Winter Wolf, (C)1998
Anne Fraser and Sara Weber
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Beth continued to stare out the window long after Mitch's
silvery form vanished into the woods' shadows. There was
something nagging at the corner of her thoughts, something
related to what it was Mitch was facing out there. It was
hard for her to think what it could be though. The lack of
sleep two nights before had left her feeling slightly
removed, though she was certainly happy. It was too long
since she'd had any male friend.
She started when Lady J's hand touched her shoulder, as
she'd been unaware of her friend's approach. Beth looked
away from the window and saw the concern behind the
vampire's calm exterior.
"Standing there watching won't help any," Lady J said
quietly. "We're trying to think of something that will.
Why don't you join us?"
Turning, Beth saw that the others had resumed their seats
around the kitchen table. Chessie still sat on Josh's lap,
but the child now seemed more restless than before. Beth
allowed Lady J to lead her back to the table, and
mechanically took the mug of hot chocolate her housemate had
prepared.
"So," she said, trying to shake off the gray feeling which
had settled on her brain, "Any ideas?"
* * * * * *
The huge silver werewolf ran soundlessly for the woods, snow
churning beneath its massive paws. A shudder ran through
the altered body and mind, a shudder that said, in the voice
of the woods, "This is right, it is what is meant to be."
Into the woods...
As the wolf slipped into the darker shadows under the trees,
a white wolf came out from those same shadows and stood
menacingly in the path. Mitch growled, then whined, his
raging senses telling him that the wolf smelled ... wrong.
His hackles rose. This white wolf had the same supernatural
scent that ... he did. This was no stray, real lupine.
This was a werewolf. And he thought he could put a name to
her.
Trouble.
When he had last seen her, the only time he had seen her
other than a half caught glimpse when she had bitten him,
she had been in human form. She had stalked him at Lord
Raptor's party, seeking him to urge him to come back to the
pack. Events at the party had frightened her off -- as they
would anyone unused to a CotN party. Earlier than that she
had sent one of her big betas to kill Mitch for refusing to
return to her command. Mitch had killed the beta instead,
with help.
But now he had no help, and he faced his alpha wolf, his
maker. She had a strong claim over him, even though she had
abandoned him and left him to find his own way. That had
made him strong, though, in ways she did not suspect.
her cool mental voice
triumphed.
Mitch replied.
Trouble answered,
Mitch growled. He knew it was true, in some ways, but he
didn't have to like it. He acted like a kid. Well, maybe
it was time to grow up.
he shot
at Trouble.
The alpha wolf laughed round her muzzle, and pawed at the
dark snow. she said.
Trouble barked.
Both weres shuddered.
Trouble went on.
Mitch
snorted.
* * * * * *
Chessie sat quietly in "Uncle" Josh's lap while the adults
talked. No one thought to ask her opinion, not even when
she began to cry quietly. Lady J just reached over to
stroke her hair, and Josh snuggled her in more warmly
against his chest. Both were distracted, trying to think of
a way to help Mitch.
Since no one thought to ask, no one knew that Chessie knew
exactly what Mitch was facing.
Somehow, the little were-kitten could sense what was
happening to her werewolf friend, could see the white wolf
he confronted. Images appeared whenever she closed her
eyes, like some sort of waking nightmare -- vague and yet
clear at the same time.
She'd been seeing things all day, though perhaps _sensing_
would be a more accurate description. It had started after
the sledding party, or shortly after Mitch had asked her if
she heard anything. She had tried to listen, tried harder
then she ever had before. At first there was nothing but
after a while she sort of knew where Mitch was, anywhere in
the house.
And there _was_ something outside, calling. Calling not to
her, but to Mitch.
Chessie was not a child who sat still long under the best of
circumstances. Knowing that Mitch was in danger, she had to
try to do something. Slipping from Josh's lap, she mumbled
something about getting her new doll from her room and
walked out into the hall. Smoke followed her from where
she'd been curled under the table.
, the star panther inquired
when Chessie instead walked to the door onto the back porch.
Chessie thought back. But how to
leave without Mama J or Beth stopping her? Staring at the
door, she realized the way out -- if she could just do it!
Chessie closed her eyes and thought about what Mitch had
said. ~It's in the bones and the blood and the mind.~ She
didn't really know what he meant, but she thought about
being a cat, how it felt when her body changed, and her mind.
Smoke let out a startled mrrow.
Chessie purred with her accomplishment. she
thought to her friend,
With that, she led the star panther out the doggie door and
into the woods.
Trouble snarled. She sprang for Mitch's throat.
The impact drove Mitch down into the snow. He yelped as
Trouble's sharp fangs and strong jaw locked into the tender
flesh of his throat. One werewolf could kill another in a
fight, no silver needed. The back of his mind that was
still human screamed this information at him as he tried to
shake off the white wolf.
