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Chapter 16 - The First Talks

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Wednesday, September 20th, 2011

Moon Phase – Last Quarter

 

Behind him was his mother’s sedan, to his left a clear run to the front door, and his right the garage door. The front door was the most appealing, but if the gate came open he would be seen. With his breaths through his nose, Alex could tell his father hadn’t gotten out of his uniform yet. Nor had he taken off his utility belt or handgun.

Hoping not to get himself shot, or threatened with it, Alex backed away from the truck, keeping the cars between himself and his dad. Hearing him tell Bailey to sit and stay, a groan sounded from his pet and the side gate opened. His footfalls circled the side and back of the truck as Alex continued to back away from him.

With the sun already down, his father pulled out a flashlight and clicked it on. The initial sweep of the beam missed a part of his pelt, causing him to duck, but his father had stopped moving while wielding it. That only meant one thing.

Turning away, Alex bolted into the yard, passing the edge of the garage. His paws running over the concrete and grass immediately tipped his father off, and he heard him demand that whatever was there go away. 

Awaiting his next move, Alex stayed a good distance from the corner of the garage. Once again, the enticing smell of the burgers was compelling him to stick around, but he tried to stay focused on hearing instead. The flashlight spot continued to sweep around, landing on the bushes nearby but not finding him as its mark. The sounds of more footsteps coming in his direction got him to back off and run for the bushes.

Eyeing a spot where he could run through them, Alex stood up to take advantage of his legs and shoved himself through. Leaves rustled loudly in his ears as twigs and even some large branches broke off of the bush. Now in a darkened part of his neighbor’s yard, Alex dropped back to his chest and let his ears do his tracking work.

He heard more footsteps in the grass as his father’s flashlight swept over the bushes he just ran through. Although wishing he would just give up on the search, Alex knew better. He would have to wait his father out, not the other way around.

Slowly, the footfalls in the grass stopped and another set sounded, growing weaker until he heard them on pavement again. It was enough of a signal for him to return to his own yard, along with the sound of the gate closing. Sniffing the air and the ground as he went, he could pick up Bailey’s scent and his father’s. Not his mother’s, even though he hadn’t heard another opening of the back door since Bailey was let out.

Realizing that he hadn’t removed the dice bag from his teeth yet, Alex slipped it off to find the straps and part of the leather soaked in his saliva. Exhaling at the discovery, he had to think about his next move. His desire to reveal this to his parents, just to get it over with, was still strong. Like his friends however, he had no idea how they would react. Family or not, friendly or not, they would be staring at a monster. One that had scared the hell out of him before.

Who am I fooling? They’ll get scared.” Alex told himself. For what it was worth in terms of morale, he hoped and prayed instead that their response would not be something wrenching. For himself or them.

Reaching the corner of the garage, he listened one last time to make sure everyone was outside. With the sounds of crickets starting to sound in the distance, now was the best time to act. Trotting over to the front door, the bag inside one of his paws, he reached up to the lever of the door and pressed it down. A slow click sounded before he pressed his weight against the door. It didn’t stop him from moving, so the deadbolt was unlocked.

Slowly, Alex got the door open and went inside, taking in the feeling of safety. The kitchen was the only thing lit in the house at the moment but he had a clear path to his room. All that was left was getting his folks attention without making himself look like a burglar. Even though his father had nearly spotted him fleeing like a scared dog, much of that was thanks to Bailey; they had likely written him off as a random dog.

The first thought that came to mind was a simple wait out. Let them come inside, get settled, and then he would get their attention. In whatever way it took to give him the upper hand. Despite some reservations about his folks seeing it as him setting up a jump scare, it was one way to engage them on his own terms. Remembering that his bedroom had a few windows that were close to the patio, Alex considered that idea as well.

His voice was the wildcard in all this however. It had deepened so much in this form that they could easily mistake him for a thief. Or him playing a prank on them. Either way, he would have to open his muzzle and talk.

The walk to his room felt far longer than he knew it was. Like his body was fighting his desires to get the truth out. Looking at the window of his room, the blinds in their way, suddenly he felt like he was treating himself as an animal to be caged. The thought made him uneasy, and the scents in his room didn’t help on that, even if it was more or less his den.

