Chapter Thirteen
Nodding his head in a semi-formal bow, the now-human wolf stands, facing Serena. Having stopped in a dim section of the forest, Serena's eyes, well-adjusted for darker waters, have an easier time seeing him.
His hair is his only feature still resembling his werewolf form. It’s the same color as his light brown fur. It sits parted down the middle and hangs just past his ears with a few stray strands curling in, framing hazel eyes.
"They're not red." Serena blurts out the first thing that comes to mind.
"Huh?" he asks, eyebrows furrowed.
"Nothing. It's just…" Serena clears her throat, pausing. "We don't like to be called mermaids."
His lips turn up in a half smile.
"Well, Serena Moon-Shadow of the Undine Kingdom…what did you do wrong to deserve the title of Werewolf Liaison?" The man remains outside the wolfsbane circle, his cape made of thick material and tied close at the waist. When it billows out with the breeze, Serena can see his posture is relaxed.
Serena sits back on her branch, allowing one leg to dangle. She drops her hand on the far side of the branch, closer toward the trident as a precaution. "It is my chosen responsibility," she answers.
His forehead crinkles. "You chose this?"
Her jawline tightens as she plucks the stem of a flower from one of the braids, and twirls it in her fingers. "Not exactly."
His eyes drift, studying everything from her trident to the swing of her leg, down her arms to the flower she still twirls in her hand.
"What?" she asks.
He stands taller than the average Ungainly male. The cape is pulled tight over his upper arms and wide shoulders, revealing defined but not bulky muscles. He turns, seeking out a stump, and sits. "When were you plannin' to fulfill your part of the bargain?" He motions to her legs with a jerk of his chin.
She looks down. Her whole body is still scaled. She did promise to retract them, which poses a slight problem. Even the Undine cannot touch wolfsbane with their bare skin and escape unscathed, a secret the werewolf need not know.
Serena shifts on the branch, standing to place her feet in between the braids of poisonous flowers. Petals from the branch above graze her hair. She tries to hunch without being too obvious about it, and is all too aware of the trident, which is now out of reach.
Slowly, she retracts the scales on her feet. They disappear in a chain up to just above her knees, where she stops.
He raises one eyebrow again.
"I failed to bring my own cape," Serena explains.
He nods, and gestures with his hand for her to continue. Serena reveals the skin on her hands, wrists and arms. Next, she bares her shoulders and the upper portion of her chest. The charm slides from scales to skin.
Serena touches her necklace again; the gesture is becoming a nervous habit. She steps forward, placing her feet carefully, until the branch begins to dip under her weight. Serena lowers herself, straddling the branch.
The man shifts on his stump and opens his mouth, about to speak.
Unwilling to lose the upper hand, Serena speaks first. "Care to introduce yourself, or shall I just call you Hound?"
"We prefer werewolf," he looks at her from under thick eyebrows. "Or just weres. But you can call me Liam. Or, that is…" He stands, smoothing out his cape. "Liam of the Clan Werich."
Serena purses her lips, "No title?"
"Well, I work the night shift at the bowlin' alley."
"What does that mean?"
"It is a gamin' place, for humans." One side of his mouth curls up in a smile. "Maybe I can take you sometime."
Serena calls his bluff. "Can I bring my wolfsbane?"
Now he laughs out loud, small wrinkles appearing around his eyes.
Serena leans forward on the branch, her belly touching rough bark. She folds her arms underneath her and rests her chin in one hand.
Liam composes himself, sliding his fingers through his hair. "And as Werewolf Liaison, are you goin’ to extend an invitation for me to visit you?"
"I don't think so, Liam of Clan Werich. You would not survive the games we play in the ocean." Serena wonders how a jellyfish sting would affect a werewolf.
"Of that, I have no doubt." He smiles as he turns, taking a few steps away from her.
Serena pushes up from the branch. "Where are you going?"
Tracing the outer edge of wolfsbane circle, Liam walks around to the back of the tree. "To bed. To dream of tridents and yellow flowers, and mer…" He drifts off, catching himself in time. "I mean the Great Kingdom of the Undine."
"When will we meet again?" Serena asks.
"I will listen for your call, Serena Moon-Shadow. And maybe next time you can come down from your tree, little bird," he says, disappearing from sight.
"Liam, wait!" Serena calls. "I have more questions!" Serena racks her brains for a more substantial excuse for him to stay. "And I'm going to need proof that I met you."
There is another rustle in the thick brush, and as quickly as it disappeared last time, Liam’s tail reappears. Liam leaps out of the shrubbery in full werewolf form, his cape nowhere to be seen. Pausing by his stump, he leans to one side and his hind leg comes up, claws extended. He scratches himself along his ribs, hard and quick. After turning to look at Serena one last time, he trots away.
Serena listens as his footsteps recede. Once she is sure he is a fair distance away and still moving, she scales her feet and jumps down from the tree. Grabbing her trident and leaving the safety of her circle to approach the stump, Serena bends down in the grass, spotting a small mass of light brown fur.
The Rising Page 17