Sweet Charity

Lauren: Chapter 8: Exploring

My young cousin looks edgy. I can tell she's enthusiastic. Her skin is rippling and she's bouncy. I take her parents to the side and speak to them very quietly. I know Charity can hear me if she chooses, but I think her mind is occupied. They give me a nod so I grab Charity's hand and run her to my house, which is four houses away.

"We're going exploring the way nature intended," I say as I strip my clothes off in my living room. I phase into my wolf and nudge her with my muzzle. Her eyes widen for a moment before she does the same.

I stare at her for what feels like eternity. Her wolf is big, almost as big as our current Alpha. Her colors are amazing. She looks like a full moon her twin streaks spanning from shoulder to flank. She blinks at me while I stare and it takes me a second to realize she can't mind-link yet. I will help her with that.

I recover my shock at how wonderful she looks in her wolf form and lead her through the door. We lope around the houses before running into the woods. I can tell the exact moment her confidence increases because her speed doubles and I am struggling to keep up with her. I admire her newfound sense of freedom. Her heart knows she's where she belongs.

I find a spot near a creek and lie down. I rest my head on my paws and watch her run. She is so carefree in this moment. I can't help but drink it all in. Despite having just met her, I am enamored with her. She spots me lying down and comes over to snuggle my side. I motion my head toward home. She picks up my signal so we head back to my house.

We phase back to our human forms as soon as we cross the threshold. She tugs on her dress without putting her underclothes on first. I can't say I blame her. Undergarments are just bothersome.

"I need to teach you something. You're going to like it, I think. It helps when you're far away or in your wolf form."

"What?" she asks me eagerly.

"You will understand. Close your eyes and listen to my voice," I pause to wait for her to do as I instruct. She doesn't hesitate. "Now, you're going to imagine your mind is a speaker. Do you hear a voice?" I start to speak to her using the mind-link. She squeezes her eyes tightly shut for a second before her eyebrows shoot up.

"I hear a voice that's not mine or Layla's. Is that you?"

'Yes, it's me. This is how mind-link works. You try to speak to me now.'

'Will it be the wolf or human voice through mind-link?'

I am impressed with how quickly she has learned to use mind-link. I blink at her for a second. She can't see me. Her eyes are still closed. "It will depend on whether you're in human form or wolf form. In human form, it will be your human voice, but in wolf form, it will be your wolf. You said you heard your wolf?"

Her eyes spring open. "Yes, as soon as we got here. She said we were home."

I am seriously impressed with her now. I know I have taken for granted my second nature. She is embracing hers rather quickly. I want to know what else she can learn, but it's getting late. I walk her home and hug her close. I tell her I will come for her in a few days; to give her time to settle in.