That early June day was unbearably hot. Although the windows were open to keep the classroom from turning into an oven, the morning sun still heated the air that was pouring inside. The only relief the teenagers had was the fact that they didn't have to listen to boring lessons until they were let out at lunchtime. This was their last day of school and the last time they would sit at their desks. For this reason, there was an air of excitement in the atmosphere.

Rosa, their class tutor, was talking to Sara about her future career and about taking the university entrance exam, something the girl had already said was not possible for her. The report cards had not yet been handed out, but from what Sofia was able to hear thanks to her keen hearing, Sara had done well enough for Rosa to suggest with some insistence that she should think about it. It wasn't that Sara didn't want to, it was that she couldn't. Her family depended on her to bring money home and they couldn't afford to support her during the five years that a career lasted. Her situation was complicated.

Sofia, her cheek resting on her hand in a gesture of boredom, looked at her other friend. Again he was restless and he fidgeted in the chair as if he was not comfortable in any posture. Occasionally, he rubbed the base of his back as if he had some kind of discomfort. He was nervous, and she couldn’t blame him considering how much he had at stake, but it wasn’t only that. The moon had been full three days ago, but it was still visible in the sky. She knew he was dealing with what he called partial changes, which meant that his fangs were larger and his tail was hidden inside his pants. Dave had told her it was really uncomfortable.

The heat surely wasn’t helping. From time to time he tugged at the collar of his t-shirt, as if he wanted to let some air in to cool down his body. He didn’t sweat. The other boys did and that allowed them to regulate their body temperature a bit but he didn't, just like Sofia. The girl managed to cool herself by trying to keep her face as far away as possible from other people's eyes to allow herself a few seconds of discreet panting. It was imperfect but she couldn't do anything else without attracting attention. Dave had been withstanding the heat all that time without even opening his lips and he was beginning to swelter.

“Pant,” she whispered in a voice so quiet she knew only he would be able to hear.

Dave looked at her, then swept his gaze around the rest of the classroom. Their classmates were scattered all over the place, chatting with their friends while they waited for Rosa to hand out the report cards. It was easier when everyone was facing forward, she knew it well.

“You have to pant," Sofia insisted.

“I know..." he said, and in his whisper came a canine whimper that let him know he was taking a very big risk.

Trembling a little from the effort he was making to maintain control, Dave put his hands in his hair and ducked his head to try to hide his face between his arms. Then he opened his lips and Sofia saw his sides start to move faster. As much as a cinanthrope tried to suppress their natural instincts, the body was wise and forced them to use them. Not panting meant a real risk of suffering a heat stroke, and before it came to that the instincts were going to take over. Sofia knew this, she had suffered it all her life and she always ended up panting when she was hot, whether she tried to avoid it or not.

“Well, children, I'm going to go see if the report cards are ready and I'll be right back. Don't make a racket and bother your classmates in the lower grades,” said Rosa, who had just finished talking to Sara and had gotten up from her chair.

As was always the case when a teacher left, the students began to talk louder and louder, and a group of them started to play hangman using the blackboard. The game caught other classmates' attention, and within minutes the letters were flying around the classroom amidst laughter and excited shouts. The only one who wasn't participating was Dave, who was still panting, his gaze focused on his desk, and he was visibly nervous. Sofia bit her lip and walked over to him to catch his attention with a gentle caress on the blonde hair on his arm.

“Hey, relax. You passed all your exams, even the Stuck-up's ones. It's all good,” she said with a smile with which she tried to cheer him up.

Dave took a deep breath and forced his breathing to return to a normal rhythm.

“I know, it's just that this marks the home stretch. Soon we're going to take the entrance exams and in a few months we could be in Baeza... God, it's getting so real it's making me feel a little dizzy.” He looked down at his hands, which had begun to tremble.

“You've been able to handle the Stuck-up. You'll get through this, you'll see,” Sofia grabbed his hand to give it a gentle squeeze.

“Thank you. How do you manage to be so calm?” he asked while he closed his fingers around her hand in a gesture of affection.

