Payne's Hollow

I3I Love at First Sniff.

Carly sat back, staring at the young man–Ian as he had introduced himself– in a dazed manner, not entirely sure if she was in the middle of a very strange dream or not.
She took a few minutes to allow his words to sink in, considering that her very grip on reality was slowly being loosened.

Despite living in a werewolf obsessed town, Carly had never really believed the locals' mad tales about werewolf packs roaming the surrounding forests. It just seemed utterly ridiculous to believe in the existence of a poorly developed human specimen with an appetite for human flesh and an aversion to silver. Yet, despite her beliefs, here stood before her an actual werewolf, one that just shifted its form right before her eyes. Discreetly, she pinched herself to make sure it wasn't a dream. The sudden bite of pain confirmed that it was indeed reality.

While her brain processed all this, Carly took a moment to give the visitor a once over. He was quite lanky, long legs crossed over one another as he leaned back against her desk. While he was thin, she could tell he had a decent amount of muscle that came from running around as a wolf all the time. Behind the untidy and very long mop of the red hair was a handsome face, coupled with an almost feral pair of yellow eyes that only hinted his true nature. He was definitely what her friends Bethany and Ashley would term as hot and she supposed it was rightly so. Still, good looking or not he was still a bit insane in her opinion.

"You're...a werewolf?" She started slowly, her mind still sluggish from the load of nonsense she was being fed. "A werewolf? An actually werewolf?"

"I just shifted form in front of you, what more proof do you need?" He asked testily.

"Can I stab you with a silver knife and see what happens?" Carly asked sweetly trying to mask her confusion and disbelief with a jab of humor.
He scowled at that. "I'd appreciate it if you kept the silver away please."

Making a mental note to buy herself silverware first thing in the morning, Carly sat down in her bed, rubbing the sides of her head as though she had a head ache.

"Okay fine, let's just assume you are a werewolf. What the hell are you doing here, in my room, in the dead of night, chatting me up like this?"

"Finally!" He said, looking relieved. He leaned against the window frame again, taking a few seconds to contemplate his words. He seemed like he had something important to tell her, but could not find the right way to do so. Eventually, it seemed as though he gave up.

"You're my mate." He blurted out.

She stared at him blankly. "By mate, you mean friend right?"

"No, by mate I mean life partner, soul mate and spouse."
"Oh." Carly said. "On what pretext do you make that claim?"
"I could smell it."

At that, Carly burst out laughing. Ian rushed up and urged her to be quiet as the girl clutched her stomach, chuckling madly.

"Wait–so you're telling me I'm your partner? Wow, I've heard of love at first sight, but love at first sniff? Ridiculous!"

"Are you done?" He asked with a grimace. "Because this is not a laughing matter. It's a very important moment in a werewolf's life."

"Oh come off it." Carly waved her hand dismissively. "Stop joking around. Tell me the real reason you're here."

"That is the reason!" Ian cried in exasperation, then quietened quickly as he remembered there were other people in the house. "Look, let me explain. Werewolves mate once in their life, finding their partner using their sense of smell. Each werewolf's partner has a distinctive smell that appeals to their respective spouse. I caught your scent today in the woods, and my instincts told me you were the one. Carly, you're my mate."

He used her name, and Carly briefly wondered how he knew it. She stopped laughing, taking note of how serious he looked. She titled her head back and considered him.

"How can you be sure I'm your mate?" She questioned, skeptical about the whole thing. "This is a pretty big declaration. Are you absolutely sure?"
He wavered, a look of uncertainty gracing his features. "Well, I was sure about it when I was in the woods. You smelt like rain soaked earth and lemons, my favorite scents. But just now, I have to admit I really can't smell anything. Right now, you do smell like a normal human, sweaty and boring."

"Well there you go!" She said in triumph, jumping to her feet and ignoring the bit about how normal humans smelt. "That proves it. I'm not your mate after all. Thanks for ruining my sleep with your visit. Now if you could please leave, that would be great."

"Hey, hold on there." He said, frowning. "I just made a huge declaration to you and your telling me to get out?"

"Pretty much, yeah." Carly shrugged.
"But you're my mate!" He spread his hands in outrage. "We're supposed to be together for the rest of our lives!"
"I'm not your mate for God sake." Carly snapped. "You are a werewolf, I believe that part. But lifelong partners? Sorry but no, go find someone else."

He sighed, his face in his hands. Then he lifted it up and smirked at her. "Deny it all you want, but it's the truth. You may not believe it now, but you will eventually. A werewolf's instinct never lies."

With that, he turned to the window, clambering onto the window sill. Carly reached out to stop him, demanding what he was doing but he smiled and waved.
"See you around Carly." He grinned and then jumped.

Carly rushed to the window, look down just in time to see Ian land in a crouch below, unharmed by the fall that would otherwise have broken any person's leg. He looked over his shoulder once last time, waved to her in a friendly manner and then disappeared into the woods, the dark shadows enveloping him protectively. She stood there for a few seconds, mouth hanging open slightly and glasses askew. When the cold breeze finally slapped her back to her senses, she slid the window shut and crawled back into bed, this time  clutching the bat close to her for the rest of the night.