Okay, well this is a story I completed a while ago, it's probably the only slightly romantic thing I've written besides yuri/femmeslash, which I sure as HELL am not going to post here.  It's called Hey Jude because, yes, I am a Beatles Fanatic.


Hey Jude

The pack was made up of eight of us.  First, there was Rory.  He was the alpha male, and extremely tough.  Usually, he sported an old leather jacket and sunglasses, with a white wife-beater underneath.  He was a real smooth guy, until he got into a fight.  When he was fighting, he was a whirlwind of claws, teeth, and fur.  When he was in this mad fury, he usually ripped apart any living thing in his path.  Damn, it was entertaining sometimes!
    At the moment, he was dating Alyssa, making her the alpha female.  She was a bit of a prep, and probably the least popular in the pack.  If Rory didn’t like her so much, she would probably be the omega.  She was always extremely nosy, butting in to the other pack members’ personal affairs.  Perhaps somebody should have just fought her to get her decline in pack order over with.  Oh well, it was too late now, but we’ll get to that later.
    There were two other boys in the pack.  One of them was the omega, and his name was Tobias.  The poor  guy, never had I seen such a geeky werewolf.  Oh yeah...that.  I guess I should have mentioned we were werewolves before; that would have made much more sense.  Anyways, Tobias was an acne-ridden, glasses-wearing dork who though he was all that.  When in wolf form, he looked thin and mangy, whimpering when he should have been howling.  Even being the omega, he tried to be as smooth and as cool as Rory, which only made him lamer. 
    The other boy was my mate.  When I say mate, I just mean boyfriend in werewolf terms.  Nothing creepy is intended ok?  We’re just a little too young for that, well, Rory and Alyssa maybe...but that’s not important.  My mate’s name was Jude.  He was a musician, an artist, a writer (like me), and probably had the cutest shaggy, light brown hair you had ever seen.  He also sported sideburns and was already beginning to grow a little goatee, even in ninth grade.  He was perfection.  Of course, that was just one girl’s opinion.  We had been dating for five months, which is a long time in teen time of course, but in werewolf time, it was perfectly normal.
    There were three other girls besides me and Alyssa in the pack, and they were triplets.  Again, this seems like an oddity in teens, but werewolves were born in litters.  The only reason the rest of us didn’t have siblings in our pack was either because they were killed by vampires, or hated us for multiple reasons.   The triplets’ names were Willow, Sage, and Fern.  They appeared to have the same personalities, but when you really get to know them, you see the subtle differences.  One loved reading more than the others, one loved animals more, and one loved music more.  Otherwise, they were basically the same being.
    And then there was me, Marie.  I was dating second man in charge, making me fourth highest in the pack.  Smack-dab in the middle...the story of my life.  I was mediocre at most things, well, in human life.  A werewolf should be awesome in gym, right?  Well, I was just ok.  I was not strong, not weak, not beautiful, not ugly and basically in the middle everywhere else.  The pack members were all extremely smart though, and finished eight hours worth of homework in the 20 minutes before school started.
    That is until I morphed.  When I released the beast within I was unstoppable.  My strength outshined even Rory’s, I could track a hawk in a lightning storm, and I could feel the presence of every living thing near me.  It definitely compensated for my lack of human skills, and it was purely amazing.
    We were considered the slightly mysterious, super-popular kids at school.  The teachers loved us in our intellectual glory, and the kids adored us for our wild, all night, and every night parties.  Kids from all over town came to those parties, and one usually went missing.  Oh come on!  Like you haven’t had a midnight snack before!
    Are you wondering how we function if we have these parties every night?  Or how our parents seem to not mind?  Let me explain.  We don’t have parents.  Again, either they hated us, or were killed in some horrendous way (usually including those despicable vampires).  As for all night, every night parties, werewolves don’t need sleep.  It brought a new, precisely accurate meaning to the phrase “party animalsâ€�.  Every night, Rory was the smooth-talking DJ, playing music full-blast through the many speakers throughout the house.  The house was two floors with hardly any furniture besides a couple of couches, some groovy chairs, and tables for drinks and lava lamps.  We lived there on our own.  We found the house when we migrated to this town, when the vampires had decreased the size of our pack from twenty to eight in our old one.  It had been the classic “haunted house on the block,â€� and we had basically started living there without any objection from the adults.