He had fought a werewolf before and won, but he'd had help
from Laybrother Bat and Jessica. He'd give his eyeteeth to
see the robed cleric stride out of the woods, the Rod of
Repentance in hand. Barring that, the Lone Ranger would do...
But no help came out of the woods, and the shadowed snow
suddenly took on black dimples of smoking werewolf blood.
Mitch screamed, not realizing that back in the farmhouse,
Chessie covered her ears and started crying.
the young werewolf thought.
came back Trouble's reply.
But in the process of commanding him thus, she had
momentarily let loose her grip. Mitch surged to all four of
his feet and, using his forepaws, shoved her off his neck
although the effort tore more of his skin and fur so that
the blood splattered on the snow.
, he said again, not given to dramatic statements.
Trouble lunged for his neck again.
This time Mitch was ready for her. As she snapped for his
throat, he leapt up into the air and came down behind in her
in a deadly game of leapwolf. Trouble growled and spun
around, but the younger wolf, though bleeding badly, was
faster and simply wasn't there.
The once pristine snow of the woods was trampled with wolf
prints, the impact of leaping bodies, and Mitch's blood.
The small creatures and birds, woken from their sleep by the
fight, cowered in their nests and dens as the unnatural
battle raged.
Mitch's jaws closed on Trouble's hind leg, seeking to
hamstring her. She screamed and fought, nearly breaking
Mitch's jaw as she pulled her leg loose. His claws snagged
her back, though, and now Trouble's blood seeped onto the
already stained snow. Some things in the wood were
attracted by the smell of fresh blood, but knew enough to
stay well out of the way of two fighting werewolves. Still
some bright eyes watched and hoped.
Trouble turned and snapped at Mitch's ears, her paws raking
for his eyes. He backpedaled furiously, knowing that if a
claw caught his eye it would be all over. A deadly hooked
claw missed him by half an inch as his ploy worked. While
she was still gathering for another try, Mitch leapt again
and came down with the full force of his weight on her back.
He was a full-grown male wolf, and Trouble was slightly
smaller. Down she went, howling her frustration. Mitch was
tottering on her back, in danger of falling off. He growled
then whined as he caught a whiff of her enticing female
musk. This fight _was_ about domination, after all, and
what better way to assert it than to mate with her?
Trouble felt his reaction, for he was lying quite close to
her back and his erection bobbed into her spine. She shook
herself mightily, and succeeded in dislodging her unwanted
suitor into the snow, which rapidly cooled the male's ardour.
Trouble snarled, coiling to attack
Mitch while he lay belly up in the snow...
The others' inability to come to a decision frustrated Beth,
and it wasn't long before she found herself standing at the
window again. She wanted to do something, _anything_ --
they all did -- but no one could answer the question of just
_what_ they should do. Joshua and Gideon were hesitant to
follow Mitch, both because of safety considerations and
because it was, after all, his fight. Lady J felt compelled
to follow their instincts, seeing as she only barely knew
Mitch. Beth saw the logic in their thoughts, but it failed
to convince her.
A shadowy movement across the white field of snow before the
woods caught her attention just then. At first she stared
dumbly at the two forms, uncomprehending of what they might
be. Suddenly, the smaller figure registered in her
overtired mind, and she realized that at least for herself
and Lady J, the choice had just been taken out of their hands.
"Lady J, we're going out there, NOW!" Beth said as she
headed for the door, snatching up a coat as she ran.
"But, Beth..." the vampire began, confused by her
housemate's sudden actions. Beth stopped in the doorway.
"Chessie's out there," she announced, "with Smoke." Joshua
and Gideon exchanged alarmed looks as they followed Lady J
to her feet.
"They were headed into the woods," she finished, "in the
same direction Mitch went." Without another word she
sprinted out into the cold.
"Let's go," Josh said, reaching for his own coat.
There was no argument. The two vampires also went running
out into the night. Only Pumpkin stayed behind, the
spaniel's mournful howls at being left locked in the house
following them towards the woods.
What met their eyes made them all shiver. Two wolves, an
eldritch glow sparking in their fur, struggled at each
other's throats just inside the woods. Blood speckled the
snow around them. One was a small white wolf, the other a
large silver-grey, yet there was a quality to them that
revealed them as more than animals. Werewolves, even though
there was no full moon. Gideon and Josh had no difficulty
in recognizing Mitch's wolf form, he was the larger.
However, even though he outweighed Trouble, he was getting
the worst of the fight. She was wily, far more experienced
than he.
"Where is Chessie?" Beth asked.
"And Smoke?" Josh added.
"Should we go help Mitch?" Lady Jeanne asked dubiously, not
certain that even vampiric strength was a match for two
fighting werewolves.
"Look," Gideon pointed, while debating just this question in
his mind, "There's Smoke, going up that tree. And Chessie
is over there, in another tree. What are those two up to?"
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