“That will be hard to clean off,” she grumbles, and I hold in a chuckle at the petulant expression on her face. She values cleanliness immensely after her experience living in filth, and I won’t begrudge her that.
“I’m sure it’ll come out.”
Then I order us each another pie.
“I can’t eat that much!” Selene protests.
“We’ll take it to go.”
She does eat the whole second pie, though.
Then we’re off to shop for our produce, and this time, Selene walks beside me rather than behind me. She’s curious about things we pass, and I offer to stop, but she seems intent on staying the course. The town appears to endlessly fascinate her, from children running through an open doorway to a dog barking from a yard. She peers curiously into windows, but never strays.
At the grocer’s, I introduce her to Bartol, the easygoing older man who works behind the counter. Selene is cautious at first, but when he offers a hand to shake, she takes it politely. He shakes with vigor, which earns a little squeak of surprise before he lets her go.
“Nice to see you with someone on your arm, Harold,” Bartol remarks. “Where did this lass come from?”
Selene tenses beside me. I know she won’t want me telling her story to just anyone, so I make something up.
“Selene just came to town. Daughter of a friend of mymother’s. We met when I visited last, and she decided to move here.”
Bartol whistles. “Good catch. Though I think you need to feed her more.” He heads into the back room, then returns with a big lump of butter and rings it up for me without asking.
Next, we’re on to the butcher’s. We settle on a few good cuts of meat and carry them home with us, Selene toting a bag over each arm.
It feels so marvelously normal, I wonder if it can last.
SELENE
It was scary, I’ll admit, going into town again. I haven’t seen so many people in a long, long time, and the noise was nearly overwhelming. There were wagon wheels on cobblestones, children shouting, people talking everywhere we went—but I was with Harry, who towered over me, keeping me safe and secure. That brought me back down to earth.
I must admit that despite how shocking and stimulating it was, I enjoyed seeing the town again, observing all the goings-on. There’s so much life out in the world, and I had forgotten during those long years in that room. I worried as we walked that someone would sniff me out, that a stranger would know what I am and scream it from a rooftop. But after going out, I realize that everyone has their own matters to attend to, and I am the least of their concerns. That, in itself, is comforting.
Maybe it really is safe to go outside now, as long as I’mwith Harry. I couldn’t imagine trying to brave the town square alone.
“Why don’t we go on a walk?” Harry asks the following day, his last day off before returning to work. “We need to make sure you’re using all your muscles again so they can get stronger.”
I know I don’t have much stamina, which means that he’s right to suggest it, but I’m already tired from going into town the day before.
“Do we have to?” I ask in a voice that sounds whiny, even to me.
“Well, I suppose we don’t, if you’re against it.” He tilts his head and studies my face. “I’ll be with you the whole time. And it’s too early in the year for bears to be out and about.”
I wasn’t thinking about bears before, but now I am.
Not wanting Harry to think I’m weak, I get to my feet. “Let’s go, then.”
He gives me that big grin I’m already starting to find familiar and comforting, then stands and offers me his hand. I take it, and his thick fingers wrap around mine, making them disappear.
We walk like that, hand-in-hand, down the lane to the main road. The sun hasn’t set yet, giving us orange light to see by as we enjoy traipsing through the trees. Harry points out different types of plant life, explaining to me the difference between a birch and a maple and nodding at the buds starting to appear on their sticklike branches.
And though we hold hands our entire journey, when we get home, Harry bids me goodnight and departs for his bed in the back room without a further word. I watch himgo, missing him the moment he’s out of sight. Sometimes I wish he would stay, but I can’t ask that of him.
My body is changing rapidly now, and I am starting to feel a strength that’s strange and also welcome. My breasts fill out, getting big enough that they finally look right in my new clothes. My thighs get thicker, and the muscles in my calves can stand up to more walking now than before.
Harry encourages me to go into town when he’s sleeping or at work, but such a bold thing feels impossible. Sure, the world isn’t as frightening as I thought it might be, but that’s because he’s always at my side. I know I’m safe when I’m with Harry. But going alone, when any alpha could jump out from a darkened corner?
I don’t say my fears aloud, though, because to him, it is probably irrational. He doesn’t know yet what I’ve kept close to my chest. Sometimes, I consider telling Harry, just so he knows what he harbors under his roof. But what if he kicked me out? I couldn’t bear it.
