Page 103 of Campfires & Canines
I freeze. He's a wolf, and he is at my eye level. I look down at my feet. They're paws.
No amount of preparing, imagining the experience, and expecting it to happen can lessen the absolute shock flooding my system.
My fur bristles and it's like when my arm hairs stand on end.
Slate moves forward, bumping his snout into mine. I can feel pure joy radiating from him. I want to leap and run and play with him. I've never felt someone else's emotions this strenuously.
I sense anxiety from my packmates. They've all shifted and we stand in our lopsided circle, everyone looking at me.
Movement grabs my attention. Clove's cream and reddish-brown wolf is lowering to her belly, her ears flat against her skull. One look at her and I know I am more dominant than she is. She's submitting to me. I could stand over her and make her roll over. But my human side remembers I respect this woman. She is like a mother to my partner.
The strange impulse startles me. I look for my friends. Marigold's golden wolf paces a few yards away and I can instantly recognize my place above her as well. Her anxious excitement brushes against my mind, just as I can sense a nurturing warmth from Clove.
A gray and brown wolf moves diagonally to me and my attention focuses on her. My ears press forward. It's Cassia. I'm not sure how I know, but I have no doubt.
The confidence blooming within me is shocking.
I take a step forward. So does she. Her tail curls higher instead of swishing down low like my friends. Irritation spikes in my chest. I can feel defiance from her. She is dominant. And apparently, so am I.
She holds her ground as I advance. Slate hovers behind me. Will he stop me? I don't think I can stop myself.
A few feet away, Cassia warns me. Her lips curl to show a row of very sharp teeth. I'm not concerned. My instincts instill a strange confidence.
She rushes me, ramming into me to force me back, snapping at the thick fur at my neck. I stagger, but instinct surges within me. I twist while also rearing up. She's thrown to the ground by our momentum.
I'm on her, snapping at her shoulders. She scrambles away, staying low to the ground. Someone is growling - it's coming from me.
I've puffed myself up. My tail is stiff and high, my shoulders rigid. I hold my ground. Cassia's eyes follow me, her lips pulled back in a snarl.
I take a step forward, glaring at her. She growls but sinks to her belly. Another step and she quiets. Her tail wraps around her haunches and she lowers her head in submission.
Respect emanates from her. I challenged her and won. It was more of a contest of willpower than an actual fight. My surprise is overridden by the pride and admiration seeping into me from the wolves around me.
I turn to Heath, my Alpha. He sits, watching me. There's no urge to challenge him. Without thinking, I lower my head.
Something strange is happening, like I'm using unfamiliar muscles. I realize my tail is wagging.
Slate brushes against my shoulder. I turn towards him, wrapping myself in the affection flowing between us. He licks my cheek. I lean into him, unfamiliar bodies with fur and sharp edges.
I feel incredible. The intense urge to run and explore surges again. I have to move.
I tilt my head like a puppy, a silent invitation. I tear away from him, the pine needles churning under my paws. My tail whips behind me.
I can see every divot in the earth, every rock and stick. I leap forward, picking up speed. Slate hurtles along behind me, his mouth open and tongue lolling like a dog.
I have no idea where we are going, but I can smell my packmates all over these woods so I am pretty sure we are safely within our boundaries. The ground rolls downhill.
The scent of petrichor, moss, and minerals surrounds us as we reach the creek. The trees are open here, and the moonlight is so bright. Slate's golden-green eyes are reflecting the light at me. He is magnificent.
I stop. I want to return to my human shape, but no one instructed me how to. Maybe it's the same process as shifting. I close my eyes and push away my wolfish instincts. I grasp onto my human feelings and the desire to take that shape. Nothing happens. I search inside my emotions, digging out the uniquely human emotions like worry. The magic shimmers across me again.
Relieved, I grin at Slate. He follows me, shifting into his human form. His naked human form. My words drop out of my mouth as I take in his powerful body.
"You okay?" He says softly, reaching for me. He runs his palms down my arms.
"Better than okay." I can't stop grinning.
"Did you mean to shift?" I bite my lip, watching his gaze wander down my body too.
