Archive of Our Own ^beta

The sunlight was beginning to fade as Jensen established his little camp in a mossy clearing, beside the small stream he'd been following for the last hour. Setting up his small tent, he untied his bedroll and began to unpack the provisions he'd brought with him. He'd chosen a spot that was a little higher than the surrounding undergrowth, and, once the tent was ready, he sat down on his backpack and unlaced his hiking boots, finally easing his feet out of them with a small sigh of relief. It had been a long hike, and the luxury of being able to wiggle his toes felt wonderful. He hadn't meant to come out alone, but Mike, his fiance, had suddenly cried off, claiming that he had to work, and he'd been angry enough to go it alone. It was the final straw. Mike and he had been drifting away from each other for some time, but that didn't excuse the fact that Jensen had seen him in their favorite restaurant with Tom Welling, just the previous evening, when Mike had been—in theory at least—working on an important account.

Despite his initial grumpiness, the day had been wonderful and his mood had magically lightened as he walked. Now he felt at peace with the world. Gazing up at the slowly darkening sky, he watched as the first stars appeared, and munched on the chicken sandwiches and brownies that formed his supper before turning to set up his little stove to heat water for coffee.

The moon rose slowly as if shyly tempting, at last displaying her round, white disk, almost but not quite full, and shedding enough light onto his clearing that the water down below him glowed in ripples of silver and onyx. Grabbing his now boiling tin mug from the burner and extinguishing the flame, he inhaled the fragrance of the drink in his hand and then poured a liberal helping of whiskey into it. The night sounds all around him had started to lull him to sleep, and he decided that he should turn in, so he crawled into the little tent with his drink and lay back to kick off his jeans and shirt. It wasn't long before he was sound asleep.

Some ten miles away, the Sabine pack was having an emergency meeting, and the order of business was unusually solemn. All the adults of the pack had been called in for the meeting, including the ones who had elected to live away from the central town for whatever reasons. This was something that hadn't happened for twenty years, and as some of the more rarely seen pack members slipped into the clearing, people began to whisper, pointing out the newcomers as they trickled into the meeting.

"Over there! That's old Jim. He's been gone since his wife died. Fancy seeing him back again after all these years!"

"Don't look now. The one eyed dude with the scars is Kane. He's the one who spent a year in a traveling circus. Dunno how he got out..."

Jared was one of the last to come into the clearing, prepared to hover on the very edge of it as he waited to see what this summons was all about. He was considered to be a member of the pack, but he had been a lone wolf for several years, having failed to find a mate from within those available in the pack itself. He'd been visiting the Angelina pack, in the hopes of finding someone there, when the call had come in. He'd been ostensibly searching for the mate he no longer believed was out there waiting for him and having no luck whatsoever, so he had seized on the excuse to high-tail it back to the Sabines as fast as he could. Now he was waiting with everyone else, wondering what events could have transpired to make the pack council bring even the outliers into the village.

The hubbub died down suddenly as the door to the Alpha's house opened and the council members all filed out to take their places behind their Alpha. Loretta Devine had been Alpha of the Sabine pack for the past fifteen years, and had taken the entire pack by surprise when she had defeated the previous Alpha in a bloody battle to the death. She had taken up the mantle with very few objections, swiftly overcome, and had made the entire pack a much more contented, happy place to live. To see her looking grim caused a sudden surge of worry that was palpable to the amassed crowd.

As she stepped forward, looking grave, the entire gathering seemed to hold its breath, and when she spoke, her voice rang out over the community.

"Friends, as you know, the Sabine pack have been here in this forest for as long as there have been weres. We have stayed aloof from humankind. We've made sure that they haven't the faintest awareness of our existence." There were murmurs of agreement as she spoke, and tension seemed to ratchet higher as everyone waited for her to continue. "Be that as it may, we've received ominous news that this may be changing. We are now in danger, and the worst possible scenario might well come to pass, unless we act now, quickly." She looked around the clearing at the pack she'd ruled for so long, and Jared could hear her heart thumping, even from his spot across the cleaning. Behind her, her mate, Demore, reached to lay a supportive hand on her shoulder as everyone strained to hear what she would say next. When it came, the collective gasp from the pack was a living thing.

"I fear we've become complacent, and that could herald the end of our life here in the Sabine forest. There are a group of rogue weres invading our land, and they have been attacking and killing humans who stray into our woodlands. Kane brought in one of them, and when we interrogated him, he told us there were at least another two, sent in advance to take over, to cause mayhem and make sure we are driven out."

