*On the road/Primm*

Isaac was in high spirits as they moved on, leaving the Ants on the road since they had no need for any more meat. Derek tried to hide the smile on his face but he was glad that Isaac was feeling better about his abilities; it wasn't hard to guess that he had tried to ignore his inner Wolf after his transformation. He probably blamed it for the Scorpion Gang turning on him and resentment went a long way to block out a Wolf's instinct. Derek was going to do his best to train Isaac, he wanted him to understand how much a gift his Wolf could be if he accepted it. It wasn't like he could go back to being Human so it was the only choice he had… that or become a Rogue. And given his poor condition, Derek was completely surprised the Bite hadn't killed him; the Wolf gene must've sensed something in him and ensured that his body didn't reject it.

"So, I know it's still really early and all, but could you maybe tell me more about how I can control my phasing?" Isaac asked. He had been hoping to learn when they had first hit the road but that clearly didn't happen… he shuddered as he remembered the way his body had turned on itself.

"Yea, we can work on learning Were stuff, it's better than silence I suppose. First you'll need to find your Anchor, something that keeps you grounded. Wait, first things first, have you experienced your first full moon yet?" Derek asked, cutting himself off. He realized that he had no idea just how much experience Isaac had. If he wanted to properly teach Isaac, he'd have to start from square one, not by assuming his level of knowledge.

"No, I was attacked almost a month ago, in fact, I think there was a full moon the night I was attacked… so it's probably coming up soon right?"

"Yea, it's tomorrow night actually, something you'll want to keep track of in the future. I'm going to have to prepare you for that first and foremost then. Full moons are difficult to master, especially your first one, even for a Born-Wolf like me. So the sooner we find your Anchor, the better. It can be a person, a thing, a feeling, anything that steadies your heartbeat, keeps you calm… that's how you rein the Wolf back in. The bloodlust is at its peak during the full moon so it will be hardest to control that night. I'm actually really surprised you've done so well on your own this whole month, a lot of Omegas are a lot more feral than you."

"That might be because I hated my new predicament… I figured if I shunned it, it would go away… Could that be what helped me keep my humanity?" Isaac asked.

"Yea, I figured that you might've felt that way…" Derek said with a sigh; he had a lot of work ahead of him if he was going to help Isaac become a functional Wolf. "I mean, trying to ignore it instead of accepting it might've helped you keep basic control this past month but it's not a healthy way to continue to keep it at bay. Eventually your Wolf will rear its head and demand recognition. So now that you are starting to accept it, we have to find something that helps you maintain control over it. You need to understand your urges before you can control your phasing, because the phases are tied to your emotions. Which means I can't really be of any help when it comes to finding what works, it depends on your experiences and feelings. I can only explain how it works and offer examples of how I control mine. So don't expect my examples to work for you, your control will be unique to you; even which phase you learn next will just depend on you." Seeing the confused look on Isaac's face, Derek launched into a demonstration as he tried a different tactic, "My first phase change I learned to control, aside from my eyes, was my ears, then my claws and teeth, and finally my tail. Shifting into my Alpha form is something completely different, took me a long time to get the hang of it…but um, you don't really have to worry about that…" Derek shook his head, he was getting off topic. "But as I was trying to explain, I learned how to shift my ears first," he concentrated and felt his ears shift and grow. "See? I can make my ears change without making any of the other traits form. But yours might not be your ears first, it could be your claws and teeth, or your tail. Make sense?"

"Yea, but how come they aren't all tied together? Like they are either all there or not?"

"Well, that's because you can use the changes to represent your moods, and how bonded you are with your Wolf. For example, my tail is controlled by happiness, if I'm feeling extremely happy, my tail shows and wags. It takes a lot of self control to stop my tail from forming if I'm ever super happy. My teeth and claws are more in tune with my anger, so when I'm mad, they have a higher chance of shifting without my control. Of course when I'm fighting, they come out, but that's because I'm working together with my Wolf to beat an opponent. Still with me?"

Isaac processed for a moment before nodding his head, "So what about your ears? What makes those come out?"

