WOLF

Change

Taree looked away from the highschool across the road. So many students that never seemed to recognise her, despite all those years together. Although, she supposed, she didn't really want any of them asking questions she couldn't answer. Beside the highschool sat the primary school, and the only reason she still came to this place every day.

A familiar figure caught her eye, crossing the road to her left. She turned her head to look at Ross, who flushed and looked away. She could see that he still suspected her, but was ashamed of the last time they spoke none the less. She felt him watching her as she knelt down to embrace the little boy running up to her. She welcomed him warmly, stood up, and led him away, both of them looking forward to returning to the sanctuary of their house.

As they left the crowds around the school and the streets went quiet, they could both tell that something was off. Bobby's pace began to slow, his eyes wide and flicking around frantically. His grip of Taree's hand tightened, and she returned the reassuring squeeze. They were surrounded.

It was almost a relief when one finally dropped from a tree behind them, breaking the tension. Taree spun on her heels to glare at him. She hesitated only a moment, noticing that this boy was only a few years older than herself. She shook off the surprise and shifted her feet into a stable position. Bobby let out a gasp as he was hauled off the footpath behind her. Taree stared at the woman clutching him to her chest, a knife pressed to his neck. A normal child would have screamed, or cried. They would have struggled and pleaded for help. Bobby's eyes flashed a threatening yellow as he slowly dug his claws into her arm. The Woman flinched, but held him just as firmly. Taree dropped into a crouch and quickly pulled the make-shift butterfly knife from her sock. It was illegal, she knew, but it hadn't been too hard to swap the blunt blade for a real one. She lept to her feet, lashing out at the nearest approaching enemy. The man stumbled back, taken by surprise. Taree set her jaw as he fell to his knees, his eyes glazing over. The man wasn't dead, but she hadn't meant to harm him that much.

"Give me back my brother," Taree snapped, turning back to the woman, who stared at her with the kind of fear that someone would look at a bear with; Fear of a wild, unpredictable animal. 

Taree felt someone behind her grab her ponytail and yank her head up into an unnatural position. Reacting on instinct, she jammed her elbow into the boy's ribs, snatched the knife from him and with a single movement freed herself from his grip. 

The boy paused, glancing from Taree to the curling hair left in his hand. Taree ignored him, knowing that he was inexperienced and not as much of a threat. 

The woman thrust Bobby to the side, leaving him to land painfully in the gutter. With a surge of anger, Bobby abandoned his human form and charged at the woman, now advancing on Taree. He closed his jaws on her arm and the woman hollered in pain, attempting to shake the wolf from his grip. Finally, she slashed the knife down the pup's muzzle, forcing him off. Taree took the opportunity to snatch her brother and race away. 

She turned the corner and let out a scream, "Someone, call an ambulance!" The street seemed to halt, all eyes on her, "There's a fight down there, someone's bleeding!" Several people pulled out their phones, while others went to help the injured person. 

A large man stepped over to Taree, noticing the blood on her shirt, "Are you OK? You didn't try to stop them, did you?" 

Taree met his kind eyes and forced a small smile, "I'm fine. My dog ran in and got hurt," she turned Bobby's face to show the man, "Do you know where the nearest vet is?"

The man flinched at the sight of the mangled pup and nodded, giving her directions as fast as possible. He didn't try to offer her a lift, knowing that anyone in their right mind would refuse, but offered to go with her. Taree shook her head, "No, but just tell the police that I didn't see anyone fighting down there. Just the teenage boy, the man about 40 or so, and I think a 30-year-old woman. If one of them leaves, or another comes, tell them that I didn't see them before."

"And if they want you, I'll just say you're at the vet?" the man called at Taree began to dart away, ignoring him. 

Taree followed his instructions for a few streets but quickly detoured back home. She slowed to a brisk walk to not attract attention, keeping Bobby's face hidden in her shoulder. "Jan should be able to fix you up, yeah?" She told Bobby quietly in an attempt to reassure him. She could smell his fear and pain as he shuddered in her arms, "You'll be fine soon," she whispered as they neared the house, "You'll be fine..." She pushed the door open, "You'll be... Fine..."

It seemed that as soon as the door closed behind her exhaustion took over. She sank to her knees, letting Bobby slip from her arms. Their eyes met for a long moment as Vic raced over. They could hardly hear him calling to the others as he pulled them to their feet and towards the kitchen.

Tatiana pulled her knees to her chest, perched carefully on the rim of the bath. Sharon gently combed through her wet hair, her eyes sombre.

"I'd looked forward to doing this with you," she muttered, trailing off. Taree knew what she meant. They both wished that they didn't have to be thinking about Bobby while they did it. Sharon picked up the hair dryer for what felt like only a moment, and Taree's new, short hair was dry. "Well, I think it came out rather nice," She said proudly, encouraging Taree to her feet.

Taree stared in the mirror for a long moment, a small smile playing on her tired lips. Her hair was cut to a bob, dyed black, and highlighted with dark blue. She slowly turned her head, admiring Sharon's work; It almost looked professional. With a nod to Sharon, they left the bathroom to see Bobby.

Bobby was sitting silently on the kitchen bench, his head bowed. His right eye was covered with bandages, already stained red at the edges. Taree knelt down to look up at him while Sharon went to talk to Jan, and smiled. He reached out and gently touched her hair, laughter sparking in his eyes.

"It's cute," he said, chuckling, "I doubt anyone will recognise you now."

Taree was about to reply when Vic appeared beside her. His eyes flicked between his two younger siblings, unsure how to react. Finally, he embraced Taree, knowing that she would be the most shaken, and would blame herself if Bobby's injury was permanent. Then he turned to Bobby, combing a finger through his messy brown hair, his eyes filled with an encouraging pride that made Bobby sit taller. If his brother, and idol, believed in his strength, then he could too.

Suddenly, Sharon gasped, "Blind?" She shrieked, her eyes wide with horror. She glanced at Bobby, who once again shrank down and looked away. She moved closer to him, but Jan caught her arm and whispered in her ear for a moment. She slowly nodded, her face unreadable, before briskly leaving the room. 

Jan sighed and leaned back on the sink, "Give her time," He said slowly, "And we don't know that you'll be blind. Your sight could return," he reminded him, but it didn't seem to help. Taree could feel the tension in the air and slowly backed out of the room. She couldn't help the situation. This was up to Bobby to accept or deny. She slipped into her room, shutting the door behind her, and picked up her laptop in a vain attempt to do something productive. 

Taree brushed a blue curl behind her ear, only to have it fall back in her face. She already missed her long brown hair, but enjoyed that she no longer felt worried about people recognising her. Except...

Ross paused at the end of the crossing, watching her. He knew it was the same girl. It had to be. She was wearing similar clothes, was standing in the same place, at the same time, and in the same way. If he'd seen her anywhere else he wouldn't have noticed her. But he was expecting her to be there. 

Taree looked up at him and smiled. He hesitated, so she beckoned with her head. She didn't know why, but she felt like she could afford to do this. She'd already lost her family, and her other friend. She wanted to keep one person from her old life.

After a hesitation, he walked over to meet her.