Taking a breath, Alex went for the cord of the blinds and pulled them up. Watching every move his parents and Bailey made outside, he moved to unlock the window latches. Although he did it slowly, Bailey’ ears went in his direction as soon as they unlocked.

“Stay calm, boy.” The window didn’t open quietly, which he expected. It slid open loudly enough to tip off his father and his head turned in response.

“Alex, that you?” his father asked.

His words froze in his throat as he heard that. His arms were starting to tremble, made no better when Bailey started sniffing at the air. “Gotta stop acting like a coward. Just say something.” Taking a breath as his mother began to talk, he finally responded. “It’s me.” His reply came out barely more than a mumble, and growly.

“Is something wrong? You hurt yourself?” his mother asked.

“Not really.”

“Then why does your voice sound so hoarse?”

Alex paused for a minute. Bailey was now standing at attention and staring in his direction with some minor growls. An action he was certain his folks would notice. “About that, I need to tell you something.”

“Well, come out here and do it.” His father’s reply was welcoming. “Get yourself some dinner.”

Although he didn’t want to, the offer was enticing. Being in an open space felt more comfortable than this, but he didn’t want his folks to immediately see him and get frightened. “Come inside for a minute. I’ll tell you, and then I’ll eat.”

“Son, what’s going on?”

“Just trust me, dad. You have before.”

His folks looked at each other for a second and then got up from their seats, heading for the side door. Bailey stayed right on their tails, with a brief warning growl sent at his master. Although wanting to growl and get him to stop, Alex refrained from doing it. Hearing the side door slide open, he got off his bed and moved to in front of the door to his parents’ room. As he did so, his paws wrapped around the doorknob and he pulled against the door. They would not see him until he chose to let them.

Sure enough, when one of them tried to open the door, it didn’t budge against his weight. “OK, why are you keeping the door closed?”

“Because I don’t feel comfortable talking in my room.”

“Then go in the living room.” His father said. “Don’t ask us inside then hold the door shut.”

Alex nearly facepalmed, but quickly tried to downplay his father’s tone. “Just give me a minute.”

Turning and running for the kitchen, he turned all of the lights off, aside from the bathroom light in the hall. Aside from that and some beams of moonlight coming through the kitchen windows, the house was now pitch black. His eyes however made sure he could see clearly.

Standing in the kitchen, taking deep breaths through his open maw, he steeled himself as best he could. This was it. He had nowhere to back away to. Instead of walking back to the bedroom, he called for his folks who then opened the door.

“Why did you turn the lights off?” his mother asked as her footsteps came close to exiting the hall.

Alex licked his fangs, his words again stalled in his throat. Swallowing once, he replied, “Don’t come any closer yet.”

Hearing one set of footsteps stop, he anticipated his father wasn’t listening. “For what reason? Are you hiding something from us?”

“I just want to tell you about this…instead of you seeing me like this.”

“Like this? What, so you did hurt yourself?” his mother asked.

“Not recently. Remember that night I came home without my stuff?” Both of his parents acknowledged that. “I lied about what came after me that night.”

“So wait, that’s why you’re getting upset?”

“No. I’m not upset.” Alex said, trying to hide the fact that he was behind his growly voice.

“Then explain why your voice is so different, and why you’re acting this way.”

Instead of replying, Alex prepped himself. There was no combination of words he could think of that would get his point across. At least any that wouldn’t contain werewolf somewhere in the sentences. He would have to show them.

Just then, he heard Bailey’s footfalls on the carpet and his dog was soon in his line of sight. Upon seeing the wolf-man form of his master, Bailey shirked back and growled. The noise drew a brief scolding from his father, but his pet didn’t stop. “He’s got some right to be afraid of me.”

“Why? Did you hit him?”

“You know I would never do that Dad. It’s because…” Alex stopped talking and took the corner of the wall in his left paw. His heart rate went up steadily as well as his breathing rate, before he took his first step around the corner. He could see his father at the ready to round the corner and his mother hanging back near the light switch of the living room.

His werewolf form towered over his folks by at least a full foot, but he could clearly see the expressions they held. Both were trying to figure out what their son was trying to show them. Despite the light from the bathroom, he was barely lit up.

However, it didn’t take long for his mother to flip on the switch to the living room, flooding the room with bright light and making Alex shield his eyes. The pacing of the reveal was broken, and his wolfish body was exposed.

