"Listen, Ryan. I was wondering about something. Provided you're able to find other weres willing to show me their furry side, if I do decide to become a were, I don't have to pick werewolf, do I?" asked Claire
"No. That is one of the more popular choices for obvious reasons, but you're not obligated to pick that. You can be any kind of were you want," he reassured her.
"Good. And how does Moon Lake feel about mixed marriages?" she wondered.
"You mean same gender? We've been honoring those for decades, long before the rest of the country, let alone the world," revealed Ryan.
"While that's progressive on the town's part, I probably should have said Inter-species," clarified Claire.
"Oh. They do exist in Moon Lake, but not to the extent of the other versions though. Why?"
"Well, my mind's been wandering a lot since I found out weres exist. Despite being originally from Alaska, there's one type of animal that I've always had a fascination about, especially since we don't have any of them in my neck of the woods."
"And that is?" he asked.
"The really big cats. Cougar, tiger, lion, panther, puma, cheetah."
"The were-cheetahs are female only, so unless you're planning to give up men after becoming a were..."
"No. I've strayed into female territory before, you know how colleges are, but definitely love men too much to totally give them up," admitted Claire. Why am I telling him all of this? Just hope he can read between the lines.
"Well, while I don't know any of those personally, I'll see what I can do," promised Ryan. A call to Samantha Twist could probably arrange all of this. "Meanwhile, are we still on for dinner later?"
"You better believe it," said Claire, while giving him more than a peck on the cheek.
"Okay. I'll be back after I take a shower. I'm sure you don't want to smell the lingering odor of crime busting over dinner," said Ryan, as he left Claire.
BACK IN HIS APARTMENT...
Ryan looked at the time, and gave the Town Chancellor a quick call while there was still a chance of catching her on duty.
Then again, with Mayor Stovall and his wife currently in Seattle worried about their daughter, Ryan would have been totally surprised not to find Samantha Twist on duty.
"Big cats, huh?" repeated Samantha. "Didn't figure her as the type. Suspected Claire more for caribou or something else Alaskan based."
"Anyway, can you arrange something?"
"Sure. Stop by my office tomorrow and I'll have a list for you. But making the actual arrangements will be between you and Claire. Speaking of which, the two of you are..."
"Yeah," agreed Ryan, before saying goodbye.
As he got undressed and went into his shower, Ryan thought Well, can't blame Claire for being curious. Besides, this doesn't mean she will actually pick one of those. But no matter what were she eventually decides to become, it will still be Claire under all that fur, and that's what matters most, he realized, as he started lathering himself up.