Entangled

4, Friends

Our hunting group consisted of Inkas, Noctis (I changed Bat-bat's name), me, and a few female adult vampires. 

I had shifted into a form that mixed between my human and wolf body. White fur covered every inch of skin, my hands and feet were half human-like and half paw-like, my jaw had elongated into a snout, and two big lupine ears twitched as they listened. My arms had grown a bit longer to match the length of my legs so that running was easier, and my tail sailed behind me as I dashed over rooftops with the vampires.

Inkas and Noctis led the hunt, with me not far behind them, and the other vampires flanking us. We traveled a good several blocks into the city, into the heart of its activity. We stopped on top of a hotel roof, where we listened and sniffed the air. 

I spotted a drunk man staggering after a young woman, cat-calling her, asking for pictures because she was cute. I growled to alert the vampires, and they grinned, their fangs glinting. We were silent as we stalked closer, spreading out to ambush the man.

When we neared them, the vampires silently dropped down onto the pavement, surrounding the man. I stayed on the roof, alone. My attention was caught by a passing breeze that carried the earthy, wild scent of the werewolves. 

Noctis and Inkas taunted and leered at the man below me. The young woman was startled by the vampires' sudden appearance and quickly ran away. They ignored her. I trotted to the edge of the roof and pointed my nose eastward.

The faintest sound of a howl rose above the treetops, which were barely visible at the other end of the city. The breeze blew by again, rustling my fur gently, carrying the pack's scent.

What would living with them be like? What were they doing now? Maybe the howl had meant that the scouts Noctis sent had been detected, and was warning everyone else. Or maybe it had been a lone call. Maybe it had been meant for me. I didn't know how I felt about that.

The pack I had been in before was vicious. The Alpha had been rough, unkind, uncaring. The Luna had been a quiet, sad thing who kept to herself and hardly said a word. We had Omegas who were raped on a daily basis, Betas who abused their position of authority, hunters who hid their catch from the rest of the pack, subordinates that fought constantly with each other, and pups with parents who treated them like garbage. 

I knew not all packs were like that, but it was hard to imagine what life in a loving pack would be like. The Alpha of this new neighboring pack didn't seem like a good one. He reminded me vaguely of my old douche of an Alpha. His Beta hadn't seemed too great of a person, either.

I could hear the vampires feasting below. I forced my attention away from the forest and paced slowly along the edge of the roof, watching over the vampires so that they wouldn't get disturbed. They hated to be interrupted while they fed. 

My ears twitched at the faint sound of another howl. It was still all by itself, no other wolves joining in. Usually, wolves howled alone for two reasons: as either a mating call, or to mourn a lost mate. A grimace formed over my snout. For either reason, I knew the howl was directed at me.

I shook my fur out in agitation. He really wanted me, didn't he?

"Vanillllla," Inkas called. I looked down to find that the vampires had finished, and were dragging the corpse of the drunk man to dump it in an alley. Inkas was looking up at me, waiting. I slipped over the edge of the roof and climbed down, using the windowsills. Once at a reasonable height, I dropped and landed on the sidewalk beside him. 

"Good boy," he praised dreamily, brushing a hand over my head and smoothing my ears back. Noctis emerged from the corner of the alley's entrance, licking residual blood off his clawed fingers, the others following close behind.