After having dinner with her parents and sibling, Renata headed up to her room. Just as she was considering texting Jezebel or Ruby, Renata's phone buzzed in her hands. Renata wasn't sure she recognized the number, but she decided to answer anyway.
"Hello?" Renata said unsurely. "This is Renata Hamilton."
"Hi, Renata!" a familiar voice said brightly. "It's me, Taylor! You know, Taylor Wagner. The werehyena shaman. I enjoyed chatting with you and your friends today, and I just wanted to check on how you're doing."
"Pretty good," said Renata. "I came out as a werevixen to Beck right before dinner, and they took it really well."
"Did you know they're in Selena's werehyena pack?" Taylor asked.
"Yes, actually," said Renata. "Morgana told me when she sold me my belt, and Beck gave me a little demonstration. I hate to admit it, but I was a little turned on by them. Either I find werehyenas just that sexy, or else werefoxes have a seriously weakened incest taboo. Good thing I'm on the Werefox Inhibitor Potion, so I was able to fight it. Seducing Beck would be a majorly bad idea."
"Especially since they're leaving for Japan before dawn tomorrow," Taylor observed. "Did Beck tell you what that's really all about?"
"They did," said Renata. "Apparently they, Ellie, Brianna, Harper, and two people I've never met called Kristi and Joelle are going there so a kappa sumo master can help Beck, Ellie, and Kristi get fat. I don't see the appeal of pudge myself, but to each their own."
"Yeah," Taylor agreed. "Poor Ellie was so upset about losing all her flab. This trip was originally just for her, but then Beck discovered their own interest in fat, and Kristi just sorta wandered into our lives."
"I hope they all have a good time in Japan," said Renata. "I wonder what kinds of magicals live there?"
"All kinds of cool creatures," Taylor responded. "Everyone knows kitsune and oni of course, but have you ever heard of tanuki? They're a race of shapeshifting raccoon dog spirits with huge balls, even the girls. Most of their females are herms, you see. There's also otter shapeshifters called kawauso, but they're getting rare. Up in the mountains, there's a race of avian warrior-monks called tengu. Then there's the really weird things like Kasa-obake and Chōchin-obake. Those are the yokai of umbrellas and paper lanterns, respectively. And there's the bakeneko, a sort of cat ghost. The most dangerous subtype of bakeneko's the two-tailed nekomata. Like the kitsune, growing a second tail gives the nekomata magical power. Be careful around those guys; they're known to be bad-tempered around humans. Same with the dog spirit, the inugami."
"That's a hell of a lot to take in," Renata said in a daze.
"Sorry," Taylor said embarrassedly. "There's actually even more that I didn't have time for. So, how's it going with you're skulk? Have you transformed the new recruits yet?"
"Not tonight," said Renata. "We're gonna do it right after school tomorrow. I still haven't picked a shaman. I'm still favoring either Flora or Lainey. Flora's probably the oldest recruit for my skulk so far; she's 21. She also has a lot of experience with the kinds of drugs that I think shamans use in their rituals, like cannabis. But I also know that Lainey's a dedicated New Ager. She adores mystical and alternative forms of spirituality. Her bedroom honestly looks like a crystal shop."
"I'll have to meet them," said Taylor. "Bring them around sometime, and I'll see if either of them have the Gift."
"Thanks for being so invested in our skulk, Tay," said Renata.
"Hey, a werefox pack that wants to be semi-responsible is always something to celebrate!" said Taylor.
"Do you think Selena'd like us as allies?" asked Renata. "I really want an alliance between our her pack and my skulk. There's a lot of mutual threats to us out there, including my monster-hunting cousin Tori."
"She'll want to meet you first," Taylor answered, "but I can guarantee you that she'll gladly ally with any trustworthy werebeast pack that's interested. Yeah, the vampires told us that Tori Vordenburg's coming. The spirits are talking about it, too. Apparently, she'll be in town tomorrow."
"It's about Beck," Renata told the werehyena shaman. "Mom half-caught some glimpses of Beck changing out of their werehyena form and found their semen splattered on a mirror, so she asked Tori to investigate what's up with Beck."
"I think Beck'll be okay," Taylor said soothingly. "After all, she's leaving the country in the wee hours of the morning."
"I think so, too," Renata agreed.
"Okay, I gotta go," Taylor said. "My mom's calling me. I'll share tonight's shaman lesson with whoever you choose as you shaman. Bye!"
"Bye, Taylor!" Renata said brightly as the werehyena shaman hung up.