by Cheree Alsop
Professor Thorson nodded. “Very good. The she-wolf who suckled the twins became an iconic symbol for the city and the legend.”
“But they weren’t directly werewolves,” Torin pointed out.
“True,” Professor Thorson conceded. He smoothed a hand down his thin white hair. “Don’t forget that I am new to werewolf lore myself. I had to do research to teach this class.” He smiled at Cassie. “It isn’t often that I’ve had to do research in order to teach.” He pointed to his head. “It’s all in here. That’s why I’m going bald. All the knowledge I’ve learned has taken up too much room so my hair can’t grow.”
Alex chuckled. Torin rolled his eyes.
Professor Thorson held out a hand. “It used to be thought that people became werewolves by putting on a piece of clothing such as a belt made from wolf skin. Germany, Belgium, and the Netherlands have such legends. If it was that easy, I think everyone would do it.” He became sober. “But in Europe, tales of werewolves began to increase. People began to fear for their lives and for their livestock. A man named Peter Stubbe was one of the first captured werewolves. Unfortunately, he was tried and convicted of murder, putting a very black mark on the werewolf name.”
The students were becoming more interested with each story. Even Torin had forgotten to keep his bored expression and was sitting straight in his seat, intent on what the professor was saying.
Professor Thorson leaned forward with an arm on his knee. “It’s those kinds of acts that forced werewolves to go into hiding. Many civilizations have their own tales of werewolves. There are legends of skin-walkers among the Native Americans, Scottish and Irish folklore detail men and women turning into wolves and seals, and Ancient Egyptians worshiped and feared their wolf god Ap-uat. Throughout our history, tales of wolves flourish, but the werewolf race has been very good at hiding.”
“Until now,” Alex said quietly.
Professor Thorson nodded. “Until now. As you know, Jaze Carso, the founder of our Academy, revealed werewolves to the world six years ago in order to protect our race from the Extremists who attempted to wipe it out. It was our only option. However, our allies turned against us, and genocide of the werewolf race was almost successful. You’ve been forced to go into hiding once again.”
“History repeats itself,” Cassie said.
The professor’s gaze was sad. “Yes, it does. But maybe this time we can find a way to solve the werewolf problem.”
“What problem is that?” Terith asked.
The professor adjusted his glasses and leaned forward. “You are such fearsome creatures that every time you are found out, society tries to annihilate you.”
Smiles showed on all of the faces at his scary storyteller tone.
“That is a problem,” Jericho said.
Professor Thorson nodded. “It’s a problem for your generation to solve.”
“What if we just take all power?” Torin asked.
“Yeah,” Sid echoed. “What if we take over completely?”
The professor watched everyone with an interested expression. At his silence, Torin pressed, “Well?”
“You tell me,” the professor invited.
“We become exactly what society fears,” Cassie said. She fell silent when everyone turned to look at her. At Professor Thorson’s encouraging nod, she continued in a quieter voice, “They fear us because we’re the more dominant species.”
“Then let’s dominate,” Torin said. Cheers went up from his pack.
“But we don’t have numbers,” Cassie said, her voice slightly shaky at addressing an Alpha. “They would wipe us out completely.”
“Let them try,” Torin said with a snort.
“They did,” Pip replied.
Torin glared at him.
“Cassie’s right,” the professor said. “So what options do you have?”
“We could hide ourselves forever,” Terith suggested.
“Or prove that we want to live in peace,” Alex said.
Professor Thorson nodded. “That is exactly what Jaze tried to do, but his efforts were negated by allies who turned out to be the enemy. They gave the world more reasons to fear werewolves than your race had to refute them.”
“So we work on those reasons,” Alex guessed.
“And keep yourselves hidden until society is better able to accept you,” the professor agreed.
***
“To physical education with Professor Vance,” Jericho repeated the instructions Professor Thorson had given him.
“Just Vance,” Alex corrected.
“Isn’t he a professor?” Jericho asked, confused.
