One: Dilly-Dilly

(Prompt 3)

          Jackson put his hand flat on the rail. No vibrations. He nodded to himself and hurried across the long trestle bridge. He had been caught out once and had to climb down and cling to a narrow ledge shaking with the weight rumbling above. The screech of steel-on-steel left him half-deaf for a week. It could have been the noise or the way Aunt Liddy had cuffed him up the side of the head for getting his jacket so dirty. Either way it made Jackson more careful when taking the high-bridge short cut back to the compound.

He needed the extra minutes to get his homework finished before the littles woke up. His older cousins were all out hunting with the adults again. Game had gotten scarce lately so they probably wouldn't be back until dawn. Uncle Morty had strict rules about not poaching too close to home but there were signs another pack edging up to the family's usual range.

"Mark your territory but don't draw too much attention. We have a good thing going here." Gramps had doled out his advice from the big chair by the wood stove. The others loved the old man's stories about the wild days, especially the ones about the feud with the bear clan. Jackson listened closer, his gut twisting with the story of the big hunger and their family's share in a diamond mine in the far north. It bothered him their comfort was built on betrayal. The others understood it was a matter of doing whatever it took to avoid discovery but Jackson did like how someone else's cubs paid the price. He stared at the empty chair wishing he had asked more questions.

A pup jumping into his lap stopped Jackson' brooding. He got down on the floor to roll around with the others before digging out a hunk of rope to keep them busy with tug-of-war while he scrounged around for some scraps for supper. A rabbit and some leftover deer made for a runny soup. Enough to hold the littles but not enough to keep his moon pull in check. If the others didn't make it back tomorrow, he would have to lock himself in.

He let the littles play in the back so he could clean the kitchen to Aunt Liddy's standards. Part way through he heard a splash and raced out to find three pups struggling to climb out of a deep puddle in the back garden. By the time he retrieved them, they were all head-to-toe in mud so even though it was starting to cool off he herded them to the back pond. He stripped down to rinse out all the clothes before taking his own plunge. A small hand ran down his back.

"Nice pelt JJ," one of the littles giggled.

A growl escaped from Jackson and another of the littles laughed. He chased them all back to the main cabin where they could climb under a pile of blankets. He returned to the pond to finish rinsing out the cloths. There was a rustle in the bushes behind him. He dropped everything, crouching down on all fours, he lifted his head trying to catch the scent. The hair on the back of his neck bristled and grew longer. All his joints ached at once, his skin itched and burned. The world seemed brighter in distinct shades of blue and yellow. He spotted movement, something scampering away from the edge of clearing. He bounded after it. He could feel the bubble of a howl wanting to rise but choked it back.

Something wasn't right. He was tracking a little but she did not smell like kin. No. She was fully human and there was no way she should be this far from town. Not on her own. Jackson struggled against his sluggish mind. He was overwhelmed by the mix of scents from the woods around him. The girl was on the move again, re-tracing a faint path winding up to the cut-line that marked the edge of the family's territory. He could smell the intruder's markings long before they reached the main track. Hunters had been out in force this past fall but these were spring fresh. Dangerous. A low growl rose unbidden.

The little girl stumbled and fell. It was getting colder. Jackson edged over to her. She looked up with wide, trusting eyes. His heart pounded as he weighed the options. After a silent minute, he nudged her to get up and let her cling to the side of his neck as he guided her to an abandoned den. The pack's scent was still strong here. Hopefully, strong enough to mask a lost traveler from a lone hunters. He had no way to tell her to stay put but she seemed content enough on the pile of cedar boughs in the back of the small cave.

Family directives warred inside him as Jackson laid a series of false trails to confuse anyone seeking either the little's den or the family's cabins. "Don't let anyone invade our territories," the angry tones of his uncles came to mind with the echo of his foster's barking agreement. But he was not a warrior, not even a hunter, only an in-betweener who looked after the smaller members of the family.

"Stay away from trouble. Blend into the background. Help the humans think you are one of them." His grandmother instructions were equally firm. Jackson tried to imagine what she might say about his efforts tonight. "Good plan to move the prey further from the compound." Jackson nodded to himself but knew the job wasn't complete. His guilt drove him to make sure everything was spotless before he locked himself away. It was the first time he had turned ahead of a full-moon and he could not trust his hungry-self not to fight with the others.

Two full days passed before he had a chance to check on the summer den. By then he had learned the little girl was most likely Lisa Bentz, an autistic four-year old who had gone missing from her family's backyard. Teams of searchers had come from all over the county to help look but their tracker dogs stalled out along the cut-line. The hounds ran back to their owners, whining like something was going to eat them.

