Chapter Two- Heritage

Atem stirred on his birthday and sat up, stretching before he smiled. He was sixteen now and was ready to receive birthday wishes. The morning meeting would be held as usual but the rest of the day would be his to do as he wished. He planned to read as long as he wanted and then take a ride out in the desert. He would sit in on one of Mahad's classes and insure that his favorite foods would be served for dinner. He would round the day off with some moon gazing as it would be the full moon.

His smiled faded as he gasped, shut his eyes, and put his hands over his ears. Everything seemed brighter and louder than before, but why? He opened his eyes to slits as he eased out of bed and proceeded to dress while puzzling over his eyes and ears.

Everything seemed normal just minutes ago and now I'm seeing and hearing better than before. That makes no sense. He blinked several times and his eyesight seemed normal now. He headed for the throne room and worked on figuring out his ears. He was picking up sounds that he hadn't noticed yesterday. Now, they were detectable. He shook his head and the sounds faded to normal. His relief over his sight and hearing being normal was brief as his sense of smell suddenly sharpened. He put his hangs over it and stopped walking. He could smell a variety of scents he hadn't smelled seconds ago. What is going on? he thought in frustration.

"My pharaoh?"

Atem lowered his hands and turned to see Siamun looking at him curiously. He straightened himself. "I'm fine, Siamun." He continued on to the throne room with Siamun behind him.

Seto could tell that Atem was dealing with sharper senses even though he looked normal. He glanced at Aknadin who locked eyes with him and nodded slightly. Everyone bowed as Atem passed and once he was seated, Siamun said, "Pharaoh, let me say on behalf of all, happy birthday."

"Thank you," he said, seeming distracted.

The Sacred Court exchanged concerned looks before Mahad came forward. "Pharaoh, is something wrong?"

"No," he said quickly. "Let us proceed with matters."

Aknadin was anxious for the meeting to end. It was clear to him that his nephew was being distracted by his sense. He needs to know, he thought as he shared a knowing look with Seto. He had seen Seto leave the palace last night and followed at a distance. When Seto changed, he did so too and kept a further distance from him. He had heard Seto's joyful howl and called out to him, knowing it was time to tell all about himself, Atem, and the family connection.

The meeting soon ended and Atem was relieved. He could now attend to his plans and allow his discomfort with his senses to show. However, he held on to that discomfort as Seto and Aknadin were still in the room. He was about to address them when a tingle was felt in his fingers and looked to see his nails grow to become claws before returning to short nails again. He looked at his priests and was dismayed to see that they noticed.

Aknadin smiled gently. "It is all right, pharaoh. Seto and I know what is going on. I could see that you were distracted."

"It is likely nothing. It could be my imagination but it seemed that my senses are more sensitive than usual and I thought my nails looked like claws."

"It is not your imagination," Seto said. "It is your heritage surfacing. A heritage that Master Aknadin and I also have."

"Heritage? What heritage? Is that what this is?"

"Pharaoh," Aknadin said. "When a young man turns sixteen, that person exhibits the sharp senses and physical appearance of a werewolf."

"Werewolf?" Atem repeated. "I'm a…werewolf?"

"Yes, my pharaoh," Aknadin said. "I am one too and so is Seto. It is a wondrous thing and we can answer any questions you have."

Atem gave a soft moan as he squeezed his eyes shut and put his hands over his ears again. "Everything's so bright and loud," he said softly.

"It will pass," Seto said. "By tomorrow morning, you will be able to turn them on or off."

Atem's eyes flew open and his hands moved up his ears to find them pointed before going back to normal. "Is there any way to stop this? I can't be a werewolf."

"It is part of you, just as it was a part of your father. It is inherited through the male line," Aknadin said.

"Father was one? Why didn't he tell me?"

"He wanted to wait until today and when he knew he wouldn't be able to, he asked me because I'm his younger brother."

"Brother? Then…you and I are family?"

"Yes and I revealed to Seto last night that he's my son."

Atem was stunned. He had family all this time and didn't know it. "So, werewolf is in the family," he stated.

"It is," Seto confirmed. "When I turned sixteen and began shifting and getting sharper senses, I knew why because Father told Mother who, in turn, told me."

"Please tell me everything she said," Atem pleaded, even though he knew he could ask Aknadin for information.

"She told me that I would change into a wolf the night of my birthday and stay that way all night. She also said that I would change on the full moon and speak only as a wolf though it would be words to another werewolf."

"The full moon's tonight and the next two nights!" Atem exclaimed with alarm.

"Yes. All three of us will change and speak in wolf language. After the full moon, we can change when we want and can talk normally," Aknadin said.

"Where can we go to change?" Atem asked.

"I prefer the desert," Seto said. "Lots of room to run."

"I've dug a tunnel for years from an obscure corner of the city and to an oasis. Plenty of water, prey to hunt, and a shelter for warmth."

Atem nodded at the elderly priest. "That sounds perfect." His nose and jaws shifted halfway to a muzzle before going back to normal. "Will it hurt when I change tonight?"

Seto shook his head. "Your partial shifts will make the full change painless."

"What else do I need to know?"

"Well, whatever you may have heard, we do not eat humans and we can turn men on the full moon but not without permission."

"Can only men be turned?"

"Yes. A bite to a woman will have no effect on her."

"I've heard that horses fear wolves. So, what about werewolves?"

"No. Werewolves do have a unique scent to detect other werewolves in wolf form but that scent is not present when in human form. So, horses won't react to us."

"Are we vulnerable to silver?"

"We're vulnerable to the same things humans are. However, any injuries we get will heal almost instantly." Aknadin touched a cheek. "Seto and I were playing last night and he scratched my cheek. As you can see, there are no scratches."

Atem nodded before excusing himself to do his birthday activities. He found it hard to believe that he was a werewolf and would change for the next three nights, but his senses and shifts indicated otherwise.