Rules of a Fairytale

It felt like everything was happening in slow motion. I saw Mother Gretchen’s saccharine smile as I slowly slipped toward the fiery oven. I tried to scramble back but everything just kept melting, pulling me closer to the heat. I was about to get cooked like Thanksgiving turkey. I was going to die.

At the absolute last second, something hard hit me in the side and I was knocked away from the burning death that had awaited me. The oven still spit out flames and the chocolate floor bubbled, but I was on a solid patch of ground. I sucked in a breath to re-inflate my lungs, although it was hard to do that with some heavy thing on top of me.

“You okay?” Ryder’s voice cracked slightly. It took a second for my head to clear so I could focus on the boy covering my body with his larger one. He actually looked worried as he looked me over from above me. All I could do was nod as my brain slowly pieced things together. Ryder had pushed me from the oven? I didn’t see that coming.

“No,” the witch hissed. “That’s not possible. How did you break through Mid spell?”

She screamed in fury and the oven burned hotter, matching her mood. The fire from the its gaping opening spilled out and licked at Mother Gretchen’s feet. She didn’t seem to care about burning up as she tossed pies around in a tantrum. The house started melting all around us and the heat was becoming too intense to bare.

“We have to get out of here,” I screamed.

Ryder nodded and ran toward the door, scooping Brooke into his arms as he passed. I followed only pausing long enough to grab my brother by the ear to drag him from the burning house, and I didn’t let go until we safely reached the road. Tate was stubborn and did not like getting dragged from a dessert buffet. He struggled against my hold, even going as far as trying to bite me. Even in human form, a wolf’s bite was painful and I retaliated by slapping him.

“What was that for, Tasha? I was still eating.”

“I just saved your life, Tate. If the fire didn’t kill us the hag would have. We’re lucky she threw pies around instead of used her magic. This sounds bad, but I hope she got stuck in there.”

“She was close to getting you, wasn’t she?” Ryder said, nodding toward my hand. I glanced down and saw I was shaking like a leaf, adrenaline and fear rushing through my veins. I turned my back on them and cradled my hands to my chest and willed them to steady. I didn’t like being weak and a physical sign of just how scared I’d been qualified as weak. It took longer than I would have liked for my heart to stop racing.

“Fairy farts, Tasha, how long were we in there?” Tate asked suddenly. I jerked back around and saw a shudder ripple through him.

“We couldn’t have been in there long,” Brooke answered. “A few hours, maybe. Why?”

“The Full Moon’s getting close. I can feel it.”

My eyes widened as the familiar sensation of my wolf rising toward the surface confirmed it. She was excited to come out and play. “Oh no. We should’ve had a couple of days before the moon. We have to find a town. The Full Moon is tonight and you two can’t be outside with us close by.”

I could see Brooke was confused again but I didn’t have the patience to explain the concept of a wolf’s shift to her. For once, both boys were more focused on the problem at hand than the princess. Ryder quickly nodded. “We’ll have to hurry, but I’m sure there’s a town nearby. I know enough of the area to know that there’s not really a lot of wilderness between settlements. We should find something in a few hours, maybe.”

I bit my lip worriedly and looked toward the sky. “It’s after noon. We might not have that kind of time before sunset, but it’s our only chance.”

Within an hour, Tate was feeling the coming moon’s effects. He was weak and sweaty and had to lean on me for support. On top of that, he was cranky, making snide comments about every little thing. He snarled at me when he tripped on a rock, placing the blame for his clumsiness on me. Never mind the fact that I was the only thing to keep him from sprawling on his face. I would’ve smacked him, but he looked awful enough as it was.

The sun was already low in the sky before we saw a sign that said Hanston 2 miles. “We won’t make it in time,” I said as I suddenly started coughing. I leaned into Tate so we were holding each other up. My wolf had been getting closer and closer to the surface for hours now, and she was ready to burst through. “You two have to just go without us. We’ll meet you tomorrow.”

My muscles hurt and I could feel the ache in my bones. I let go of my brother, who stumbled against a tree, and dropped to my knees. I pawed at the hard earth in pain, my fingers raking like claws. Shifting forms was harder on me than it was on Tate because my two forms didn’t fit together seamlessly, both sides fighting for control of the same body. Boy, did it hurt as my body pushed and pulled itself past its natural limits.

“Tasha? Are you all right?” Ryder asked gently.

I waited until the agony passed before I could speak. “I’m fine. It’s just that there’s so much magic on this side of the mirror that it makes the change harder. You have to get out of the woods. Tate’s gonna be more obnoxious than normal. I can probably keep him in control enough that he won’t hurt anyone, but it’s safer if you both get out of here. Now. Go. Go!”

Ryder glanced at me like he didn’t want to leave. Another wave of the immobilizing pain hit and I screamed- seriously, this was worse than any cramps. My brother suffered as much as I did, but it seemed easier for him because the animal took over and his body stayed mostly the same. I felt everything mostly through a human perspective. Ryder grabbed Brooke and started racing toward the town.