“Let's just say I've learned to keep a cool head in tense situations. Getting nervous isn't going to help me pass my exams.” Sofia shrugged. “I imagine that never having changed helps, too. I feel the moon, but it doesn't affect me the same way it affects you,” she said with a small, apologetic smile. She didn't know if she should be relieved or annoyed by that fact.

Dave sighed and let his eyes wander to the window. In the sky, like a translucent ghost, he could see the waning moon. Absent-mindedly, he stretched out his leg. On the pant’s cloth the silhouette of his tail was subtly visible.

“These are the worst days. You don't know how hard I'm fighting to keep from changing. It's... uncomfortable, and the temptation is very strong,” he confessed, embarrassed.

“We can go for a run later, so you can let yourself go a bit. You don't necessarily have to do it as a human,” suggested the girl, who couldn't help but blush

“I'd like that, but I don't want to take advantage of your friendship, either. I guess running with a dog isn't as fun as going for a walk and chatting with a normal guy,” Dave licked his lips and looked away. “I'm... aware that I'm too wild. I like the forest, I feel relaxed and free when I’m there. I don't want you to feel obliged to come with me because I'm not able to function as a human being.”

“Hey! You're my best friend and I like spending time with you. Stop thinking that your nature is a problem, okay?” Sofia gave his hand a squeeze and, when he looked up, he met her encouraging smile. “Besides, I had a good time with you the other night. You're teaching me a lot about my nature that I didn't know,” she added, her smile softening to a shy one.

“Thank you. I... God, I can't tell you how much I appreciate your company on full moon nights. I... I like what I am, but I felt so lonely.”

“We're pack animals,” she said.

“Yes, we are.”

He smiled, and in doing so showed how much he relaxed when he was with her because the tips of his fangs came into view. They weren't so big that their classmates on the other side of the room would notice, but it was obvious they weren't human. With flushed cheeks she had to admit that this was another feature she found strangely attractive. It matched his pretty boy face, made him look more wild and dangerous, like the predator he was.

“Hey, Rodri, what are you doing this weekend? Would you like to go hunt some wood pigeons?” said Luis.

Both Sofia and Dave frowned. Those two broke the rules as they pleased. They could have reported them a long time ago, but not only was Luis' father one of the town’s Civil Guard officers, but also, being a small place where everyone knew each other, they were less inclined to pursue those kind of offenses. Not every officer was honest, despite wearing the uniform. The only remarkable thing was that, since the week he had been missing, Rodrigo had radically stopped talking about werewolves and black witches. That didn't change the fact that he had become the target of cowards and wretches, but it had made him and Luis become like brothers again.

“I can't, man. I have... something important to do,” Rodrigo said.

“Damn, man, you're always busy lately,” Luis protested.

“Maybe he has to go look for his werewolf,” said one of Lola's friends.

“Auuuuuu!” Another one tried to imitate the howl of a wolf with that pathetic imitation they used to do.

All the girls in the little group began to laugh. All except Lola, who squinted her eyes and clicked her tongue before getting up to approach Sofia and Dave. The girl had been distancing herself from those girls to spend more time with the three friends, much to Sofia’s displeasure who still couldn't stand her. However, she had changed a little, that was evident. It seemed as if the three friend’s influence, who demanded others nothing more than to be a decent human being, had made Lola abandon her arrogance and pride to start being a good person.

Rodrigo put his hands to his head and clenched his jaw tightly. His eyes bugged out in an expression of utter despair. Months had gone by and they never got tired of humiliating him whenever they could. Not just some of his classmates, since it really wasn't all of them, but people from all over the school as well. Van Helsing they called him, and not in a good way. It was bad luck that a movie about a hunter of supernatural creatures featuring werewolves had just come out. Not all of the class participated in the humiliation, but most of them looked the other way. Yeah, she did too, Sofia thought biting her lip. Rodrigo was a wretch who hadn't minded pointing a gun at a creature he suspected could transform into a man, but she couldn't justify this bullying.

“Well, that's enough, don't you think?” Dave slammed his hand on the table and stood up as tall as he was.