There were angry murmurs at that, and Loretta held up her hand for silence. It took a few minutes for the hubbub to die down, and finally Demore uttered a piercing whistle. Once they had settled again, Loretta nodded. "You're right to be angry, but anger isn't enough. We need to act before it's too late. It seems their leaders are determined to make this forest their own, since their homeland no longer has adequate forests." She paused, looking around at the shocked faces of her pack. "We're only two nights away from the full moon, and as they cause more mayhem, we will be in ever more danger of discovery. We need to root them out before more humans are killed, and the world becomes aware of our existence. We need trackers to find them and put them down."

Chris Heyerdahl, the tallest of the pack's scouts, stepped forward. "I'm in. Who's with me?"

Kane stepped forward, too. "Thought you'd never ask," he said, making the crowd laugh. He was followed by Ty and Jake. When Old Jim waved his hand and called out, "Nobody knows the forest like I do," Jared, who was still at the back of the crowd, raised his hand. "Count me in," he called, amidst cheers and catcalls from some of the others. By the time the scouts had declared their party sufficient, several more had stepped forward, and Loretta had taken them all aside to discuss their strategy, and to tell them more about the information their captive had given them.

They'd all been assigned a sector of the forest to search, and Jared heaved a sigh of relief as he made his way out of the village and far enough to breathe more easily. He'd been feeling uneasy in the crowd, and absolutely relished the feeling of being back out in the woodlands. The sun was going down, and he could feel the moon pulling at him, gibbous, and only a couple of days away from being full. The late sunlight filtered through the leafy canopy, shadows stretching to disguise the possible pitfalls caused by uneven ground, roots, and clumps of thorny undergrowth. To Jared, waiting for his mistress, the moon, they meant nothing. He lived and breathed the forest, and couldn't wait to be able to cast off his human skin. He was never happier than when he was able to bound through the woodland that he considered his true home. He didn't crave companionship, in fact he was pretty sure that his inability to find a mate really stemmed from the fact that he saw such a relationship as curtailing his freedom.

Right at that moment, he was drinking in the fragrances of his home. He'd been out of the area on what he considered a fruitless search and was full of gratitude for the events that had given him an excuse to return home to the Sabine Pack. Sniffing the air, he scented a small group of white-tailed deer and idly considered chasing after them for fun, but decided against it. Intruders first, he decided.

Stashing his clothing away in a fallen tree trunk, he rose to his feet and reached out to embrace the pull of the moon as it rose. As the change took him, his senses became clearer, filling him with the excitement that had been simmering in him since hearing Loretta's words. Raising his nose to scent the air, he allowed the evening air to dictate where he should begin searching for his prey and then silently slunk away towards the further reaches of the forest.

The dusk was falling as Jensen trudged back to his home base, footsore but happy. He'd spent the day rambling through the woodland, and was looking forward to the evening. He enjoyed his own company, and he'd managed to avoid most people while he was out exploring the terrain. However there had been a couple of fellow hikers he'd met an hour or so back, and while at first he'd enjoyed chatting to them—learning that they were tourists visiting from Britain—the taller of the two had begun to make him nervous. He was standing too close, constantly touching him, and while there was nothing he could actually complain about, he became more and more uncomfortable.

He'd made his excuses and left them when he realized that the man—David—was actually sniffing at him. Now he was alone again and feeling much happier. He lit a couple of LED lamps and pulled out his stove, then went to get water from the brook for coffee. Yawning and stretching, he pulled out a package of noodles and set more water to boil.

Over the brook, he could see the reflection of the moon as it began to rise, hanging fat and low in the sky, illuminating ripples on the water so that they appeared made from the very moonlight itself. There were small splashes as fish rose to catch low-flying bugs. As the moon rose higher, he reached to extinguish his lanterns, because the light from the moon was almost as bright as day.

The water boiled, and he dumped in his pasta, took out a small can of spaghetti sauce, pulled the tab, and clipped the opened can very carefully onto the edge of the pasta pan. Sitting back to wait for his food to cook, he zoned out a little, listening to the sounds of the forest at night. There were rustles and squeaks, the cry of a fox out hunting, and what he was sure was a wolf howling in the distance.

Once he'd eaten his dinner, he quickly washed his dishes and then lay back to drink more coffee as he dozed and listened to the music of the woodland. He was almost asleep when he felt hands on him. He stood no chance against the strength of the newcomer, and when he opened his eyes he didn't believe what he was seeing, thought it was a nightmare. The thing stood at least eight feet tall, with burning eyes and a face that was more animal than human. He felt the claws that ripped his clothing and then his flesh. He felt the teeth sink into his flesh, and he thought, 'at least Mike is safe.'

Mercifully, he felt very little more before the pain of the assault caused him to pass out.

Jared had criss-crossed his quadrant of the search area, slowly working his way out towards the edge of the forest. He had been searching diligently for any unusual signs that might herald a strange were, but as time passed he began to doubt that he would find anything. It was his second day of searching, and the night was well advanced by the time he scented something unusual. The faintest scent of blood teased his nostrils as he reared up to try and catch more.

