boys coming towards me so I opened my eyes slightly. Jet sat in front of me, and his head was tilted slightly to the left. I watched as he slowly walked towards my hand. He pressed his face into the palm of my hand and slowly crept forward, so my hand would run down his back. It felt nice, but not quite the same as when he would embrace me in his human form. I grinned, and watched him run off towards the boys again.

I must have fallen asleep undisturbed, because when I opened my eyes again, the boys had transformed back. I turned my head and noticed that I was being carried towards Jet's car. I looked to see which boy was carrying me and noticed that it was Austin. I wrapped my arms around his neck, and allowed my face to nuzzle into his shoulder. I heard a car door open and looked at Austin as he placed me in the back seat of Jet's car. I smiled at him and he smiled back. I heard him say, "She's awake guys" and watched as the boys crowded the open door. I slowly sat up and flinched as a sharp pain filled my head. I placed my hand on the side of my head and groaned.

"What's wrong?" Jet asked with immediate concern. I removed my hand from my head.

"Nothing," I replied. I could tell Jet wasn't satisfied with my response, but he didn't say another word about it. He put his arm around me, and helped me get out of the back of the car and move to the front seat. The sun was just peeking over the mountains as we pulled away from the park.