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Saturday, October 15th, 2011

Moon Phase - Waning Gibbous

It was halfway to noon on Saturday when Alex left the house, his skateboard strapped to his snack and water filled backpack and with Bailey in tow. With the wind blowing southwest, the houses directly south of the skatepark were his first choice to check, and within half an hour, both he and his pet reached the street north of them.

Before they crossed, Alex offered Bailey some water from his cupped hand; his pet lapped up the entirety of a bottle before stopping, and once they were across, Alex turned into the first street they came to. Numerous foreign scents from outside and inside the houses reached his nose as they walked the length of the street. Of those, the weakest ones were what he tried to focus on, but despite that, none of the scents along the first street matched any of Shane's.

The next street saw Alex walk into a scent that made him slow his pace, but only for a second. Bailey however recognized the canine pheromones and almost reversed their direction. "C'mon, boy. No." Alex said as he pulled at the leash. At the same time, he noticed an open window on the house he passed. Great. We'll be smelling that for a while.

The scent weakened some on the next street, though Bailey was quick to distract and keep his nose in the air when they walked into it. How easily it drew Alex's attention despite him trying to focus on other things made him shiver before he pinched his nose shut. When he released it after moving east one lot, the scent was still strong enough to cloud his head and nostrils; only when he reached the corner of the street did the scent weaken enough for others to stand out, and for Bailey to no longer be distracted by it.

For the next minute, as he questioned what to do in the face of the scent's strength, Alex knelt and stroked Bailey's pelt. Waiting for the winds to change direction would take too long, and possibly wouldn't help, so he soon decided on walking straight to the southmost street, then, if the scent wasn't too distracting at that distance, start working his way north until it was. Halfway into the second street, that very thing happened and he turned back, coming to a stop at the end of the street.

Okay. Now what? With Bailey lolling his tongue and panting, Alex offered him another drink, then had one himself once his pet had finished. The intersection north of where they were lead to a street that spanned the southern length of another neighborhood. The number of scents he'd be processing from walking that street would increase his chances of finding the ones he was looking for, though from what he'd already experienced, they'd have to be within a few streets north of him. With the time approaching 1:00, Alex mapped out his planned route: Follow the road until he could make a right turn, then turn back and check the three rows of houses south of the street in front of his old middle school. If he found nothing, head home and relax a bit, then come back without Bailey, possibly with his motorcycle.

After a shortcut through a nearby parking lot, Alex stuck to the south part of the street. With Bailey matching his walking pace, he closed his eyes and focused on the scents coming south. Like the streets he'd already walked, an assortment of scents from animal fur, construction tools, paints, car exhaust and fluids, fresh groceries, lawn products, asphalt, and various kinds of decay, among others, drew the attention of his olfactory sense. Though he continued to give the weakest ones the most attention, none blew past that matched Shane's scents, and before long, he had passed the intersection leading north.

Once at the southward street ahead, and after a final sniff, Alex crossed the street and headed back, turning north into the neighborhood at the street he passed. With it intersecting the next street at the halfway point, he looked left and right before deciding to go left and then double back at the corner. The numerous residents outside, doing everything from playing to working, acknowledged him when he came close, the one kid he saw playing with a giant rubber ball calling out to Bailey once he saw him. "Yeah, he's a good boy," Alex said as he walked past.

At the end of the street, he walked forward enough to look down the length of the intersecting one. Several more residents were outside, and two cars were coming his way, one that pulled onto the next street north. With the winds now feeling a bit more southeast than west, Alex walked as far west as he could, but found no hint of Shane.

On his way back, as the three-way intersection came closer, a wave of fresh grocery scents blew past. At first, the cold deli meat got his attention, and made him lick his lips, but then came Shane's human scent. Alex came to a stop and told Bailey to do the same. With another sniff, he confirmed it. Shane was either outside, or had opened a window.

"C'mon, boy." Hoping he wouldn't lose his chance, Alex increased his pace after crossing the street. When Bailey came close to running past him, Alex matched him, turning the corner into the next street and keeping up their speed until the next street north. Once there, he slowed and got Bailey to do likewise, before pulling his phone out and staring down the street.

He counted almost a dozen vehicles in the driveways; the houses that lined up with where he found the scent both had a minivan parked near the street, but only one had its rear door up.

A few seconds later, Alex saw Shane emerge from behind that same minivan, his hoodie down and his black, tip-bleached hair on full display, and his pulse rose. So that's where he lives. For a moment after he realized that, Alex hesitated on moving. He didn't have to get closer just yet...but he was already here. Making sure he saw him would be a good first step; if he came closer, then he could drop the news on him.

With a tug on Bailey's leash, he made his way closer to Shane's house, keeping note of the numbers on the curbs. 533... 529... 525. Got it. He pushed his sunglasses up against his face and held his phone out as though he was watching it. As he came within twenty-five feet of the minivan, he could feel his heart racing in his ears and neck. By then, Shane had headed back towards the front door, and he heard a closing of it soon after he lost sight of him.

Within seconds, he reemerged, and as he did, Alex kept his attention on him. As Shane looked up, and then in his direction, his sudden stop, and the shifting of his expression from blank to surprised, made holding back the many kinds of expressions he felt ready to display difficult. At least until, after a few seconds, Shane glanced at the remaining bags of groceries, and then made a beeline for him.

Despite the setting and time of day, some level of concern filled Alex's head as he approached. "Are you happy now?" Shane asked once he was close enough for his lowered voice to still carry a frustrated, possibly confrontational, tone.

