Cassidy paced forward on all fours and loomed over her. Patches of skin shone in the moonlight, broken up by patches of fur, some of which were lighter and others darker. Her head blocked out the moon. Ruri stared up at her, tense and ready to run again if she had to. What is she up to? If Cassidy had given herself completely over to the wolves, there was no telling what she might do.
Chapter Twenty-Two
Ruri hadn’t survived this long by waiting for ill to befall her. She feinted to one side and rolled the opposite way when Cassidy moved to stop her. The momentum of her roll brought her feet under her, and she sprang up, heading to the far side of the clearing. A couple of downed trees gave her the cover she needed as she threaded her way between their bare boughs. Cassidy didn’t know the area, but she did and she would use that to her advantage.
Behind her, Cassidy put up a heck of a racket clambering over the dead trees. She didn’t know her body, not this way. As fast as she was, she wasn’t particularly agile.
Ruri waited for her, tongue lolling and testing the breeze with her nose. The speed Cassidy had displayed was unusual. The between-form was one most wolven couldn’t hold for long; it was mostly a transitory form. Some wolven could shift partially, but they were usually the strongest in a pack. Dean had been able to take on between-form, though he hadn’t liked to. Not only had he found it ostentatious, but it wasn’t overly practical. It seemed to have all the disadvantages of each form and none of the advantages. Ruri should have been able to outrun Cassidy back there, but when she’d almost been caught, she was running at full speed. What this meant for Cassidy, she wasn’t certain. There was so much about her that might be attributed to the circumstances of her transition.
The wolf shook her head, ruffling the fur around her neck. Cassidy was as she was. Wondering why was a foolish conceit. There were bigger worries now.
She wouldn’t be caught unaware again. When Cassidy emerged from the pile of downed trees, Ruri tensed again, ready to move in whichever direction was wisest. It didn’t matter from which direction Cassidy tried to approach her, she was ready.
The breeze tickled her nostrils, bringing with it Cassidy’s scent. The wolven didn’t smell aggressive; excited perhaps, but there was nothing to suggest she needed to be worried. Still, Ruri didn’t relax. If she had one wolf to contend with, she could have trusted her nose, but Cassidy was dangerous precisely because her wolf could still change. Things weren’t going as she’d expected. Somehow she’d lost control of the situation.
Cassidy spread her arms, gripping the ground with deadly claws that dug long furrows into the earth. She lowered her front and looked up at Ruri, eyes bright and questioning. Every line of her body suggested she wanted to play. If she’d had a tail, it would have been raised over her back and wagging slightly. When Ruri didn’t respond beyond a careful shift of her weight, she pushed herself lower.
If Cassidy’s wolf wants to play, I might as well work with it, Ruri thought. Taking care not to let her head get lower than Cassidy’s, she imitated her pose. Unable to completely lose the tension that tugged at her body, she felt her legs shake slightly. I’m not going to be able to hold this for long, she realized. She bounded forward and snapped her teeth together right by Cassidy’s ear. The sound of her bite was loud even to her, and she darted away, startled by the noise.
Cassidy followed right along behind her, chasing on her heels. It wasn’t what she’d meant to do, but once again there was no sign of aggression from the other wolven. She dodged around a tall tree stump that was roughly broken off a little higher than her shoulder and Cassidy mirrored her, planting herself in the way. Ruri dodged away, digging toenails into the ground and pivoting smoothly. Cassidy grinned and started forward, then stopped suddenly. She stood stock still, every muscle shaking, her claws chewing up the turf in rough gouges. Her sides heaved as she panted. Each breath shuddered in and out of her in billowing clouds of vapor.
It was chilly, the dry leaves around them speaking of autumn’s relentless advance, but it wasn’t cold enough for breath to be visible. Something was happening. Cautiously, Ruri inched forward.
Ice blue eyes stopped her in her tracks. Cassidy looked up at her with no sign of recognition. The eyes were familiar. No, she wouldn’t think of that, not right now. Not when they finally had some sign of progress.
