Chapter Twenty-Six

June

"What is that for?" I asked. I was sitting at the table in the kitchen eating a late breakfast of oatmeal and sausage links with Hannah. Linda held up a piece of little black lingerie.

"It's a robe, dear. It's so you won't be uncomfortable in your nudity before the shift." Linda gave me a warm smile and laid the garment over the back of an empty chair.

"I will take this opportunity to go for a walk." Bianca was dressed in a green jumper today that made her braids pop. She had finished her breakfast as I came downstairs, greeted by Linda and the robe, if you could call it that for how short it was.

"Have fun, dear," Linda said as she took Bianca's plate and began to rinse it in the sink.

The newest visitor stopped by me just long enough to pat my back. "Your comfort is priority. Your wolf will have an easier time coming out if you have fewer worries distracting you."

Offering her a weak smile, I nodded. "Thanks."

She gave my back one more pat before leaving through the front door, and I turned back to eye the garment.

"Lots of wolves wear them around," Hannah said, then took another bite of food. "Oo ont ee vee ony one."

"Don't talk with your mouth full," Linda scolded.

Hannah swallowed. "Sorry. I said that you won't be the only one."

My mouth was a grim line as I nodded. "Is it required?"

"Goodness, no, June." Linda waved a hand at me. "If you're comfortable enough, full nudity is acceptable even inside the village after dinner tonight."

I choked on my food. Hannah moved to get me a glass of water. "I didn't mean that! I meant, do I have to use the robe or can I go in my normal clothes?"

Bruce came into the room, finishing the last button by the collar of his shirt. "You'll want the robe. You'll rip your other clothes if you wear them. Especially in your first shift attempt."

I sighed, resigning myself to the robe on the chair.

"Take the robe for now and you can decide later," Linda said, placing a hand on my shoulder. "It's all up to you, of course, but the wolves here really won't be looking at your body. We're all going to be too excited for the moonrise."

"About nine or nine thirty this time," Bruce said. "But you'll start feeling it at dinner."

"You might feel it before that," Linda said. "Just be ready to meet your wolf and don't resist her."

"So, what can I expect?" This was the question everyone had avoided answering all week.

"Let's start with the in-between. What did you picture a werewolf was before you knew we were real?"

"A hairy out-of-control wolf-man in tattered jeans, I guess. The stuff from movies mostly."

Linda nodded. "There's a reason those rumors started, that's the in-between of the first shift. Or at least, one possibility if you start shifting and lose control."

My heart nearly stopped. "Are you kidding me?"

"It's less common." Linda put her hands up in front of her. "But it's not out of the question, so I'm giving you fair warning. But that's what the pack is for, there will be a volunteer crew hanging around to intercept anyone who loses control their first shift."

"What is the shift itself like?"

Linda sighed, exchanging looks with Bruce. "It hurts," he admitted.

"I won't lie to you. Your body will grow a new set of everything. Old skin will peel away, making room for new skin that will shift to fur easier from now on. Bones will rearrange, that sort of thing. It's an important process, but the first time is far from comfortable."

My head was reeling, trying to picture it. Trying to find something else that contorted the body to compare it to. "It sounds harder than giving birth."

Linda shrugged, not denying it. "I know it sounds scary, and difficult, and in many ways it is. But if you get out there and trust your wolf, listen to her, you'll be just fine."

"You will," Hannah chimed in. "I swear it's not as scary after you start, it just hurts. But your wolf! Aren't you excited to feel her?"

"I don't know," I admitted. "What if I panic, or resist?"

"Don't," Bruce offered. "Let it happen. Be kind to your wolf, don't push her away. Remember, she's going through this for the first time too."

Now that was something I hadn't considered. Everyone spoke about these inner wolves as though they were a separate thing, and maybe they were. Maybe I couldn't possibly understand it until it happened to me. At least now I wasn't going in blind, whatever may come. I scraped the last of my oatmeal from the bottom of my bowl and scooped it into my mouth. I scooted my chair out and rinsed my dishes in the sink.

"Feel free to roam the village today as you begin to feel your wolf come out," Linda said as I made my way out of the kitchen. "All the trackers and any wolves that don't keep to the village much will be coming in today, so you might see new faces."

I grabbed the robe and went upstairs to dump it on my bed. Maybe I really would wear it, who knew. From what I gathered, I'd be focused on a lot more than just my modesty tonight.

The village was full of energy today. Children played at full speed, feeling the moon even though they wouldn't shift tonight. The teenagers who weren't shifting would be watching the little ones while their parents took part in the run, which wasn't optional. Some kids would gather at one of the larger houses in town to play games until they fell asleep too. Parents with a newborn walked down the main street, showering her with kisses as they stopped to talk to the other wolves who were outside. It felt more like a true pack today than it had even at the picnic gathering.

