☽Ⓛ❈Ⓒ☾

I slowly open my eyes and I'm staggered by how sharp my focus is. I can see the drops of dew on the blades of grass before me. It's like everything is in high definition, the detail is so clear. The t-shirt I was wearing before is in shreds on the grass. I've torn through the fabric.

I look at Satura and I'm startled by how much taller she seems. It takes me a moment to click that it is because I have shrunk in height. I look down at my hands and find them to be caramel-brown paws instead.

I knew the end goal. I knew I was going to turn into a wolf, Satura told me it would happen. That does not mean that I am mentally ready for it. I jump backwards, which is a silly notion because, obviously, the paws come with me.

"How do you feel? More stable?" Satura checks.

I nod my head at her. I can feel my ears flopping against my head as I do so.

"You might want to take a look at yourself," Satura says and pulls her phone from her pocket. She taps on the screen and then holds it out to me. "Here."

She has loaded up the camera app. I stare at my reflection on the screen. There is quite literally the face of a wolf looking back at me. Snout, pointed ears, fur and everything.

It doesn't compute in my mind that the wolf I am looking at is me. I turn my head from left to right, amazed to see that the wolf's head moves at the same time.

"I know it's a lot to get used to, but it will get easier each time you shift. It will never hurt as much as it did just now," Satura tells me as she puts her phone away. "Do you want to go for a run? It's the best thing to do after shifting, helps stretch your muscles."

The idea of a run, which has never been appealing before, suddenly sounds really good. I nod my big head and take off before she can say anything else. I can't believe how fast I am as my legs carry me away. I feel so much lighter and more agile than usual.

It's like my human body was a blundering mess when it was running. As a wolf, I have perfect balance and a stamina I could only dream of. I race in out of trees, panting with my tongue hanging out of my mouth. Even running at such a fast speed, my eyes still pick up every minute detail of my surroundings.

I can see the individual stems and leaves on the mats of moss, I can hear the chirping and rustling of animals metres away and I can taste rain in the air. It's amazing.

I'm taken by surprise when a wolf, which is a mix of white and brown, appears next to me. I recognise it as Satura immediately because it has her eyes.

We run side by side. I manage to keep up with her stride but it's obvious that she isn't as strained as I am. Hopefully, I will get fitter the more I run. I bet Satura shifts into her wolf form all the time.

After feeling how incredible a run on four legs is, I know that I will be doing this every day. This feels so exhilarating.

We stay out for probably half an hour, running through the forest together. She leads the way, showing me the full extent of the trees surrounding her town. We run along the boundaries which consist of wrought iron fencing before coming back to the house.

She shifts back first, and I look away as she gets dressed. She is clearly comfortable with her body and probably does this often with members of her pack.

I trot past her and into the house. I have to lift up onto my back paws to get the door open. It feels weird walking around the house on all fours rather than two legs. I get up to my room and then panic.

How am I supposed to change back?

"Picture yourself as a human," Satura calls from outside.

I hear her as clearly as if she were beside me. Apparently, being a shifter comes with some really neat upgrades to your senses.

I close my eyes and lay down on the floor. In my mind's eye, I load up an image of myself with two legs, no fur, and no tail. My body gets really hot again and my joints throb. I press my body to the floor as everything convulses in a seizure-style once more.

When it passes, I open my eyes and lay breathless on the carpet. I can feel the fibres against my skin, telling me that I am back in my normal body. I look down and confirm that I'm a naked human again.

I hurriedly get to my feet and get dressed. Satura is waiting for me on the sofa when I come down.

"How do you feel?" She asks me when I sit down next to her.

"Surprisingly good, actually. I don't feel hot or achy anymore."

"Good." She smiles widely. "I can't believe I didn't notice the signs of a shift when you first answered the door. I'm just so used to it happening in teenagers. I've never known someone to shift beyond seventeen."

"And you think it was triggered by me meeting Asper?"

"That's the only thing I can think of that triggered it. The shifter DNA was probably lying dormant in your body while you were amongst humans. Meeting your mate causes the genes to be expressed and triggered your first change."

She reaches over and gently squeezes my hand. "You realise you're not human anymore? You're one of us, now. This changes everything, again. You are welcome to join this pack and stay in Arcis. You belong with your kind, Felicity, we can keep you safe."

And just like that, I'm massively overwhelmed again. The thought of moving here is a tempting one, I'll admit. Even though I've only been staying here a couple of days, I can already say with confidence that Arcis is ten times nicer than Brookesfield. For one, I'm not scared to walk alone at night.

But it's way too soon to be thinking about all of this. I need to adjust to all of these changes in my life before I can start making any concrete plans. Right now, I want to focus on getting used to this new body that is a better version of my old one, I want to get to know Asper, I want to finish reading my mother's diaries and I want to fix whatever it is I need to fix between Altus and Asper.

"I'm sorry, this must be so much for you. Please don't feel pressured into doing anything straight away, take your time," she reassures me. Her face turns pensive, and she says, "Do you know that all of our names have meanings?"

"Meanings?"

"Yes, in Latin. We are strongly linked with the Latin language, even the town's name is Latin for 'citadel'."

"Oh, yes, I saw that when I looked it up."

"Well, your name, Felicitas, means happiness. My name, Satura, means full. Your surname, Figo, literally translates as 'to fix'."

The irony.

"To fix? That's like my dream."

She nods emphatically. "Exactly. It's all linked, our fates are already decided for us before we're even born."

"What about Asper?"

"That means rough, which makes sense because he has always been a little rough around the edges. He's blunt at times and his sharp tongue got him in no end of trouble as a child."

I smile at the thought of Asper as a naughty kid.

"What about Altus?"

Her eyebrows raise up at the mention of his name, but she answers my question, "It means high, which makes sense seeing as he is going to replace me as alpha."

"Yes, I guess it does," I mumble, lost in my own thoughts.

"Look, I'm going to go now, I'm sure you want to rest some more. Why don't you take my number, and you can contact me if you need anything or have any questions?"

I thank her as she puts her number into my phone. I stand up with her and walk her to the front door. She puts her hand on my shoulder.

"I'm always here if you need me, Felicity. You did great today, give yourself some time to heal before shifting again, but you should be really proud of yourself."

I feel uncomfortable under the blatant compliment and shift from one foot to the other, unsure how to respond to being praised for my metamorphosis.

"Thanks."

"I hope things go well with Asper, he's no doubt bound to want to see you."

"I think we're seeing each other later today."

"Good." She smiles. "See you soon."

"Bye, Satura."

I watch her go and then close the door with a sigh.

I need a nap.

⋆⋆⋆⋆⋆⋆✥⋆⋆⋆⋆⋆⋆