Brenda waited for them at the shack, leaning against Cormali with her head buried between her knees. Quionne’s good mood evaporated at the sight of the village girl, so she took on her butterfly form and rested on Albino’s head like a crown. It was a position worthy of the alpha female. Quionne was no Howler, but the term had a certain ring. Lording over all her lessers… her instincts enjoyed the power play. Albino joined Brenda on the ground, briefly connecting their shoulders.
Brenda dismissed the Howler with a quick glance. “They didn’t believe me,” Brenda said. “I told them you caught a Howler, but they didn’t believe me. Warren laughed like I just told a joke, but I didn’t! It really happened! She’s right here!”
“Not so loud,” Albino said calmly, scratching the stirring Howler between the ears. “Folklore coming to life is not common outside of children’s tales. It would be stranger if they had believed you.”
“…I will never dismiss Tom’s stories ever again.”
Albino snorted, unable to hold it in. He held his hands up defensively at Brenda’s glare. “There is a reason why children are not regarded as the most accurate sources among adults, dear Brenda. Children’s accounts may be useful in a certain light. They often desire attention and spin the most creative fabrications to get it.”
“My story was true. My father is stupid and mean! I hate him!”
“Truth is stranger than fiction, as all stories are inspired by reality. Without exception, we can only observe tall tales and absurd imaginations because some aspect of the world around us inspired a thought that ended in its creation.”
Brenda shook, voicing something between a sob and a laugh. “Do you always have to talk in riddles? It’s obnoxious.” Albino fell silent. Brenda looked up, having expected another clever quip to break the tension. Instead, Albino made a cold face while cradling the sleeping Howler. “Uhm… What happened at the pond? The parts you can tell me about, I mean.”
“The census for the Howler population will rise by one in a few months. The poor woman is rightfully exhausted.”
“…The census- Oh! You- you did…? With… her?”
“See that bite mark on her shoulder? It marks her as part of my pack… Howlers are a special case among animals because they are not actually animals. A rare gene in the Verqinian Voohr Wolf bloodline may manifest as a Howler – a humanoid woman with wolf ears and a tail. They are clever beings, even cleverer than the Voohr Wolves that are frequently trained and used in the military. It is said that they take on the manners and behavior of who they consider the alpha male, no matter the species. Given enough time, even this fully grown Howler will stop being just another beast and grow to act more as her looks suggest – a fusion between man and wolf rather than exclusively the latter.”
Brenda’s mouth hung open. She barely understood half his explanation, but this was beyond a village boy’s wisdom. “Who are you? You shouldn’t know about any of this! We are the same age-“
“We are not. We- We are not the same age. Not by a long shot.”
Brenda looked at Albino. For a moment, he seemed… vulnerable. “How old are you, Albino?” Immediately, his barriers came back up. Her hope was broken. “Fine! If you want to keep your oh-so-important secrets, then choke on them all you want! I don’t care! Die! You jerk!”
Albino immediately felt awful for his silence. The weight of his secrets vastly outweighed anything Brenda could ever imagine, so how could he reasonably convey their contents to a typical village girl? He took a deep breath, steeling his heart. One look at the cross-armed Brenda and Albino’s resolution crumbled. She was a child, but they were to marry… Didn’t she have a right to know?
Albino shook his head. It wasn’t the time. Not for everything. “I will tell you at the end of summer, should you wish-“
“You always say that!” Brenda raised her voice, startling both Cormali and the Howler awake. Cormali groaned, and the Howler reflexively readied her claws. Albino massaged the Howler’s ears and scalp, keeping her pacified. Brenda didn’t notice the effect she had on the Howler and cawdelli. Her sight was locked on Albino as tears further blurred her vision. “You always delay and evade and hide behind riddles and grand words! It’s unfair! I hate you! You are stupid and an idiot, and… and I hate you!”
“…Then why do you stay?”
Brenda didn’t know the answer to that herself. Perhaps the combined forces of her parents and the Verq Navan trio at her house outweighed even the irritating attitude of Albino and his merry band of animals. Brenda huffed without giving an answer.
“I do not think you hate me. I also do not believe you hate your father or mother. You would not have come here if you resented me from the bottom of your heart, and you would not feel so irritated your father did not trust your word if you did not care about him. I… care what you say. Maybe more than I should, but it is the truth. The date I always cite, the last day of summer, is as much for your benefit as mine. Strange as it is, I enjoy what we have. We are not in love, but I value this… dare I call it friendship? I fear I have not been the best of friends, but I feel like I owe it to you to be myself. This is our trial period for becoming engaged. I need you to know who I am. This is what a married life with me will be like. Lots of weird riddles and top-down attitudes. If you can not tolerate me like this, you will despise a life at my side. I could pledge to alter my person, but how can I swear on something I consider a lie? If I told you all my secrets now… I fear we will not stay together. Maybe that fear is irrational, but it is there. I delay the inevitable because I do not want our friendship to break apart. That last day of summer is your deadline as much as mine. I will not allow myself to delay my explanation beyond then, so… would you please be patient with me for a little while longer?”