In no time at all the sun dipped below the horizon and the moon took its place in the sky. I looked at my brother. His jaw had expanded a little to make room for his massive teeth. Thick brown fur covered his clawed hands and face and his tail burst from the back of this jeans. His eyes blazed golden. Tate looked like something from a horror movie, half wolf and half man, acting on pure instinct.

He changed a heartbeat before I did but it was enough. He took my moment of shifting from girl to wolf to attack. His sharp claws raked against my onyx muzzle and I let out a yip and jumped back. Fairy farts, he was stronger here.

I growled at him in warning, my hackles rising and my jaws snapping. I didn’t want to hurt Tate, but his control was negligible and I couldn’t let him do something he’d regret later. He growled back but I could hear the fear there. Ha! It did my ego wonders to know that I could scare my fearless brother

He stopped, his nostrils flared and he started drooling. I sniffed and could scent Brooke’s flowery perfume. Close. He took off running in the direction of the town where Brooke and Ryder were supposed to be waiting. I raced after him. I was faster than him on a normal day but there was no way he could outrun me when I had four paws and he was on two feet. I tackled him to the ground about a half mile from the town. I snarled at him again, keeping myself between my brother and Hanston. I really didn’t want to hurt him and hoped he wouldn’t force my hand- er, paw.

A single howl sounded a moment before I caught the scent of another werewolf nearby. It was downwind from where I blocked Tate’s path so it had already picked up on our scent and knew we were there. Great. So now I had two wolves to worry about and it was hard enough just watching out for my brother.

The werewolf came bursting through the trees. He was massive with huge, hairy limbs and sharp fangs and I recognized him as the man from the Three Pigs’ cottage. He stared at me for just a moment before he suddenly launched himself at Tate. Wolves didn’t usually attack each other unless the felt threatened or were protecting their territory and I doubted this guy lived close by.

I was in complete shock for the length of a heartbeat before I sprang into action. I snagged the hem of the stranger’s tattered brown shirt and tugged him away from my twin. I snarled at the pair letting annoyance dominate the growl more than my massive confusion. I was probably just turning them both on me, but I didn’t care. I was really for an attack.

The stranger was the first to react. He flopped to the ground, belly up in an act of total submission. It took a minute before Tate followed the example and copied the pose. I blinked, the gears in my head going haywire as I tried to make sense of what was going on. I recognized the act. When wolves fought, the weaker one did it as a signal of respect, asking for forgiveness and mercy from the stronger one. Except I hadn’t done anything to prove my power than yell at them like only a wolf could.

When I stopped growling, they got up slowly. Tate ran into the meadow to chase a rabbit like an excitable puppy, Brooke forgotten for the moment. In wolf form, my brother had a shorter attention span than he did during classes. The other wolf took off into the forest. He ran in the opposite direction of the town, so I didn’t worry about him. I stayed and watched my brother play for a while before he got hungry and transformed into a skilled hunter, the bunny his unfortunate prey.

The moon was slowly descending toward the horizon and I was counting down to when I would be human again. Tate was asleep after stuffing himself with rabbits and wearing himself out. I was hungry, but I didn’t dare go hunt in fear he might wake up and get into trouble. I felt like a babysitter but without the pay, but we were too close to the village to let my guard fall. With my luck, he’d pick up Brooke’s smell again the second I was gone. The wolf would be just as fixated on her as the boy, but with more dangerous results. I stayed put and my stomach rumbled loudly at the exact same time the man from earlier reappeared. He carried a fat chicken in his hands, which he carefully set in front of me. I watched him cautiously as I sniffled it and quickly bit into the tender meat. He didn’t seem threatening anymore, more watchful. He glanced at Tate curiously but mostly just kept an eye on the surrounding meadow.

The man stayed until the moon disappeared. His eyes faded to a normal brown and his pointy teeth dulled. His ears and fur faded and soon the only difference between him and my groggy brother was that he kept his tail. I changed shortly after and quickly slid into my jeans and red tank top.

“Ugh. Tasha? What happened last night?”

I smiled at my brother. “Nothing, Tate. Everything’s just fine.”

I turned to the intense stranger. It was the first good look I got of him where he wasn’t wolfy or I wasn’t terrified of him. He was tall and athletic with shaggy black hair flopping against his forehead and down to his shoulders in the back. His eyes were sharp despite the weariness. He had a strong jaw with a five o’clock shadow and toned abs poking through holes in his shirt tattered from shifting. The man was actually pretty handsome.

I crossed my arms over my chest and narrowed my eyes. “Okay. I want answers. Who are you and what was all that about the other day?”

The large wolf gave me a sweeping bow. “My name is Bo, my lady. Come. Let’s go into town and I will buy you breakfast. I will explain on the way.”