The four legs were harder to get used to, but it didn't take long before I managed to coordinate them and it was my turn to rub against Doc and Allan. They pet me and I shivered as each hair transmitted their touch through my skin. So intimate.
I could also smell Doc and Allan's arousal. Now I knew why it caught their attention any time I was turned on. The intoxicating scent pulled me to them.
Allan laughed. "Go outside while we change. Get used to your feet so we can run."
Huffing indignantly, I slunk out of the yurt. Ed, Nikolai, and Ash came over to me. We all sniffed and rubbed on each other, blending our scents. The feel of belonging heightened as we spread our scents on each other.
A minute or so later Doc, now a black wolf, and my darker blond wolf, Allan, joined us and I rubbed on them. Doc wolf grinned at me, licking his lips. His canines were longer than a normal wolf's. It took a little time, but once all of us had thoroughly bathed in everyone's scents, Allan and Ed moved off into the woods.
The rest of us followed, and we started out at a light jog so the three of us not used to four legs could get used to moving. If I didn't think about it, the movements came naturally, and soon I could focus on my surroundings.
The crisp breeze brought so many new smells to my nose that I had a hard time sorting them out. Some I recognized, others I didn't understand until information filtered to me through the pack bond from the real wolves in our group. It was like learning a whole new language, but at least I had a way to cheat as I borrowed my pack mates memories and knowledge.
That musk was a rabbit, an interesting smell, but I caught the idea that the boys were after a deer tonight. The cool dry smell was an outcropping of granite, the one Allan and I had first made love on. Acrid pine tickled my nose and the recent snowstorm left its heavy smell on the air.
Sounds had more meaning now. I heard my pack mates breaths, the sounds of their pads softly covering the snow, feet spreading wide so we didn't sink in far. The soft scratches of ground rodents. The hoot of an owl. The nearly silent flutter of feathers and the squeal of a rodent's life ending. Rustling through the pine needles as the light breeze wandered through the pines.
Though not as strong as the time I had borrowed Doc's vampire vision, I became aware of heat signatures. My pack mates stood out, but soon I could sense the difference between the snow and the trees, as my ability to use my new senses expanded.
My vision dwindled in importance as my nose and ears conveyed so much more information in this form.
Ed chuffed and we all slowed. He tilted his head and I listened, trying to sense what he did. Allan's ears and nose were pointed in the same direction that Ed looked so I focused in that direction.
Heat, nervous energy, musky scent. Deer.
Hunger and excitement warred with each other as my mind caught up to what my nose already knew. The hunt. Food.
Doc shouldered me when I would have taken off after the scent. Obviously, a rookie move, but I couldn't help the step I took before he interrupted me. He gestured with his muzzle toward Ed and Allan, and I understood through the bond that they would lead the hunt.
Ash was somehow part of our shared communication and I sensed agreement from him and the others.
Following Ed's instructions, we fanned out, trotting through the snow. Doc and Allan broke off and circled around. We would attempt to drive the deer to their ambush. I had no idea if these were actual wolf pack tactics, or if they were adapting human ones for the situation, but it didn't matter.
Ash and I flanked to the right and Nikolai went left with Ed.
We broke into a lope, weaving nearly silently through the pines as we bore down on our prey.
I didn't let myself think about what we were doing or I might have faltered, simply let the wolf running through my veins take over, guide me, encourage me to hunt. Hunting was life, and it was the right thing for us to do.
Ed sent instructions through our bond and we altered our course. Allan's fierce joy and Ed's more enthusiastic glee at hunting with a full pack filled me, lifted my paws, made my heart sing.
The deer scented us, but we had allowed that. The four of us closed in, driving the deer toward Doc and Allan. They would take advantage of Doc's vampire nature and Allan's skill to bring the deer down. With inexperienced wolves in the hunt, it was wise to put our best on the take down. Tonight we wanted certain success.
The bitter scent of fear quickened my feet, sped my heart. The deer knew we were coming. The prey sprang from their hiding space and raced away from us.
We ran for a time, driving the deer, relishing the wind rippling through our fur, the ground passing beneath our feet, the feel of pack as we worked in sync to feed the whole group.
Our energy changed as Doc and Allan actively joined the hunt, closing in, bringing us closer to our goal.
Ed ordered us to move and we altered our position moments before the deer turned, seeking freedom. Our shift cut off its escape and sealed its fate as the creature darted right into Doc and Allan's waiting jaws.
The creature squealed as Doc latched onto her throat. Heavy copper scent filled the air. Saliva dripped from my jaws. I flicked my tongue along my lips, mouth open to taste the smell.
Now I had an idea of what Doc experienced when he
