Chapter 4: Balanced Discoveries
The next morning, Yuki woke up still in her wolf form next to her daughter, who was still asleep. She took this opportunity to change back into a human and put her nightgown back on. She looked back to Izumi and noticed the blanket that had been left on them overnight. She wanted to thank Sōhei for that, but then realized he had already left for work. Wanting Izumi to wake up more, she went into the kitchen to prepare some breakfast. Izumi later woke up and found she was still in hybrid form. Realizing this wasn't a dream she had last night, she called out to her mom, who then came right to her.
"Still surprised, are you now?" Yuki gently said to her.
"How do I go back to human?" Izumi questioned.
"Simply think about wanting to be human and not a wolf," Yuki replied. "Try shaking your head to imagine yourself removing your wolf body parts if you need to."
Izumi did exactly as she was told, and she was back to being a full human.
"That's my girl!" Yuki complimented. "Now, come and have some breakfast. After that, we'll discuss this more."
Izumi followed her into the kitchen and had her nourishing breakfast. Once that was done, the two got dressed in day clothes and headed outside.
"So, now that you know that you're a wolf, you need to know how to control yourself." Yuki instructed. "While I want you to be glad that you can do this, we can't let anybody outside my family know."
"Why not?" asked Izumi. "What about Daddy's family?"
"Most people are scared of wolves and find the idea of a human being one strange." Yuki answered. "Daddy's family doesn't know about this, so it's best we don't tell them."
"Okay, Mommy," Izumi said back.
Yuki went over some basic lessons to teach Izumi how to handle herself in certain situations that could accidentally let her wolf self out. Izumi seemed to understand how to behave well enough from this. Yuki then had her switch back between forms multiple times to get used to the feeling. She was able to transform to and fro; however, she was unable to become a full wolf.
"Why am I not a wolf like you?" Izumi asked.
"I'm trying to think why," Yuki responded. "I was able to when I was your age, so I'm not sure why you're having problems."
Yuki then realized that Ame wasn't able to become a full wolf until the day they played in the snow. That day, Ame had shown more excited emotions than he had ever done previously, so maybe that was the key.
"I think I know now," Yuki said. "You need to not only think about being a wolf but also get excited about being one. This time, don't just use your head; use your heart as well. Try closing your eyes if you need to."
Izumi did exactly that. Closing her eyes, she thought about the possibilities of being able to be a wolf and how fun it would be to be like her mother. She focused all her emotions into this and then tried again to let out her wolf self. She then fell over front and felt her front paws touch the ground.
"You did it!" Yuki exclaimed. "Open your eyes and take a look at yourself!"
Izumi opened her eyes and found that she was on all fours and was facing straight ahead without having to move her head up. She looked behind her and saw that her dress had flown off, revealing a whole new body that was covered in light tan fur, complete with a tail.
"I did it! I'm a wolf!" She happily exclaimed as she ran in a circle.
"Wait, hold on." Yuki said, picking up the discarded green dress. Izumi sat back down in front of her, and then Yuki tied it around her daughter's neck so that it was now a cape.
"What's this for?" Izumi asked.
"Your grandma Hana taught me to do this when I was little," answered Yuki. "This way you can easily have your clothes with you whenever you're in wolf form. Not only that, it also makes you look adorable."
Izumi smiled and wagged her tail at that statement, continuing while her mom petted her head.
"Now that you're a wolf, why don't we play together?" Yuki asked her daughter.
"Yes! Let's play!" Izumi excitedly answered.
Yuki smiled as she turned into her wolf form, initially keeping her hands so that she could tie her dress around her before switching them to paws.
"Now remember, we must stay by the house," ordered Yuki. "If I detect someone is nearby that doesn't know about our wolf forms, you must turn back into a human, understand?"
Izumi happily nodded. Not wanting to keep her daughter waiting, Yuki immediately started playing with her. The two chased each other and playfully wrestled. Yuki felt even more nostalgic than in the more recent times when she would run around with Ame, mostly because this time she felt like she was playing along with her younger self. In the end, she was just glad that Izumi's discovery of being a wolf ended up being a happy one.
##
In the mountains, Ame started making his way to his family's farm. Now that he had the kit at his side, he felt better about wanting to have a proper visit there, and he also wanted to show off her to the family. He stopped at a point close by that had a good view of the place. Normally he would stop there to check if anyone other than family was home so he would know whether he should change into a human or not. Ever since Izumi started becoming aware of her surroundings, he was told to only arrive in human form until she knows about her family's secret. Since he hadn't known about what just happened, he came prepared to change as usual with his clothes tied around his neck. However, as he looked down into the property, he saw something different: two wolves, one adult and one pup, were playing together. This made him excited, as he now knew that he no longer had to hide the truth from his niece since she was officially now one of his kind. He told the kit to come along with him quickly so that she could now meet the family. Ame soon made it to the property, and Yuki noticed his presence as soon as his scent came into the vicinity. She told Izumi to stop playing for a while so that she could greet him.
