13 comments/ 22960 views/ 20 favorites Twisted Tails Ch. 01 By: Jaisen I have been asked by numerous people for Andrew's story. Once the 'right idea' sparked, I began this story that braids in and out of the More Than Just A Fairy Tale cast of characters. I'd like to thank my bevvy of readers, Mazuri, Mokkekle, Southern Sir and my dear partner Wolf for their help, encouragement and scratching at the door until I wrote this story. I hope you enjoy this story. Please vote and comment. It's the only thanks or encouragement we get for writing. Jaisen Vivien sat across from the store watching the stream of people move in and out. She made marks on a checklist. Six months had passed since the debacle at the courthouse where reporters and newspapers alike had been fined for slander, trespassing, vandalism and other charges. As a junior reporter for one of the papers, she had been spared the charges, and told to hand in all of her notes and photographs. Vivien had done so, but failed to mention the backup copy she had at home. There was more to this whole story and she intended to prove it. She wanted to find out what was really going on and she had no intention of giving up. Now, in her free time, she had started to keep tabs on the businesses that had been part of the lawsuit. Four or five of them she had scratched off for being mundane boring businesses. She stayed clear of the big name businesses like Alpha Wolf Technologies in part because of the nature of their business didn't lead to easy observation and partially because of the two guard dogs. The Silver Lode on the other hand was an easy target. Especially as the mall traffic kept things mixed up and it didn't hurt that there was an ice cream shop across from it as well. Vivien ate a bit of her ice cream sundae in between taking notes. She made it a habit to be here at least once a week. No one noticed a person eating ice cream. She had a list of coded entries for the people who were repeat customers and staff. SF was shifter friendly. S for suspected shifter, H for human and O for other. She didn't log everyone either, just those that she had seen more than once or twice in the store. She looked at her 'most likely suspects' list. Silversmith, SF H Goth chick, clerk SF or S Baldy, owner SF H Tall Dark & Dangerous S! Bitchy-Poo, S (mate of TD&D?) AWT S! (Alpha?) Classy SF (Alpha's mate) H Mountain! S Midget SF (Mountain's mate?) Swish S Cowboy S Cowboy 2 S Wolf girl S!!! (Cowboy 2's mate) Lanky S? Son of Lanky?? Bitch 2 S Bitch 3 S Some of them were just numbered as she hadn't had time to figure out names, but if they came in with one of the regulars, she noted them. Bitchy-Poo and TD&D had just walked in. They were off to the left side of the counter, talking to Goth Chick. Vivien wondered what they were looking at. She knew that the store sold all kinds of jewelry. Maybe she'd check it out later. Ten minutes passed and she'd finished her sundae. Dropping the dish in the trash, she walked over to the story. The two shifters had just left, so she took her time walking around the story. As she walked around she noted what kind of jewelry was in each of the displays. They had changed things around a bit since the last time she'd been in, so it took a moment to figure out what was in each case. "May I help you?" a deep voice asked. Vivien looked up to see the Silversmith standing there. "Damn, he's sexy!" she thought. "Um... I was just looking. Do you have any sinuous bracelets? Sort of Hindu styled?" she asked. "Well, we have these rope bracelets and then there are the more standard chains," he said. He pulled out a couple of trays and showed her some of them. She looked them over, noticing his hands were strong and showed that he worked with them instead of just sitting at a computer or counter all day. "No, nothing here really sparks my fancy," she said. "Except you! You smell like chai tea. Hmmm..." she thought as he leaned over to point out more bracelets. "We occasionally do custom work for a price," he said. "Oh, what kind of stuff?" Vivien asked. "Special requests, bear claws, wedding sets, that kind of thing," he said as he pointed to various pieces of jewelry in the case. One tray held turquoise animal charms, bear claws, wolf prints and eagles. Another held necklaces. "Ah, okay. Nothing in gold or platinum?" she asked. "A few bits, but most people come here for the silver. I'm the silversmith and I make sure the metal is good quality," he said. "Cool," Vivien replied. "I can understand that. "I think I'll keep looking for now. Appreciate you showing me the bracelets." "You're welcome. I'm Andrew Davis," he said and held out his hand. "Vivien, Vivien Sopris" she said and shook his hand. It was strong and warm. "Nice to meet you." With that, she walked over to another display and then headed out the door. Andrew moved back to his work area. As he did, he sniffed his hand. Her scent was familiar under the sticky sweet smell of ice cream and chocolate syrup. He'd remember her now. "What are you up to Vivien Sopris?" he wondered. Vivien sat in her car and wrote a quick note next to her list. Silversmith SH H Andrew Davis. Sandy hair. Smells like chai. "Well, at least I know he isn't a werewolf," she said to no one as she put her notebook away. She drove out of the mall parking lot and headed home. Once she got home, there'd be entries to make in her data base. Data would be the way this story would play out, not just idle speculation or chance sightings in the middle of the night or the rantings of some paramedic. She'd work this out like a science project. Observation, data and hard cold facts. * It had been a couple of weeks since Vivien had been to the mall. She'd spent time running down various leads. Some had worked out, while others didn't. Vivien was still convinced that there must be jewelry that the werewolves could wear that wasn't being shown to the regular customers. Otherwise, why would they frequent a shop that sold so much silver. She couldn't figure out how to check this out. Granted, she hadn't seen anything like the necklace she'd seen on Classy, the Alpha's mate. She'd made a few more inquiries and had some new data to add. Goth chick, clerk SF or S Becky Baldy, owner SF H Tall Dark & Dangerous S! Patrick Dorrit Bitchy-Poo, S (mate of TD&D?) Ginny Dorrit AWT S! (Alpha?) Luc Moreau Classy SF (Alpha's mate) H Margaret Moreau (twin babies) Mountain! S gone Midget SF (Mountain's mate?) gone Swish S Kevin Cowboy S Cal Cowboy 2 S Pete Wolf girl S!!! (Cowboy 2's mate) Lanky S? Alexander Son of Lanky?? Bitch 2 S Marie Bitch 3 S Ysabel Vivien couldn't believe how lucky she'd been. Court records had cleared and she'd been able to see them because of a friend of a friend, and all it had taken was a date with the dweeb. For all the information she'd garnered it had been worth a movie and dinner with the mouth breathing groper. Another lead was a doctor that seemed to have a very selective group of patients. She'd followed Classy, and discovered that she went to a clinic out in the foothills that no one seemed to know existed. They didn't take new patients without referrals either. Her request to interview the two paramedics had died. One sent her a cease and desist order and the other letter came back "undeliverable". She packed up her notebook and decided to go to the mall for a little shopping therapy and ice cream. * "Hey, Andrew," Becky said with a whisper. "Yes?" he said poking his head out of his work area. "Ice cream headache is back," she said with a giggle in her voice. "Becky, that isn't nice," he said as he stood up. He looked out the window and saw that the woman Becky had given the nickname to was sitting across the mall eating ice cream. She was usually there once a week, but this was the first time he'd seen her in almost a month. She wasn't bad looking. She had one of those hair cuts that would defy gravity. Red curls that wouldn't stay in her hair tie scrunchie thing. Right now, as she sat there, one curl was dangling almost in the center of her forehead. "There once was a girl, who had a little curl..." he thought. Andrew realized that she reminded him of Ginny. Feisty and obviously up to something. She wasn't a shifter or a thief, so he was puzzled. "Becky, I think I'm going to get some ice cream," he said. "What? You don't eat that stuff! What the hell are you up to?" she asked. "I'm curious and there is nothing worse than a curious wolf," he said smiling. "Fine. Just be careful. I've seen her somewhere other than the mall, but I can't remember where," said Becky. "Keep your ears tucked girl. I'll be careful. Besides, I trust you with my dastardly secret," he teased. "Yeah, yeah, yeah...." Becky said dismissively. She wasn't a shifter, but she'd been a classmate of Bitty's and 'Solda's. She had a hell of a crush on Luc at one time, but just couldn't get past the furry sex thing. Andrew smiled and headed out the back door so he could approach the ice cream shop and the woman upwind. Vivien finally pulled her book out of her handbag. No traffic at the Silver Lode. She nibbled at her sundae as she got lost in the latest urban fantasy novel she'd picked up. "Ah, Anita, you have all the luck," she thought as she read. "Do you mind if I share your table?" a deep voice asked. Vivien startled, and looked up to see the Silversmith standing there. "Oh. No, no problem, let me move my stuff," she said. Grabbing the messenger bag off of the chair, she set it on the floor. "Thanks. It's about the only table I can see the store from and if my assistant needs me, I'll see her," he said as he sat down. "I've met you before I think?" "Yes. I'm Vivien..." she started. "Vivien Sopris, yes. Came into the shop looking for bracelets," he said. "My name is Andrew." Vivien nodded. Her brain was whirling ninety miles an hour. "Damn he's handsome." "So, what brings you to the mall today?" he asked. "Ice cream. It's been a long couple of weeks and I decided I needed a treat," she said. "Understandable. I usually don't have much of a sweet tooth, but I discovered that they have frozen sorbet, and I just had to have some," he admitted pointing to his dish. "Not ice cream?" she asked. "No, ice cream and I don't get along, but this stuff is okay," he said. "And now the game begins." "Oh," she said. "Geeze, that was intelligent conversation," she thought to herself. "What do you do when you're not eating ice cream or shopping?" he asked pointing to her small pile of shopping bags. "I'm a freelance journalist," she said before her brain could put the breaks on her mouth. "Shit!" "Oh, what kind of stuff do you write?" Andrew asked in a friendly voice. "Just about anything my editor tells me to write. Baby stories, cooking contests, local interest, court cases, and sometimes new books at the library," she said holding up her book. "Ah, a gopher," Andrew said as all kinds of bells and lights went off in his head. The book she held up was by an author known for her supernatural characters. "Freelance is the term I prefer. Still works out to about 5 cents a word, but it looks better on a resume," said Vivien just a little more frustrated than she wanted to come across. "And what do you do for the rest of your income? Certainly 5 cents a word won't pay for even your ice cream," he said. "I get a salary from the paper, but anything I write is extra, and in essence does pay for my ice cream," retorted Vivien. "And what story are you hunting down at the moment?" Andrew asked. He'd remembered where he'd seen her. Back of the courthouse main court room during the legal case that the families had been involved in almost a year ago. She'd been more of an observer and not one of those charged with misconduct. "Well, I'm doing book reviews," she said rolling her eyes. "I really like the author and I've been doing her works as well as other urban fantasy writers." "What sparked this?" he asked taking a bit of his sorbet. "Well, promise not to think I'm crazy?" she asked. "Maybe. I'll keep an open mind," he said. "Okay. Well, there was this court case about a year ago. Slander, hate crime stuff and just some really weird shit. All based on some pretty odd circumstances," she started. "Yes. You aren't telling me anything," he said. "And will you?" She took a bite of ice cream for courage. "Well, this is the weird bit. Um... the whole thing stemmed from two paramedics who claimed a guy they got a call on up in this big resort town was a werewolf. It had all sorts of ramifications and a bunch of companies here in the city got buildings vandalized, people hassled and that kind of thing because people were accusing them of being werewolves," she said. Andrew chuckled. "And were they?" "Well, that's the funny thing. The papers got charged with slander and defamation of character and things like that, but nothing ever came of the actual cause of the whole thing. I mean, no one ever proved or disproved that anyone was or wasn't a werewolf. It just sort of got lost in the legal bits," she said. "So, because of this court case, you started reading 'urban fiction' and writing book reviews?" asked Andrew. "Sort of. I've been reading these kinda books for a while. What made me curious is that in every myth, there is a grain of truth. In every weird off the wall story, there had to be something that sparked it. The story sort of made me curious. I started checking into things," she said. "And now we will see what happens." "Let me see if I have this straight. First off, there was an accusation that someone was a werewolf. A shape shifter like in these stories you read. Then, because of the way things got handled, you decided to investigate things further in your free time between writing book reviews that deal with the supernatural," he said. "Sounds pretty lame doesn't it?" she said. Vivien realized it did sound pretty sad now that she thought about it. "Maybe. Then again, if you find things that support your hypothesis, it might be very advantageous. You might stand to make some money off of it if you can get anyone to publish it," he said. "That's the frustrating part. Considering the fines the papers had to pay out, no one will touch the story if I found anything, or wrote it. It would simply be for my own satisfaction. The idea has gotten under my skin. All these books about werewolves and vampires have to have some kernel of truth, and I simply want to know," Vivien said. "Ah. Intellectual curiosity. A noble reason. So, when you get frustrated, you come down here to drown your sorrows in ice cream?" he asked innocently. "No. Um. Sort of. Oh hell. No," she said. She tried to lie, but realized she couldn't. There was something about this man that she liked. She didn't want to lie to him. Andrew smiled. He could tell she was trying not to lie. That gave her credit with him. "So which is it?" he asked. "Okay, I'm going to be totally honest with you. You can laugh, or leave. Just don't get angry with me or call the police," she said. "All right," he said. "And now we will see just how close you've gotten." "I followed the court case. It was really interesting. I... I just couldn't let it go. So, I traced some of the people who were part of the court case. They frequent your shop, and I believe that shifters really exist. I think they buy stuff from your store, and either you know this or are totally clueless," she said in one rush of breath. Andrew looked at her, and made a decision. "Yes, I know," he said. * Vivien blinked. "Whhha?" she stuttered. "I said, I know. You've been very clever. Since you didn't lie to me, I decided to tell you the truth you wanted to know," Andrew said. Vivien took a deep breath and tried to swallow the bit of ice cream that seemed to freeze in her throat. "Yyou know that there are shifters?" she finally said. "Yes. We do have shifters who frequent the shop, because we cater to them," said Andrew. He was enjoying the way her emotions fluttered across her face. Part of him wanted to shift right there and see what would happen. The other part wondered just how many tales she believed about shifters. "Oh god! Um... and you're still willing to talk to me?" she asked as reality slammed home. "Yes. You need to understand that we have a philosophy. If people honestly ask, we explain. If you're a kook of some kind, we'll never talk to you," he said. "And to be honest, the latest craze in literature have made for interesting speculations for us." Andrew pointed to her book as he said this. "Wait. You can't be a shifter, you work with silver," she said. "Ah, that is a myth. Silver doesn't bother shifters," he said holding out his hand which were dirty and stained from working metal. "Okay, you're pulling my leg. Teasing me. That's just mean," she said starting to stand up. Andrew put his hand over her wrist and held her there. She was surprised that she couldn't move. "I am not teasing you. Shifters exist, and I am one. Silver is a beautiful metal, but doesn't hurt us. That is a myth," he said softly. "Fine. Prove it. Shift. Turn into a..a wolf," she said. She honestly didn't know whether to panic or just scream. This was not how she expected her day to go. If silver didn't hurt them, what else wasn't true. And why was he being so open with her? "I will not cause panic in the mall, nor would I be that stupid. Would you care to go for a ride to a park? Your choice? I'd be glad to shift there. The only requirement is a little privacy like a bathroom," Andrew said. "Why do you need privacy?" she asked before she thought. "Well, I'm rather partial to these trousers," he said. Then it dawned on her. He didn't want to rip his clothing, if he really was what he said he was. "You'll follow me to a park of my choice?" she asked gathering up her things. "Yes. Just give me a moment to tell Becky I'll be gone the rest of the afternoon," he said. He dumped his trash and headed over to the Silver Lode. Vivien dumped her trash and followed him to the store. She got there just as he walked out. "Let's go," he said. Twenty minutes later, she pulled into a park on the edge of town. He'd followed her in his burgundy Subaru and parked next to her. He got out, stretched and emptied his pockets onto the front seat of his car. He locked the door and walked over to Vivien. "If this is some elaborate joke, we can stop now you know," she said very uncertain of things. "No, you wanted proof. You've been hunting us for at least six months. There's a bathroom over there. I'll let you go in and check to make sure it's empty. Then, I'll go in and shift. If you want to watch, I'll understand," Andrew said. "Um... okay," she agreed. They walked over to the bathrooms and after checking to see that no one was nearby, she entered the men's room. It was a little dirty, but no other exit and nothing in there. Andrew walked in after she exited. He faced away from the door and stripped off. Andrew piled his clothes up in the window sill. Out of the corner of his eye, he could tell she wasn't watching. He smiled and shifted. Vivien was just about to turn to see if he'd somehow crawled out the window when something wet bumped her hand. She turned to see a huge wolf standing there in the doorway of the bathroom. She screamed. Wolf cringed at the noise the female made. He didn't mean to scare her, so he dropped to his belly and put his head on his front paws. He waited for her to stop making noise. She smelled nice. Twisted Tails Ch. 01 Vivien got control of herself and took a deep breath as the wolf next to her laid down on the ground. She looked around. No one had reacted to her scream. She then walked into the bathroom and checked to see if Andrew was hiding in a corner. Nothing. She walked back outside and took a good look at the wolf. He looked like a huge shaggy husky or wolf hound. "Andrew?" she asked softly. "Buuf!" Vivien blinked. She walked over to a picnic bench to sit down and try to make some sense of all of this. The wolf followed her and sat down in front of her. He cocked his head to one side as if he was listening to something. Vivien looked around and off in the distance she saw a couple of teens playing Frisbee golf. She turned back to Andrew. He was a sandy color with lots of white. It mimicked his hair coloring. The eyes were still hazel. "I... I can't believe this. Somehow, this is a trick," she said to the wolf. The wolf looked at her as if he was listening. The corners of his mouth curled up and she swore he was smiling at her and was wagging his tail. "Don't you even start!" Wolf looked at the female. She was yipping at him and...Wolf turned to see other two-legs playing in the woods. He looked back at the female and tried to be friendly. He started wagging his tail. Something caught his attention and he turned to see the two-legs closer. They tossed something back and forth between them. Vivien was distracted by the two teens coming closer to the picnic tables. They'd stopped playing golf and were just tossing the Frisbee back and forth between them. Then she noticed that the wolf had seen them too. "No! Do not move. Sit!" she said not knowing if the wolf even understood her. It started to rise and look towards the teens who were getting closer. In a panic, she tried to grab the ruff of the wolf, but it was too late. He tore off in a run to intercept the Frisbee. Wolf saw the disk move between the two-legs. Then it sailed past one of them, coming near the female and him. The female was yipping and grabbing at him, but he... he HAD to go get it! He launched away from the female and in three long strides, he leapt and captured the disk. He shook his head, but it didn't move. He loped over to one of the two-legs and dropped it at their feet. Maybe they could make it fly again. The young man watched the huge dog leap and catch the Frisbee mid-air. He was surprised when it ran over and dropped it at his feet. He smiled, picked up the Frisbee and shook it at the dog and then let it fly. He watched as the dog charged after the Frisbee and caught it again. His buddy reached him about the same time the dog brought the Frisbee back and dropped it. "Hey, good doggy," said the teen. He threw it again and the two young men watched the dog charge off and catch it again. They cheered and clapped. When the dog brought it back, they threw it again. As the dog ran to catch it, a woman walked up to them. "Hi! You've got a great dog," said the first teen. "Yeah. You play Frisbee with him a lot?" asked the second. "He's a natural." "Uh, no. This is the first time he's really played," said Vivien. Part of her was petrified. Part of her wanted to laugh. No one had ever mentioned that werewolves played with Frisbees. She decided she'd better smile and pretend that he was just a really big friendly dog. Wolf ran up to the three two-legs and dropped the disk at their feet. He was happy. This was fun! The two-legs threw it again and off he ran. This time, it went over his head and he had to chase it. It landed in a pond and he dived into the water to get the disk. He got out of the pond, disk in mouth and dripping wet. He ran back to the two-legs and dropped it once more. Then he shook the water off. "Oh! Stop! Andrew, stop it!" squealed Vivien. She'd realized what he was going to do, but there was no way to stop him. Everyone was covered in water in a matter of moments. The two teens were laughing. "Oh man, that was great!" said the first teen who collected the Frisbee from a puddle. He looked at it and realized that there were two holes in it from where the dog had bit it trying to retrieve it from the pond. The other teen nodded and smiled as well. "I"m so sorry," said Vivien. "He's... um... a bit wild at times." "It's okay. I've got dogs at home too," said the other teen, ruffling the dog between it's very wet ears. "You're a good dog," he said to the dog. The dog licked his face and the teen laughed. Vivien went a little pale when she saw the wolf lick the teen. "Um, we need to get going. Thanks for playing with my dog," she said hoping that the wolf would follow. "No problem, it was fun. In fact, here, take the Frisbee," the first teen said handing her the slightly chewed Frisbee. "Are you sure?" asked Vivien as she took it in her hand. "Yeah. See ya some time big guy," the teen said as the two of them headed off. "Bye," Vivien said a bit stunned. She looked at the wolf who was soaked and the chewed toy in her hand. "Oh shit." Wolf watched the female take the disk from the young two-legs. He wagged his tail. He wanted to play. He'd had fun and wanted more. He grabbed for the disk, hoping that tugging on it would make the female toss it for him. "No! We need to go somewhere and talk. You need to shift back," she said to the wolf as it grabbed at the Frisbee. When she wouldn't let go, the wolf dropped the grip and lowered it's head. "If I didn't know better, I'd think you were pouting," said Vivien as she started walking back to the bathrooms and the cars. After a moment, the wolf followed her. When they got to the bathrooms, the wolf loped into the men's room. Vivien went and sat on the hood of her car and waited. She really needed to talk to Andrew, and that wasn't happening as long as he was on four legs. "Damn! I'm accepting that this is all real and..." she thought as Andrew walked out of the bathroom. He had something in his hand. Andrew walked up to Vivien. His hair was still wet, but he'd dried himself off as best he could with his teeshirt. He had a huge smile on his face. "That was fantastic!" he said. "How could you?" she asked almost in a whisper. Andrew looked at her. He didn't understand what he'd done wrong besides shaking the water off. "I'm sorry about the water," he started. "That's not what I'm talking about!" she said. "Vivien, I... I'm not following you. What do you think I did wrong?" he asked. "You licked that boy! What were you thinking?" she asked. Andrew blinked. "What? What are you on about?" he asked still totally confused. "You could have cut his skin on your teeth and then how would we explain to him and his parents?" she said. Andrew looked at her for a moment when it finally dawned on him what she was upset about. He started to laugh. "Damn it Andrew! This is serious!" she said getting very red in the face. "Ah, Vivien, we have a lot to talk about. To put your mind at rest though, shifting isn't contagious. That's fiction. A myth. Rabies is contagious. Distemper is contagious, but lycanthropy is genetic. You can't catch it from spit, blood or semen. That boy wasn't in danger just from a lick," he said. "But...but. I..." she stuttered. "Come on. Follow me and I'll take you to dinner. We need to talk. And, I don't know about you, but I'm starving. We wouldn't want a starving wolf now would we?" he asked. Vivien stood there dumbfounded. * She was surprised when he pulled into the local organic burger joint. She'd eaten there once or twice and just couldn't eat a whole burger. Granted, they had more veggies on them than some salads and the fries... oh the fries. Sweet potato or regular fries with exotic ketchups. Andrew was picking up their order while she got the drinks. She sat down first and waited. His hair was still damp and curling up on the ends. The fact that he smelled like pond water and wet dog convinced her more than anything that he really was a shifter. "Here's your order," Andrew said handing over the boiler special Vivien had ordered. He sat down and opened his tub of ketchup. "I still can't believe how fun it was to play Frisbee." "Haven't you ever played with one?" she asked. "I did in college, but not as a wolf. That was just... exhilarating," he said. Vivien shook her head. She still couldn't believe that he'd done that. "Now what was it you were saying as we left the park?" she asked first looking around to see if anyone was near. They were the only ones at that end of the cafe. "It isn't contagious. It's genetic. We can breed with humans, but even that sometimes doesn't produce a shifter," Andrew said around a bite of his lamb burger. "I don't understand," she said. "We breed pretty true, but sometimes things just don't work. Just like regular human genetics. We get nulls, and we have those that are 100% shifter. Even then sometimes shift doesn't happen," he said. Vivien thought about this for a moment. She pulled out her notebook and drew some X's and O's on it. "So, what you're saying is that an XX would be 100% shifter, and a mix of XO can still shift?" she asked. "Yes. XX, XO and often even an XoXo can shift. Shifter genes are