Experimental Love

Chapter 4

     I opened my eyes to a blinding light. Oh. Was it all just a dream? Am I still back in the lab? I blink a couple of times and sigh. I'm warm, it's warm. I look up to see the clear sky and sunlight. I sat up and looked down at John who was still asleep.
    "It wasn't a dream," I whispered with a smile. Everything was real. He was real. I rolled over and laid my head on his chest. The soft warmth coming from his body was always something constant. Then I realized he wasn't breathing. His chest didn't rise and fall as mine did. I was confused for a moment and I gently shook him. I once heard someone say that someone was dead because they weren't breathing. He opened his eyes and propped himself up on his elbows. 
     "Good morning love. You good?" He asked and I frowned.
     "You weren't breathing," I said and he chuckled. 
     "That's cause I don't need to breathe. I am a demon after all." He kissed my forehead and got up stretching. "I don't know about you but I don't wanna live in the woods all my life. I'm gonna see if there's a rift to my realm around here." He said and helped me up. "And you get to come with me." He said just as I opened my mouth to ask. I smiled as he grabbed my hand and lead me through the woods. We just walked together for a bit before he stopped. "Someone's coming." He said quietly and pulled me behind a tree. Then I heard it too. Distant voices and footsteps. He climbed up the tree and I crouched down in the bushes. My ears flattened against my head and I narrowed my eyes. Soon the human emerged from the forest. There were three teens. Two girls and one boy. The boy had a purple sweater, messy light brown hair, and black pants. One of the girls had on a red sweater, blueish gray pants, and blond hair. The other girl had on a black sweater with ripped black jeans and dark brown almost black hair. They didn't linger very long and just kept walking. John jumped down and I stood up. He walked over and wrapped his arms around me. I looked up and pressed my lips against his. He smiled and we kept walking. As we walked I could tell John was agitated about something.
     "What's wrong?" I asked and he looked down at me. 
     "Oh, it's just that there isn't a rift anywhere's near here except in the human town. Going there could be dangerous, especially because you can't even hide your ears and tail yet." He said gently running a hand over my ears. It felt nice and my tail started to wag.
     "Do it again," I said with a pout and he laughed. He started petting my ears and I smiled, my tail wagging again. 
     "Alright, that's enough of that. Let's see if we can't do something about your appearance." 

     We spent most of the day trying to hide my ears and tail. I tried to will them away as John said but I just couldn't do it. He said it was fine because most wolves can't hide them at first and that I might not be able to at all because I was made by the humans. Apparently, there are people like me who are born like this or are made this way by a prime wolf, who can turn humans into wolves. I was made by the humans though so I might not have the same magic as those wolves. It was all so strange. Now I was watching as he floated, his legs crossed, in the air. Only a few feet up but it was really cool to watch as it looked like he was being held up by shadows. His hands were on his knees and his eyes were closed. I sat there quietly on the grass watching as shadows warped and bent around his body. This was supposed to help him heal his magic and make his powers stronger. I sighed quietly and got up, walking down to the nearby river. I sat down on the bank and looked down at the water. I curled my tail gently around my legs, ears twitching and rotating at the slightest noise. Staring down at the water I would occasionally see a small fish swim by, sliver darting among the rocks and water. With a low sigh, I began to wonder what John's realm was like. Was it dark and scary like him? I could imagine a land plunged into eternal night, dark and cold everywhere. I could live in a world like that if it meant I got to stay by his side. Besides, the dark was a nice change from the constant sterile white light from the lab. Getting lost in thought I stopped paying attention to what I could hear. For a moment I was vulnerable, and it was taken advantage of. I helped as a bullet grazed my shoulder. I hear someone shouting but didn't take the time to process what was being said. I just turned tail and sprinted towards where John was. Ducking under trees and leaping over rocks, I dropped onto all fours and growled. I could hear more bullets whizzing by, sticking into trees and ground. My ears flattened against my head and I whined. Another yelp was torn from my throat as a bullet stuck itself in my shoulder. My arm stiffened for a moment making me stumble and drop. Skidding but trying to maintain my balance I turned to try and fight them. I was a wolf, and from what John told me, I was supposed to be strong and brave. With a snarl, I tried to force myself into my wolf form. I could hear my bones cracking and the pain in my shoulder intensified as the new form caused the wound to stretch and tear. Another -deeper- snarl ripped from my throat again. A few soldiers crashed through the brush with their guns up. I lunged as they appeared, quickly closing my jaws around one of their throats. The crunch followed by the metallic taste of blood let me know I got my target. Another bullet was fired, this time at my head. I jerked back just in time and turned. With a roar like a howl, I slammed into him, sending him flying back into a tree. A third person appeared and I whipped around to face them, fangs bared and eyes wild. This felt right, hunting.
      "Heyy there big guy," the person in front of me said. I snarled as he put his hands up in surrender, gun pointed up at the sky. I narrowed my eyes at him and lowered my head a bit so we were eye level. He gently tossed the gun to the side and I followed it with my eyes before quickly snapping back to him. I took a step forwards and growled softly, something seemed wrong. Pain ripped through my side and I whirled around. Another guard had been in the bushes. Fuck. I stumbled and whined. The pain in my side and shoulder making it hard to concentrate. Last resort, John. I threw my head back and howled before turning and running to the clearing. My shoulder gave out before I could get there and I skidded into the dirt. I could hear them getting closer as I tried to get back up. Then I felt a soft warmth around me followed by a scream. My eyes closed as a crunching sound filled the air, just staying awake long enough to see the shadows wrapping around me.  

~~~~~~