Alex nodded. “Yeah, but he hates the title. I’d call him just Vance if you don’t want to be stuck running laps. He’s been pressing the dean to let him form a football team; he already runs class like we’re on one.”
“Good to know,” Jericho replied.
When they reached the gym, Alex stifled a groan at the sight of Pack Boris already stretching on the floor.
“Again?” Trent complained under his breath. “Haven’t we been tortured enough?”
“No,” Vance replied. The instructor was a huge werewolf, the biggest Alex had ever seen. He towered above any teacher at the Academy and seemed more like a bear than a wolf. His dark blonde hair was cut short in a buzz cut, and he sounded like a drill sergeant straight from the movies. Alex hadn’t had many classes with Vance yet, but knew the instructor had a short fuse. When he asked Jaze about it, the dean said Vance had lost his love, Nora, during the attempted genocide. Since then, he hadn’t been especially happy around anyone, and who could blame him?
“You haven’t been tortured enough. That’s why you have P.E. with me,” Vance continued. He motioned toward two doors. “The locker rooms are back there. Find the clothes, get changed, and be back here in less than two minutes.”
“Two minutes?” Pip protested. “How’s that even possible?”
Vance gave him a flat look. “I’m counting.”
Pip turned white and everyone rushed to the locker rooms.
“I knew our last class wasn’t going to be an easy one,” Trent whined as he pulled on the unflattering green shorts and white shirt.
Alex was relieved that at least the gym clothes smelled like they had been laundered. He pulled them on as quickly as he could.
“Phys Ed with Vance,” Boris said, stepping around the corner already dressed in his gym clothes. “How scary. Are you going to call your mommy? Oh wait, I forget. You don’t have a mommy, Stray.”
Trent dropped his gaze and didn’t answer.
Boris shoved the boy into a locker. Jericho was suddenly there. “Leave him alone, Boris.”
Boris looked Jericho up and down. Standing toe to toe, Alex was surprised to see that they appeared to be an even match. Boris had always seemed so big before, yet despite Jericho’s unassuming manner, if the other Alpha attacked, he would definitely put up a good fight.
A whistle blew outside the locker room. “Boys, get out here. You got beat by a bunch of girls.”
The Alphas turned away from each other and rushed out of the room with their packs on their heels. The girls stood dressed in the same green and white clothes, and looked like they enjoyed them even less.
“Hope girls beating boys isn’t a habit you’re forming,” Vance said. “Let’s find out.” He pulled out a cart filled with kick balls. “Dodge ball. Whoever loses has to run ten laps.”
“Ten?” Pip protested.
“Twenty,” Vance corrected.
Everyone glared at Pip.
“Mom said no throw things at girls,” Amos said with confusion on his large face.
“Then make her regret sending you to the Academy,” Vance replied. He dumped out the cart of balls and walked away.
“Pleasant,” Jericho whispered, picking up a ball.
Chapter Eight
By the time Alex collapsed on his bed, he couldn’t imagine every day going like the one he had just had. He threw
an arm over his eyes and blew out a short breath. Just then, a howl broke through the air. Alex’s heart raced in answer.
“What does that mean?” Jericho called from his room.
“Night games!” excited voices replied.
Alex jumped out of bed and pulled on his clothes.
“Everyone’s happy about night games?” Jericho asked doubtfully, leaning against Alex’s door frame as he pulled on a shirt.
“You’ll see,” Alex replied. “Trust me.”
Jericho’s eyebrows lifted.
“Have I ever steered you wrong?” Alex asked.
“It’s the first day,” Jericho pointed out.
Alex shrugged. “I’d like to keep a winning record.”
Jericho smiled. “Fine. I trust you. Let’s go.”
Pack Jericho rushed out the door to find the other werewolves running down the stairs. They joined in the chaos, stampeding with the mass to the front of the Academy. Someone had already turned off the regular lights, bathing the courtyard and surrounding grass in darkness.
Boris and Torin stood on opposite sides of the courtyard. Lifers and Termers rushed to the alphas. Pack Jericho hesitated in the middle.