The blow was forceful and abrupt enough to take everyone by surprise. A stony silence spread through the classroom and thirty pairs of eyes focused on the boy, who was slowly sweeping his gaze over all his classmates. Sofia saw in him an attitude she had never seen him before. He stood as tall as he was and raised his shoulders and head with integrity and pride, but he was the image of serenity and strength, like a gallant tree. His breathing was slow as he looked at the rest of his class, and the bulge in the back of his trousers showed that he would have raised his tail if he could..

“You've been harassing one of your classmates for three months over a stupid thing. Not just you, you've ended up involving the whole school. Does that seem normal to you?” He said while he swept his gaze around the class, a gaze so intense that it made many of them duck their heads.

“He says he saw a werewolf and a witch in the woods,” said one of Lola's friends, emboldened.

“He did, yes, and that justifies what you're doing to him? Why?” Dave stared so hard at the girl that she ducked her head. “Think about it for a moment. He thinks he saw a werewolf and tells you about it. You could have chosen not to believe him, to ignore him and let it go, but what you do is laugh at him and humiliate him every single day. He hasn't talked about it for months, but you keep insisting. Which of you is worse?”

Silence fell again. Some people looked at Dave in wonder, seeing in him just the light that some need to find their way, to dare to speak out. Others lowered their heads in shame as they became aware of what they were doing. They had gone along with the crowd without a second thought, just because there had been no one to punch the table and tell them it was wrong. A small group refused to admit that they had done anything wrong, but the hatred in their eyes showed that, deep down, they knew he was right.

“He's a great catch. Don't let him get away,” Lola whispered in Sofia's ear, causing her to blush visibly.

Then it happened. The miracle. The first step that inspires others to dare take their own had taken effect. Another classmate stood up and he too looked at the rest of them, one of many who, without participating in the outrage, had remained silent so that he would not be caught in the dirt. Then another girl did the same. Before they knew it, several students were on their feet, staring that rest of the class with the same annoyance as the boy.

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“David is right. That's enough, don't you think?”

“He says he saw a werewolf. So what? Why are you doing this to him?”

“You're really quite pitiful.”

Gradually more voices rose, emboldened by the first ones. The bullies, seeing themselves cornered, tried to defend themselves because they refused to accept that they had done something wrong. Rodrigo looked around the class surprised at the amount of support he was receiving. Yet he was still the same miserable bastard he had always been, the bastard who was bullied for talking about witches and werewolves, not for saying he wanted to kill a feral dog. For that alone Sofia could have no sympathy for him, but neither was she going to defend attitudes such as those displayed by some of her classmates.

“It seems you've managed to inspire the class.” Sofia gave Dave a little nudge on the arm.

“It seems so.” A little embarrassed, the boy scratched the back of his head and twisted his lips into a nervous smile.

A grimace of pain appeared on his face and wiped the smile from his lips. Dave gritted his teeth to stifle the moan that had risen to his throat and hunched over his desk. Sofia grabbed him by the arm to help him stay up and felt the electric throbbing of muscles under his skin. By now she already knew what it was and looked at him worried. The moon's influence was strong, and that meant his control over the change was more precarious.

“Hey, can you hold it back?” she whispered.

“I… I think…” he answered, and for a fleeting moment Sofia was able to see his fangs. They were larger.

“Dave?” Lola asked, concerned.

“Don't worry. There's nothing wrong with him, it's just a stress contracture. It will go away in a moment,” said Sofia.

“Yes, don't worry, I'm fine," the boy replied, while trying to keep his breathing slow and deep. “I'm going to the bathroom for a moment to stretch my legs a bit and get some water. This heat is suffocating.”

After apologizing with a small smile, the boy hurried off to the bathroom. Sofia imagined he wasn't just going to get some water as he had said. In those months, Dave had told her many things about what it was like to be a cinanthrope and live among humans while hiding his nature. If for her it felt oppressive, and the only thing she repressed was her behavior, for him it was outright exhausting. He had admitted that he managed to endure because, when he was alone, he very rarely remained human. He slept in his natural form every night, many of them in the forest, because he rested better when his body was not trying to change. However, when the moon's influence was strongest, even that was insufficient to help him maintain control, especially in situations where intense emotions surfaced.