dominant. However, sometimes you get people who are ooX, and they can't shift. On rare occasions, you get an OooX, and they're someone who had a great great grandparent who was at least half shifter. They'll have some interesting characteristics, but are about as null as they get and still have the bloodline," said Andrew. Vivien thought about this for a moment. "Then how... how did we get stories about being bitten causing the change?" "I'm not sure if it was bad press, bad tempers, stupidity, or rabies. My suspensions are that someone didn't change well, or was drunk. Worst option... someone didn't tell their wife or husband what was going on and when their teen shifted for the first time, all sorts of stories were made up," he said. "Okay, I need to think on this one for a minute. Next question. Why are you trusting me with this information? I could go to the TV stations or the newspapers or the police and out you," she said. "Go ahead. Do you want my phone?" he said putting his burger down to hand her his phone. "What?" she asked. "I'm confused." "I said 'go ahead.' Call someone. Anyone. You yourself said your paper wouldn't print a werewolf story. Do you think anyone else would?" he asked putting the phone down next to her. Vivien looked at him. "You're laughing at me. I don't like being the butt of a joke," she said. She pulled out her own phone and dialed her neighbor who worked for the local TV station. "Hey Joe, how are you? Good. I'm fine. Look, what would you say to a story about werewolves? No! I'm not joking. Oh. Okay, Oookay. Fine. I was joking. Really. No, sorry, I was just testing a theory. Thanks. Sorry to bother you." She put the phone down and had an urge to throw up or smack the smile off of Andrew's face. Andrew ate his burger and let Vivien cool off a little. The waitress came over to see if they were okay. He smiled at her. "Hon, what would you say if I told you I was a werewolf?" he asked her. The waitress smiled and then giggled. "You? Right. Priests can't be werewolves. You're so silly!" she said and walked back to the cash register with a giggle. "Priest?" asked Vivien now really confused. Andrew nodded. "We've been 'pagan' for longer than there have been Christians. I'm the local priest as my father and his father and their fathers before them. I circle with lots of the local pagans, and she's one of them. Knows me from Solstice celebrations and the like," he explained. Vivien thought for a moment. "So, what you're trying to tell me is that it's safe to tell people, because if they run to the press, no one will believe them?" "Exactly. Or, they are thought of as crazy. Same effect. No one will believe them. It saves a lot of grief too if someone's kids talks about Uncle Wolfie at school. Teachers just pat them on the head, and half the time never even mention it to the parents," said Andrew. Vivien let this sink in as she ate the rest of her burger. "So, why was it such a big thing with the papers?" "It's the difference between being told someone shifts and actually seeing it. Pictures or videos would be an issue. And even the most even tempered of us gets a little grumpy and stupid if teased," admitted Andrew. "So, the story of the old man and the paramedics was true?" she asked in an almost conspiratorial whisper. Andrew could see all the gears whirling and light bulbs go off in her head as she began to put two and two together. He nodded. "Andrew, why are you trusting me with this information?" she finally asked. Andrew could smell the beginnings of fear creep into her blood. He took a sip of his drink and sat forward. "Very simple. I like you." Vivien sat there with her mouth open trying to figure out what to say. "Plus, you have my Frisbee," he said and smiled. Vivien about choked. After dinner, they walked out to their cars. Vivien handed Andrew his Frisbee. He smiled and put it in his Subaru. "Thanks for dinner," she said. "Thank you for a lovely afternoon," Andrew replied. He stepped forward and leaning down kissed Vivien on the lips. He held her gently for a moment and then let go. Then he turned and got into his car. Looking back in the rear-view mirror, he saw that she was standing there with her hand to her lips. He smiled. Twisted Tails Ch. 02 I'm glad everyone enjoyed the beginning of this tale. There is more fun and Frisbees in this section. I had my partner laughing tears when I wrote that bit. Please make sure to vote and comment. I love to hear from people! Jaisen. * Vivien sat at her computer. She was trying to decide if she should just dump the whole data base or hang on to it. All that work. All those days spent taking notes for nothing. All those false assumptions. She wondered how many more of them were false. She'd finished her last book review for the paper knowing that her heart just wasn't in it. She knew for certain that there was at least one shifter in the world and that there were probably others. She also realized that it would do no good to say anything to anyone. The phone call the other night to her buddy proved that succinctly. Andrew was right. She could sound off to the world, and all they would do is label her crazy. It was perfect protection. Well, nearly perfect. Then there was that second consideration. That kiss. She must have stood there in the parking lot for five minutes. He'd smelled so good. Tasted good and oh the feelings that rushed through her when he pulled her up against him. Her fantasies had been rather predictable for the last week. She shut off her computer without deleting the data base. She just couldn't do it yet. She put on her sweater, grabbed her handbag and went for a drive. She thought about heading over to the mall, but it was too late in the evening. She turned into the parking lot of the burger joint. She wasn't really hungry, but it was someplace to go. Andrew had been smiling most of the week. Becky just shook her head at him. He had the Frisbee up on the wall above his tools. He was humming softly under his breath. "I can't believe you shifted for her and played Frisbee in the park!" teased Becky. "You're just jealous you didn't think of it first," he teased her back. "That... that would be like playing catch with my grandpa!" said Becky. She was in her early twenties and thought of Andrew as an uncle or really older brother. She had a bit of trouble thinking of him as being playful or silly. "Besides, what would Luc or Ginny think?" "What would I think about what?" Luc asked as he stuck his head into the back of the shop. Becky screamed. Luc and Andrew laughed. "What can I do for you Luc?" Andrew asked when the laughter died down. "Well, I need a couple of bracelets with bells. Linsey and Elliot are all over the place and I figured it would be easier if we belled them," said Luc. "Sounds good. I'll have something beginning of next week," said Andrew. He wrote down a few notes and saw that Luc was staring at the Frisbee. "Andrew, where did you get that?" he asked as he picked it up and noticed the fang marks. "Umm... I was in the park and a couple of teens were tossing it about and I just wanted to play," said Andrew trying to be nonchalant. Part of him wished the wolf hadn't bitten the toy. The other part smiled, because it showed that it really happened. Luc looked at his friend. "There's a story here. Tell me over dinner?" "Bingo Burger?" asked Andrew looking up at the clock. "Sure. Tell Becky you're leaving early," said Luc. Andrew put the Frisbee back over his desk and called out to Becky that he was leaving. "Again?" she asked. "Yes. With Luc," answered Andrew. Becky waved him off, shaking her head. "What did she mean by again? You never leave early unless it's for family," said Luc. "I'll tell you over supper," Andrew said. They headed out the door and the two men drove their cars over to the burger shop. When they got there, Andrew smelled something familiar. "Shit!" He walked quickly over to Luc to talk with him before they went in. Luc was on the phone to Meg, letting her know where he was and how long he'd be. "Luc, I need to talk with you for a few minutes before we go in," said Andrew. "Why? What's so important it can't wait for five minutes?" asked a puzzled Luc. "It's about Vivien. She's here. She's who I was with in the park..." he started to explain to Luc. Luc punched the side of his Subaru when Andrew explained that she worked for the papers and how she'd been stalking people she thought were shifters. Andrew grabbed Luc by the shoulders and shock him. "Luc, be rational. She's not going to hurt your pups or Meg. I wouldn't have talked to her if I didn't trust her on some level," Andrew said still holding tight to Luc. "And is there anything else I should know," Luc said through gritted teeth. "Yes. I. Like. Her. I want to maybe see her and maybe date her. It's been a long time since Ginny. With Ginny and Patrick mated, I need to move on," Andrew admitted as much to Luc as to himself. Luc took a deep breath. "Fine. You trust her. If she screws up, so help me..." he growled. "If she screws up, you won't have to do a thing," said Andrew letting his eyes bleed a bit yellower than normal. Luc nodded. Andrew let go of him and the two men shook their muscles loose. Both were slightly shifted and neither wanted to scare anyone inadvertently. They walked across the parking lot and into the cafe. Luc placed their order and paid for it while Andrew scanned the crowd. He could smell Vivien, but couldn't see her. A man stood up and there she was. "Be right back," he said to Luc and moved towards Vivien before she saw him. He came up behind her and then slid into the seat in front of her. "Hello Vivien," he said with a smile. "Oh Jesus! You startled me!" she gasped. "We came in for dinner and I realized you were here and came over to say hello," said Andrew. "I've been meaning to get ahold of you and realized I never got your phone number. You haven't been in for ice cream lately either." "We? Who? Um...Oh, no I haven't. Okay," said Vivien. "Once again, great conversation here girlfriend!" she berated herself. "Andrew, can you scoot over, I've got our food," said Luc as he tried to squeeze in next to Andrew. Andrew scooted over and smiled as Luc sat down in front of Vivien. "Vivien, this is Luc Moreau. Luc, this is Vivien Sopris. She's the woman I've been telling you about. The one with the Frisbee," said Andrew. He understood the power play and was okay with it for now. "Nice to meet you Vivien. Always good to meet someone who's taken Andrew's interest," Luc said with a smile and just a touch of sub-vocals. "Nnice to meet you Luc," said Vivien. "Oh Shit! Oh Shit!" "I hope you don't mind that we joined your table," said Luc. He could smell the panic and wasn't too unhappy about that. He knew that Andrew might take it out on him later, but it was worth testing the woman. "No, I... um. No. Not at all," she said. She took a deep breath and promised herself to make Andrew pay for this later. After she found out just how serious he was about seeing her. "I wanted to meet the woman who caught Andrew's attentions," said Luc. "Luc's family and ours have been friends for years," said Andrew around bites of burger. "Oh. I didn't know that," said Vivien. "What the hell is going on?" "Andrew told me how you two met and your trip to the park," said Luc. "Yyes, Did you show him your trophy?" asked Vivien who felt like crawling under the table to get away from Luc. "Trophy? Oh! The Frisbee," said Luc. "Yes, I saw it. I realized I've never played Frisbee shifted either." The thought of super serious Luc playing Frisbee made Vivien snicker. His tone had changed in a flash and she couldn't help herself. Then she laughed. "Oh no! Not you too!" she giggled. Andrew nodded. Luc smiled. The tension at the table lightened ever so slightly. "Am... am I going to have to go to the park again?" she asked. "Or just buy you your own Frisbee?" Andrew and Luc looked at each other. Each man tilted their heads to one side and then Luc nodded. Vivien looked at the two men trying to figure out what just happened. She had been certain that Luc didn't like her when they sat down. She had that whole feeling of being growled at without the growl. Then something had changed. "Um... guys?" Vivien said as the silence got a little intense. "Vivien, what are you doing on Saturday?" Luc asked. "I... Laundry I guess," she answered a little unsure of where this was going. "Well, we're having a picnic up at Jeff's ranch. I figure if you're going to be seeing Andrew, you might as well meet some of the family. Would you like to come?" Luc asked. "Umm..." she stuttered. "Yes, I'd be delighted." "Andrew, you are so going to have to explain yourself!" "Good," said Luc and dug into his food. Luc said his goodbyes soon after his food was gone and left Andrew and Vivien to talk. Partially so that Andrew wouldn't try to thump him for playing dominance games and partially because he couldn't wait to call Meg from the car and let her know that Andrew had a girlfriend. "What in the hell was that all about?" Vivien whispered at Andrew after the door shut behind Luc. "He dropped by the shop today and asked me out to dinner. We love this place, and I didn't know you were here until I got out of the car and scented you. So, I had to tell Luc all about things in less than five minutes in the parking lot," said Andrew. "Okay. Fine. Now what in the hell was it that made me feel like I should roll over and show my belly every time he spoke for at least the first fifteen minutes?" she asked. "Subvocals. It's what all Alphas, family heads, parents use on anyone they are in charge of or think they should dominate. He was still a little angry when we came in," said Andrew. "Oh? He's pissy because you told someone?" asked Vivien wishing she could use sub-vocals. "He's angry because he's the family head. CEO of Alpha Wolf Tech, and has two pups to protect after a long hassling court case which involved a paper you work for. Yes, he was questioning my judgment. He was also testing you. Seeing if you were a loony," said Andrew with more than a touch of sub-vocals. "Stop growling at me! Did I pass? Is that why I got invited to that picnic? Or is it a way to make me disappear?" asked Vivien trying to make the goosebumps on her arms go down. "Sorry about the sub-vocals. And yes you passed. You got invited to that picnic because he trusts me and is willing to give you a chance. And while he's the leader of this family, I'm the spiritual leader. He has to trust my judgment sometimes too," said Andrew. Vivien sat there just a little shell shocked. She took a sip of her drink and thought for a moment. Then it dawned on her just exactly what this meant. "You... you want to date me?" she asked. "Yes. I didn't have your number. While I could have called your work or 'nosed' you out, I wanted to see you. You knew where to find me, but I wasn't so privileged," he said taking her hand in his and kissing her fingertips. Vivien blushed to the roots of her fiery red hair. Out in the parking lot, they exchanged phone numbers and addresses. Andrew got directions to her house and told her he'd be there by 9am on Saturday. "What should I bring?" she asked trying to figure out what kind of food she should make. "Well, anything except chocolate. Salads, chips, casseroles or any kind of thing you'd like," said Andrew as he wrapped his arms around her. He was happy when she didn't flinch. While not small, she fit under his chin nicely. He kissed the top of her head. "Ohhkay," she said softly as she inhaled his scent as she wrapped her own arms around him. "Oh, and we have to stop at the sports shop," Andrew added. "What for?" Vivien asked. "For Frisbees of course!" he said. * Saturday came far too quickly. Vivien almost called twice to cancel. After Luc's reception at Bingo Burger, she wasn't certain that she could cope. She'd been up at 6am, making the taco salad for the picnic. She put twice the meat in it she normally did. Then she took a quick shower and dressed in a pair of jeans, a tanktop and a light shirt to go over it. She put her hat and the two bags of chips next to the fridge. Then she paced. She wrote lists, organized her handbag for the third time and was about to start cleaning her living room when the doorbell rang. Vivien glanced at the clock on her way to the door. It was 8:45am. "Hello," said Andrew as he walked through her door. "Hi. You're early," she said. "Yes, I thought I'd get here with plenty of time. You have a nice house," he said looking around. He took in the books on the bookshelf, the various knick-knacks, the small pile of books on the floor and her laptop on a desk. "Thanks. I'll just get the salad from the fridge," she said turning towards the kitchen. She headed to the kitchen and realized that Andrew was just behind her. "Need anything carried?" he asked. "You could grab the chips and my hat," she said. "Alright." Andrew took a moment to look around the kitchen too. Clean, tidy except for the dishes in the drying rack. He grabbed the chips and followed Vivien out. She picked up her handbag and after Andrew exited, she locked her house and headed towards her car. "Vivien, come with me today. I'm driving," Andrew said. "Oh. Yes. Okay," she said. "Duh!" They got into the car and Andrew headed out. As they passed a Sports Now! store, Andrew pulled in and parked. "Frisbees?" "Of course! They'll break the ice," said Andrew. Vivien nodded. She followed him into the store and they found the display of cheap Frisbees. She figured that they'd get three or four. Andrew picked up twenty. "Do you think you have enough?" she asked sarcastically. "Well, I'm not sure. Do you think we should get thirty?" he asked in all seriousness. "What? How many people will be there?" she asked. "Oh, somewhere between forty and ninety," he said. "Oooh, maybe thirty then," she said a bit stunned. She grabbed ten more. The check out guy thought they were nuts until she explained that they were going to a big family reunion. He nodded and threw in some tennis balls in multiple colors for free. Andrew paid and they headed out of the store. "Tennis balls?" he asked. "Yeah. Those should be a riot too," said Vivien wondering just what she had gotten herself into. They were almost out of the city when Andrew turned to Vivien as they sat at a stoplight. "Do you have any questions?" "Tons!" she said. "Okay, ask," he said. "Well, is there any kind of etiquette I should be aware of?" she asked. "Etiquette?" "Yeah. Dos and don'ts. Don't bring chocolate, Don't piss off Luc, bow?" she listed. "Vivien, just act normal. Be yourself. Not pissing off Luc would be a good thing. However, your bigger problem will be Ginny," he said. "Ginny? Which one is she?" "She's my former fiancé, one time lover and sort of second in command, although there are days I think she and Meg are the real bosses. Long grey hair with ginger tips, curvy figure, and a temper. Patrick is her mate. Big tall guy, dark hair, dark eyes, walks like he has a six-gun on his hip," Andrew said. "Oh shit. Bitchy-poo and TDD," Vivien said under her breath. "What?" "Um... I had nicknames for everyone. His was TDD; Tall, Dark and Dangerous," she said. "And Ginny was 'Bitchy-poo' I take it because you saw her in one of her better moods?" "Yes. Oh please don't tell them about those!" said Vivien. "No, but I want to hear the rest of them." "Um, that might be a problem as I don't know their real names," she said. "Ah. Okay, let's play twenty names... Mine?" "Silversmith, and Becky's was Gothchick. Your boss is Baldy," said Vivien. "Okay, Luc and Meg?" "AWT for Alpha Wolf Tech and Classy," said Vivien. "Then there was Mountain and Midget." Andrew laughed. "Oh... George may laugh, but Angie will kill you." "Oh shit, I'm sorry, but I had to have nicknames!" "It's okay. Just don't use them. Anyone else?" he asked. "Swish, because he looked so metrosexual. And then there were the two cowboys. Cowboy 2 was always with Wolf Girl. then there was Lanky and his son, and Bitch 1 and 2," she finished. "Okay, that sounds like Kevin, who is gay, Cal my cousin, Peter and his wife Lisa, Sandy and his son Jesse and the last two.... Blonde and brunette?" "Yes. Bottle blonde," she said. "Marie and Ysabel. You got most of the immediate family. Not bad. At least you'll know most of the people who won't be happy that you work for the newspaper," said Andrew. "Well, that may not be an issue for much longer. I got a notice yesterday. Unless I can come up with some interesting articles, I'm done at the paper," she said with a sigh. "Oh? I'm sorry," he said. "It's okay. I've been worried about it for a while, but I don't have one of the juicy editorial jobs," she said. "Alright. Well, stay by me, and don't be surprised if people are hostile. The papers caused a lot of grief and some of us are not well behaved," said Andrew. "And for that I am sorry in advance. On the other hand, we have Frisbees." He smiled at her and patted her hand in reassurance. "What do you mean he's bringing a reporter to the picnic?" growled Ginny. "She isn't coming as a reporter. She's his date!" Luc growled back. He'd been arguing with people all week over this. First they were all smiles that Andrew had finally decided to date. The minute that they learned she worked for one of the newspapers, they were ready to hit things. "I still don't like it!" said Ginny. "Don't like that he's dating? Or dating a person who might have been part of the trouble?" asked Luc. He'd figured that Ginny was behind most of the fuss. "You know which it is!" Ginny growled. "Oh, okay. You're mad because Andrew is finally dating? Finally found shomeone who makesh him happy after yhou left?" said Luc. He was losing his cool and his jaw was shifting. "Enough you two!" Patrick said wading into the shouting match. "You, shift back and settle down," he said to Luc. "And you just shut up and give the poor woman a chance! Otherwise, I will take you over my knee and blister your furry ass!" he growled using sub-vocals at Ginny. Ginny flinched. Luc took a deep breath. He looked around and saw that his immediate family as well as Ginny's were standing far too close. He also saw Meg standing there with the babies on her hips and she was not happy. Whether it was him, Ginny or Andrew's date that had caused that look, he didn't know. What he did know is that he had to say something before Andrew and Vivien arrived. "Attention! Everyone listen up! I need to talk to you and I NEED you to listen. For once, I am pulling rank! As Family Head, I request that you listen. As many of you may have heard, Andrew has a date with him today. As odd as that may seem, this is a good thing! Her name is Vivien Sopris. She works for one of the newspapers that was part of the lawsuit not too long ago. She was NOT one of the reporters. She was NOT part of the legal suit," he said taking a deep breath. "However, she was curious. Curious enough to start putting things together, just like people have from time to time. And like from time to time, one of us has taken an interest in a human." Luc looked around as he caught his breath. Most people were settling down. Meg was beginning to smile. "Now, I EXPECT you to treat her with the same grace you would anyone. You didn't treat Meg or Angie in a nasty fashion. You gave them a chance. I expect you to do the same for her. I've met her and she'll be okay given a chance. Besides, Andrew has promised that they'd bring a surprise. And if you spoil that with nasty behavior, I'm going to be REALLY PISSED," he growled with enough sub-vocals to make chests rumble all around him. Meg walked over to him as the crowd dissipated. She handed him Elliot and then hugged him. Twisted Tails Ch. 02 "Thank you," she said. "Oh? Why?" he asked uncertain. "For your little bitch session. You did the right thing. Vivien needs to be innocent until proven guilty. Yes, it is upsetting that she works for the newspapers, but if this is Andrew's mate?" "Exactly. And I know Ginny is being protective, but enough is enough. I met her and she's okay. And she has the curliest red mop of hair I've ever seen," Luc said. "Red? Curls?" "Yeah, and... promise not to tell?" he asked looking around. "Well, okay I think." "She's bringing Frisbees," he said with a smile. Meg looked at him puzzled. "So." "Most of us have never played as wolves," he said and the glee showed in his face. "Oh my god," said Meg shaking her head in disbelief. * Andrew pulled up along the dozen or so other Subarus and Land Rovers. He took a quick sniff of the breeze. "Not too much testosterone or other scents. Here's hoping Luc was able to settle things down," he thought. Vivien got out of the car, put on her hat which didn't want to stay on her head and grabbed the taco salad. Andrew had the chips and two gallon jugs of iced tea. The bag from the sports store stayed in the car for the moment. They walked over to where the food was being placed on long tables. Then he took Vivien by the arm and began escorting her around the picnic area. He wanted to make sure all 'confrontations' were under his control. "Luc!" he called out as they got near the one tree where people were gathered. "Hello Andrew. Nice to meet you again Vivien," said Luc. "Hhi," said Vivien. She looked around and found most people were curious, but not openly hostile. "This is my wife Meg and our children, Elliot and Linsey," said Luc. "Nice to meet you Meg," said Vivien. She cooed at the babies and shook Meg's hand. "Good to meet you. Luc told me a bit about you and Andrew. He was right though, you have the reddest hair I've ever seen," said Meg with a smile. "I keep thinking of chopping it off and dying it, but it would only grow back," said Vivien. Curls had escaped the braid and she was fairly certain that there were ringlets all around her face. "Oh, I wouldn't. It's beautiful," said Meg. "Hmmm, not so bad after all." While they were chatting, Patrick walked up with Ginny. They went up to Andrew first. "Hello Andrew," said Ginny with a slight growl. "Hello Ginny," Andrew said giving her a hug and kiss. "Give her a chance, please." "Why?" she said. "Because Luc demanded it, and so do I," Patrick growled with enough sub-vocals to rattle windows. "She's a reporter," Ginny hissed. "You know, you're sounding very much like your many great grandma Celia who was such a bitch she turned away the love and affection of her own grandson's wives just because they were human. She never gave them a chance. You have an opportunity to do just that. Or is the real reason jealousy?" asked Andrew. Ginny said nothing for a few moments. She looked over at Meg and Vivien who were talking. Meg was relaxed and Linsey was trying to grab Vivien's braid. She looked back at Andrew and took a deep breath. "Okay. I'm nervous about the reporter thing. And...I am a bit jealous. If she can make you happy, that's something I couldn't do, and it hurts. And yes, I'm still not over you in some ways," she said. Andrew wrapped Ginny in his arms. "It's okay. Now you know how I felt the day Patrick came into your life. Instead of being sour about it, I had to trust that he would love you even half as much as I still do," he said softly. Ginny looked up at Andrew with astonishment. "You... did? Do? Oh..." she said. "Andrew, I'm so sorry." She crumpled a bit against him. "All I ask is that you give her a chance. She's scared of you. Scared of not being accepted and doesn't know what to do either," he said. "Okay, I'll give her a chance," said Ginny. She reached up, kissed Andrew and then let go. Then she wrapped her arm around Patrick. "Let's go over and meet this mystery woman," said Patrick. "And thank you Andrew. I know we talked, but thank you again." "Any time. You just keep her safe. She doesn't know when to slow down sometimes," Andrew said with a smile. The three of them walked over to Meg and Vivien. Andrew wrapped an arm around Vivien, turning her towards Ginny and Patrick. He waved at Meg and smiled at the two babies. "Vivien, I'd like you to meet Ginny and Patrick," he said. Vivien trembled a bit. She'd felt the sub-vocals behind her and still had goosebumps. Patrick was taller than Andrew and more imposing up close. Ginny was actually shorter than she was which was a surprise. "Hi," she said. "Gahhh! So lame!" "We were surprised to hear that Andrew had a date," said Patrick holding out his hand to shake Vivien's. "I've sort of gathered that he was the last bachelor," said Vivien. "You could say that," said Ginny. "So, how did you two meet?" "Over