AN: Here it is, at long last, my werewolf AU! This first chapter is like half info-dump, so I apologize for that. Most of the lore is taken from Teen Wolf since that's what I'm most familiar with, but there's some I just made up on my own and didn't take from any particular source. I hope you enjoy, and please leave a review!


Mac sighed in contentment as he relaxed back into the couch onboard the Phoenix jet. Another mission was complete, and it was a walk in the park. A budding terrorist group in Eastern Europe had been thwarted, and all of their members had been taken into custody. They would soon be taken to an off the books prison designed specifically for werewolves. That's what the Phoenix Foundation did. Most people thought it was just a think tank, but that was just a cover. It was really a top secret organization that dealt with werewolf threats all around the world. Most werewolves were peaceful, but if they weren't, they could wreak some serious havoc. That's why the foundation existed, to discreetly take care of those threats before the world found out about werewolves. That couldn't happen. The hunters that were out there didn't distinguish between the werewolves that just lived their lives and caused no harm, and the ones that slaughtered others.

Mac smiled at his partner on the opposite couch, completely tearing apart the steak he'd snagged before boarding. Maybe others would think that Jack was dangerous, just because of what he was, but Mac knew the truth. Jack was fearless, and he would protect others with his life, but without reason, he wouldn't hurt a fly. He came from a long line of werewolves, and had learned to control the shift from a very young age. He could even, on occasion, turn himself into a full wolf. He was that powerful. It was incredibly rare that a werewolf could do that. Mac had never met another wolf who could. There were legends, of course, but they were really that rare. That just proved how incredibly pure Jack's bloodline was. It was incredible, and there was no one on earth that Mac trusted more. Their partnership may have started out rough, but once they were actually friends, it wasn't long before Mac found out the truth.

He'd been disarming an IED, not even a major one, so it was just a normal Monday for him in Afghanistan. He had run off ahead of Jack, which wasn't unusual, even though it was dangerous. Jack had been trying to get some meat from a civilian vendor, and Mac hadn't wanted to wait for him when they had perfectly good MREs with them. That impatience almost cost him his life. He was disarming the IED, and not really paying much attention to his surroundings. He had to stop when he felt the barrel of a gun against his neck. Setting his SAK down, Mac carefully stood, his hands raised in surrender. The Taliban soldier spun him around and forced his back against the wall. Mac's eyes widened as he saw the man's face change in front of him. The man snarled, and his teeth grew long and sharp, his hair and ears and nose grew, his brows came almost together, and his eyes were glowing.

But then another snarl came from the left, and a Jack-shaped blur knocked the Taliban soldier to the ground. Mac just stood where he was, watching in fear, as Jack lifted up his hand, which now featured claws, and tore out the throat of the man who'd been about to kill him. Jack turned to him, and he looked just like that terrorist had, with elongated features, sharp fangs, and glowing eyes. Mac blinked quickly and pushed himself as far into the wall as he could. His overwatch looked just like a werewolf. But then he didn't, and as quickly as before, his face changed back to normal.

"Mac, it's okay, I promise," he said. He gently lifted up his hands, now without claws, but covered in blood. Mac looked back at the man on the ground. He was dead, with blood everywhere. Jack had ripped out his throat, with his bare hands.

"You- you're- you're-" he stuttered, he couldn't say it.

"I'm a werewolf, yes. So was he," Jack said. He slowly stood up, and made his way carefully towards Mac. "I'm not gonna hurt you, kid. I know this is scary, but I'm still me, and I'm still the same overwatch you've always known."

It had taken a few days, but things slowly went back to normal, and they were even closer. Mac began asking Jack questions about it, and soon enough, Mac knew almost as much about werewolves as Jack, who had been one since the day he was born. Visiting his family back in Texas with him for the first time had been both cool and freaky, but Mac loved it. He'd been quickly immersed in the werewolf culture, and had been immediately accepted into the Dalton pack. It was a long time before he met another violent werewolf.

