Her entire body screamed in agony and she shrieked in pain at the impact. Instantly Shi backed off, sniffing her carefully and growling. He was breathing heavily, and sweat matted down his fur. She stayed deathly still as he sniffed at her ribs, and out of the corner of her eye she saw Dean raise the gun.
"Don't shoot him!" she gasped, and Shi looked up, grinning toothily, tongue lolling out. "Have to scare me like that?" she panted, still trying to get her breath back, and the big wolf got off her, licking her face worriedly as she sat up.
"This is the boyfriend?" Dean asked dubiously.
Shi growled. "He's not my boyfriend," Chandre replied, and her partner barked in agreement. He licked her face again and gave a low whine, then began to Change into a human, his muscles shifting. Chandre remembered the first time he had Changed, which thankfully hadn't been in front of her, or she would have freaked out, thinking that he was dying. Several seconds later he uncurled himself and stood, panting. Ignoring Dean and Sam for the moment, he crouched beside her.
"Good thing I got here in time, huh?" he grinned, and helped her stand up. She wanted to hug him, but he turned away, flicking his gaze towards Dean and Sam. "So these're the two Winchester boys."
"How'd you know that?" Sam asked, trying to keep his eyes riveted to Shi's face. Her partner grinned, recognizing his unease, and went over to Chandre's backpack, pulling out a pair of her jeans. Luckily they were around the same size, so he fit into them.
"Believe it or not, I spoke with your father."
"You met our dad?" Sam asked again. He sounded angry.
"He wanted to meet with the Ulfric. And you," Shi growled, turning to Chandre, "were supposed to wait until I came."
She rolled her eyes, trying to ignore her pain for the moment. Shi might be an Alpha male, but she wasn't submissive. "You didn't come after two days. Free reign to look."
He grumbled, but didn't argue, instead coming to her, wrapping his arms about her face and kissing the tip of her nose. She lifted her head and kissed him on the mouth. He shifted away after a couple of seconds, nuzzling her on the neck, holding her so tight she felt like she was going to explode or pass out. "You taste like puke and blood," he whispered, sounding worried, and kissed her on the neck while she buried her head in his shoulder, exhausted and grateful for the support.
The uncomfortable coughs behind them made Shi turn, although he kept his arm around tightly about her waist. "So, uh, we're good to go, right?" Dean asked. "Will the other werewolves attack us once you take her away?"
"No." It was Shi's turn to look uncomfortable, and Chandre glared at him until he looked at her guiltily. "Kiddo," he murmured, glancing down slightly, "it's not over yet."
"What do you mean? You beat that leader guy, right?" All she wanted to do was lie down and go back to sleep, but she kept her eyes open.
"Not a scratch on me," he smirked, and then became serious. "The Pack is in trouble. Hunters have been killing them off one by one, and the townspeople are getting suspicious."
"So? It doesn't concern us." He shifted his eyes away, and she groaned. "What did you do?"
"I, uh, I am the Ulfric," he muttered. "By rite of combat. And I kinda told them that I would take them to Canada."
"What!" she hissed. "Sh-Striker, it's usually me who does stupid things like that! Where's the freaking 'voice of reason'?" The guys were looking really uncomfortable.
"Yeah, well, I'm bound a turn, right?" Shi asked. "And unlike you, I've thought this through. We're gonna head north, and travel towards the Yukon. There's a couple small towns that still have Were populations, and they can establish themselves there and I'll be free to hand over the kingship to someone else. They need me to lead them."
"Okay, so let's get going. The sooner we start, the sooner we can go home." She wished that he didn't have a natural wall, because he looked even more uncomfortable.
"You're not coming." It was almost a whisper, and filled with regret, but she stared at him in shock. Before she could say anything, he sniffed, and asked, "Where are you hurt?"
"I-I'm fine," she stammered, but he was already starting to unbutton her coat and shirt, quickly down to her bra. His fingers burned against her cold skin, and she shivered as he ran them along the stitching, feeling slightly sick.
"We should just get going and let you two have s—reunite," Dean said.
"Stay right there," Shi snapped, and they froze. Dean looked pissed, and Sam irritable, but they both probably realized that Shi could call his wolves on them. Shi touched the stitches on her stomach, and swore softly. "Deep?" he asked, looking up at her.