Casting about, he determined the direction he needed to go in and set off at speed, hurtling through the undergrowth as the scent of blood grew ever stronger. It was almost dawn when he finally burst into the clearing he'd been seeking. The moon was going down, and to human eyes it would've been impossible to see a hand in front of your face. Jared could make out a pale wolf lying on what appeared to be a pile of rags. Stalking over to nose at it, he determined that the wolf was severely injured and bleeding sluggishly from bites to its shoulder and neck. He didn't recognize the creature, but he reserved his opinion, until he'd learned more about the situation. All around him, there were signs of a fight, and the wounds the strange wolf had received told him that at least one other wolf had been involved. Its scent was all around the clearing and filled his nostrils, making him feel edgy and challenged. In short, he was itching for a fight.

The injured wolf was a lot smaller than he was. It would present no challenge to him even if it was in good shape. As the sky began to lighten, Jared changed, picked up the injured wolf and dragged it to a more central position in the clearing, allowing the last rays of moonlight to bathe the stranger's wounds. As he did so, he heard a faint sound from what he'd believed to be that heap of bloody rags.

Swiftly switching back to his wolf, he went to investigate, and as he did so, his heart sank. The rags appeared to be the remnants of a tent. It had been ripped into shreds and tossed into a pile, almost as if the attacker had wanted to reduce it to its component atoms. Beneath the debris was a layer that might have originally been a sleeping bag. The down that had filled it was now distributed over much of the clearing, the cover merely rags. Below the heaped fabric Jared could sense another body. Madly tearing away the mess of cloth, he soon revealed a sight from his worst nightmares.

The body he had uncovered was in a dreadful state, so covered in blood that he could scarcely make out the form beneath the gore. After a while, he could scent beneath the injuries to determine that it was human, although he couldn't at first tell if it was alive or dead. It was male, that much he ascertained, and the poor thing was barely breathing, his back covered in deep gouges and torn flesh.

Jared was horrified. He didn't dare move the man's body, because of the risk of infecting his wounds, and he didn't seem to be able to rouse the unconscious wolf. Sitting back on his haunches, he howled for help.

It didn't take long for Old Jim to appear, racing into the clearing and stopping dead when he encountered the scene. As the two packmates transformed back to their human forms, Jared seized the old wolf's arm. "God, Jim, you heard what Loretta said. We can't just let this guy die. We have to help him."

Jim was surveying the debris that had been tossed around the clearing. "The wolf will be fine once the moon is up tonight, I'll wager, but the human will need more than moonlight.” Picking up a small propane canister and setting it upright, he shook his head. "Can you stay with them while I go and get DJ? He's the only one who can help this poor sucker right now." The two of them surveyed the scene for a further moment before changing back to become wolves once more.

Jared gave a brief wuff and sat down beside the injured man as Jim bounded off. The victim was breathing, he could see that now, but the movement was almost imperceptible. There was still a little blood welling from several of his wounds, although for the most part it had dried to form crusts into which dirt and debris had stuck. Not knowing what else to do, he bent his head and began to lick at the poor man's injuries.

At first, there was no response from his patient, but as he progressed, clearing away the blood and filth from the wounds, he began to hear faint moans emanating from the unconscious man.

Time passed. Sunlight began to poke delicate fingers through the trees to illuminate the scene. Jared kept going, finding the task more compelling with each swipe of his tongue. He had almost completed his self-imposed task when there was a brief rustling, and two wolves, burst into the clearing, each of them carrying a sizable backpack.

As the two newcomers danced around each other, unfastening the specially made buckles by biting the spring that held them closed, so that they could shed their burdens, Jim was the first wolf to morph back into human form. He rose to his feet, nodding to Jared before going to peer down at the still unconscious wolf. The old loner shook his head and grunted to the effect that the stranger was definitely not going anywhere before the moon came up. Then he changed back to his wolf form, gave a low yip and bounded off into the woods.

Jared had barely noticed the arrival, still intent on cleaning up his patient's wounds, and he was a little startled when DJ approached him. He turned to bare his teeth at the intrusion. Unlike the other two, DJ had brought clothes with him, and was now clad in jeans and a t-shirt, and for a moment, Jared didn't recognise the pack's doctor.

"Easy, Padalecki!" DJ dropped to his knees beside the man Jared had been tending, as Jared snarled at him. For a moment, it seemed as if Jared was not going to allow the doctor near his charge, but finally he relaxed and as DJ reached to start assessing his patient's wounds, he transformed, once more assuming his human form.
"You cleaned the wounds?" DJ was working on the man as he spoke. "Jim told me he was covered in blood."

