His Mother Interrupts, Speaking Of Which, Jr, Go Take A Shower And Change. Youre Disgusting And Youre

His mother interrupts, “Speaking of which, Jr, go take a shower and change. You’re disgusting and you’re getting filth all over my couch…” Jr gets up immediately, “Sorry… Come on…” You blink, “You’re going to take a SHOWER. I’m NOT coming with you.” Jr rolls his eyes, “You can hang in my room 'til I get out, just come on…” You glare. He frowns, “Please…” You sigh and get up, “Fine. But if you walk out naked, or with a towel on, or without a shirt-” He laughs, “I get it! I’m not…” He heads down the hall. You follow, “Where is your room?” He slips in a door, “Right here.” You stop, blinking. You’re not sure WHAT you had been expecting, but it’s definitely not this… His room is…. Not much bigger than yours…. There’s a bed, a dresser, and a closet. There’s not even a bedside table or a lamp. Admittedly, the bed itself is nice. It’s a good size, with thick covers and soft pillows, but even that isn’t as expensive as you would have thought it would be. Nothing in here is even name brand. You always figured all rich people had name brand EVERYTHING… You frown, “Where’s the built in bathroom? Aren’t you supposed to, like, have one connected to every room or something?” Jr laughs, “What? No. Why would I need my own bathroom?” You look at him, “I… Don’t know… Because your…. Rich?...” Jr laughs again, “Just because my parents are rich doesn’t mean they’ve doused me with lavish everything…” He goes to the dresser and starts pulling out clothes. You watch, “They could at least give you something better than an old, wore out jacket…” He turns and glares, “If I WANTED something different I could have asked for it. I liked that jacket.” You lift your hands in surrender, “Sorry for mentioning it… Grab your clothes so you don’t have an excuse to come back in here naked…” Jr smirks at that and finishes pulling out his pants and underwear. You find yourself looking away. You hear him open his closet door and some ruckus as he jerks a shirt off a hanger, then he walks over to you. You look at him. He pauses, “You can go in you know… Make yourself comfy. I don’t mind if you sit on my bed. There’s really no where else to sit anyway…” And with that, he’s gone. You stare after him. Why is he suddenly being so nice? Is it because he’s in familiar territory, or did that enclosure change him? You shrug to yourself and go to his bed. Guess now all there is to do is wait…

Sam isn’t at school the next day. You figure he’s probably with the family, celebrating Jr’s return. You resist the urge to snort. You’re not even sure they would celebrate that. They aren’t exactly the nicest people…. But, you’re sure, at least Sam would want to celebrate it… You sigh. You’re really glad they get to reunite with each other and be happy and all that good stuff. But you’re also really bored… You didn’t realise how close you and Sam had gotten nor how much he entertained you, until he didn’t show up today. You sigh again and rest your chin in your hand. You will be happy for them and let them have their family time, but you’ll also be relieved when they’re back to entertain you….

Jr’s home is very large and very nice, as expected from someone as powerful as his dad. Everything is in pristine condition. It’s almost uncomfortable how perfect everything is. In each room you pass, there’s at least one bell, sitting on a small table. Jr and his family go to the living room and you follow. His mother sits on the edge of the couch. His father stays standing. Jr sits comfortably on a different couch and pats the seat beside him. You go and sit by him. He leans back, pulling his feet under him. It’s such a comfortable and vulnerable position, you almost feel like you should look away. Surely you shouldn’t be seeing Jr like this, who always acted strong and cold? Surely he’d be embarrassed? But he doesn’t seem embarrassed at all. He watches you, unblinking. You sit awkwardly until he breaks the silence, “I guess you decided I wasn’t HORRIBLE… For a monster?” Immediately you want to slap him. Arrogant little prick! You JUST got out and you’re ALREADY trying to provoke me? But you smile a little anyway, “I…  Haven’t decided yet…” You shrug and look at the floor nervously. Really, if you’re honest with yourself, you have. But you’re not confident enough to admit it yet... He watches you. You don’t look up to see him, but you can feel his eyes burning into you. “Then why’d you wait for me? Why’d you send me messages? Why’d you bring Sam to me?” You look up, “His name’s Sam?” He blinks, then shrugs, “Yeah…” You frown, “Oh… I’ve known him for so long and never even thought of asking his name…” Jr smirks, “Well you ARE a little scatterbrained…” You glare, “You literally JUST got out and you’re already being a jerk…”

