Roxy has had a shit day.

Okay, maybe that wasn’t entirely fair. It wasn’t the worst day she’d had in the past few months, she didn’t get assaulted by cultists or anything, but it was still resoundingly bad from the moment she woke up. Her alarm hadn’t gone off so she’d overslept, only being woken when her mother barged into her room to make sure she was up, resulting in an extensive lecture about ‘not staying up so late playing videogames with Leif,’ despite the fact that that wasn’t even what she’d been doing.

Roxy kept her mouth shut. She really didn’t want to hear what her mother would have to say if she learned that Roxy was actually up late because she’d been calling her girlfriend. Her mother wasn’t aware of their relationship and Roxy would prefer it if it stayed that way. She knew what Martha thought of ‘the gays’ and she really didn’t want to give her another reason to look down on her. She already gave her enough shit about keeping her hair short, despite the fact that Roxy hadn’t even gotten it cut in the last few months. It was almost brushing her shoulders at this point and still her mother took issue.

Roxy’s poor luck continued at school. She had P.E. first period and due to the morning she’d had, she ended up forgetting to bring her uniform. She sat on the bleachers after being extensively chewed out by her teacher about the ‘value of organisational skills’ and somehow still managed to get hit directly in the face by a ball. Not even second period and she was already forced to carefully monitor her breathing to keep herself from falling apart

Sam was still suspended, so Roxy couldn’t lean on her for support like she usually would during a day like this, but at the very least she could still count on her friends being there for a welcome reprieve come lunch. Or at least she would’ve been able to, if they were actually there. When Roxy arrived at their usual lunch table in the cafeteria, it was painfully empty. A quick glance around proved only that Ross had decided to spend lunch with his boyfriend. Leif, for her part, was absolutely nowhere to be found.

Roxy sighed and accepted her fate, sitting down and barely even picking at her food. She might have been imagining it, but it almost seemed like the cafeteria was unusually loud today, every grating sound piercing through her ears and into her brain like knives. The final cherry on top was when Brooke of all people sat down at her table and tried to start a conversation with her. Roxy didn’t dislike Brooke by any means, but she was far from her favourite person and at this point Roxy was liable to snap if she so much as looked at her funny. She shot up and excused herself before speed-walking to the nearest bathroom so she could have her breakdown in peace.

The bad vibes continued through her afternoon classes and by the time the last bell rang, Roxy was completely and utterly drained. She dragged her feet all the way home, praying to any deity that would listen that her mom wasn’t home. Her prayers ended up being answered - along with what must have been a compensation package for her utter shitfest of a day - when she arrived at her house to find Sam, nervously bouncing on her feet as she built up the courage to knock on the door, carrying what looked like a box of chocolates behind her back. The girl was nothing if not a stereotype when it came to romance.

She was dressed in denim jeans and a grey shirt with long black sleeves that did a disappointingly good job of hiding her toned arms. She paused her nervous shifting suddenly before looking over her shoulder, apparently having sensed Roxy’s presence one way or another. Her face lit up and before she knew it Roxy was swept up in a bone-crushing hug. It was everything she’d been craving throughout the day and some of her tension melted away in her girlfriend’s strong arms. After a long embrace, Sam put her down.

“Hey, Sam,” she greeted. “What’s the occasion?”

“Roxy Roxy Roxy! Happy one month! I brought you some chocolates!”

Sam grinned as she eagerly held out the heart-shaped box. Roxy’s own heart soared with affection, but it was quickly drowned by an inexplicable feeling of guilt. She winced.

“Shit… I’m so sorry, Sam. I completely forgot.”

Sam shrugged, bright smile still firmly in place. “Ah, it’s no biggie. I’m just happy to spend time with you.” She waved a hand dismissively. Roxy sighed.

“Well, I’m still gonna get you something soon. Anyways, my mom’s not home, you wanna come inside?”

—

Roxy was surprised to find her dad sitting at the kitchen table working on his laptop when she walked in, though it wasn’t much of an issue. Unlike her mom, her dad wouldn’t have any problem with her bringing a friend home. The fact that this ‘friend’ was actually her girlfriend? Probably best if that wasn’t mentioned. Roxy wasn’t positive of her father’s views, but if they were anything like her mother’s, she wasn’t going to risk sharing the true nature of their relationship. That would certainly blow up in her face.