He crested the hill, shifted his pack and unsnapped the sheath on the top of his hunting knife. The stranger's scent was growing stronger. He spotted the hulking body on the ledge below. It took him a moment to realize what he was seeing. It turned Jackson's stomach.

"I always heard you shouldn't play with your food," he called in his most sarcastic voice while winging a hefty rock at the intruder's head. The rock smacked into the stranger's snout. It roared in pain and frustration as it struggled to disengage from the girl's body. Jackson leaped down and plunged the knife into a furry back. His first strike bounced off a rib and he fell back to switch hands before striking again and again. Each wound healed almost as fast his knife could strike. In the face of a whirlwind of fangs and claws Jackson had a hard time holding onto his rational mind.

He spun away and ran up the slope with the stranger on his heels. He dodged through the trees then sprinted along beside the tracks. "Please be on time," he whispered to himself as he raced past the middle of the trestle bridge. He barely registered the horn blasting as he slid down the girder and clung to the bottom lip of the bridge. A squelching crunch followed by a splash from far below told him his plan had worked.

He warily returned to the rock ledge, knowing the trouble having the girl's body discovered on the family's territory would bring. Jackson was pretty sure the local coven was already on high alert, waiting for the chance to drive his family away. He pushed back his worries and concentrated on putting the girl's cloths back in order. She was barely breathing. Her blood oozed from the slash across her neck. Jackson's instincts overrode his better sense. He licked her wound, letting the blood from his split lip mingle with the child's and the rapid healing begin.

"Hey cousin, aren't you going to share that tasty little morsel?" Leroy bounded over.

Jackson growled a warning before finding a way to reason with the family bully. "Think for a moment. The loner who did this wasn't the only scent on our borders. I'm pretty sure this is just the kind of bait someone might use to start a full-on hunt. Is that what you want with another litter on the way?"

Leroy processed this information very slowly then stuck out his chin, "I'm telling Dad. Don't think I won't."

"Good. Do that. Tell him I will be away getting this kit to where she can be found safely. I mean well away from our land." Jackson knew he had to spell this out. He would still be in trouble with the family but what was done was done.

He knelt down and picked up Lisa. She snuggled into his arms and started humming. "Lavender Blue, Lavender Green, When you are King, I shall be Queen."

He set a steady pace over the miles to the next town. He dropped his package off at the back of a gas station and called emergency services from the diner up the street. Then he was off, circling back, confusing the trail as much as possible. He got back to the compound just after dawn only to have his Aunt Liddy toss his bag at his head.

"Why couldn't you just leave well enough alone, boy," she hissed.

"He was doing a little and that's just plain wrong," Jackson straightened himself up and looked her straight in the eye. "We can't let strangers poach in our town."

"Not a stranger. He's more our blood than you. You nearly drowned Gramp's brother. For what? A light snack?" Uncle Morty came forward carrying a shotgun.

Jackson knew there would be no reasoning his way out of this. Not with the need to hunt so obvious in their angry tones. He grabbed his bag and backed away from them slowly. He had no idea where to go from here, only that he never wanted to return.

Two: Big Hairy Deal

(Prompt 7)

     Lisa Bentz hated phys.-ed. She had never understood the point of the games they were supposed to learn nor the need for the social pecking order to be announced every time teams were chosen. Worse was having to share the change room with tweeny-teens covetously eyeing each other's bodies. Some girls would parade around like they thought they were triple-A, Victoria Secret models. Being different, in body shape or type, earned different punishments. Being both awkward and different made Lisa wish there was a large rock to hide under. Or at the very least, have the teacher relent and let her wear track pants instead of shorts.

She had always been a bit hairier than most. Only the contrast between her fair skin and dark colored body hair made it so noticeable. Especially on her arms and legs, and the line of hair that ran into a long point down the back of her neck. But it was getting worse, much worse. She was waiting for the day when one of classmates would call her Yeti. So far, they mostly ignored her. They might whisper behind her back, but nobody came up to her and asked about the kidnapping. Not in a long time.

Today's class started out with a cross-country run. It was the closest thing to happy Lisa might get at school. Away from the smells of sweaty-socks, left-over lunches, and cheap felt markers. Not hemmed in by the ever-present chatter she stretched out on the trails to set her own pace. As she ran, she hummed a soothing childhood rhyme, Lavender Blue, Dilly, Dilly, Lavender Green. She didn't know why the song was stuck in her head, nor why it could make her feel both happy and sad at the same time. She slowed her strides as she came over the top of the sandy hill over-looking the track. Strangely, none of the other students were in the infield and she couldn't see anyone behind her on the trail. "Crap," she muttered to herself. "I bet they changed the route again." After she had put in a few laps on the track the rest of the class showed up in a bunch with a few defiant stragglers walking the last leg of the route.

