Moon Blood (COMPLETE)

Chapter Five: A Man amongst She-Wolves

This went on all night.

Neil howled, yelped, scratched, pawed and strained against his manacles. Lilly sat with him the entire time, not saying a word as he screamed. In his fatigued rage, her scent was definitely a comfort, but it was also something else. A scent that sent heated blood to his loins and made his head spin. The same kind of feeling he had when he had kissed Rachel.

Rachel. He could taste her on his teeth, even after all this time. He licked at his muzzle and growled at Lilly, who only returned a dispassionate blink. Eventually, he collapsed, exhausted. It was at this point that Lilly stood.

"Finally, you're ready to talk."

Neil wasn't entirely sure he even could talk in this state. He had almost convinced himself of what he looked like, but his mind was denying it. This couldn't be real. Not a chance. He had been feeling feverish anyway; this was probably just a vivid fever dream, and he was flinching and sweating in his bed.

"I know this is strange: it's strange for us too. I've never met a male wolf before. My name is Lilly."

Neil whined a little. He was too tired to move.

"I will apologise for my sister. Ruby doesn't mince her words. But she is careful for a reason. We all have to be careful."

Neil didn't answer. He didn't want to. Lilly smiled wryly.

"You smell so inviting. Such a wild, enticing scent. Do you like the outdoors? You smell of the wild."

He growled, and Lilly chuckled.

"I'm sorry, I'm distracted by you a little. It's quite hard to have a normal conversation at the moment."

Neil could smell it too, and it was definitely distracting. As a seventeen year old virgin, Neil thought about that stuff a lot. He could barely admit to himself just how much he thought of it each and every day. He looked up at Lilly, and she was looking out at the sky, wherever they were. He could smell damp stone, fresh water and living plants. All around him, he could hear the sounds of the forest, creeping and breathing. The birds were still asleep, but Neil could sense the encroaching dawn. If he had the strength, he would have lifted his head.

"Take a deep breath."

The sun shone its first blades of light from the dark horizon, painting the sky in pinks and oranges.

And Neil's stomach lurched. Pain lanced through his body and it convulsed violently. He yelped but it did not stop the barrage of pain, it twisted and pulsed through him. He grit his teeth and endured it as best he could, unsure how his body was able to cope with this kind of physical torment. His back arched and his tail bristled.

Tail?

After an age, the pain abated, and Neil shivered. He was cold, and his wrists were chafed raw from his straining. He couldn't smell anything anymore, but the colours in his eyes were vibrant and bright. He shook, and looked down at his body to discover he was naked. And surrounded by women. Instinctively, his hands flew to cover himself, only just managing it with the length of the chains that held him, and he flushed as he looked at his captors.

A girl about his age was standing by Lilly, with long dark hair down her back and careful, intelligent eyes. She was smirking as she watched him try and get his footing.

"Plea… please." His mouth and lips felt so strange. "Can you let me out of these damn chains?" His stomach was hollow and it was so empty it was hurting.

"Ruby, let him go. He's finished his transformation for this month. Mum was right: men always transform at the new moon."

Ruby opened the door of his cage and crawled in. Their eyes met, and never left each other. Neil watched her like a hawk as she put the small key in the lock and turned it, the other hand in a vice grip about his wrist. They must have known he was too tired to resist, but they were still overly careful in every single one of their actions with him.

"Do you think I'll bite?" His tone was acidic. "You're really that worried about me?"

"Yes." She said nothing else as she continued to unlock him. It stopped him, and they met each other's gaze once again.

"Male wolves, from what we know at least, only occur once a generation. You will have been born this way, but not known it."

"Born this way?" Neil asked, "what are you talking about? Are you telling me what just happened to me, was always going to happen?"

"Other clans will be looking for you. Much bigger ones too, and not as nice as us."

Sitting up, his nakedness now forgotten, Neil looked at the two women. "This is real?"

"You need not worry. You'll be safe with us."

His head was spinning and heated, he was hungry and frightened. "I want to get out of here. I want to go home!"

"You want to leave right now? Not a shred of clothing on your back and so ravenous you'll eat the first thing you see?" Ruby crawled back out of the cage but Neil grabbed her.

"Let me out of this damn cage."

"Don't you want to eat or get dressed first?" Lilly was kneeling, reaching into her pocket. "Here. You want this, right?"

Neil froze, and he sniffed the aroma. He salivated, unable to stop himself, and whatever Lilly had in her hand became the most important item in the entire world. He may have heard murmuring but it was inconsequential to that bundle Lilly held.

"Don't tease him," said Ruby, "he's barely a pup."

Lilly knelt at the door of the cage, unwrapping the parcel and unveiling its contents. Neil couldn't stop his salivating any longer, and he crept towards it.

It was a bundle of raw, chopped beef. Good quality beef at that. Neil's jaw snapped at it, before clamping his hand over his mouth as he came to his senses. What was he doing?

"It's okay. You need to eat. You didn't eat all night, and if you don't eat raw meat before the next new moon, you'll go into a frenzy."

He shut his eyes. The truth staring him in the face was too hard to swallow, and everything was moving too fast.

"Won't take a minute. Just take a small piece. Here." Between a thumb and forefinger she held a lump of meat. A piece of gristle was hanging off the side. Neil had never smelt anything more delicious. It was seeping through his hand, and he couldn't stop drooling.

He counted to three, and in one fell swoop, grabbed the meat and shoved it in his mouth.

"Good," cooed Lilly.