C2 TWO

That It Should Come

ROSE

That it should come to this!

— William Shakespeare, Hamlet

Dear Diary,

The dreams are becoming more intense, more real every night. Animals growing inside of me, taking me over as I become not just wolf, but deer. The hunter and the hunted. Last night, though, was the first time I flew. My body shrunk, stretched, morphed into that of a great eagle, and I took to the sky. The wind sang to me, guiding me as my wings pumped hard, each feather attuned to every current of air surrounding me.

It was heady, exciting, intoxicating. I didn’t want it to end.

Then panic hit. I couldn’t land, couldn’t find anything solid to gain a foothold. The world had turned to air, and I was forever forced to flap my wings, soaring until I could do it no longer. Then.

Then I spent forever falling into nothing.

I NEVER TIRED of running through the woods with my husband—never tired of calling Derek O'Conner my husband for that matter. He'd told me about the visit from the Vatican, about what it could mean for us, and so we ran. To release frustration and fear, to feel the power of the hunt coursing through us, to forget human worries and embrace the instincts of our wolf natures.

Derek had grown up with this, had spent his youth shifting into a wolf, running through the wild. I'd only embraced this life the night of our wedding, and it still amazed me.

All my senses were heightened in wolf form. Although as a human I was stronger, faster, more attuned to the world around me than the average person, it was nothing compared to being a wolf, to feeling my padded paws digging into the fresh earth, the sun on my back warming my fur, the world changing around me, coming alive with a new vibrancy humans could never begin to understand.

Between this and my new witch powers, I'd had a lot to adapt to, a lot to learn. No wonder I'd been having dreams and nightmares.

When the world had disappeared and we were no longer in danger of being stumbled upon by curious students, we halted in a clearing by a lake, shifting back into human form as we basked in the sun.

Derek rolled to his side and ran his hand down the length of my naked body, his rough palms grazing my hard nipples and dipping between my legs, teasing my center.

My mind was still turned inward, still part wolf as my body responded to his. My legs spread, the summer sun warming my most intimate parts as he positioned himself over me.

"Rose, you have no idea how beautiful you are." His voice was low and gravelly. His blue eyes brightly contrasted against his tan skin and dark hair.

I stroked his chest, the muscles hard and flexed, tracing lines over his black tribal tattoos. "You're not so bad yourself."

My body ached for him, as it always did. For too long we couldn't touch for fear of my power, but now we were free to explore each other and we never missed an opportunity to do so.

I moaned as Derek spread me further, scooting down to slide his tongue inside me.

Pleasure pulsed in me, winding tight in my belly as he licked and sucked, his fingers pushing in and out, until I screamed like an animal, coming so hard I kicked at him.

He held my legs down, drawing out the orgasm, then slamming his cock into me as my pussy squeezed him with each thrust.

Nails digging into his back, I begged for more. Faster. Harder. I still liked it rough, even if I didn't need it to control my power. I enjoyed walking that edge between pleasure and pain.

My body, lost in our wild passion, bucked and then froze.

Panic seized me.

Derek withdrew, holding me in his arms, his eyes wide with fear. "Rose. What's wrong? Rose?"

I couldn't speak.

Couldn't answer.

It felt like I was shifting into wolf, but that shouldn't be happening. Sweating, hot and cold, shivering and dying inside, I latched on to my humanity.

Images of other animals danced through my mind as my body tried to morph into them.

"No!" I screamed, clinging to my husband, until my muscles relaxed, the panic releasing me.

I slumped into his arms, crying as he stroked my hair.

"What happened, Rose? What was that?"

I shook my head. "I don't know. Maybe I'm still learning to control my shifting."

We lay together, all lustful thoughts gone, with my head on his chest, his heartbeat soothing me.

"Derek?"

"Hmm?"

"Why can we only shift into wolf? Why not other animals, if we're shifters?"

Derek's body tensed under me. "We just don't. It's dangerous to try. Dangerous to even think about."

"But it's possible?" My dreams haunted me, and I had to know where they came from.

"It's not done. Let's just drop it, okay?"

"Okay."

The mood broken, Derek sat up. "We should get back. You've got a class to teach soon."

He felt distant, moody, but I didn't understand what I'd done to piss him off.

We shifted back to wolves, the process simple for me—nothing like what I'd just gone through—and ran back to the mansion with little joy this time.

"Who has a template ready to show me?" I asked the small class. Seven students sat in overstuffed chairs and couches with their laptops perched on their knees. "Remember, we're focusing on the basics of web design. We'll get to the fancy stuff later, but first get the structure of your page done. If your core coding is solid, the bells and whistles are much easier to add."

Sally raised her hand and turned her screen so I could see the site on world peace she'd created. It was a clever idea, a way to unite paranormals and regulars. I wasn't sure the world was ready to be that accepting, but I still encouraged her. "Looks good." I point to one section of coding. "You've got an open tag here that you need to close, but otherwise it's looking great."

Outside our door, a young male voiced yelled. My students fidgeted in their seats, but I held up my hand. "I'll see what's going on. Keep working on your websites."

I pushed open the door and walked down the hallway where three men stood, a senior graduating this year, and Curtis and his boyfriend Paul, two recent graduates who had stayed on to help and continue with their own paranormal training. Harry, the senior, sneered at Curtis. "Get a room, fag."

"Don't you kiss your girlfriend in the hallways?" Curtis asked.

"My girlfriend," Harry said. "But neither of you are girls."

"No." Curtis held Paul's hand. "And is there anything wrong with that?"

Harry scowled at them. "It's fucking weird."

Curtis gestured around him, his hand moving so fast it blurred. "Aren't we all weird?"

Harry crossed his arms over his chest.

Curtis kept his voice level, disarming. "Don't we all do things that people would consider weird—unnatural even? I have super speed. You can heat up whatever you touch. Is there anything wrong with that?"

Harry grabbed Curtis by the collar. "There's nothing wrong with me."

Paul raised a fist.

"No," Curtis said. "Leave him be. There's nothing wrong with you, Harry. There's nothing wrong with any of us."

Harry let Curtis go and walked away. "Just leave me alone, fags."

"Are you okay?" I asked, getting to them too late to help.

Curtis straightened his shirt and smiled. "Of course."

Paul didn't look as calm, his handsome face hard with anger. "You should have let me punch him."

"No." Curtis shook his head. "I'm no better than Harry. I've been a bully before, making someone feel bad for being different."

My eyes widened in surprise. "You? Why?"

Curtis shrugged. "I was scared of who I was, of being different, so I took it out on others. I don't think that deserves to be punished."

I checked my watched. Class would be ending soon. "I'll have to tell Father Patrick about this. He can't treat you this way." I laid a hand on his arm. "But I'm proud of you for handling it the way you did. I'm glad you and Paul chose to stay after graduation. These kids need more people like you."

"Thank you." Curtis picked up his backpack. "Are we still going tonight?"

"Yes." I said. "I'll meet you out front after classes."

Paul turned to him, still frowning. "But, we still have to decide—"

"Do what you must," Curtis said, not unkindly. "I know what I want, Paul. I love you." He kissed Paul and walked down the hall with me.

"Is everything okay between you two?" I asked him.

"Yes, thanks." He sighed. "Paul just... Paul needs to decide if he's ready."

"Ready?"

"To let the world know about us."