When his eyes adjusted, the reactions from his folks were only half of what he expected.

His mother was holding one hand over her mouth, cutting off a gasp, and he could swear taking a step back from him. His father however didn’t know what to think and just looked over the giant wolf in front of him.

All of them stood in silence for what felt like five minutes, Alex trying to think of something to say and keeping his muzzle closed. His heart pounding against his ribs the entire time.

As he tried to muster the courage to speak again, seeing the shocked and frightened expressions of his parents, something began to click. They might have been his family, but their expressions from seeing him… Even though he hadn’t made one move or said one word since the lights came on, they were positioning themselves as if they wanted to avoid him or get him to stay back. His mother hiding her neck and holding one arm near her stomach, and his father keeping his hand near his belt, close to his service pistol.

As odd as it was, it was almost a joy to see. Even if part of him felt horrible.

Seeing his parents behave the way they were seemed to siphon some of his own fear away, helping to clear his head. Taking another breath through his nose, Alex could start to catch whiffs of the same scent he had picked up before with Nathan. That raw scent which had made his nose twitch before. It didn’t take him long to realize that he was literally smelling their fear. Something that he had always believed was false.

“A werewolf came after me that night.” As direct as the statement was, beating around the bush now was impossible. His folks still didn’t speak, although his father looked like he was trying to bring himself to. “And yes, that lunar calendar you found? I downloaded it because of this.”

“So you…” his father began.

“That’s why Bailey was scratching at the fence. He knew I was there.”

“And you thought it was better to make us think you were some loose animal?”

“Better that than risk getting shot. I mean, look at me.”

“How long…” his mother finally said, “have you known about this?”

“Since the night I was bitten. I was already healing faster by the time I got back, and I saw that thing clear as day.”

His father put one hand over his forehead. Looking to his wife and then back to Alex, he was the most torn on what was being said. “I don’t believe this.”

“Dad, neither did I.”

“I don’t mean like that, son.” His tone was getting a bit angrier. “I mean why didn’t you tell us what you saw, instead of keeping it to yourself?”

Alex diverted his view to his mother, trying to think of what to say. His feelings of guilt were starting to surface. “I wasn’t sure if either of you would believe me.” His father sighed, giving him enough time to change the subject. “Dad, had I known I wouldn’t go crazy because of this, I would have told you.”

“Go crazy?” his mother said.

“All those stories about werewolves being rabid monsters when they transform? Not the case. At least,” Alex picked up the silver bullet and chain in his paws, “I’m fairly sure that’s not the case.”

It was then Alex noticed that Bailey was flanking him while he stood in front of his father. Even though he made no sounds doing it, his footfalls on the carpet gave him away. With no idea if the move was intentional, Alex diverted his attention towards his pet, who took a step back with a growl.

“Why is he…” his mother began before Alex cut her off.

“He thinks I’m a threat.” Thinking he could get his pet to relax by using canine postures, Alex dropped to his paws and rolled on his side, lifting his right arm and leg to expose more of himself. For a second, it seemed to work. As his pet approached him however, he diverted away and took his ‘at attention’ stance between his parents. Sighing, Alex got back to his feet.

With his dog now acting like a guard, as he had trained him to do, he didn’t try and move any closer to his folks. Looking back at them, he was out of things to say related to the creature they were seeing and let them make the first statement.

“This certainly explains a few things.” His father said.

“Yeah.” Alex replied, the weights on his chest lifting a bit. For a second, he wondered why his folks were taking this so well but chose not to push the topic. At least not now. If they were coming around to this, it gave him hope that his friends would do the same.

Remembering they still had burgers on the grill, he brought the subject up to try and break the uneasy feeling in the room, and also to get himself some food. His stomach still felt a bit full but with his folks around, he wasn’t going to risk getting overly hungry again.

With the lights in the house off once again, Alex followed his folks outside. The scents on their bodies began to lose the aspect of fear he had picked up before as he followed them. Thinking it was being exposed to him so quickly that had made them so frightened made him feel a bit better.

Pausing at the back door, which was brightly lit by the patio light, the smell of cooked meat was enough to override his fear of being seen. Even with the lessened light, his folks still seemed unsure of what to think of him. Even more so when he had to tear nips of the meat off of his meal and attempt to chew it. His muzzle wasn’t built for human forms of mastication, as he had learned before.

