Shifter

A feeling.

As soon as he'd finished his breakfast Chase hurried to his drawing spot before his dad could wake up and start yet another argument.
He climbed over the rocks and dumped his bag on the ground. He just stood there staring out into the endless ocean. Watching the rising sun glistening on the ocean like fairy dust and the sound of the waves crashing against the silent beach below. Chase closed his eyes and took a deep breath
'Perfect' he thought to himself.
As he picked up his bag something caught his eye, it was the dog. Sitting halfway between himself and the wood with a tilted head, almost like it was attempting to work out what Chase was doing, just standing there, looking out at the sea.
No sooner had Chase started to make his way over to his drawing spot than the dog was already there, laying down, ready to keep him company.
Throughout the day Chase would chat away to the dog and show it his weird and wonderful drawings. He didn't care that the dog didn't understand him, he was just glad to be chatting away.
'At least it doesn't argue back' he chuckled to himself.'

Soon it was time to pack up, the worst part of the day. Chase never liked to go home. He was muttering angrily to himself as he packed his stuff up. Unexpectedly, the dog jumped up and started running towards the woods making Chase jump in the process.
"Hey boy what's wrong?' he called after it. The dog didn't stop or look back. Chase ran after it leaving his stuff behind. Chase was soon engulfed by the darkness of the woods.
He could just about make out the shape of the dog ahead of him weaving in and out of the bushes that encompassed the trees and leaping over broken branches. The dog was far more agile in these surroundings than Chase and he soon lost sight of the dog.
Thankfully the ground was still damp thanks to the thick coverings of the trees above. Chase pulled out his phone from his back pocket and turned the torch on. Scanning the ground he scoured for signs of fresh paw prints.
"Got ya!" he said eventually, finding the trail of the dog, well at least he was hoping it was the dog. He hadn't heard any other noises...yet. He shook his head shaking the thought of any other animals being out there out of his mind.
Using his torch he followed the prints. Carefully trying not to make too much noise so he didn't spook the dog or anything el...
'Stop it!' he thought to himself
The trail lead to what looked like a derelict old brick cottage, with broken windows, big holes in what walls remained and was covered in thick thorny bushes. As Chase got closer he could hear low voices, just above a whisper. Turning his torch off quickly so he could stay hidden in the darkness. He couldn't quite make out what they were saying but there were two of them and one seemed to be angry. He wanted to get closer but knew if he did he'd risk being seen.
Just as he was trying to decide what to do he saw someone leaving the house. They were tall and thin, and wore some kind of hat. Maybe wearing black, but then everything looked dark in there. They stormed off in the other direction to where Chase was hiding.
He kept his gaze on the cottage. Bizarre sounds filled the air. Like cracking and snapping echoed from the derelict house.
Chase was waiting for someone else to come out. Sure enough, they did. But, what came out wasn't what he expected.
What he saw come out of the house was the dog, and only the dog. Surely there had to be someone else there. The dog trotted off in the same direction as the tall figure, stopping briefly to look back at the cottage and then ran off.
Chase paused a bit longer before deciding to peek in the broken windows of the cottage.
Nothing.
But....but there had to be someone else. There were two people talking. Two. He didn't see anyone else leave. Who else was talking?
'Na' he laughed at himself with just even the thought of it crossing his mind.

He knew the decision he was making next could quite possibly be one of the stupidest decisions he'd made in a long time but curiosity was getting the better of him. He grabbed his phone back out, flicking on the torch, he headed off in the direction of the figure and dog, keeping himself low to the ground in case he needed to hide again. Chase could hear the odd twig breaking and rustling of bushes ahead of him. Not only could he see the fresh paw prints on the ground but footprints now too. This made Chase slightly anxious but he needed to know the dog was ok, and who that second voice was.
He followed the pair walking to an opening of a cave. He knew these woods were massive and so thick with trees no one ever came into them. It's no wonder things like that cottage and this cave were here and no one knew about them. He crouched down in a small gap between a big bush and tree. Plenty of cover for him to hide but still see.
The tall figure stood by the entrance of the cave with their back to the dog. There was just enough broken light coming in through the trees that Chase could see that the tall figure had extremely pale skin. The dog just stopped just before it reached the cave, standing there still as a statue.
Chase dropped his phone to cover his ears. Those sounds again! The cracking and snapping. It was louder this time. Like bones being broken and twisted. He looked up towards the pair by the cave. The tall figure hadn't moved an inch but the dog, the dog....
What Chase saw made him fall backwards, more in shock than fear. He quickly got back into his crouching position. Rubbing his eyes to make sure he was seeing what he was seeing.
The dog was changing. On every cracking, snapping sound something changed. Its paws turned into hands with slim fingers, its limbs changed into human arms and legs.
The sounds finally stopped. There in front of Chase, where the dog was only a few moments ago stood a man. Albeit a hairy one but still a man. Chase leaned forward to take a closer look.
Snap
Both figures spun round to face Chace's direction.
'Shit' Chase thought closing his eyes as he realised he'd snapped a twig.
He opened one eye at a time not quite sure what to expect, they were both gone. He gradually stood up looking around. Walking over to the entrance of the cave he debated about going in but decided he'd made enough stupid decisions for one night. Apart from some scuff marks in the mud, you'd have no idea of what just happened here. He still wasn't quite sure himself.

Chase followed the paw prints back out of the woods, he kept looking back thinking something was there, watching him. He just had the strange nagging feeling that there was something there. Yet he couldn't see or hear anything even with his torch. It was almost like the woods swallowed the light.
However, even with what Chase had just seen and now has the feeling of being watched he didn't feel afraid.
A small smile raised in the corner of his mouth. This was a new feeling. He liked this feeling.
A feeling of stillness, of harmony.
A feeling of hope.

To be continued