Sam introduced herself and the girls made their way upstairs and into Roxy’s room. As soon as the door was shut the shorter girl buried herself in Sam’s arms, tucking her face into the crook of her girlfriend’s neck.

“I’m so glad you’re here,” Roxy whispered before pushing herself out of the hug and collapsing onto her bed exasperatedly. “You would not BELIEVE the day I’ve had.”

Roxy told Sam all about her day as she changed out of her uniform. The blonde mostly stayed silent, occasionally interjecting when necessary. Once Roxy was back in some comfortable clothes, she fell into Sam’s arms on the bed. They cuddled for a short while, Roxy soaking up all of the affection that she missed out on throughout the day. Sam shared her own tales about what she’s been up to during her suspension, apparently having scored a job at the local library, which Roxy congratulated her on. Eventually she grew silent and the two simply rested in each other’s arms.

“So…” Sam started, talking quietly as to not break the peaceful reverie that had overtaken the room. “What’s our plan for tonight?”

Roxy thought for a second, shifting so that she could meet her girlfriend’s eyes. “How about we pig out on those chocolates you brought and watch something? I know you’ve been dying to see the ending of Amphibiland.”

Sam smiled brightly. “Sounds great! Though, you can keep the chocolates for yourself. They’re a gift!” She chuckled nervously and looked away.

Roxy raised an eyebrow with a curious smirk. “It’s fine, I don’t mind sharing. There’s no way I could eat them all myself anyway, unless the big bad wolf is trying to fatten me up so she can ‘eat’ me?” she jibed. It was a bit closer to the truth than she would usually stray, but she was in a teasing mood and was curious to see how Sam would react. If Sam somehow managed to pick up on the semi-unsubtle insinuation and the night went in a different direction than planned, well, that would be an unlikely plus for sure.

Sam, expectedly, did not pick up on any amorous insinuation at all, instead laughing unconvincingly and all-too-loudly. “Wh-what are you talking about, Roxy? I-I’m not trying to fatten you up, I-I-I’m just allergic.”

“Allergic? Huh, I wasn’t aware.”

“Yep, I can't have most types of chocolate. Not unless I want to be throwing it all up an hour later.”

Roxy obviously didn’t know much about werewolf biology, but that made sense if she thought about the connection with dogs. It would also explain why Sam was absolutely bouncing off the walls after she drank just a small bit of Roxy’s Monster one time.

Note to self, research wolf dietary restrictions

—

Roxy shifted her hips slightly as Sam sighed against her lips. They’d finished the final episode of the show and Sam had been crying pretty much the whole way through. Roxy couldn’t blame her, she was holding back tears herself and she’d already seen it twice. Once she’d calmed down Roxy pulled back from their cuddle to find Sam looking at her with the most loving look on her face. Roxy couldn’t help but kiss her, which eventually led to the passionate makeout they were currently involved in.

Her hips shifted again, completely involuntarily, when one of her hands roamed over Sam’s bicep. It was as if her body had a mind of its own, desperately seeking some sort of relief from the all-encompassing flame of want that was overtaking her mind and body. She gripped a fistful of blonde hair and tugged, forcing Sam’s head in the direction she needed to deepen the kiss enough to hopefully gain some reprieve from the heat burning under her skin. Sam whimpered beautifully in response.

Some of the tension eased, but it still wasn’t enough. She felt one of Sam’s hands exploring along her side, sending shivers wherever it touched. It slowly made its way up over her waist and brushed past her ribs until it barely touched the underside of her breast, where it stopped in its tracks. A pang of disappointment shot through her. It was clear that Sam was still intent on sticking to the boundaries Roxy had set on their first night together, which would be quite reassuring if it wasn’t so damn frustrating.

Frankly, fuck those boundaries right now.

Roxy separated the kiss and pulled back, taking in the panting, red-faced girl below her. Sam’s mouth hung slightly ajar and her pupils were completely blown out, staring at her with an unfocused gaze that only fueled the fire burning in the black-haired girl.

“Sam,” she whispered. The blonde’s eyes focused a little and she cocked her head slightly, causing Roxy to giggle. She tried to start speaking, but suddenly the words lodged in her throat. Having Sam stare at her while she tried to say what she wanted was way too much pressure. She ducked back down, tucking her face against Sam’s neck. Her skin was hot to the touch.

