Pack Mentality: A Wolf Alone

Chapter 11

Seth preferred working out with a friend or two for company and advice. It hadn't occurred to him that the same benefits would apply to a full-moon shift. After Vida had introduced him to the others and everyone snacked and chatted for a while, explaining everything from how they deflected attention from the farm on shifting nights to dealing with everyday struggles, those who were still wearing clothes stripped them off like a snake shedding dead skin. The more Seth thought about the metaphor, the more apt he realized it was: most of these people considered themselves wolves first and humans second, not the other way around.

All of the bodies were well toned, but that was the only real similarity they shared. In human form, the werewolves differed greatly in height, colouring, and bearing. As they began to turn into wolves, Seth was amazed by how seamless their transitions were. It had taken him years to get as comfortable as he was with the process, and some of these werewolves seemed to just flow from one form to the other. "It gets easier with time," Vida said beside him, draping her robe over the back of a deck chair. The werewolves seemed to stagger their shifts, and Vida had suggested he go in the last group so he had more of a chance to observe. Maggie and quite a few of the younger werewolves offered to stay behind with him, but Vida told them to join the others. The remaining wolves seemed to be the older, more mature ones—ones more in command of their dual natures. While the younger or more hyper werewolves transformed, the more serene ones took care of the mundane details, like making sure any open flames were extinguished and that the gate was secured.

Watching the others change so smoothly, Seth wasn't so sure. "I don't know. It's been almost twenty years for me now. I can't imagine it's ever going to be that graceful." He pointed to where Hayden was transforming near the treeline.

"Having a pack does help," Vida admitted. She didn't quite look away as Seth disrobed, but she didn't watch either. "We connect with each other's energy—fill in the blanks, as it were."

Seth could see that for himself. Just like a group of dogs playing together at an off-leash park, these werewolves ran together, tumbling into each other; they were almost constantly touching, and he wondered if that was part of why he was so physically affectionate. Once he and Vida were the last ones left on two legs, he turned to her. "Why did you and Hayden and. . . ." He paused, not knowing which other wolves had been there on that fateful full-moon night. He had been introduced to most of the werewolves in attendance, but he could barely remember half the names he had been told, and he wasn't at all sure he would be able to connect their human faces to their wolf scents. "Why did you attack Becky and Dean?" Part of him felt guilty for not asking before, but being around so many new people—new scents, new energy—had been overwhelming.

Vida grimaced, running a hand through her short-cropped hair. "We've had problems with werewolf hunters in that area. We sensed you, of course, and we were curious, but we didn't immediately make the connection between you and them, even though your scent was all over Becky." She said it so plainly that Seth couldn't even be embarrassed. "Hunters have been known to seduce werewolves to learn their secret and gain their trust, so we thought that might have been the case. Obviously we were wrong, and I should have apologized to her and Dean when we first met. If they're amenable, I'm happy to explain our actions to them and apologize properly. We can discuss that more later, if you like, but we should join the run before the others start to wonder."

It wasn't that Seth was self-conscious or even unaccustomed to changing form in front of someone. His audience had always been human before, though, with no preconceived notions about how things should be done. Now that he had seen how smooth and elegant it was for the others, he felt like he was wearing army boots and trying to do ballet. When he was mid-shift, he felt a strange shiver go down his spine. You're doing fine. He wasn't sure how his brain translated the sensation, but the words flashed in his brain when he looked towards Vida, patiently waiting for him to join her.