"Yuki! Why didn't you tell me this happened sooner?" Ame greeted his sister.
"She just discovered it last night," Yuki responded, "and we just got used to dealing with it earlier today."
"This quickly?" Ame said in a surprised tone, "Well, then again, we didn't have a wolf for our mother."
Izumi soon came running up to the two, and upon seeing the large bluish-gray wolf that was her uncle, she stared in amazement.
"Izi? Is that really you?" Ame said to his niece. "You look so cute in that form!"
"You're cute too!" Izumi said back.
Ame confusingly stared, "Wait... I'm cute?"
"You're also wearing a cape; Mommy said that makes you adorable." Izumi replied.
"Yes, I did tell her that, aside from the main reason," chuckled Yuki. "You have to admit it, though; it does."
Ame chuckled back, "Well, I can't really be mad at her for that." He then saw the kit finally coming up to him after straggling behind. "Oh, this is why I wanted to come here: I wanted you to meet this little one. She lost her family from a bear attack, and I wanted to take her in as my own."
The kit nervously stayed close to her foster father as he tried to convince her to meet the two wolves that were new to her. She made soft cries at the notion.
"We're your fr...," Izumi started to say, "Wait, why can I understand what she's saying?"
"Wolves and foxes are closely related species," Yuki answered her daughter's question, "so we both have the same language."
"I was taught how to be a wolf by a fox," added Ame, "and would end up taking his place as the guardian of the mountain."
"Cool!" Izumi responded in amazement. She then communicated with the kit some more to try and make her warm up to them. Eventually, the kit came forward and nuzzled the wolf girl.
"What's her name?" asked Izumi.
"I...uh...didn't think to give her one." Ame said. "Wild animals don't give each other names."
"How about Inari?" asked Yuki. "I think that name's fitting for a fox, wouldn't you say?"
"I don't know, seems a little on the nose." Ame said back.
"Well, the name belongs to various personalizations, and it's especially fitting if you plan to raise her as a future guardian." Yuki stated.
"I like it, don't you, Inari?" Izumi said to the kit.
The kit smiled back at her, seeming to accept the name.
"Well, what do you know?" Ame said in amazement.
Izumi then asked Inari to come and play with her, which she did. She seemed to have even more fun playing with an animal her own size. Ame and Yuki decided to stay back and watch, smiling at the cheerful moment.
Hours passed while Izumi continued playing with her new friend Inari when Yuki heard a vehicle approaching. She told her daughter to be on guard just in case it was someone unfamiliar, but luckily, it was just Sōhei arriving home. As the truck pulled in closer, he stopped it and got out, now viewing the big change that just happened. Yuki told her daughter to go up and greet her father so that she could show off her new form to him.
"Look, Daddy!" Izumi exclaimed. "I'm a wolf, just like Mommy!"
Sōhei bent down to pick up and hold her in his arms. "Aww, aren't you precious!"
Izumi smiled as her father stroked behind her ears. Sōhei then noticed that Ame was present.
"I'm going to start dinner soon; why don't you go inside so you can change and get ready?"
"Alright, daddy!" Izumi said as she did exactly what she was told.
Sōhei then changed his focus to Ame, "Surprised to see you here right after she became able to transform."
"That's just a coincidence," Ame replied. "I really wanted to show off the future guardian of the mountain right here." His eyes pointed to Inari, who was now sheltering herself next to him again.
"Well, that's at least good knowing that you didn't want to have our daughter as your pupil," Sōhei responded.
Ame changed his look to a blank stare. "What's wrong with that?"
"Nothing," Yuki said to him, "we just want to raise her our way first."
Ame remained silent.
"Besides, I don't think it's a good idea to have our daughter go out into the mountains in wolf form now that I know about the rumors."
"Wait, this is new to me." Yuki said inquisitively. "What are you talking about?"
Sōhei began to explain, "I've heard from various photographers in the field that there have been rumors of a Honshū wolf appearing in the mountains, and I don't want my daughter to get wrapped up in this."
"Most humans that have witnessed me just think I'm some sort of spirit; that's enough to keep hunters away," Ame said. "What kind of people would want to seek me out without killing?"
"Tabloids," Sōhei clarified, "photographers that would give everything they've got to get proof that an extinct species is still alive and put it out to the world."
"Most people don't really believe in those stories anyways," Yuki stated. "Why would you be afraid of that?"
"Because your family has gone the extra length to keep your gift under wraps," Sōhei answered, "and I don't want you to get any negative attention out of this. I consider it pure luck that no one batted an eye at the truth when your father died."