“I… I want to go all the way with you. I’m ready.”

She could see Sam’s throat bob as she swallowed. Sam shifted until she was leaning up on her elbow, looking down at Roxy. Her mouth was still slightly open, but her eyes were filled with wonder. She nodded her head eagerly. Roxy giggled again. Apparently she’d kissed her so hard she’d forgotten how to speak. She lifted a hand and placed it against Sam’s cheek gently. Her eyelids fluttered at the touch.

“Use your words, Sammie. I need to hear that you want this.”

Sam swallowed again, breaking eye contact for a second as she seemed to come back to herself. She finally shut her mouth and met Roxy’s gaze again, a big smile adorning her face.

“I want to, Roxy. I really, really do.”

Roxy grinned and leaned up to kiss her before whispering in her ear. “Great. Now, be a good girl and take off that shirt, won’t you?”

Sam actually squeaked as she eagerly complied and all but tore her shirt off, discarding it somewhere behind her. Roxy freely drank in all she could see of the girl who was now kneeling over her, breathing heavily. She was still wearing her sports bra, but between her toned abs, muscular shoulders, and finally visible arms, Roxy was more than happy.

Sam leaned down and kissed her hungrily, effectively stealing the breath from Roxy’s lungs. She let her hands explore across Sam’s bare skin, revelling in the way her muscles twitched slightly under her touch. She roamed until she found the rough fabric of her jeans. They slid lower still until they found the swell of Sam’s ass and Roxy took a second to appreciate it before she squeezed. Sam moaned loudly, separating their kiss as she took a second to breathe. She stared at Roxy, half-lidded eyes filled with need. Her cerulean irises flashed red and she kissed her again, leading a trail down to Roxy’s neck. Roxy shivered when she hit a certain spot, whimpering slightly. Sam focused her assault there, kissing and sucking on the skin harshly, lathing her tongue over the spot. She was definitely leaving a bruise, but Roxy couldn’t even consider worrying about it when Sam suddenly bit down harshly.

She bit her lip to stop herself from crying out as endorphins rushed through her body from the sensation. Sam released her neck and kissed it gently, as if in apology. She shifted back up to rest her forehead tenderly against Roxy’s as the shorter girl panted heavily.

“Wh… What was that?” Roxy whimpered. Sam smiled.

“Just marking what’s mine, beautiful.”

Roxy pulled Sam back into a frantic kiss in an attempt to cover up her needy whine. It didn’t really work. She felt a hand slip under her shirt, onto her bare stomach. It slid upwards, closer and closer until it reached bare breast. Roxy had slipped out of her bra when she was changing earlier and by god was she grateful for that now. She let out a keen as Sam gently kneaded her chest, her own hands sliding lower on Sam’s body until they reached her fly. Her hands fumbled as they frantically unclasped the blonde’s pants, sliding over her underwear and slipping between her thighs as-

“What the HELL is going on here?!”

The world paused as her mother’s voice rang through her, leaving nothing but cold dread in its wake. Despite the sheer blind passion and emotion she was experiencing just a few seconds prior, at that moment she had only a single thing running through her head.

I forgot to lock the door.

As quickly as it had stopped, time began moving again. The two teenagers scrambled to separate themselves as Martha stormed over, wielding what appeared to be a TV remote.

“Get off of my daughter, you pervert!” The older woman cried, swatting at Sam with the remote. Sam fell backwards before scrambling towards the window, so focused on escaping that she completely forgot to even open the window, instead ramming headfirst into the glass with a dull thud and rolling to the side, cursing under her breath.

“Mom! Mom, stop! I can explain.”

Roxy wasn’t really so sure that she could explain. They had been caught in a pretty compromising position and it wouldn’t take a genius to figure out what they’d been doing. Roxy stood off the bed with shaky legs, desperately trying to pull her mother’s attention from attacking her scrambling girlfriend, who was now fumbling with the window latch. It opened with a slam and the blonde all but threw herself out, rolling down the porch roof and out of sight, landing on the ground with a painful sounding whump. In the back of her mind, Roxy worried if Sam was okay.

“You’re goddamn right you can explain!” Martha’s shout pulled Roxy’s attention back from the window. “Come here!”