The shaking of Cassidy’s muscles got progressively more violent before they shifted beneath her skin again. More cracking rent the air, each one a sharp report. The struggling wolven whined each time a bone snapped and reformed. This was it. This was what Ruri had been waiting for. Her new sister was finally being born.
A strangled howl clawed its way from Cassidy’s throat. New fur threaded its way down her shoulders before it suddenly stopped. She froze.
Ruri moved forward—her sister needed her help—but this was one trial she had to weather on her own. The only support Ruri could give her were the bonds of the pack. She would protect her packmate from all comers. As she came closer, she noticed that the new fur coming in was so pale as to be completely colorless. There was only one wolven she’d known who had fur that light. Between the color of Cassidy’s eyes and the white of her fur, there was no denying the identity of at least one of the wolven who’d attacked her.
Britt… She didn’t stop the howl that burst from her throat. Her wolf poured out its grief for a packmate lost, one whose betrayal had been breathtaking in its totality. The howl rose and fell before rising again. There was no hiding from it any longer. She would have to kill the wolven who had caused so much agony.
That pain wasn’t complete. Cassidy still shuddered in front of her. More fur shaded in among the white, this time in dark brown. It progressed more slowly, sliding down her back before slowing again and fading back to white.
Ruri watched, fascinated. The wolves that had been fighting for dominance within Cassidy seemed to be waging a final battle. They were tenacious, wrestling back and forth as Cassidy trembled and whined. The change wasn’t smooth or quick. Instead it came in fits and starts. Each time it ebbed and flowed, a strangled howl was torn from her tortured packsister, some cries sounding almost human, others that were definitely wolf. Each cry was lower and more distinct than the one that preceded it. Ruri paced back and forth, keeping one eye on Cassidy and the other on the trees around them. This was taking too long; her packsister was too exposed.
A figure separated itself from the shadows to her right. Ruri swiveled to stare at it. It moved on two legs, not four, and she’d darted halfway across the clearing before the wind brought Malice’s scent to her. She slowed and walked the rest of the way. Malice gave no indication that she’d noticed her, instead staring where Cassidy now lay on her side, twitching.
Ruri walked around the human and beneath the hand that hung at her side, allowing it to slide over her head and rest on the highest point of her back. The wolf welcomed Malice’s touch, and she was able to relax a bit. Malice gently clenched her hand in Ruri’s thick fur. They stood there together for a moment, and Ruri moved forward. Malice walked beside her, matching her step for step back to where their sister lay.
By the time they returned, Cassidy was half-furred and her muscles continued to ripple and twitch slowly beneath her skin. There were no more sounds of bones snapping, but Ruri thought she could hear them creak. Cassidy lay in a puddle of fluid and blood, the remnants of her human skin and tissue that hadn’t been repurposed for the change. At their approach, Cassidy looked up. Her face was completely wolven now and a long tongue lolled from her mouth from the force of her panting.
One red and one electric blue eye stared at them from a brindled face. Two ears twitched slightly in recognition. She tried to push herself up but stumbled to one side. The way she looked behind her made Ruri think she had probably been overbalanced by her tail. That took some getting used to, she recalled.
Cassidy’s body looked strange as it was only partially furred. With an audible pop, her back legs settled, the knees shiftin
g the last little bit until they were perfect. It was the final tweak and Cassidy shuddered one last time. Fur cascaded over the rest of her body, and before more than a couple of seconds had passed, she stood proudly before them. Ruri couldn’t help but stare.
The fur on her body was wet and spiky, clumped together by fluids from the change. The way Cassidy shifted her weight to one side clued Ruri in on what was coming next. She stepped back and avoided the arc of liquid as Cassidy shook herself dry. Malice wasn’t so lucky and ended up with fluid halfway up the front of her shirt. She glanced back at Ruri, her eyebrow raised. Clearly she expected Ruri to have tipped her off. The wolf was highly amused at Malice’s discomfiture and didn’t bother to hide the lupine grin that stretched across her face.