"Where did you go, speedy?" Her friend Diane wheezed.

"Oh, took a short-cut. Don't like the woods, you know." Lisa said.

"Right. Sorry." The awkward silence that followed stretched until the coach whistled them over.

"Inter-mural track starts Monday at noon." The teacher frowned at the collective moans. "You will be happy to know it is compulsory. Happier still to know it's the official try-outs for the county meets."

Inter-mural sports were despised by all but the most ardent of the school athletes so very few students were around during the first heats. Lisa had been feeling edgy all weekend, so didn't mind burning off some of her tension.

"You do know if you win you just have to keep running," Diane told her after the second race.

Lisa shrugged. She still felt bottled up so tried some stretches. "It's nicer out here than in the lunchroom." She honestly didn't mind the cool air but Diane shivered. Lisa tossed her a hoodie and went to line-up for the next race.

Her previous times put her in the second lane, sandwiched between the coach's two favorites. The girl to the right gave a derisive snort as they took their marks. Normally Lisa would have ignored the petty provocation but she pushed off hard enough to send her blocks flying into the neighboring lane. Out past the first curve she settled back into an easy lope ready to move to the inside lane until she noticed how uneven it looked. The favorite came up on her left side.

"You shouldn't let someone pass from the inside," the girl said smugly.

"Ok. I won't." Lisa answered and kept pace with the school champion stride-for-stride until her final kick put Lisa five strides ahead of the blonde.

"That was so worth it." Diane crooned as she bounced up and down. "How long have you been training in secret?"

"Not really training. Running just helps with all this." Lisa gestured around them the field full of students.

The coach approached with the package for the county meet, along with a warning about the uniform required at practices. The woman looked Lisa up and down before adding "Oh, and you might want to do something about your hair. Braids would probably be best."

Lisa scowled back. Her thick brows partially hidden by the long curly fringe she habitually wore. She gave a quick nod but it was obvious she was not happy. "Mom's going to freak," she whispered to Diane after the teacher left.

"Maybe. Or maybe she will be proud enough to take you to the salon for a make-over."

"Doubt it." Lisa answered not admitting she got regular professional cuts but had taken to trimming her own hair to try to keep up with how fast it grew. Lately, her nails were an equal nightmare, getting longer, thicker, and all together unfashionable. When she aired her concerns about the required uniform to her mother, she got introduced to the exquisite torture of waxing only to find an even denser covering on her legs the very next day.

Lisa put her increasingly urgent hunger down to the extra track training and surprised herself by agreeing to go the take-out joint after school with Diane. There were almost no vegetarian options on the menu at the burger bar so she settled for fries and a fresh fruit smoothie. Diane had ordered a burger, and the waitress came over with a two-for-one platter. The smell made Lisa's stomach rumbled loudly.

"Come on. Give it a try. There is way more here than I can manage." Diane encouraged.

"We don't eat meat." Lisa reminded her and gave her straw a determined pull.

"A bite or two isn't going to hurt. Just try it." Diane pushed the plate closer.

"Fine. A taste." Lisa took out a knife and cut the extra burger into small pieces. Her mouth filled with saliva as she took her first bite. "Oh," she said chewing quickly and reaching for another piece, "Not bad. Not bad at all." She downed another couple pieces.

"Damn, Lisa. I have never seen anyone eat that fast." Diane stared across the table.

"Sorry," Lisa said leaning forward to let a curtain of hair hide her face.

"No don't be. But like wow. What big teeth you have." Diane teased.

Lisa started to choke and ran to the bathroom. She washed her face and blew her nose before looking into the mirror. Diane was right. Her incisors were much more pronounced and she had an aching emptiness in her stomach. She knew she would only draw more attention if she stayed here crying so pulled herself together and went back to the table.

"I told the waitress you aren't feeling good so she is bringing the take-away containers." Diane chewed the inside of her lip before saying, "You know, like a doggy bag."

Lisa rolled her eyes.

"Too soon?" Diane chuckled quietly and guided Lisa out the door. She looked around to make sure they would not be overheard. "The coven is watching to see if you were moon-touched. There was no real proof but you need to be careful."

"Moon-touched?" Lisa wheezed. "What are you saying?"

"You need to ask your Mom. Seriously. Officially, I know nothing so just keep it to your family." Diane pulled Lisa in for a quick hug before hurrying away.