Her hand shot out and gripped Roxy’s upper arm tightly, pulling her along behind her down the hallway. She made a rudimentary effort of struggling against the painful hold, but it proved futile. While she would usually have no issue slipping out of a grab like that with her MMA training, the sheer paralysing intimidation of her mother’s grip made any efforts useless as her mind flashed with memories of being roughly dragged to her inevitable punishment after getting in trouble when she was young, usually leaving a distinctive hand-shaped bruise on her arm from the sheer force of the grip.

Martha dragged Roxy down the stairs and into the kitchen, where she planted herself in front of the table. Her father looked up from his laptop, a mildly confused expression on his face.

“Damien. I just found our daughter in her room with another girl.” Despite the way that she practically spat the last three words, her father’s face did not shift at all.

“Uh.. yeah, I was aware. She introduced herself when she came in. Nice girl. Samantha, I think her name was.” He looked to Roxy as if to confirm it. She nodded, despite the blush forming on her cheeks. “Sorry, I didn’t think you’d have an issue, it’s been a while since Roxy’s had a friend over.”

Martha sighed and released Roxy’s arm, pinching the bridge of her nose in exasperation. “Damien. They were not friends. The girl was shirtless and she practically had her tongue down Roxanne’s throat.”

“Mom!” Roxy buried her face in her hands, trying to cover her embarrassment and make herself as small as possible. Damien sputtered in surprise.

“O-oh… Well… Uh, I’m not sure I needed to hear the details.” Roxy was surprised when she heard no anger or disdain in his voice. She slowly looked up, meeting his surprisingly warm gaze. “While I’m happy to hear that you’ve found someone, please keep things appropriate in this house, or at the very least remember to lock the door.”

“Dad? Y-you’re… okay with it?” Inexplicably, Roxy found a small spark of hope forming in her chest. Damien smiled warmly, face full of paternal love.

“Of course I am, sweetie. Honestly, I’ve had my suspicions for a while now. I noticed the way you looked at that Jackie girl back in primary school.” He chuckled.

Roxy couldn’t help herself, surging forward as her dad stood up and embracing him tightly as tears threatened to spill from her eyes. Why was she even worried? Her dad had always, always been there for her, whenever she needed. He had always been so understanding, if a little overprotective at times, but that wasn’t necessarily a bad thing. She’d always felt so safe in her father’s arms, far more than she ever did embracing her mother. Not that she’d done that in a while.

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“Damien? You can’t seriously be okay with our only daughter being… some lesbian, can you?” The word was said with incredible vitriol and Roxy could feel her father tense up. She turned to Martha, rage bubbling in her chest. She’d had enough of this. She’d dealt with her mother for her whole life, but this was just too much. She couldn’t just ignore it, not after the day she’d had.

“Seriously, mom? Why do you even care?! You’ve never given a single shit about me for basically my entire life, and now that I’ve finally found someone who makes me happy, you decide to step in? You barely even cared when I was assaulted! I could have died and you barely even gave me a passing glance! The only time you ever interact with me is when you either want something from me, or want to guilt-trip me for something that doesn’t meet your bullshit, impossibly high standards! Do you hate me or something? Or are you just that much of a stone-cold bitch that the idea of loving your child just never occurred to-”

SMACK

Roxy’s head whipped to the side. Her cheek started to sting. It took a few seconds of silence for her to register what had happened. Her eyes started to well up, more from the shock than the actual pain.

Her mother had slapped her.

She slowly turned her head back to her mother. Martha’s face was a mask of pure seething rage. She raised her hand again and Roxy moved without thinking.

She was out the back door and into the night before anyone else could take a step.

—

Roxy looked around frantically, but every direction revealed only the same pitch black woods, dimly lit through the canopy by a waxing gibbous moon high in the sky. She was completely and utterly lost.

Stupid. I’m so stupid. What was I thinking? Just because you can navigate the woods during the day doesn’t mean you can at night, dumbass! You don’t even have your phone! Or shoes!