"Yeah. He was." Jared felt oddly jealous as DJ sprayed the wounds with antiseptic and began to apply ointment and dressings to the smaller wounds prior to stitching up the really deep cuts. "I didn't know what else to do, so I just got all the dirt and stuff out of the cuts."

"Best thing you could've done." DJ nodded his approval. "Likely saved him from all kinds of infections. He'll be very grateful... if he lives."

The words stung, and fury seethed through his veins like molten gold, and he growled a warning to DJ, who smiled knowingly.

"I think you've become attached to him," said DJ as he finished stitching up the deepest of the slashes in the stricken man's back.

Thinking about that for a minute, Jared realized that the doctor was right, and that he'd become attached to this unknown victim without even noticing. He didn't even know what this man's face looked like, but he knew that he desperately wanted to know about him, to protect him and to punish the vile animal that had done this to him. His anger swelled as he imagined tearing out the throat of the were who had invaded his territory and damaged his... had damaged this helpless, innocent man.

DJ had been speaking for a minute or two before Jared realized that he was being addressed. Breathing harshly, he did his best to get his fury under control and listen to what DJ was saying to him.

"He's cold. We have to get him warmed up now. He's in shock, Jared. Come on! Help me get him warm. We can sort out any other injuries later."

Under DJ's instruction, Jared helped DJ pick him up, get him onto the thermal blanket he'd brought with him in one of the backpacks and wrap him up like a burrito. He had wounds on his chest and arms, but they were far less severe and much cleaner since he'd been lying on the shredded tent fabric. DJ swiftly made the decision that they could wait until he was no longer so extremely shocked.

Jared had taken in the sight of bruised features, eyes both swollen closed, spidery lashes glued to discolored skin, and a mouth that was bloody and raw. The skin, where it wasn't otherwise damaged, was gray and sick, and he felt a rush of tenderness towards this unfortunate.

"You know, your body heat would help to get him warmed up." DJ sounded amused, as though something funny had just occurred to him. Jared didn't wait to find out what, but merely jumped into action, peeling back the blanket and clambering in to allow DJ to wrap the two of them together.

By the late afternoon, his patient, although still very pale, was now reasonably warm, and Jared was able to emerge from the cocoon and go drink some water from the brook. DJ was busily skinning a rabbit he'd caught earlier and handed one of its legs to Jared, who tore into it hungrily.

The doctor still had that annoying little smile on his face as he watched Jared go back to sit beside his charge and bathe his face with water he'd brought back from the little stream. "Hey, doc? He's going to live, isn't he?"

"He will if I have anything to say about it," said DJ. "He's lost a lot of blood, and he'll be really weak for a while, but I'm guessing he's been turned, and that will help him, just as soon as the moon forces him to change. You'll need to feed him then, kiddo. He'll be starving."

Jared hadn't thought of that. He smacked his forehead. "I should have brought something for him. Do you have any food for him?"

"No. Not even a crumb." DJ laughed softly. "I brought medical supplies. I brought blankets and dressings and antibiotics. Now you can do some of the work. Go hunt down something with a bit of meat on its bones."

"But..." Jared gazed at his still unconscious patient. "I can't leave him. What if he dies? What if he needs me..."

"Right now he doesn't know you exist. If you're there with something good for him to eat when he finally meets you, he'll love you for it."

For a moment or two Jared stood rooted to the ground, frozen by indecision. Leaving this human was going to hurt him, he knew that, although he hadn't yet figured out why. Finally he nodded, morphed into wolf form and bounded off to hunt.

It was as the sun was going down that he became aware of another, strange wolf close by. Instantly his hackles went up as he sniffed the air and smelled the blood that betrayed the stranger to be his injured human's attacker. Jared felt himself consumed with fury and was ready to jump on the newcomer and rip out his throat. However, he could see that the bastard had brought down one of the white tailed deer that roamed the forest, and that reminded him of his current quest, feeding his charge. That, of course, would take precedence. Stalking up behind the rogue wolf, he leapt onto its back and sank his teeth into its shoulder.

The other, taken by surprise, yelped and ran, leaving Jared with fur between his teeth but at least temporarily in possession of the downed buck. Mentally shrugging, Jared seized his spoils by the leg and commenced dragging it back to where his patient lay.

It was hard work. After a while, he switched to his human form and was able to hoist the dead buck onto his shoulders. That made it much easier, and he returned to the clearing where DJ was awaiting him along with the two casualties.

It seemed that he was just in time. Bright moonlight was beginning to filter through the trees, and the comatose man was beginning to stir. Jared had never seen a turned wolf change before, and as the moon rose higher, slowly becoming visible above the trees he went to sit beside his patient, desperately hopeful that a change would help heal him. DJ had moved him into the center of the clearing, and now he pulled the blanket away to expose him to the moonlight.

