Pretty Little Werewolf

Chapter 2

The crisp air was heaven blowing through her fur, and the dirt under her paws was soft like powder. This was freedom. This was what made life worth living. If only she could stay this way forever. The wolf was more her than the human. She could hunt and fend for herself; she only needed a small den to live in. The thought was more than tempting, and as she fantasized, a jackrabbit crossed her path. The little furball was fast, and a game of chase was just what Giselle needed to take her mind away. Zigging this way and that, hopping over rocks and dodging tall cacti, the chase made everything that much more fun. She almost caught the little hopper when that same familiar cloying scent caught in her nose. Again, just like before, it perplexed her. Unusual and at the same time calming in nature, it smelled like... home. Not the building in which she might now reside, but the feeling associated with comfort and companionship. How it all translated made no sense to her, but her wolf immediately joined the smell with the feeling. Home. Familiar. Another wolf, or more. A pack.

Her wolf had it all sorted, but Giselle still couldn't locate the source. Where was the cloying moist dirt coming from, when there was nothing but dry desert around? Damn it! And now she'd lost the rabbit.

No matter, she didn't need to eat. Dinner with Martina had been satisfying enough. As she looked around, getting a lay of the land, she spotted the glow of the Luxor light. Even now, as far from the Strip as she was, the light shone brightly like a beacon into the sky. Surrounding it was the colorful glow from the nearby casinos. Vegas was unlike any other place she had ever lived. Both a magical playground of temptation and greed and then, beyond those borders, a normal suburban city like any other town in the USA. The duality of it was what made it so unique.

The smell again played with her senses, but no matter where she looked, she couldn't spot a source. That didn't stop her wolf, though. She took off at a trot, meandering though the cactus and dry grass, following the scent this way and that.

A lone wolf howled to the left of her. At least, she thought it was a lone wolf. A moment later another howl came from her right. Then again in front of her. She crouched down behind a small tuft of dry grass and peered through the blades, looking for the owner of that last howl. The smell of cloying dirt grew stronger. She picked up on the sound of paws padding toward her. Whoever they were, and there were most certainly more than one of them, surrounding her; and they would be on her, quick.

The first one came at her from the left, a gray and black wolf. It stopped just three feet away, close enough for Giselle to really pick up on the scent. That was it. She was smelling other wolves. Werewolves... like her. She didn't need to see the shift to know. She just did. It was in the eyes: the intelligence of something more than just animal. The rest of the pack, four wolves in all, in varying colors from winter white to solid black, surrounded her, no one making an aggressive move... yet. They stood, ready for action, but kept their attention on the wolf directly in front of Giselle.

The two toned wolf shifted, taking on human form, Martina's form, in front of her. "Giselle. Can you control your shift yet?"

Giselle crouched and a growl rumbled up her throat. She'd wondered at the connection, but never dared to dream of the possibilities. How could this be? That question splintered into hundreds. She'd never met someone like herself. Never. And now, not only was she among her own kind, but more than one... a pack.

Martina lowered herself to her knees, then to her hands, till she was eye level with Giselle. "It's okay. I am just like you. We all are. We mean no harm." She held a hand out, palm up for Giselle as a sign of good faith that she was here in peace.

Every instinct told Giselle to back away and run. This couldn't be happening; and yet, it was. A pack. A real wolf pack. People of her own kind. There had to be a catch. There was always a catch.

"I'm guessing you haven't learned control yet," Martina said. "Not surprising, seeing how you've been shuffled around. That's okay. We all have to learn sometime. Please trust me. I can help."

Giselle had learned to control the shift years ago, but rather than give away her strengths, she let Martina guide her. She was still testing the waters; still wrapping her head around the fact that all she had dreamed about had come true.

"Just relax. Breathe slowly and remember what your human form feels like. Send your wolf back to rest."

There was no reason not to shift now. Martina was no immediate threat. And questions needed to be answered. Giselle shifted and stood. "When did you know? How did you know? Why didn't you say something?"

Martina laughed. "Now she speaks."

"Do you blame me?"

Martina held her hands out to hug Giselle but did not step forward. "No, child, I don't. You've had it rough. To be tossed around in the system because of what you are. I can only imagine the anger and distrust within you. If you'd come to us with anything less than anxiety, I'd wonder at your character. But it's okay now. You're among kin."

"I don't know what that means."

"You will. Trust me. We're going to make things better for you. You have a pack – this pack. If you want it. These girls and my husband, we were all lone wolves once."

"You'll have to excuse me if I am not quick to trust." Giselle did not accept the offer of a hug. She stood her ground, eyeing Martina suspiciously.

Martina dropped her arms and smiled. "I'd expect no less from a potential Alpha."

Alpha? No. Giselle was no leader. She was a lone wolf. "If you knew, then why didn't you say something earlier?"

"You needed to meet us this way. It was the only way."

Deep within her, Giselle knew she was right. Her wolf needed to see with its own eyes the others. They needed to meet on equal footing. Only then would both halves of the same person be able to truly embrace the possibilities this new revelation would bring. Though what to do with this new information was a bit of a conundrum. Never before had she imagined being with or even close to a full-fledged pack. The possibilities, though promising, had her human side cautious. She'd been burned so many times before by allowing hope to guide her. "And now that I have?"

"You can decide what to do about it."

"Meaning?"

"Join us, if you will." Martina spoke plainly, but the other wolves around her yipped with approval.

"I need time."

"Of course. But for now, let's not waste the night. The moon is calling. Run with us." Martina shifted back before Giselle could answer and took off with the rest of the pack in tow.

Giselle couldn't resist the offer of a moonlightrun. She called her wolf forward, shifted, and took off after the others. 

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