As soon as she began thinking about her bare feet, they began to sting again. Running through the woods barefoot in the dark turned out to not be a great idea, as her feet were now marred by multiple bleeding cuts and scrapes that she was not eager to irritate any further. She slumped against a tree and slowly slid to the ground, frustrated tears leaving tracks down her cheeks. At this rate her only chance of making it home tonight, or anywhere out of the woods, would be if Sam was still out here somewhere. She knew that the blonde must have run into the woods after they were ambushed by her mother, but if she was still out here was a different matter entirely.

Roxy’s throat tightened as her thoughts drifted to her mom. Why did she always have to be so horrible? Not giving her any attention whatsoever only to turn around and yell at her for something completely inconsequential. A small, dark part of Roxy’s mind secretly hoped that, as unlikely as it would be, something bad would happen to her tonight, if only to let her mother see the consequences of pushing her away. She shook her head to clear the thought. As gratifying as it would be for her mother to actually have to face the consequences of her actions for once, that wouldn’t be fair on her dad who, despite the person he was married to, still did his best for her.

The girl leant her head back against the tree and looked up to the moon, shining down on her through the leaves. Roxy had never been a very spiritual person - even if she did go through a Greek god phase back in middle school - but right now, with moonlight cascading down upon her, she found herself wondering. If werewolves were real, maybe there was something more to the moon, too? It was a big part of werewolf mythos, after all. Truth be told, Roxy had always found herself oddly drawn to the celestial body. The window next to her bed had always given her a great view of the moon on clear nights and she always found it oddly comforting to stare up at it in existential wonder, especially after fights with her mom. It always helped her put things into perspective.

The moon had always been there, whenever she looked for it. A constant figure, not just in her life, but all throughout history. It was the same moon that billions of people looked up at every night, just like her. The idea always calmed her, helped her sort out whatever churning thoughts she’d been having. She idly wondered if Sam felt the same way about the moon. Perhaps the fact that she was a werewolf meant that she felt even more of a connection than Roxy did? Roxy shrugged internally. There was simply no way to know, not without asking her. Maybe they should go stargazing together sometime? Sam was seventeen, and apparently not far off from getting her licence. It wasn’t too far-fetched that some time in the future they could drive away, just the two of them, to some place deep in the country, where light pollution doesn’t hide the stars from them. It was a nice thought.

Roxy took a deep breath in and out, visualising all of her current worries slipping out through her exhale. As usual, the moon had calmed her anxious mind, and now she was ready to take another look at the situation and try to find a way out. She looked around and-

A twig snapped, somewhere in the dark.

Roxy jerked her head in the direction of the sound, body tensing up and preparing for danger, but it was far too dark to see anything past a few trees.

didn’t sound too close anyway, probably just some animal.

Roxy took a few slow breaths to calm her breathing and slouched back against the tree. A few moments of silence passed before Roxy began to feel strange. Goosebumps rippled up her arms and the hair on the back of her neck rose. It was still quiet. Her heart-rate picked up a little and her eyes quickly scanned her surroundings but still, nothing. All was silent. Too silent, she realised.

All of the sounds that usually accompany the woods were gone, replaced only by the slight rustling of leaves blowing in the breeze. All the birds chirping in the trees, the tiny animals scurrying through the undergrowth, all were gone. A sickeningly familiar sensation washed over her. She wasn’t alone. She stood up and tensed herself, slipping into a defensive stance and readying for a fight. She really wished she had her taser.

A rush of wind and a flash of green and suddenly Roxy was slammed back against the tree, knocking the air out of her lungs. She would have collapsed right there if it wasn’t for the hand that was holding her up by her face, squeezing her cheeks. Blaine towered over her, silhouetted by the moonlight, only identifiable by the slight luminescence of his green irises and his shaggy, shoulder length curls. He both looked and smelled like he’d been living in the woods since his expulsion. He was missing his shirt and what remained of his school pants were torn and ragged.

“Hello, Roxy. Isn’t it a bit late to be on a hike?” His drawl was slow and hoarse, like it was the first time he had spoken in a while.

Roxy attempted to reverse his hold by hitting the inside of his elbow, but it didn’t budge in the slightest. Any attempt to move only resulted in his hand squeezing tighter on her cheeks until she was sure it would leave a bruise. At least her feet could still touch the floor this time. For now, anyway.

“L-let go of me, you freak!” she growled, slightly muffled by the pressure on her cheeks. “Sam’s out here! Sh-sh-she won’t let you get away with this.”