You walk home from school. Your mind is dull, tired. It’s been two weeks. Nothing. No plan, no sudden epiphany, nothing. If only you were stronger. If only some sudden power would show up. And then what? You’d break him out? Run away? You’d be fugitives forever. Both your futures would be ruined. Somehow, you don’t think Jr would thank you… You suppose it doesn’t matter though, since you don’t have any powers to speak of. Jr’s brother comes up, startling you. He had missed a week of school, and then you had avoided him. You were too ashamed to face him. Too afraid. That makes you want to cry all over again. Why are you SO WEAK? You have no powers, no will, you’re even too much of a coward to face Jr’s brother… Frustration builds in you and you want to scream. If only you were a superhero. If only you were braver. If only you were smarter. But you're not. You're just a little girl, too weak and scared and stupid to do anything. “I want to go see him.” Jr’s brother’s words break you out of your thoughts, “What?” You stare in disbelief. “Jr. I want to go see him. I want you to come with me.” You laugh, but break it off quickly, “You CANNOT go out there. You’re a werewolf too. I’m not having you thrown in there-” “I’m not.” “What?" You blink, “What do you mean?” “I’m not a werewolf.” You roll your eyes, “Yes you are. Jr’s a werewolf. You’re his brother. It runs in the- Did he get bit?” He hesitates, then nods, “Yeah. Yeah he did. When he was young, still a kid. It almost killed him… I think dad was hoping he would die…” Your lips twist, “That’s awful…” He shrugged, “Is it? At least he wouldn’t be stuck down there if he had…” You frown, “Do you wish he had died?” His eyes widen, “No! No, of course not. I’m just… I don’t know. Let’s go.” You shake your head, “We can’t get in. They watch the inner walls VERY strictly. The furthest we can go is on the wall…” “Then I want on the wall…” You shake your head, “We can’t…” His glare is so intense it scares you, “YOU were with him! YOU were there! YOU did nothing! You OWE ME!” You flinch, heart sinking because... You do. You do owe him. It is your fault… You sigh, “Ok… But I can only take you TO the wall. We were on the wall and… Fell…” His eyes widen. You continue “So they’ll be watching that part carefully. I don’t know where the blind spots are and I can’t climb that wall…” He nods, “I only need as far as the wall…” You frown, “You really don’t know where it is? Everyone knows where it is…” He blushes, “I’ve… Never left the city… And I’ve never been curious about it…” You shake your head. You would think, with his brother being so into all that, he would at least know where the GIANT CITY FULL OF HOWLING WOLVES IS… Oh well. You take him, just like you said you would. The walk is long and awkward. You don’t know what to say, and he’s quiet anyway. You open your mouth many times to start a conversation. But how can you? After getting his brother put in Hell, you really have no right to speak to him at all. So you walk in silence. When you finally get there, you zigzag through there blind spots, just like Jr. had showed you. His brother follows. He seems to be fairly adept at sneaking… This worries you a little. What does he do to be that good at being sneaky? You reach the wall and look at him. Then your jaw drops. Feathers are springing up on his face and neck. “Wait for me…” And then he’s a blue jay, flying up the wall.

