Happy Easter, for anyone who does Easter - bj88
In the woods…
Claire was relieved to find her belongings mostly untouched. It was obvious a few woodland creatures had been poking around, but there wasn’t any substantial damage. The tent had a few new holes, and the food she’d kept inside the tent was either gone or half eaten. But she hadn’t expected much to begin with.
Barbara helped her take the tent down, and then gather the rest of Claire’s belongings. Claire wore her backpack, and carried the other bag with her clothing and some other personal affects. Being a were, Barbara had no trouble carrying the tent or the sleeping bag Claire had inside.
“So… how do you and Ryan know each other?” Claire asked while the two women were making their way out of the woods.
“Oh, I moved into town about fifteen years ago. I went to high school with him.” And that was the truth. But Barbara left out the parts about Ryan being the one who changed her, as well as their brief “relationship” afterward. They did date for a few months, but found a “friend-with-benefits” relationship worked better.
“I get you’re mad at Ryan for…”
“Mad, betrayed, hurt, the list goes on and on.” Claire muttered. She didn’t realize Barbara could hear every word, and Barbara pretended she didn’t. But she was glad she could, because at least now she got a little insight to what Claire was feeling.
“The two like each other, that’s pretty obvious.” Barbara thought. The way Ryan talked about Claire, and the pained expression on Claire’s face spoke volumes.
“Did Ryan explain some of the more… intimate parts about being a were?”
“No. There are intimate parts?” Claire repeated.
“They gave you a copy of the guidebook right?” Barbara asked. Claire nodded.
“Did you get to the parts about what happens after a normal is changed?”
“Uh, ya. It said… something abut having to complete the transformation with the were who turned them.” Claire tried to remember exactly what the book had said. But she couldn’t remember. She hadn’t paid that section much mind. She was too busy enthralled by all the different species of were.
“That basically means the new were and the were who turned them need to, uh…” Barbara found it hard to explain weres and their above average libidos. Not to mention the intense heat they felt after changing for the first time. Finally she got her tongue untied and said it as bluntly as she could.
“Weres are more sexually active than normal people. And if a new were isn’t able to consummate their transformation things can get pretty bad.” Barbara said. She didn’t bother to explain the case with the rogue (Yvette) and the other girl she’d changed while she was on the run (Jennifer Harper).
“Consu... sex? Then all that stuff about weres and their sex drives is true?” Claire stopped dead in her tracks to ask Barbara. If this was true, then Claire owed that badger a serious thank you, and probably an apology too. If she would have done something stupid if he hadn’t made her aware of the situation (no pun intended).
“Yes,” Barbara replied (though she wondered who told if it wasn’t Ryan).
“Are you really telling me he was only having sex because he didn’t want to… jump me?” Claire found a gentler way of saying rape. Because not in a million years did she want to believe Ryan was capable of something like that.
Barbara nodded, and went into a bit more detail about weres needing “gratification” more often than normal people. And how sex wasn’t considered a taboo in were society. There were still things you couldn’t just say in casual conversation, but weres were more understanding and open about those sorts of things than most normal humans were.
“Are you a were too?” Claire thought it was safe to guess yes, given Barbara’s generous curves and frame, and her extensive knowledge on the subject matter.
“Ya. I know, don’t look it do I? I’ve always been a stick.” Barbara joked. She’d spent most of her high school being teased by her older brothers and the more “popular” girls that she might be a were, but she still looked like any other normal girl.
“You’re a stick?” Claire found that hard to believe. Barbara was more curvy than her, even if she was older. If this was a “stick” by Moon Lake standards, Claire wondered what “stacked” would look like.
“Compared to some of my packmates, yes.”
“You’re a werewolf too then. Wow, there are a lot of werewolves around here.” Claire noted. She’d met six since coming to Moon Lake. Well, six that she knew of.
“It’s a pretty well rounded species to chose. Not to mention one of the more popular choices.”
“Are most of the weres in Moon Lake wolves?”
“Mmm, no I think it’s a pretty even mix. Wolves don’t have all the different off-shoots some of the other species have.”
“Huh?” Claire stopped to give Barbara a perplexed look. Barbara smiled, fondly remembering having a similar look on her face when she’d been let in on the secret. There was so much to learn, and she imagined Claire was having to process things twice as quickly.
“Alright, so you have werecats. Broad term for any feline were. There are the big cats, the smaller wild cats, and then the domestics, which are strictly females. Or the weredeer, that’s just the general term for anything in that family of animals.
Werewolves, it’s basically just the one kind of wolf. If you went to somewhere like South America you’d probably see werewolves who were based on the Maned Wolf and not our Grey Wolf. But that’s pretty much the only other kind of wolf out there.” Barbara explained.
“You guys should probably update that book of yours.” Claire said, thinking back to the limited information in the guidebook Samantha Twist thad left with her.
“People have been saying that for years, but no one ever gets around to it. Mostly because the elders of the town don’t think anything’s wrong with it. Stuck in their ways.” Barbara sighed.
“I guess old people are all the same, regardless.” Claire remarked. Both girls laughed, and continued to make their way back to the apartment complex.