Blaine laughed, unhinged and raspy sounding. “The blonde bitch isn’t here right now, is she?” He leaned in close enough to whisper in her ear. “And until she gets here, there’s nothing you can do to stop me from making you mine, just like you always should’ve-”

He stopped suddenly, sniffing at the air. He twisted her head sharp enough to cause her vertebrae to crack, baring her neck. She squeaked as he leaned in and sniffed intently at her skin. She belatedly realised that that was the spot Sam had bitten earlier.

He pulled back suddenly. “FUCK!” he shouted, pulling her forward then slamming her against the tree painfully. His grip tightened again as he visibly shook.

“Wh-what?” Roxy asked hesitantly. He growled, a deep sound that reminded her of Artemis in the way that it reverberated through her ribcage.

“That blonde cunt has already marked you as her mate. You were supposed to be MINE!” His crazed eyes flashed even brighter and Roxy could see his teeth lengthening in barely suppressed rage. She didn’t have much time.

“H-huh?! When w-was I e-ever yours?” She grunted in exertion as she slightly shifted herself against his grip, praying that Blaine was too wrapped up in whatever fucked-up fantasy he was lost in to notice. He laughed that insane laugh again.

“Oh, Roxy. Little bird. You were always meant to be mine. Just because blondie has marked you as hers doesn’t mean I can’t still take you. And when I’m finished? I’ll leave your bloody, ruined corpse at her doorstep. I told you, Roxy. I always get what I want. Now…”

Oh fuck.

He pulled her weight off the tree slightly. Go time.

She let her legs go completely limp and grabbed onto Blaine’s forearm. He wasn’t expecting the sudden increase in weight and was pulled forward, his face slamming into the tree above her. His hand went slack in surprise and Roxy easily slipped out of his hold, rolling out from under him and sprinting away into the woods. It didn’t matter which direction right now.

A roar of pure unbridled fury echoed from behind her. Picking up the pace, Roxy tried to ignore the stinging as her already injured feet were torn up by the rough ground. Despite her training, her stamina still wasn’t anything special and she quickly felt the burn in her legs and lungs as they cried out for more oxygen. She ignored them too.

She had no doubt that Blaine was already hot on her trail. She knew her trick was never going to keep him for long, but if she hadn’t gotten away right then she probably wouldn’t have gotten away at all. She had no plan, no idea what she could possibly do against the crazed werewolf. Sure, she might know some MMA now, but what would that possibly do against someone that could bite her throat out in seconds? She wracked her brains, desperate to come up with something, anything.

There was a noise behind her and Roxy dove to the ground. Something rushed over her head and crashed to the ground in front of her. She looked up for a split second before running in a different direction. Blaine’s body looked wrong, not quite human but not his wolf form either. His limbs were too long and covered in dark brown fur and his face was distorted in some sort of half-snout.

“ROXYYYY!” His howl echoed all throughout the forest, hurting her ears with its sheer volume. Her legs were shaking as she ran, almost buckling from sheer exhaustion, but a burst of adrenaline kept her going. She could feel her heart pounding frantically in her chest.

She jumped at a tree, grabbing onto a low-hanging branch and using all of her strength to haul herself up. She made it to the top just in time for a powerful tremor to rock the foundations of the tree. Looking down, she found Blaine snarling up at her, digging his claws into the trunk of the tree and attempting to climb. She’d bought herself some time.

“HELP!” she cried out desperately, praying that Sam was still in the woods somewhere. She was her only chance of getting out of this. Roxy knew she couldn’t outrun him forever. The tree shook again. Blaine was already halfway up. She looked around for anything that could help her, finding only branches. Still, better than nothing, she supposed. Roxy tore a thick branch from the trunk and swung it down, cracking Blaine right in the skull. He yowled in pain and grabbed the branch, tugging it out of Roxy’s hands and pulling her off balance. She fell forwards with a cry, hands flailing out for purchase. They found none.

