I tackle Hunt to the ground. I try to bite his shoulder, but he moves, and I lose my footing. He gets out from under me and takes off back into the woods.
I turn and see Mist standing by the back door, holding the handle. My ears fall back. I just sit down. She stares at me. She doesn't look like she's quite sure what to make of what just happened.
I whimper and lie down.
She slowly starts to walk towards me. Every step closer she takes, the more nervous I get. She stops in front of me and slowly sits down.
"R-Ryder?" she asks shakily.
I raise my head and stretch it out to try to lick her hand. She pulls it back but then slowly puts it back, so I can touch her.
"I-I don't understand. What's going on...?" Tears well in her eyes.
I sit up and shift back to my human form. I raise my head. "Mist, please, I need you, I-I can explain."
She backs up a little bit. "Have—have you always been able to do that?" she asks nervously.
"For a while, a while before I came to live with you. I wanted to tell you. Every day I've wanted to tell you, but I was scared, I love you so much. I don't want to lose my family. This is the only place I've ever felt loved or like I belonged, and I-I didn't want to mess up. I didn't want you to hate me because I'm different."
She gazes at me with a weird look.
"Why are you looking at me like that?"
She blinks. "Ryder, why would I ever hate you?"
"Wait, you're not mad?"
"Well, I am kinda upset you didn't trust me enough to tell me, but I'm not mad. I kinda suspected there was something you were hiding. When you got hurt and said you fell in the woods, I didn't exactly buy that. I kept seeing you sneak out late at night. And when you wouldn't let me see your wound again, I didn't understand why, and it made me suspicious."
"I'm sorry." Tears start to run down my face.
She comes closer to me. I resist the urge to hug her since I'm currently only in my underwear.
"What are you, Ryder?" She gazes up at me.
"I'm a werewolf."
"How did you get like this?"
I sigh. "I have always been like this, but since the whole orphan thing, I didn't know, and I found out the hard ways a few years ago."
"What do you mean by the hard way?"
"Well, werewolves don't get their, uh, shifting abilities and stuff until sixteen to seventeen area. And the first change is quite painful. I happened to shift a lot earlier than I should have."
"Oh. Ouch."
"Yeah."
"Have you ever told anyone before?" she asks.
"Humans? Only Mary. Werewolves, yeah. Kinda hard to keep the fact that you're a werewolf away from another werewolf."
"How come?"
"We have enhanced smell, sight, hearing, speed, and healing, blah blah blah."
"Is that why you wouldn't let me change your bandage—because it was healing fast and I would ask questions?"
"Yeah, pretty much."
She huffs.
"I'm really sorry I didn't tell you. So many times, I was right next to you or hugging you and I wanted to tell you so bad. Mist, you have to promise me something."
"What?"
"Promise me you won't tell anyone. Not even Mom and Dad."
"But—"
"Please, Mist, please?"
She grumbles. "You better be glad I love you. Who was the other wolf? I'm guessing they were one too?"
I sigh. "Yeah, you're not going to like the answer."
She gives me a strange look. "Why?"
"Trust me, you won't."
"Well, too bad, I want to know."
I sigh again. "It was Hunt."
Terror fills her eyes. "He's—"
"Yes, he is."
She squeaks and buries her head into her legs.
"Before he wigged out and tackled me, he seemed scared. He didn't even know that he was a werewolf. Well, he knew weird shit was happening to him, but he didn't know why. And he said he doesn't remember even assaulting you and that the last times he remembered seeing you was in first period the day it happened and at lunch today."
"What are you saying?" Mist asks.
"I'm saying that I don't think he—I don't think he's hurting you on purpose. Now, I didn't get to finish getting answers out of him before he flipped out on me, but I don't think he knows how to control himself, and his wolf instincts just take over."
She looks very confused and distraught.
"Too much for right now?"
"Uh huh."
"Sorry."
"I don't care if he did it on purpose or not, I don't want him around."
"Never said I would let him be around. He's still a jackass."
She smiles at the last part.
"Like I have said before, Mist, I will always—and I mean always—protect you no matter what. You're my sister and I don't want anything to happen to you. I would never forgive myself if I did."
"Thanks, Ryder."
I pick her up and carry her back inside.
***