Lisa decided to do some research before talking to her mother. Her abduction and return had made national headlines. Other children had gone missing from the county in the months and years after but only she had returned. She puzzled over the "moon-touched" label, or more specifically why the local coven might care. This took her down a whole different rabbit hole that left her more confused than scared.

She hovered in the kitchen after dinner trying to come up with a way to talk to her mother. Lisa started with a confession. "So, I went to the Burger Bar with a friend. They got two-for-one and this weird thing happened." As she thought about the meat her mouth watered and she could feel her teeth growing so she just pointed to her mouth. "Somebody asked me if I was moon-touched and I guess it kind of made sense. I mean what with the hair and the energy shifts and stuff." She watched in alarm as her mother's face crumpled.

"Oh Love. We hoped we would never have to talk about this. I mean your Dad has been working so hard to find a way to remove the impurities from your system." Her mother stared into space for a moment before asking "Do you remember anything about that time? Anything at all?"

"Not really. Maybe a song." Lisa shrugged.

"Good idea. Wait here." Her mother returned cradling a small wooden box.

"Dilly, Dilly," Lisa squeaked and put out her hands.

"For the longest time Dilly, Dilly was all you would say." Her mother wiped back a tear. "You must have snuck it out to the backyard with you. It's how we knew you were taken. You would have never left it behind."

Lisa examined the enamel box with the inlayed gold figures, turning it over, and over in her hands.

"Your therapist thought it might be a key to your memories. I just wasn't sure we should saddle you with them. You were so hurt."

"Bad man-wolf, thief-ting." Lisa's pitch sounded just like it had more than a decade ago.

"Yes. After six-months you told us that much. Do you remember what else?" Her mother put her hand out but pulled back knowing how little Lisa liked being touched.

"Good dog-boy. Play friend." Lisa brushed back a tear before reaching over to squeeze her mom's hand. She picked up the music box again and cradled it like a baby. "When you are king," she whispered.

"There are blood-born conditions. Some hereditary, others from contamination. Your father is researching both and he worries if you fully manifest there will be no recovery."

"So, no more meat." Lisa focused in one thing she might control.

"Yes, and stay in after dark, in case the packs start sniffing around." Her mother glanced around at the different windows.

"And the trip to the city?" Lisa asked hoping to get out of the meet.

"Will be very well supervised." Her mother did not relent but did manage to negotiate a modified uniform for Lisa.

After all of the hype, Lisa could not believe how boring the county finals were. She spent most of the day standing around waiting for one event or another. The other girl from her grade was also in the second heat for the 800. The smug look from the other competitors got under Lisa's skin. She was tired of playing the good sport so decided to burn off some of her extra energy. The result was an unofficial track record. Her coach bubbled with enthusiasm. Even her normally reserved father was full of praise after she beat her own record in the semi-final. The final was not as fast, but she still got gold.

For all the excitement her results generated, Lisa felt curiously flat. It wasn't like it was hard, not once she hit stride in her easy loose-limbed gate. Indeed, she checked herself to keep the others within a few paces. He father nodded his approval. His young research associate was less impressed.

"I guess she doesn't want to discourage the others too much," he said after watching their exchange.

"She knows better than to look anything other than 100% human," Lisa's father whispered.

"Well don't look now but the college recruiters are headed her way."

"What are they doing here? This isn't for rankings." Dr. Bentz made a beeline to head off the men in flashy sports coats.

Jackson made his way over to Lisa and handed her a sprig of lavender. She lifted it to her nose, and her eyes filled with tears.

Three: No Kings Here

(Prompt Two)

     "We need to leave." Jackson grabbed Lisa under her arm to hurry her away from his approaching cousins.

"Are you crazy? I can't just leave." Lisa tried to jerk free.

Jackson took out his phone and put it on speaker. "Hello Dr. Bentz, can you please let Lisa's coach know that she is coming to visit the lab and you will bring her home yourself."

"I'd be grateful if you can get her to the lab. If she is okay with that."

"Thanks for asking, Dad." Lisa's sarcasm probably did not translate over the phone but Jackson could see she was decidedly unimpressed. No matter, he needed to get her away before his former pack picked up her scent.

He raced his sleek black sedan through narrow streets, only pausing to scan the key card to open the underground garage at the back of the research institute. They went through two more layers of security before he handed Lisa a visitor's pass saying, "This will let you get around on this floor but it won't key the elevator."

"I know," she answered with her arms crossed. She glanced around taking in the orderly desk and the framed cover of Nature leaning against the wall. "That yours?" she pointed.