"Paranoia; as a kid I was always scared that Humans were going to hurt my family. I started to realize that when I felt nervous or suspicious, my ears would almost buzz with energy. When I asked my parents about it, they explained that I was finally starting to truly bond with my Wolf. It's actually a pretty exciting time for Born-Weres, we don't show our traits right away- can you imagine a month old baby freaking out during their first full moon? The tails and ears grow over time during our first few years, along with our Wolf's 'awareness'. On top of that, our acceptance of super hearing and other senses comes long before our phase control does. Anyways, they taught me about shifting and using emotions as a means of control. So when I learned to control my paranoia about Humans, I was able to make my furry ears turn into normal Human ears. To shift them back to Wolf ears, I just have to think back on my paranoia, that feeling of when I was little and I thought Humans were nearby, and they change. So if they ever just come out and it isn't because I'm actively listening to something, it means I'm feeling paranoid."

"Whoa, I never would have thought about that at all, like I said, I thought they were all tied together. Turns out they're all separate? So I can figure out what controls my tail right away and make it go away, but then be stuck with my ears for awhile?"

Derek chuckled, "Yea, basically. But first, we need to work on finding an Anchor for you, to counter the bloodlust since the full moon is coming. After we get past that, we can work on the whole phasing thing. So my Anchor is anger. In order to maintain control, I think about what happened to my family and it just angers me but at the same time it brings clarity, focus. Now usually that makes control harder so I don't suggest it. A proper Anchor will cut through the Wolf's haze and help bring the Human side of you back in control. It'll probably be hard to think of something right now since you're fully in control but the sooner you start thinking about it, the better. It will give you more things to try as the full moon rises tomorrow night."

"Okay," Isaac nodded, understanding. He went quiet after that, thinking back on what it felt like to really connect with his Wolf when he had been fighting the Ants. It had felt like he wasn't really in control of his actions; it was more like he sitting on the sidelines as someone else controlled his body. But it felt good- it was someone he could trust, someone that would help him stay alive! And now Derek was telling him that when the full moon came he'd have to fight for control… and he wasn't really sure how to do that. Anger was probably the wrong choice, like Derek said, but he wasn't really sure what else he could use to center himself… he didn't have a lot of happy memories. As they continued to walk, Isaac remembered that Derek mentioned it could also be a person, or a thing, not just a feeling. Maybe he'd be better off trying that route instead… he was about to ask Derek about it when he felt his muscles stiffen, his Wolf on edge; he felt Derek do the same beside him.

"Off the road," Derek said in a gruff whisper.

Before Isaac even had time to react, Derek had grabbed his wrist and practically threw him behind some rocks. Isaac clamped his hand over his mouth to stop himself from asking questions, he knew that something was going on and questions could wait. He watched his Alpha as he concentrated, noticed how his shifted ears were pitched forward, so he tried to do the same thing. Isaac slowed his breathing and focused on his hearing, asking his Wolf to lend him strength; within moments he could suddenly hear the faint crunching of feet on the pavement. He couldn't be certain as to how many people there were, but it had to be at least two because the sound was too erratic to be coming from a single person. He hesitated a moment before tapping his Alpha on the shoulder, hoping to make this into a learning opportunity as well.

Derek glanced over at the Beta, hoping he knew better than to speak with Humans so close, but one glance told him that Isaac would remain quiet. Instead, he pointed to his ears, then made a walking motion with his fingers and then held up a 2 with a questioning look on his face. Isaac wanted to know if he was hearing two people, Derek smiled, he was trying to learn. Derek held up three fingers in response and he saw Isaac concentrate again, trying to pick out the subtle differences in the steps.

Now that he knew there were three for sure, he was able to pick out the heavier sounds of one person, and then the quicker step of a second- their light steps coming in much faster than the others. Now that he was able to pick those two apart, he heard the faint shuffling of the third person; before he could try to discern anything else, his focus was shattered when Derek tapped him on the shoulder. Isaac watched as Derek pointed to his nose, and then gestured to his Wolf ears, and then made his ears Human and pointed to them again. He thought for a moment and realized that Derek wanted to know if he smelled Humans or Wolves. So he focused his instincts on his sense of smell, raising his head to try and catch the faint stirring of air coming from over the top of the rock. It took him a moment to finally catch their scents, although he struggled as he tried to sort through them; he had no idea how a Werewolf smelled different from a Human. He opened his eyes and frowned, barely catching himself before he let out a frustrated whine. Instead he turned towards Derek, leaning in and sniffing him to file his complex scent deep into his brain. He also sniffed himself to log his scent too, which was a little harder since he had pretty much blocked it out long ago. Then he slowly worked on categorizing the different smells.

