Kim loved the moon. She loved the way it hung in the sky—steady, silver, generous—pouring strength and quiet healing over everything below. Tonight it was full and bright, turning the roof tiles soft white and making the pines around the house look like they were breathing silver. It was such a nice night.

  Sarah had been home for a few months now, deep in the Canadian wilderness her pack loved so much. Mary visited once in a while. The other members of the “Republican Werewolf Lesbian Club” had gotten back into school. Kim had finished her extra year and was sitting on her roof under the moonlight, college brochures spread around her like fallen leaves, when she felt his presence.

  ?Mary had taken to visiting. How she moved around so fast, Kim didn’t really know. But when you’re three thousand years old—plus—she imagined she figured out air miles. This wasn’t Mary, though. This was him. On her roof during a full moon.

  ?Mary had warned her about male werewolves. In the wilderness, they were usually fine. But the change was harder on them. They were More brutal. When they got drawn into a town, the destruction could be biblical if a monster of some kind was there. Luckily, they preferred the deep woods and the kind of supernatural battles they fought there. So what brought Daniel here instead of Mary was almost as scary as Daniel himself.

  ?But there he stood on her roof. The roof tiles creaked under his weight. He was barefoot, plaid shirt untucked, hands loose at his sides like he was trying very hard not to look like a storm about to break.

  ?Mary had told her about Daniel's past. A gentle monk whose monastery had been razed by Viking forces. Mauled by Viking Dog Men, he transformed into the next Alpha. There had never been such raw power in a werewolf, nor such deep honor. At least that's what Mary said.

  ?“Um… hi,” she managed to say.

  ?He came and sat beside her. Close, but not as close as Mary or Sarah would when they visited. Those girls had no boundaries.

  ?“Mary has asked that I come. I mean you no harm.”

  ?“I know.” Kim realized his distance was because she was a she. Daniel was unsure of the boundaries given the only other female werewolves were his mate and his daughter. Kim quickly crossed the slight distance on her roof and hugged the ancient wolf.

  ?Even though Daniel was terrifying, he was good. The hug helped them both. Wolves used physical touch to signify so much. But mostly trust. As they sat, she leaned into the great wolf the way she would Mary or Sarah. Signifying her trust. “It’s good to see you. Forgive my shock.”

  ?“I don’t like you living here alone.” Mary had warned her about this.

  ?“I know.” She had also warned her that Daniel was like a river. You divert him; you don’t challenge him directly. He was a good man, but he was a powerful wolf with alpha instincts often beyond his control. “I have… a pack of my own here. My friends who I love. A mother who needs me.”

  This tale has been unlawfully lifted from Royal Road. If you spot it on Amazon, please report it.

  ?“I know. That’s why I’m here. Mary and Sarah are in Tiutschland. There’s a pack there she’s checking on. She usually dreads bringing me—it requires planes. And Sarah has to learn. So I thought I would come in their stead. So you would not feel forgotten.”

  “I'm sorry Tiutschland?”

  Daniel thought about it. “I think they call Germany now.”

  Kim laughed. “You are old!” She joked.

  “Yes.” Daniel stated matter-of-factly making Kim laugh harder. She looked at Daniel suddenly worried she may have crossed a line. He was smiling at her.

  “You know you can make a smile look intimidating.” She teased.

  “I know.” his face hardened again.

  “Oh no I was teasing. I'm a teenager. It's how we show affection.”

  “I know.” His smile returned. Kim laughed.

  ?Daniel didn’t like being out of the Canadian wilderness almost as much as he hated being apart from his mate. For him to come because of concern for Kim’s feelings was incredibly touching. She sat with him quietly for a while. The night wind carried pine and distant wolf calls. Neither spoke. They just breathed together under the moon. She’d never had a decent father to compare with. But sitting here with the creature who could give the American military a run for its money—yet was only here for her emotional well-being—made her feel loved and safe in the way she imagined a father was supposed to.

  ?“There is a pack in Kansas. They would like to meet you,” he said after an hour or so of sitting silently with her while she went through college brochures.

  ?“Um… thank you, I guess. I mean, it might be nice to have friends who can hunt nearby.” She had seen some other werewolves while hunting. But they ran as soon as she noticed them. She meant to ask Mary or Sarah why. Occasionally she hunted with the grey wolf pack nearby, they were sweet wolves, but longed to hunt with her own kind.

  ?“Speak your mind,” Daniel said, as if reading her thoughts.

  ?“They seem afraid of me. The other werewolves,” she said.

  ?“I warned them that if they mate with you against your wishes, I would kill them all!” He said it in a that same matter-of-fact way that managed to be confusing and touching.

  ?Kim couldn’t help but be taken aback. “Is that a regular concern?”

  ?“They’re wolves,” he said. “These are of the Lakota though. They are good.” She waited for him to explain more. But it was clear he had said all he thought was expected of him.

  ?Kim found herself flooded with questions. Disarmed by his gentleness, she decided to just blurt out. “Daniel, I’m trying very hard. But I have like a million questions.”

  ?“I am also trying very hard,” he said after another long pause. But apparently noticing her discomfort, he added, “I’ve made you uncomfortable. I’m sorry.”

  ?He got up to leave, but Kim grabbed his arm. “No. I just… I want to spend time with other werewolves. I hunt with the grey wolves. It’s just… I don’t know. It’s not the same.”

  ?“It isn’t the same.” He agreed and wrapped her in his arms. “Tonight we will hunt,” he whispered gently in her ear as he held her. “Mary will come. She will have more answers.”

  ?He stood up. Stripping off his clothes as he changed, the great wolf howled at the moon—as if ordering the great satellite to do his bidding.

  ?She was about to change when she saw in the distance a large dark-grey wolf—not from the local grey wolf pack. Four others came out with him. Fierce and powerful. Werewolves.

  ?Daniel leaped down. All five crouched low to Daniel. She realized this was the Kansas pack, showing fealty. It was how the grey wolves treated her. When Daniel nodded, they joined him—one rolling onto his back, paws in the air; another nipping playfully at Daniel’s flank. The tension broke like a dam. Daniel wasn’t the king of the werewolves. Or some weird alpha like the YA novels. He was their father. And he was a good father.

  ?Kim stripped off her clothes and leaped off the roof to join him. When she landed, she was a great white wolf. Tonight she wouldn't get her answers. But she would get to hunt with her own kind.