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4.

I sat there half in shock, half in complete denial of what Nick, a long time friend, had just told me. He was a werewolf, a creature that I kind of knew about but did not accept as being real. I was wondering if my friend had undergone some kind of nervous break down or was I a prisoner of an insane man. The serious look in his eyes told me otherwise. I wondered what it could really mean as the cold hard truth slowly made its way into my mind. How else could I explain my sudden improved vision over night, the improved hearing, and the fragments of my memory of the big black beast hurling itself before me and ripping me apart. I was dazed and confused as I could tell that there was nothing Nick could do to really help me.

A black haired man with a deep tanned skin stood in the doorway, his arms crossed over his chest. He was dressed in tight blue jeans that showed off his muscled legs that seemed to be poured over his lower body. His upper half was dressed in only a black suede leather vest that hugged his chest and showed off his muscled arms. His hair was long and draped over his shoulders going down behind his back. His eyes were piercing and amber colored like the rays of the sun had been caught for a moment. His gaze went from Nick to me. Nick lowered his head and quickly left the room. I was shocked by the sudden abandonment from Nick, but I also got the sense that this guy was the one in charge. The black haired newcomer closed the door once Nick had departed.

His amber gaze looked at me and if I didn't know any better, he regarded me as a piece of meat. That assumption was made even clearer when he licked his lips as he unfolded his arms from his dark hairy chest. The chest was quite well developed and toned; two rounded hills in the upper body were partially shown by the black vest. I felt my heart begin to race as I looked into those amber eyes and the partially exposed body, instinctively I looked away. Sweat started to glisten on my skin as my mind panicked and began to wonder just what was going on. There was an overwhelming urge for me to flea from the room or get away from the figure approaching.

Without any control or any conscious thought, my body flung itself out of bed and over to the opposite corner of the room where the bed was. I found myself spreading my arms out holding onto the walls as if they were going to fall down if I let go. I was crouching keeping my eyes on the stranger who had entered the room. My panting breath hadn't calmed down at all and my naked body was covered in nothing but the bandages over my shoulders. My long brown hair was damp and clung to the nap of my neck. What was I doing fleeing from this guy? Sure he might look stronger and tougher but that didn't mean I couldn't take him on in a fight. Instead here I was cowering in the corner of an unfamiliar room, naked and nervous as hell with a complete stranger. My life had definitely taken a weird course and there was a small voice in the back of my head that trying to convince me that it was all bad dream.

"Hmmmm....so my young pup learns quickly who is in charge?" grinned the thirty something looking man in a rather sinister way.

A rather pathetic whine escaped my throat. I tried to stop it but a growling voice inside my head spoke loud and clearly: No, submit! I began to wonder if I had lost my mind the other night and if I had taken any drugs from my mysterious captor. I really didn't know how much power Nick had with this guy. It was obvious that the raven haired man was the one calling the shots now. I looked over my naked body. My chest was heaving with every breath and I quickly covered my groin in embarrassment. A small grin came to the black hair man as he eyed me from head to toe.

"I see that Nick picked a good looking addition to the pack as well," he grinned as he stepped closer to me.

I was stunned by the remark as well as horrified by the suggestion. I considered myself small by comparison to most men. I stood at only five foot six inches and weighed more or less around one hundred and thirty pounds. My build was average with perhaps a bit of muscle tone, especially in the legs and chest. My chest had some hair as did my legs; overall I did not consider myself handsome or good looking, so the comment from the stranger was a bit unnerving. What was this person intending on doing? There were primal fears probing through my mind that were not pleasant at least and terrified my already panic ridden body. Fear was building to an intoxicating level in my body and the only reaction I had was to flee the scene as soon as I could find a route out of the room. Unfortunately the only route I could see was the one the stranger had come in through. The strange voice from before came back into my head, flee, run, escape!

