Chapter one:
Xxx Trey xxX
The damp aroma of earth flooded my senses, even in my mortal skin I welcomed it; the scent familiar- more homely than any of my Mother's home baked meals ever were. The soles of my bare feet barely scathed the moist undergrowth as I raced into the woods, narrowly missing fallen logs in my leaps; adoring the feeling of earth underfoot. Soon however, those naked, human feet were replaced by pads and grey flecked fur sprouted where my flaxen hair once resided. I was no longer Trey, the troubled adolescent with the unconventional past and idiotic parents; I was a beast. A beast with all the power of the earth at my paws and I knew just how to utilize it.
Sam met me at the edges of the lake, his paws sinking as mine did; ever so slightly into the murky water, his golden eyes the only remnant of the human that hid beyond that canine pelt. Our greeting was but a duck of furry heads if that. He was our leader, the oldest of the pack and the last to change when spring finally reared its ugly head. But that didn't matter, my human life- these thoughts and feelings all dissipated as we took to the forest. Soon they joined me, the others; shoulders brushing against mine as we moved as one, a river of multi-coloured pelts.
Xxx Pan xxX
Trey, his name flashed under the title 'Missing' on the morning announcements but I paid it no mind, barely recognizing his fuzzy features. "Pan? Are you ready yet?" my Mother's groggy tone resonated through the desolate lounge, even from my languid position on the couch I could see the steam from the now boiling kettle sketching obscure images on the frost bitten windows.
"Yes ma." I called over my shoulder, flicking the TV off; enveloping the room once more in darkness before plodding sleepily into the kitchen. My mother was haunced over the table, looking weary and sleep deprived however when she glanced up she offered me a stiff smile as if trying to calm my nerves.
"Would you mind hon?" She mumbled, glancing at the boiling kettle.
With a loose shrug I slithered over to the marble bench top, the first beams of morning dotting the polished top, dancing, twirling. "Sure," I muttered, dragging two unwilling mugs from their confines, by now however my mother had drifted off into another reality.
"That kid..." She tilted her head to me, fingers encircling the toasty mug I offered her "Did you know him?" I closed my eyes, allowing the warmth from the coffee to envelope my senses, I didn't want to reply. "Pan?" She echoed.
I blinked away my exhaustion and lied through my teeth "No more so then anyone else; he went to my school but we only ever talked once or twice." But something tugged at my subconcious as I flicked on the kitchen light.
"I wonder what happened to that poor soul..." She queried, almost to the depths of her mug and more then ever before, I longed to know that very thing.
Xxx Trey xxX
I'd always trived to be popular- to be "liked" but even when surrounded by cheerful faces I felt as alone as I did quivering, bare amnt the crisp winter litter. I had not expected the change to be so agonizing. How naive I had been whilst wandering aimlessly through the thick of the forest, my furry head tilted toward the sun, welcoming the coming spring.
I forced my frost bitten fingers apart, leaves crunched in protest as I unclenched my tightly curled hand. Cold, alone and abandoned by the pack I came to the bitter realisation that I had been laying here for numerous hours.
Uttering a guttural moan of protest I hauled my rigid body grotesquely across the dew smothered sprouts of emerald. It was still cold, as I continued my trek. I cursed in the back of my mind, I should have still been a wolf.
My muscles snarled in complaint and I knew, somewhere inside the foggy depths of my mind that my exhausted body would not make it much further. Closing my eyes I willed the ravenous touch of the frosty breeze to envelope me whole; the shift began- but was quickly interrupted by the sound of hunters blundering through the undergrowth, fire arms in hand. Panic set in and every fibre of my malformed being stood on end, half way between beast and human raced, my own feet leaving indentations in the soft earth.
Gunshots echoed only a heartbeat away; with my heart beat racing I closed my eyes, losing my entire being to the change. Paws moved faster than feet ever could and I darted between the emaciated trees, quickly leaving the stench of blood thirsty hunters behind me.