“Marry him. I mean, baby, you've seen what he's like. He's going to treat you like a queen,” said Lola, perhaps a little too excited.

“Lola...” Sofia rolled her eyes.

“He adores you!” she insisted.

“We're just friends,” she replied, blushing visibly.

“But you'd love to be something more, wouldn't you?”

“It's not just up to me, and I don't think he likes me. We spend a lot of time together, I would have noticed.”

“No way you really believe that, girl. He was on the verge of kissing you, we all saw it,” said Lola.

Sofia sighed, feeling her cheeks reddening even more. Yes, that was true, and they'd been a lot closer on New Year's Eve, but they had never talked about it. A lot of things had happened after that, things that had brought them closer, that had made their friendship something very special. They shared a huge secret and the knowledge of the supernatural, and she had seen him in all possible ways, much to his embarrassment. However, despite the complicity between them, they had never again come close to kissing.

As she pondered those thoughts, Rodrigo abruptly stood up and stormed angrily toward the classroom’s door. Sofia felt the hair on the back of her neck bristle. The boy, who was white with rage, had tensed all his muscles and his fists were so tight that his knuckles had turned pale. Confused, Sofia exchanged a quick glance with Luis, who shrugged, and an icy chill began to run through her veins.

“Oh, shit...”

Outside there was a commotion, a roar of unleashed rage followed by the unmistakable sound of glass shattering. The whole class, still immersed in their discussion, gradually fell silent. For Sofia that was all she needed to rush to the door. As she ran past Sara, she nodded at her and the girl stood up brusquely and followed her. A handful of other classmates also joined them, mainly because they wanted to know what had happened, not because they had any intention of helping.

As they stepped out into the hallway, they saw that the door to the toilets was open, and there stood Rodrigo, shaking with rage right in front of Dave, who was holding onto the sink and was breathing heavily. His fangs were somewhat visible under his trembling lip, curled in an expression of anger that he was trying unsuccessfully to contain, and a deep warning growl rumbled in his throat. The mirror right next to him was broken and there was blood between the pieces.

“No one asked you to stand up for me!”

“Get away from him, you ungrateful bastard!” Sofia stood in front of her friend to try to hide him while Luis and Sara tried to take Rodrigo away.

“I don't want your help, you monster! Do you understand me? I don't want your help!” the boy shouted as the other two dragged him out of the bathroom.

He was making such a scene that the teachers from other classes, alerted by his screams, came out of their classrooms and surrounded Rodrigo to try to calm him down. Rosa, who had just arrived, hurried to ask her co-workers what had happened there. While all this was going on Dave, who had begun to tremble and had a grimace of restrained pain, finished cleaning his hands as he had been doing before Rodrigo assaulted him. Sofia realized they were more than clean, and was looking for a way to distract himself.

“Why did he do that?” Sofia asked.

“The fuck I know!” spat Dave, his voice deep and husky due to the growl that had seeped into it.

Then he left the bathroom and ran downstairs, ignoring Rosa's calls. He was losing control and needed to change, and he couldn't do it in front of his classmates. Sofia went after him and soon reached the hallway, away from the voices that had become a muffled echo coming from the upper floors. Although she had lost sight of him, she had no trouble following the scent trail he had left behind, even when it was mixed with those of so many other people.

After a while she found him behind the building, leaning against the red brick wall and panting heavily. He was still dressed in his shirt and jeans, but he was no longer in his human form, and his thick fur filled the fabric like a fluffy cushion. When he heard her approaching, he laid back his ears and turned towards her with both his mouth and eyes wide open in an expression than was between surprise and fear. All his muscles tensed at the same time, and he seemed to be one bad scare away from bolting like a frightened animal.

“Hey, relax, it’s just me.” Sofia raised her hands and tried to calm him down with a relaxed smile and the quiet voice she would use with a nervous animal.

Dave let out a breath of contained air and shook the stress from his body.

“How are you?" Sofia caressed the fur on his bare arm to provide support and reassurance.