In a blink of an eye, I found myself outside the bedroom, scrambling on all fours as I slid into a pair of legs. I looked up and saw another black haired man. This one though was slightly older looking. He wore a pair of black jeans and a light blue shirt. The shirt was only marginally loose over his frame allowing me to see the slight budge in his stomach. His brown eyes looked down on me with concern and surprise. Like the other black haired stranger, I looked away from his gaze sensing that staring was not a good idea, especially with this one. I could smell and air of authority on the man....What? I thought since when could anyone smell an emotion?

The second black haired man, which was as long hair as the other one only with a slight graying at his temples, looked back at the doorway to the bedroom. I looked over my bandaged shoulder and saw the other man standing there his gaze going left to avoid the look of the other. I thought I heard a grumble from the second man as Nick appeared behind him, now wearing a black t-shirt with a wolf jumping over a log on it. The look Nick had on was one of shock and concern towards me and I could tell he wanted to come forward. He held back as if there was an invisible hand holding him there.

"Just what the hell is going on here?!?" shouted the second black haired man as he gazed between the other man and me.

I remained silent too scare and confused to say anything. The other man remained silent as well, his gaze lowering to the floor as his body hunched over. Another growl came from the second raven haired man as I was suddenly picked up by the nap of the neck and dragged into the bed room with an unfathomable strength of the man. I let out an uncontrolled yip at the sudden movement and quickly found myself flung onto the bed. The wooden door was slammed shut behind us and I lay unceremoniously on the bed but was quick to gather up some sheets to cover up my naked body. The second stranger stomped angrily towards me. The new stranger glared down at me forcing me to look away in fear. He sat down with a heavy huff and shrugged his shoulders as if the weight of the world was on his shoulders as he looked me over.

"My name is Eric Malson and the person you just met is Kevin...You know Nick..."he sighed looking over at me," What exactly did Kevin do to you?"

I soon found myself sputtering on about the previous night and giving away all the details leading right up to the events of the last few minutes. I was surprised at how open I was with this guy and something told me in the back of my mind that this was all wrong and that something very, very bad was going on for me to act this way. Eric's expression went from understanding, to concern, and finally to anger. He kept his gaze on me looking over my face , what he saw I did not know but there was a reassurance there that this man meant no harm. When I finished explaining everything, Nick left the room with a nod from Eric, closing the door behind him. Eric stood up and went into the closet, as he talked he went through the hangers which made loud scrapping noises that dug into my skull.

"I must apologize for Kevin's behavior but he is more feral than the rest of the pack," announced Eric as he threw a pair of black jeans on the bed," What Nick said is entirely true though. He is a werewolf, as am I, so is Kevin and there are others. We are a pack. Like it or not you have been bitten and so now you are going to begin to change and become one of us. Do you accept that much?"

It took a moment for Eric's words to settle into my confused and nerve racked mind, but as he asked whether or not I accepted it, it took root. I sat there taking it all in for a few minutes; trying to rationalize it in my mind but nothing I could come up with made any more sense than what Eric was telling me.

"Yeah I guess I do...." I reluctantly admitted my eyes still not looking directly at the other man.

"I know it is hard to come to terms with it, but you have to. Nick chose you to become one of us because he figured you would find such a life rewarding," explained Eric as he continued to shuffle through the closet," He told me you liked wolves, even donated money to a local wolf preserve in Fryeburg, is that true?"

"Yes it is true, so was that the reason for me being picked?" I asked.

"It helped but it was not the only reason. The real reason was that I think you can be valuable as a pack member. Nick has been kind of a spy for me and I must admit even without Nick's help, I would have probably brought you into the pack regardless. Before you ask there is nothing I can say at this moment that will make sense about that statement. You will just have to accept that you are right for us at the moment. First things first, put these one," ordered Eric as he explained in a cryptic way what had happened to me while tossing clothing at me.

I fumbled under the blankets putting on the underwear first before putting on the rest. Eric watched him throughout me as I dressed. His eyes were not the savage needful look of Kevin's; instead he was looking at a goldfish in a tank. It was a look of curiosity and intrigue as Sean got up and put on the rest of the clothing. My head was full of questions and Eric was not lost to make mention of the fact.