Xxx Pan xxX
I heard the first hushed whisper of gossip in Biology, I had desperately attempted to ignore it, my nose buried in the depths of one of our enormous text books but it was to no avail, their pointed words sliced through the tranquil murmur of our instructor.
"They say the wolves got that guy-"
"Who that dude Trey?"
"Yeah." The first answered, her elbows resting languidly on her desk "It happened once before, one of 'em dragged a girl right off her swing, my dad wants to hunt 'em all down but them tree huggers keeping stoppin' him," she uttered a groan of complaint, her notes and conciousness of those around her clearly discarded.
I fingered the edge of my page anxiously, longing for the two of them to direct their attention back to our instructor's dreary lecture but they did not. Their conversation continued for what seemed like hours and my patients was gradually wearing thing, I glared at them from the corner of my peripheral vision but they persisted, my patients did not. "Have some respect for the dead!" I hissed, finally turning around in my seat to assault them, with words; of course.
They were taken aback not only by the fact that someone had been listening in on their conversation but by the fact that I had the nerve to turn around and tell them to shut up. Awkwardly they turned their attention back to the instructor and avoided my gaze for the rest of the lesson. They weren't the only ones to do so, as the last class came to an abrupt end hasty students hurried out of the narrow doorway, ushing and shoving as if they had somewhere they desperately had to be. I wandered out, waiting for everyone else to vanish before doing so; as I headed down the hallway I noted people jerking their heads away as soon as I came into view- apparently news of my insolence spread quicker than I'd anticipated. I stopped only when arriving at my locker, irritation nipping at my mind, people hurried along behind me, avoiding meeting my gaze- only vexing me further. Snapping my locked open I snatched up my duffle, leaving the door to hang open, exposing its innards as I stomped down the hall. I didn't want to deal with their shit, not today- not with that kid's face still haunting the depths of my mind.
Shoving those thoughts away I made my way over to my Ute, that's when I first caught a glimpse of her from the corner of my eyes. Her frosty gaze lay waste to the parking lost but her body remained part of the background, as if her eyes were a part of the melting snow itself. She observed me, waiting, daring me to make a move which I did not. When I didn't she fluffed out her pelt, shaking droplets of dew from her white flank before dissipating back into the mounds of white.
There were wolves here? Could those girls had possibly been right? In irritation I forced a stray brunette lock behind my ear, mindlessly slipping into my car and starting up the enging which wheezed in complaint before jerking to life, coughing up an ominous smog before taking to the streets, occasionally spluttering.
Xxx Trey xxX
We were all falling out of our canine pelts, one at a time; withering, bare bodies among the dying leaves. Hesitantly I wandered toward Sam's 'shed' keeping a careful eye out not to be seen. After all I assumed a guy not only naked but supposedly 'dead' would be a surprise to anyone, especially out here. Inside it was warm and my body greedily lapped up the heat. Artemis, an arrogant bitch and pack-mate of mine lay languidly on the decrepit sofa, dressed in a loose floral patterned dress with a fashion magazine from about five years ago in hand.
I snickered and made my way over to my 'bin', a crate like object with my name carved into it; filled with clothes that I'd need for the coming summer. I snatched up a pair of tight fitting jeans and a shirt that covered more then her dress ever could have hoped to before wandering back into the lounge, flopping down beside her. "You won't get any fashion sense from that." I teased, grabbing for the remote.
She eyed me with clear distaste, flicking her fair blonde locks over one shoulder "Like you're one to talk." arguments were almost mandatory between us but it felt familiar, like home.
I lounged my lanky arms over the edge of the couch, grinning smugly; that was until the back door was almost thrown off of its hinges. The figure that stepped inside was drenched, water dripping puddles around him that grew with each step he took. His cold, golden eyes ocked with ours and he slapped down a current newspaper upon the coffe table, upon the cover was the blurred image of a wolf. "Kids," he said, brows working together "I think we have a problem."