The smaller wolf had also awoken and was attempting to rise to his feet. DJ was attempting to soothe and calm him, speaking softly in muted tones that Jared couldn't quite hear, but that didn't matter, didn't matter at all, because the young man's nails were growing, and hair was sprouting along his arms and legs.
As Jared watched him, he opened his eyes, revealing glazed green fringed by thick dark lashes. "What...?"

"It's okay. You'll be okay," murmured Jared. "Just let it happen. It'll help you heal."

"Help me..."

"I will," growled Jared, watching the body he'd held all afternoon rapidly becoming less human and more wolf-like. "I'll do whatever it takes." He dropped to all fours as he allowed his wolf to come to the fore. Gazing at his patient, he took in pale golden fur and those brilliant green eyes, and felt a sudden clench down in his belly. He was a gorgeous wolf, and would be a beautiful man, too, God willing. He longed to claim him, but instead he nosed his charge over to where the buck lay and watched as the creature seemed to know exactly what to do, tearing into it avidly.

Jared stayed close, watching him as he ate and hoping against hope that he could protect him until he was healed. As the new wolf finally finished eating and settled down to nap, Jared leaned in to lick at his muzzle, then as the newcomer closed his eyes, he began to lick at the place on his back where DJ had needed to put the stitches. Other wounds were closing as the moon bathed them. The scars were now covered by the thick fur, and Jared knew that sleep would help him heal the rest of the way, but it would take time. Anything he could do to help would be done.

Lying down beside his new obsession, he drifted off to sleep, one paw laid protectively across the new wolf's neck.

Waking up with no memory other than confusing, pain-filled flashes, Jensen found himself naked and wrapped in the arms of a large, strange man who was still snoring softly. His first reaction was to freeze. It seemed that, however sinister, the man hugging him as though he was his favorite teddy bear was still out for the count, and that if he was quick and sneaky he should be able to extricate himself from the situation in which he'd found himself.

Ignoring the foreboding he felt, he cautiously began to squirm out from under the stranger's embrace. He was almost there. His breath was shallow, his teeth sunk into his lip with the effort of remaining calm when panic was right there the forefront of his mind, but he was almost clear when the other two people in the clearing—people he hadn't even realized were there, suddenly sat up and disturbed his captor.

That panic instantly took hold. He thrashed his way clear of the suffocating grip, was about to make his escape despite his nudity and the lack of protection for his feet, when the very skinny guy who had only just appeared in his field of vision reached out a deceptively long arm for such a slender person and called, "Wait!" as he caught hold of Jensen's wrist.

Jensen froze again, terror pounding through his veins, shards of ice slithering along his spine as he tried to think of a way out. The giant who had been holding him as he slept got to his knees and crawled toward him, and Jensen watched , mesmerized.

"Please don't leave. It's not safe for you out there right now."

It took Jensen a few seconds just to process the words. Finally he relaxed a little, since there seemed to be no danger of immediate attack.

"What's going on? I don't remember..." He tried to think how he'd come to be here, now, with these strangers instead of crawling into his tent to sleep. "My back...? It hurts." He slowly sank back down to his knees, feeling equal parts confused and scared.

The fourth member of the group had been curled up on himself and silent, save for the occasional gasp. Like the others, he was naked, and he bore a network of angry red scars over his neck and chest. Now, he lifted his head and for the first time he spoke.

"I'm sorry. I tried. He was always much stronger than I am, and he was insane." His voice was scratchy and hoarse, and it was evident that it had been damaged in some way. The man shivered although it wasn't cold. "Jasus! I thought that he'd killed me. I'm not sure how he didn't. I think the scent of blood made him crazy."

"What the hell are you talking about?" The giant frowned, his thunderous expression betraying the fury he was feeling. "Who are you?"

"My name is Adam, and I'm from the Cloosh Valley pack over in Ireland. Me an' David from the Gwydir Forest in Wales came over to America on a goodwill mission, hoping to find a possible space for the packs to move to, seeing as how our space is being eroded back home." Adam shook his head, ruefully. "Fuck if I know what happened."

The giant nodded, face grim. "He doesn't sound like much of an ambassador to me."

"What are you all talking about?" Jensen broke into their discussion. Now that it seemed he was no longer in imminent danger, it was time to get some answers. Surely someone could make this insanity make sense. "How does some 'goodwill' mission end up with me sitting around naked with a bunch of strangers, and what the ever loving FUCK is a pack?"

The giant opened his mouth to respond, but the skinny one held up his hand to silence him and then reached to lay a hand on Jensen's knee. "What's your name?" he asked.

"My name is Jensen." Jensen answered quickly, hoping that the other man would start providing some answers. He was heartened by the gentle smile he received.

