Man lessons
An old woman rode up in a wagon with another gentleman an hour later that night. Next the woman sat another person, a man that looked around Thierry's age. When he approached Thierry and Adren, Luna growled.
"He's a friend, girl." Thierry told her as the man paused where he stood. "He's here to carry the injured one to the wagon."
Luna relaxed but watched the man intensely as him and Thierry carried Adren between them and delicately laid him in the wagon. Once safely inside, Luna and Thierry hopped in the back while the man sat in the front and took off in the wagon toward safety.
The Black Rose ranch and farm was a rarity in those days of bloody conflict between ranchers and farmers. The cowhands, mostly post Circle Daybreakers meticulously mended the barb fencing so the neighboring farmlands wouldn't be victim to the hunger of the sheep and cattle.
In exchange for their cooperation, the ranch received fresh grown vegetables and fruit and the farm would receive fresh meat and wool.
As the wagon rolled into Thierry's lands, Adren spied a giant stone mansion with two floors, glass windows and wood shutters. Nearby the house was a large bunkhouse for the hands while in the distance he could spot a red barn and log cabin on the other end of a fence.
"Welcome to my home." Thierry told Adren and Luna. "I hope this might become your home as well… just don't eat all my livestock."
The last statement puzzled Adren as they pulled up in front of the manor until he heard the faint lowing of sheep and cattle.
Sheep and cows off-limits. Adren told Luna. Hunt them only when I say. She seemed to nod as the wagon stopped.
Thierry turned to Luna as the old woman and man gingerly carried Adren inside.
"He'll be fine with my friends." He said calmly as he petted her. "They'll set his leg, then bandage it and you can go inside."
Together they sat there, watching the stars in the sky until the woman came rushing out.
"He's fighting with us." She said breathless. "Got some witch blood in 'em 'cause he's spitting out fireballs at us right and left."
Thierry got up out of the wagon and raced to the door before realizing Luna was following. He knelt down to her level. "Stay here with Mrs. Miller. I'll watch over him."
Reluctantly, Luna sat down and Thierry raced inside.
Inside, true enough, Adren unlocked his magical abilities and was breathing fireballs anytime someone came close.
Thierry turned to one of the witches in the room, "What happened?"
"We tried snapping the bone back in place." She replied as one of her brothers from the farm doused the flames. "But the bone's twisted and he won't let us touch him again to turn it."
On the bed, Adren growled at everyone.
Your leg bone is turned the wrong way and is protruding. We need to turn it around. Thierry told him telepathically. Adren bared his teeth at him and growled.
I know you understand me. You know we have to do this for you to walk.
From inside Adren's mind, Thierry heard a tiny voice. Nonono. no more pain. no more!
When they turn it, there'll be no more pain. Thierry told him. They'll put soothing herbs on your leg and bandage it. Then the witches here will let it heal.
Adren looked at him hard and relaxed, no fireballs came from his mouth. Slowly the girl and her brothers came to him, held him down and twisted the bone in place as Adren held Thierry's eyes. Then as promised, the girl packed his leg with herbs and bandaged it.
Let the wolf come in. Thierry told Mrs. Miller as the farm girl and her brothers left.
"Your leg should be okay by the morning."
Silence.
"Would you like Mrs. Miller to bring you something?" Thierry asked as Luna ran in and leapt up next to Adren. "A steak? Liver? Anything?"
He only watched the vampire as Luna licked his muzzle.
Thierry sighed, "I'll see you in the morning then." With that he got up and shut the door, leaving it slightly ajar in case either wished to explore. But neither did.
Scent of cooking meat drew Adren from his nightmares. He opened his eyes with a start and looked around the strange new surroundings that wasn't his cage.
He lay on a soft feather mattress with layers of blankets on top. Under his head was a pillow that smelled of lavender and lye soap. Near the bed was a nightstand with an oil lamp on top. On the right of the door was a massive chest of drawers made of oak. To the left of the bed was an empty wardrobe.
To his amusement, he found Luna lying in front of the door. Guarding him in sleep as he once did for her.
