Werewolf's Humanity

Questions Of My Childhood, Part 5

After her parents left, Reilly thought that now she would feel like an adult. Instead, to her surprise, she felt slightly adrift. Having lost out on her chance to train with one of the greatest warriors alive, right now he wasn't sure what to be doing with herself beyond daily chores.

Madison kept insisting Sam was a nice guy, but she liked everyone. Reilly actually admired that about her baby sister, to a point. She was far too trusting. At least Sam kept his distance. She should have felt more smug about this, but Sam was just so... pitiful. Not pathetic. But pitiful.

It was dusk, that time when all creatures of the night start to feel restless. Reilly went into her room and traded her clothes for a sports bra. Most women let it all hang out their wolf forms, and Reilly wasn't concerned about modesty. But she hated the way they bounced around when she ran. She grit her teeth and let her body flow into the stronger, more dexterous, more powerful lupine form. Bones expanded and shifted position, and she rotated her ankles and flexed her toes to avoid discomfort as her feet restructured. She cracked open her maw as her face flowed outward into a muzzle, the expanding throat area allowing more air to flow into her lungs, which she needed and gulped down with heavy, raspy breathing. The transformation was not painful, but the entire body's rebuilding itself all at once could cause some unsurprising discomfort. Red fur the same color as her hair tickled as it sprouted all along her body. If Reilly had to describe it with words, she would liken the effect to showering in ice water. She looked at herself approvingly in the mirror as she pulled her hair back into a ponytail and made a quick adjustment to her bra. Not many werewolves were fully ginger.

"Has anyone seen Mady?" she asked her family as she got outside. Uncle Nicholas was still in his human form, strumming a guitar, accompanied by Hatchet's harmonica. Aunt Ruth was in her wolf form and grinding up some herbs while she enjoyed the music. Liam and Gerry were playfully wrestling in the grass.

There was a moment of mental mulling about, as everyone searched their memories for the last time they'd seen her. Madison somehow could defy the laws of time and space and be several places at once. She was constantly bounding around the pack, seeking whatever attention she could get; her nickname back home was "Were-corgi."

"Oh!" Aunt Ruth exclaimed. "She and Sam went out for a run in the woods."

Ugh." When was that?"

"Several "hours ago. Now that I think about it, they didn't come back for dinner."

Something pricked the back of Reilly's mind. "And that doesn't bother you?" she asked.

"They probably caught a rabbit or something out there. Sam's pretty resourceful when it comes to small game."

Sam, Sam, Sam. She was getting so sick of hearing about him. And she did not like the idea of her kid sister out in the woods alone with him, despite what her aunt and uncle said. "I'm going to go look for them."

Uncle Nicholas paused his music and looked up at her. "Play nice," he said in a tone that sounded friendly,but was full of subtle Meanings.

"Of course, of course," she said, then dropped to all fours and took off running.

***

Nicholas watched Reilly until she was enveloped by the woods. He turned to his wife and said, "I think you may be wrong about those two."

Ruth chuckled. "Have I ever been before? They may have gotten off to a rough start, but just you wait 'n' see."

***

Sam's scent was easy to follow, all she had to do was follow the smell of salt and chocolate. But as she closed in on them, an alarming wailing pierced her ears. Reilly recognized that cry—Madison!Her heart began to pound, almost drowning out the sound of the cries that compelled her. What was that monster doing to her baby sister?