"Hi Jensen, I’m DJ, and this is Jared." The man, DJ, gestured toward the giant, and then continued. "And our Irish friend over here has already introduced himself.
There's absolutely no way to break this to you gently. You were attacked and almost killed by a rogue werewolf." Jensen felt astonished laughter bubbling up inside him, but was distracted as the giant—Jared—ducked into the foliage. DJ grabbed his attention again as he continued his absurd explanation. "You were changed, Jensen. Last night, with the full moon, you changed and became a wolf. Now you're one of us. The were who attacked you and caused you all this pain didn't expect you to live, but Jared here saved you. Unfortunately, he couldn't cure you of lycanthropy."

You could have knocked him over with a feather when a huge, shaggy creature appeared from behind him, trotted over, lay down beside him and laid his head down on Jensen's thigh. Jensen was sure his eyes were bulging unattractively at the sight, and it was DJ's turn to chuckle.

"Yep. You're one of us now. Tonight will be the last night of the full moon, and we'll teach you how to change. You'll finish healing and become part of our pack."

Jared was always more comfortable in wolf form. He'd remained a loner for all the years he'd been an adult, and hadn't really wanted any company since the day he left his mother's den. His search for a mate had been half-hearted to say the least, because he enjoyed his own company. He had gone through the motions at his Alpha's request, but had known in advance that there would be no mating, because he had no interest in a mate.

So how come he suddenly felt so tender and protective towards this young man that he'd only just met? Yes, he'd been terribly hurt, but the change had made a good start in repairing the damage that had been done to him, and the change he would go through later that evening would hopefully finish the job, healing his skin and setting his body to rights. The mental scars might well take longer, but Jared was determined to be there for him in whatever form he deemed useful. Right now, he felt that human form might be better, so he pushed his wolf away and assumed his human form once again.

He wanted to protect Jensen from harm, and the emotion he was feeling was almost too strong for him to endure. He put his arm around Jensen and hugged him gently.

"What?" Jensen eyed Jared suspiciously. "What else are you gonna dump on me?"

"Dump on you?" Jared wrinkled his forehead. "What do you mean?"

"Okay, so I'm a werewolf now, and I'm gonna have to be restrained when the moon is full?" The bitterness in Jensen's voice was unmistakable. "I'm gonna be killing humans and they'll put me out of my misery? What?"

"You're gonna be fine." Jared nodded, confidence in his eyes as he pulled Jensen against him more tightly. "I'm gonna take care of you. I'll be with you every step of the way."

"Why?" Jensen struggled back, apparently claustrophobic in the tight embrace. "Why are you even bothering?"

"Because..." Jared shook his head, unsure of the answer. "I don't know. Because I care about you," he said, after a while. "It must be terrifying to have all that happen to you." He felt an unexpected lump in his throat. "The pack doesn't... We don't..." He took a breath. "I never met anyone who was turned before. It's just... forbidden."

Jensen nodded, apparently sensing the unexpected emotion Jared was feeling because he sank back against Jared. Jared could also feel the other man’s anxiety lessen. He’d always heard that true mates could sense each other’s emotions, but he’d never expected—or wanted—to feel it himself.

The day passed slowly. DJ had decided that once the moon rose, the four of them would make their way back to the safety of the pack, so that the Alpha could be brought up to speed on all that had happened, and so that the two new wolves could be kept safe while the hunt for the rogue were was underway.

Jared had searched around for anything with which to start a fire, and they had dined on some of the meat from Jared's stolen buck, cooked in deference to Jensen's queasiness when faced with raw meat. Finally, as twilight slowly began to lengthen shadows and steal the color from the world, DJ and Adam changed into their wolf forms and trotted off, leaving Jared to assist Jensen through the change and follow once the moon showed her face.

Upon Jared's suggestion, Jensen had been napping as the afternoon drew to a close. Jared had explained that he was still not 100% fit, and that the change, when it came, would take all his energy, especially since he was still healing from some of the worst of his wounds. He awoke to soft lips nuzzling his ear and warm arms gently rousing him to wakefulness.

He protested drowsily, grumbling "Five more minutes, Mikey."

The resulting snort of laughter brought him very quickly to full alertness, and he sat up looking for Jared to give him a piece of his mind.

"Who's Mikey?" asked Jared, quirking an eyebrow.

Jensen's heart sank. What did it matter now? He was tainted and probably going to die very soon. "Nobody important," he said with a sigh.

His morose mood quickly evaporated as he realized that it was beginning to get dark. Already there was a single star twinkling down at him in the purpling sky, and he could feel a tingle in his extremities—a kind of fizzing, jittery excitement that seemed to herald the approach of something momentous.

He'd been told that he'd been a wolf the previous night, but had no memory of it, other than a vague feeling of disorientation, and now he waited with trepidation for what seemed to him to be a terrifying ordeal.