    That is probably because Tobias had installed soundproofing the day we moved in, just in case we didn’t make it to the woods on a full moon.  It also was a Hell of a help when huge parties are occurring constantly.  In fact, the only night we didn’t have a party was when the moon was full.  At this time, we were hunting to our heart’s desire, minds almost completely wolf.  We usually morphed every night if we wanted to, but on the full moon we couldn’t control our shifts or our decisions.  The party ran itself anyways, we just had to be sure not to go near home.  Otherwise, people would be wondering if there was a mass murderer around, and we couldn’t deal with an investigation.
    This was our way of life until that fateful day.  Jude and I were at the local fast food place, slurping down our milkshakes and attacking our extra-rare burgers.  The ketchup smothered on our fries reminded me of the blood from the kid we’d eaten last night.  We always chose the kids that wouldn’t be missed by many, and therefore wouldn’t be links to us or our parties.  Last night it had been a snobby rich kid who has already moved away from home at the age of fifteen.  He was so snobby and such a jerk that he barely had any friends.  He had tasted scrumptious.
    Jude and I were reading one another our short stories.  This was our favourite activity, visit the diner, write for twenty minutes, and share the results.  I was barely listening as he described the shift to wolf-form, incredibly detailed as usual.  Instead of listening to his beautiful words, I stared intently at his beautiful face.  The beginnings of hair on his chin, moving with his mouth as he lulled me into smiles with his metaphors and similes, the smug smile, as if he knew how much I was admiring him right now, and that perfectly messy hair, all that combined with the warm sun shining in the window was enough to make me sigh in contentment.
    “The shift unfortunately complete, I howl my sorrows at the moon,â€� he concluded, his voice deep and silky, “like the wind high on the cliffs of the universe.â€�  At this, I smiled and applauded, and Jude smiled his goofy little grin and fake-bowed, I don’t think I had ever been that happy.
    “Yours was magnificent too!â€� he replied, unable to stifle his pride.  Leaning over the table, he kissed me gently, and it just made that moment so much more perfect.  My heart swelled, and just when I thought I might pass out from happiness, my phone brought me back to reality.  The cheery beep-harmony ringtone seemed oblivious to the moment it had destroyed. 
    I checked the caller ID, Jude peering over at my hand.  He looked utterly miffed at the interruption.
    “Erg, it’s Rory,â€� I complained, “It won’t be important, he’s probably just phoning to tell us to get our butts to the party.  But you know what?  I don’t feel like leaving just yet!â€� I decidedly pressed the end button, leaning in for another kiss as I did so.  Suddenly, Jude’s phone beeped as it received a text message.  Jude sighed angrily as he checked it.  It was indeed from Rory, and it said a mere three words.
urgent: phone me
    Rolling his eyes, Jude obliged.  From what I could hear, it wasn’t too urgent.  This is what I could understand,
    “Hey, dude.  Yeah?  Really?  Chandra, you say?  She’ll be there? Sweet!  Yeah, talk to you later.  See ya!â€� he hung up.  I stared at him inquisitively.
    “There’s a new werewolf in town, named Chandra.  She’ll be at the party tonight.  You sure you don’t want to head home?â€� he grinned, knowing my answer.  He knew I didn’t like being in the middle of the pack, so maybe this was my chance to rise in status.  I grinned, grabbed my backpack, and ran to the door, Jude hot on my tail.
    When we arrived, there were a few early bird kids dancing together in what should be the living room.  We passed them as we rushed to the attic where the pack lay in wait, circled around an unfamiliar figure, laughing.  We rushed in, and were immediately greeted by the pack with a bunch of “hello’sâ€� and “hi’sâ€�.  The girl in the middle practically leapt forward, hand out.  It was eerie, the way she looked straight at me, as if into my soul as she said,
    “Jude, Marie, nice to finally meet you,â€� she shook our hands firmly, her yellow-green eyes boring into my earthy-green ones.
    “Hey,â€� I heard myself say, “So what’s your story?  Where do you come from?  What brings you here?â€�
    “The classic story,â€� she began, “Vampires attacked my family, and I tried to fight back.  They beat me up, and I had no choice but to leave.  As for finding you guys when I got here, that was easy.  Follow the party,â€� the others giggled at this, as did Jude.  I couldn’t find enough concentration to laugh.   I was staring into those deep, never-ending eyes.  I couldn’t look away, I could talk, I couldn’t laugh...I was purely transfixed.