Roxy screamed as she flipped head over heel in the air before landing on the ground in a painful heap. Thankfully, it didn’t seem like she’d broken anything, but that didn’t stop her entire body from feeling… well, like she’d fallen out of a tree. She carefully tried to pick herself up, but as soon as she moved her head the world spun so much that she fell back down into the dirt. There was a noise behind her and suddenly she found herself flipped onto her back, face to face with a monstrous Blaine. That was it. She was done. Her legs all-but refused to move and even if they did, she was pinned. Blaine closed in for her throat, teeth bared. Roxy was at least thankful that she’d managed to rile him up enough for him to forget the other part of his plan. If he was going to do that, she really didn’t want to be around for it. A silent tear trickled down her face as she looked up at her end.

I’m sorry, Sam.

~~~

Roxy hit the mat with a thud. Clarissa, her instructor, offered a hand and she took it, pulling herself back up.

The taller woman smiled at her supportively. “Remember, Roxy. When facing a stronger opponent, aim for the eyes and the throat. It doesn’t matter how much stronger or bigger I am, I’m not gonna be able to flip you if I can’t breathe.”

~~~

A loud bark startled Blaine. He whipped his head in the direction of the sound, bringing his weight off of Roxy’s arm for the quickest moment. Her hand closed around a rock and she swung it straight into the werewolf’s windpipe, knocking him off of her, coughing and sputtering. A golden blur flew past, crashing into Blaine and sending them both rolling. They separated and the golden beast planted herself between Roxy and the other werewolf.

Artemis. Sam. She was here. Roxy would have laughed out loud in sheer joy if she wasn’t still gasping for breath after Blaine’s weight had squeezed it all out. She pushed herself up as much as she could and leaned against a nearby tree. The darker werewolf pulled himself to his feet, rubbing his throat gingerly.

“You just can’t help yourself, can you?” he snarled. His eyes flashed and an awful cracking sound filled the air as his body deformed even further from its hybrid form. What was left of his clothing fell apart in the shift and in only a few seconds, a large, shaggy, dark brown wolf stood where Blaine once did. He wasn’t quite as big as Sam was, but he was still about as tall as Roxy. His snout was shorter and broader than Sam’s, though his body was longer and thinner.

Sam barked in warning, setting herself low to the ground as her growl deepened. Blaine snarled in response before flinging himself at the golden wolf. Sam moved like lightning, snapping up from her crouched position and catching Blaine’s throat between her jaws, pushing him to the ground. He struggled against her grip, kicking and scratching her, but Sam didn’t budge. One of his claws caught against her ribs, cutting along her side. She yelped, but still her grip never wavered. She was trying to make him submit, Roxy realised.

Sam shook her head aggressively, trying to cause more damage and get the stubborn wolf to submit faster. He kept thrashing about, trying to wiggle out but ultimately achieving nothing. Eventually, Sam got sick of waiting. She released his neck and, just as quickly as before, caught one of his front legs in her mouth. She tightened her grip and aggressively thrashed until there was a sickening snap and Blaine started yelping non-stop.

Sam released him and walked back to Roxy cooly. Blaine was thrashing about in agony. He managed to get to his feet and for a second the girl was terrified that he still wasn’t done, but he turned and limped off into the woods, whimpering all the way. Something wet and warm brushed across her face and Roxy’s attention was brought back to her girlfriend. Sam nuzzled her head against Roxy’s affectionately, clearly asking if she was okay.

Roxy grabbed the wolf by her mane and pulled her down into her lap, hugging her head tightly as she suddenly broke down into sobs. Sam dutifully laid down and let Roxy cry.

“I-I-I was s-s-so scared! I th-thought he was gonna k-kill me! He said he was gonna… Oh god, Sam. Thank you so much!”

Sam stiffened, her ears pinning back. It took her a few seconds to realise what she’d done. Sam didn’t move, though. She remained in place until Roxy’s sobs eventually petered out into sniffles. Once she’d stopped, Sam lifted her head up slightly and started gently licking her face, prompting a giggle. She always knew how to make her feel better.

Sam pulled away and stepped back as Roxy wiped her eyes. That awful cracking sound from before filled the air as the wolf changed shape. Before long, Sam, the human, stood before her. And she was…

Completely naked. Oh. A sight for sore eyes, that was for sure.

“So… You knew?” Sam asked hopefully, gripping her bicep nervously. Roxy did her best to keep her eyes on Sam’s face, instead of her… well, everything else. Given the fact that Sam was standing and she was sitting, it was not an easy task. Talk about emotional whiplash.