Adren shifted into his human form and removed the bandage from his miraculously healed leg then got up to test it. When it didn't give way or give him any pain, he silently padded over to rummage in the chest for clothing.
I can change into human. Humans wear clothing, he thought selecting a pair of petticoats and a man's poncho made of bright colored of wool. Once dressed, he woke Luna and walked downstairs toward the food.
Thierry was sitting at the head of the table chatting with a few of his ranch hands when Adren made his appearance. His appearance also coincided with Mrs. Miller bringing in a tray of coffee, which she dropped unceremoniously when she went to cover her mouth with her hands.
The shattering of the china glasses scared him and both Adren and Luna crouch and growled at the humans. Adren bared his teeth and crawled slowly to the mess to investigate.
"He don't know how to be human." One of the hands murmured to another.
As Adren began lapping the spilt coffee with Luna, Thierry decided to bring an end to the spectacle Adren was making.
"Go patrol the fences and see if they need mending." He ordered the humans, "I don't want my cattle or sheep getting into my crops."
"Right sir." One said as they got one last look at Adren and left.
Thierry looked down at Adren as he looked up at him.
"You need to re-learn how to be a man."
Adren cocked his head and stood as Thierry stood.
"First thing is first." Thierry said with a small grin, "Let's get you dress properly."
Then he led Adren back upstairs and into his room. Inside Thierry went to the chest and laid out a pair of deer skin pants, a doe skin shirt, and his size boots made from cowhide. Then he waited for Adren to dress. The teen just looked at him.
Thierry sighed, "You need to take off the petticoats and put the pants on. Petticoats are women clothes." He picked the pants up and put them in Adren's arms.
"Put those on." Thierry told him. Then fingered the stiff skirts on Adren, "Not these."
When Adren only cocked his head, the prehistoric vampire took a deep breath and jerked the skirts off of Adren. The werewolf frowned and looked at the pants in his hands.
"Yes, put those on." Thierry replied then watched as Adren slid the almost skin tight pants on and compared his to the vampire's. Thierry ruffled Adren's hair and said, "Good boy."
Then with a little help, Adren put the shirt and boots on, again examining Thierry's clothes for correctness.
"Ok, let's move on to food." He told the teen as they went back downstairs. "Eggs and bacon should be easy enough to teach a werewolf/witch how to eat."
It wasn't.
Adren didn't want to wait for scrambled eggs to be dished out. He wanted them—now! Once he saw the bowl on the table, he jumped up on it and ate it straight from the bowl. Then spying bacon, he ran over to it, knocking silverware and glasses to the floor and gobbled up almost every piece.
"Let's try again." Thierry said thirty minutes later as he tied Adren down in the chair, leaving only his arms free.
Adren's clothes were wiped clean, the table was set and this time Mrs. Miller had made toast. Luna sat calmly at the werewolf's feet wondering why her wolf/human friend was allowing himself to be tied.
"This is a fork." Thierry said holding up the utensil and then poked at an imaginary piece of food the put it to his mouth. "You eat with the fork. You try."
He handed Adren the fork and the werewolf mimicked Thierry, only stuck it into his mouth instead of just to it.
"Very good." Thierry said taking the fork back and picked up a spoon. "This is a spoon. You sip with it." He pretended to scoop something from the plate in front of Adren and sip it from the spoon.
Again, the vampire handed the spoon to the werewolf, Adren mimicked him and this time it was Adren who sat the spoon down.
"Excellent. Now this is a knife." Thierry told him picking it up. "You cut with it."
He handed the knife to Adren without miming and the teen took it. First he gripped the handle and stabbed the plate, then he turned it around and tried using it as a spoon. Then insight came to him and he took the fork and pretended to cut a piece of meat using both.
"You're remembering." Thierry told him with a smile as Mrs. Miller came in with Adren's toast. He looked at the food and then at the silverware then back at the food before chucking the fork and knife behind him, picked up the toast and ate it with his hands.
Mrs. Miller tisked, "You'll have to work with him on that."
"I will." Thierry said picking up the silverware.