Rachel Van Direstag looked at herself in the bathroom mirror as she got ready for school that morning.
I wonder how I would look with fur and a tail? as she mimicked having paws and swiped at the air with her hands.
Yet her dreams and concerns about what her father might do now that the family knew the truth about Moon Lake worried her immensely.
Becoming a were is one thing, but I do NOT want to become a werewolf! she thought, securing her hair ribbon to make a pony tail.
She couldn't picture herself as a horse or anything else equestrian either, despite the name of the hairstyle.
Besides, I like having two legs AND two hands, she mused, before grabbing her books and walking out of the bathroom.
The one thing Rachel wanted to do was talk to her other siblings, but there was just no chance to do so this morning.
Then again, if her parents even knew one of them, let alone her, was actually considering becoming a were...
Yet there was one person Rachel could talk to, if she hurried...
Melissa Jenkins approached the school grounds looking forward to both another day of classes and seeing her boyfriend Trevor Tyson.
Ever since moving to Moon Lake and becoming a werecow, the two seemed to go hand in hand, and she had no problem with that whatsoever.
While the circumstances could have been better, the fact that her father was now not only a weretiger but engaged to be married to weretigress Virginia McCoy made Mel even happier.
It was only hearing someone call out her name that shook Mel out of her thoughts.
She looked around and saw her friend Rachel Van Direstag running toward her.
"I'm so glad I caught up with you," Rachel said, trying to catch her breath.
"What's up?" Mel asked.
"I'm worried. I had this bad dream and between that and being afraid about how my father and mother might react now that they know about weres..."
Rachel quickly explained the situation to her friend.
Mel thought about it for a moment then said, "I've heard that the Moon Lake authorities would take a dim view of anyone trying to leave town in an attempt to disobey the Mandatory Were Law*, but I've never heard anything about officials making the guilty parties becoming werewolves."
"Well, I'm not against becoming a were in principle. After all, you seem to have greatly benefited from doing so," Rachel friend, taking a closer look at how Mel appeared now, compared to how the last time she saw her friend before the Jenkins moved. "I just haven't made an actual selection beyond knowing which ones for sure I don't want to be, including a werewolf."
"Hey, as long as you stay in Moon Lake, you're free to become whatever you want to be whenever you want to, as long as at least one member of your family does honor the Mandatory Were Law within the time limit."
"I know. Just wish I could get that dream out of my head," complained Rachel. "I mean, it seemed like I was trying to warn myself about what might happen. Creepy, huh?"
"Not at all. A lot of people around here, mostly weres, put stock in what they call Prophecy Dreams, where they contemplate the possible outcomes to a potential decision in their sleep, for lack of a better definition."
"Have you had any of those?" Rachel asked, but when Mel did not immediately answer, she realized, "You have!"
"Yeah, and before I joined were society," admitted Mel.
"WOW!" exclaimed Rachel. "But what should I do about my situation?"
"First off, don't leave town, willingly or otherwise," replied Mel, stating the obvious. "As for the rest, once you do decide what kind of were you want to become, as far as the town is concerned, you're of an age legally eligible to do so on your own if you wish."
"Yeah, but we've chatted briefly before about how one does become a were. I'm still a virgin and..."
"I was too, before Trevor," revealed Mel. "But while a bite or scratch will start the process, you still need... the grand finale to be complete."
"Which also brings us back to what you said about how fertile weres are."
"I know. I've been told were society is still working on trying to develop birth control from the male perspective, but they've never had any luck on that angle. Making the female birth control more species specific is something that just happened within the last half of the twentieth century as it is."
"Well, when I do decide what specific were I want to become, how do I obtain the pills?"
"You have to see a doctor in town. Any of them will be willing to write the prescription, since were society knows better than to have a noticeable population explosion. But the first bottle of mine did take me about two days to obtain," warned Mel.
"What if I don't have two days?" asked Rachel. "The way dad was when he found out about weres, I'm surprised he didn't try loading all of us in the car and taking off right then and there. If he actually does try anything stupid like that..."
Mel thought about it for a moment and then said, "Well, there might be one other way, if you're willing to go that route."
"What?"
"Depending upon what you want to join were society as, you can always find a female were and..."
"MELISSA JENKINS!" exclaimed Rachel.
"Hey!" said Mel, raising both arms in a surrendering gesture. "I'm not saying to do so. I'm just pointing out that if push comes to shove and you don't have time to get whatever pill you'd need..."
Rachel Van Direstag thought about it for a moment, then said, "Only as an absolutely no other choice, have to do so right then and there or else option. Otherwise..."
"Well, here's hoping your fears are groundless and nothing bad happens. But if you need someplace to stay if the worst does happen..."
"Thank you Mel. You've always been a great friend," said Rachael, giving her a quick hug.
"Right back at you," replied Mel, returning the gesture.
"Now then, we'd better get on to class. The warning bell is going to ring soon and we don't want to be late," realized Mel, while glancing at her wristwatch.
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*Where one member of each family must join were society so that all share the risks of discovery and being hunted.—tmw.