He'd seen the movies, read the books, and was sure it would be painful, although the other three didn't seem to have any discomfort at all in their transformation. Now he looked to Jared for reassurance, and Jared dutifully rewarded him, pulling him into a tight hug and whispering nonsense into his ear.

"It'll be fine; you'll see, and you're such a handsome wolf!"

Privately, Jensen doubted that, but he returned Jared's hug, trembling a little as he saw the smallest edge of the moon peek shyly through the trees.

"Just stick with me, and you'll be fine. I'll take care of you," said Jared, releasing him to watch as DJ and Adam changed and barked a swift goodbye before bounding off to make for the pack.

Jensen was about to say something, but it suddenly felt as if his tongue was no longer under his control. Weird! He felt weird, smelled something wonderful, could suddenly hear and see so much!

His back itched terribly, and he couldn't reach to scratch it. It dawned on him that this was it. He was becoming a wolf! He hadn't even realized that he was now on all fours.

Rolling over onto his back, he attempted to scratch the parts that itched so terribly, but Jared was there, nosing at him to get up, get on his feet, and he huffed, but did as he was told, wishing that Jared would let him be.

Once firmly on for legs again, Jared pushed him down with a paw on his neck and began to lick at the fur around his now rapidly healing wound, until Jensen finally struggled back to his feet. They were about to set off to follow DJ and Adam, when something came crashing through the undergrowth, and Jensen found himself gripped from behind by a huge, bony hand and hurled into one of the trees that ringed the clearing. For a while he lay, head spinning, unsure if he was actually seeing what he thought was in front of him or if he was in some concussion-induced hallucination.

There before him, when he finally opened his eyes, was a huge, terrifying creature that was neither man nor wolf, but seemed to combine features of both. His vision swam, and for a moment he wondered if this was really happening.

The werewolf was fighting Jared, and Jared nipped in as he watched to bite the creature's hamstring before being kicked away with a yelp. This continued for some time, until the wolf man suddenly was able to catch hold of Jared's ruff and began to shake him violently, at which point Jared transformed into a shape similar to his adversary’s, and the battle continued at close quarters this time, each of them biting and tearing at the other until they were streaked with gore.

Jensen watched in horror as his champion suddenly seemed to falter, blood pouring from his shoulder, and with a roar of triumph, the strange wolf-man tossed him over to where Jensen lay recovering.

As the beast lumbered over to deliver what Jensen was sure would be the coup de grace, Jensen bunched his legs beneath his body, prepared to spring. The monster was paying him no attention, intent on finishing Jared off first, and Jensen knew that he would only have one chance. He waited for his best moment, and when the nightmare figure began to bend to rip out Jared's throat, he sprang.

Neither Jared nor his opponent had really paid any attention to Jensen, and as he flew to the attack, he opened his jaws wide, prepared to rend and tear whatever he could in defense of his friend. Sharp fangs locked onto the wolf man's neck, and Jensen felt the give of tissue beneath his teeth. The pair of them fell backwards, Jensen biting down, afraid of what might happen if he let go, and the monster fighting frantically to get him off.

Blood pumped, thick and red. By the time the aggressor's struggles had finally ceased, Jensen was covered in it, his muzzle slick and red, and patches of his fur sticky with it. For a moment he just lay there, panting and afraid that the beast he had bitten would rise up to kill him. Eventually, he disengaged himself and wandered on shaky legs to find Jared, hoping against hope that he was still alive.

Jared was beginning to come around as Jensen stumbled to his side. Flopping down against him, Jensen laid his head on Jared's flank and waited, eyes glued to Jared's face as he waited to see if he would be alright.

It seemed to take forever before Jared's body finally shivered and twisted, reforming into its human shape, and he sat up to look around him.

"What the hell...?"

Jensen, still a wolf, with no real idea how to change himself back, whined softly and licked Jared's hand, gazing up at him, questions in his eyes.

"Jen, you've been hurt! Oh, no!" Jared took in the blood that covered him with apparent horror. All Jensen could do was shake his head and whine again, desperately trying to tell him without words what had happened to him. He gave Jared a little lick on the arm that appeared to have the most blood covering it, and Jared laughed somewhat shakily.

"I'm okay. The wolf heals us very quickly, thank Luna, but where's the marauder? Did he run away? It looks as if he's done a number on you... again."

Jensen scowled, or attempted to do so, as disapprovingly as he could in wolf form. He wuffed a couple of times, then took Jared by the wrist with his teeth and attempted to tow him along. When Jared finally gave in to go with him, he was clearly astonished to find the dead body of their adversary.

The monster had morphed back into his human form, and other than the gaping wound that had killed him, he looked peaceful. Jensen tried not to feel proud as he looked at the body of his attacker.

