I place both hands on my hips, gazing into the woods. The trees and grass are already calling my name. I know Leena can hear it too. I turn to her, keeping my eyes on hers.
For a second, it feels like I'm stuck in a daze. Her gray eyes almost suck in me, reminding of all the time that I've stared into them in the heat of our passion.
Leena rubs her arm before looking away. I know she feels this pull, too. It's so much stronger now.
“You'll be in pain once the full moon hits and that worries me. I promise that changing now will help.”
It's important she does this of her own will, or it'll just be worse.
Leena sighs. “I'm sorry, Grant. I can't.” She slowly walks back into the house.
“It's time!” I growl.
There's a chorus of excited cheers as the moon reaches its peak. All around me, shifters are shouting, sending their voices into the night. The woods are ready to welcome us as a new home for as long as we want.
However, among the crowd, there's a beautiful face that isn't quite as happy. Leena looks on nervously.
I can tell that she's envious of how excited everyone else is. Once she's a wolf, she will forget all the pain, but getting to that point is the problem.
I feel the moon touching me with its light, and it's absolutely amazing. I release a soft, deep breath, feeling my body perform a task it has done many times before. In no time, I'm already in my wolf form.
All the others follow my lead, filling the air with the sound of cracking bones. Leena settles in the back of the pack, seemingly fighting the urge to transform.
I let a howl loose, and the shifters take this as their cue to run into the forest, starting the hunt. This is when Leena's transformation begins.
She falls to the floor, howling in pain. Her dark hair covers the contortions on her face. She claws at the ground, whining loudly as her bones shift.
I move toward her, keeping a small distance so I don't interfere. Every single fiber of my being wants to run in and help. If I could take all her pain on myself, I would, but that's not possible.
“Grant…” Leena's voice is so weak, I probably wouldn't be able to hear it without my wolf senses. “Please…” The begging is like a knife in my heart.
There's nothing I can do. There's nothing I can do.
“I'm sorry.”
She continues to painfully transform for a few more minutes until eventually, it stops. There's silence as Leena lies there on the ground, not moving. Her thick black coat shines in the light of the moon.
She's beautiful…
I stare in awe as Leena rises from the ground in her wolf form. There's no pain anymore, it's clear from her eyes. She looks up at the sky, as the corners of her lips form a smile. Her piercing gray eyes turn to me, and I'm lost again.
Leena struts looking toward me, moving further and wagging her tail in anticipation. I can tell she's ready to go. I howl, and she does the same thing before running off.
Leena sprints through the woods, trying to pick up the scent of the animals around us.
I run after her, catching up pretty easily. She may be younger, but my bones are stronger. I run alongside her, and she moves closer, bumping affectionately into me.
We continue to move side by side until we spot the bushy tail of a rabbit. Leena locks in on the small animal and goes after it. I snicker a little before following her, giving some space so she can have the kill to herself.
Leena launches into the air and just manages to latch onto one of the rabbit’s legs. Her grip breaks the animal, letting her feast. She eats and howls loudly.
We hear other wolves around us and begin to chase after them. I spot Nate and Madeline further away, playing affectionately with eachother. A pang hits my heart when I see this, realizing that's the most fun a shifter can have.
Leena bumps into me, though, and her presence takes away any bad feelings I'm experiencing. The other wolves steer clear of us, giving us our space, and we remain together for the rest of the night.
By morning, Leena is one of the only wolves who still has a lot of energy. Most of the others had passed out and are now starting to turn back to their normal forms.
As the moon leaves us, I waste no time transforming back into my human form. Leena, on the other hand, doesn't begin her transformation.