“I-I… Um.” She swallowed, her face no doubt as red as a tomato. “S-S-Sam, you… uh…”

Don’t look down don’t look down don’t look down don’t look down.

Roxy’s eyes slipped down.

Oh. Nice.

It was at that point that Sam realised what had caught Roxy’s attention. She looked down at herself and squealed, quickly covering herself with her hands and running behind a tree. Roxy snapped out of her gay stupor and picked herself up, attempting to limp over on her bloodied feet.

“Sam! Sammie, I am so sorry, I didn’t mean to look! It was an accident, just the heat of the-”

The sound of laughter from behind the tree cut her off. Those rolling, bouncing giggles that she loved so much. Sam wasn’t mad.

“Roxy, it’s okay! You just caught me off guard, is all. More importantly, are you okay? Physically, I mean… I know you’re probably feeling…” She cut herself off. “Your feet didn’t look so good, will you be able to get home?” Sam, understandably, remained behind the tree as she spoke.

Roxy sighed and planted herself back on the ground. “Honestly, I don’t even know how to get home from here, even if I could walk on my own.” She tucked her knees against her chest protectively. “I don’t even know if I want to go home right now.”

Sam whistled lowly. “I take it your mom wasn’t happy?”

Roxy scoffed. “That’s an understatement. She dragged me downstairs and told my dad.” She smiled a bit. “He was actually supportive, though, and mom was outnumbered. We got into an argument and she… she hit me, so I ran. Got lost in the woods, ran into Blaine, and… and here we are.” she sighed deeply, resting her face against her knees. A pang of leftover fear struck through her and she found herself tearing up again, but she held it back. It was over and she was still alive. That’s what mattered.

Sam was silent for a moment. “Alright, how about this? I’ll change back into my wolf, we’ll go get my clothes - don’t worry, they’re not far - I’ll take you back to yours and one of us can sneak through your window to grab you some supplies. After that, we head back to mine. Then… I think we’re probably due for a conversation, huh?”

Roxy chuckled wetly. “Yeah, probably.”

When she next spoke, Sam’s voice was soft. “You… you’re not scared of me?”

Roxy smiled, even though Sam couldn’t see it. “No. You know that I’ve had my suspicions for a while, but I put two and two together back when I fought that cultist guy. Well, it was actually Leif that figured out you were specifically a werewolf, but I’m sure I was getting there.” She chuckled. “Leif is fine with it by the way.”

“Huh.” Sam paused for a moment. “Well, let's get going, shall we?”

—

Blaine limped through the woods, cradling his broken arm tenderly.

I can’t believe I lost to her again! If that bitch hadn’t been so fucking possessive of Roxy, we all could have walked away happily. But no! Just because she’s a direwolf she gets to keep her all to herself? The entire town to herself?! What a delusional bitch! She has no clue how the world actually works. Territory doesn’t work like that! It hasn’t for, like, hundreds of years! There are at least three other werewolves in Dewsbury that she doesn’t even know about! Would she lose her shit at them, too? We just wanna live our goddamn lives! Stupid bitch. Learn your own fucking culture.

He continued on like this for quite some time, muttering and mumbling to himself, until his foot snagged on a root. He collapsed to the ground, jarring his arm. He cried out in pain and tried to get up, but his energy was spent. He fell into a sobbing heap of self-pity. He’d lost everything. His parents kicked him out, so he came here to try and find a new beginning, but his own obsession with what he couldn’t have ruined that. He had no more money to keep paying for a motel room, and he’d ruined his last set of pants by transforming earlier. Unless he wanted to go streaking to steal more money, he was done.

A twig snapped and he shot up, snarling at it and baring his claws with his good arm. A middle-aged man stood before him, hands clasped behind his back. He was dressed in a simple sweater and slacks, not at all clothing for a hike. His hazel eyes were oddly captivating and Blaine found himself putting his claws away.

“You’ve been hurt, haven’t you, child?”

Blaine nodded.

“I can help you, if you want? Come with me, and I will make it so you never have to feel pain again. We can give you the strength to take revenge on whoever did this to you.”

“Wh-what’s the catch?”

“There is no catch. You just have to come with me.” The man smiled warmly and stuck his hand out. Blaine stared at it for a few seconds.

That was a good deal. That was a very good deal.

Blaine took his hand.