A low rumble from the clearing pulled her attention back to her packsister. She stood still, the moonlight highlighting the edges of her fur. Cassidy was a perfect specimen of wolven. Her muscles rippled impressively beneath luxurious fur, promising great strength and speed. Her chest was broad and deep and her shoulders high. Her fur was thickest over the nape of her neck and haunches, but her tail was truly a wonder to behold. She held it like a banner for the wind to ruffle through. For the first time since Ruri had met her, she seemed to be full of energy and in complete control. They would see how true that control was when it came time to shift back to her human form. It was unlikely that Cassidy’s wolf would go without a fight.
“Cassidy?” Malice’s low voice broke the spell in the clearing. She was crouched, one hand reaching toward her sister. “Is that still you?”
Ruri looked over at Malice and was conscious of Cassidy doing the same thing. She already had a feel for what the other wolven was up to. They’d bonded very quickly and Ruri could almost feel her to one side. It wasn’t like having an extension of herself, but more like the way the sun felt on her fur. She could have closed her eyes and pointed Cassidy out with her nose, no matter where she was, as long as they were in relatively close proximity.
Cassidy flattened her ears to the sides of her head and tilted it to one side. An uncertain whine rose in her throat. She stood still for a moment before dancing backward into the comforting embrace of the trees behind her. Even to Ruri, only her mismatched eyes and the lightest parts of her pelt were visible in the shadows.
Malice’s face was impassive when she stood, but grief poured from her. Wet ashes filled Ruri’s nose, and her throat ached from the depth of Malice’s anguish. She wanted to howl out the sadness of the one beside her.
The wind picked up for a moment, scattering dead leaves and bringing a new scent to her nose. Ruri’s head snapped up at the scent of a third wolven. She turned in a tight circle, scanning the trees for more trace, all senses open for the intruder. Her ears twitched left and right, alert for any sound that didn’t belong. She flicked her eyes from one spot to another, trying to pierce the deepest shadows. Cassidy scooted out from under the trees and dropped into a crouch next to her, mirroring Ruri’s movements. They stood haunch to haunch; there was no way anyone could sneak up on them.
“What’s wrong?” All traces of grief disappeared from Malice, subsumed by the smell of single-minded focus. “Is someone else here?”
In answer, Ruri lifted her chin and inhaled before letting out a long howl. The mournful sound had one purpose: to warn away whoever was out there. She wasn’t sure how well they’d do against another pack, but she only smelled one other wolven. Unless there were others out there, they could take on whoever it was. Cassidy joined in, her voice rising to complement Ruri’s. The timbre of her howl was lower than Ruri’s and she shivered. There was a very real chance Cassidy would end up being much more dominant than she was. Her voice was even lower than Dean’s had been, and he’d had a bell-like toll that had carried for miles when he’d wanted it to. He’d been able to rally the pack, no matter how far they’d ranged while hunting. Cassidy promised to be able to do at least that.
They both jumped when Malice lifted her voice with theirs. It wasn’t wolven, but neither was her howl entirely human. There was depth and menace to it that she’d never encountered in another human. Unlike their howls that warned the interloper away, Malice’s specifically promised violence. It danced a ragged knife-edge of rage and despair.
Anguish rose within Ruri in response to the agony in Malice’s lament, and it swallowed her howl. She couldn’t spare a glance for the human who stood with them, her hand wrapped in the fur at the nape of Ruri’s neck. Across the clearing a four-legged shadow separated itself from the trees. It slunk closer until it stood in a patch of moonlight.
The strange wolven was tall, definitely much higher in the shoulder than either of them. Chocolate brown fur shaded to caramel at the tips of the wolven’s ears and muzzle and along the length of its tail. The breeze brought the scent clearly across to her. This was no stranger.
Lewis. Her rival from Dean’s pack stood before them, eyes glittering in the dark before fading back into the forest. She stood, waiting for an attack that never came. The three of them stood tensely for long minutes until Ruri was certain they were no longer in any danger.
There wasn’t much time left. From the moon’s position in the sky, they’d already used up an hour of their allotment. Her wolf protested at the strictures of their schedule but settled down when Ruri decided on a nice long run. She nudged Malice’s thigh with her nose.