ice cream," said Andrew giving Vivien an out. "Ice cream? You don't eat ice cream," said Ginny. "No, but the shop across from the Silver Lode started carrying sorbet. I got some and needed a place to sit. We shared a table," he said. "Ah," said Ginny. "And we talked about the book I was reading and work. I explained that I was curious about a court case that I'd watched a few months ago," said Vivien. "Might as well as get rid of the Elephant in the room." "So you were curious about werewolves?" asked Ginny a little harsher than she should have. Patrick grabbed her elbow in a none too gentle grip. "Yes. Between half a dozen authors, TV programs and enough mythology to choke a horse, I was curious. And in conversation with Andrew, I've discovered that a good 85% of what is written is bunk. Oh, and that most people won't believe you even if you shout it from the rooftops," she said. "Enough so that I may not have a job by Monday." Ginny blinked at this admission. She'd figured that Vivien would hide who she worked for and lie about things. "Oh. I'm... I'm sorry about that. About you losing your job," she said honestly. "Yeah. Found out yesterday. Unless I can come up with an interesting beat, I'm out," said Vivien. "It's partially why I was looking at werewolves. Trying to figure out what the fascination and appeal was that has generated such a revenue stream for writers and such," said Vivien. "Well, even if you do lose your job, I hope you've found a new friend," said Patrick. "Um, yes. I think I have," said Vivien. Andrew hugged her close. "Food's ready!" shouted Sandy. He and Jesse were in charge of the barbecue grill with Jeff lending a hand. People gathered around and helped themselves to steaks, burgers, sausages or chicken. Then the salads and chips. Sandy smiled at Vivien and loaded up her plate. "I... I don't think I can eat that much," she said. "Oh don't worry, Andrew will help you," said Jesse. He smiled and ladled barbecue sauce over the burger and handed her plate back. Vivien walked back over to where Luc, Meg, Ginny and others sat. She perched on a corner of the bench and waited for Andrew who was talking to a huge man who'd just arrived. They walked over with Andrew. "Vivien, I want you to meet George and Angie," said Andrew. "Nice to meet you," she said as George's hand engulfed hers. "Oh damn he's big!" "Nice to see that Andrew finally came to his senses," laughed George. "Hi, I'm Angie. They'd forget all about us women if we didn't feed them," said Angie. "George, go get us some food!" George nodded and headed off to the tables. "Hi Angie. Nice to meet you too," said Vivien. The next hour was spent meeting people, eating and cracking jokes about food, people and bad habits. Vivien was finally beginning to relax when one of the cooks stood up and started talking. "I hope everyone has had enough to eat. If you haven't, there is more up here! Now, before we get to the fun, keep in mind that there are shade areas off to the left and plenty of baskets in the tent. If you lose your shoes or wallet, don't come crying to me!" said Jeff. Andrew had gone over to the car just as Jeff had started talking and brought the bag from the store over to Vivien and handed it to her. "I... I don't want to do.." she started. "Yes, you can. Believe me," he said with a smile. Vivien just held the bag, not knowing how this was going to unfold. "And now Andrew and his girlfriend Vivien said that they had a treat for us. All yours Andrew," said Jeff. Andrew stood up. "Now, some of you have met Vivien. What we didn't tell you is that on our first um... date, we had a little adventure in a local park," he said. There were giggles from some in the audience. "Now, it isn't what you think. There were some teens playing and I...um... well... sort of took something," he said. He took Vivien's hand and pulled her up next to him. "I realized that I'd never played with one of these as a wolf, and figured that it was just me," he said. "You always were weird Andrew! Get on with it!" hollered Cal. "So, After talking to Luc, I discovered that I was wrong. Most of us have not played with these as often as the average man. Therefore, Vivien and I brought some to share," he finished and put the bag up on the table. "Get out one," he whispered to Vivien. Blushing, Vivien got out a bright red Frisbee. As she held it up with a little assistance from Andrew, there were giggles and then silence. The silence was followed by giggles, hurrays and clapping. "Toss it here!" hollered one man. "No! Here!" said another. Shouts went up all over the area. Vivien looked at Andrew. "Toss it, and get ready to toss them all," he said as he started to walk towards a sun shelter. "Where are you going?" she asked. "To undress! I want to play!" he said. Vivien then realized that others were doing the same thing or were just undressing where they stood. It was difficult to know where to look. She shook her head and tossed the first one towards Luc. Luc saw it and ran up the picnic table and started shifting midair. He caught it in his jaws and landed heavily. The grin on his face was hilarious. He gave it to Meg, stripped off his torn shirt and shorts and then finished shifting. Meg threw it towards him and watched him catch it on the run. Vivien just shook her head. She threw another one and another. Wolves were catching them and then racing up to a person to have it thrown again. "Let me give you a hand," said Angie with a smile on her face. She grabbed one and threw it at a huge shaggy wolf. He caught it and began to lumber towards her. "That's George by the way," she said grabbing it and tossing it again. Vivien laughed for the first time today and tossed one at the wolf she thought was Andrew. He caught it and headed her way. A few other women came up and helped throw Frisbees. The picnic grounds had turned into a riot of wolves, Frisbees and laughing children. The children were throwing the Frisbees randomly and wolves were diving for them. When the last of the Frisbees had left the sack, Vivien grabbed the tubes of tennis balls. She grabbed one and tried to figure out where to toss it when a huge wolf ran up to her and crouched down in front of her waiting. Vivien blinked, realized it was Andrew and threw it. He ran off after it. In a few minutes, all the tennis balls were gone too. Vivien sat watching the wolves, children and various adults who hadn't shifted toss and catch the Frisbees and balls. She couldn't believe how happy everyone was with a bunch of toys. Then again parks are full of people playing football, baseball and Frisbee golf, so why should werewolves be any different? Angie sat back down next to her exhausted from tossing the Frisbee for George. "You'd think he'd never played with one of the damn things!" Angie said. "From what I understand, most of them haven't as wolves. Kids yes, but not wolves," said Vivien. "The things you'd never think of," said Angie. "Then again, I though if I got bit, I'd change into one." "Me too," said Vivian. "All sorts of misconceptions." "Yes, a lot of them. Granted, the first time I saw one shift, I about fainted. I didn't believe Meg and poor Kevin shifted in his clothes. Got his belt and underwear all tangled in his legs," said Angie laughing at the memory. "What?" said Vivien. Angie explained. By the end of the story, both women were laughing. Vivien told her about Andrew and the kids in the park. Once again, there were giggles. The two of them looked around and saw that some of the wolves had learned to toss the Frisbees with their mouths. Others were playing some sort of game with the tennis balls. "Do you think they will stop before dark?" asked Vivien. "Yes, unless they glow in the dark," said Angie. A sleek dark wolf ran up to Vivien and dropped a rather well chewed Frisbee in her lap. Vivien looked at Angie. "Toss it!" Angie said. Vivien tossed the Frisbee and the wolf shot out after it. "Who was that?" she asked Angie. "That was Ginny. I think you are forgiven," said Angie. "Forgiven?" "Yes. You caused a real stir and Ginny was leading the dissension. You have to understand that she and Andrew were lovers at one point," said Angie leaving the obvious unsaid just as the wolf came back. Vivien threw the Frisbee again and turned back to Angie. "So, she didn't want me here because she was jealous or because of being a reporter?" Vivien asked trying to figure thing out. "Openly, being a reporter. Privately, I think she wanted to make sure you were good enough for Andrew. Her bringing you the Frisbee to toss is an apology of sorts," said Angie. "Oh. Was she gruff the first time you met her?" asked Vivien. "Yeah. I was invading her office space. And she was my boss. Just give her time," said Angie. "I will," said Vivien as the wolf came up a third time. She tossed the Frisbee as hard as she could. * As it began to get dark, some of the people shifted back to human form. Modesty wasn't a consideration Vivien realized after the third naked person walked by. Some held Frisbees in their hands and smiled and waved at her as they walked past. Others were gathering up kids and possessions. A few were snacking on the food that was piled on the table next to the barbecue. Vivien looked around for Andrew. "Hi, I'd like to thank you for a great day," said a voice behind Vivien. She turned to see a man she didn't recognize. "Hi, and you are?" "I'm Jeff. Shifter, vet and doctor," he said. "This Frisbee thing has been really great. I have to admit I fully expected to be dealing with broken bones and cuts at one point. I should have known better. Andrew always manages to pull peace out of thin air," Jeff said. "Oh?" "Yes. He's our local shaman, all around good guy, priest as well as silversmith," said Jeff. "I sure hope you two work out. Thanks again for the Frisbees." He shook her hand and walked away. Vivien stood there a little stunned. Others came up and thanked her and then three children ran up to her carrying Frisbees and tennis balls. "Vivewen? Where do you wants these?" asked the little girl. "Um, I guess on the table," Vivien said. "Oh Kay. Unkie Wolfie said to gives them to you," said the little girl. "Here's the sack, shall we put them in there?" asked Vivien holding out the bag. "Oh Kay. Oh... an dat's Jow and Ivan and I'ms Sawa. We's Awnty Ginny's and Unkie Wolfie Patrick's." said Sara. "I'm very pleased to meet all of you," Vivien said to the children. "Is it weel?" asked Sara pointing at Vivien's curls. "Yes," said Vivien putting her hat down and letting the three children touch the curls that had escaped the braid. The three children smiled and then ran off towards an adult that was calling all the children together. "You're going to get a nick name you know," said Patrick standing there in just his jeans. "Geeze you startled me!" squeaked Vivien. "And why do you say that?" "Those are the infamous pups. Sara is the ring leader and Joe and Ivan are her minions. They are hell on wheels and knowing them, you will have a new name by morning," Patrick said. "Oh. Wait. Are they the ones that snuck into George's car on his first date?" she asked. "Yes." "Oh my," she said. "There you are!" hollered Ginny. She was wearing Patrick's shirt and little else. "The brat pack took my clothes." Patrick and Vivien laughed. Ginny finally began to crack a smile too. "The Frisbees were a real treat. Thanks," said Ginny. "It's been years since I played around. And to see Andrew cavorting like that was a riot." "Oh, I don't know. Some of the guys that forgot to strip off were pretty good too," said Patrick. Vivien nodded. Seeing a man jump up and a wolf land in baggy shorts and an aloha shirt was just one of those things you didn't expect. As they stood there talking, she felt two arms wrap around her. "Hi," said Andrew. "Ready to go home?" "Yes. I don't know about you, but I'm exhausted and all I did was sit and toss toys," said Vivien. "Well, let's say our goodbyes," suggested Andrew. They grabbed the bag of chewed Frisbees, an empty salad bowl and headed home. Andrew pulled up in front of Vivien's house. "Hey sleepyhead," he said softly. "Oh! How long have I been asleep?" she asked rather embarrassed that she had fallen asleep. "Only about the last thirty minutes," he said with a smile. "Not a problem. You've had a rather busy day." "Sort of. Lots of tension there at first I have to admit," she said as they got out of the car. "Agreed. I'm glad that you and Ginny seem to have figured out who's top dog," he said with a laugh. "Top dog... oh that is so bad!" Vivien laughed. "Would you like to have a cup of tea or coffee?" "Sure. Tea would be fine. I've got a bit of a drive, and don't want to fall asleep," he said as they entered the house. "How far away do you live?" "Other side of town. That subdivision out next to the river," he said. "Twenty-five minutes or so." "Oh, I didn't realize. I... you should have let me drive part of the day," said Vivien as she put water on to boil. "It's okay Vivien. I don't mind. Better yet, this gives me a chance to visit with you and see how you feel after today," he said. Vivien got cups out of the cupboard and dropped teabags in them. Then she got some gingersnaps out of the cookie jar and put them on a plate. "How do I feel? Well, amazed. I never thought that shifters, werewolves would play Frisbee, have picnics or be just like normal people," she said. "Oh? Did you think we were all slathering killers bent on either ruining or saving the world? Or did you think we were some sort of blood cursed bastards?" asked Andrew. "No! It's just between modern literature, myths and fairy tales, what am I suppose to think?" she said just a tad louder than she expected. "Sorry. It's just that my whole worldview has done an entire 180 degree spin and I'm not sure where I stand." Vivien poured the water in the cups and brought them over to the table. Andrew took his plain and Vivien added honey to her tea. "Okay, I can accept that," said Andrew breaking the silence. "Now for the tougher question. How do you feel about me?" Vivien blinked. "I... I know that we haven't known each other very long and I find that I like you. Like you a lot, but I wasn't sure how things would go with all these other people I didn't know. I was afraid that they'd hate me for being a reporter. For being curious and nosy. So, I didn't want to say anything, because if... if they all hated me, it would be much easier for me to just disappear," she said rather quietly. "And now? Now that you've survived the fearsome Ginny, and dealt with the terrifying trio? Now that you know we're just people who happen to have dual natures?" Twisted Tails Ch. 02 Vivien took a sip of her tea, and then looked up into Andrew's eyes. "How do you feel about me?" she asked. "Nice deflection. Sorry, you first," he said with a smile. Vivien took a deep breath. "I... would really like to get to know you better." Andrew smiled. "Do you have any worries about dating someone older than you?" "Oh. You know, that never crossed my mind until just now. How old are you?" she asked. "I'll be fifty-three this year," said Andrew. "Huh? You don't look that old," said Vivien. "You're really physically fit and..." She stopped, going bright red in the face. Andrew laughed. "Yeah, you got to see a fair bit of me and others today. We all tend to age well right up until we don't. I am that old. Remember, Ginny and I dated. I'm older than she is," said Andrew. Vivien thought about that for a moment. "Okay. So, since you brought it up, do you know how old I am?" "Yes, You just turned thirty. And before you ask, no your age does not bother me. I think it runs in the family as my dad was about eighteen years older than my mom." "Oh. Wait, how did you know I just turned thirty?" she asked. "Birthday cards on the bookshelves," he said with a smile. Vivien rolled her eyes blushing again. "So, are we agreed that we are going to date?" asked Andrew. Vivien looked at him. Really looked. His hazel eyes, sandy hair and that smile. The way he tilted his head to one side just like the wolf did. "Could I?" she thought. "Yes," she answered. Andrew set down his cup, walked around the table and pulled Vivien up from her chair. He ran his fingers through the stray strands of hair and then tilted her face up towards his and kissed her. It took all of three seconds for Vivien to get over the shock of that kiss and return it. She wrapped her arms around him and melted into his arms. He broke the kiss for a moment. "I've been wanting to do this all day," he said and went back to kissing her. His hands roamed down her back and across her hips. Vivien gave a little moan. Hearing that made Andrew's body harden. "Not yet!" he thought. The wolf deep inside whimpered. "Ours?" came the question. "Wait!" Vivien broke off the kiss. "Are... are we moving a um... little fast?" she asked in a whisper. Andrew held her out a bit from his body. "Your speed. Your decision. I await your pace," he said in a hoarse whisper. "It just seems so sudden and..." she paused. "And yet so right!" screamed her thoughts. "No, you're right, we... we're probably rushing things," he said letting go of Vivien. "I don't want to rush things. May... may I come by on Monday night?" "Yyes," she said, her heart still pounding. She wanted to grab him and haul him off to her bed at the same time she was a little nervous. "Then I will take my leave, my Vivien," he said. He gave her a brief kiss and then walked to the front door and left. Vivien stood in her kitchen stunned. * Andrew drove off with great difficulty. He was waring with his mind and that of his wolf. His heart and the wolf wanted to stay. His intellect said it was time to go. At least for a little while. Andrew reached a stoplight and realized that Cal lived just around the corner. He turned and pulled into Cal's drive. No one was home. Andrew realized that Cal must still be at the picnic, running with the rest of the unattached family members. He found a piece of paper, wrote a quick note in case Cal did come home. He put it just inside the front door. Then he walked around the back of the house. As he suspected, the garage was open. Andrew stripped off and shifted. Then he carefully headed back to Vivien's. Wolf watched the metal things on the road. He ran across when they were still. Wolf and his two legged form talked good. Better than most. It didn't take Wolf long to get to the house with the toys and the woman. Wolf walked quietly under the windows. He sat and listened. Wolf heard water running and the woman splashing. She was making throat noises that told Wolf she was happy. He sniffed around the house until he found the place she slept. There were bushes under the windows and Wolf found a hollow space to curl up. He stayed awake until he hear her come in the room and crawl into her nest. Twice in the night, he heard noises. First was a cat. Next time was a bunch of dogs. He growled at the cat and got up out of the bushes to scare off the dogs. He marked the corners of the property making sure that from now on, the dogs would know this was his den. Then he went back to the spot under the bushes. Towards dawn, he headed back to where the metal thing had been left by his two-legged self. Andrew dressed and was heading back to his car when Cal pulled in the driveway. He greeted Cal and went to go grab the note he'd left. "Andrew, what you doing here?" Cal asked. "I... I needed a safe place to shift. I," was as far as he got before Cal interrupted. "Redhead fever?" Cal asked. Andrew nodded. "Don't blame you. She's cute. Come on in for coffee. Sleeping out all night when you're not use to it can be a bit rough," Cal said opening his door. "Yes, it can be. You have fun last night?" Andrew asked following him into the house. "Oh yeah. There is a little bitch that just rolled my brain." "Just your brain Cal?" asked Andrew. "No, not just my brain. We had a really good time. Oh... speaking of fun, those Frisbees were great. We found a couple that got missed and we all played for a good three hours. Some of us shifted back so we could toss to the others. Thanks," said Cal as the water boiled. Cal made instant coffee and set a cup down in front of Andrew. "You gonna date her?" Cal asked. "Yes, and if it goes well, I'd like to do more than just date," said Andrew. "Good. About time you had some fun. And don't take this wrong, but I never knew how you and Ginny ended up dating. She just doesn't seem your type," said Cal. Andrew nodded. "Our families thought it would be a good match. It was in a way, but not good enough for Ginny or I. So, I'm glad she has Patrick. He's just rough enough to keep her in line," "I'll say. After Luc chewed everyone out and you talked with her, Patrick took her off to one side. I don't know what was said, but the sub-vocals were enough to make my hair stand on end," said Cal. "Ah, that would explain a few things," said Andrew. He and Cal chatted for a little longer while they finished their coffee. "You gonna be alright to drive home?" Cal asked as he stood up and yawned. "I think so," said Andrew. I had a couple hours of sleep," "Okay. See you later," said Cal. He headed to bed as Andrew left out the front door. Twisted Tails Ch. 03 I hoped you enjoyed the Frisbees. Now to see how this romance continues... Please remember to vote and comment. My thanks go out to all of my friends who are in lust with Andrew, and my partner Wolf, who so patiently listens to my giggles. Jaisen * Vivien cleared her desk and said goodbye to a couple of people she'd made friends with at the paper. They hadn't even given her time to make a cup of tea before the editor called her in and gave her the news. One of the security guards helped her carry her stuff out to the car. She put it in the back of her car, and drove off before the tears began to roll down her face. She got home by 9:30am. She had the boxes unpacked and her stuff put away by 10:15am. She knew she should start hunting for a new job, but her heart just wasn't in it. She grabbed the pint of double chocolate caramel swirl out of the freezer, a spoon and curled up with a movie. She was watching one of her favorite movies, Anna and the King. She got swept up in the costumes, drama and tears while she ate ice cream. After that, she watched The Ghost and Mrs. Muir. When it was over, she picked up all the tissues and threw them in the trash. Around 2pm, she made herself a tuna sandwich and ate some corn chips. Next movie was Gone with the Wind. Somewhere around the burning of Atlanta, she fell asleep. Andrew knocked on the door. He could hear the TV running. He knocked again. Sniffing the air, he knew she was inside. He opened the door slightly and walked in to hear the voice of Clark Gable saying "Frankly, my dear, I don't give a damn" come from the TV. He looked over to the couch and saw that Vivien was asleep. She was surrounded by an empty ice cream container, a dirty plate and a trash can full of tissues. He looked around and saw two empty file boxes that hadn't been there on Saturday and what looked like more papers on her desk. It didn't take him long to realize that Vivien had lost her job. He walked back to the door, closed it and knocked loudly this time. Vivien dreamed that Andrew in wolf form had said, "Frankly, Vivien, I don't give a damn," when she'd told him that she'd been fired. It was difficult to talk though as there was a sound of drums behind her. "Bam! Bam! Bambam! Bam!" Vivien woke up from her dream with a start to realize that someone was knocking on her door. She got up, looked at the mess and then headed for the door. She opened it to find Andrew standing there. "Hi, I was beginning to think that you weren't home," said Andrew. "Um... No, I fell asleep watching a movie," she said. "Would you give me just a second?" "Sure," he said. Vivien shut the door, ran for the couch and picked up the trash and dishes. On her way back from the kitchen, she folded up the quilt, turned off the TV and then went to the door. "Okay, I had to pick up a little bit of a mess," she said. "I understand. You should have combed your hair as well," he said with a smile. Vivien put her hand up to her head and realized that the scrunchie had moved off to one side and that her hair was a lopsided mass of curls and ponytail. "Oh! You could have said something! Better yet, nothing!" she said as she headed off to the bathroom to fix the mess. Her face was almost as red as her hair. Andrew smiled. He sat down on the couch and waited for her to come back. When she did, she perched on the edge of the couch. "So, how did your day go?" he asked. Vivien looked at him and for about 1/10th of a second thought about lying. "I... I got fired today. Didn't even get a chance to explain a thing," she said. "I thought as much. I'm early, you've been asleep for a while and there are two empty boxes over there as well as more papers on your desk," he said. "Are you always this observant?" "Yes. It's my job. Healer, priest, silversmith. If I don't watch what's going on, it is much more difficult to do my job," he said. "Now, do you feel up to going out for dinner?" Vivian thought for a moment. "No, not really. I don't have much to cook here either. We,... we can always go out another night." "No, that is not an option. You need to eat and I know you need company. So, let's go see what you do have in the kitchen and we can always make a run to the grocery store," said Andrew as he took her hand and stood up. They walked to the kitchen and Andrew peered into the fridge. He closed the door and then looked at Vivien. "Just when was the last time you bought groceries?" "Day before the picnic. I had to get some stuff. I... I thought I could wait until at least tomorrow since we were suppose to go out for dinner tonight. I've got money, I just haven't gone shopping," she said softly. Andrew wrapped his arms around her and gave her one of the hugs she so desperately needed. When she stopped trembling, he spoke softly in her ear. "I'm going to go shopping for dinner. Take a shower or a bath and I'll be back in about twenty minutes." He kissed the top of her head and then walked out the door. Vivien stood there for a second trying to take everything in and then headed for the shower. * Andrew headed for a local deli. He picked up various deli cuts, cheeses, bread and his favorite brown mustard. He also grabbed a salad mix, potato chips and a box of the deli's peanut butter cookies for him and double fudge for her. Andrew stopped at the liquor store for a bottle of wine and then headed back to Vivian's. He walked back into the house and started setting out his purchases on the kitchen counter. He looked around for glasses, plates, salad bowls and cutlery. Andrew had just uncorked the wine when Vivian walked into the kitchen. Her hair was wet and curling and she had a halter dress on that hugged her figure nicely. "I didn't realize you were back until I heard the cupboards opening and closing," "I'm light on my feet. Have a glass of wine and build yourself a sandwich. I wasn't sure what you liked, so I got variety," Andrew said. He handed her a plate and poured her wine. The two of them made their sandwiches and sat down. "To new beginnings," said Andrew as he raised his glass in a toast. "To... to new beginnings," Vivian said clinking glasses with Andrew. She took a small sip and then another. "This is very good." "This Shiraz is one of my favorites," Andrew replied as he sipped his wine and set it down. They ate and talked. Vivian talked about how her morning had gone and Andrew about the new commission pieces he had to work. After dinner, Andrew filled their glasses once more and got the cookies. They moved out to the living room and sat down on the couch. Vivien sat sideways so she faced Andrew. "Peanut butter?" Vivian giggled looking at the boxes. "Yes. At least I got you chocolate." "That was very considerate," Vivian said taking a bite of her cookie. "Oh my god. These should be illegal." "They smell good. However, I can't even take a bite. Luc and Peter can actually eat a bite or two, but not me," said Andrew. "Are you related?" asked Vivian. "No. Our families have known each other since just before WWII. My father Alexander enlisted with Buster Davy and about half the town. Father originally came from Calgary. My mom is from Croatia," said Andrew. "Buster, the old guy who died?" asked Vivien trying to envision the time line. "Yes. He's Luc's and Ginny's great-great-grandfather. It took a bit to figure out