“Choose a side,” Boris called out.
“Yeah, and not the losing side,” Torin replied.
“You mean it’s a battle?” Jericho asked.
Alex nodded. “Termers versus Lifers. Except our pack is split. That hasn’t happened before.”
“I don’t think splitting up would be a good idea,” Jericho said.
Alex agreed. He thought quickly. “Let’s play wolf tag,” he called out.
The Alphas looked at each other. It was a game the students used to play when the Academy was first formed, but night games had since evolved into more team-oriented games like steal the flag.
“That’s a sissy game,” Boris argued.
“Are you admitting you’re too sissy to play, then?” Torin asked.
Alex felt a rush of gratitude for the Lifer Alpha whose side he was usually on.
Boris grimaced. “Wolf tag. Fine. You’re on. I’ll be the first wolf.”
Everyone started to run.
“What’s the goal?” Jericho asked, sprinting beside Alex.
“If you’re touched, you have to phase, then you’re one of the wolves and you join in the chase. Last one in human form wins, then it flips,” Alex explained.
“Easy enough,” Jericho replied. He glanced over his shoulder. “Uh-oh.”
Alex’s heart pounded at the sight of a huge black Alpha chasing them down. Jericho took off one way while Alex ran around the statue. He glanced back to see the Alpha follow Jericho, and ran hard into someone hiding behind Jet’s statue.
He rolled on the grass and ended up on his back gasping for air. He chuckled as he rose onto one elbow to see who he had hit.
“Sorry about that. I think Boris was going to—” He paused at the sight of Boris’ sister glaring at him.
Kalia stood back up and brushed the grass off the knees of her pants. “Boris was going to what?” she demanded.
“Uh, tag me?” Alex said as more of a question than a statement.
“Kill you, more like,” Kalia grumbled.
“Probably,” Alex agreed. “Night games are sort of open territory.”
Kalia blew out a frustrated breath and leaned against the statue with her arms folded.
Alex fought down a rush of anger at how casually she treated the statue. “What are you doing back here?” he asked.
Kalia looked like she was going to brush him off, then she hesitated. She glared up at the starlit sky and admitted, “I don’t exactly belong here.”
Alex let out a humorless laugh. “None of us belong here. It’s just where we’re stuck.”
She glanced at him. “But you’re a Lifer. This is your home.”
Alex avoided her gaze. “Is it? Or is this where they stuck us because they didn’t know what to do with the genocide Strays?” He spat out the last word.
She didn’t have an answer.
Alex felt bad for the way he had responded. “Sorry. I don’t normally vent on total strangers,” he paused. “Or anyone, for that matter. Let’s start over. Hi, my name is Alex Davies.”
“I’m Kalia James.” He was surprised when a slight smile crossed Kalia’s face. It was the first he had seen. “I can’t imagine being stuck here.”
He smiled. “It’s not really that bad. I kind-of like it.” He met her gaze. “So why don’t you belong here?”
She hesitated as if debating whether to trust him. She studied his face as if she searched for something in particular. Her head tipped slightly to one side, and something lightened in her icy blue eyes. “I’m not a werewolf.”
Alex lifted an eyebrow skeptically. “Yet here you are.”
She nodded. “Yes, here I am. Ironic, isn’t it?”
“Is it?” he pressed.
She let out a breath, allowing true loss to touch her face. “I’m not supposed to be here. I never phased like Boris did. I’m not a werewolf.”
“Then why are you here?” Alex asked. Werewolves usually phased for the first time when they turned seven. It wasn’t uncommon for parents to send their seven and eight years olds so that if they phased, they would be at a safe place to do so, but Alex hadn’t heard of someone Kalia’s age being sent even though she hadn’t yet phased.
Kalia grimaced. “My eyes.”
Alex found himself searching them. They were a pale icy blue that hid her true emotions well. Her eyes flicked to his and dropped his gaze. “What about them?”
Kalia ground the toe of her shoe into the grass. “When I get mad, they turn gold, so people tell me. My parents thought it meant I was going to phase.”