The human flinched a bit at the cold wetness and looked down. Ruri angled her head toward the edge of the clearing. It was time to take Cassidy for a run, to let her wolf stretch its legs so they’d have a prayer of getting her back into human form for the ride home. The large cage in the back of Malice’s truck was Cassidy’s other option to return. Seeing her in full wolf form, Ruri was doubtful they’d have much luck getting her into it. Best to track down some game and get Cassidy’s wolf a quick kill to satisfy it.
Malice seemed to understand. She released her grip but not before tightening it momentarily. She seemed to regret letting go. Ruri felt a similar reluctance, like Malice was a packmate who had moved beyond her ability to sense them.
She bumped Cassidy with her shoulder and loped past her into the trees. Her packsister followed easily on her heels. They would have to range a way to find game that hadn’t been frightened to ground by the sounds of Cassidy’s shift.
Chapter Twenty-Three
The breeze swirled past Cassidy in a riot of colors and smells. It seemed as if every color corresponded to something new in her environment, and she wondered how she’d never noticed it before. She felt like for her whole life she’d been listening to a symphony without noticing the string section was missing. Tugging at the edge of her senses, another awareness lurked. It should have frightened her, but it didn’t. Instead, it pulsed just beyond the edge of her knowing, a steady point of light. Somehow she knew it would never let her down.
Ahead, Ruri’s golden form loped steadily, avoiding obstacles more quickly and smoothly than Cassidy thought possible. She kept up well enough but had problems when a rock or branch seemed to sprout in her path. They were really hauling ass, and she marveled at the speeds they must be hitting. It was impossible to put a number on it; exactitudes seemed beyond her grasp. They’d run long enough that her muscles had warmed up, but not so long that they cried out for her to stop. They could keep on much longer in her estimation.
Another rock sprang up in her path, and she dug her toenails into the forest’s dirt floor, trying to slide past it just as Ruri had. She caught on something and instead of squeezing fluidly past the small boulder, she slipped right into it. Stars spangled briefly across her vision but were gone in a flash. Where had Ruri gone? There, whispered the wolf. We can catch her if you just let me… It overlapped her thoughts, leaving no room for human rationality, her worries and fears, those constant companions she’d never really thought about until now. All that existed was the two of them, the forest around them silent as a cathedral yet full of life and Ruri, somewhere ahead.
; A golden tendril unfurled in front of them and they followed the unmistakable thread of the werewolf’s scent. It was amazing how much more easily movement came when they were they and not her and she. Cassidy felt the wolf’s approval as her own and basked in the glow of accomplishment when they came upon Ruri, who had paused for a moment in a small forest glen.
It wasn’t even large enough for the moonlight to truly penetrate, but the shadows weren’t as deep here. Not that it would have mattered too much. Their vision pierced all but the deepest gloom.
Ruri twitched an ear at them, and they knew it was a question. Were they all right to continue? They panted back a laughing assent. If they needed to, they could run for days. They didn’t know how they knew, they had yet to be tested, but the night’s run felt so easy. Ruri wasn’t winded either, and Cassidy wondered how much the other werewolf could handle.
Less than we, the answer whispered back from her wolf half before it blurred with her again. Rather than wait for Ruri’s lead, they threw themselves down a small game trail. A new scent demanded their attention. It floated warm and red above the dead leaves that covered the forest floor. It skipped ahead of them, slowly becoming more and more distinct until they could make out the small form of a terrified rabbit skittering ahead. Fear shed from its body in spiky yellow flares. The scent coated the inside of their nostrils and excitement woke in their breast. It pounded through them, driving them forward. They could no more deny it than they could stop the sun from rising. Cassidy had a small moment of remorse for the poor thing’s terror, but it was quickly subsumed by her wolf and its enthusiasm.
The rabbit skittered ahead of them, always a nose ahead of their claws, never quite close enough to sink their teeth into. They bounded after it, but catching the little creature was as difficult as catching smoke beneath their paws. For all that they’d felt they could go on forever, Ruri finally caught up to them collapsed at the foot of a huge gnarled tree. Its branches provided them with cover, the trunk with support. They panted, trying to catch their breath as the red trail of the rabbit dissipated in front of them.
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