because no one asked me and I didn't recognize the name at first. My brother and sister grew up being bounced on his knee. I came along after he sort of left for a while." "Left for a while?" asked Vivian. "Yeah. He shifted and didn't come back. We moved to Calgary," said Andrew. He refilled their wine glasses with the last of the wine. "Do you want to keep talking family histories or watch a movie?" "Talk. I had enough movies earlier. Do any of your family live nearby?" Vivian asked. "No. My brother Ross died in the Tet Offensive in 1968. My sister Rose married and moved to Alaska. My Dad died in 1973 and about a year later, my mom moved back to to live in the little town she had when they were first married. Then she disappeared one afternoon." "Disappeared?" asked Vivien. "Yes. My mom just kept shifting more and more and one afternoon she never came back. I went up and closed up the cabin. She hadn't been there in months and no one had seen her. She was a lot like Lisa, Peter's wife. More wolf than human," explained Andrew quietly. Vivien nodded and put her hand on Andrew's. "I didn't mean to make you sad." "It's okay. I just hadn't really thought about things like that in a while. We all have our little walls we build around memories. It's your turn now," said Andrew as he nibbled on another cookie. "My parents live in Burien, Washington. I have a brother named Eric who's two years older than I am and he's a pain in the ass. Always sticking his nose in my business. I'll probably get a phone call from him bitching at me for not having a real job," she said. Vivien took a sip of wine. "Grandparents come from Fermoy, Ireland and Cambridge, England." "That explains the red hair," Andrew said with a smile. "Yes, and the temper. Grandma Lucy was a real fist swinger," said Vivien. "And how did you get a name like Sopris?" "The result of a 194 day marriage," said Vivien. "If it was that short, why didn't you change back to your maiden name?" asked Andrew. "Simple. Sopris was better than Sunbery," said Vivien feeling her cheeks go red. Andrew thought about it for a moment. He looked at her red hair and smiled. "Vivien, I can see why you kept your married name in spite of the short duration. Was it an amicable separation?" "Oh yes. We were drunk, stupid and when we woke up, we realized we'd goofed. Most of that time was getting the actual divorce," said Vivien. Andrew nodded. He reached out and picked up Vivien's hand. Turning it over, he rubbed his thumb along her palm. "And have you thought any more about us?" Vivien loved what he was doing to her hand. It made her feel like he was unraveling all the tension knots. "Yes, I have. I have a bunch of questions, but umm... I feel really awkward asking." "What kind of questions?" Andrew asked. He had an idea, but she needed to ask and he let her. Vivien went almost as red as her hair. "Um..." she started and then grabbed her wine glass and finished it off. After a deep breath, she turned back to Andrew. "Are you any different in bed?" Andrew smiled. "Yes and no. Sex is a mutual experience. I have enough control that some women I've been with have never noticed I was a shifter. Other women liked it. Should we have sex, that is as much your decision as mine as to whether I shift. Although, I will admit that sometimes shifts happen." "Oh. Okay. I really didn't think much of this through. If I'd been smart, I'd have talked more to Angie or Meg. I just didn't know if you liked me enough to really date," she said with a little trepidation in her voice. Andrew took her hand and pulled her to him. Then he kissed her. Vivien wrapped her arms around him and returned the kiss. It was a little awkward that she was draped across his lap, but he didn't care. His hand ran through her curls and then down the side of her face as they kissed. He could taste the wine and chocolate cookie. Vivien kissed Andrew, letting her tongue explore his mouth. She realized his canines were big, and she wasn't sure if he was shifting or not. She almost stopped to ask when his hand moved from her face down her neck and caressed her breast. She moaned. The next thing she knew, Andrew had pulled her up into his lap. This way they could both touch each other better. As they kissed, she ran her hands through his hair and down his neck. Andrew was cupping both of her breasts and she could feel his cock swell under her thighs. Andrew ran his hand across the tie of her sun dress and tugged. He pulled down the top of her sundress and began to caress her naked breasts. She was so pale and her nipples just barely showed against her skin. Across her shoulders were a sprinkling of freckles. She arched forward and he cupped her breasts in his hands. His thumbs rolled back and forth over her nipples. "Annn...drew," she gasped between kisses. "Yesssh," he said. "I want to touch you," she said tugging at his shirt. Andrew moved his hands off of her breasts long enough for her to unbutton his shirt. He took that off and then his teeshirt. Vivien's hands trailed over his chest. He had a sparse diamond patch of hair right between his nipples and a thin line headed towards his belt. She realized that it matched the fur markings she'd noticed the first time he shifted. While she touched him, Andrew bent down and kissed and sucked her nipples. "Ohhh," she moaned. She wriggled her hips to rock against his erection that bumping her thighs. It was Andrew's turn to moan. "Vivien?" "Yes. Please," she said getting off his lap. Grabbing the top of her halter dress with one hand, she grabbed his hand and lead him to her bedroom. She wiggled out of her halter dress and crawled onto her bed in just her undies. Andrew dropped his trousers and kicked off his shoes. He pulled off his socks and then joined Vivien on the bed. Pulling her mouth to his once more, he let his hand roam her skin. Her nipples crinkled tight under his palm. Down her side, he let his hand glide. Vivien moaned as his hand cupped her ass. She responded to Andrew's touch by rolling on her back and opening her legs which let his hand trace across her mound. Vivien felt so alive and couldn't stop touching Andrew. Her hand roamed as far as she could touch. He was so tall, even laying down. Her fingers rested on the elastic band of his bikini briefs and then trailed across the front. She brushed his cock with her fingers. "Oooh," Andrew moaned. The wolf whined. Vivien smiled a little smile and let her hand slip under the waistband. She was rewarded by Andrew's shudder as her hand caressed his cock. His fingers dipped under her panties and found her slit. She was soaked. Vivien wiggled out of her panties. Andrew took advantage and moved to lick and tongue her pussy. He smiled when he noticed her curls were as red as those on her head. He licked and sucked her clit and lips until she began to squirm. Vivien began to arch off of the bed and as she did so, Andrew slid his fingers deep inside her pussy. "Oh! Ohmy," she gasped. She grabbed at the sheets as she came hard against his fingers and tongue. Andrew smiled and looked down at her as she tried to figure which way was up. Vivien caught her breath and then rolled so she could pull Andrew's briefs off. His cock stood proud and she wrapped her hand around it and then lowered her mouth onto his cock. Andrew smiled and sighed. He stretched out amongst the pillows that littered the bed and watched as Vivien sucked and licked him. He wanted to touch her, but she'd moved down between his legs. His body began to tighten up. "Vivien, hold... hold on." Vivien stopped and looked up at Andrew. "Do we need protection?" he asked. "Shit! I didn't think about it," she said sitting down on the bed. "My... my trousers," Andrew said trying to get his equilibrium back. Vivien reached for his trousers and handed them to him. Out of an inner pocket, he pulled a package of condoms. She grabbed one and rolled it down his cock. She was afraid for a moment that it wouldn't go down far enough. His cock was 'tall', like he was. She also wasn't sure how well they'd fit. Andrew could see Vivien hesitating just a little. "You having second thoughts?" "No, I want you, just... you're a little longer than I've had before," she said. "I'll lay on my back and you straddle me. That way you can take as much as you want," Vivien nodded. Andrew lay back and helped Vivien straddle him. She was tight and hot and it took all of his control not to thrust deeper. Wolf whined again deep in the back of his mind. Vivien reveled at the feeling of Andrew inside of her. She slowly lowered herself onto his cock. Bit by bit she slid up and down on his cock. Each time she went a little deeper. His cock was rubbing all the right places until Vivien began to get lost in the sensations. It surprised her when she sat all the way down. "Ohh," she gasped. Realizing that Vivien was comfortable with him, Andrew began to thrust in rhythm to her rocking motion. The sensations rolled his brain and he felt that the wolf was right there with him. His hands grabbed her hips as he thrust harder. Vivien watched Andrews eyes shift ever so slightly yellow-gold as his hands gripped her hips. He felt so good. This felt so right. She rocked harder, and felt herself begin to orgasm. Her muscles clenched as she came. Crying out as she came, Vivien lost sense of time, feeling nothing but an orgasm that seemed to last forever. Andrew held on to Vivien as she orgasmed. Her muscles gripped his cock and as she finished the last wave of pleasure, he came hard. It felt like his balls emptied every drop of cum he'd ever had. His body arched up off of the bed for a moment and then crashed down to the pillows. Vivien twitched with another series of orgasms and then slowly rolled off of his cock. She lay there on the bed with a silly grin on her face. Andrew took a few breaths and walked towards the bathroom he'd seen earlier. He peeled off the condom and wiped off with a damp washcloth. Then he walked back to where Vivien lay half asleep. He curled around her and cuddled her close. Some point during the night, he shifted. Wolf smelled the back of her neck. Sweet. His balls ached and he wanted to take his mate again, but knew he must wait. Two-legs said wait. He sighed, put his nose back under her hair and slept. * Vivien woke up and realized she couldn't move. Her hair was pinned to the bed by the wolf's back feet. Her body was pinned by the wolf's head across her hip. He'd curled around her like a shawl. "Andrew, I need to get up," she said softly. "Andrew." She shook his head and he rolled over on his back. Once again she recognized the blaze of hair that showed up on his human body displayed on the wolf's belly. She disentangled her hair from his feet, got up and headed to the bathroom. She wondered if she should take a shower or wait for Andrew to shift back. She chose to shower. Vivien had just put shampoo in her hair when she felt the shower curtain move. "Hi," "Morning Andrew." "How are you feeling this morning?" he asked. "Content. Wet, and just a tiny bit sore." Andrew nodded, grabbed the body wash and after squirting some in his hand, he began to wash Vivien. He smiled as he ran his hands over her body. Her nipples perked up as he ran his hands over her breasts. Then his hands went lower. Vivien moaned as his hand gently washed between her legs. "Oh, you keep that up and we will be back in bed," she gasped. "I wouldn't mind." Vivien looked down and saw that his cock was bobbing against her leg. "I guess you wouldn't. Do you have to be to work today?" she asked as she rinsed off. "No, it's Sunday. I switch off with Becky." "Oh, then let's rinse off." Vivien made sure all the soap was rinsed off and then grabbed a towel for each of them. Andrew looked impish with his hair ruffled from the towel. She just squeezed the water out of hers and didn't try to do anything with it. They threw off some of the pillows and collapsed to the bed. Before Vivien could move farther up the bed, Andrew moved between her legs and began to lick and nibble his way to her center. While he wanted to let his tongue shift, he held back. He slid his fingers in to tickle her g-spot. "Vivien, would you mind if I shifted my tongue just a little?" he asked. "Uh, mmmm, what you're doing feels good," she moaned. Twisted Tails Ch. 03 "The tongue will feel better," he said. "Oh, umm... okay," Vivien said trying to figure out how anything could feel better. Three boyfriends in ten years hadn't felt this good. Andrew smiled, lowered his head to her opening and let his tongue explore her inner folds. Her reaction was almost instantaneous. "OH! Oh my!" she cried out as she grasped the bedding, her thighs, Andrew's head, anywhere, trying to cope with the overload of sensations. "Aaaahh!" she cried out as she orgasmed. Andrew let her relax just a bit and then licked her again. He would have smiled if he could at her reaction. Instead, he enjoyed how she twitched, gasped and clawed the bedding as he continued to play with her. He glanced over to where the condoms were sitting. He also knew that much more of this would have him on such a short fuse that it wouldn't be much fun. "Aaanddrew, hhold on," she gasped at last. Andrew stopped and sat up. "Yesh?" "I... I want a brain cell or two left and it isn't fair to you," "Whatchs noht fair?" "No one is playing with you," she said and rolled over to wrap her hand around his cock. It was Andrew's turn to gasp as she stroked him and then lowered her mouth onto his cock. Vivien's mouth was warm, wet and her tongue was delightful. It flicked the tip of his cock and then somehow she was sucking the underside of it and yet never taking her mouth completely off of him. He felt that first hint of an orgasm begin to bubble up. "Vivien, please, unless you want me to come in your mouth, let... let me," was as far as he got. His orgasm almost took him by surprise. Vivien was still laving him with her tongue, and hadn't stopped when he asked. He grabbed the mop of curls and held her head in place while he came and came. Vivien had heard him ask to stop, but wanted to have him come in her mouth. After that tongue of his nearly tickled her tonsils, she wanted to make him happy. What she didn't expect was the volume. She swallowed twice and still felt like there was cum dripping everywhere. She licked him as clean as possible and then went to get a towel as Andrew lay there boneless. She wiped her face and then him clean. "That was umm... a lot," she said with a bit of a giggle. "Yes, oh my. Do you know where my bones went?" he said half giggling. "Of course. I sucked them right out of your cock and they are making my stomach gurgle," she laughed. Andrew laughed too and pulled her to him. They cuddled for a while and snoozed for a little bit. Andrew felt himself growing hard again and began to play with Vivien until she was very wet. He grabbed a condom, slid it on and moved between her legs. While she was tight, Vivien coped with his length just fine. He stroked in and out as he held her knees. "Aaandrew?" "Yes." "Can we change positions?" "Of course," he said slowing down. "Which way?" "Promise not to laugh?" "Maybe." he said with a smile. "On our knees?" she asked. "Oh, Wolfy style?" he said with a smile as he rolled her over. "Wwolfy style?" Vivien asked as Andrew slid in from behind, grabbing her hips and thrusting slowly at first. "Yes. It's the classier version of doggy style. And you can only do it with wolves or shifters," he said. "Oh... you... are tterrible," she gasped as he increased his pace. Her gasps and the sound of his balls slapping against her ass sounded loud in the quiet room. Her nipples glanced against the sheets as Andrew's rhythm increased. His fingers tightened on her hips and it almost felt as if his nails had grown as the pace increased. Andrew felt himself shift ever so slightly. He tried to hold back, and knew his control was slipping. It just felt so good. "Our mate," the wolf said deep in the back of his mind. "Ours." Andrew wanted to agree, but sometimes the wolf understood things at a level the humans never figured out. He felt his balls tighten and Vivien cried out as her orgasm poured through her body. Andrew gave in as her muscles squeezed his cock. He felt that knot grow, the condom constrict around his cock and then came hard. He seemed to come forever. Gasping, he grabbed Vivien around the waist and then rolled to one side, so that both of them were on the bed. "Andrew, are... are you going to pull out?" she gasped, feeling her body clench and shudder around his cock. "Noh, Cahn't." "What do you mean?" she said. "Knohht forrmmed. Sorrhy." "Knot? Oh. Like a dog?" she asked. "Uhuh. Sorrhy," "Why are you sorry? You've said it twice," asked Vivien. "Loscht controhl. Shhifted a bit. Should havh shtopped. Felht so gooh." "That still doesn't explain the apology. It did feel good and I don't mind, I just don't understand." she said. "Chon-dum. Noht mehnt for shhifters. Hit brroke an I cahn't pulhh out," he said. "Oh. Oh no," Vivien said as she realized exactly what had happened. "Sho sorrhy," he said holding her close. "Andrew, it's okay. My period is due in a few days. I should be okay," she said. After an hour or so, the knot relaxed and Andrew pulled out. As he suspected, the condom was broken. They showered and Vivien cleaned up as best she could. While she was bathing, she thought about it. She could go get one of those morning after pills. Then again, she figured that if she was pregnant, it wasn't that big a deal. When she was out of the shower, they'd talk. When she walked into the kitchen, Andrew had made tea and scrambled them some eggs. He was just setting toast on the table. Vivien sat down and he put their plates on the table. The eggs had bits of meat and cheese in them from the night before. "This looks good. I don't know why I thought you wouldn't know how to cook," said Vivien. Andrew smiled. "It is a survival mechanism when you live alone for a long time. Or, you get very good at eating out. I like to cook." Vivien smiled and dug into the food. They ate and when the last scrap was gone, Vivien saw Andrew watching her intently as if trying to decide if she was upset. "Andrew, it's okay. I'm either going to get pregnant or I won't." "What about one of those pills? The morning after or whatever they call it?" he asked. "I... I wouldn't want to do that. What if this was the only baby I might ever have?" she said. "I'd rather take the chance." "It... it isn't a good way to start a relationship though, with you getting pregnant," he said. "Okay, let me ask you... In your family. In most of the shifters families, are the women pregnant before they marry?" she asked. Andrew started to speak and then stopped. He started again and stopped. "Um... I think most of them are pregnant when they have a formal mating ceremony," he said at long last. "I thought so from what some of the women at the picnic were saying. Now, this is what I propose. Let's keep dating. Let's keep having sex, with condoms. If in a week, I don't have my cycle, we'll talk more. If I do, we just have a slightly different discussion and I'll get on birth control if that's what we decide. In the meantime, let's try not to worry and see how our relationship develops," she said. Andrew looked at her, smiled and then stood up and pulled her into his arms. They kissed and stood there for a moment. Then he ruffled her curls. "Movie?" he asked. "Yes!" answered Vivien and they went out to the living room to find a DVD they both wanted to watch. * Wednesday morning, Andrew worked on a long chain. Bitty had snagged her's on a fence and brought it in to be repaired. Her mate, while young was doing a good job with her. They'd settled out near Jeff's land and were helping at the wolf sanctuary. He took a deep breath and tried to concentrate. He heated the last link and tapped with the delicate hammer he used with silver. Then he polished it, and put it in a box. "Becky, call Bitty and let her know her chain is repaired," he said. "Alright," Becky said taking the box. "When is your next date?" "Saturday, why?" "Because if you keep sighing and staring off into space, we won't get any of this work done," Becky said pointing to a rack of baskets. Andrew looked at Becky and then the baskets. "I'm not that bad!" Becky glared at him. "You're right. I'll be back tomorrow," he said as he grabbed his coat. It was only 11:45am. Becky laughed as he vacated the shop faster than an escaped two year old. Andrew drove almost all the way to Vivien's house and then realized that he didn't know if she was even home. He thought about pulling over and calling her, but decided against it. If she wasn't home, he'd just wait. He drove up to her house and parked a few minutes later. He tried not to be too happy that her car was in the drive way. Vivien sat at her desk looking at the pile of letters, bills and rejection slips. The knock on her door startled her. She was even more startled when she opened it a moment later to find Andrew on the other side. "What... what are you doing here?" "I wasn't concentrating and Becky told me to get out, so I fled. I was going to go home, but that wouldn't have fixed things either, so I came here. May I come in?" he asked. "Oh! Yes. I just didn't expect to see you until Saturday. I'm sorry," she said again. "It's okay," Andrew said as he pulled Vivien into his arms and gave her a hug and kiss. She melted into his arms. Andrew took in the scent of her hair as he held her. "I've missed you." "Andrew, it's only been three days," said Vivien. "Yes, but the wolf missed you too, which makes it twice as long," he said with a smile. Vivien laughed. She took him by the hand and after shutting the door, led him over to the couch. They sat down, and before Vivien could do anything, Andrew pulled her into his arms and gave her a deeper more passionate kiss. Vivien responded and found herself running her fingers through his hair . She could feel his erection bumping her thigh. "Andrew," she gasped between kisses. His answer was to pick her up and carry her to the bedroom. He placed her on the bed and then began to undress her. When he got her teeshirt off, he began to kiss her breasts along the edge of her bra. His hands roamed down to her yoga pants and then slid under them. Andrew pulled them off and began kissing down Vivien's belly. "Oh,... not... not fair," she gasped as he began to kiss her mound and finger her. She wanted to touch him, but he was just out of reach. "No, noht, buht don carrh," Andrew answered with his nose buried in her soft folds. He let his tongue shift slightly and lick deeply into her pussy. Vivien moaned and wriggled against his mouth. He rocked his head back and forth so that his nose flicked her clit. "Annnndrew," she gasped. Andrew increased his attentions until Vivien arched in orgasm. Slowly, he let her down onto the bed. Then he stood up and dropped his clothes to the floor. From his pocket, he grabbed a condom and set it on the bed. Then he crawled up next to Vivien. She slipped out of her bra, and snuggled skin to skin with Andrew. "I've missed you," he said as he held her close, letting his fingers caress her body. "If I had brains, I could tell you that I've thought of you every night. Sometimes to the point where I've almost called," she admitted. "You should have. I'd have been here in thirty minutes." "I didn't want to seem needy," she almost hissed as he bent down and bit at her nipple. "You aren't the only one. You don't have a second voice, a second nature whining and complaining in the back of your head. I do." "Oh, I don't know. I have horny me and hornier me," giggled Vivien as Andrew's fingers stroked her clit and began to distract her. She reached down to grasp his erection. It was Andrew's turn to stop mid word and moan. Vivien wrapped her hand around the base of his cock and then licked the head and sucked on it. Andrew rolled on his back and let her play with him. Vivien tried to stay out of his reach, but it didn't work. He moved her around until he could touch and play with her as she sucked his cock deep into her mouth. Each of them were trying to drive the other to the point of no return. Vivien lost as Andrew teased her to orgasm long enough that she couldn't think, let alone keep sucking on his cock. Vivien sat on her knees, gasping to catch her breath. "You... brat." "Yes," he said as he found the condom he'd put on the bed. He slid it over his cock and then pulled Vivien to him. She straddled his cock and sank down onto it. He loved the way she fit. Grabbing her hips, he rocked her back and forth. "Oh... oh my," Vivien moaned softly. Her vocalizations grew louder as Andrew increased his pace. Vivien was bouncing up and down on Andrew's cock until his balls slapped against her ass. Andrew stiffened and arched up off of the bed as he orgasmed. "Uhhhuhh," he moaned. Vivien felt everything clench and wash over her senses as she came and came. Having Andrew's cock holding her in place made the feelings intense. "Aaahhh!" she cried at last and collapsed on his chest. She rolled off of Andrew and curled up beside him. Both of them shuddered in the aftershocks of sex. An hour later after a quick shower and a cup of tea, Andrew walked over to Vivien's desk. He looked at the papers and realized that he'd interrupted her working on her finances. "Viv, are you doing okay financially?" She walked over to her desk, looked at the bills, and bank statements. "No. I thought I'd be okay, but I'm sort of upside down." Andrew took her hand and pulled her over to the couch. "So, what do you need to be solvent?" "Oh, about $1000 a month. I've just turned off the cable and internet, slashed my food budget and figured that I could cope for maybe two months before I absolutely had to have a job. However, I now have to go to the library for internet access." Andrew looked at her, walked over and picked up the bills. He came back, sat down and looked at the bills. After a moment, he set them aside and looked at Vivien. "If you didn't have to worry about rent, your savings would last at least four months." "Yeah, but my landlord won't extend me credit. I'm already on his short list," she said. Andrew took a deep breath. He knew it was probably too soon for him to suggest this, but he couldn't see Vivien wasting money. "Move in with me. I have a big house. You could almost have an entire floor to yourself. That would take care of your rent, internet and even TV if you wanted to watch something." "I... Andrew, I'm not sure I'm ready for that kind of relationship," she stammered. "Viv, I'm trying to be practical. While part of me wants to chain you to the bed and fuck you senseless twenty-four hours a day, I know that isn't practical. What I'm suggesting is that you use the top floor of my house. You'd have your own room, office and even bathroom. The kitchen would be shared. It would save you money while you looked for work," he said with a hint of sub-vocals. Vivien blinked. "You don't have to growl at me!" "Sorry. I'm just trying to be logical. If you don't find a way to save money, you'll be out of here by the end of the month and dead broke," he said. Vivien started to protest, and Andrew put his hand up. "No, don't try to hide it. You're budget is very tight. I can see that. Now, do you want to wait a month, or move in now and still have a little money left in your checking account?" Vivien looked at him, grabbed the bills and walked over to the desk. She stood there with her back to him for a few minutes. She finally put the bills down on the desk and walked back over. Tears trailed down her face. "This... this wasn't the way I wanted things to go," she said. Andrew pulled her into his lap and held her. "No, I know that. But, it would make things easier. Plus, when you had a case of the mad hornies, all you'd have to do is run downstairs," he said trying to cheer her up. Inside, his wolf was howling about her being upset and it was taking all his control. Vivien lay curled up in his arms for long enough that Andrew wondered if she'd fallen asleep. Just as he was about to check, she moved. "Okay. I'll move in with you. I'll take that top floor. However, I'll do housework, cook, etc to pay my way. No arguments." Andrew smiled. * Kevin and Cal helped Andrew move Vivien into his house. Not that she had a lot of furniture, but the extra hands helped with the awkward pieces like her bed and mattresses. "You know, it'd be a lot easier if I could just shift," said