Tommy waited in anticipation for the questions that could determine his survival.
"How many walkers have you killed?"
"The zombies? Too many to count."
Rick nodded in agreement. "How many people have you killed?"
Tommy lowered his head. "1."
"Why?"
"One of the first places we found shelter when all of this started happening, the leader was a total maniac. I had a feeling about it right away but, we were in no position to turn down a safe place to stay. I came back from a supply run when I found the leader trying to rape my girlfriend. Before I could even make a move to stop it, he shot her. He said that women couldn't stay in the town if they didn't sleep with him. I gave in to the wolf, ripped him to pieces. I've never done that to a human before. I still think about it every day."

Rick and Daryl stared at him, trying to take in everything he had said. "That's all I needed to know," Rick said in his southern drawl. He walked back towards the trees with Daryl to discuss their decision. Tommy pretended that he couldn't hear their conversation.
"What do you think?" Rick asked.
"He's a werewolf. We don't even know what he's capable of," Daryl said, never taking his crossbow off of Tommy.
"I know this sounds crazy but, I trust him."
"I'll back you up on whatever you decide but, I'll be keeping an eye on him."
"Which is exactly what we need to do. I just have this feeling. Something is telling me to trust him," Rick said and nodded. He walked back towards Tommy, holstering his gun. "We have a cabin not far from here. You can come back with us but, I'll need to pat you down and take all of your weapons."
"That's fine. Here's my knife," Tommy said handing over the knife and put his hands behind his head. He knew it made them feel safer but, Tommy didn't need weapons to hurt them. He was the weapon.
Rick patted him down, finding no other weapons. "Ready to go?"

"Give me a second," Tommy said crouching back down to Merton's grave. Rick and Daryl got the hint and gave him some space. Tommy stared at the coffin backpack that Merton had carried around since the day they first met. He smiled; remembering how weird he first thought Merton was for having things like that. He used to make fun of all of his creepy stuff but, he would give anything to go back to Merton's lair right now. "I'm going to save the world, Merton. I'm going to do it for you, for our girls, for Lori, for everyone we've lost." Tommy closed his eyes, took a deep breath and de-wolfed. He stood up, stuffed Merton's trench coat in his own backpack and turned to Rick and Daryl. "I'm ready."

"How did you become a werewolf?" Rick asked, taking the lead.
"I went camping the night before my senior year of high school and got attacked. My friend, Merton, knew a lot about the supernatural so he taught me everything about werewolves. Pleasantville was a hot spot for the supernatural, so with his knowledge and my powers, we fought any evil monster that came into town."
"That's quite the story."
"When all the zombies started showing up, I thought it was just another day, another monster. We had fought zombies before but, they were different."
Rick proceeded to tell Tommy about his experiences as a small town sheriff and how he woke up to find out the dead had taken over.
"That's crazy. I think your story beats mine. What about you, Daryl? What's your story?" Tommy asked, not wanting to leave him out of the conversation.
"It's not important," Daryl said from behind him. Tommy looked back and saw that he still had the crossbow aimed right at him.
Tommy knew that Daryl didn't like him. He had a feeling the rest of this group might not like him either. He expected it and he wouldn't blame them. He knew that Rick was the leader of this group so he did his best to get to know him better. If he was going to be welcomed into this group, he had to be on Rick's good side. He actually liked Rick a lot. He felt an immediate bond with him.
"Don't worry about him," Rick whispered. "He's standoffish to everyone."
"It's okay. Being a werewolf, I'm not real good at first impressions," Tommy said, looking back at Daryl. "I don't mean to be rude but, why are you being nice to me, Rick? You barely know me."
"In this new world, I've met a lot of different people. I've learned to pick up pretty quickly who's good and who's not. You may not be all man but, you're a good person, I know that. With all I've been through, I realized that if we want a chance at the life we used to have, we need to stick together. Build a community. That's what I'm trying to do. I have a feeling you want something similar."
"I do. I want to give people a chance at a real life again."

"So what can you do as a werewolf that the average person can't?"
"Well, I can run extremely fast, I have super strength and my sense of smell and sight are heightened."
Rick nodded, understanding the benefits of having him join their group. "Why should we be afraid of you?"
"Well on top of everything I just told you, I've got the fang and claws to back it up."

"We should wait out here," Rick said to Tommy when they reached the cabin. "Daryl, go inside and tell everyone to meet us out here." Daryl lowered his crossbow and did as he said. "I think we should tell them everything. No lies." Tommy nodded in agreement as Daryl lead the group outside. They all stared at Tommy with curiosity and it made him nervous, it made the wolf nervous. He took a deep breath and told himself to hold it together. "I want everyone to meet Tommy. We met him this morning and I'd like him to become a part of our group."
At that last sentence, many of the group's eyes narrowed. Tommy could sense that these people weren't as quick to trust a stranger as Rick was. That was smart for them but, unfortunate for him.
"He would be a very good person for this group to have on its side. There's one thing I want all of you to know about Tommy before we take him in. He's a werewolf."

The whole group just continued to stare at Tommy. Carl let out a chuckle. Carol looked at Daryl and he looked right back at her and nodded. She knew that this wasn't a joke. Now she knew why Daryl seemed so tense.
"Is this a joke?" Glenn asked, staring at Rick like he ate the wrong kind of berries.
"I know it sounds ridiculous but, it's not a joke," Rick said. "Tommy, why don't you show them?"
Tommy looked at each and every person in the group and felt like a sideshow freak on display. He hated this but, he knew that he needed to tell them now rather than them find out later. People in the post-apocalyptic world didn't think twice about killing something that scared them. Tommy let his emotions go and it was pretty easy for him to wolf-out. As soon as he did, the entire group raised a weapon and aimed it at him, except for two of them – one guy with a mullet standing in the back and Carl who was holding Judith.
"Whoa," Rick stood in front of Tommy holding his hands up, ensuring his protection. "I know this is scary but, just hear him out."
"I'm not evil, I'm just hairy. Underneath it all, I'm just a man trying to survive. I know it's hard to believe but, I promise that I can be a useful part of this group."
"Tommy, stay out here and the rest of us will meet inside," Rick said and everyone started filing into the cabin. Rick nodded towards Tommy and walked in with the rest of them.