Alex forced himself to speak, to not let him dominate things. "Not a hundred percent."

Shane huffed out his nose and shook his head.

Alex glanced at Bailey before continuing; his tail was no longer wagging and his attention was fixed on Shane. "Especially not after what Dad just told me."

"Did he figure out I was there?"

"No. More canine units are being called in, and patrols are increasing."

Shane, after a second, glanced back at his house, and then stayed quiet.

"I don't know about you, but I don't see that as good. Especially not if bloodhounds get involved."

"You think they're going to follow you to where you live?"

"You think they can't? Or won't? And what about you?"

"Even if they did, do either of us look anything like what the cops are looking for?"

"Not yet, and what happens when every place around here with animals starts being watched, if they're not already?"

"Then don't go out until two or so in the morning, and don't panic so much."

Alex glanced towards Shane's house before he replied. "Somehow, I get the feeling this'll only be my problem." Shane had no chance to respond before the sound of a door opening drew the attention of both of them.

The woman that emerged from the house, Alex suspected, was about as old as his mother; her short hair, like Shane's, was jet black. After she noticed and focused on them, the scents the open door had released reached Alex's nose.

As he processed them, his flesh tightened from a sudden chill, and his heartrate rose. Shane's werewolf scent wasn't the only one the house contained.

When the woman spoke up with an 'Oh, hi there', Alex offered a wave but didn't smile. "Shane, what's left in there?"

"Just boxes." Shane called back before returning to Alex. "You're making your own problems by worrying so much."

Alex noticed the woman close the houses' front door, and then spoke when the scents from inside had blown away. "Not what I'm talking about. It's that meat you had." Shane didn't respond right away, and Alex capitalized on it. "You got that from someone, and I'm pretty certain you can rely on that and stay inside. I can't, and guess who made things harder by killing so many animals before?"

Shane remained quiet after Alex finished, though the change in his expression, and eventual pace back across the street, said everything. He was pissed, but letting out in ways besides words. Unable to hear anything that he said to his mother, if anything, Alex turned his attention back to Bailey and rubbed his head and ears. Once both of them were inside, he told Bailey to follow him and then started the walk back home.

* * *

He turned onto his street just before his phone sounded the IM tone; a minute before, he'd messaged Nathan, Catherine and Marcus all at once, saying that he'd found Shane's house.

Catherine W. : Are you serious? Where?

Alex S. : Yeah. Rozelle Avenue.

Catherine W. : Where's that?

Nathan T. : Near our old middle school. Like two streets away.

Alex S. : Yeah.

Catherine W. : What happened?

Though Alex thought of mentioning the second werewolf scent, he decided against it with seconds.

Alex S. : He came up to me, we had some back and forth,

and then I called him on something and he walked off.

Catherine W. : On what?

Alex S. : On killing so many animals. More police are coming in.

Nathan T. : Oh, boy.

Alex S. : Yeah, thanks to him.

Until Alex reached the front door of his house, the texts stopped.

Marcus A. : How did you find him?

Alex S. : I could smell him a few streets off.

Marcus A. : Right place, right time?

Alex S. : More or less. First time it happened, I found his scent

near our middle school. Figured he lived nearby.

Marcus A. : Makes sense.

Nathan T. : You said more police. Just police?

Alex S. : No. More canines too.

Nathan T. : Oh, man.

Catherine W. : But, isn't that just an issue when...you know.

Alex S. : I don't think so. I've seen some officers

driving around with them, and this guy,

and me, smell strange regardless.

Catherine W. : Then what happens if they track you?

Alex S. : No idea. Might ask Dad.

The texts went silent again after that, leaving Alex the rest of the day to consider what to say to his parents, and when.

It was before dinner was served that he decided to speak up, leading with the point that he'd found Shane's house. "No wonder you took such a long walk." his father said.

"But he found him."

"Yes, but strictly speaking, the kid hasn't done anything."

"And if he wound up in jail, the full moon would force him to change." Alex added.

"That too, so the only way I can see this going is he makes a mistake around one of my officers and gets killed. Unless he starts looking for animals elsewhere."

Alex felt a twinge of cold fear hit his chest at his father's statement. "I did what I could to warn him. He more or less blew me off."

"That's his problem, son. Not yours."

"Did anything else come to mind today?" his mother asked.

"No. Couldn't think of anything else."

"Alright."

Saturday, October 16th, 2011

Moon Phase - Waning Gibbous

Awaking to Bailey lying by his side, Alex spent part of the morning skating up and down the street parallel to the back alley Shane used to head home. As his second lap started, something struck him: Had Shane's mother driven him to the house, or picked him up?

After reaching the south end of the street, he glanced right. The street leading to the next intersection crossed in front of the end of the back alley. The time that Shane had given him then sprang to mind, as well as a few other things he'd said. Had he made plans to be picked up, or had he chosen that time because it was just after sunset? The second werewolf returned to mind as his second lap was finished. Was it a brother, sister, extended relative, father, or someone else? As the next hour went by, his assumption leaned towards a sibling.

The sound of the doorbell ringing jolted Bailey awake from his rest atop Alex's legs, and he ran for the door. Figuring it was the mailman, Alex let his mother answer it, but pulled one headphone cup off regardless.

"Can I help you?...Yes. Why?...About?..." HIs father left his room before his mother spoke again, heading towards the front door. "Wait a minute. Wait a minute...Honey." The nervous tone of his mother's voice pushed Alex to get up and follow his father.

And when he saw Shane standing at the door, and his eyes lock on him, everything around him ceased to make sound.