Cal. "Yeah, and last time you did that, Angie got a new box spring," laughed Kevin. "Oh just shut up!" said Cal from the other side of the mattress. It didn't take them much longer to move the bed upstairs. Vivien and Becky had assembled the bedframe and were waiting for the guys. Cal and Kevin lowered the mattress into place and went to get the pillow top. Vivien looked around for the box that held her sheets while Becky looked out the window. "You going to be okay with this?" Becky asked. "I think so. Better than living on the street or moving back with my parents," said Vivien. "Oh damn! I couldn't cope with my parents now," said Becky. "Neither could I. Hell, I still haven't told them about Andrew." Becky nodded. "I understand." They'd talked earlier about dating shifters and the odd bits like explaining to family why chocolate cake or chocolate syrup wasn't a good idea. "I think that someone should write a dating guide," said Vivien. "Oh yeah! No rollerskating dates!" laughed Becky. "Rollerskates?" "Yeah. Penny, That's Bitty's mom wanted to have a rollerskating party. They rented the rink for the evening and everyone came. Shifters and nonshifters. It was great right until one of the little ones fell and hurt themselves. A few of the moms were shifters and went into sort of 'protect' mode because of the crying. Next thing we knew, there must have been four or five wolves with skates on and shredded clothes. I didn't know whether to laugh or cry," said Becky. Vivien thought about this and then started to giggle. "Did... did someone take care of the security tapes?" "Yeah, Luc did once he untangled himself from his skates and the shreds of his jeans. It was so funny. After that though, we stuck to more wolf-proof parties." "Okay. That would also explain the parties out at Dr. Jeff's too," said Vivien. "Uhuh." Their conversation came to a halt while Kevin and Cal dropped the pillow top mattress on the bed. The two women made up the bed and then headed downstairs. Becky had brought chile and they were going to have nachos with it. Vivien heated up the cheese sauce and got a bowl for the chips. The men brought the last of the stuff up from the truck and then cleaned up to eat. Cal leaned against the counter while Andrew handed out Fat Tire Ale. Everyone helped themselves to the chile, chips and nacho cheese. They sat down and Andrew put a DVD in and they sat and watched Wolf with Jack Nicholson. The guys were laughing and making bad jokes about various bits of the movie. "I can't believe you are watching this," Vivien said to Andrew. "Well, it's funny. Especially when they get something wrong," said Andrew. "It also helps to 'know thy enemy' in a weird way." "How?" she asked. "Well, we know all the things we 'think' we are by literature, films and TV. It's all observation. Just like in the Middle Ages, we always had a family member or two high in local governments if we could. Often in the church or the aristocracy. It helped us keep a pulse on things." "Okay, so how many writers are shifters?" she asked. "I honestly don't know. Plus in some families it might not be the sifter, but the spouse that writes," said Andrew. Vivien nodded and went back to watching Jack run around biting his co-workers. "Care to um... fool around?" a slightly drunk Andrew asked Vivien. Twisted Tails Ch. 03 "You think you can get it up?" she teased as she stroked his crotch. "I can try. You're bed or mine?" "Yours. That way if you pass out, I can go 'home'," she said. "Oh, that wouldn't be very friendly," he said as he stripped off his clothes. While he was tipsy, he wasn't half as drunk as Vivien thought he was. His metabolism was burning the alcohol off quickly. "Well, I may not want you snoring in my ear." "I... can see that," he hiccuped. "Maybe we should shower first," said Vivien. She realized that she was a bit sweaty as she undressed. Andrew sniffed her at the neck and just grabbed her around the waist. "Youh schmell jus fin toh meh," he said his jaw shifting ever so slightly. He pulled her to the bed and began kissing and licking her all over. "Oh! Andrew, stop! That tickles," she squealed. "Noh, youh tahst goohhd," he said. Vivien tried to escape his tongue, but he pinned her to the bed and licked and kissed her until her body surrendered to his attacks. After licking and sucking her nipples, he slid his fingers deep inside. Vivien arched in response, bringing her mound and clit closer to his tongue. He licked and sucked her clit until she came in a shuddering orgasm. Andrew stroked her skin as she lay there catching her breath. Vivien rolled over and before Andrew could catch her hips and pull her to him, she pivoted and took his erection in her mouth. She loved the feel of his cock, but she didn't always have a chance to give him a blow job. Sex was still a very heady lustful thing between the two of them. It was Andrew's turn to gasp. He loved the feel of her mouth on him. He loved the feel of her whole body to be honest, but that hot little mouth with a tongue that twisted and licked him, was heaven. He could feel himself beginning to shift and tried to hold back. Vivien felt Andrew grow larger and hairier. Rather than risk another broken condom, she just kept sucking and licking. She knew he was close to coming and added her fingers around his cock to stroke him as she licked. It didn't take much longer for him to begin to stiffen and arch up off the bed, thrusting faster into her mouth as he came. She swallowed as best she could, but still had cum running down her hand. She licked him as clean as she could and then went for a towel. When she came back, he'd shifted fully and she had a large reddish wolf in her bed. Wiping her hand, she curled up on the bed with him and went to sleep. Two days later, she was making lunch when Andrew walked up behind her and gave her a hug. "Andrew, be careful," she said. "I am. Just wanted to give you a hug. I know we were a bit nervous over that condom break, but I'm glad everything didn't happen," he said. "What?" "Your cycle started, so you aren't pregnant," he said. "I haven't..." she stopped mid sentence. Then she dropped the spoon on the counter and ran for the bathroom. She was back in about five minutes. "How did you know?" she asked. "I have a nose. Same way I will know when you are fertile or pregnant," he said touching his nose. "Oh. Okay, because that was just damn freaky. Literally a second after you said I wasn't pregnant, I could feel my cycle start." "You were spotting this morning, but it wasn't much. I figured you'd notice it soon enough," he said a little apologetic. "Okay. Oh. I got an email from my parents. They said they'd be in the area and wondered if they could come visit." "Fine by me. Am I a lover or just your eccentric landlord?" he asked. "That's what I wanted to talk to you about. Would you be offended if I didn't introduce you as a boyfriend?" "And why, if you don't mind me asking?" Andrew asked. Vivien looked at Andrew. "It isn't that I'm ashamed of you or anything like that. It's more that my parents over react at times. They were so enthusiastic with one boyfriend that he dropped me like a hot rock. Another one was derided as an ass ten seconds after they met him. And then there was my marriage. I just don't want things to go wrong. I'm thirty years old, but sometimes my parents treat me like I'm thirteen." Andrew wrapped his arms around her again and kissed the top of her head. "It's okay. I understand. I've had to help some of the others deal with their non-shifter inlaws. I will be a gentleman and as absent as you need me to be while they are here." "Thank you for understanding," she said with a hug. Twisted Tails Ch. 04 While many of you thought that life moved a little fast, odd, etc... Remember that Vivien is a fan of Urban fiction and has been following the shifter story for a while. On top of that, there are all kinds of relationships. This one just went a little smoother than most. That said, a little bit of chaos is about to erupt in the Davis house. You'll get to see why Vivien didn't want her parents involved. Once again, Thank you to my dear friends and partner for helping me with the story. Please don't forget to comment and vote! Jaisen "Vivien, relax. The house is clean even by my nose and standards," said Andrew as he pulled her into a hug. "I'll finish up the food and you go take a shower." "Are you sure? I'm nervous. You'll understand when they get here." "I'm sure. I can handle salad, bread and cheese. I excelled at laying out cookies on a platter at 15. Go shower," he said. "They're due in thirty minutes." Vivien kissed him and ran upstairs to shower. They'd cleaned every trace of her out of the downstairs. She knew her parents. Dropping her dirty clothes into the basket, she stepped into the shower. The hot water felt good and did help settle her down. Or was it the lavender body wash Andrew had bought her? She didn't care. After she stepped out of the shower, she dried the walls and dropped the towel in with the other dirty clothes. Fifteen minutes later, she was downstairs, wearing her favorite green dress and a pair of flats. She looked towards the kitchen where heavenly smells were wafting out into the dining room. "What are you baking?" "Cookies. Bitty brought the dough by last night and put it in the fridge. All I had to do was bake. They are almost ready," he said checking on them. He closed the door of the oven after pulling the cookies out. "Honey, oatmeal raisin." Vivien smiled. Her parents had jumped on the Gluten Free bandwagon, so now everything they ate had to be wheat free. She watched Andrew slide the cookies off onto a plate and then quickly wash the pan and spatula. "Put these next to the salad fixings and then go sit down. I'll get cleaned up and then we can wait in horrid anticipation." He smiled as he kissed her and headed for his bedroom. "Andrew!" she said shaking her head. Her parents really did worry her and yet Andrew's teasing was helping. She walked out to the front porch and looked around. Yard, clean. Sidewalk, swept. Flowerbeds, watered. Then she noticed the dog dishes. Clean water and a small amount of food. Puzzled, she walked back into the house. "Andrew, why are there dog dishes on one side of the porch?" "Just in case they smell 'dog'. Or, if they get too aggravating, I can just shift and scare them," he teased. "Don't You Dare!" "What? Shift? Annoy them? Or scare them?" he asked walking back into the living room. He was dressed in what she thought of as 'shop clothes'. A nice shirt, decent trousers, leather shoes and a bit of silver jewelry. It was the kind of thing he'd wear to work. "Just... just behave okay?" she asked. "Alright. They're here," he said and walked back towards the kitchen. "What?" was as far as she got when the doorbell rang. She turned and opened the door to find her parents standing there. "Oh Vivien! So good to see you!" her mom gushed as she enveloped Vivien in a hug. Her dad hugged her too and smiled. "Please come in," Vivien said. "I've got lunch ready so we can eat when you're ready." Vivien stepped aside so that they could enter the house. "Oh I don't want to eat right yet, we just got here. I want to see your apartment and then meet your landlord," said her mom. "Yes. We want to meet who are little girl is living with," said Vivien's dad. "Dad, I'm 30, and Andrew is a gentleman. Do you want to tour the house or meet Andrew first?" Vivien said as they walked into the living room. "Show us your apartment. I noticed that there isn't a separate entrance," said her dad. "No, there isn't. Just the stairwell, but it works. We share the kitchen and dining room," said Vivien as she took them to the stairwell. They headed upstairs. Her dad stopped on the squeaky step and bounced. "This stair needs fixed. Can't have you falling," he stated. "I'll let Andrew know," said Vivien, wondering if she shouldn't have met them at the park. Once upstairs, she showed them her 'living room', the office, her bedroom and the bathroom. "Smells a bit damp in here," her mom said as they entered the bathroom. "I just showered Mom." "Well, you probably should have hung up your towels, and not tossed them in the hamper. They'll mold that way." "Mom, the climate is much drier here. They won't mold before I wash them tomorrow," said Vivien. "Watch your tone Viv. Your mother was just trying to give you good advice." snapped her dad who'd been trying to find fault with the whole upper floor. So far the step was the only issue. "Yes Dad. It's just that this isn't the Pacific Northwest. We're at a much higher altitude and the weather is drier. I wasn't arguing, just stating fact." "Fine. You seem to have kept this place clean. Shall we see the downstairs?" he said dismissing her. "Sure. I'll go ahead and find Andrew," said Vivien. She headed downstairs quickly and found Andrew sitting down in the living room. She rolled her eyes and he just nodded and pointed at his ears. It didn't take much to figure out that he'd heard everything they'd said. Andrew put down his book and stood up when Vivien's parents entered the living room. "Hello, I'm Andrew Davis," "I'm Roger Sunbery and this is my wife Emma," said Roger. He shook Andrew's hand, and was surprised by his grip. "Fine hand you have there." "I'm a silversmith by trade, but I started life as a ranch hand in Calgary. Never lost the grip," said Andrew. He then held out his hand to shake Emma's. It was as light a touch as he could manage and still grip her hand. "It's very kind of you to rent your upstairs to our daughter," said Emma. "Oh, no trouble. It was fortuitous for both of us," said Andrew as he gestured for everyone to sit. "How is that?" asked Roger. "Well, my last tenant had moved out three months ago. Your daughter walked into my shop in the mall and was chatting with my assistant, Becky. Housing came up and Becky mentioned that I had a place. Perfect timing. I of course checked her references and found things in order," said Andrew. "Even though she's just lost her job?" Emma asked. "Even so. I am certain that Vivien will find work before her funds run out," Andrew replied. Roger nodded and gave Vivien a look that spoke volumes. He was about to start in on questioning Vivien about her job search from the look. "Vivien, shall we serve lunch? I have an appointment in an hour and would like to eat," said Andrew. "Oh, yes. Mom, Dad, you must be hungry. I have a salad, hummus, and Andrew made cookies." Emma gave Andrew a look of astonishment. "Well, we won't be able to eat them. We don't eat gluten anymore." "That was taken into consideration. The sweetener is honey, the ingredients are all certified organic, and the oats and flour are gluten free," Andrew stated. The wolf inside was beginning to curl his lip. "Oh, then we will try them," Emma said. "I set everything up in the dining room," Vivien said as she led the way. She knew that her parents were trying to peer into other parts of the house. Andrew had left some doors open and closed others. On the sideboard were plates, the salads covered with net, dressings, hummus, gluten free crackers, and of course the cookies. On the table were pitchers of green tea and ice water. Everyone helped themselves to the food and sat down. "So, you're a silversmith?" Emma asked again. "I didn't think that was a very lucrative business any more. Plus with the economy, who has money to spend on jewelry?" "You'd be surprised. I do bespoke work. Our low end line is between $20 and $50. The high end line averages $350. The mall is older, well established and the rents are low. I frequently clear three times my expenses per month," stated Andrew. "Bespoke?" asked Roger with a puzzled look on his face. It was clear that he expected Andrew to be some sort of hippy junk dealer. "Bespoke means custom work, Dad," Vivien explained. "Ah. And how long have you been doing this?" Roger asked. "Since I was 14. My father was a silversmith as well. I inherited the family business when my older brother passed on and my father retired," Andrew answered. "Oh, that must have been very difficult for you," Emma said sympathetically. "It was for a while, yet I'd been working in the foundry since I was five. Now, what do you do for business?" Andrew asked turning the questions back on the Sunbery's. Lunch finished up with cookies and more iced tea. Emma asked for the recipe, which Andrew provided in beautiful copperplate script on Silver Lode letter head. As they carried the remains of lunch to the kitchen, Andrew excused himself. "Vivien, don't forget that Fenris will be back from the groomer's around three," he said as he departed. He shook Roger's hand and patted Emma's as he said his goodbyes. "Alright," she said wondering what in the world he was up to. It was clear that her parents were getting on his nerves. They'd tromped all over hers. Once the dishes had been loaded into the dishwasher, Vivien and her parents sat in the downstairs living room. The conversation shifted to how well Eric, her brother was doing, how prosperous Burien, Washington was and why Vivien hadn't moved home once she'd lost her job. "Mom, I didn't want to move home. I'm 30, and living at home is not what I want." "Well, it would certainly be better than paying rent to Andrew. He seems a nice man, but he's what... twenty-five years older than you? Why isn't he married? What's wrong with him that he doesn't have a family or children?" Emma started. "Is he gay?" "I like living here. I like this town, and up until a few weeks ago, I had a job. Andrew is 53. He has a good job. As for his private life, I know he took care of his mother for some time, has had a number of relationships with women and one of his ex's is a good friend of mine," Vivien said trying to keep an even tone. "Andrew, hurry up!" "Okay, so he's 22 years older than you. You're still young enough to catch someone your age," said Emma. "Mom! Stay out of my relationships." "I saw the way he looked at you," Emma said. "Probably worried that he'd offend you. Andrew knew I was anxious about your visit. That I wanted everything to be right. If I hadn't had his help, I'd wouldn't have known what to have for lunch. He even gave up meat today for you. I think he ate more veggies than I've ever seen him eat in one setting," said Vivien. "Viv, there is no need to take that tone with your mother," Roger said. "No Dad." "Vivien, where is the bathroom?" Emma asked. "Upstairs, second door on the left." "No, the one downstairs. I really need to go. Too much tea," she said smiling. "Down the hall from the dining room. First door on the right," said Vivien. "Too much info as usual! Oh, and a bad excuse to sneak around." Emma smiled and headed towards the bathroom. Vivien and Roger sat in silence for nearly five minutes. "Hello? I've brought Fenris!" called a voice from the front door. "Just a second," said Vivien. "Thank God!" She walked to the front door to find Bitty standing there with 'Fenris' on a leash with a rather elaborate collar and tags clanking as he wagged his tail. Bitty smiled, handed over the leash and bounced down the stairs. Vivien walked back in to the living room with Fenris. "That's a...an... a wolfhound?" asked Roger. "Yes. Some sort of cross breed. I think Andrew called him a Saarloos wolfhound," said Vivien. She'd looked up all the wolf hounds she could to see if one matched Andrew. The Saarloos' had been the closest. Vivien sat down and Fenris sat next to her. "Seems to be obedient," observed Roger. "For the most part. He's very protective. I was very glad he took to me so well when I first met him." "Bouff!" "That's a dog?" gasped Emma from the dining room. "Yes, his name is Fenris. Come meet him," said Vivien. She'd never seen her mom cowed by an animal before. Emma walked over slowly and sat next to her husband. Fenris stood up, stretched and walked over to the two. He sniffed them and then wagged his tail. Then he walked back over to Vivien and sat at her feet. "Yes, he is well mannered. Now, are you expected to take care of the dog when Andrew isn't here?" asked Roger. "Bouff! Bouff!" "No, not usually. I take him to the park sometimes and play Frisbee with him," said Vivien. At the word Frisbee, Fenris' tail thumped the floor. "Maybe later Fen." Fenris stopped wagging his tail as if he really understood her. "Boof?" "And what is your rent?" asked Roger. "$500 a month, and that includes utilities and Internet. And before you ask, we share the kitchen, cooking and cleaning." "Well, as long as you aren't expected to do anything else," Emma said with a tone that suggested improper behavior. Fenris curled his lip and a low rumble vibrated Vivien's foot. "Brrruff." "What are you on about Mom?" "You know. Men of that age..." said Emma. "Brrroff!" "She's trying to make sure you aren't stuck in some sexual slavery just so that you have a roof over your head," Roger said. "Oh good grief! This is Henry all over again isn't it? You hated him the second you met him. At least you didn't call Andrew an ass to his face!" "Viv, settle down," said Roger. Fenris growled. "Rrrrooff!" "Vivien, would you please take that... that dog out of here?" Emma said going a little white around the eyes. Vivien rolled her eyes, and took Fenris by the leash towards the back yard. She unclipped the leash and watched as he ran outside. She dropped the leash on the table and sat back down with her parents. "Now before you slander a man who isn't here to defend himself, understand that he is my friend. You have no right to think he's some kind of pervert or sexual deviant. I don't even get where you can dredge up such ideas!" said Vivien. "We're your parents and want what is best for you. We could have you moved out and back in Burien in two days," said Roger. "Dad, no. I am not moving home. I like Andrew, and he has been nothing but a gentleman to me. I do not understand why or even how you could be so mean spirited. Was he too nice? Were his cookies too good? Or were you just determined to hate him regardlessly?" Vivien asked. "Well, um... we tried to do a background check on him and even Eric couldn't find anything on him before 1997. It was like he didn't exist," admitted Emma. Vivien shook her head. "Did it ever occur to you that he might not be American? He was born in Canada! He told you he was from Calgary. Did it not sink in? I can't believe you had Eric trying to spy on him. Next thing I know, you'll be telling me he's a vampire or a werewolf!" "Well, he does associate with that company that sued your newspaper for defamation," Roger chimed in. "Yeah! So what! That company fixes my computer. Ginny is the CFO for the company. Meg and Luc are friends of mine. Is there some reason you always have to pick my life apart? Why can't you just be happy for me? Let me live my own life?" "Now Vivvie, settle down," said Emma patronizingly. "No. I am not going to settle down. I have had enough of you treating me like I'm a child. I love you both, but I think it would be best if you'd leave. I'll call you when I'm not so peeved with your childish behavior." "Vivvie!" Emma said. This was not how Roger said this would work out. He'd promised that Vivien would see reason and finally come home with them. She turned to Roger with a pleading look. "Viv, I'm sorry it's come to this. We'll leave and I hope you come to your senses. You have our cell phone numbers," he said and stood up to leave. Emma and Vivien stood up as well. Emma put the recipe on the coffee table as if it would explode and picked up her handbag. Vivien walked them to the door, and out onto the porch. Emma and Roger got to their car just as Fenris rounded the house. Emma gasped and literally dove into the Saab. Roger got in quickly too and drove off. Fenris leaned up against Vivien and crooned. "Arrrroooh, rrrhoo." "I'm okay. A little upset, but okay. You want to go to the park? Play Frisbee?" she asked. Fenris took one look at her and dived for the porch. He came back with a well chewed Frisbee. * Andrew rubbed Vivien's shoulders and then worked lower down her back. "You are still all tied up in knots." "Yes, and now you know why. I can't believe they acted that way. And, I'm glad you couldn't hear them," she said. "I heard plenty. Remember, my wolf and I are rather well integrated. Plus, when I went outside, I walked back around and shifted just enough to listen," he said. He worked the lower ribs on her back with slow smooth strokes. "They, they were just unbelievable. Worse than last time," sighed Vivien. "I hope you don't mind that I peed on their car," Andrew said softly. "You what?" "Well, they left their windows open and 'Fenris' is a rather tall dog. He put his paws on the roof and peed in the window and on the tires," Andrew admitted. Vivien started to laugh. "Oh... I'm sure I'll hear about that one." "I don't care," said Andrew as he worked down her legs and back up in between them to massage her inner lips. It didn't take long to make her wet. Stroking her clit and pussy, made Vivian moan with pleasure. Andrew felt himself stiffen to the point of aching. He pulled her up onto her knees and slowly worked his way in. "Oh, Andrew," she gasped. She loved when he 'just did all the right things'. They'd had a hot shower after the park and then he had been massaging her until she relaxed. Andrew wrapped his hands around her waist and kept a steady pace. He loved the feeling of her skin in his hands. Her curls bounced in time with his thrusts and it wasn't long before he felt himself beginning to shift. He tried to hold back, but his wolf wanted her as much as he did. Vivien noticed the bed began to sink as Andrew began to shift. She didn't care. She was lost in sensations as he increased his pace. "Oh, oh my. Annndrew," she gasped. She realized that he'd totally shifted. Her body reacted to him by coming harder than she ever had before. "Aahh... Aaaah!" Her body convulsed with orgasm. Wolf smelled his mate's excitement. He felt her contract around his cock as he thrust quickly. He had waited so long and it felt so good. The knot formed and he came hard. "Arrrrrooo!" His mate cried her orgasm into the soft bedding and as they finished, he curled around her to wait for the knot to relax. Vivien tried to catch her breath, not remembering if she'd ever felt this good. The wolf's cock throbbed inside her and when she tried to move at first, she couldn't. Then she remembered the knot. The last thing she remembered was a large paw resting on the bed beside her. Vivian woke up. The room was dark, and Andrew wasn't in bed. She stretched and got up to go look for him. She grabbed a sarong she kept downstairs as a bathrobe. The last thing she remembered was great sex and Andrew shifting. It was the first time he'd totally shifted during sex. Walking out to the kitchen, she saw a light on in the little breakfast nook next to the back door. Andrew was sitting there in his bathrobe. "Hi," she said as she walked across from the kitchen. Andrew looked up and smiled. "Feeling okay?" "Yeah. I didn't freak out like I thought I would." Twisted Tails Ch. 04 ""I tried to hold back the full shift, but the wolf had other things in mind," he said. "And there's something I need to talk to you about." "Okay." Vivien sat down next to him. "If it's about birth control, I know we hadn't talked about it, but I'm on the pill at the moment, so our little oops there shouldn't be a problem." "Alright. Glad to hear that. I hate wearing condoms." Andrew took her hands in his and looked her in the eyes. "The wolf and I have been talking. I know how we feel about things, and I need to ask you something." "Yes?" asked Vivien, thinking she might know where this was going, but not 100% certain. "Will you consider becoming our mate? In all ways?" he asked softly. The wolf whimpered, wanting to touch their mate. Vivien looked at Andrew. She felt the tears welling up in her eyes. While deep down inside she was worried that things were moving too fast, her heart was screaming "YES". She took a deep breath and when she realized she couldn't talk, she nodded her head. "Is that a yes?" asked Andrew. "Yes. Yes it is," she said. Andrew stood up and wrapped his arms around Vivien. "Then I have a present for you." From his pocket, he drew a delicate chain with a tiny charm at the end where the loop enclosed the sliding chain. He looped it around Vivien's neck and set it against her skin. Vivien knew what this was, having seen Meg's and Angie's. She looked at the fine chain and intricate