Both Ame and Yuki just stood in awkward silence as they heard Sōhei bring up the story of their father's tragic fate, where his wolf self was fatally hit by a vehicle and his body found in the river was simply thrown into the trash. Both of them now wish that their mom never told Sōhei about that.
"Sōhei, didn't you say you were going to start dinner?" Yuki broke the silence.
Knowing what that really meant, Sōhei went inside to do that. Yuki then turned her attention to Ame, who was depressingly hanging his head down low.
"I know he went too far with that statement, but he's just trying to look out for us." Yuki said to her brother.
"That doesn't mean he should tell me what to do!" Ame responded in an aggravated tone. "He's not a wolf; he shouldn't have an opinion!"
"What about Mom?" asked Yuki. "What would we have done without her?"
Ame hesitated for a few seconds, then responded, "She's a different case; she had to raise us by herself when we had no idea what to do with ourselves. Sōhei is acting like how Mom was just before I left her, before she realized I was ready to be on my own."
Yuki soon realized he was right. "I guess this means you're not staying for dinner, right?".
Ame sighed, "I wasn't really planning on it; I still need time to bond with Inari."
"Well, just make sure you don't take anything too hard, okay?" assured Yuki. She then turned back into a human and put her dress back on, and then she went inside.
Ame stared silently at the house; secretly, he thought to himself that Sōhei could actually be right, that the truth could actually be revealed due to humans spotting him. He then beckoned Inari to follow him back to the den.
##
Months passed since Izumi discovered her wolf self, and during that time she grew to love her gift more and more. She continued to have plenty of playtime with her mom, as well as Inari whenever she came with Ame to visit. Her parents didn't want to teach her how to hunt, however, because she would be starting school soon, and Yuki wanted to make sure she could act like a normal human before starting. Luckily, she seemed to obey their orders rather well. Yuki called her mother soon after the day Izumi first became a wolf; she was surprised at how well it all went down but was also proud of her daughter for how she handled it. Izumi then got to see the photos Yuki kept in her locked box, and she loved seeing how much her mom was like her when she was little, not to mention how adorable her uncle was compared to the proud guardian he grew up to be. Yuki also gave her daughter the plush wolf doll that Hana made for her while showing off her own. The family seemed all stable for now.
Early in September, Yuki got a call from her mother asking to urgently meet her at her home in the city. Yuki did exactly that, bringing Izumi along with her. When they got to her place, Hana asked Izumi to show off her wolf form, which she did. Hana reacted to her granddaughter's new form with glee but told her she couldn't remain that way for the entirety of her stay to keep suspicions low. Izumi then changed back into a human and went to go play in the guest room as usual.
"I'm glad that she inherited that playful side of you." Hana started her conversation with Yuki.
"I just hope she also doesn't come to loathe it like I did." Yuki said.
"But you eventually came around to it, didn't you?" Hana said back. "Of course, now that you know how to handle it, have you considered having a second one?"
"We're not; Sōhei and I decided it'd be best to only handle one," replied Yuki. "Even though there are two parents this time, I just don't really see myself being able to handle raising two wolf children despite being a wolf myself."
Hana remained silent for a few seconds, then spoke, "Maybe it's better after all, considering what's coming of me."
"What are you talking about?" asked Yuki. "What's with the urgency of this meeting?"
Hana hung her head low. "Take a look at the papers on the kitchen table, and you'll see."
Yuki went over to the table, confused at her mother's sudden solemn tone. On it, she saw papers from a hospital; as she read them, she suddenly got chills running down her spine.
"This... this can't be happening to you!" Yuki said in a scared tone.
"I'm afraid so," Hana woefully said. "I don't know how to handle this."
"You can fight it; many people have." Yuki assured her mother.
"I'll at least try, but it's important that you also let Ame know." Hana said back. "I'd at least like to hear from him if possible."
"He's still too introverted to go into the city." Yuki responded.
"You have a phone at your house, you know," Hana reminded her daughter. "He hasn't forgotten how to use one of those, has he?"
Yuki silenced herself at that statement, then she sat back down. After a few seconds she spoke again, "It's best we don't tell Izumi about this; I want all her memories of you to be good ones."
Hana took her daughter's hand. "We won't. I'll fight it like you said I should. I know you weren't able to ever meet your grandparents because of what you are, and I don't want my own grandchild to have anything like that."
Yuki gave a light smile, then continued talking about various things with her mother. After an hour, they decided to call it and head out. Yuki silently looked back at her mother with a frown as she was going out the door.
"Mommy, what's wrong?" asked Izumi as she noticed her mother's actions.
Yuki looked down at her daughter. "Nothing, nothing important." The two then left.