Joining up with the Phoenix Foundation was what changed that. Every single person who worked there was a werewolf, aside from Mac himself, because who better to take down rogue werewolves than other werewolves? It had taken a lot of pulled strings on Jack's part, but since Jack had been personally sought out by the director, Matty Webber, he'd gotten to have a couple extra strings to pull. He agreed to become an agent on the condition that Mac got to as well, since he knew just as much about werewolves as any actual werewolf did, and he had such an incredible talent for improvising that could prove incredibly valuable in the field. Matty had really distrusted him at first, but they were good now, and three years later, here they were.

Also on his team was Riley Davis, a hacker two years older than him who was half werewolf. Her father was one, but her mother wasn't. Since Elwood had been a deadbeat her whole childhood, she'd never learned how to properly control the shift. Her mother was completely unable to help. That's where Jack came in. When he met her, she was struggling teenager who constantly was getting into trouble. But Jack taught her everything, and now, she could control the shift as well as anyone. She'd never be as powerful as a fullblood born werewolf like Jack, but she was formidable in her own right.

Matty was bitten when she was a senior in college, at a party. She ended up killing the werewolf who bit her, and quickly became feared in the werewolf world. People often underestimated her because of her height, but she was not a woman - or wolf - to be trifled with.

At this point, most of the people Mac knew were werewolves, with one glaring exception: his roommate. Bozer wasn't a wolf, and he had no idea that they existed. That couldn't be allowed to change. That was the biggest stipulation of allowing Mac to work at Phoenix. If Bozer ever found out because of Mac, well, he didn't really know what would happen, but it wouldn't be good.

There were plenty of agents at Phoenix who didn't care that Mac wasn't a wolf, but there were also plenty who really did. When he had first started working there, there were a few werewolves who didn't appreciate Mac being there at all, and felt that if he were going to be working there, then he should be a wolf too. There had been a few close calls where they had taken advantage of their superior strength, and held Mac down. Their fangs were mere inches away from him when Jack burst through the door and put a stop to it. At first, Matty didn't do much in terms of punishment for those agents, because she sort of agreed with them. But, Jack had said he would quit if nothing was done, and that was that. Throughout the Phoenix Foundation building, Jack wouldn't let Mac go anywhere by himself until he was sure that no one else was going to try to turn him by force. It had been two years since the last incident, but Jack still tried to always be with Mac in the building all the time. It was annoying for a while, but Mac became so used to it that it no longer bothered him. After all, protecting Mac was a major part of Jack's job description.

Sitting there on that jet, with his team around him, Mac couldn't help but smile. He and Jack had come so far since their first meeting, and his life had completely turned upside down, but Mac wouldn't change it for the world.

"Does it at least taste good?" he asked his partner. Jack had to eat more meat than any human, and more than any werewolf that wasn't born of pureblood. He was still devouring his steak. It wasn't like he was tearing it apart with his claws and fangs, but he was very aggressive with his fork and knife. If Mac was being honest, it kind of reminded him of that scene in The Incredibles were Bob Parr cuts the plate in the half with his super strength because he was so forceful with the knife. No matter what, it always made Mac smile.

"Not really, but it hits the spot anyway," Jack answered with a smile. While he was in human form, everything tasted the same as it did to normal humans, and that meant that unseasoned meat wasn't that good. But, his body still needed it, and Jack had no patience for hunger whatsoever. "And before you say anything, I'm too hungry to wait for a burger when we land."

Mac just chuckled, and turned back to the other wolf on the team. Riley was rolling her eyes, but wisely staying out of the conversation. As only a half-wolf, she didn't need as much meat as Jack, and she was just a more patient person when it came to hunger in general.

"I don't know about you guys," Riley said. "But I am so excited to sleep in my own bed." She let her head fall to the back of the seat with a small thud, and closed her eyes with a smile.

They hadn't slept in their own beds in a long time. Matty had been sending them off on mission after mission for the last two weeks. It was the longest Mac had been away from home since his time in the Army, and there was only so long that he could tell Bozer his business trip kept getting extended. He needed to get home, or Bozer was going to figure out that something was off.

"Yes! I miss my Telly Savalas painting," Jack exclaimed around a mouthful of meat.

