First Shift

I stepped into the garden surrounded by the sunlight overhead. Today was my tenth birthday and I was excited. I walked towards the large oak tree in front of the house and climbed into the tire swing. I pushed my feet against the grass to start swinging. I smiled and closed my eyes as the wind rushed past me while I swung.

“Valley?”

I heard Tommy calling for me.

“I’m on the swing!”

I called out to him. He came running over and put his hands out to stop the swing. I opened my eyes and smiled at him.

“HAPPY BIRTHDAY BABY BROTHER!!”

He shouted happily as my eyes met his. I climbed off the swing and gave him a hug.

“Thanks Tom-Tom”

I said using his nickname. He smiled and grabbed my hand.

“Let’s go to the stream in the woods behind our house.”

He said as he started walking. I shrugged and followed him, but paused when we reached the back yard.

“Does mom know where we are going?”

I asked. He turned to look at me and smiled.

“Of Course. Are you scared or something?”

He arched his perfect eyebrow. I shook my head no quickly and he laughed. I smiled at him and continued to follow him to the tree line. I walked right behind him so that we would stay close together. It didn’t take us long to reach the stream.

We smiled and sat down on the bank of the stream. We watched as some fish swam by paying us no mind.

“Do you ever think about them?”

He asked suddenly putting his focus on me. I looked at him with a confused face.

“I mean, your real mom and dad?”

He asked after I was silent for far longer than he liked. I looked down into the water and frowned.

“I used to think about them all the time, but now I can’t even remember their faces.”

I said as I picked up a stick and poked the water with it. He put an arm around my shoulder and pulled me into a side hug.

"Well, I am glad my mom and dad got me you as a brother.”

He said and I looked up at him.

“You really mean that?”

I asked. He smiled wider.

 “Yes. Mom and Dad made the right choice in picking you for their son.”

He said firmly. I smiled and then looked back at the stream.

“Did Mom ask you to bring me here?”

I asked after a few moments of silence passed. He picked up a rock and tossed it into the water before he replied

 “Yeah.”

I shook my head slightly as I watched the rock sink into the bottom of the water.

A twig snapping nearby had me sitting up in full alert. My body stiffened and I wondered if it was just an animal or not. Tommy looked up towards the sound as well looking for the source.

“Tom-Tom…maybe we should go back..”

I suggested and stood up. Tommy didn’t move an inch when we heard the next twig snap.

“TOMMY!”

I called out grabbing his hand trying to get him to stand up. My heart started to pound in panic. My breathing quickened when a large chocolate colored wolf emerged from the trees across the stream in front of us. Tommy’s eyes went wide as he stared at the wolf. The wolf was easily the size of a grizzly bear. It paused in it’s steps and stared at us.

“T..Tommy…W…w….We have…have..to..to..g..go…”

I stuttered out trying to calm my breathing. Tommy slowly stood to his feet keeping his wide eyes on the wolf across from us. More twigs snapped near the wolf and my eyes widened when another massive wolf that was charcoal grey stepped into my line of sight. Tommy stood frozen in pure fear as we stared at the wolves. I gulped and stood defensively in front of Tommy.

 “G..Go AWAY!”

I shouted at the wolves with as much courage as I could muster. The wolves tilted their heads and their eyes seemed to glint with amusement. I gulped again as the first wolf took a step closer to us.

“Tom-Tom…go..”

I whispered leaning my head slightly to the side trying to get him to move.

He began to slowly back away as the first wolf took another step towards us. The wolf was at the other bank of the stream by the time Tommy had turned around. I kept my eyes focused of the wolves intent on following after Tommy. I stopped moving when an intense pain shot all over my body. I let out a cry of pain causing the wolf to stop walking closer. I gasped as it felt like my lungs were on fire. Both of the wolves tilted their heads as my knees hit the ground.

“AAAHH!”

I screamed out as my whole body began feeling like it was set on fire. The first wolf sniffed the air and then tilted its head again looking confused. I could hear Tommy calling for me.

“G…Get MOM!”

I managed to holler out to him before another wave of pain hit. My head felt like it was going to explode and I started seeing black dots. I heard screaming, but didn’t register who it was coming from. The wolves had sat down and were just staring. My breathing quickened just before everything went dark. I don’t know how long I was out for, but when my eyes opened I was still by the stream.

The wolves sat there staring with what looked like shock on their faces. I let out a low whine as my body hurt terribly. I tried to stand up but wobbled and fell over. I winced when I hit the grass and closed my eyes for a few more minutes. I felt a soft nudge against my side and opened my eyes to see the chocolate colored wolf with its snout gently pressing my side. I looked into it’s golden eyes and wondered if this was were I would die. I opened my mouth to speak but all that came out was a strange sound. I was confused about what had happened. Was I already dead? I looked down to see two paws instead of my hands. I blinked in confusion while I took in the sight of paws. I noticed that there was black up the leg part to a certain point that made it look like socks, but the rest was white. I looked back up at the wolf with confusion swirling in my eyes. The wolf pressed his snout against my side again helping me to stand. I blinked after he scooted back and I stood on my own. I slowly walked towards the stream and looked down into the water. I was surprised to see the face of a fox with shining emerald eyes. The fox was white with black tipped ears and one eye had a black ring around it. I leaned closer towards the water until my nose touched the surface. I pulled back and scrunched my nose while shaking my head slightly. The wolves both continued to stare at me.

