7

Waiting.

That's what I've been doing for the last three days.

Waiting for the change to start.

Waiting for Lowell and Mingan to come for me again.

Because I know they will. I can feel it.

As for the change, so far I feel nothing. Tristan told me that once he bit me, it would take a few days for me to start feeling symptoms. He said it would feel like I was getting the flu at first.

"I'll have to bite you," Tristan had said. "My saliva will... infect you, basically. The transformation will take somewhere between two and four days. You'll feel fine at first, but eventually you'll start to feel kind of like you have the flu. At the end, you'll shift for the first time. I'll be with you, and I'll help you. It will happen at night, and we'll run it off. You'll be able to shift back with a little effort once the dawn comes. The first time will be painful. Eventually, you'll learn to control it, and you'll be able to shift back and forth at will.

"You'll be very strong, much stronger than you can imagine, and very fast. Some of the strength and speed will stay with you when you're in human form. Your temperature and heartbeat will also go up. That will stay with you as a human, as well."

So, now I'm waiting, nervous and anxious, wondering what it will be like, knowing that Tristan can tell me everything he knows and it still won't be enough.

I'll never know what it's like until it actually happens to me.

Tristan hasn't left my side this whole time. I've taken a leave of absence from my job, since I can't know when exactly the change will start, and I don't want to put anyone in danger there. Tristan says that the first time I turn will be at night, and most of my shifts at the bar are evening shifts. My evening schedule is what got me here in the first place, when I stupidly decided to walk home from work one night alone after my closing shift at the bar.

I always thought werewolves were only supposed to change during a full moon, and that they couldn't control when they shifted. Tristan tells me this is a myth. He says most shifters do turn during the full moon, but that it's mostly because of tradition, like people going out to party on Saturday night. He told me that if you're observant, you can figure out if there are shifters at your job pretty easily by keeping track of the full moon cycles and paying attention to who doesn't show up for work the next day, or if they do they look like shit.

Tristan also told me that there are more "bitten" weres that turn for the first time during what they call Third Moon than any other time. Third Moon means the time between the full moon and third phase of the moon, when it's waning and you can only see the part on the left. I guess I'll be typical in that respect. But he says there's really nothing mystical about it. You get a bunch of weres out carousing during a full moon, and people are gonna get bitten.

I would definitely fit into that category, although I wouldn't be the product of shifter partying. Far from it. Still, it was oddly comforting to know that somewhere out there were probably other bitten humans who were getting ready to turn for the first time. Sort of a virtual community I hadn't met yet. I wondered how many of them had chosen it, and how many were out there who didn't know what had happened to them and had no idea their lives were about to change forever. I shivered. All things considered, I was lucky. I had Tristan to help me through this, to help me fully embrace my new self. My new life.

On the morning of the fourth day, Tristan and I were lying in my bed, having just woken up. I was lying on my back, and Tristan was lightly tracing his fingers around the areolas of my breasts. I was barely awake, but already I was on fire.

"Tristan," I moaned. He leaned down and began teasing a nipple. I threaded my hand through his hair and arched my back. He moved on top of me and kissed me deeply, our tongues searching for one another, then mingling. He slid down under the covers and I felt him spreading my legs. My breath caught in my throat as I felt him softly kiss my lower lips. He licked the opening to my hole, and then slid his tongue up toward my hardening nub. He swirled his tongue around my clit, making me moan and press myself against his tongue, needing more. I could feel my juices begin to flow, my body readying myself for him.

"Tristan, I need you to fuck me," I whispered. I wanted him inside me, right now. I tried to pull his head away from me but he was too strong, and his slick tongue continued lapping at me as I began to writhe, my need to be fucked hard by him competing with my need for him to make me come with his tongue. Soon, I realized I wouldn't have to choose. He caught my nub between his lips and began to gently suck as he slid the tip of his tongue back and forth against it, and in a few seconds I erupted, screaming his name as I bucked against his mouth. He let go with his lips and began lapping at my juices, drinking me in, which made me come harder, continuing to cry out in my pleasure. Then, with a roar, he grabbed me around the waist and flipped me over on my hands and knees, plunging himself inside me and pumping furiously, filling me deeper and deeper with each thrust. Soon we were both crying one another’s names as I felt him shoot his creamy seed inside me, my inner walls milking him dry.

We collapsed on the bed, exhausted and panting. He buried his face in my hair. "Kait," he breathed. "God, I want you more every day. How can this be so good all the time?"

"I don't know, Tristan. It's never been like this for me before. I love you."

"Kait. My Kait. I love you." He kissed me deeply, and we fell asleep for a time.

When we woke again, the sun was higher in the sky. I sat up and brushed the sleep from my eyes. My stomach grumbled.

"Me, too," Tristan said, getting up and padding into the kitchen. "We're out of food," he called to me. "I'm going to run out and get us some supplies," he said, walking back into the bedroom. "You sit tight. I'll be back in half an hour."

"Okay. Keys are on the shelf. Be careful," I replied.

"I will," he said, kissing me. Out in the hall, I heard the sound of keys jingling. Then he was out the door.

I stretched and then forced myself out of bed. Padding into the bathroom, I leaned down to start the shower. I looked in the mirror before getting in: Still no different from yesterday. I still felt the same, still looked the same. I shrugged. Maybe Tristan would need to bite me again.

I showered and dried off, wrapping the towel around me to brush my teeth and my hair. I walked back to the bedroom and threw on a tank top. I was just pulling on some gym shorts and preparing to head to the kitchen to make some coffee when I heard a noise. I looked at the clock: Tristan had only been gone for fifteen minutes. Wow, that was fast.

"Tristan?" I called, walking out into the hallway, and then everything was pain, and then blackness.