Derek waited patiently, glad to see that Isaac was figuring things out on his own. Since he had admitted to shunning his Wolf half, it was likely that he had never really tried to master his sense of smell. Which led to the current issue: that he had no knowledge of what a Werewolf actually smelled like. But instead of giving into frustration, he solved the problem by sampling not only Derek's scent but his own. He was learning! He didn't let himself get too distracted though, continuing to listen as the footsteps came even closer to them, just in case they made note of their hiding place.

Isaac sat with his eyes closed, trying to pinpoint what might be similar about their scents; he picked up on something, but then he recalled his father's smell, and that of the other gang members and realized they all had it too, so that was probably 'male'. He pushed that to the back of his mind and focused again, and then his brain caught something that made his ears flicker. When he pinpointed the specific essence, he felt his Wolf come alive- that had to be the telltale Wolf aura. He couldn't pull up that particular scent from his father or the other gang members, only from himself and Derek, so that had to be the one he was looking for. Now that Isaac was certain he had 'Wolf' and 'male' identified, he tried once more to figure out the group on the road. The strong smell of 'male' came to him, so he was certain that none of the travelers were female. He kept sorting, picking up a singular 'Wolf' aura and Isaac figured out that the 'Human' smell made his nose tingle. It was difficult to describe the scent, there were no real words to express the particular smell of 'Human' or 'Wolf'- it was easier to try and describe how he reacted to them. He'd have to remember that for later, so he could ask Derek about it when it was safe. When he felt sure, he turned to Derek and held up two fingers and pointed to Derek's ears, then one finger and pointed to his own, silently answering his question. At Derek's nod, Isaac beamed, eyes glowing from the praise- he'd gotten it right!

Derek patted his arm before shifting his ears again to listen in on what the men were talking about.

"Dammit Ray, why are we taking him all the way to the outpost, it's going to take all night. What if he attacks us?"

"Quiet! James wouldn't do that, besides he was just Bit, the transformation can't happen that fast. The outpost is the closest place that I know will take him in, I ain't going to leave him out here to die… or cause any problems for others."

The unnamed man grumbled under his breath before adding, "Do you think he'll be okay? I mean, what's the NCR going to do with him?"

As Isaac heard that, his breath hitched- he had never thought about how the NCR felt about Weres… which clearly affected him since he was one now… Growing up in the Scorpion Gang, it had been beaten into him to avoid the NCR at all costs- he had never even seen a soldier up close. Isaac should've realized it might be a problem; half of the people in the area didn't like Weres so it made sense that the NCR might not either. But at the same time, no one had reported him to the NCR, so did that mean they didn't care?

The guy named Ray was silent for a moment as he thought about it, "He should be fine, I mean, I wouldn't take him there if I'd heard any bad stories. I know a lot of people don't like Weres… but it's not James's fault you know? He didn't ask to be Bitten, and he wasn't born like this. A lot of people are just afraid, I'm just hoping they'll have someone there that can help him get a handle on this."

The group was quiet the rest of the way, Derek waiting until he could no longer hear their footsteps before standing up to look around. He nodded when he saw the coast was clear, helping Isaac to his feet.

"D-do you think the NCR will help him? I haven't run into any soldiers yet, what do you think will happen?" Isaac asked, hoping Derek would have an answer.

"Well, I think it's a good sign that when I crossed the border, no one asked for my species status. I mean, I could have lied since I don't have the telltale signs of being a Were, but plenty of people know that some Weres can hide their tails and ears. I think as long as they don't catch you causing problems, they'll leave you be; if anything they'll want to make sure you're not a part of the Legion. As for that guy, they'll probably focus more on the Were that attacked him and where it happened, they'll want to go after an Alpha that's illegally turning people. In California, the NCR didn't persecute Weres for existing, only if they were obvious Rogues or Alphas that Bit someone without their consent." As he explained, Derek looked over at Isaac and could see him slowly calming down, "Honestly, in my experience, a lot of people dislike Weres because of the Legion, but if you aren't with them, most people will give you a chance. But I'm sure we'll still find places that refuse to do business with us regardless of our affiliation." When he noticed the immense flood of relief coming off of his Beta, he quickly added, "And besides, since I'm responsible for you, I wouldn't take you out in your shifted phase if I thought it was that dangerous. I'm new to the area, but I've dealt with the NCR before so I know how they operate, well at least on the basic level. I even know a few Weres that were in the NCR, although they had been Bit during their career. But the point is that the NCR didn't discharge them for their change in species."

