Silver Claws

10. Beware the company you keep

I begin to bloom.

The growth is slow, I am a garden coming to life. Under Logan's care though, I start to blossom, petal by petal. The old falling away, piece by piece.

Nightly we now share our picture shows. His are filled with misadventures, setting a paper towel on fire, trying to ride a wild horse, an attempt to wax his legs. And heartfelt moments too, his father's approval, a mother's smile, laughter with his betas, his friends. A collage of a beautiful life.

I see his childhood with the boys, the trouble they get into. His father, attentive and loving.

I see his mother sick, she dies and the mourning after. The pack rallies for them, his father pained and aging all at once.

I see Saturn meet Adrean, a lone wolf who lost her family and has found a new half and a new son. A new family from ashes

I see Ryan born, Logan grow into a strong aggressive juvenile.

I see it all.

Meanwhile I can't manage such candor, instead I show him fleeing and unexplained images. My father teaching me what I can eat as what creature, how to survive nature skin side. I show him a few small moments of Ferris and Dag, the only ones of my kind I have ever had loyalty to. Mostly I show him of my time alone, the wonders I've seen.

The sun rising on the desert, thick jungle framing a hidden pool and spring, the rainbow reef of the ocean. One night is nothing but sunsets, all of them kaleidoscoping infinitely over a fathomless horizon.

I hide the short time with my kind, filled with blood.

I hide my father's death, Ferris injured, Dag bleeding on the ground as he screams for me to run.

I hide the endless lives I've taken from my own kind and the wolves, the cold deliberation as I drain them of life.

I hide what I truly am. The name my kind gave me. A word I refuse to speak, would scream if I ever heard.

I hide it all.

He knows this I think, my reluctance to show him anything personal. He knows my father is dead because I've told him as much, but I don't tell him why. The hidden truth is metallic blood in my mouth, threatening to choke me when I'm alone. I leave my door open at night and so does Logan, I wake in the night to see his sleeping form. It gets me by.

Days and nights pass, the heavens cast with new paints to add to my canvas, new skies to show him. A full month.

Logan discovers I cannot read, was never taught beyond a basic understanding. He thinks my vocabulary is incredible, but my spelling is hopeless at best. His patience is almost as strong as mine, thankfully I learn quickly. He teaches me in the afternoon, our mornings spent running as wolves through the forest.

I miss my wings, and he takes me far enough I can turn into a falcon before him. His wonder is so great, I feel as though I am another celestial body lighting the sky as he believes, his silver star. I fly above him, swooping gracefully through the trees, and he runs below, always watching. He knows I long for water, and he fears I will desert him for it. I do not.

I miss the hunt. The rush of a pulse beneath my claws as I tear through it. He knows this and ignores it. It scares him.

I make an effort to form a relationship with the pack. Talks with Saturn are strange, he is ready to test and fight every word. Adrean is welcoming, I am a daughter in her sight. Trevor and Reed keep me at arms length, Logan permits them no closer. I now know the names of the five females our age in the pack, though I haven't spoken to any of them. The quietest one intrigues me most, Leela. She is the tallest and most cautious, with mouse brown hair and delicate features. She looks almost constantly angry, like she is prepared to defend at all times.