After listening to his monologue, Brenda closed her eyes and took a deep breath. She rested her head on Albino’s shoulder, to which he placed a hand on her head and gently petted her. A feeling of safety spread through Brenda’s chest – a calming reminder of why she still considered Albino a decent marriage partner. “Tell me these things before I get all worked up, you idiot.”
The Howler watched the proceedings with great interest. Albino had sent Brenda away before, but they were obviously close. Was she another potential pack member? Wouldn’t that make Brenda the Howler’s (possible) junior? The Howler licked Brenda’s cheek, drawing a startled yelp from her lips. The Howler didn’t mind and laid across Albino’s and Brenda’s laps.
“She seems to think of you as another potential pack member,” Albino explained, putting more strength into his fingers. Brenda trembled against her will, the fear and worry slowly diminishing under his touch. “Think of her as a… Ugh. I do not like that word, but think of the Howler as a tamed hound like the ones bred by the Voohr.”
“Why don’t you like that word?”
“It is degrading. The Howler wanted to join my pack, and both me and Quionne accepted.”
Brenda chuckled. “A pack, you say?”
“Pack. Group. Clan. Family. The Howler thinks us a pack, while I prefer the term family. Speaking of family, how much longer do you want to worry your parents?”
Brenda frowned. She didn’t want to be reminded of going home. “Do you want me to leave?”
“Did I say that?”
“…You implied it.”
“When?” Albino asked a silent Brenda. “I only asked a question, no?”
“Questions can be answers, too!”
“Heh. I will not stop you. Tonight seems to be a cuddle party for my family, so I hope you know what your presence implies.”
“That-! …I don’t mind.” Brenda looked at Cormali, whose bulky frame gave Brenda security. She looked at the Howler, who seemed almost harmless in her lap. Brenda also looked at Quionne, who had shown her the way in her butterfly form before. Finally, she looked at Albino, who had united this band of animal misfits under him.
“I, for one, am glad to have you,” Albino told Brenda, pacifying Quionne on his head with a few gentle touches down her butterfly body. The group stayed together all night. Brenda, Cormali, and the Howler quickly fell asleep. Meanwhile, Quionne and Albino watched the clear night sky with all its wonders, talking in wind-speak.
At midnight, Gordon, the village chief, arrived, sighing in relief upon spotting his daughter in their midst. Then he noticed the Howler in her lap, and sweat formed on his face.
“I did wonder when you would arrive,” Albino greeted him in a whisper. “Brenda was angry at you for doubting her… but the truth is you believed her, did you not? You merely understood what it would mean if her words were true.”
Gordon swallowed his spit, already constructing the letter in his head. “You seem to attract trouble, my boy. We always hope to be spared of such misfortune, but once again… All captured Howlers are to be detained in the castle of the reigning Voohr of Verquuva.”
“To breed more Voohr Hounds?”
“The pups born from Howlers bond easier… I don’t know much about it. Lord Marciel will be… overjoyed. Last time I heard, he had no Howlers of breeding age left.”
“They bond easier because Howlers are closer to people than animals. I will not allow them to use her as mere breeding stock.”
“…You don’t have a choice, my boy. If Lord Marciel finds out that we hid a Howler from him…” Gordon gulped and looked at his daughter, scenario after scenario of terrible things Lord Marciel could do to her cycling through his mind… and Warren would never keep this secret.
“Who said anything about hiding her from him? Write that letter. Tell him a Howler bonded to one of your villagers and that this villager wants to keep the Howler with him. Shift the blame to me, and only me. If Lord Marciel refuses, which he will, I will likely be called upon for… interrogation? Does that sound about right?”
“Interrogation is a nice word for it.” Gordon sighed. “Boy, you claimed you want to marry my daughter? How can you do that if you stir up trouble with the reigning Voohr of Verquuva?”
“Even the Voohr has things he cannot refuse,” Albino said, rubbing the Howler’s belly.
Gordon raised a brow. “You didn’t… Really?”
“Whatever could you mean,” Albino said cryptically, smiling at the village chief. “I doubt this will change his mind, but we are a pack now. A lone wolf may perish, but the pack survives!”
Gordon shook his head. “Recently, you have begun talking with an old man’s confidence. Sometimes I wonder if you really are the same boy I found all those years ago… I place my hope in that boy now. May your delusions of insight show you a path out of this mess.”