Dave looked away sharply and let out a low growl of frustration, but he did not reject the physical contact. After a few seconds during which Sofia let him grumble to his heart's content, the cinanthrope closed his eyes and pressed a hand to his chest. His breathing started to become erratic again and pain flashed across his face as the fur retreated and his appearance became more human again. When the process was over, Dave spent a good while panting as if exhausted. Sofia never ceased to be amazed at how easily he changed into dog form, and how difficult it was at times for him to look human again. However, he had told her that this was normal.

“Better?” Sofia asked.

“Yes,” he said, still panting. He then retrieved his trainers from the floor and sat on the sidewalk’s kerb to put them back on.

“What was that? Does he know you're the werewolf he was chasing? Because he spoke as if he did,” Sofia asked as she sat down next to him.

“Yes, he does. Bloody Guardians!” He bared his fangs again and growled.

“Guardians?” Sofia tilted her head to one side.

Dave sighed and licked his lips.

“They are... the police of the supernatural world, so to speak, a group of civil servants who make sure that the human world doesn't find out about us. They manipulate the news to make anything abnormal seem like an everyday event, they control the internet, they recruit humans with special talents to help them keep our existence hidden, and they punish any supernatural being who threatens the veil of secrecy.” A deep growl crept into his voice, and Sofia couldn't help but shiver at his words.

“Fuck. And the government hasn't heard about this?”

“The government is well aware of it. The Guardians have infiltrated all government agencies and law enforcement corps,” Dave said, and then let out a quiet sigh. “The Guardians are not villains, but they are not the heroes of the story either. They're a group of organized thugs who are trying to protect us, and I can't blame them either.”

“Protect us? How? By forcing us to keep quiet and threatening to punish us if we don't?” she spat, raising her voice.

“I didn't say I agreed with their methods, but I understand why they do it,” Dave grumbled. “Sofia, we cinanthropes were revered for a long time. We were protectors and providers for our communities. The human population increased, the great empires fell and humans began to fear us for the very same things they once revered us for. We were hunted to the point where we had no choice but to hide. It was the only thing that allowed us to survive. The Guardians were born out of this, out of small groups that organized themselves to give protection and shelter to cinanthropes.”

“The Guardians have recruited Rodrigo,” Sofia guessed, remembering the adult cinanthrope’s words.

Dave nodded and a whimper emerged from his throat.

“It's what they usually do when a human discovers the truth. They're training him to be an assassin, a... a kind of hitman, not unlike a hunter. It's a horrible fate,” he said, shivering a little. “I... I know I shouldn't have done it, that I shouldn't have shown myself to a human, but I didn't know how else to drive him out of the forest.”

“Hey! He didn't leave you much of a choice. He had become obsessed with you and was becoming a danger to everyone.” Sofia took his hand and gave it a gentle squeeze.

“I know, but that doesn't change the fact that I've ruined his life.” Dave licked his lips and looked away.

“What about you? Are you going to be a guardian too?” Sofia's voice trembled a little.

Dave sighed and looked down at the floor. Dejected, he nodded.

“I have no choice. It's the price to pay for what I did but...” He looked her in the eye, and there was a glint of determination in his gaze. “I'm going to be a watcher, a protector of those like us. My job will be to find other cinanthropes and bring them to safety like Martin and his mate do. I'm not proud of the idea of being part of the Guardians, but at least I want to do some good.”

Sofia gave his hand a gentle squeeze, and smiled.

“It suits you.”

“Thank you, though,” he sighed and looked up at the sky, “I'd like to be able to help on my own, without having to go through the guardians. Deep down I just want a quiet, simple life. I don't want to be a hero, I just want things to be different, to be accepted and not have to hide anymore. You'll think I'm an idealistic idiot,” he said, with a chuckle.

“Not at all. It would be a nice future,” Sofia said.

“Yes, it would…”

Dave smiled and nuzzled her head affectionately, as he would have done had he been in his real appearance, and Sofia couldn't help but let out a soft giggle. When he pulled away from her, their gazes met, and a smile of complicity appeared on their lips. A future where they didn't have to hide, where they could be themselves without fear, a future without hunters, without danger, without rejection. It was too idealistic, Sofia knew that, because humans are cruel to those who are different. Yet, as their hands tangled in something like a silent promise that sent a warm shiver down her spine, she wanted to believe that such a future was possible.