    A new song lifted me out of the trance.  I shook my head, and apologized for zoning out.  Jude sat in one of the extremely comfy armchairs, and we could hear the party beginning to rage downstairs.  It must have been alcohol time already.  I flopped down on Jude’s lap, hugging tightly around the neck as I did so.  The triplets, Alyssa, and Tobias headed downstairs, and DJ Rory donned his headphones.  Chandra politely sat down beside us.
    “Your pack order is all goofy,â€� she said out of the blue.
    “What?â€� I countered; I always thought we had been quite normal.  Well, as normal as one can be when you’re a werewolf.
    “Well, the idiot b**** is number two, and the hot one,â€� at this she stared at Jude, and I nearly ripped her throat out, “Is number three,â€�  we all sat there in an awkward silence for a few moments.  Suddenly she burst out laughing.  Jude and I looked at each other, astonished. 
    “You...should...have...seen...your...faces!â€� she choked out between roars of laughter.  No, dude, seriously, you’re good looking, but I think Tobias is more my type,â€�
    Again, Jude and I were completely speechless.  Was this girl in front of us for real?  She was so cool, so hip, and she liked Tobias?  It was completely unnatural!  It completely upset not only the natural order of a pack, but the natural order of teenage life!  Oh well, live and let live.
    “Well, uh, how do you like this town so far?â€� inquired Jude, attempting to change the subject.
    “It’s charming, I suppose.  But, let’s get down to business,â€� she glared at Rory across the room, as if to make sure he couldn’t hear,
    “Business?â€� I asked, completely confused.  I couldn’t wrap my mind around her.  She could jump fleetingly from one subject to the next without the slightest hesitation.  She knew what she wanted, and she was going to get it.
    “Yeah, business.  This pack needs to change or something bad is going to happen very soon,â€� she licked her lips,
    “I’m going to need you guys on my side for this, but I’m going to challenge Rory for Alpha,â€� she stated, completely calm.  I thought it was a great idea, Rory was an ass, but what would Jude think.  I decided to let him talk before I said anything; he was Rory’s best friend after all. 
    “We’re in,â€� he replied, almost as smooth as Chandra.  I nearly gasped.  This was mutiny!  And oh boy it had been a long time coming.  Rory was rude, arrogant, and a complete jerk.  I smiled at Jude, who must have been as hypnotized as I was, looked Chandra in the eyes and said,
    “Totally.â€�

*
    It was five days later that we set the plan into motion.  The entire pack left the party by itself and galloped to the nearest forest.  Once we got there, we slipped quietly into human form, standing quietly in the circle.  It was Chandra’s...orientation you could say.  She chose a member of the pack to challenge, and if she won, she took their place in the pack.  If she lost, she would become Omega.  There were no laws as to who you could challenge at these things, but it was almost an unwritten code that one could never challenge the leader.
    Chandra was not a girl to be beaten by tradition.  She stood in the centre of the circle, black-brown hair flipping around wildly like the tendrils of Medusa.  Slowly, all nine of us transformed back to wolf.  This was my favourite part of being a werewolf, the slow, beautiful transformation.
    First, my feet started to elongate, forming an extra joint at what should be my ankle.  This was a common misconception about transforming, most thought that the knees snapped painfully backwards, but that makes no sense!  Our ankles stretch, becoming almost a backwards knee.  We then have our knee, as well as this new ankle.  It’s strange I suppose.
    After the feet, our bones began a pleasant crackling, shifting and rejoining under our ever-hairier skin.  Our ears stretched and hardened, gliding smoothly to the top of our heads.   Finally, our faces began to change.  Our snout grew long, our eyes bright, our noses wet.  Our teeth began to sharpen, and last, but not least, our bodies and minds exploded with new sensations.  We had much more power, rippling through our defined muscles, our eyesight became sharp and light, despite the darkness of midnight.  And the smells, oh the smells!  It was wondrous! 
    Though, after so many transformations, one began to get used to it, and even experience some of these strengths in human form.  It was always quite pleasant though.  After we had all transformed, a seemingly orchestrated howl lifted from our very hearts tickled the swollen belly of the crescent moon above, none howling louder than Chandra.