"I'm glad you know so much about all this… I hadn't given it any thought once I was turned, I just knew a lot of people wouldn't like me on sight. But if I learn how to change or shift, it won't be a problem anyways."

They continued to walk in relative silence, quickly nearing a town, one that had a large, beaten down roller coaster; Isaac's eyes widened- they had made it to Primm. "Can we stop here? I know that they accept Werewolves here, at least a little bit; I stopped by here on my way south to get some food," Isaac informed him as they neared the town.

"Sure, we should see if we can't find a place to stay for the day, it's not like I have a final destination," Derek answered. They slowly wandered through the town, Isaac leading them towards a large building on their left. Derek looked up, Vikki & Vance Casino, interesting name; and across the way was the Bison Steve Hotel. Isaac led the way into the Casino first, was their food that good? It wasn't like they didn't have stuff in Derek's pack. But to Derek's surprise, he was wrong, it had nothing to do with food.

Isaac shyly turned to his Alpha and confessed his reason for coming here first. "When I stopped by the first time, I saw that there was a Were working here; I didn't actually talk to her or anything, I got my food to go. But I'm hoping she'll help us out, tell us more about the area."

Derek smiled, "I'm glad they employ Weres here, I'm impressed."

They entered the Casino and most of the patrons turned to look at them, doing a slight double-take when they saw Isaac's tail and ears. But no one accosted them so they stepped further into the building, heading over to the bar. On their way across the floor, a security guard quickly stepped up, holding up a hand for them to halt.

"I'm going to have to ask if either of you are affiliated with the Legion, I'm assuming not since you aren't wearing their style of outfit, but it's part of the job."

"No sir, I hate the Legion, they're giving a bad name to Weres everywhere," Derek answered, doing his best not to growl.

Isaac shrugged, "I've never even met anyone from the Legion, so no…"

The security guard chuckled at Isaac's answer, but waved them on, "Just had to check, we'd prefer if they didn't show up here and started trouble. Please have fun."

Derek nodded his head in understanding, glad that the folks in the Legion wore distinguishing outfits. They sat down at the bar and asked the bartender what there was to eat, Derek only half-listening, he was also busy scouting out the casino floor to get a feel for the people. He wasn't surprised to see a few Weres here and there gambling at various machines, but it was mostly regular Humans as far as he could tell. He and Isaac placed their orders and waited, Isaac belatedly worried about the money.

"I didn't even think Derek, I don't know how many caps you have, I still have some, but not a lot," Isaac mumbled.

"It's fine kid, if it was a problem, I wouldn't have ordered anything, don't worry about it," Derek assured him, patting his back.

Isaac relaxed, glad that he hadn't made a mistake, then he perked up as he caught sight of the blonde girl from before. "There she is, she's the one I was talking about, the Were that works here."

Derek followed his gaze and saw a pretty blonde Wolf carrying a tray between the various tables; she was wearing a very tight tank top, barely covering her bosom, and short black skirt, her tail coming out over the top of it and swaying freely. She must have heard Isaac, or picked up on his scent because she looked over at them and tilted her head, curious. After she had made her rounds, she came back over to the bar to pick up the latest orders and she stopped to talk with Derek and Isaac.

"Hey there boys, what brings you to Primm?"

"Just passing through, Isaac here said that they were Were-friendly so we decided to stop in, get a room for the night," Derek responded easily.

"For the night? There isn't much left of it really, but suit yourself. Name's Erica by the way, call me over if you need anything. Although… may I ask a question?"

"I'm Derek, and yes, you may."

"Why is a Human traveling with a Were?" Erica hadn't been working in Primm long but all the patrons that came in, the ones that weren't alone, tended to stick with their own species. They were the first pair that she had seen that were mixed… That had to mean they had an interesting story to tell!