I took a deep breath and stretched my legs. I felt like running. Like, for real running. Could I do it or would my leg just fail me again? Knowing what was coming tonight, I didn't have the guts to try. Instead, I fast walked, heading from the village toward the training field. If the wolves in town were this hyped up, I could only imagine what the more aggressive ones were doing down there.

But what started as a casual walk ended abruptly as something small, yet alarming, crossed my path.

I screamed as a hideous . . . British Bulldog? . . . crossed my path. It drooled some orange substance that looked like it was burning the ground it fell on. The thing was red, and had two stubby little tails and spikes all over its body.

It caught a grasshopper in its mouth, but the thing popped and burst into flames.

"Ferdinand!" Jerod ran over, scolding the . . . dog. "I told you not to catch them, just find them."

"What is that thing?" I asked, backing away.

Jerod's innocent smile turned into a wide grin. "You can see him? Don't worry, he's as harmless as a kitten."

Ferdinand burped up a little fire, a molten string of spittle sinking slowly from his mouth to the ground.

"Mostly, anyway. He's a demon dog, and my familiar," Jerod explained.

"You didn't have that thing in the car, I'd remember it," I said.

"I summoned him last night. I was missing some components to do so before. Carmine finds him delightful," Jerod said.

"Delightful, right. Hey, Jerod, can I ask you a question about this mate stuff?" I asked.

"Ask away."

"So, you're completely comfortable with it? I mean, you didn't know Carmine before she ran into the cabin and fought with Amelia," I said.

Jerod nodded slowly, giving Ferdinand one last scratch behind the ears before standing to face me with discernment. "I have seen the mating bond take many forms over the years. Wolves, fae, other shifters, even some demons. I'm not sure if I believe in fate, but after the things I've seen and done I can't disbelieve it either. As for Carmine, I find her passion infectious and her drive to get what she wants matches my own. I'm not ready to jump in yet and accept her bite, but why fight a fated match when we could see where it leads?"

Why fight it, huh?

"Okay, try this. Picture the hottest person you've ever been attracted to. You like their personality, you can tell right away you'd get along and understand each other, and they don't pressure you into anything," Jerod said.

Dom surfaced immediately to the forefront of my mind, and I bit the inside of my cheek.

"If someone like that shows up in front of you, why wouldn't you give that a chance?" he asked. "Carmine comes on strong, but, I assure you, no one makes Jerod Chang do a damn thing he doesn't want to do. If I have any advice for you, it would be to allow yourself to take chances. As long as you don't make any premature permanent decisions, you would probably thoroughly enjoy someone who is meant to be with you."

Meant to be with. It felt good to have another person tell me I didn't have to commit to anything I wasn't ready for, especially another nonwolf. His advice made sense, too, even if letting go and taking chances wasn't one of my strengths. Maybe, if this mate thing did happen to me, I could give it a tiny little chance. Just a little one. "Thanks, Jerod. That makes a lot of sense."

"I usually do," he said.

"Humble too," I teased. "So, what are you doing out here anyway?"

"I've got Ferdinand here wrangling up grasshoppers for me to catch. If I can't buy them, I need to get them the old-fashioned way."

"You wanted a pound of dried grasshoppers," I said. "What was that for again?"

"I promise you, you don't want to know," Jerod said, clapping his hands with a smile. "Do you want to help me catch them?"

"Uh, you're not really selling me on it." I looked down at the dog and took another step back as he began to drool again.

"Suit yourself." Jerod shrugged. "Amelia's been helping me gather ingredients to quicken our bindings. With she and Carmine preoccupied with the upcoming run, I'm on my own."

"You know what? I'll help you catch those grasshoppers. It will help take my mind off of tonight for a while," I said.

"Splendid." Jerod chuckled. "I'm keeping them in this container as we get them. I'll set it here and you can just add yours to what I already have."

I eyed the plastic box he set in the grass. "You don't have many yet."

"No, which is why I very much welcome the assistance. I'll have you know I'm a powerful man, June. I'd owe you a favor for this."

"No worries," I said. "I don't want to tangle with magic. I just want to survive tonight."

"Well, thanks all the same, then," Jerod mused. "All right then, Ferdinand! More grasshoppers please."

Ferdinand barked, and I shivered, as it sounded less like a dog and more like a screaming, tortured soul. Demon dog indeed. But as soon as he was done making that awful sound, Ferdinand jumped around in the grass, sniffing and yipping as little pops of fire went off in a random pattern around him. With each tiny hell portal came a grasshopper, displaced from wherever else around here they had been hopping around in ignorant bliss before being magically transported for capture. The ones that didn't catch fire from their unfortunate method of travel were the ones we went after.

A good distraction for a pending shift.

So for the next several hours I learned a little about warlocks, and a lot about how to catch grasshoppers.