links and then the small charm at the end. It was a book. "Oh Andrew. This is beautiful." "I'm glad you like it. I've been working on it when I could and finally settled on a book for the end." "It is lovely, but how can I reciprocate? Meg and Angie could go to you for a chain. Where am I suppose to get you one?' she asked. "Well, I had Becky go through the display case and stock in the back room. She picked out five that she liked and thought that you might like. I haven't seen which ones she picked. So, you may pick one and give it to me if you like. Or, you and Becky can go through the rest of the inventory on Monday." He reached down and handed her a shoe box sized case. Vivien took it over to the counter next to the stove and opened it up. Inside were chains of different thicknesses. There was a very shiny thick one she set aside right away. Next was an antique one that interested her. It had a moon on the end. One had gold and silver mixed. She set that one with the thick one. The last two were very similar. One had a wolf's paw on the end and the other had a stylized mountain. Vivien looked at the three and hefted each in her hand. She set the wolf's paw down. Looking at the last two, she picked the antique one with the moon. She put the others back in the box and held the one she chose behind her back. "I've found one I like," she said. "Alright." Vivien held it out to Andrew. What she didn't expect were the tears that began to roll down his face. "What's the matter? Have I done something wrong?" she asked. "No, no you haven't. And neither did Becky by sneaking this one into the case," he said. He gave it to Vivien to put around his neck, and when she did, it lay there as if it were made for him. "What is it Andrew? Why the tears?" "This chain belonged to my father, Alexander. He made it for his mating to my mother Jelka. The charms or fobs on the end are often made to reflect the mate or the occasion. This is why your's has a book, in that I hope that you will find your writing skills and publish." "And the meaning of the moon on this one?" asked Vivien. "Jelka. My mother. It means moon in Croatian. So, for you to pick that one out of all the others makes it very special." Andrew gathered Vivien in his arms. "My mother would have loved you for who you are. In a way, it's like she's giving her blessings." "Oh," was all Vivien could say. They stood there hugging one another for a long time. * "I can't believe there are so many things to get ready for a supper party," said Vivien. She was exhausted. Angie and George had come down to the city to help Andrew and Vivien with the party. They'd both been so excited when Andrew called and told George. "I remember when Meg had hers. She was overwhelmed too. She had Ginny helping her and Luc bugging her every five minutes. At least we can shop without the guys slobbering over every detail," said Angie. "That's only because we sent them shopping for other items. Otherwise they'd be right here with us and throwing more meat than I can store in the cart." Angie nodded. The four of them had divided up the shopping list. The men got the paper goods, chair and table rentals and the liquor store. Vivien had checked the menu with Ginny and Meg, as both of them had the fussy eaters. Originally, they had thought of having an adults only party, but Luc wouldn't leave the twins alone and no one would babysit Ivan, Joe or Sara. So far the guest list included most of the immediate pack and family in town, Meg's mom Anne, who was in town for the weekend, Sam and Lewis, and Rose, Andrew's sister. They weren't sure if she'd get the invitation, let alone join in. "Do you think five rib eye roasts is enough?" asked Vivien. She'd never bought so much meat in one day in her life. "Well, they are 20lbs each. It should be. We can get a pork roast or two as well. Sandy makes a really good barbecue sauce," said Angie as she added two 10lb pork roasts to the basket. "What else do we need?" Angie looked at the list and ticked things off as she glanced into the basket. "I think we need whipped cream, carrots, walnuts and raisins and that's it." Vivien turned the heavy cart and headed back to the vegetable aisle. They had two salads planned as well as a pasta dish and rice. In that there would be fewer than five or six non-shifters, they'd decided on a carrot cake for dessert. She'd made one for Andrew a few weeks ago and had found that everyone loved it. They grabbed the last few items and headed for the check out. Vivien's phone buzzed in her pocket as they watched the checker ring up the items. "Vivien here," she said. "Oh. No, we decided on a Syrah, not a Merlot. Oh, okay. Get what you want then. I don't really mind. Oh, and don't forget the Fat Tire Ale. Okay. See you in a bit. Love you!" "Andrew?" "Yes. They couldn't find the wine I'd asked for and were going to substitute a Merlot." "Andrew is a good judge of wines. He'll find a good one. Are they heading home yet?" asked Angie. "No, they have to drop by the rental place. Seems the order wasn't ready." "George will be growling if it isn't ready this time," laughed Angie. "That would be terrifying," said Vivien. The thought of George being angry with anyone was simply too much to think about. Angie nodded as she paid for the groceries. George and Andrew were unloading the chairs when the women got back with the groceries. Vivien grabbed a handful of bags and worked her way into the house. "You got done faster than we did," she said as she kissed Andrew on the nose. "We found them 'delivered' when we came by to drop off the wine," said Andrew. "Oh? Did George growl at them?" asked Angie coming up from behind. "No, Ginny did. I called to ask her the name of that wine she liked and she asked about the chairs. I told her and didn't think that she might call," said George. He had the remaining ten bags of groceries hanging from his fingers. Vivien laughed. "Oh, I bet that was an interesting conversation." "It explains why the sky cleared up too," said Angie. That made all four of them laugh. While Patrick had mellowed Ginny, she still had days when she was queen bitch of the universe. "The roasting pans are on the stove. Ginny suggested that you cook two at a time to nearly done and then set them aside. That way you can reheat them tomorrow and not have the whole house smelling of roasting meat all day," said Andrew. "And what's wrong with that?" asked George. "Some of use don't talk so well when we're drooling," teased Andrew. George reached out and ruffled Andrew's hair as he laughed. "I think I'll do the pork first as that has to really cook. Then I'll start on the beef," said Vivien. "Did you two go dress shopping?" asked George as he counted bags and realized that there were nothing but groceries. "Um... no. I figured I'd just wear my blue dress," said Vivien. "You are just as bad as Ginny," said Andrew with a bit of a growl in his voice as he stood up from assembling a table. "Agreed," said George. "I... I'm... um. I'll," Vivien started to stutter a reply. "You, will go shopping with either Angie or me. Which is it?" asked Andrew. Vivien stood there trying to stall. Her bank account had hit the single digit mark earlier in the week and she hadn't told Andrew that she was unable to go shopping. "Andrew, can we talk for a moment?" "Yes." "Privately?" "George, let's go put the pork roasts in the over," said Angie and pulled her mate out to the kitchen. "What's wrong Vivien," Andrew said a little softer than his tone had been a moment before. He sensed that there was an issue. Vivien's scent had gone acidic. "I don't have enough money to buy a hamburger, let alone a new dress," she admitted. Andrew wrapped his arms around Vivien. "My mate, what part of 'what's mine is yours', is unclear?" "I... I just feel so out of my depths. Angie bought all the food and I don't know who's taken care of the rentals or anything else. This has just all happened so fast and..." she trailed off as she stood there in Andrew's arms. "It's alright. The food is George and Angie's present to us. So is the weekend up at the Bed & Breakfast. Luc and Meg paid for the rentals, as they understand the necessity for the pack and family to be here. I'm nearly 53, and they've all been waiting for me to find a mate. Let's get George and Angie to attend the roasts and get the rest of the food ready while we go find you a lovely dress. Then tomorrow you can finish up the last bits and make the cakes." Vivien looked up at Andrew, who was smiling down at her. "Alright." Vivien tried on nearly fifteen dresses before Andrew approved. He'd picked it out on the third or fourth try, but Vivien had felt a little nervous, especially when she saw the price. After all the other dresses, they came back to it. The dress was silk with wrap style neckline that showed off just enough cleavage and the chain with the book at the end. The deep hunter's green set off her hair and eyes. "I don't think I've ever had a dress like this," said Vivien. "I'm such a flannel and jeans kind of person." "Well, we can leave it and get you a plaid shirt and a pair of flannel lined jeans if you want, but I wouldn't suggest it," said Andrew with a wicked smile. They'd discussed what was workable before they even started picking out dresses. His only request had been either a dress or skirt/shirt combination. Vivien had finally given in. "I think I have some flats that will work with this," she said looking at the dress. Andrew rolled his eyes and grabbed her hand. "Keep in mind that this is as close to a wedding day as you'll get. Would you really wear your grubby flats with a silk wedding dress?" Vivien stopped, and blinked. "Andrew, I hadn't thought of it in that context. I simply thought of it as a big family get together. I'm sorry," she said. "It's okay, but I had to put it in to perspective. Shall we continue to the shoe department?" "Yes. And thank you for being such a wonderful mate," she said as she stood on tip-toes to kiss him on the nose. By the time they got home, the house smelled of roast meat. The tables and chairs were set up and the extra furniture had been moved upstairs. Angie and George were just finishing pizza. "Was she as stubborn as Ginny?" George asked with a smile. "Yes, right up until I reminded her that this was her 'wedding day'." Angie smiled and after washing her hands went with Vivien to see the dress. "You really ready for this?" George asked. "Yes. I couldn't have done it before Ginny settled. Now though, I feel so blessed," said Andrew. "Good. Your sister called. She said she'd be here in the morning. Sounded like she'd run too much as a wolf lately. How old is she anyway?" "Sixty-six or sixty-seven. I haven't seen her in probably fifteen years. I'm glad she's coming though. Peter's wife, Lisa will be glad to see her," said Andrew. "Those two are alike aren't they. My Grandma Ysabel said that Wild Girl's line were always wild." "Yes, and so is Rose. I never knew with Rose if it was nature or nurture. Mama never got over the war. Never had an idea what she was like before it. The wolf was always just under the skin, ready to run or flee. So many of that generation were that way," mused Andrew. George nodded. He and Angie had started trying to write down the family tree, which was daunting. So many shifters just faded into the forest. Whenever there was a family gathering, they tried to ask where people had moved or if there were new births. George wanted to pick Rose's memory about his great aunt Marie. That was a branch of the family that seemed to disappear right off the planet. "You sleeping here?" Andrew asked. "No, We'll be going to Ginny's. Floor is safe," said George with a bit of a blush. Andrew smiled. He remembered George going though the floor. "Alright. When they get done ooohing and aaahhhing over the dress then I guess you'll be off." "I hope so. We've got to be back by 7am according to the slave driver," laughed George. "Angie! Are you done squealing over that dress?" Angie walked out to the kitchen a moment later. "Yes. Grab your coat and let's go. Beautiful dress Andrew. See you in the morning!" Andrew saw them out the door and then went to find Vivien who was putting the dress and accessories away. "Happy?" "Yes. Nervous, but happy. Can we just cuddle tonight?" she asked as they got undressed. "Always." Andrew dropped the last of his clothes and shifted. He wrapped around Vivien and placed his head on the top of hers. Wolf sighed contentedly. His mate's curls tickled his nose and made him sneeze. She tried to move them, but he moved his head a little. Wolf pulled his mate closer and soon fell asleep. Twisted Tails Ch. 05 Now for a wedding and a little twist. Life never goes exactly to plan, and the last chapter was nice and mellow. This is my partner, Wolf's favorite chapter so far. Can you guess his favorite line? Hope you enjoy it. Please comment and vote! Jaisen "Angie, if you take the cakes out, I can get a shower in before people start to arrive," said Vivien. "Alright, but I still think you should wait just a little. Once people start arriving, you aren't going to have time to breathe, let alone frost a cake." Vivien looked at Angie. It was only 2pm, but they'd been busy since 7am. "You're probably right. No one is due until 5pm at the earliest right?" Vivien asked. "No one except Rose. We aren't sure when she's arriving, or how. George forgot that bit of information," sighed Angie. "Alright. I'll plan on showering at 4pm. What else can we do?" Vivien asked looking around. "Dishes!" Both women laughed as they tackled the pots and pans that had accumulated. Vivien checked on the cakes and then started running water for dishes. Angie wiped counters and moved food in the fridge. Ninety minutes later, Angie ran upstairs to shower while Vivien dived into Andrew's bathroom. It was still steamy from Andrew's shower. "Are you going to have time to get your hair dry?" Andrew asked. "Yes! Just. Get dressed, because you look too damn good nude and I'd hate to be late to my own wedding dinner because we were having mad passionate sex!" laughed Vivien as she climbed into the shower. "Our luck, the terrible trio would walk in," called Andrew from the bedroom. "You know, that visual works better than a cold shower," called Vivien over the running water. Andrew smiled. He pulled his suit out of the closet. Dark gray wool, silk shirt, and the waistcoat his mother had made for his father. It was embroidered Roma style, with brightly colored wools and silks. It was only slightly faded, considering it was over fifty years old. Andrew pulled the waist belt in the back as tight as it would go. His father had been a bigger man across the chest. Andrew slid the chain over his head and made sure it rested over the tie and outside the waistcoat. He brushed his hair which swept his shoulders in spite of the trim Vivian had given him. Andrew took a look in the mirror. Satisfied, he headed for the living room to make sure everything was in place. Vivien was drying off as Andrew left the bedroom. She towel dried her hair and combed it into some semblance of order. Her curls had a mind of their own. "Maybe Angie can tame it," she said out loud. Stockings, a matching bra and panties set, slip and then the dress. The dark green silk flowed over her body. Looking in the mirror, she barely recognized herself. One errant curl hung right in the middle of her forehead as she slipped on the dark brown shoes. Earrings and her chain completed the outfit. She almost reached for her bottle of perfume and thought twice about it. She left the bottle and went to go look for Angie to help with her hair. "Vivien, are you going to leave your hair like that?" Andrew asked as Vivien entered the kitchen. "No! I'm looking for Angie. I can't get this to stay in place," Vivien said as she tugged the wild curl. "Come back to the bathroom," said Andrew. They walked in and he dug through her basket of barrettes and found the silver one he'd made her a while ago. With a few twists, he wrapped the curl in with a few others and clipped it to one side. Vivien looked in the mirror. "Oh. Andrew, you can do my hair any day!" Andrew laughed. "I have to admit that having long hair myself makes me a little more resourceful. Now let's see if any guests have arrived." The living room was awash in people. George and the trio were there. Sandy had Jesse manning the door. Peter, Lisa and a woman Vivien didn't know were standing by the big picture window. She was slightly built, but was still muscular in appearance. Her dark hair was shot with silver and her pale complexion was set off by a navy blue suit in an older cut. Andrew walked straight over and enveloped the woman in a hug. Then he walked back over to Vivien with the woman. "Vivien, this is my sister, Rose," said Andrew. "Hello Rose. It is very nice to meet you," Vivien said. "It is ver nice to meet you," Rose said. Her voice was smokey and her eyes were a brilliant blue. "Is 'bout time that Xander find a mate." "Xander?" Vivien asked puzzled. "Xander is what our mother called him. His full name is Aleksandr Andrew Davis," Rose said with a smile. "Is good to see you wear Mama's treasure." "How could I do any less? I just wish it fit me better," said Andrew. Rose put her hand on her brother's back and felt the gathers. "Ah, well. I wouldn't want to cut it." "Nor I," answered Andrew. "I am so glad you were able to come though. George has a thousand questions about the family." "He's been doing the family genealogy," said Vivien. "I've been trying to help him with Internet searches. "George, he need that book, belong to the women of the family. I think Caroline's line has it," said Rose. "Ah, That may be difficult. I don't know if we even know anyone of that line," said George coming up behind Rose. He towered over the small woman. "George, you damn big man," said Rose, trying to cover the fact that he'd startled her. "Thank you Rose. It's so good to meet you at last," said George taking her hand and kissing the back of it. Rose blushed slightly. "And who this pups belong?" she asked pointing her chin towards Ivan, Joe and Sara. "These are the Duke and Penny's. Duke is Ginny's brother. Parents were Jonathan and Margaret," said George. He pulled the three up to meet Rose. "Hellow," said Sara. Ivan and Joe just nodded. "Hello," said Rose. She crouched down to their eye level, and let her eyes shift. The three of them broke into giggles and smiles. Then they ran off to see who else came in the door. "That was interesting," said George. "They pack already. She will be one good bitch," said Rose. "I remember their Grandmama Margaret. She two years younger than me," said Rose. "You missing lots of family history?" "Yes. We only found out about a large section due to the death of Brian Davy less than a year ago," said George. "Only a year ago? Damn! He live long. He disappeared mid 70's I think. Whole valley, whole family look for him damn long time," said Rose. "How you find him?" "By accident. Come by tomorrow and we'll talk," said George. Rose nodded. "Sorry we talk so long your day," she said to Vivien. "It's okay. First off, I've never seen those three react that way, and the history stuff is fascinating to me," said Vivien. Andrew then moved away with Vivien to greet more people. * "Now that everyone is seated and before we begin to eat," Andrew said trying to call the room to order. "I'd like to thank all of you for coming. I think this is even a larger gathering than for Luc and Meg's dinner, which amazes me." "It certainly is!" laughed Peter. "More food too.' Laughter rippled across the room. There were over thirty people seated in the living room, and all of the children except the twins on the front porch. "As many of you have pointed out, I took my own sweet time to find a mate," said Andrew. "Granted, with all the newly mated pairs in this family, I consider myself lucky to find Vivien." He raised his glass towards Sam and Lewis, another late blooming couple. "So are we! She finally brought a smile to that dour face of yours!" teased Cal. "Nah, that was just the rictus caused by all the Frisbee catches," called Jeff. He and his wife Martha were perched on the couch as Martha was eight months pregnant. "Hey! Those Frisbees have been the best thing this family has had for entertainment since George fell through the floor," laughed Ysabel as she teased her twin. "I'd like to get a word in here edgewise," said Andrew over the laughter. "No! Why start now?" said Luc. "You realize that your life will never be the same." "I'd hope not!" laughed Andrew. The humor had been crazy all evening. "Yeah! Cruising the AKCwebsite for new dates is not productive!" laughed Kevin. Andrew put down his glass, and just laughed. Earlier they'd been opening the gifts brought by people and Kevin, Cal, and Peter had asked to have their's opened first. It had been a sliver spray painted Frisbee mounted on a frame. The plate at the bottom read, "Best in show. AKC 1st Place". It had led to any number of bad jokes. "On behalf of my baby brother Xander, I'd like to welcome Vivien to the family," said Rose with a smile. "To Andrew and Vivien," said everyone as they held up glasses of wine or ale. "And thanks to all of you for such a warm welcome to the family. I know I wasn't everyone's favorite person at first and that I had to earn your trust and respect. Thank you for giving me a chance," said Vivien. "Thank you for making him happy," said Ginny. She smiled and blew Andrew a kiss. "I'd like to thank our cooks for the feast," said Lisa. She and Rose had been visiting and Lisa was trying to be more social. A chorus of ayes, yeses and hurrays filled the room. People settled down to eat. Unlike all the social dinners Vivien had experienced, her new family thought nothing of eating seconds, or bites off other people's plates. Kevin and his partner took turns tossing bites of ribeye into the air and caught them in their open mouths. The platters of meat emptied and soon it was time for the desserts. "I'll grab the cakes if you'll get the plates," said Angie as they tried to make some order of the chaos. "Alright. This has gone so much better than I expected," said Vivien. "May I help?" asked Ginny. "Of course," said Vivien. "And thank you so much for giving me a chance." Ginny hugged Vivien. "I may be a bitch, but if you make Andrew happy, how could any of us be nasty towards you?" "Thanks Ginny. It means a lot to me. Here are the plates and dessert forks." Ginny took the plates and headed towards the living room. People had cleared the tables and Vivien sat the big sheet caked on the cleared space. Angie brought in ice cream and cookies. The trio had made them. Andrew and Vivien stood up to cut the cake while Angie, Patrick and Ginny refilled glasses. "Before we cut the cake, I'd like to..." Andrew started when Jesse came into the living room all flustered. "Uncle Luc! I tried to stop..." was as far as he got before Vivien's parents and older brother Eric stormed into the room pushing the young man aside. "Vivien! We came to talk sense into you and discover a wedding party. How dare you marry that man without at least telling us!" said Roger. "Oh Vivvie," Emma said in an annoyed tone. "You are just such a disappointment," said Eric at the same time his parents spoke. Andrew moved swiftly to where hiss stood. "First of all, I would appreciate if you would tone down your voices. This is a family celebration, and there are children present." "I have nothing to say to you. It is my daughter that I am concerned about. She screwed up once before marrying some idiot without thinking. She has made the same mistake again. I intend to remove her from this house if I have to call the police," said Roger. "Dad, please leave. You weren't invited, because I knew exactly how you'd react. You made your opinion of Andrew very clear last time you were here," said Vivien as she walked up next to Andrew and wrapped her hand in his. "Oh Vivvie! Does he have you bamboozled? Are you under the influences of drugs?" asked Emma. "Mom, enough," said Vivien. She couldn't believe her parents had shown up. "Sis, you are such a looser. Marrying a man almost as old as Dad. What in the hell were you thinking?" said Eric. "Eric! Shut up!" said Vivien, who was acutely aware that the room had gone very quiet. "I want you all to leave now." "We aren't leaving until you come with us. This is not a good situation. You should have come home with us last week. That damn dog of his peed all over our car!" said Roger, his face going red over his cardigan and white shirt. That remark caused a ripple of laughter to flow over the room as everyone realized what really happened. "I don't find destruction of property funny!" said Roger even louder. He stepped forward to grab Vivien's hand to pull her out of the house. "You weave my Aunty Twizzler alone!" said Sara from next to Roger's leg. The two boys were beside her with their little fists clenched. "What? Go away you little pest!" said Roger shoving Sara as he tried again to move to grab Vivien. Eric saw what his father was trying to do and did grab Vivien. "Let go of me!" cried Vivien twisting in Eric's grasp. "ENOUGH!" Growled Luc, Andrew and George all in one deep sub-vocal shout. The room reverberated with the sound. Luc moved forward as Andrew removed Eric's hand from Vivien's arm. George glowered over the three people after picking Sara up off of the floor. "Roger, Emma and Eric. I had hoped to welcome you into my family, but the disrespect you showed to Vivien during your previous visit showed me that it was a wasted effort. Your gate crashing of our mating dinner further proves my disdain for people such as yourselves. I love your daughter and know it is reciprocated. I do not have Vivien under any influences except love. If you can't live with that, then I would ask you to leave now and never grace our threshold again. I am not only a silversmith with a decent income, but the family shaman. Priest if you like. I am the peacemaker. I will have tranquility at my mating dinner and in my house," said Andrew in a quite sub-vocal tinged tone that sent shivers across everyone's skin. While flustered, Roger tried to stand his ground. "I can't believe you would do this to your family Vivien." "I'm in love Dad," said Vivien. "Vivvie, why is that dog wearing a dress?" asked Emma. Vivien blinked, turned and saw that Lisa, Rose and Kevin had shifted. "Oh Shit!" "That's because we're werewolves, said George. He smiled and let his canines show. Eric pissed his pants, Emma fainted and Roger stood there with his mouth hanging open. * "You know, they really are very nice once you get to know them," said Anne as she patted Roger's hand. "It was a shock to me too. Meggie is such a smart woman and I was sure she would never find a husband, but Luc is wonderful. So attentive to the twins and such a good provider. Do you know he owns his own company? It's Alpha Wolf Tech. I really shouldn't have been surprised that he was a werewolf, what with a company named Alpha Wolf, but then again, you never know these days. Oh, and it was your son Andrew that lead me to asking if there was something different, You know, I read all those Urban Fantasy novels, the ones about werewolves and vampires and I just knew that there was something mysterious about him." Roger looked over at his wife who was being checked out by a Dr. Hayes, who was here with his wife. Eric was sitting on a chair in a pair of borrowed sweat pants. He was still trying to take it all in. Lewis and Peter were standing nearby to make sure things stayed calm. "You see, they aren't the bad guys. Not biters. You can't catch it like the flu or rabies. It's genetic and you see, Meg had those beautiful babies and when they grow up, they'll shift just like Luc or Ginny. I can't wait to see them. And then there's Sara. I'm amazed she didn't take a bite out of your leg. She really is very protective of people she likes. Joe and Ivan are her little henchmen. She baked the cookies you had earlier too. So sweet of them. Wolves can't have chocolate you know, so they make peanut butter cookies. It was the lack of chocolate that made me curious too. You know, what celebration doesn't have chocolate? Really, it's almost un-American," Anne rambled on. "Roger, would you like a cup of coffee?" Ginny asked. "Yes. And some aspirin if you have any," he replied. He was in a state of shock, and reality was beating his brain into a pulp. Ginny nodded