Jackson shrugged, "The institute wanted it for when they tour potential funders. He turned the frame around so the picture faced the wall. "So, when was the last time your father ran your blood?"

"He always does it at the start of term." Lisa shrugged off her track jacket to bare her arm. She was embarrassed by the dark hair all standing at attention.

"Nervous?" he asked gently. "Don't be. I am actually rather good at this. Now deep breath." When he was done, he handed her a juice-box before going over to the centrifuge.

Lisa looked around the lab wondering why her father preferred to be here most weekends instead of at home or out golfing like other dads. Now she could see him hurrying over to check the samples. The two men looked over at her, obviously worried. She tried a smile but it came across as a half-snarl.

"You have to be getting hungry," Jackson observed. As soon as he mentioned it Lisa felt hollowed-out and anxious. Her father handed her a lunch-box and pointed to his office. She was halfway through her sandwich when the argument got loud enough for her to hear.

"We need to check this northern strain. There is no telling what might happen if we arrest just one," Jackson said.

"We need you in the lab," Dr Bentz countered.

"The answer isn't here." Jackson pointed to his own hairy arm, "Nor in the remaining generation of the local family."

"At least contact someone in Anchorage. You shouldn't go out on you own."

"It's not my first time out on the land." Jackson answered firmly. To treat Lisa, he had to check if his great-uncle's madness was in the transmission chain. He accepted the risk of running into the Bear Clan and punishment his former packmates had undoubtedly earned.

Jackson's trek took him into the barren lands above the tree-line. He surveyed the wide-horizon of moonlit snow before picking a path along frozen river. There was little game. He left the scrawny rabbits to the white foxes, preferring his tough supply of moose-jerky to hearing a death scream in this lonely place.

The long-abandoned mine site still reeked of blood and fear worse than he imagined from his grandfather's tales. He steeled himself to collect the hair samples from the corpses under the cave-in. As he turned to leave, a voice called, "You're trespassing."

Jackson turned to face the youngling aiming a shotgun at his head. "Sorry. I tried to get permits at the land office but the registered owners are in the south," he said.

"Thieves. The lot of them," the boy spit.

"Nobody said they could come here and spoil our lands." An old man said as he stepped into view. "And we don't want anyone poking around in our graves." He lifted his nose taking in more of Jackson's scent and ran forward with an angry roar.

"Please don't," Jackson pleaded as he jumped out of the way. Thick arms wrapped around him from behind, lifting him off the ground, squeezing all his breath out. He twisted and spun away as the change came on him. A part of him watched increasingly appalled by the damage he was inflicting. A larger part of him demanded these strangers yield to him. The youngling was the first to capitulate, then the clan's fighters, and finally the old man gave in. They led him across the tundra, to a small ravine where skin tents huddled out of the relentless winter winds. Two women came forward to care for the injured.

One of the women cursed and spat on the ground asking, "Can we never get free of these poisonous grey wolves?"

"Poisonous?" Jackson's shocked look made the others laugh. Their answers only made his quest for survivors more urgent. After he explained his intentions, the hunters agreed to lead him to the next settlement. They were met with violence but Jackson came out on top, adding another family to his pack. He fought on through the dark months, searching for the stray line from his great-grandfather and advice from the elders. The clues from different stories pointed him to rare lichen grown in the Bear Clan's cave that would subdue moon-changes but the wrong dosage could lead to blood-madness.

Jackson approached the northern shoreline in the high-noon twilight of the promised spring. The white mother was gaunt. The sea-ice no longer strong enough to let her reach the seal islands and her cubs were dying. Her bared-teeth charge stopped when he tossed a caribou haunch in her path. She chose to accept this offering but still warned him off.

The days grew longer while Jackson waited at the edge of the bear's range. Each week he brought such food as his pack could afford to share but it wasn't much with the growing appetites of the spring pups. He could not wait out the season so snuck into the cave during the warmest part of the day to gather the tiny plants. The bear's initial lethargy wore off quickly and she raked her claws down Jackson's back before he could escape. His hunters raced in to chase her back while he limped away. It was a slow, silent trek back to camp.

"Your leaving," an old man announced flatly as he watched Jackson gathering his things.

"I have to try to save her, it was my fault she's infected," Jackson looked away.

"It was her fate but let her choose. Your young queen is welcome among the people." The old man clasped Jackson's arm.

He shrugged him off saying, "I'm no king."

"Yet, the families have united because of you." One of the hunters said and the others sang their allegiance. Their call echoed in Jackson's bones and he knew he would return.