Status: Work in progress. Cannot promise quick updates.
Wolves
Preparation
In his dream, he dived from the window in his silver-gold wolf form and howled in the wolf language, I am the sun-drunk, moon-furred pack brother, none of mine shall fall at any but my own teeth, his firm paws landed on the soft-dewy grass and his legs bent as he rolled from the impact. The wolf that followed him out of the window was the delicate, bronze-furred shape of the female who he would mate with tonight, and she would submit to him.
He began to leap towards her dark form when the night became blackness, and then there came a blinding light that seemed his eyes were directed into the sun. At once he was awake and his beautiful dream was relegated to the mists at the back of his mind. His mother was standing above his bed-in-the-barn where he slept when he came home from a moonlit run as a wolf. It was a lot less painful to let the change come back in his sleep.
“Ruben, it is two hours past dawn, you should be awake, helping your father to prepare for tonight. There are cattle to bring in before the meet begins,” His mother said in her harsh voice.
She was the only one that Ruben was truly scared of, her sharp tongue, her strong teeth and claws were formidable and painful. He was not scared for the Alpha, for he would only discipline adults who moved against the pack, and had never seen the need to dominate the pups of the pack. “I’m going, mother, I’ll be ready in a moment.”
“Good, now go and ready yourself for today’s work.” She growled at him as he turned, naked, away from her, for he had taken off his clothes before he ran, and he looked back at her. Alyn, his mother, handed him the small bundle that she had carried, which he had neglected to notice when she was talking to him. She threw the bundle at him, and his body responded to it before his mind registered it. That confused him to start with, his muscles only responded to his mind or food, which was when he registered the sent of meat that was coming from it.
Ripping it open he found a plaid shirt, navy boxers and denim half-trousers, which would have come from the wooden chest in their shed, where there were light, summery clothes in separate bags for him, Alyn, Glenn – his father, and Auria – his little sister. Also in the package were a rich pork-pie and a cold, rare steak in a bun, obviously the last of the family’s breakfast.
Ruben thanked his mother and began jogging to the field three miles away from their farm where they kept their animals during the summer days. He was running along the path between long sweet-grass and wild-flower verges when he first saw the cows and his father standing in the field trying to chase them in on his own, with arms outstretched.
“Glenn!” Ruben cried. His father looked towards him and leapt over both the few cows in front of him and the fence, like only a young boy should be able to. The men embraced before laughing and vaulting the fence, and running into the herd, splitting it into two groups, where the two began taking out the fattest two or three for the evening’s dinner with the pack.
Glenn was the first to grab one of the large bulls to kill it, and with unnatural strength snapped its neck. The first was followed quickly by a fat bull from Ruben’s side before a large calf fell limp to the ground and the two werewolves turned the rest loose.
“Come on, Ruben, let’s get these back to Alyn and Auria so they can prepare them and then we can get ourselves ready to go pick up Jacob and Relou from down in the town.” Glenn chuckled as he grabbed the large bull to throw it over his back and the calf over his shoulder as Ruben grabbed the fat bull with both hands throwing it over his shoulder before following him back to their farm.
He began to leap towards her dark form when the night became blackness, and then there came a blinding light that seemed his eyes were directed into the sun. At once he was awake and his beautiful dream was relegated to the mists at the back of his mind. His mother was standing above his bed-in-the-barn where he slept when he came home from a moonlit run as a wolf. It was a lot less painful to let the change come back in his sleep.
“Ruben, it is two hours past dawn, you should be awake, helping your father to prepare for tonight. There are cattle to bring in before the meet begins,” His mother said in her harsh voice.
She was the only one that Ruben was truly scared of, her sharp tongue, her strong teeth and claws were formidable and painful. He was not scared for the Alpha, for he would only discipline adults who moved against the pack, and had never seen the need to dominate the pups of the pack. “I’m going, mother, I’ll be ready in a moment.”
“Good, now go and ready yourself for today’s work.” She growled at him as he turned, naked, away from her, for he had taken off his clothes before he ran, and he looked back at her. Alyn, his mother, handed him the small bundle that she had carried, which he had neglected to notice when she was talking to him. She threw the bundle at him, and his body responded to it before his mind registered it. That confused him to start with, his muscles only responded to his mind or food, which was when he registered the sent of meat that was coming from it.
Ripping it open he found a plaid shirt, navy boxers and denim half-trousers, which would have come from the wooden chest in their shed, where there were light, summery clothes in separate bags for him, Alyn, Glenn – his father, and Auria – his little sister. Also in the package were a rich pork-pie and a cold, rare steak in a bun, obviously the last of the family’s breakfast.
Ruben thanked his mother and began jogging to the field three miles away from their farm where they kept their animals during the summer days. He was running along the path between long sweet-grass and wild-flower verges when he first saw the cows and his father standing in the field trying to chase them in on his own, with arms outstretched.
“Glenn!” Ruben cried. His father looked towards him and leapt over both the few cows in front of him and the fence, like only a young boy should be able to. The men embraced before laughing and vaulting the fence, and running into the herd, splitting it into two groups, where the two began taking out the fattest two or three for the evening’s dinner with the pack.
Glenn was the first to grab one of the large bulls to kill it, and with unnatural strength snapped its neck. The first was followed quickly by a fat bull from Ruben’s side before a large calf fell limp to the ground and the two werewolves turned the rest loose.
“Come on, Ruben, let’s get these back to Alyn and Auria so they can prepare them and then we can get ourselves ready to go pick up Jacob and Relou from down in the town.” Glenn chuckled as he grabbed the large bull to throw it over his back and the calf over his shoulder as Ruben grabbed the fat bull with both hands throwing it over his shoulder before following him back to their farm.