and walked towards the kitchen. Ginny found a cup and poured the coffee. "Vivien, how does your dad take his coffee?" "I don't know. I've never seen him drink coffee. Black I guess." said Vivien. The last hour had been surreal. "I'll take cream and sugar out to him," said Ginny. She left the kitchen with a tray of cups, and coffee. Vivien watched her go and then curled back into Andrew's chest. "Oh Andrew, I'm so sorry," she started to say for the third time. "No, this isn't your fault. Nor is it Jesse's for not stopping them at the door," said Andrew looking over at Jesse who was trying very hard not to cry. Andrew ruffled his hair. "No, but this is one hell of a way to meet thes," said Kevin. He too was wearing borrowed clothes. "Yeah, but not the proffered method," said Meg. She was smiling as she heard her mom still talking a thousand words a minute. Both twins had slept through the whole gate crashing incident and were still asleep. "No, but damn. What a way to end a party," said George. His shirt was torn at the armholes and the collar was torn nearly all the way off. Angie had tried to get him to take it off, but he wouldn't. "Well, I hope Lisa is okay," said Patrick. He was making more coffee and hot water for tea. "She's upstairs with Rose. The two of them were giggling when I checked on them earlier," said Andrew. "Giggling?" asked Vivien. "Yes. Rose said she hadn't had such excitement since the dog catcher picked up Ross," said Andrew. "Ross?" asked Patrick. "Rose's twin. He'd been running through Calgary scaring cats and got caught," said Andrew with a smile. That brought well needed laughter to the kitchen. After George had growled that there were werewolves in the room, and the three Sunbery's had reacted in predictable fashion, there had been mild chaos. Most of the family had rallied around Andrew and Vivien. Some left with cake in hand, while others moved upstairs to change clothes. Eric had been sent to the downstairs bathroom to clean up and Jeff saw to Emma who had knocked her head when she fainted. The trio had been bedded down in Vivien's old room and in a brilliant move, Luc had asked Anne to talk to Roger. "I gave your mom a cup of coffee too Meg. I didn't want her to run out of steam," said Ginny with a wicked grin. "That Ginny. She's the real head of the family. The pack is a matriarchal family unit you know. She is the descendant of that wolf that died up at the bed and breakfast a few months ago. Well, come to think of it, all the shifters are except maybe Rose and Andrew. That's your new son. Or whatever they call the relationship. They sometimes marry like we do. Other times, they just mate. The wolf has to agree to the relationship as well as the human side. Of course, sometimes they don't agree. Andrew and Ginny were originally suppose to be mates, but their wolves just didn't get along. So, it was very lucky for Vivien to meet Andrew after Ginny and Patrick mated. There have been a lot of matings recently. Mostly shifter to human. Do you realize that other than your family, that there are only four or five other humans in this house? That's a 4 to 1 shifter versus human ratio. Not exactly as it is in the wider world, but there are far more than you'd expect. They aren't all wolves either. Apparently, Brian, that's Ginny's Great-great-grandfather, met a tiger shifter in Vancouver, BC. He was Chinese, so tiger does make sense. Lewis knew him too. That's Lewis over there. He's mated to Sam, who of course is human. She lived with Brian for over ten years. Not that kind of relationship though, more landlord and tenant. She runs a Bed and Breakfast and now Angie, who is also human runs it with her mate, George. He's the big one, with the cute fangs. The Bed and Breakfast is where Andrew and Vivien are going on their honeymoon." Twisted Tails Ch. 05 "I think I need the bathroom," said Roger. He stood up and looked at Eric who pointed towards the back of the house where he'd showered. Roger put down his cup of coffee and headed that direction. "Let me show you the way," said Peter. Roger nodded as Peter escorted him to the bathroom. "You're mom will be okay. Slight concussion, and she'll have a headache in the morning. Your brother seems ashamed and confused. Your dad, well, from what I can tell is throwing up in the bathroom," said Jeff as he helped himself to a piece of cake and a cup of coffee. "I'm not surprised. I don't think he's ever had coffee," said Vivien. "What's next? What do we do now?" "Well, we wait for Luc. He made a few calls and I know that the family lawyer is on his way over," said Sandy. "I think he called David too." "David?" asked Vivien. She was still trying to puzzle out why the family lawyer had been called. "He's one of the local police lieutenants. He's a shifter, and helps deal with issues in the family when they fall into the realm of the police," said Sandy. Vivien nodded. "Andrew, why the lawyer?" Andrew looked down at Vivien. "Luc wants to make sure that the family is safe. That includes you. Your parents, while good intentioned, have stirred up a hornets nest. We've had a few times when it was better for certain parties to either agree to restraining orders or agreements that bound them not to talk. It will depend on your parents and how angry Luc is by the time all the talking is done," "Oh," said Vivien wishing she could just curl up in a ball and disappear. "Don't you start withdrawing," said Andrew. "You are not to blame for any of this." Wolf smelled his mates nervousness." Vivien looked up at Andrew, saw that his eyes had shifted. She stood on tiptoes and kissed him. * "Luc, the best thing would be to press charges," said David. "They could probably counter sue considering I left Roger alone with Anne," admitted Luc. David and Seth cracked up laughing. Everyone knew Anne and her ability to talk just shy of the speed of light. "How about we sit Roger down and explain things in small words and short sentences," said Seth. "I have a few papers in my briefcase if we need them." "Alright. Just remember, this is Andrew and Vivien's mating supper and so far it has been a little rough," said Luc. The two men nodded. The three of them walked into the living room. Emma was laying on the couch with an ice bag on her head. Anne sat next to her, quiet for once. Eric was still flanked by Lewis and Roger was nowhere to be seen. Luc walked to the kitchen to see what was going on. "Where's Vivien's father?" "Still throwing up. Apparently, he's never had coffee and Ginny made it," said Patrick. "Oh god. Good thing Jeff is still here," said Luc with only a half hearted attempt at levity. Everyone knew that Ginny made the strongest coffee out of the whole lot. "If he isn't out of the bathroom in a few minutes, I'm going to knock," said Jeff. He wanted to take Martha home and get her to bed, but couldn't do so as long as there were people in need. "I understand. Andrew, do you want to go check on him?" asked Luc. "I'd rather hold Vivien, but I will." Andrew kissed Vivien on top of her head and then walked down the hall. Peter was standing outside the bathroom door. "He just washed his hands I think," said Peter. "Or, maybe his face." "Alright. David and Seth are here. When he's ready, bring him out to the dining room. We've cleared some of the mess," said Andrew. He walked down the hall with measured footsteps. This was not how he'd envisioned his mating day. Luc, Andrew, David, Seth, and Patrick were at the table when Peter brought a pale Roger down the hall. Eric was sitting at the table as well. Roger sat down and Peter went off to check on Lisa. "Roger, I understand that today has been rather shocking. You feel you were doing what was right for your daughter. What you need to understand though is that Vivien is a grown woman and not a child. You need to stop treating her as such," said Andrew. "I'd like to introduce Lieutenant David Hearns, and Seth Martin, our family lawyer." Both men held out their hands to Roger who hesitated at first and then limply shook hands. "What I'd like to explain in simple terms is that we are protected by the same rights you are. Our dual natures do not afford us special privileges, nor does it make us second class citizens. If Vivien or Andrew wanted, they could file a restraining order or have you, your wife and son arrested for trespassing, breaking and entering and attempted kidnapping," said David. "On the other hand, you could talk and get to know your daughter's mate and find out just what kind of man he is without some of the blind prejudices you exhibited earlier." Roger just listened. "And then there are the legal ramifications. Once again, you could choose to talk and get along with the family. Or, I could have you sign a contract stating that you would never say anything about what happened. What you need to understand though is that no one will believe you. You can shout it to the roof tops of CNN and you will be written off as a crack pot who didn't like her daughter's choice of a husband. You wouldn't even make it to a page 15 article in the weirdo magazines that regularly feature Bat-boy," said Seth. "So, Roger, what is it going to be? Unless Andrew files charges, you're free to go. I can just tell my captain that there was a noise complaint over the Davis wedding party," said David. He and Seth locked eyes and then turned back to Roger. Roger seemed to be thinking things over. "I... um. I believe that I owe Vivien an apology. Andrew too. Perhaps we have over reacted and have not listened to her," he said softly. "Dad!" Eric started. Luc gave Eric a look that would freeze water. "Eric, I want you to understand that we are stronger, and in many cases smarter than the average human. I will not hesitate to protect my family, and that includes Vivien and Andrew." Eric gulped. "I take it from Eric's reaction that he was the impetuous for this visit?" asked Seth. "What has he to gain of Vivien is kept single?" Roger blinked, and looked from Eric to Seth and back again. "Well, my will does have a clause about the estate being split between family members. Each child and spouse inherit a portion." "So, if Vivien didn't wed, Eric's portion would be bigger?" asked Seth. Roger thought for a moment. "Why, yes. He'd have his portion as well as his wife's and their sons. Right now the split is two way with Eric's family receiving half of his initial share." Eric started getting red in the face and as he began to stand up, David put a hand on his shoulder. "Sit." "Dad, don't listen to these men. They've cooked up this story and did some kind of smoke and lights magic to make us believe things," said Eric. "Yeah, such good magic that you peed yourself. Do you really believe that we'd cook up something as stupid as that at the drop of a hat because you came storming into a party? That we'd dress up a dog or two just to distract your mom?" asked Patrick. "You are dumber than I though." "Right. We never saw the dogs in dresses shift. We just saw them. As for the eyes and fangs, that could be faked," said Eric. Luc, Patrick and Andrew looked at each other. David rolled his eyes and Seth just started laughing. "What's so funny?" asked Eric. "Do you realize you just challenged a whole bunch of Alpha male wolves?" Seth said. He knew what was coming and couldn't wait. "So what. It was fake. There aren't any werewolves, which is why you are so certain it won't do any good to report it," said Eric. Luc, and Patrick stood up and started to undress. Andrew just sat and watched. David and Seth stood up and moved across the entrance to the living room, shielding the men who were undressing. "What are you doing?" asked Eric. "I think you are about to be proven wrong," said Roger quietly. The two men stripped naked, and didn't bother to hid the fact that they were very male. Then they shifted. Eric screamed and passed out. "Oh damn. He peed himself again," said David. * Vivie, I'm still confused, but I believe your father when he says that we were wrong to act on Eric's behalf," said Emma. Once she had felt a bit more stable, she was brought into the conversation with Anne on one side and a rather somber Roger on the other. "And are there really werewolves? I know that Anne says there are, and we saw those dogs, but is it true?" "Yes mom. Andrew, Luc and most of the people in the room right now are shifters," said Vivien. "Fenris was actually Andrew." "But... how aren't you one now?" Emma asked. "Emma, it is genetic, not a disease," said Luc. He was hoping that no one else would need to shift again. Eric had been very quiet after the second time he showered. Seth and David sequestered him to one side and were making him sign a sheath of papers concerning non-disclosure. "Oh, so if... if you had children they'd be werewolves? Or do you call them puppies?" asked Emma. "Yes, they'd have the possibility of shifting," said Vivien. "Sara, the little girl that got mad at Dad will shift when she is about 15. So will her two little brothers." She was watching her brother and how he was dealing with the cop and lawyer. Eric was sitting on a metal chair... just in case. "I think I understand," she said looking at people around the room. "I'm sorry your father was mean to her." "Sara will be okay. I'm glad that you and Dad apologized to her," said Vivien. "Why do they call you Aunt Twizler?" asked Emma. "It's because of my hair. Apparently, they only give nicknames to those adults they like. I brought Frisbees to a picnic which made me very popular." Emma nodded and then thought about it. "Did... did they play with the Frisbees as wolves?" "Yes Mom," said Vivien. Emma giggled. Rose walked up wearing Vivien's bathrobe. "Would it help if you saw someone shift?" she asked quietly. Emma looked at Rose. "You... you were the dog in the blue dress?" "Yes Emma," said Rose. "Oh. No, you don't need to shift. I... I believe you." said Emma. "Mom, are you okay?" asked Vivien. "Yes, it's all a bit of a shock. I'll get there. It's like the first time I saw your Dad eat a piece of meat. It was shocking and yet I was so curious as to what he'd think," said Emma. "Oh? When did he do that?" asked Vivien who'd known her Dad to always have been a vegetarian. "About twenty-eight years ago. He threw up," said Emma softly. "Well, at least he's consistent, said Peter. Luc nodded his head. "Emma, are you ready to go home?" asked Roger. "Yes dear. You need to follow the advice of that kind gentleman, Seth and fix that will of yours. I like his suggestion," said Emma. Roger nodded. "Vivien, I'm sorry. Really sorry. I should know better, but your brother Eric was being very persuasive and had all these facts, which I now realize were totally false. From what Andrew and Rose says, Andrew is better off than we are and he certainly didn't marry you for your inheritance. Not that he would have known anyway now that I think on it." "No Dad, he didn't. Please take Eric home. He's not welcome here anymore, but you and Mom are," said Vivien. She hugged her parents and then she and Andrew saw them to the door. Eric was escorted outside by David. "Bye Eric. I never want to see you again," said Vivien. "You just keep your creepy dogs away from me!" Eric said as David shoved him into the the back of Roger's car. The way David screwed up his face, Eric must have reeked of fear. "And you remember that we've filed a restraining order. If we find you within two miles of your sister or her mate, we'll gleefully arrest you," said David. "And if you do decide to blab to the tabloids, I'll make sure that you'll live to regret the slander and libel suit," said Seth smiling with his canines showing. Eric cringed in the back of the car. Everyone waved as the Sunbery's drove off towards their hotel on the far side of town. David made sure it was more than two miles away. * "Come up when you're ready," said George as they left Andrew's house. "We will. I want to relax for a day, visit with Rose and then we will be up," said Andrew. "Alright. Love you!" said Angie as they left. Andrew and Vivien walked back into the house that was finally quiet. Rose had gone to sleep upstairs, Ginny and Angie had cleaned up the various messes and now it was just Andrew and Vivien. He took her hand and walked towards their bedroom. Once there, he slowly wrapped his arms around Vivien. "Now, before you start trying to take the blame for any of this, I want you to understand that I will not accept it. This mess was Eric's fault, and he will pay for it for a long time. Seth and David can be very persuasive." "I... I understand," said Vivien. "I'm just flabbergasted that Eric would do this. Amazed too by the way all of you defended me." "You need to understand a few things. First of all, you are my mate. Our mate. You have not one protector, but two. Next. You are part of a very large extended family. A very protective family. You are pack now. We protect who and what is ours. In some ways, I've always felt a bit of an outsider as our family isn't related to Luc's or Ginny's by blood, but any doubts of how they felt about me and you were erased tonight," said Andrew as he held Vivien and 'waltzed' in place. "I have to admit that I was a bit amazed when Luc and Patrick stripped off and shifted." "Oh? I didn't realize you'd seen that," said Andrew. "Yes. Everyone in the kitchen peeked out. The sub-vocals made the walls rattle. Those two are ummm... rather impressive," said Vivien with a bit of a blush. Andrew smiled. "Now you've gone and done it. The wolf wants to make sure you understand that you are his," he said as his voice went all husky. "Oh Andrew, I may look, but you are the only one I want. I love the feel, the scent and everything about you," Vivien said nipping at Andrew's bottom lip. "Ihh want youh ouht of this dresss," he whispered huskily. Reaching for the zip, he undid her dress. It slid down her body to form a puddle at her feet. Dressed in matching undies and stockings, she stood there for a moment. Andrew nipped at her collar bone and then stopped. "Muhst unndresh." "Yes, before you tear that waistcoat and your shirt. I was amazed how you filled that out when you got mad," she said. She helped him out of his clothes until he was nude. Then she moved into his arms and let the silk of her undies touch his skin in a soft caress. "Toooh mahny cclths," he said as his jaw shifted. Vivien didn't want to lose the clothes to being shredded, so she quickly undressed. As she stood up, Andrew picked her up and placed her on the bed. He crawled between her legs and licked his way up the insides of her thighs. When he reached her clit, she squealed in delight. "Oh, Anddrew," she gasped as his tongue tickled her clit and then dived into her pussy. He chuckled against her skin as she sighed and giggled with pleasure. His cock throbbed and it wasn't long until he grabbed her by the hips and flipped her over until she was on her knees. Andrew moved between her legs and slid deep into her pussy. "Arrrh," he groaned with pleasure. Vivien moaned as he drove deep, hitting all those spots that felt so good. He grabbed her hips and thrust faster and faster. She felt her orgasm build and and her body began to hum with pleasure. There was a feeling of intense pleasure as Andrew seemed to fill her even more than before. Andrew increased his pace as he felt the knot form. His orgasm roared through his brain. Tied together by the knot, the two collapsed on the bed and slept. Wolf held his mate. She was safe. He curled around her and slept. Three wolves loped down the alley. It had been a long run from the den. They stopped across from where the metal box was sitting. Inside the den were the three that had tried to scare their packmate. The biggest of the thee walked around sniffing the ground. Then he lifted his hind leg and marked the metal box. The other two followed and did the same. Then they marked the entrance of the den. One by one, they sat down and lifted their heads and howled. Then they disappeared into the dark to watch. During the night, the wolves took turns howling, bumping the door and growling next to the window. Eric lay in his bed, with the covers drawn over his head as the howls faded. It was going to be a long sleepless night. He regretted the fact that he'd driven up to meet his parents and was spending the night by himself. Twisted Tails Ch. 06 All good things must come to an end. This is the last chapter for this story. Thanks again to Mazuri, Mokkekle, Southern Sir and my dear partner, Wolf. We've had a lot of fun with this story and before you ask, yes there will be more. We have to find out what happened to the rest of the family. For the record, Wolf's favorite line was "Vivvie, why is that dog wearing a dress?" He's still laughing about it. I also want to point out something that was commented on in the last chapter. My Shifterverse is different than the average nonhuman one. My shifters are not immortal, nor are they infected with lycanthrope. It's genetic. Buster was ancient at 120. Yes, it is a little longer than the average human lifespan. Therefore while they may watch their mates die, so do average humans. Dr. Abrams on the other hand, is a totally different matter. Please vote and comment! Jaisen Andrew woke up early to the scent of tea with orange and cinnamon. He knew that Rose must be up. She must have brought some of the tea their mother had always made. He grabbed his bathrobe and headed for the kitchen. Rose was sitting in the breakfast nook with her cup of tea and some toast. "Good morning Xander," said Rose. "Morning Rose. Any more of mom's tea?" "Yes. In the tin by the kettle. There should still be hot water," she said. Andrew poured hot water over the tea mix he'd spooned into the cup. The scent wafted up and tickled his nose. He grabbed an English muffin out of the cupboard and toasted it. By the time it was done, his tea was just right. He added a touch of honey and joined Rose at the table. "That was some party," she said with a smile. "Aye. Not what I expected. I'm just glad it went as well as it did towards the end." "Aye. There could have been bloodshed. That Eric, not so balanced upstairs," said Rose. "No, just greedy," said Vivien from the door. "That tea smells heavenly." Rose got up and made Vivien a cup. "I hope you are okay today?" "Yes. Just a little tired. And thinking on it, maybe Eric is crazy. What are the plans for the day Andrew?" Vivien asked. "Well, that's up to you two ladies." "Ver' diplomatic that one," smiled Rose. "Always know jus' what to say. Keep out of trouble that way." Vivien smiled. "Yes, he does know what to say." Andrew blushed. "I am in so much trouble." Rose and Vivien nodded. After breakfast and showers, Rose pulled two boxes from the trunk of her car. She gave them to Andrew and the three of them spent the rest of the morning going through them. Pictures, diaries, books, and things from Andrew's childhood. "I never knew that our mother kept any of this," said Andrew. "Xander, she keep so much stuff, it like a pack rat live in the house. Always thought she go running to get away from all that stuff," said Rose. "Did she?" asked Vivien not knowing much about Jelka. "Non. She jus' too much wolf. She keep things to remind her she was a two-legs too." Rose picked up a photo album. "This our mother when she come from Europe with Papa." Rose held the book open so that Andrew and Vivien could see the pictures. There was a tiny woman who looked a lot like Rose and a very tall but husky man that could only have been Andrew's father, Alexander. There were pictures of a boat trip, train rides and then people in a large house. "That's the Davy family," said Andrew. "I remember that house." "Davy? As in Ginny and that man, Buster?" asked Vivien. "Aye," said Rose. She pointed to several people and named them. "Brian and Natalie, their daughters Jenny, Caroline and I think that Marie. Then Kent, Papa, Mama, David who became Andre and I think those women off to one side were the war brides. Probably Tilly and Georgina." "Ginny looks like Marie," said Vivien. "That her great aunty. Jenny is her great-grandma," said Rose. "And who was Andre?" asked Andrew. "And why did he go from David to Andre?" "He was the doctor who eventually married Marie. They had that daughter, Libellue. She ver' strange. Hear other shifters. Her papa, he start the hospital for shifters in Washington," said Rose. "He not shifter, but live ver' long time. Scary long. Live so long he change his name 'cause he don' age." Andrew nodded as something tickled in the back of his head. "Rose, these are mine to keep, right?" asked Andrew. "Aye. I don' want them." "Okay. Good. I have some people who need to see these pictures. Especially this one. Since Buster only died a little bit ago, there has been a real interest in the family history. George especially has been wanting to find more of the family. It will be interesting to see if Andre is Patrick's doctor too. "Patrick's doctor?" asked Vivien. "Yes. Patrick was 'rescued' from a military experimental plan by another shifter and a very long lived doctor. He always wondered what happened to him and this may be a very strange connecting loop." "Okay. What else is in this box?" Vivien asked. "More pictures, school papers, and some of Andrew's first silver work. Papa say he melt it down. Non. He too damn soft for that," said Rose. She dug down and handed Andrew and Vivien some odd blobs of silver. "I remember these. I was trying to make wolf paws." "I'm so glad you've gotten better," laughed Vivien. The paws looked more like blob art. "So am I." Andrew picked up another small album. It was full of pictures of people in old fashioned clothing. "What are these?" "I think those Mama's people. She was Romani. Other names were Cigan, or gypsy. Look this one, you can see a wagon," said Rose. They all looked at the pictures. Some of the people were smiling. Others looked at the camera with haunted eyes. There were fewer people in the camps as the pictures went on. Andrew put that one back in the box. "I wonder if they were dying off, or being killed," he said. "I don' know. Mama, she wouldn't talk about it and Papa, I don' think he know enough. Just that these photos were some of the few things that survived. Mama, she'd kept them all the years she was in that horrid camp," said Rose. "Camp?" asked Vivien. "Mama was a prisoner in WWII. She was found in a death camp in Croatia. Papa found her. Figured that the only reason she survived was because she shifted," said Andrew. "Oh. I didn't know any of this," said Vivien. "Is okay. We share," smiled Rose. Later that afternoon, Rose, Vivien and Andrew hosted an early dinner. It had two purposes. First off to eat some of the many leftovers and secondly to share the pictures with the family that was in town. Andrew planned to take the boxes up to George as well. "Oh my god. Look at that. Is that you?" Ginny asked Rose. There was a picture of the twins standing in front of Jenny's clinic in the Valley. "Aye. I think we were four or five. Xander was born so much later," Rose said with a smile. "From what I heard, it was lucky any of us were born. Mama hadn't ever gone into heat. Not until she lived in Canada," said Andrew. Rose nodded and then handed the picture with everyone in it that she'd shown Andrew and Vivien earlier. Luc, Meg and Ginny were looking at it first. Then Ginny pulled Patrick over to see the picture. Andrew watched Patrick and was quickly rewarded by Patrick's reaction. "That...that's my doctor!" he said with a gasp. "That's what I figured. His name was David Abrams. The family changed it to Andre Paquet, a cousin that died around age 30 and who had some medical training. He went on to serve in Korea after having been in WWII, where he met Brian Davy. He also married Marie Davy and they had a daughter named Libellue," said Andrew. Rose had told them more about the family before everyone else arrived. "That... that's just so strange. He's a little heavier here, but that could be the clothing. But the face is the same. Where is the family now?" Patrick asked. "Don' know," said Rose. "They move that Everette, Washington. Then move to Montana I think after Vietnam and start that second hospital. First one in Cascades. For shifters from Vietnam. Let them run the woods and heal, or just run the woods," said Rose. "I don' know much more. Mebbe you ask that Dr. Jeff. His hospital mebbe one them Natalie's." "Natalie's?" asked Luc. "Aye. Natalie, she die, give Andre money to make hospitals. She die 'cause she no can go to regular hospital," said Rose. "And from what I can tell, the whole family began to fall apart or lose contact with one another after her death," said Ginny. "Aye," said Rose. "I go home and see if I find Mama's address book. See if any the family still around. 