theshabbiestofmen | IC Contact;

Mmhmm. It was my friend Sirius' idea. We were thirteen at the time, to be fair.

[He smiles tiredly as he catches sight of the tea.]

May I have some?

How old are you now?

[She smiles and gets a second mug]

I mean my nan called me Stripes for ages, until I graduated from school. But...what do you mean, ten years? You've been changing for that long?

I was bitten when I was six-- I'm sixteen now. I have to change once a month every month. It's . . . not fun. But it's easier now that I'm among other werewolves. Can your entire family change?

[She gives a little huff]

That's rough-

[Because in a way she gets it, even when she doesn't]

My father, and my grandfather, he could when he was still alive. My mother and my nan are human, from human families. My mother doesn't even know.

We don't start changing until we're in our teens, though. Are you telling me - were you a cub?

[She pauses]

I'm sorry if that's not an appropriate question. Things around here are different, then where I'm from.

It's fine.

[He shakes his head and leans forward, taking the mug of tea.]

I was, yes, insofar as I . . . yes. I was a cub, or puppy, or whatever you'd like to call it. My mother used to sit with me. They'd have to chain me up, but-- she couldn't stand me being alone.

[That's....absurdly cute, but then-]

I'm sorry.

You can't change whenever you want?

No. Once a month, that's all. I've noticed my human senses have become a bit better now that I've a pack.

Er-- so is it common, then? Your changing?

Common, most days, almost anytime, really.

[She takes a sip of her tea]

Are you part of Derek Hale's little get together?

I think we're a pack, to be honest.

Jesus Christ. Does he woo you kids with candy or something?

[She is not really impressed by Derek Hale, to be honest here]

Sorry, I'm just not sure what's so appealing.

[He shrugs and glances down, his cheeks coloring a little.]

It's nice to . . . to have somewhere to belong. To know that I'm part of something, that I can rely on them for things that my other friends-- though I love them dearly-- can't understand. I've never known any other werewolves before, let alone ones who enjoyed their lycanthropy.

[He rubs his face.]

And Derek . . . he protects us. Tries to keep us safe.

[She can tell she embarrassed him a little, so she tones it down, just a bit]

Sorry, I don't really get the pack thing. We don't...really do that. Well, the Simba do, but whatever, they're their own thing.

But if it makes you more secure, who am I to judge?

[He shrugs.]

It's just something to have. Like a family.

Does it make you feel better?

[The question is very gentle, very soft.]

[He shrugs sharply.]

It is what it is. You should tell me more about your world.

What would you like to know?

[Her world and her life are different matters, and she's comfortable enough with one of them]

Anything.

[Thank god. They can move on and he can forget his embarrassment.]

Is it all tigers, or any animal? What determines what kind of animal you are?

Mm, well, even werewolves are rare. Most shifters are werewolves, then it goes down the line - rats, birds, cats - big ones and little ones - and it's genetic. We can't spread it by bite.

You know I thought that was pretty standard, but the more wolves I meet here, the more it occurs to me that it's kind of unusual.

[She takes another sip.]

My father was a Khan - that's a tiger - and so was my grandfather, and my great-grandmother - and so on, and so forth.

There are voluntary shifters in my world-- animaguses, they're called-- but what animal you are is based on your soul, on what you truly are.

This isn't...about souls. Although I believe in them.

We're a species. Like humans, only different.

Animaguses. Would they be...mages? Magicians?

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