"I'm not coming?" she asked, still angry and refusing to be deterred. She also didn't want him to figure out that she was hurt bad in other places too. And the entire forest was getting pretty blurry. "We're a team. A partnership. You don't just leave one stranded—"
"I'm not stranding you," Shi snapped. "The only reason I'm doing this is because I killed their leader and it's Code that I finish what he started. Do you think I like this? Especially with the werewolves wanting to tear you apart after you killed their siblings, you can't come. It would be instant death. The only reason they didn't kill you just now was because I have them all cowed, but they'll get over it pretty fucking quick. Maybe if you were healthy, but it's a fucking hazard."
She frowned, and he sighed. "Kiddo, we're a team."
"You know, I hate to break up the reunion and all, but we have to get going," Dean said. "Hit the road and all that. Nice meeting you, Scarlet, uh, Striker—"
"Take her with you," Shi said.
"Pardon me?" Chandre chorused with the boys. "I don't think so," Sam said, shaking his head, and Dean just stared, head tipped back a little.
"You're not blowing me off like this," Chandre growled, but she almost fell down, and her vision started blacking.
He turned towards her. "You can either go with them unconscious or on your feet," he replied. To the boys, he said, "Your dad thought it was a good idea to have an extra gun handy."
"You planned this with my dad?" Dean asked.
"Not really. He mentioned it, and I think it's a good idea." Chandre wavered, and he caught her as her vision started to black. "Kiddo?" he whispered, and she shook her head at him, but the exertion of the past couple of days were stressing her wounds, and she felt herself slipping away. "Kiddo?" he whispered again, slowly sinking to the ground. Dean and Sam hurried quickly over to give whatever medical assistance might be needed, but she was falling away.
Peeling her eyes open with a will of effort as she was sucked under, Chandre glared at her partner, and slammed her fist into his startled face before her energy left her and she collapsed with a gasped, "Fuck . . . you."
Shi stared down at her, ignoring the throbbing on his left cheek as he tenderly stroked her hair.
"Oh yeah, you're reeeal close," Dean quipped.
Shi leaned forwards, almost pressing his forehead against hers, and whispered, wishing she could hear him, "Do you think I waited four fucking years for you to come around to me just to let you go?" She didn't move, but at least her breath wasn't wavering and her heartbeat throbbed steadily, if weakly, in her chest. She looked younger when she was sleeping, or knocked out in this case, and helpless. His heart swelled, but he had to leave her. It would be the longest they had been apart since they had gotten together in a partnership, since he didn't think that he would finish taking the Pack to Canada in a month. Maybe four months, but he wished she could come.
Looking up at the boys, he closed his eyes and stood, her light in his arms. Dean stood up first, and he gently placed Chandre in his arms. Leaning forwards, he growled, "You fucking touch her and I'll rip your arms off." He was slightly disappointed to find that he was right on height with the older man, and Sam, who was just a little younger than him, was taller by a couple of inches. A slightly demoralizing blow, but he knew he could beat the pulp out of them.
"Yeah, right," Dean said. Shi bared his teeth and growled again, warningly, already moving away from them.
"Wait a sec—how long are you going to be?" Sam asked. "And what if she gets hurt?"
Shi barked a laugh. "She can take care of herself. J-Just sleep with her, okay?" His voice cracked, and they stared. "Don't fucking touch her, but she can't sleep alone." Feeling that he was losing his sense of control, and her, he backed away, his ears already listening to the steady chorus of howls several miles away. The Change rippled over him, and he darted over, moving fast as Dean jerked back, and his lips brushed against Chandre's forehead before he melted into the forest, tossing her jeans at the boys' feet before disappearing finally into the woods.
"A real gem," Dean drawled sarcastically, and Sam glared at him. "C'mon Sammy, let's her out of here."
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A/N: Well, that's the end. I'm thinking of doing a sequel, but all depends on reviews. Then again, I've heard that OFC stories are highly annoying and boring, although I can assure everyone that there will be no romance between Chandre and the Winchester boys (a potential bummer, but hey, she's loyal). Anyhow, hoped you enjoyed the story, and let me know if I should continue!