Isaac furrowed his brow, couldn't she tell that Derek was a Wolf? Surely she had a lot of experience with scents since she worked in such a busy environment… right? Maybe it was too busy to tell… But when Isaac took a quick sniff to see if he was capable of picking out the Alpha's scent in the crowded room, he realized that Derek did smell Human! How?

Derek just chuckled at both of them, flashing his red eyes at her as an explanation. Not many people were looking in his direction and he didn't have to worry about being overheard that way. Since Primm was Were-friendly, it probably didn't matter but Derek was used to hiding his status. Even with other Weres, as Isaac had just found out.

Erica's ears perked up and her irises turned gold without even realizing it. She'd never actually met an Alpha before, hadn't seen any red eyes around the bar. And she'd been looking! She wasn't sure why an Alpha wouldn't want to be recognized but Derek was obviously pretending to be Human. So she smiled and took her tray of drinks without saying a word, to show that he could trust her to be discreet. As she served drinks, she couldn't help but think about her situation. Her own Alpha was long gone… the NCR had been alerted about a dangerous Were the minute people in Nipton had found out she'd been attacked and Bitten. It didn't take long for the soldiers to hunt him down, but that had left Erica at a disadvantage- she was a freshly turned Were with no Alpha to teach her… Honestly, she was thankful that the NCR hadn't killed her alongside him but it wasn't like they offered to help her either… they told her that they didn't have the resources. All she got was a warning to keep herself under control because they'd hate to have to come back and deal with her too. After that, people just didn't trust her… Nipton didn't feel like home anymore. So she packed up her things and left, more than happy to be on the road. She had always wanted to leave Nipton but ever had the courage to leave… but just like that, she didn't have any reason to stay anymore. And she didn't even have to travel far! Primm was just down the highway, Were-friendly, and willing to give her work! But she still wanted more…

Derek kept his eye on her as they ate; she seemed friendly enough, maybe when she got off work they'd be able to talk with her, ask some questions. She was definitely curious about them. Derek was willing to answer some of her questions if she might give Isaac some pointers in return. It was clear that she was a more seasoned Were, but she wasn't a Beta… which made him wonder where her Alpha was- surely she had been taught by someone, there was no way he'd run into two uneducated Weres in just a few days. Right?

Once they had finished their food, Derek paid the bill and was herding Isaac out to the hotel, but decided to wave Erica over. "I was wondering when you got off work?" Erica gave him a look, brow raised; Derek quickly clarified, not wanting her to think he was trying to proposition her, "I'm completely new to Nevada and Isaac isn't well traveled either. Maybe you could tell us a bit about the area? And maybe give Isaac some pointers? Hearing things from another Bitten-Were might help, versus a Born-Were like me."

"You can tell that I'm a Bitten-Were?" Erica asked.

Derek nodded his head, "There is the subtlest of differences between the two scents; most don't catch it, especially if the Bite was received a long time ago. But yours is still fresh enough for me to catch. So, would you be okay with talking?"

Erica smiled, "Only if you tell me some stuff in return! But I'd be happy to although I don't get off for a few hours yet. And I'm sure you're tired… but I can be here in the morning, say around 9? That will give me a few hours of sleep at least and we can talk most of the morning if you want."

"Sounds good, thank you," Derek said, giving her a small nod before he turned away. He could tell that Isaac had more questions for him, but he figured the young Beta was a bit too tuckered out to actually ask, so once they got their room for the night, Derek told Isaac to sleep. "I'm sure you'll remember your questions in the morning, no hurry to ask them all now. Get some rest, I'll wake you up when it's time to go meet Erica."

"'K, thanks Derek, for being a good Alpha," Isaac reiterated as he crawled into the bed.

Derek smiled, shutting off the lights and lying down on his own bed. It felt good to sleep somewhere other than on rocks, he was going to sleep good tonight.

A/N: Another chapter =D hope you're enjoying it!
9-6-2018: I added a lot more depth to Erica in this chapter as well as making a few subtle changes to how Derek explains Anchors and shift control to Isaac. A fair amount was added but I think I managed to do it without actually changing anything, just adding more to it.