"Jack, please swallow before you try to talk to us," Riley replied, rolling her eyes in disgust. "I don't need to see that. Neither of us need to see that."

"She's right," Mac added with a smirk.

"Does it look like I care?" Jack said, making sure to keep food in his mouth while he talked. Riley groaned and turned completely away from him. Jack just let out small laugh.

"Just be happy we'll be home in a few hours."

And home in a few hours they were. The rest of the flight was spent relaxing, watching bad werewolf movies. Critiquing their flaws was one of the team's favorite pastimes. They couldn't do it around Bozer, because even though he loved the movies, he couldn't understand how they all knew so much about werewolves.

"See you guys tomorrow!" Mac called out with a wave as he made his way into his Jeep, right where he left it two weeks earlier. Matty needed them bright and early the next morning for another briefing. Jack and Riley both waved back, and got into their respective cars. It was good to be back in LA, despite the terrible traffic. Mac just enjoyed the pleasant air and looked forward to the welcome home dinner he was sure Bozer would prepare for him the next night. At this point of the day, Bozer should be cleaning up the kitchen.

It was a full moon that night, and on most full moons, the team stayed together. It was easier for them to ignore the pull of the moon if they were distracted by hanging out with good friends. But on this night, they were all too exhausted to do anything, and exhaustion was as good a distraction as any. Mac wasn't worried about his team. Both Jack and Riley had been successfully dealing with the full moon long before he ever met them, so really, there was no reason to worry. There really wasn't.

Upon arriving at his house he shared with Bozer, Mac once again couldn't contain his smile. He really had missed his roommate, and he couldn't wait to see him, despite all the questions he would have to make up answers for. That was the most stressful part about having to lie to him every day. Each question needed an answer that wasn't only believable, but easy to come up with. Mac had always been good on the fly, but still, lying to Bozer wasn't something he enjoyed in the slightest.

Mac breathed in the familiar smell of his house as he walked through the front door, setting his bags down. He could hear Bozer at the sink. It really was good to be home.

"Bozer!" he called out. He had missed him so much. Anyone who said people always outgrew their childhood friends was a moron.

"Mac!" he heard from the kitchen. He made his way over. Bozer was at the sink, washing some pots and pans. "You're back!"

"Yeah, I thought it might be a nice surprise," Mac said with a smile.

Bozer finished drying his hands off on the dish towel and turned towards his friend. He took one large step towards Mac and quickly enveloped him in a massive hug. It was so sudden that Mac couldn't hide his gasp of pain from his battered and cracked ribs. Werewolves could hit really hard.

"What's wrong?" Bozer rushed out, immediately letting go of him. "What happened? Are you okay?" He looked at Mac with eyes full of concern.

"Yeah, Boze, I'm fine," Mac replied, waving his hand as if nothing was wrong at all. After all, he couldn't tell Bozer that he'd taken some pretty bad slashes to the ribs from werewolf claws, and some kicks that cracked bone on top of that, also courtesy of a werewolf. Mac resisted shaking his head in disdain. Werewolf terrorists were the worst. "I didn't want to worry you, but there was a minor car accident while I was in Cleveland. I'm fine, I promise." Bozer didn't look convinced. "Do you honestly think Jack would've let me out of his sight if I wasn't fine?" That had Bozer conceding with a nod. "I promise it only hurts with direct pressure on it."

"Okay, alright," Bozer replied with a sigh, holding up his hands in defeat. "But still, that shirt is filthy and you need to change. What even is that? Is that blood?" Bozer grabbed the bottom of Mac's shirt and lifted it up just a bit, just enough so he could see it. Mac quickly stepped back and pulled away.

"Yeah, it's not mine. Some kid had a nosebleed and ran into me in the airport. No big deal," he replied with a shrug. But Mac was mentally cursing himself. In his haste to get inside and see his friend, he had forgotten to change out of a shirt that had a little bit of blood, and a lot of dirt on it.

"And what's all that dirt from?" Bozer asked, his eyebrows raised. It was clear that he knew Mac wasn't being honest with him.