"Naturally you have questions and for the moment I will try and answer them if I can," offered Eric.

"Well...why did Kevin treat me so bad and why am I acting so weirdly?" I asked sitting back down on the bed.

"Hmmm, Kevin was the one that bit you. You see even though Nick wanted you as a pack member, he is an omega and cannot bring in new pack members no matter what. Fortunately you are familiar with wolves, well we werewolves are no different when it comes to pack organization and our rules are quite similar. The omega is the lowest ranking and is treated pretty much as an outcast and is treated better than he would on his own. I am Alpha. Kevin is currently the beta. The reason you fear him and cower towards me is because your wolf side recognizes me as the Alpha and definitely recognizes Kevin as the one who bit you. If a werewolf bites a human and they live then that human becomes a werewolf, but they are dominated by the bitten, automatically submitting to them. That is why you were doing what you did. Sad to say but Kevin was born and raised a wolf, so he tends to act more like out natural cousins than humans," explained Eric seemingly used to such explanations to new werewolves.

Eric went on to explain how rare Kevin was as far as werewolves went, that werewolves born as werewolves were extremely rare. Rarer still was one like Kevin who was born a wolf and that was why Kevin had no last name. He also explained that as the new wolf I was the pack's temporary omega until my role was more defined. Until that time I was going to be the whipping boy but Eric did say that any abusive behavior especially from Kevin should be reported directly to him no matter what. He said the omega position was more honorary than permante and that I needed time to be trained not scolded and whipped. The Alpha then wanted me to be introduced to the rest of the pack.

The raven haired man lead me out of the bedroom into a small waiting room of sorts, and then into a main living room. Eric told me to wait by the entryway until I was called in. I could already make out Nick standing just inside the room and a brown haired man with a large belly sitting on a chair beneath a large picture window. The room must have arched inwards because the rest of the pack was hidden away. I could tell there was more because Eric was talking to more than just one. One voice sent shivers down my spine was that of Kevin, a small fight of words broke out between Eric, Kevin and a third voice. Eric finally asked me to enter the room and nervously I did so.

The living room was done in a dark blue color with a white ceiling. Maple, pine, and oak wooded furniture all done in medium to dark stains graced the room. A large dome light with intricate leaf motive in the metal framing hung on the ceiling of the room. Eric sat in the middle of the back wall sitting in a burgundy Canadian rocker. Above him hung a wolf dream catcher showing a wolf glaring down behind a web of sinew as string of lace and feathers dangling bellow it. The painting reminded me of Kevin, who conveniently stood next to the Alpha. On the other side was a cinnamon haired young man somewhere between the ages of Eric and Kevin. He was rather tall looking even sitting down and had a thinner build about him much like my own. His brown eyes regarded me with curiosity. Behind me was Nick sitting rather shiftily on the tan recliner while the brown haired man was sitting in the opposite matching chair. Throughout the room Sean noticed Native American pottery, blankets, and decorations, even a small alter on top of the t.v. with a wolf skin and incense burning. The heavy smell of burning sage could be smelt throughout the room.

"Everyone this is Mr. Sean Nichols, resident here in Westbrook and landlord to Nick Baxter. He's the new wolf and as such I expect him to be treated as such. He's new and most of us know what that is like," ordered Eric with a command of authority thick in the air, "Sean to my left is Kevin whom you have met, to my right is our Gamma Bryan O'Conner and the brown haired fellow opposite Nick is Chris Knight. We are your pack and you are our Omega. Welcome to the Sebago Lake Region Pack."

After the introductions and some explaining to make things clear, Nick pulled me away from the rest of the packs curious probes of questions and led me into a small dining area. There he explained that I would be staying at Eric's for a while and that he would bring over anything I might require. Work had been informed that I had a death in the family and would not be back for more or less a week from now. Eric was hoping that was all that would take to have my wolf side under control by then, at least good enough to go to work. He also told me that Kevin lived with Eric because of his wolf upbringing and no one but he could keep him under control for long. I gulped rather nervously at that.