"You killed him! Holy shit, Jensen, you did it." Jared hung his head. "Fat lot of use I was to you. I'm so sorry."

Straining in vain to resume his human shape, Jensen growled in frustration, then had an idea that could distract Jared from what appeared to him to be a descent into self pity. He gave a yelp and then turned to make his way over to the brook that ran along the edge of the clearing, plunging into the water and trying to use his paws to start cleaning the gore that had covered his face and matted his fur. It wasn't long before a large, chestnut colored wolf came to join him, combing through his fur with gentle paws and tenderly washing the bloody streaks from him.

To Jensen, it seemed that he was home at last. Jared's paws on him felt good, great even, and he rubbed his cheek back onto Jared's shoulder. Jared licked his nose and then nipped the back of his neck, and he felt a frisson of joy flash through him as Jared's warmth flooded him, and he shook himself, droplets flying everywhere, then bounded out of the water and did it all over again for the sheer hell of it.

Jared, human again, came over to rub his head. "We should go back to the pack. This person needs to be buried before somebody finds him and causes trouble for us."

With a little huff, Jensen nodded agreement, and as Jared switched form yet again, the two of them bounded off.

It was almost morning when they finally arrived back at the Sabine village. The scouts had alerted the Alpha to their coming, and she was waiting for them as they finally ran up to the square. Jared changed immediately, and Jared knew Jensen was trying desperately to follow suit, although it seemed that the moon still had him in thrall and was reluctant to let him go.

"All in good time," said Loretta, recognizing Jensen’s frustration and smiling at him. "You're a very new wolf."

"He may be new," said Jared, pride in his voice. "But he's incredible already. He killed the usurper."

"He did?" asked Loretta, still smiling, but this time at Jared's obvious pride.

A sharp yelp of agreement from Jensen made both of them grin even wider, and Jared put a hand on his wolfish head as if to protect him. "He's my mate," he announced. "I will have no other."

Loretta nodded, but Jensen turned his head to Jared and tilted his head with a growl. "It seems that he isn't in agreement, Jared. What will you do?"

"Anything," said Jared, simply. "Everything!"

Jensen gave him a wolfish grin and began to run, disappearing into the trees in mere moments. "Well, what are you waiting for?" asked Loretta, her eyebrow raised. "It seems that the gauntlet has been thrown. You will need to catch him and claim him, if he's to be yours."

Laughing, Jared transformed and took off after him, taking long, bounding leaps as he chased after Jensen.

His prey was quite a way ahead of him, but Jared could tell that he was tiring rapidly. For a moment he faltered, but then thought better of it, redoubling his efforts to get to where Jensen was.

Jensen was running. He didn't know why, exactly, just that the wolf within him had commanded it, and he was too under its spell to resist, but there was color in the sky, red showing through the trees as he ran, and the compulsion he felt was lessening.

He could hear Jared plowing through the undergrowth behind him, and he knew that his would-be mate would shortly catch up with him. Then he had no idea what was likely to happen. He stopped, looked around for a vantage point and settled on a fallen tree, hopping up to stand and wait for Jared's arrival.

His head suddenly swam. His body tingled, and as Jared finally bounded into view, the moon finally let go of her hold on Jensen, and he rose to stand naked before the other man.

Jared stumbled to a halt, watched as Jensen shed his wolf and stood, trembling, although whether that was from fear or merely the cold, Jared couldn’t tell. Gathering his will, he stepped forward and changed, then sank to his knees.

"You told her I'm your mate," Jensen accused.

"I did. You are." Jared smiled up at him. "I've been happy to be a loner, without a mate, for a long time. I didn't believe that I needed one, but you... you've proved me wrong."

"What makes you think I should quit my life and live with you, just because I'm a wolf once in a while?"

"No, you don't understand about wolves," insisted Jared. "We only love once, and when it happens, it's fore

There was a pause. Both men stood as if frozen, but then Jensen hopped down from his vantage point and reached to touch Jared's arm. "I didn't say I wasn't interested," he said, softly. "I just hate to think that I've somehow been railroaded into a weird, Stephen King type of future, but you're something different. I like you… a lot."

Jared caught hold of his hand and pulled Jensen to him. Jensen looked up, his eyes wide, and Jared bent to kiss him. For a moment, Jensen stiffened, but then melted into his arms and the two of them shared a kiss that was a promise of things to come.

"We don't have to do anything yet," whispered Jared as he finally came up for air. "Be with me, and when you're ready we can go on to the next step. For now, I'll help you learn to control your wolf, and you can get to know me. Like I said, I'm in it for life."

Jensen reached to pull him down for another kiss and whispered, "It's a deal!" Then, together, they joined hands and turned to go back towards the village and their future.