William felt a slender hand was shaking him with surprising force. “Come on get up, I have better things to do than be here babysitting you.” The voice was familiar, and William forced his heavy eyelids to open. He saw a drape of black hair. “Amanda?” His voice sounded strained even to his ears.
“Jesus, you sound terrible.” She turned around and her deep brown eyes stared hard at him. “But that’s not my problem, get up, Efraim wants you in the city square in ten minutes.”
William shook off thoughts of sleep and jumped up, nearly spilling himself on his floor. His leg muscles were stiff as cord wood and his body wouldn’t obey his commands. In a stiff toy soldier walk he was able to get up and get himself dressed. He grabbed his toiletries and hobbled to the nearest bathroom. The more he moved the easier moving became. The soreness didn’t leave his body but at least his body moved a little more dexterously than the wax it had been molded from when he woke up. William was able to manage a respectable run back to his room. When he got there Amanda was gone. He dumped his toiletries on top of his dresser and without pausing turned around and ran out the door.
He forced his body to move, working out the soreness in his legs and shoulders. It didn’t take him long to get to the city square. When he got there, he found the rest of his companions in a state similar to him. Katherine was flexing and rotating her shoulders. Nicolas was bending his back in multiple directions and Charles was massaging his neck and upper shoulders. He came to a stop and looked around.
“Where are Aceso and Achelois?” William asked.
Katherine looked up at him, but it was Nicolas who answered. “Ares came and took them away about thirty seconds before you showed up.”
William didn’t have time to say any more as the sound of heavy footsteps came up behind them. “Well, all bright eyed and bushy tailed this morning I see, good,”
William turned toward the exotically accented voice to see Efraim looking at the four of them. “Today we will be working with Aceso and Achelois in our werewolf forms.” William felt a jump inside his chest. He was interested to see how what he learned yesterday in human form translated to his werewolf form. “However, first off we run.” He said this last with a smile. William began to have the feeling that Efraim was a sadist. “What are you waiting for, pups, let’s go,” There was nothing else to be said and the four of them took off jerkily into the morning two hour run.
The pace was faster than the previous day, either that or it was just his body unwilling or unable to keep up the speed from yesterday. Through his pack bond with Aceso he was still much better off than the other three. His body relaxed and the rusty hinges that used to be his knees eventually smoothed themselves out and he was able to run without much difficulty.
If you spot this narrative on Amazon, know that it has been stolen. Report the violation.
Efraim directed them back to the city square, just as he had the previous day. Nicolas looked as ashen has he had the day before, but he didn’t throw up. William nodded at Nicolas’ improvement. The four of them were given fifteen minutes to eat. They made their way to the cafeteria, and it was Charles who once again led them out of the cafeteria when it was time to leave. William noted that Nicolas had eaten a good deal more this morning than he had yesterday. None of them seemed to be as tired as they had been the day before and Nicolas looked a whole lot better.
Efraim led them away from the city square back to the building next to their training room. Aceso, Achelois, and Ares were already there in werewolf form. “Get your butts out of those clothes and change into werewolf form, you have thirty seconds.”
It took William a whole eight of those thirty seconds to realize what Efraim had said. He couldn’t help but turn his back on Katherine while he dropped the clothes from his body.
“What’s that matter, William? Are you shy all of a sudden?” Efraim asked with all the empathy of a refrigerator. William glanced up at the combat master. Katherine seemed to have no problem getting her clothes off, although she did seem to twist herself away from the rest of them giving only a profile glimpse of herself as she stood fully naked for half a heartbeat and her form dissolved into that globulous shadow that he had seen from Jacob all those days ago and coalesced back into the beautiful cream-colored werewolf that he was familiar with. William ripped his shirt off and went through the transformation. He always closed his eyes for some reason and when he opened them, he was his usual seven-foot tall, tan furred shot through with thin black stripes werewolf self. He let out the smallest of sighs and smiled at his familiar claws and the inhuman strength that he always felt while being in his werewolf form.
Efraim nodded to the four of them. “Very good, you’ll get over your modesty, William. Our bodies are tools, there is nothing magical about the body of the opposite sex.” Efraim looked at all four of them. “Your bodies are not something to be embarrassed about, nor are they something to be gawked at,” he said this as he shot a cold stare at Nicolas. “They are flesh and blood.” Efraim looked over at Katherine. “What you have to learn is control over your conditioned responses to a naked body male and female, but mostly for the males.” Efraim paused and glanced at Katherine then back to the boys of the group. “A woman’s body is a tool just like a man’s. It is special but should not, and will not, be the focus of attention. Just as a woman’s body should not be only thought of sexually, the male body should not, and will not, be looked at with derision, either.” Efraim took a step back from the four of them so he could address them all at once. “The members of your pack deserve respect. If I hear any kind of comment or see any kind of disrespect toward your fellow pack mates you will not like how I deal with that, do you understand?” The four of them nodded. “Good, now we can get to work.”