“They might be right,” Alex said, though he had never heard of such a thing.
“I’m not like Boris,” Kalia protested. The aversion with which she said her brother’s name surprised Alex. She must have read it in his expression, because she dropped her gaze again. “I’m not a werewolf,” she repeated, saying the last word with some difficulty.
“We’re not that bad,” Alex replied quietly, feeling slightly insulted by the disgust in her tone.
“I know,” Kalia protested. “I just don’t— Alex!”
A whisper of paws heralded the wolf rushing toward them faster than Alex could react. The animal barreled into him from behind and sent him flying through the grass. He rolled as he landed, and came up on his feet ready to fight. He realized with a start that it was just students playing wolf tag.
“I guess. . . I guess I’d better go,” Alex said.
Kalia nodded, her face silhouetted by the moon that had risen above the statue.
Alex shook his head and pulled off his shirt as he hurried around the other side of the statue. He phased with her words repeating themselves over and over in his mind. ‘I’m not like Boris. I’m not a werewolf.’ Her disgust ate at him. The way she had said the word ‘werewolf’ made it sound like something dirty, something lower than garbage. The fact that he was one of them filled him with dislike for her.
He gritted his teeth and ran after the fleeing werewolves who were still in human form. He found Cassie hiding in her usual place within the bushes that lined the walls. The bushes had been planted a short distance away from the wall, but as they grew, the branches reached out to touch the cold stone, forming a tunnel beneath that the twins liked to hide within.
“Alex!” Cassie exclaimed on seeing his dark gray wolf form. “I haven’t been found yet.”
Alex snorted and gave her a wolfish grin.
“What do you want?” she asked.
He ducked his head. Her eyes lit up. She climbed onto his back, her smaller form fitting easily. She tangled her hands in his thick fur. “Let’s ride!” she said like she used to when they were eight and used to play by themselves behind the Academy, pretending that it was a castle and she the princess.
Alex took off beneath the bushes and rou
nded the Academy in time to hear Boris proclaim, “Kalia is the last still standing in human form.”
“No, I’m not,” Kalia protested, pointing at Cassie. “She is!”
One hundred and fifty werewolves looked at Alex and Cassie. Alex felt Cassie’s hands tighten in his fur. He gave a wolfish grin and answered with a bark of defiance.
“Tag them!” Boris commanded.
Alex spun and took off through the grounds. He had the advantage in that he had explored every inch of the Academy’s lands as it was being expanded. He leaped across the small stream that went behind the greenhouse, dove beneath the apple trees in the orchard, and darted across Professor Dray and Gem’s garden.
He cleared the small fence that separated the flower beds and charged around the front of the school again. Alex climbed the steps just as the other werewolves were rounding the corner of the school. He stared down at them in triumph, his chest heaving as he fought for breath.
Kalia was nowhere in sight. The truth dawned in Boris’ eyes. Cassie was the last human. The tables had turned.
The Termer Alpha gave a bark and began to run in the other direction. The other werewolves realized what was going on and ran as well.
“Let’s get them!” Cassie yelled.
Alex leaped off the stairs and loped across the lawn with Cassie still on his back. She reached out and touched a gray wolf. The wolf slowed and turned back to find his clothes so he could phase and hunt the rest of the werewolves with them. Cassie touched another.
Soon, dozens of werewolves in human form were rushing around them. Alex herded the werewolves in wolf form toward them like wolves did in the wild, rushing their prey to those who waited refreshed and ready to catch it. The wolves scattered when those in human form jumped out from the Academy’s shadows and touched as many as they could reach. A dozen more joined their ranks. Soon, only Boris, Torin, Jericho, and Raynen remained in hiding. The Alphas were showing off their true strengths.
Alex phased near his clothes and hurriedly pulled them on.
He jogged to the steps to find the other werewolves waiting. “We can’t find them,” Pip said.
“They’ve got to be here somewhere,” Alex replied. “Have you searched the greenhouse?”