Once you reach the edge he urges you close. You look over and gasp. There’s a huge trench right inside the wall, full of men, women, and children, presumably werewolves. The inside edges of the trench are lined with stairs and thin pathways, houses dug into the side of them. The adults are all at the bottom, digging.The dirt is loaded into carts that are taken in underground tunnels further into the city. The city itself is massive, past the trench are houses upon houses. They’re shabby and broken up, you can tell even from the height you’re at. People, the size of ants, bustle around. Most seem to be working. Some building houses, some draggin carts in and out of tunnels, Some collecting those dead or sick off the streets. Your lips twist at that sight. The middle of the city is full of farmland, better looking, though still small, houses dotted everywhere. They seem to have an abundance of food, they’re not lacking in work, why are they all dying? You decide it’s probably from overcrowding. Though the city is big, the infection is bigger. It has spread all across the world. It’s so thick, even in just the seven cities that send their wolves here, that there’s simply no room. Streets are small, houses crammed everywhere, new ones constantly being built, and children are continuously being born. With a city so big, it simply would be unrealistic to think no one would have kids and, unfortunately, some species of werewolves have litters. Children run everywhere, playing, working, and dying. Even with them being so small, you can see their bad condition. Their clothes are poor too. Almost all of the children are naked, and some of the adults. Those who do have clothes look as though they’ve been wearing the clothes they were brought in since they got there, have hand made clothes, or have rags that barely cover them. You squint and lean further out, struggling to see. Are they all… Starving? You jerk back and look at Jr. He’s watching you. You point out to the farms, “They have an abundance of food! Why are they so thin?” Jr sighs, “The food isn’t for them. They’re given rations according to where they work. All the food they grow is shipped out and sold. They’re given the leftover. The stuff no one wants.” Your lips twist, “I don’t believe you.”

You’re forced, struggling, to your knees. Jr is wrestled out of the net. He bolts for the door, but is grabbed instantly. The guards slam him to the ground and you scream. Two collars are brought out and you shiver. Although you know you aren’t a werewolf, the collar is still scary. You look over at Jr. He’s struggling to get back, away from the collar, but two guards hold him still. The man snaps the collar on you. The cold metal sits heavy on your neck, giving you chills. You watch the man, waiting for something, anything. Finally, he smiles, “See? That wasn’t so bad. You’re good to go.” He takes the collar off and your focus instantly goes to Jr. A guard is wrestling a collar on him. As soon as it snaps closed he wails and thrashes. You scream and fight towards him. He writhes, struggling to wrench it off, but it’s hard when his skin is rippling and twisting. You cover your mouth as he arches his back, blood flecking his mouth. You gasp, “You’re killing him! Stop!” Jr gives a last wail and rips violently into a wolf, shuddering and shaking. You freeze, staring. He’s beautiful. Big and almost golden. His fur is long and thick, rippling with every move he makes. His eyes are still the same though, blue and very, very human. He stares at you, crouched on the floor, shivering, and whimpers. You can only stare. It’s hard to decide whether to be terrified, like you’ve been taught to be all your life, or mesmerized. Because he is very VERY definitely in control. But that doesn’t make sense. Werewolves are monsters. They CAN’T be in control. They become violent, hungry animals when they turn… The guards step forward and Jr snarls, his appearance instantly changing. His fur bristles along his back, making him look much bigger, and his lips jerk back, revealing his teeth and gums, mouth hanging open threateningly. It’s a truly terrifying sight, and you just stare as they struggle to get close to him. He snarls and snaps, not hurting anyone, but scaring them enough to back off. Once it’s decided that it’s too dangerous to come close, they retreat, grabbing guns. You instantly fight, “Wait! Don’t kill him! DON’T KILL HIM!” They raise their weapons and you scream desperately, fighting with everything you have against the guards holding you, but they fire anyway. A dozen darts strike him and he jerks back, snarling and barking wildly. You don’t know whether to scream some more, because they’re HURTING HIM, or be relieved that those weren’t real bullets. Jr stumbles and falls, eyes rolling back. You shiver, whimpering. A man looks at you, “What is she still doing here?” The guards blink, surprised, and he snaps, “Get her out! She’s been traumatized enough!” The guards scramble and grab you. You struggle a little, “Jr….” “That’s not your friend ma’am… That’s a monster…” Tears spill down your cheeks. He’s not a monster. He’s a person… You two weren’t really close, but you were JUST starting to become friends… You don’t want to leave him… But you’re not strong. You’re not fast. You have no special power. Nothing you can pull out of thin air to solve the problem. You’re dragged out of the tower, down to a car. They put you in the back and you curl up, “He’s not a monster! He’s my friend! He wouldn’t-” Your voice breaks. Would he? Honestly… You don’t know. Maybe not while human. But even as a wolf he seemed so…. Human…. But that could just be your judgement too… You don’t know what to think anymore… You rest your forehead on your knees. You need time to think. You need to tell his brother, warn him… ‘But if he’s a wolf… Doesn’t he need to be seperated? He’s dangerous….’ You hug your legs tighter. Why does life have to be so complicated?