***
Business happened as usual in Verq Bavas, or so everyone tried to convince themselves. A mist of forced normalcy clouded everyone’s faces, and the Howler’s presence went ignored. She didn’t care much about that as long as her alphas paid enough attention to her. Aside from staying with Cormali, a return to training with Dirk, Robert, and Warren, and his usual jobs around the village, Albino spent much of his nights with Quionne and the Howler. They did the deed, of course, but they also prepared the resources for their future home. A natural amber coating meant to protect the logs from decay, bolts, and lock-in mechanisms to hold the structure together, and an early taste of construction work when they built a small stable for Cormali and an expanded shack until their materials for the main building were ready. Brenda also helped with those projects during the daytime.
The bird carrying Gordon’s letter flew out the morning after he discovered the Howler, and it wasn’t the only one. When the Verq Navan trio first saw the Howler, they exchanged meaningful looks and retreated into their guest hut for many hours. They had learned to write at Lord Marciel’s fortress, though they struggled with the letters. Albino had skimmed over their progress a few times, and their account of things painted him in a pretty evil light. An arrogant villager tries to usurp the Voohr through a horde of Howler pups! Or something like that… What a joke. Nothing he could do about it… Not without drawing even more untoward attention to himself. What an unpleasant situation this was.
It was summer, and the path between the mountains was unfrozen. Lord Marciel sent out nine knights bearing his banner within the hour. Another squad of nine rode out the day after, followed by another backup squad of nine two days later. Albino followed their movements constantly. The third squad had a brief scuffle with a group of ruffians who were way over their heads. The first nine slayed a Verqinian Mountain Bear as though it was a mere nuisance. Otherwise, their journey went uninterrupted. The knights rose on horses, but each squad brought a sturdy steel cart filled with chains and breaking tools. It slowed them down to a slog, almost taking a month for the entire journey. They had set out on the 17th day of the 3rd summer month. They were slated to arrive on the 14th day of the 4th summer month.
“I don’t understand how you can be so confident in these random predictions,” Brenda told him, getting nervous despite herself.
“You would be better off not associating with a rebel,” Albino warned her. “When the knights arrive, I will stand alone.”
“Not if I can help it. Friends stand together.”
“Friends also look out for one another, and I believe you will be in grave danger if you stand with me.”
“S-see if I care!” Brenda obviously cared, no matter how much she wanted to convince herself otherwise. The Howler noticed and rubbed her fluffy ears against the girl, licking her cheek. She remained clothed in only the mantle, as the Howler refused to wear anything that didn’t smell like her alphas. “H-howler! Stop that!”
“Rawr!” the Howler said, excited by the attention.
“Her roar sounds less and less like an animal’s,” Quionne noted. These days, the Albi-Onna even assumed her humanoid form near Brenda. The air between them remained heavy with tension, though.
“No wonder,” Albino said. “Brenda keeps practicing the word with the Howler as though that is the highest priority. I wanted to teach her ‘no,’ followed by ‘yes.’ Those are more useful than saying ‘rawr.'”
“How will that help her if she doesn’t understand the concept of those words?” Brenda argued, leaning away from the Howler’s tongue. “Why didn’t you name her, anyway? She’s going to listen to ‘Howler’ at this point! That’s such a boring name for a Howler!”
“I hoped she would choose a name for herself once she understands our language enough to contribute,” Albino confessed. “In a few more years, she might choose a name she can be proud of.”
“…A few more years? Humans have their names chosen for them! Pets have their names chosen for them! Animals don’t care about names, so what’s the big deal?”
“The big deal, little girl, is that you don’t understand Albino’s kindness,” Quionne spat, crossing her arms.
Brenda shot her an indignant look.
The Howler looked from her alpha female to her junior, unsure whose side she should be on. She didn’t understand what they were mad at each other about, but something had happened!
Albino clapped on his lap before the Howler could consider this dilemma, calling her over in a flash. She settled into her favorite position in her favorite place with a content growl, offering her ears to Albino’s touch. “What would you name her if you had the power, Brenda?”
“Rawr!” the Howler exclaimed.
“…She seems to like the word rawr-“
“Because you brainwashed her into liking it,” Quionne said.
Brenda cleared her throat. “She seems to like the word rawr, so… Rawrer? Rawra? Rawler?”
Quionne snorted. “You silly girl. It should be something with fire! Like Albino’s… Oh, I forgot. A certain someone has yet to see her own fiancee’s true form. Truly pitiful!”
“Your skin marks also come to mind for fire,” Albino mused, drawing circles over Quionne’s womb. “Fire and rawr. Let us combine the two and call her… Fierawr! How about it, Howler?”
“Rawr!” she said, scrunching her nose. Then she smiled. “Feerawr!”
Greetings and salutations! You have earned my eternal gratitude for reading this humble mortal’s story. If you enjoyed yourself, I will have done my job well. If not… well, there is always room for improvement.
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