Wolf at Heart

Chapter Two: First Encounter

Jumping up, I whirled around, fists raised.

"Woah there, Melody. Just me," Raymond laughed, "Remember me? No?"

I smiled back. Turns out I did know one person. It was Raymond, Adrian's older brother, who'd called a jackal a couple of years ago.

He gestured for me to come to meet some of his friends. An odd bunch of Lupine was gathered there under a nearby tree.

The arctic fox shifted into a lanky boy about my age, with long white hair curling around his neck. He watched me with emerald green eyes peering out from under this messy strands in his face. Looking away quickly, I made a mental note to steer clear of him. First impressions weren't necessarily accurate, but I wasn't willing to take the chance.

A brown and black grey wolf waved to me and offered the spot next to her. Unlike the fox, she radiated happiness that was infectious from her boots to the twinkling in her hazel eyes.

I sat beside her, the coyote on the other side of me moving to give me some room.

The coyote was in the middle of telling a joke, and everyone laughed. I found myself enjoying being with them. Even the cold white fox uttered a small chuckle.

Raymond introduced me to his three friends.

"Everybody, this is Melody, a friend of my younger brother's. Melody, that's Dakota over there. Don't worry, he doesn't bite," Ray said, and Dakota nodded with a flash of his canines, "Much. The wolf is Brooke, our ray of sunshine. And finally, our clown, Jeremy. Just call him Jerry. Brooke and Jerry are from my year, year 19. Dakota's from the year before yours. Now that that's done with, I think it's time to get going."

Ray was right, our break was over. We stood and stretched before shifting into our second forms.

I saw Dakota stare as I shifted and felt self-conscious. Did he have to? Making sure to place Brooke between us, we started traveling again.

According to Jerry, who was an endless stream of jokes, it would take about a week to get to the mountains.

A week of staying with Dakota, I thought, and involuntarily shivered. I didn't exactly fear him, but something about his gaze made my blood run cold. I didn't normally judge people based on first impressions, but my instincts weren't usually wrong. 

Brooke mentioned me to one side and confided in me, "Could you look out for Dakota?"

Just the person I wanted to stay away from.

Why does fate seem to love entertaining me so?

I gave her a questioning glance and she continued, "He came to us last year, out of the blue, asking if he could stay with us. He didn't say anything else, but there were bruises and cuts all over his face. We all knew he had been hurt, and not just on the outside. Dakota's been through some rough times, and we were hoping you could help him. You're the first Lupine around his age to willingly be around him. So could you please try to get along or something?"

She saw my skeptic look and begged with me. "I know he might seem unfriendly at first, but he's a good guy, trust me. You just have to get to know him, that's all."

I hesitated, then looked into Brooke's pleading eyes. Everything about her was sincere, and I couldn't say no. I had seen how mistrustful Dakota was, and the bags under his eyes were noticeable.

"Alright," I promised against my will, "I'll try."

Brooke let out a relieved breath, and I got the feeling she'd tried this before. She smiled warmly and me, and I felt as though she were the sister I'd never had, and never knew I wanted.