"You'll be feeling hungry a lot more, you'll get angry a lot quicker, and fear. These three things will cause the wolf side of your nature to come out. Kind of like when Kevin harassed you. However as time goes on you'll change, becoming either the wolf in full or depending on the severity of the hunger or the emotion a hybrid form of man and wolf. That form is nasty, it is very dangerous and for some time you will not be able to control it. Just try to listen to your wolf side, don't separate it regardless of how weird it might be at times. A werewolf is a combination of wolf and human and to separate one from the other is bad," explained Nick," Most importantly listen to EVERYTHING Eric tells you. He's the head of the pack and will demand your respect as much as the rest of us. He will also teach you everything you will need to know to survive like this."

"Nick can I ask you something?" I asked as I absorbed everything that was being told to him.

"Sure go ahead," replied Nick shrugging his shoulders.

"Why did you pick me to be a werewolf? Eric said he would have but you actually made the decision." I asked wanting more than anything to get a straight answer from someone.

Nick came close to me and brought his nose close to my neck and sniffed. He held my arms tight preventing me from jerking or running away. The voice in my head returned back off but Nick's grip was firm. He held me there for the longest time and when he pulled back his head; his normally brilliant blue eyes were suddenly yellow and savage looking. The sudden change caught me off guard and suddenly my world descended into muted colors and shades of grays and whites. Nick still held me but his grip lessen just a bit to make me relax and suddenly my vision went back to normal.

"I think you'd make a better werewolf than me and I have seen you look at those wolves in Fryburg. After seeing how you looked at them, I could tell you'd do anything to protect them, to be like them. I guessed you despised that humanity could be so cruel not just to those wolves but to all living things. It was at that moment I knew you had to be one of us."

With that Nick let me go and left the room, leaving me standing there stunned. I walked off to the guest bedroom where this morning I had woken up. I took off the bandages and was still surprised to see my shoulders were only mildly bruised. I walked out of the small bathroom and saw Kevin laying there on the bed nothing but a loincloth of a tan coloring on him. I stepped back instinctively as Kevin looped up with a genuine look of concern on his face and a slight look of hurt. He patted the empty spot on the bed next to him.

"This is my room too Sean," grinned Kevin lying on his back.

"Oh," I replied.

"Don't be afraid...Like Nick said being afraid is not good for you or me at this time. Just lay down," replied Kevin in a tone that was neither reassuring nor totally commanding.

I did what I was told to do knowing that if I didn't Kevin might be able to make me or worse punish me for not obeying a superior. It was something that I didn't want to test with Kevin right now. I climbed onto the bed and laid down, making sure to keep my eyes off Kevin as much as possible. In a lighting fast movement Kevin was suddenly on top of me, his legs and hands pinning him down. His fiery amber eyes were melting a candle as they gazed at me. I turned away, whimpering under my breath as I did so, as a large hand pushed my face back into Kevin's.

"Listen Sean," a look of fierceness was replaced with a genuine look of sorrow and regret on Kevin's face," I am sorry...I don't say that expect towards Eric so understand what that means..."

Kevin let that last phrase ring in my ears as I nodded, sort of understanding what the other werewolf was saying.

"I am sorry for earlier...just wanted to show you your place...I know Nick talked to you and so did Eric about me and why you were picked. Nick felt you were special and I didn't want to loose my place because of what you may become. Also I want you to know why I bit you....but Eric told me not to tell you...not now...but I will say I agree with Nick's reasons," replied Kevin as he snuggled his larger body against my own," I think you'll like it here."

The voice in my head sighed and made a sound that I had only heard from a contented puppy. Kevin laughed a bit and rolled over lying on his side. I laid there basking in the heat Kevin had given off but also curious as to why Eric had silenced Kevin on telling me why he had bitten me. Perhaps it had to do with controlling the wolf side; perhaps there was more to it. In any case I cautiously drifted off to sleep only when I heard Kevin snoring a bit. I also made sure my pants stayed on.