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Just a Run
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THE MINIATURE WOLF What The Wolf Wants
He followed me back to town. I debated but finally drove to my place. I told him to go clean up in the kitchen while I took a super quick shower. I slid on some jeans and a tee-shirt before I came out.He was still in the kitchen.I grabbed two of Derrick's beers and led the way out the back door. I chose a seat on the curb on the far side of the empty lots. As long as we keep our voices down, we should be safe to talk."Here you go," I said as I held out a bottle toward him. "It might be wee early in the morning, but I think you and I both need this."He didn't say anything as he took it, still not looking directly at me."I want you to know I'm not mad at you or anything. You don't have any reason to fear me."I had a feeling I could say that a hundred times, and he would still piddle on himself."Why don't you start by telling me what a royal is and why you think I am one."He took the cap off his beer and took a long draught. He looked like he was about to cry. It was so stupid. T
THE MINIATURE WOLF Dad’s Visit
I called Dad. He was excited when I told him I'd met a wolf. I wondered how thrilled he'd be after I told him everything about the new wolf.I gave him the mile marker to stop at and told him to sniff around, that he'd figure more out that way than I could describe with words. I didn't want to go into detail over the phone, preferring to describe my encounter when we were face-to-face. I also told him about my date.I didn't tell him about the fight club. I knew it would come up, though.Work was still good. I didn't sleep. I kept my ear open. Any noise had me up. I didn't know if Lone Wolf would come back and bring company.I understand now why you didn't give out your home address. What if Lone Wolf told his alpha about me? What if the creep came and bit Derrick? I'd never forgive myself.I set myself some rules. If I ever met another werewolf, I wouldn't let them know where I lived. I'd keep them away from the reservation.I lay in the dark while my thoughts ran rampant. Dad was d
THE MINIATURE WOLF The Wolf Shows Out
I stood, waiting. Ed must have heard us talking because he came out of one of the rooms with Derrick. Ed rapped on the other doors as he came, and the other guys followed him to the living room. The half-dozen of them lined up along the far wall, ready for action.The basement door flung open. I was glad I wasn't blocking it as Mac had been.Mac shoved me out of the way, ran out the front door, and heaved into the bushes there. It didn't look like he was in a hurry to leave them. The second round of Mac throwing up in the bushes had all of the guys exchanging looks between Mac and me and Dad, who had finally come up from the basement.I threw Dad a questioning look.He shrugged. "I took my time. Maybe I should have gone faster."I shrugged back and grinned.I don't know how many times while watching a movie Mom, Dad, and I would shift. One hand, one foot, full shift starting in different areas of the body. It had been like a game of follow-the-leader, each of us matching the other's c
THE MINIATURE WOLF Wolf In The Smoke
I knew Dad disapproved of me grabbing Mac's bottle. Dad's philosophy, understandably, was one of choice. Mac stood in the doorway and looked as if he wanted to tear into me.I had a feeling it was my dad standing at his shoulder that kept Mac in place. He didn't need to worry, though, either of them. I'll give the bottle back in a minute.I dug through my saddlebags to pull out Auntie's jar of salve. I set it on the bike's seat. Auntie was a great herbalist and used a combination of essential oils and witch hazel that helped with aches and bruises. Then I dug deeper.I pulled out the brown paper-wrapped package Grandfather had given me. It was time.I heard Dad's sudden indrawn breath. He nudged his way past Mac but stopped after a few steps."You'll need a fire."Dad came over and took the box of wooden matches from me. He headed toward the back yard.I looked at Mac, holding out his bottle to him. The big man came over slowly. I could tell he was thinking about asking, but my dad's
THE MINIATURE WOLF Date Night
"Dad!"Derrick snickered as my dad fussed over me."It's a date, not the prom! You weren't this bad when I went to prom!""That's because your mother got to fuss then. Hold still."I tolerated his tugs on my dress shirt and his hand through my hair, knowing Dad thought Mom would do such things. I finally met with his approval, except for the one question he just had to go and ask."Did you grab some of the..."I rushed out the front door, then had to go back in to grab my keys out of his hand. Derrick was busting a gut laughing. I didn't bother risking any more of my dignity with a single word.I was glad Derrick had loosened up with my dad. When I went to put my pipe away after the smoke with Mac and Dad, the guys had respectfully parted for me. Mac poured the third bottle into the ground. I had urged Mac's men to go to him. Let them blame his crying on the previous two bottles of booze if they wanted to save some sort of face; I didn't care.By the time I was rubbing some of Aunty's
THE MINIATURE WOLF Yard Party
I woke Dad up with my vacuum in the living room."Does this mean the date went badly?""Mahina's coming over for dinner tonight."A long pause. The vacuum stopped. Dad had unplugged it."Son, it's not even six in the morning. Have you slept?"I shook my head no.Dad came over, putting his forehead against mine. "There's time. You need to sleep, Son. If you are anxious in your own home, how do you think Mahina will feel? You need to relax."Derrick chose that moment to drag himself out of his room, looking at me bleary-eyed. Apparently, I woke him up as well."Why don't you go for a run with Derrick? Pound some of that anxiety out with your two feet."Dad threw a look at Derrick. "If you don't mind? I'll put some coffee on for you."Derrick gave a yawn but nodded yes and headed back to his room to change."Son, it is the man experiencing tension. The wolf is fine; trust me. Keep yourself all man."I only nodded as Dad pulled the vacuum from my hands and wound up the cord.I thought abo
THE MINIATURE WOLF Forest Fire
Derrick and I were heading from one kind of fire to another.The party had ended well. The fire pit had been a huge success. There was enough firewood stacked behind the old shed to last all winter and half of the next summer.Chani had taken a liking to Derrick, at least for the night. The two of them had spent some time kissing. With Dad acting as a chaperone, you can be sure nothing else happened.Dad did swap out a few drinks from our younger guests, giving them a fresh can of coke. I grinned, thinking that no one could make a better guardian at a party. Wolf nose could smell the alcohol easily. Wolf hearing would know if anyone snuck off. It made me realize how easy Dad had been with me on occasion, saying nothing about a few of my teenage exploits.I could bet Dad got little sleep that night, patrolling the tents. He gave his truck keys to Running Elk when they headed out Monday morning.Derrick and I were in a truck now. It was heading in the opposite direction, though. We had
THE MINIATURE WOLF Man-instinct
I was drawn to my bike. Some people were nearby but no one was too close. I sniffed the air. Something told me I was safe to shift. I dressed out of habit. I slid on the heavy yellow jacket that identified me as someone helping to combat the fire.There were noises, words. I knew what they meant. I headed over. Someone had been hurt using a chainsaw. I picked it up. It was easy to spot the man in charge, yelling directions to various workers."Where?" Again, my voice came out using wolf sounds to make human words."You know what you're doing with that saw?" He had his hand on my arm as he yelled the question over the noise around us.I nodded.He pointed me in the right direction. There was a line of men cutting down a row of trees. The idea was to keep the fire from jumping from treetop to treetop, so it wouldn't spread further.I worked with the men a few hours before we pulled out. Someone took the chainsaw from me. I went back to my bike. I could picture Derrick in my mind. I kne
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