bakerstreet | rυnnιng wιтн wolveѕ • тнe wolғ pacĸ/werewolғ aυ мeмe

"Every facet of myself. Being real. Right." He glanced up at Merrick as he walked by then closed his eyes again. "I can do this."

He smiled, giving his fellow Wolf a nod. "You can. I have confidence in you."

Keeping his eyes closed, RJ smiled. "I'm glad one of us does." Okay, so it wasn't completely true but he wasn't quite ready to sound confident.

"Don't give up."

With another pat, Merrick stepped away to give him time and quiet to focus himself. It was necessary for him, after all. And while he focused, Merrick did his own little ritual. Stones were set out to compass points. Amethyst, onyx, hematite, bloodstone. He knelt among them and tipped his head back to the sky, focusing on his own.

RJ had shifted into a comfortable meditation pose, regulated his breathing and concentrated on everything Merrick had told him too. He remembered Dominic and his father...the good and the bad...the memories that would keep him human.

When he felt confident as he would ever be, he opened his eyes but didn't move. Instead, he took the moment to observe Merrick, the wolf who was essentially saving him from a life of fear.

Merrick knelt, his eyes closed, and he seemed oblivious to what was going on around him as the sun inched down the sky.

A light wind seemed to swirl around him, his hair and clothes rippling, tugged by the air's invisible fingers as he communed with the Spirits, as he listened to their voices with a light smile on his face. This was his life. This was him.

It was obvious even to RJ that something was happening on a deeper level. Maybe it was his new animal senses, maybe it was just something in the air but he could feel that something was speaking to Merrick, just from the smile on his face. And it bought one to RJ's face as well.

Or at least until he noticed the position of the sun, which was quickly going down. He quietly got up so as not to disturb the other and began to stretch before seeking out the rest of the rabbit he hadn't eaten earlier. He had a feeling he'd need the calories later on.

There were still two more, keeping warm at the fireside though the fire had dimmed. There was also spare firewood waiting to be used in the well-laid pit. Merrick had planned ahead. Something, perhaps that wind, had told him that he would need to.

Only when the sky truly began to dim did Merrick move, standing and collecting the stones he had laid out.

When Merrick began to move, RJ had gotten the fire going brightly again with the spare fire wood and was slowly chewing on one of the other rabbits. The closer he got to moon rise, the more the taste of the meat appealed.

He looked up at the other and smiled. "Focused?"

"Focused," he agreed with a faint smile, assuring. "It'll be a good night."

A night of wolves amongst the trees, of Merrick scouting his territory, of daring anyone but the few he allowed to cross his borders.

A good night.

Looking up at the proclamation, RJ smile ruefully. "I certainly hope so."

And maybe it would be, with someone guiding him and watching out for him. He wasn't as scared of the coming night as he had been before.

"Trust me."

His smile grew more certain, even with that rueful look on his companion's face. He had confidence. He had another Wolf to run with. Being lone wasn't a Wolf's natural state, no matter the personality.

Being alone was definitely not in this wolf's state and it had been very trying for RJ. Given the violence of his attack, he didn't think he'd ever be able to be friendly or close with anyone so meeting Merrick truly had been good fortune.

"I do. I really do."

"Good," he nodded. "But the moon will rise soon. We should start getting ready."

And that meant peeling off his shirts, folding them and setting them aside in the cave's mouth.

RJ took a calming breath and then put away with the few remaining bits of rabbit before he too started removing his clothing. His jewelry went first, everything but the white crystal from Dominic, which he just lengthened. Then he stripped off his shirts, shivering slightly in the outdoor sunset air.

Merrick had gotten used to the cold long ago. Montana winters weren't pleasant to live through as a Wolf, but he'd managed. Soon enough, he'd have fur as insulation. That would help.

His boots soon joined his shirts, and then his pants. There was no shame in him. After all, it was his body, and it was a good one. It served him well.

RJ was Californian born and bred so the cold really took some getting used too. Still, he was determined to make this mind over matter and refused to shiver as he pulled off his sneakers, followed by his pants, carefully setting everything inside his pack.

He couldn't help glancing over as they both undressed and while RJ wasn't ashamed of his body, his fellow wolf definitely made him feel a bit skinny and self-conscious. Was it the wolf that made him like that or was that all Merrick?

He wasn't cut. He didn't have the perfect bodybuilder muscles. Instead, he had bulk. His arms and chest were thick, and his stomach a bit given to fat, no matter how lean the times were. It was an aspect of himself that he hated, but couldn't get rid of, no matter how he tried.

And he had tried.

The muscle of his legs, however, was defined. Obviously, his power was in his lower body.

RJ, however, had a body that Merrick admired. He was lithe, defined, and had an obvious speed to him. One glance was enough for him to feel envious, but he tamped it down. Now was not the time.

He took the moment to stretch, though, and limber up muscles that would soon come into use in new-old ways.

Merrick's body was the product of work and experience. It was the body of a warrior. It was broad and muscled in the right places and even the bit of extra in the middle just give it that sense of being genuine.

In an academy of warriors, RJ had always felt small. He had worked just as hard as everyone else, but his smaller frame had tended more towards speed and agility, something his power house father had taken personal offense too. It was only thanks to Master Swoop taking RJ under his wing to teach him a style more suited to him that he'd survived at all. He had made his master proud...but there would always be a part of him that wished he could have pleased his dad.

His dad would have like Merrick, minus the wolf part of course.

Following suit, RJ began to stretch as well between taking deep breath to clamp down his nerves the closer they got to moon rise.

He bent at the waist, flexing his back, shifting his hips - moving enough to make his joints work before he reached over to squeeze RJ's shoulder. He kept his eyes up. There were things that didn't need to be gone into just yet.

But he couldn't deny that RJ was attractive. It was just not something that was appropriate for the moment.

"I'll stay close tonight," he said, "to make sure you're all right, and to show you around."

The squeeze on his shoulder startled him but just because his mind was elsewhere. He smiled at Merrick, his nerves still showing but he definitely felt more prepared for this change then he had before.

Merrick being a comforting presence certainly helped. He was being so kind and welcoming. RJ was feeling the attraction as well, though he was distracted from it thanks to his nerves.

"Thank you. For everything."

Merrick gave him a smile. "You're welcome."

To find another Wolf-- it was worth it. He'd help him. Train him. Teach him whatever he could. Merrick wanted the company more than he'd ever guessed.

But it was only minutes before the moon rose, and as it did, Merrick crouched, teeth grit against the wave of pain that came with the shift of muscle and bone.

Not even meaning too, RJ crouched at the same time and squeezed his eyes shut, taking deep breaths in and out against the pain. His hands and feet gripped into the dirt as they shifted into paws and that was the least of the changes.

His back knees changing direction and the tail sprouting were always the worst, in his opinion.

Through it all, he just made himself breath and concentrate on the crystal still around his neck.

The tail, he'd gotten used to. It was the relocation of the joints and the shift of balance that always left him panting - and he was panting by the time it ended. His body had sprouted thick, silvery fur with touches of dark around his ruff and shoulders. His eyes stayed the same silvery blue with his human intelligence gleaming from their depths, marking him as himself.

With concern and curiosity, he looked over at RJ, taking one pacing step in his direction.

There were pants, whining and even a few growls by the time RJ was done, a pile of brownish fur on the forest floor. Like his human body, he had a wiry frame, covered in a shaggy coat that had black points down his spine and white under his chin, but was a majority shades of brown.

When he opened his eyes, they were darker, blacker and only vaguely human. It was clear the while his body had changed, he was still struggling mentally.

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