"Jack and I were messing around and I fell, that's all," he said, starting to slowly back away more. He needed to exit the conversation before Bozer grew even more suspicious.

"Except Jack would never mess around with you enough to let you fall when you have hurt ribs." This was exactly why Mac hated having to come up with excuses for things. "Mac, what's going on? Let me see your ribs." Bozer moved forward again and grabbed Mac's shirt. Mac tried to move away, but he was trapped against the counter.

"Bozer, stop, it's fine!" He tried to shove Bozer's hands away, but his roommate was determined. Mac could see the exact moment that Bozer realized something was very wrong. His eyes went wider than Mac had ever seen them, and he slowly stepped back as his eyes went up to meet Mac's gaze.

"What the hell happened?" he asked, his eyes still wide.

Mac shoved his shirt back down, covering up the bandages wrapped around his ribs that he knew had blood on them.

"I'm fine, I promise," Mac said, trying to avoid the question. It didn't work.

"You said that already," Bozer deadpanned. "I asked you what the hell happened, because you don't get slashes like that from a minor car accident."

Mac didn't know what to say. There was nothing he could say. Bozer knew he was lying, but he was completely unable to tell him the truth, for his own protection. It wasn't fair, but that was the life.

"I'm going for a run," Mac said in place of an answer, swiftly turning on his heels and quickly making his way to his room. He ignored Bozer yelling after him, and shut the door. He breathed in for four seconds, then let it out for four seconds. It was a trick that Jack had taught him that often helped him to calm down. He didn't know what he was going to do. Bozer was going to ask again, and he would only take being lied to so many times before he completely snapped. Mac had a feeling that was going to happen sooner rather than later.

He quickly changed and made his way back outside, once again ignoring Bozer shouting at him. He hated doing that to his friend, but what else was he supposed to do? He couldn't tell him the truth without endangering him, but lying was almost worse. A nice run in the beautiful night air would help to clear his mind. His ribs protested just a little bit, but Mac was easily able to run through the pain.

Soon enough, Mac was on a beautiful, deserted trail that wove through a forest. The path was cement and wide, so there was no danger of tripping on anything. Mac thought of nothing but the smell of the woods, and the sounds of the bugs at night. It really was beautiful.

Mac stopped in his path when he saw something run across the trail ahead of him. It was huge, and dark, and Mac knew better than to go anywhere near it, especially at night, when he was alone and had nothing with him to defend himself. Something that big didn't belong in that area of California, so there was a good chance it would become hostile if suddenly confronted. Mac stood there for another minute, just looking around for it. He couldn't see it anywhere. Was he so stressed about Bozer that he imagined it?

Just as Mac was about to chalk it up to his imagination, he was taken off his feet by something coming at him from the left. He immediately tried to curl up to protect his already battered ribs, and held his hands out to defend himself. It was then that he got a good look at what he was defending himself from. It was a wolf, a giant, black wolf, with glowing red eyes and fangs and claws longer than any Mac had ever seen. They were jagged, but looked sharp at every point. Mac tried to push it off by shoving against its trachea, but to no avail. This wolf was stronger than any wolf had any reason to be. It snarled - a disgusting, guttural sound that sent chills down Mac's spine - and lunged its teeth towards Mac's shoulder, right below his neck. Mac couldn't help but scream in pain as the animal dug its teeth deeper and deeper into him. He thrashed beneath it, trying to get it off him, but it was stone. Nothing would move it.

Finally, the beast let go and ran away as quickly as it had snuck up on him. Mac was still on the ground, bleeding heavily. He needed to call 911, he needed Jack. He really needed Jack, especially if that thing was what he thought it was. There were no wild wolves in LA, especially not monster wolves with the strength of ten men and glowing red eyes.

His hand shaking, Mac pulled his phone from his arm strap, and tapped Jack's name. As per usual, the man picked up on the first ring.

"Hey, kid, what's up? I'm just about to hit the sack," he said. He sounded normal, but tired. The full moon hadn't affected him at all.

"Jack, I- I think-" he stuttered. He couldn't say it. He couldn't say he'd been bitten by a werewolf, even though that was exactly what had happened. "I need help."