21 Jump Street | Undercover Lupine

#4: Animal

Author's Note: I originally posted this as part of a chapter in one of my stories (Vault: Def Leppard Greatest Hits) . This chapter takes place after "Hunter's Moon" but way before "Territorial Issues" and I'd actually written it before I'd finished The Nature of the Beast. So there are some continuity errors that I'm too lazy to go back and fix. Song used is "Animal" by Def Leppard (which I do not own).

Originally published: 9/18/2013

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Hanson walked into the Chapel and froze when he heard the strains of music coming from Jenko's old jukebox. He resisted the urge to growl and ran his tongue along sharpening canines instead. What is it with these guys and Def Leppard? he thought. Well, Penhall's recently developed an obsession with the band . . .

"Hey there, Tom," Captain Richard Jenko greeted the lupine as he noticed the final member of the Jump Street crew had arrived.

"Jenk," Tom replied. "Who chose Def Leppard?"

The hang-on hippie pulled a face. "Penhall. Who else?"

Hanson smirked. "Good point." His eyes swept around the Chapel, searching for his friends and co-workers: Doug Penhall, Judy Hoffs, and Harry Truman Ioki. Doug and Harry were messing around playing air guitar, but he didn't see Judy. His nostrils flared as he took a deep breath, scenting the air. Yes, she was here, upstairs. Tom called, "Yo, Hoffs! Wake up!"

The next moment, Judy was sliding down the pole and walking over to the werewolf. "Hanson, I wasn't sleeping. And Penhall"—she turned to the bear-like cop—"what is it with you and Def Leppard?"

Doug shrugged before returning to playing air guitar.

Both Tom and Judy sighed in exasperation. Then, as Penhall keyed in another song, Tom tensed as he heard the first verse:

A wild ride over stony ground

Such a lust for life, the circus comes to townWe are the hungry ones on the lightning raidJust like the river runs, like a fire needs flameOh, I burn for you

Tom's sepia eyes landed on Judy and lingered, sweeping over her. He was feeling uncomfortable, as if the 'wolf inside him was trying to crawl out of his skin. "Gotta go," he rasped, and bolted, trying to fight the urge to transform. It was no good: the now-familiar heat was surging through him, and the more the tried to resist, the more he pictured himself in 'wolf form. Behind him, he could hear the band launching into the chorus:

I gotta feel it in my blood, whoa oh

I need your touch, don't need your love, whoa ohAnd I want, and I need, and I lust, animalAnd I want, and I need, and I lust, animal

Somehow he made it into the chapel's basement, still in human form. Trying to relax, he took deep breaths. After a few tense seconds, the heat burning inside him faded away, and he knew the danger of changing was gone—for now.

Soft footsteps coming from the top of the stairs caught his attention and he whipped around, muscles tight once more. Sometimes it was hard to control the bloodlust that came with being a werewolf—and in 'wolf form, it was almost impossible. The person's scent drifted toward him, and far from being relaxing, it made him tense up even more.

"Hanson?" Judy appeared at the bottom of the stairs. He was aware vaguely of the fact he was acting like a cornered animal, but he didn't care.

I cry wolf, given mouth to mouth