    She glared into each of our eyes when the howl was finished, giving Tobias, Jude and I a quick wink as she passed us.
    “I shall challenge,â€� she snarled in a feminine growl, “Rory,â€�
    A gasp rose from our leader, followed by the triplets’ and Alyssa’s.  This was completely unexpected.  This was not to be a fight to the death, at least, only until one submitted to the other.
    “I accept this challenge!â€� roared Rory, overcome with rage and a confidence that he would beat Chandra.  She was only a girl after all.
    The rest of us widened our circle, preparing for an easy win from Rory.  Even the trio who had expected this doubted Chandra’s capabilities.  All at once, the fight began.  Rory, who was at least a head taller than the girl before him, advanced on two legs, thrashing wildly with his forepaws.  Chandra was read, and ducked between the Alpha’s legs.  Before he could turn around, she leapt onto his back, repeatedly beating his head until his grey-orange fur was matted with blood.  He reached behind his head and threw her, head over tail, into a tree.  She leapt up, seemingly unharmed, and ran straight for his head, claws drawn.  She was too quick for him.  She slashed and raged until he could barely whimper.  The rest of us watched on in horror.
    He assumed the submissive position, lying on his back, paws raised, and a pleading, helpless look in his eye.  She had not yet had enough.  She lunged for his throat, and tore it open.  Blood spewed as if unleashed from the very depths of Hell.  None of us had expected this.  She had beaten him into submission, but now he was gone.  Jude was in terror, the whites of his electric blue eyes glistening in his frenzy.
    Chandra was laughing.  It was a low, howling laugh.  She lapped up the blood of her fallen victim, and grinned at the trio.  Alyssa tried to step forward towards the bleeding carcass of her mate, but the frenzied warrior warned her to stay away with a low, angry growl.
    Jude snapped.  He had just seen his best friend being killed, and the murderer was going to pay.  He lunged at her throat, but she was too quick.  She reared up, bringing her paws down hard.  Jude was flung to the ground.  The trance of the pack broke, and soon it was seven against one.  We circled her, a new mutiny against a homicidal first mate.
    Jude was leading the fray, practically gouging his claws into Chandra’s eyes.  He was doing so well, but then my nightmare was realized.  Jude fell, bleeding from his nose.  She tore at his throat and eyes, turning his face to hamburger.
    I roared to the gods!  Roared to the moon!  Roared to anybody who would listen to my anguish!  I brought by clawed fists down hard on her skull, and she clawed at my throat.  She missed, and I leapt over her, grabbing her by the belly and tearing with the strength and determination of ten pit bulls.  The black furred skin ripped open.  I couldn’t stop there.  I tore at every inch of that girl I could get my hands on, brutally murdering every possible centimetre of life left in her.
    I felt myself being lifted from the corpse, and I struggled.  Jude was dead, and I wanted the culprit in a million pieces.  I was in such anguish that I shifted back into human form, pounding the ground with bloody fists.  My roars became screams of rage.
    The triplets and Tobias talked to me soothingly.  Apparently Alyssa had been killed in the fight.  Four broken bodies lay at my feet.  One was still breathing.  It was Jude.
    I knelt beside him as he shifted one last time into human form.  His face was almost unrecognizable, and his breathing was so laboured, he couldn’t have been getting very much air at all.
    “Marie,â€� he groaned, “So...hard...to breath.  I...killed...the b****?â€� he meant Chandra obviously.  I knew he was going to die, and I wanted him to die happy.
    “Y-yes Jude, you killed her.  She’s dead.â€� I sobbed, stroking his matted hair.  He grinned his lopsided, lovable grin and heaved,
    “Don’t be sad,â€� before closing his eyes forever, spirit joining the moon and stars for eternity.
*
    I’m still the leader of that pack.  I became cold and hostile after Jude’s death.  That hostility is the only reason I was able to keep my position.  I didn’t care if I lived or died after that, I just fought.  I’m nineteen now, graduated from high school, and being a werewolf, I’ll probably always look this way.  I’ll never age again.  The pack is now twenty strong, and we live in a cave in the forest now.  No longer are we party animals.
    I’ll stay leader as long as I can, it earns me respect and solitude.  Never again will I find a mate though, never again will I care.  My soul is up with the moon and stars, writing short stories with Jude in the heavens.
    Hey Jude.