He could tell it was disquieting to his folks however and eventually said something. “Can’t help it. This kind of jaw is still new to me.”

“You know when you’ll…” his mother stalled on the last part of the sentence, but Alex knew what she was trying to say.

“I don’t know. I stayed like this for almost two days last time.”

“Two days?”

Alex nodded. “I don’t know why either.” He refused to bring up Borderlands as a possible trigger of his shifts. “I thought it was just a one night thing but it was 36 hours.”

“So what caused it this time?” his father asked.

Alex started to feel more guilt sinking in. “I’m guessing adrenaline. I nearly landed on my head skating, and then I imagined shifting again and it happened.”

“You forced it?” His father’s tone held a bit of surprise.

“I was trying to see if I was able to transform any time.” Alex said, taking another nip of his burger. Both of his parents looked at him in disbelief. “To make sure I wasn’t caught off guard later.”

“So, you could stay like this for another 36 hours?”

“Maybe, but if I have to be honest…I wouldn’t mind.” Alex thought to respond that he felt like another person in this form. As though his were form was like wearing a second skin that concealed his human side. “This isn’t permanent.”

“I would think you’d want to be human instead.” His father said.

“I never said I didn’t; I don’t know how to make it happen though. Still, being like this…it’s amazing.”

His folks didn’t share his growing pleasure in what he had said. “I find that hard to believe.”

“Dad,” He stalled to think of his next words, trying not to sound too excited or giddy, “I don’t want this to have to be something horrible. I mean, we’re still talking to each other.”

“Son, you said it yourself,” his father then gestured at his new body, “Why are you thrilled about that?”

“I wasn’t at first. I was scared out of my mind because I didn’t know what to expect. If I would shift and then lose control over myself, or if some minor jab would make me tear someone’ throat out.”

“But now that you know, you’re still OK with this?”

“There’s no way I know everything about this after less than four weeks, but yes,” His father swallowed and looked away from him. “Dad, it’s either I accept this and make the most of it, or just be depressed for the rest of my life.”

“Rest of your life?” His mother’ tone held a slight twinge of sadness, causing Alex to swear at himself. Viciously so.

Of all the f***-ups he could have had tonight, mentioning that phrase was chief among them. Gripping his padded hands, he tried to keep an optimistic view for his folks. “I think so, but it’s not that bad. I’m not going on rampages every time this happens, so I don’t have to worry about hurting anyone.”

His mother tried to put on a straight face, but it was clear to him that this was starting to get to her. Likely from what he was saying. As he tried to pin down something more uplifting to say, his father beat him to it. “Honey, it’s alright.”

With a better jumping in point established, Alex continued. “It’s only one day a month. Maybe two, but that’s it.”

His mother acknowledged the statement and tried to keep from showing any emotion. Looking over to his father, Alex figured now was the best time to end the conversation, or at least get it on another track. Taking another bite of his meal, he quickly mentioned that Nathan and the others were coming that Saturday. As well as the fact that he was planning to reveal this to them on that day.

With some final words about being unsure if they would take it well, Alex went back inside before his folks. The two burgers had filled him up nicely, but to be safe he downed a full glass of Coke. Now feeling bloated yet satisfied with his meal, he returned to his room and curled up on top of his bed, his fur making a nice buffer against the AC that was kicking on.

Despite feeling less than hopeful that he would change overnight, with how the conversations had gone, he was unsure if he could reverse it now. He felt guilty along with pleased, making for an unpleasant mix of emotions. Hoping that by tomorrow morning both would be settled, he drifted off to sleep. As he did so, he thought he felt something rub his fur.

Chapter 16 of Werewolf Tale

And the word is finally out. Alex speaks to his folks and reveals the truth.

This is a bit embarrassing for me to admit, at least right now, but this chapter did make me feel a bit misty writing it. Well, not this one alone but... Anyway, enjoy. More will follow soon.



Chapter 15 - ([link])
Chapter 17 - ([link])

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Werewolf Tale and all characters are copyright of *SilverWerewolf09/Adam Gulledge
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KevinRollins's avatar
I was hoping for this chapter, and it didn't disappoint. Always interesting to see how a reveal goes, and story can go stale if a secret is kept longer than it needs to. So it's good that this one didn't.