'Specially now I know that Grand-pere Buster is dead." * Andrew and Vivien drove up into the mountains. It was strange to Vivien to be out of the city. She couldn't remember the last time. As they wound up into the mountains, Andrew rolled down the window to let in the scent of pine trees. The turn to the small town came up faster than he expected and he soon pulled up in front of the Spoon River Bed & Breakfast. They got out of the car and were stretching when George walked out the front doors to greet them. "About time you got here," he said. "We left at 9am. What did you expect? Warp speed?" teased Andrew. "Well, okay. Luc called and told me about the pictures and I've been rather anxious to see them. Sam and Angie set up the table in the side dining room for us to use," said George. He grabbed the boxes out of the trunk and headed inside while Andrew and Vivien got their luggage. "You know, George looks so intimidating and yet he is the biggest softie," laughed Vivien. "Yes, but never ever piss him off," said Andrew. They walked in to find Lewis at the desk. "Hello Andrew, Vivien," he said. "Hello Lewis. I see they put you to work," teased Andrew. "Ah yes. I'm suppose to be on vacation, but the way this works, I''m busier than when I'm at the mill." Vivien laughed. Sam was standing behind Lewis and mimicking his motions and then stuck her tongue out. "Don't let this old man pull the wool over your eyes. He asks to help," said Sam. Lewis turned and smiled at Sam. Then he pointed to the mirror over the door that had showed him what Sam was doing. Everyone laughed. "I have the upper room ready for you. Just promise me one thing Andrew," said Sam as they walked across the entry and up the stairs. "And what's that?" he asked. "Don't crack your nose on my balcony." "Ah, is this the room Ginny and Patrick had?" Andrew asked. "Yes." "Um, what are you two talking about?" asked Vivien. "Hon, he can tell you in a bit. And don't you dare laugh at Ginny next time you see her. She'll deck you," said Sam. "This has to be some story," said Vivien. She walked into the room behind the other two and stopped. The room was decorated in what she thought of as 'rustic cabin style'. Big heavy log furniture, lots of animal motifs, but the table was covered in vases of flowers. Roses being the predominant flower. "I... I... um?" Vivien stammered. "The family wanted to let you know you were loved in spite of the fact that your brother's an idjit," said Sam. "There are a few presents under all that foliage. You two need anything, you know where I am." With that, she shut the door and went downstairs. "Andrew, did you know about these?" she asked as she smelled the heady fragrance of the roses. "No. I saw Ginny talking to Meg and Luc. Remember I said you were family?" he said as he walked over and wrapped his arms around her. "Yes, but... these flowers must have cost as much as our whole stay. I..." she tried to wrap her brain around the generosity. "Don't worry. Just know that you are loved," he said as he took her by the hand. "You need to come see this bathtub." An hour later, Vivien and Andrew were drying off when there was a knock at the door. Andrew wrapped the towel around his waist and opened it to find George standing there. "What can I do for you George?" "I just wanted to thank you for sharing the photos and journals. I'm in heaven," said George. "Rose said she'd be going to the house in Calgary. See if there are any other treasures. Said she'd look for her address book," said Andrew. "An address book?" George said with a smile dancing across his face. "Yes. She remembered Mama having one and hopes she can find it. Then we can have some real fun," said Andrew. "Yes," said George who suddenly noticed Andrew's lack of clothing. "Oh! Sorry, I didn't realize, umm... bye!" Andrew smiled, shut the door and turned back to Vivien. "Was that heatwave George blushing?" she asked. "Yes, that was. And now I'd like to see you blush," he said as he pulled her towel away and began to kiss her skin. "Oh," was the last intelligible comment Vivien made. She lay down on the bed with Andrew kissing his way down her neck and across her breasts. Then he moved down her belly. When he reached her red curls, he stopped. Vivien gasped, looked at him and with a wicked smile on his face, he began to run his tongue from her clit to the opening of her pussy. Vivien moaned in pleasure. She felt the first orgasm began to build and grasped Andrew's head to hold it in place. She didn't need to as Andrew had no intention of letting her get away from him. She moaned, squirmed and then cried out as her orgasm blasted her senses. Andrew nibbled down her leg and back up again as she gasped and tried to catch her breath. Before she totally regained her senses, he crawled up between her legs and slid his cock between her wet lips. "Oh damn," she moaned as he filled her. Andrew moved as slowly as he could. He pulled her upright, until she was straddling his lap as he knelt on the bed. This brought her breasts up to his lips. Vivien wrapped her arms around him and enjoyed the sensation of his cock deep insider her as well as his lips sucking and kissing her nipples. It wasn't long before she began to feel the orgasms build. Andrew sucked harder on her nipples and increased his pace as she bounced and rubbed against him. The orgasm surprised her and she cried out as it slammed her senses once more. She writhed in orgasm as Andrew kept increasing his pace. Vivien felt another orgasm building on top of the first one and went almost rigid with pleasure as the second one flooded her. "Oh... oh... oh..." she gasped. Andrew had held on for as long as he could, and as the third orgasm took Vivien, he too exploded. Growling in pleasure, he felt as if his entire body emptied into Vivien. He shook with the pleasure of the release and held her close as they caught their breath. Vivien tried to climb off, but realized Andrew's knot had formed. Instead of letting her go, she came again as it pressed right against the g-spot. Andrew smiled as she came and then lowered the two of them to the bed. They lay there enjoying the quiet and shudders of aftershocks as their bodies relaxed. "She did what?" Vivien asked as Andrew related the story of Ginny tripping on the balcony because of her muddy feet. "Broke her nose and sprained her ankle," he finished. "Same day George went through Angie's floor." "Oh damn, Oh damn! And I don't dare tease. Damn!" said Vivien. The thought of Ginny tripping like that was nearly too much and she dissolved into giggles once more. Andrew joined her. "You know, you couldn't make this stuff up. All you need now is the three imps hiding in the car to spoil the trip." "They did. At least on George and Angie's first date. George was late, because he had to take them home," said Andrew. "Oh my," said Vivien trying to catch her breath. "And to think I thought I was going to be a journalist because I figured out who the 'real' werewolves were." Andrew just smiled at Vivien. "Are you hungry?" "Sort of. What time is it?" "Nearly 7pm. We slept a bit," he said. "Shower and dress?" "Yes. Dog Bar or here?" he asked. "Are we expected to eat here?" "Not really. We are on our honeymoon. I think I'd like to go to the Dog Bar, have some pizza and drink a little bit of beer. I hear they have some really good micro-brews," said Andrew. "Alright. If you're ready to let go of me, we can shower and be out the door in thirty minutes," Vivien said. "I think we can do that," Andrew said standing up. They headed for the shower. An hour later, they were on their second Flying Dog Ale and eating pizza on the outdoor patio of the Dog Bar. True to it's name, there were couples with dogs all over the place. "This is great, and I can see why it attracts the people," said Vivien, "Oh?" "Yes. Great view, food and beer. Plus it's dog friendly." "Agreed. Look over there," said Andrew pointing to a couple of women walking up with two huge 'dogs'. "Any bets?" "No, they wouldn't? Would they?" asked Vivien. "Yes, they would. Happens all the time. It's why Sam is so 'friendly' and the B & B is shifter friendly," he said softly. "Do you know them?" Vivien asked. "No, but I have an idea that they are the two who run the funeral home. They smell local if you know what I mean," he said. "Not exactly, but I think I understand." They watched the women walk past and Andrew nodded slightly at the 'dogs'. One nodded back. With that, Andrew and Vivien went back to their pizza. The band that started at 9pm was good. They played country, rock and celtic. It was an odd mix, but Andrew explained that there was a music festival in the summer that attracted all kinds of music and people adjusted. They danced, drank and in general enjoyed themselves. "I think I'm just a bit drunk," Vivien said as she flopped into the chair after the last dance. "I agree. Are you ready to head home?" "One last dance," she said and pulled Andrew back out onto the dance floor. Andrew followed. He loved the way she moved to the music and the bobbing head of red curls that seemed to have a mind of their own. Vivien was happy and relaxed which made Andrew so pleased. An hour later, he crawled into bed next to her as she drifted off to sleep. They'd danced at least three more sets and then in the end, Andrew nearly carried her home. He wrapped his arms around her naked body. She felt so good in his arms. As she fell asleep, she moaned and wiggled her hips against his body. He smiled and went to sleep. * The two weeks flew by. Andrew and George went for runs in the evening with Lewis. George and Lewis worked with the genealogy project and Andrew spent lots of time hiking and visiting local museums with Vivien. When the guys were gone, Sam, Angie and Vivien went shopping, spruced up the B&B, and had long girlie chats about their wolfish loves. "Do you find it funny that while they can smell of chocolate, it makes them sick if they eat it?" asked Vivien. Sam nodded and Angie smiled. "I have to admit that I was in a fancy candy store and when they brought the fresh chocolates out, I kept looking around for George." "And if I miss Lewis too much, I find I drink more hot chocolate," said Sam. That made all three of them laugh. "Oh damn, they'd have a good laugh if they knew we were comparing them to addicting sweets," laughed Vivien. "Meg would agree with you," said Angie. "We all notice it, and then it's like a favorite scent from then on. However, the shower is a whole different thing." "They smell like wet dogs even in the ocean," said Sam. "Really?" asked Vivien. "Yes! Here we were on this beautiful beach, no one around for miles and all I could smell was ocean and wet dog. Good thing I knew what he was by then, otherwise the game would have been up," said Sam. She smiled remembering the rest of that day on the beach. "You know, it still amazes me that they hide so well and that people turn a blind eye to the daftest things," said Vivien. Twisted Tails Ch. 06 "Defense mechanisms are subtle," said Angie. "Plus, people just don't think. You've seen it yourself. When Meg first tried to tell me that things weren't exactly what they seemed at Alpha Wolf, I thought she was just trying to shoo me off. That she didn't want to give me a job. Then poor Kevin shifted." "Oh damn!" said Vivien. "Yeah. He didn't finish getting undressed. I went from screaming and almost peeing my pants to laughing. Then I got curious," said Angie. "Curious?" Asked Vivien wondering if the same thing had crossed Angie's mind. "Yeah, I wondered if everything went up in size," said Angie with a laugh. Sam and Vivien laughed too. "I think the only answer to that question is yes," said Sam. "Haven't hear of one wolf that is under represented in that department." "You know, I am going to miss you two and this place," said Vivien. "Well, if you don't head home, Becky will turn the Silver Lode into a goth shop," said Angie. "I know. I've just enjoyed the relaxed atmosphere. When we get back, I have to look for work, and I'm not too excited about that," said Vivien. "Are you sure?" asked Sam. "Yeah. I may be mated to Andrew, and he may have money, but there is something about having my own pocket money," Vivien explained. "We all understand that," said Angie. Sam nodded next to her. "I just don't know what to do. I love writing, and yet..." Vivien trailed off. "And yet you can't get a newspaper to touch you now," said Andrew walking in with George and Lewis. Vivien turned. "Yeah. Damn old boy network." "We will find you something," said Andrew. "We wondered if you ladies would like to head to the Dog Bar for a last round of drinks." "Sure would," said Sam. The other two stood up as well, and the six of them headed off for pizza and beer. * "So how many times did you come over for free dog pizza?" asked Vivien of George. "At least once or twice a day at first. Then I tapered off as I was suppose to be ill," he said softly. They were eating the last of the pizza by this point. "That whole thing must have been so difficult to do," said Vivien. "In a way, I think it was harder on Sam," said Lewis. He'd heard her side of it when they met. Sam just nodded. "I miss Buster. Yet, I'm so glad that I have Lewis in my life." She smiled as Lewis hugged her to him. A little while later, the six walked home and Vivien and Andrew packed. Vivien saw that Andrew was looking out the window as darkness fell. "One last run?" "Yes, but this time I'd like you to come with me," he said. "Andrew, that's a little difficult. I don't shift," she said. "No, but you can walk with me and I'll run in the upper meadow," Andrew said wrapping his arms around her. "Alright. I'm almost finished." Vivien stood in the big meadow and watched as Andrew chased a rabbit around the upper end. As he was about to catch it, two other wolves appeared and joined in the chase. It didn't take long for them to bring down their snack. "Ewww," Vivien thought for a moment. Then other thoughts began to run through her head. She watched as the three wolves loped over to her. One by one, they shifted. "You know, most women would either be panicked or flattered by having three naked men standing next to her in the middle of the night," said Vivien. "Yes, well," started Andrew, wondering if she was really offended or not. Nudity just didn't bother him, and he had still not gaged her responses to it accurately. "I'm Donald and this is James. We have the mortuary in the next town," said Donald. "Nice to meet you two," said Vivien trying to keep her eyes on their faces, even though it was dark. "You have the reddest hair I've ever seen," said James. "How can you see it in this light?" asked Vivien. "Good night vision, and I eat lots of rabbits," joked James. Everyone laughed. "So, have you two been running with Andrew and the others most nights?" asked Vivien. "Yes. It's nice to have a small pack to run with. We were alone for so long," said Donald. "No family?" "Not as you'd think Vivien. Our parents moved from Washington or Idaho here years ago, and we've sort of lost contact with anyone else. It happens. Not everyone is as fortunate as the pack that runs with Luc Moreau," said James. "Could you possibly be related to Luc?" asked Vivien. "Maybe. We have no real clue to be honest. We'd have to see what George finds out. Buster was such a treasure in many ways. It will be interesting," admitted Donald. "I agree. I hope that Rose finds the address book. Part of me wants to go up there and dig around with her. Another part never wants to go back," said Andrew with a sigh. "Oh?" asked Vivien. "Our mother was more wolf than human on so many levels. It wasn't until my father died that I realized just how much it was him that held things together. So, when he passed, life got... interesting. Not terrible by any means, but certainly not idea," admitted Andrew. "Because she didn't cook? Clean?" asked Vivien. "No, because I had to explain why I had a big husky in a very quiet neighborhood that the dog catcher chased," said Andrew with a wry smile. "Ah. Well, I hate to break this up, but I'm getting cold sitting here with my butt on this rock," said Vivien. "Nice to meet you," James and Donald said before they shifted back to wolves and ran off across the high meadow. Andrew shifted as well and they started back towards the B&B. * Andrew put the last of their bags in the back of his car. Everyone kissed and hugged. Sam gave Andrew a big box of peanut butter cookies and Lewis promised to let them know what they found when he headed back to Vancouver next month. George and Angie waved goodbye until the car disappeared around a corner. "That was a good honeymoon," Vivien said as she watched the scenery pass by the window. "It was a wonderful time, and no major mishaps," said Andrew. "Agreed. Now to get back into the routine of life," said Vivien. "Only I don't know what that is." "You'll figure it out. Just don't worry," said Andrew. The three men had been talking and had come up with a plan. He just hoped she liked it. They arrived home late in the afternoon. Andrew was the first one in the house. As he hoped, Luc, Peter and Cal had been able to clear the downstairs office and redecorate it with help from Ginny and Meg. He closed the door and went out to help Vivien with the last of the bags. Once they were inside, and putting things away, Andrew mentioned redecorating. "... now that you're my mate, you should have more of a say in the house," he finished. "Yes, but there are aspects of this lovely house I really like," she said flopping on the bed. "Good. After dinner, let's walk around the house and see what we might change or just keep the same," he said. "Alright. Are hamburgers okay? I'm not up to cooking much," she said. "Fine. I'll lend a hand." While they were in the kitchen, they discussed what was good and bad about it. In the end it came down to new paint and some additional hooks or catch all baskets. Andrew put the dishes away as Vivien washed and they moved on to the dining room. Vivien wrote a list. Paint was the most frequently mentioned change. Andrew wasn't color blind, but his perceptions of some colors were a little off as Vivien began to realize. "Blues, blacks and purples?" asked Vivien to make sure she had it right. "Yes. Sometimes I see more of the mix that they are rather than what you see," he said. "That explains why everything is white or off white," she said. Andrew just smiled. They headed for the bedroom. While Vivien liked the big iron bed, she admitted that the dresser was too small. They compromised and decided to bring hers down from upstairs. New curtains, and a few other touches were decided on before they moved onto the bathroom, and living room. That didn't take long either. Then Andrew moved towards the downstairs office. "Shall we go over this room?" he asked before he opened the door. "Are you sure? That's sort of your private area," she said. "Well, maybe it could use a new view," he said. "I'd be willing to share rather than you having to be upstairs all the time." "Okay," Vivien agreed and followed Andrew in as he opened the door. When she was fully into the room, he turned on the light. Vivien gasped. She turned to Andrew and then back at the room. "When? When did you have time to do this?" "I had Luc and a few of the family do it while we were up in Spoon River," said Andrew. He pulled Vivien to him and gave her a hug. Then he turned her around so she could take in all the changes. First off, the room was painted a pale mint green and the window and door trims were white. Sheer curtains as well has heavier drapes in a darker mint had replaced the venetian blinds. The 12 x 20ft room had been roughly divided in half. Starting from the left hand side of the door, on one side was Andrew's heavy roll top desk he'd inherited from his father. Bookshelves covered the walls to either side, providing him with book and storage space. In the corner was the leather chair with ottoman and a lamp next to it. Another bookcase stood between the two windows on that side of the room. It was new and matched the cherry stain of the older furniture. Another chair, this one covered in a bright floral print occupied the corner. On the wall opposite Andrew's desk was a brand new desk of the same wood with a new desk chair. Vivien's stuff from her upstairs desk was set up on it with a new laptop in the center. Next to that was an area to spread out books or projects on and a low file cabinet. On the wall to the right of the door was a series of short book shelves filled with her books from upstairs. The floor was covered with new rugs that matched the chair and the curtains. It was the perfect spot to write. Vivien turned back to Andrew with tears in her eyes. "I... I don't know what to say," "Thank you? I love it? I hate it?" he suggested. She sniffed and tried to wipe her eyes. "I love it. Thank you so much Andrew." "You're welcome, Vivien." "It's not fair though. I have no presents for you," she said. Andrew turned her face up to his. "You are more than I could ever hope for. You are my present every morning I wake up. I love you," he said holding her close. Vivien hugged him tight. An hour later in bed, after all passion had been spent, Vivien curled up to Andrew. "I have such a beautiful place to write or create," she said. "As I hoped. I know you love to write. Perhaps you can unleash that muse and produce something that will make you proud," he said. "I hope so," she said as she drifted off to sleep. Vivien took a few days to get use to her new office area. She tweaked the space a little, adding pictures, moving books around and adding a vase of flowers. Andrew had gone back to work at the Silver Lode as the busy season was starting. She brought her cup of tea in and opened up a writer program. She had an idea and wanted to get it started before Andrew got home. Andrew came home to a nearly dark house. There was a light on in the kitchen and in the office. "Vivien?" he called. "I'm in the kitchen!" she called. He headed for the kitchen and found her trying to cook some sort of casserole. "Do you need help?" he asked. "No, just know I'm a bit distracted," she said giving him a kiss and stuffing the casserole back in the oven. "So what has you distracted?" he asked. "Well, I started writing today. I finally thought of a story, and figure I'd see if it might work on some of the fan fic pages." "Oh? Can I read it? Or at least as much as you have written?" he asked. "Sure. It's in on my computer. I've saved it, so it's okay to flip back and forth," she said making a salad. Andrew gave her another kiss and headed for the office. On her desk, the screen saver was running. "Vivien, I can't get in. The screen saver is up." Vivien came and typed in her password and the screen opened to a document. Andrew began to read. His savage demeanor terrified her. Growling, he stalked forward, partially shifted. In response, she retreated farther into the corner, trying to figure out how to avoid his fangs and claws. She screamed as he shifted farther into the dangerous beast he held within. The wolf that stood in front of her was huge. His fangs glistened with saliva. She swung her fists at him to try and get away. All it earned her was his fangs coming down on her wrist. She felt the teeth break the skin and knew she was doomed. Andrew looked at the computer and blinked. He shook his head and continued reading. The change took her unexpectedly. The moon shone bright as her body contorted in pain. David had told her it would be bad, but she hadn't expected this. She wanted to scream, but all that passed her lips was a howl. Five minutes later, she stood on four legs, shook her fur and loped out the door into the moonlight. A huge black wolf, David, stood waiting for her. He snuffed her, bit at her neck and then headed off deep into the forest to hunt. It wasn't long before a deer crossed their paths. The two wolves ran the animal to the ground and tore open the throat as they brought it down. The hot salty blood cascaded over their tongues. She was so hungry. They ate part of the deer and then ran through the forest. "Dinner's almost ready," Vivien called from the kitchen. "Alright," said Andrew. He went back to reading the story. David stood next to her as she changed. "How do you feel?" he asked. She shook herself and then looked at the blood on her hands and body. "I... killed a deer?" she asked. "Yes. You'll need to hunt at least once a month when the moon is full. Otherwise, the wolf inside will go crazy. Also know that you can't get pregnant anymore. Wolves can't carry to term. The shift is too brutal. Oh,and all that pretty silver jewelry in your dresser? Pawn it. It will poison you and burn your skin if you try to wear it," he said. "I... I should have believed you when you said you were a werewolf," she said. "Yeah. Instead, you figured I was just being an ass. Worse yet, you stayed when I told you to leave before I hurt you," he said. She nodded. "I want to go shower," she said. "Me too. Then I want to head to bed and screw your brains out," David said with a smile. "Are all of you so horny?" she asked looking down at his erect cock. "Yes, and you'll enjoy it. Believe me," he said with a smile. Andrew smiled and kept on reading. She moaned as his cock thrust rapidly into her wet pussy. He grabbed her roughly and bit deep into her neck, marking her as his mate. Her cries spurred him on and he thrust harder and harder until his balls seemed to erupt. His cum flowed into her body and then down her thighs. Andrew laughed, recognizing bits and pieces of their own lovemaking wrapped into the story. The moonlight called her. It had been two months since she'd been turned and each time the full moon rose, she felt the aches that preceded the change that would turn her into a raging monster. One willing to kill for the sheer pleasure of it. Vivien appeared in the door. "Dinner's ready." "Alright." Andrew stood up and followed Vivien. As they sat down, Andrew had a few questions forming in his head. He thought about them through dinner. As they started on dessert, he decided to voice them. "Vivien," he started. "Yes," she asked as she took a bite of the cheesecake. "First off, I want to say that you are a much better writer than I had expected considering what I'd seen in the newspaper columns." "Okay, but why do I hear a 'but' in there?" she asked. "Why did you choose to write werewolf stories? Very specifically 'biters'?" he asked. "Well, I know my reputation is a bit shot due to the whole fiasco a few months ago. And if I wrote werewolf stories, I might actually attract a few readers," she said. Plus, I've always heard that you should write about what you know and understand. "I can see that. You do have the 'biter' style down really well," admitted Andrew. "And... the sex scene. That was rather hot although it looked oddly familiar." He smiled. "Damn! I'd hope you wouldn't recognize it so fast," she said. "I couldn't think of how to write it until I thought about how it was when we made love." "So you changed the names to protect the horny?" he teased. "Yes. I did." She blushed. "Good. Now, do you intend to let Luc see any of this before you go to publish it?" he asked. "Umm... I hadn't thought of that. Should I?" "It might be nice to at least give him a heads up. That way he won't worry that you're giving away too many 'secrets' or such," he said. "Okay. I really haven't. I've stuck to the mythology rather than the truth for the most part. You had mentioned earlier that some of the spouses wrote stories like this and so I figured it would be okay. Never thought of checking with anyone though." "Don't worry. I think Luc will get a laugh out of it," said Andrew. "Oh good. I have forty-five pages written," she said. "And what are you calling this story?" "Twisted Tales." Andrew laughed so hard, he could hardly breathe. Wolf curled around his mate. Mating with her had been very good. She smelled good and tasted just right. When the knot had softened the first time, he'd taken her again until she squealed. He liked the silly noises she made when she felt good. He had wrapped himself around her and twisted his tail up under his nose and went to sleep.