Shifted

Part 3 - Evan

 I laid there for what seemed like an eternity, howling weakly and trying to figure out how to move something other than my eyes. Not that it really mattered, since every second I used my sight, I got a headache from not being adjusted to my new vision. Instead, I focused on trying to move my legs. Sadly, the most I could do was make my feet (paws?) wiggle a little.

After a while, I stopped trying to call for help, since it was obvious that nobody was listening. The pain subsided and my sight started to clear up, as well as my thoughts. I started to feel more in control of my body. Oddly enough, the feeling that I had had earlier was gone. I didn't feel wolfy or beast-like. I just felt like me but in a different body. Honestly, the only difference was that I was warmer. Fur is surprisingly annoying when it's on your own body.

I was finally able to stand up on four shaky legs. Really, being digitigrade wasn't that different from being bipedal. I took a few wobbly steps before someone walked in, humming. I recognized it as one of my brothers. More specifically, Austin. He was my oldest sibling.

"Hey, no turning in the house!" He told me, a nonchalant look on his face as he grabbed a bag of chips from the cabinet and started pouring them into an empty bowl.

Could he tell who I was? Probably not. I gave a weak howl in response, trying to get across the message 'Do I look like I know what I'm doing?'. My legs gave way, and I crumbled to the ground. Geez, even in this form I was weak. My conscience was fading.

"Oy! Who-" My brother stopped mid-sentence. "E-Evan? Holy shit!"

I heard a loud crash. He must've dropped his chips. Rest in peace, chips. I'm pretty sure they were barbecue as well. What a shame. I mean, I couldn't really tell since my vision was slowly fading and all.

Then, it was completely gone. I've never fainted, but it wasn't that different from falling asleep. As always, I was in the typical anime classroom. Dreams are dreams for a reason, and my only dream was to go to school. Today, the whole cast of Free! was in the room. It was odd, considering I was not 2D.

I walked through the sliding door and sat down at the closest desk. I know that I could've easily just done anything else since it was just a dream, but my introverted personality always got the best of me in these situations. I could've totally made out with Haru, or yelled at Rin, but instead I laid my head on the desk. I was tired, so very tired. I just wanted to go to sleep. Sleeping while sleeping; that was a first.

My eyes flickered open. I was in my room. My real room. Half of my family was squeezed into it. I would've laughed at the sight of it, but my aunt Katherine was busy shoving a liquid down my throat. I sat up and started hacking, spitting up whatever she had force-fed me. That's when I realized that I was a human again. Thank god, I thought.

My mother threw herself on me. I'm pretty sure she was crying. "Oh, honey! We're so proud of you!"

Yep. She was crying. I could feel her tears running down my back. I know I was supposed to be smiling and happy like everyone else in the room, but I wasn't. All I felt was a pit in my stomach. I didn't want this. I didn't want this. I really didn't want this. The proudest I was supposed to be in my life was probably the lowest point in it. I had let myself down. I was supposed to go to school and do something other than hunt squirrels in the woods with my life. What do I do?

What do I do?

I didn't even realize I was crying until I heard my tears fall onto the sheets of my bed. I tried to wipe them away, but they wouldn't stop. Here I was, supposed to be a sign of dominance, but I was just crying. Why was everyone still looking at me like I was someone to be celebrated? God, I'm such a poor excuse for a human being.

Except, I'm not a human.

Not a human.

I'm a werewolf.

Werewolf.

Werewolf.

That phrase was finally hitting me. When I was little, it was the only thing I could think about doing. 'I wanna be a wolf just like mommy and big bro!'. I'd tell myself every day. When I turned 13, I stopped telling myself that. Instead, I fantasized about school, friends, and being normal. Normal is now the unattainable word. I think that it's lost meaning to me. Maybe it's been given more meaning.

I must've zoned out, because some of my family members had left, and my mother wasn't hugging me anymore. I looked over at my father. I'd never seen him happier. He was absolutely glowing. I think he was tearing up. I can't fucking deal with this. Not now, not later, not ever. Maybe I should speak my mind out. Just this once. I don't want to let them think that I'm happy to spend my life as a werewolf. I'm not, I'm really not.

So I did. "Could you guys leave?"

It wasn't exactly what I was going to say, but I applauded myself for the effort. At least I hadn't stayed silent. My father nodded, and gestured to my family to exit. They started filing out. The younger members started talking to the adults, mostly asking them 'When am I gonna become a wolf?'. I groaned and pulled my blanket over my head. I just wanted to bask in darkness and silence for a little.

Sadly, that temporary silence was broken by some very loud yelling. I was surprised that I could clearly hear what they were saying, since my room is on the third floor, and they were on the first floor.

A distinctly male voice shouted out, "HEY! WE NEED SOME HELP IN HERE!", Another one yelled, "WE FOUND SOMEONE IN THE WOODS!" They sounded familiar. Oh my god, I thought, It's Alex and Hunter.

I threw off my sheets and ran down the stairs. Hunter was carrying a girl clad in (only) a jacket that was a few sizes too large for her. "What happened?" I asked. Alex was sinking into a chair at the dining table, grabbing his left shoulder. There was blood seeping through his white t-shirt. Aunt Katherine was attending to him. She was our medical expert and witchdoctor. She actually had a clinic in Kansas.

"I was hunting and saw a wol-" Aunt Katherine dabbed his wound with a cloth. He yelped, and continued, "..A wolf. I attacked it, nothing out of the ordinary. It attacked back, and then I turned back into my regular form."

"How does this have anything to do with the girl?" My father asked. He'd ran in a few moments after I'd gotten there.

"I'm getting there," Alex told him. "The odd thing is that when it saw me turn, it turned. Into her." He gestured to the girl that was now on one of the couches.

Aunt Katherine turned to my father, "I thought we were the only family in the area."

He frowned. "Me too."

AUTHORS NOTES

Quick reminder that this is a joint account of Yurio- and yusvith___

Yurio's notes:

Ohhhh boy. This is the chapter that really took me a long time to make. Hope you enjoyed it, though.

Yusvith's notes:

HEEEELLLO! 

Again :p  hope you guys enjoyed this new chapter :p I'm so excited! Our characters are going to meet :D yay! Who else is excited? Please please please hit that little star button so that we can know that you enjoy our story. Follow to get updates on our story! 

Until next time!