Confusion swirled through my mind as I tried to process what happened. I felt like my eyes would bulge out of my head when the first wolf shifted into a tall human man in front of me. I looked away when I realized he was naked. I heard a chuckle before I heard him walk towards a tree and pull something out.

“Little One, you can look now”

The man said with a chuckle. I looked up and had to crane my head to an uncomfortable angle because the man was so tall. He smiled as he looked down at me with his chocolate colored eyes. He sat down as the charcoal grey wolf moved behind a tree and shifted as well. I sat back and looked down as something moved under me. I saw the white tail with a black tip moving side to side slowly. I tilted my head before I realized it was my own tail. Another noise caused me to pop my head up looking as another man came into view. He sat next to the first man and looked at me with silvery grey eyes.

“Wow, a fox shifter..”

He said as he looked my way. I tilted my head to the side still confused. Both men smiled at me before the first one spoke again.

 “Little One, you don’t have to be afraid of us. We are werewolves and you are a fox shifter. Also known as a Kistune. Did your parents not explain this to you?”

He asked. I felt a deep sadness when he mentioned my parents and shook my head no. The man frowned

 “I wonder why they let you alone if you were so close to your first shift”

He rubbed his chin as he spoke. I felt tired after a few more minutes and a huff of breath left my mouth. The men both looked at me before the second one took off the shirt he had put on.

“You need to think of being a human to shift back.”

He said as he tossed the shirt towards me. I nodded and thought hard about what my human body looked like.

After some painful moments I was finally back to being my 10 year old self again. I looked at my hands in surprise then grabbed the overly large shirt. I pulled it over my head and let it fall down my body. It ended just below my knees causing me to smile a little. I yawned as I looked at the men again.

“Th…thank you..”

I said softly just before another big yawn left my lips. I could hear Tommy opening the back door of the house and calling for Mom.

“Not a problem, Little One.”

The men said at the same time. I let out a small laugh.

“I am Beta Cornelius and this is my eldest son Brayden. Who might you be?”

The first and asked. I smiled as I answered honestly

 “I am Valerian.”

They both smiled at me widely.

“How come you did not shift at home with your family, Little One?”

Beta Cornelius asked. I looked at him with a mix of sadness and confusion plastered on my face.

“I didn’t know I could do that..”

I said truthfully. Beta Cornelius frowned

 “How old are you?”

He asked me. I smiled as I replied

 “I just turned 10 today!”

I exclaimed happily. His eyes widened along with Brayden’s eyes.

“You just turned 10?”

He asked with shock clear in his voice. I nodded and smiled wide.

“Happy Birthday, Little One.”

Beta Cornelius smiled as he spoke.

“Thank you!”

I said with an even wider smile.

“Did your parents not tell you what you are?”

He asked me.  I looked down into the water of the stream as I thought about my real mom and dad.

“My real parents died when I was five.”

I said softly as pain filled my heart at the memory. Beta Cornelius and Brayden both let out a gasp.

“I’m sorry for your loss, Little One”

Beta Cornelius said softly. I looked back up at him knowing pain would be showing in my eyes.

“I live with the firefighter that saved me that night.”

I said honestly letting my thankfulness spill into my voice.

“He and Mom took me in. Tommy is my older brother now.”

I said. I heard as Mom, Dad, and Tommy quickly made their way to where I was at. Beta Cornelius and his son Brayden looked up just as they came through the trees.

“There you are Valerian! Are you alright?”

Mom asked with a worried filled voice. I smiled at her and nodded. Dad glared at Beta Cornelius

“Who are you and what are you doing with my son?”

He asked gruffly. Beta Cornelius smiled and stood up. He put a hand out towards Dad in an offer to shake it.

“Hello. I am Beta Cornelius. My son Brayden and I were on patrol and came across your boys here. You have such a brave son there Sir.”

He said with a smile. Dad put his hand out and shook Beta Cornelius’s hand.

“Thank you. I’m Hank, this is my wife, Lola. My sons Tommy and Valerian.”

Dad said before stepping back.

“I’m sorry if they crossed into pack territory.”

Dad said causing Beta Cornelius to smile wider.

“Not at all Hank. They were on your side, but did you know that Valerian is not a human?”

He asked Dad. Dad looked at me just now realizing I was only wearing Brayden’s shirt.

“No. I did not. We only got him into our custody five years ago when his parents were killed by a fire.”

Dad said honestly as he scooped me into his arms. I let out a loud yawn feeling extremely tired.

“You have a special boy there Hank. He isn’t a wolf. He is an Arctic Fox shifter. I think he may be the last of his kind.”

Beta Cornelius said causing Dad to look down at me. I yawned again and snuggled my head into his chest.

“You will have to be careful that no one sees him.”

Beta Cornelius warned. Dad stared at me before looking at Beta Cornelius again.

“He shifted?”

Dad asked as my eyes began to close.

“He did indeed. Caused me quite the scare when he started screaming.”

Beta Cornelius let out a chuckle when he spoke.

“He will be fine, he will just need to rest.”

He said before turning to leave.

“It was nice to meet you, Little One. I hope we shall cross paths again.”

Beta Cornelius said before he left with Brayden following close behind.