1.

As he and Jason tried to ignore the large, not to say giant, bodyguard shadowing them, they walked in silence. Mostly. The edge of Atlanta was not far now and it had to happen quick. Baylee and Jason were masters in ‘quick’. They were both small for their age and sometimes very hard to spot in huge crowds, so ‘quick’ came almost as a second nature to the two friends.

“Now?” Jason whispered, his eyes straining to look at his companion a few feet behind him.

“Now!” Baylee confirmed and they ducked, swirling agilely through the mass of everyday grocery people and running as fast as they could towards the darker alleys of the city. Ha! Like he was scared here! Not a chance!

He and Jason both had taken karate lessons, it was actually how they’d met, so basically, they were prepared for anything. Of course with a giant bodyguard like Richard near, karate seemed kind of wasted money, so what harm was there in a little escape plan?

“Hey, you think we’ll run in to some alligators in that swamp?” Jason questioned.

“That’d be awesome,” his friend answered with a sadistic grin. “I’mma feed you to them first, so I can run,” he added grimly.

Jason rolled his eyes, knowing his friend wouldn’t even be able to hurt a fly, much less an alligator, so the real question was who was going to feed who. “Just try, see what happens,” he challenged and Baylee raised his eyebrows, mockingly accepting the bet.

“My pleasure.”

“So where are we going exactly?” Jason demanded not for the first time that evening.

“I told you, to the swamp,” Baylee replied.

“I know that, dipshit, anything specific you wanna do out there, besides feeding the crocs?”

Baylee decided not to answer that question directly, instead he looked over his shoulder hurriedly, “You think we lost him?”

“I don’t… hey, you didn’t answer me!” Jason exclaimed, standing still.

“It’s about the plan, asshole! Remember the plan, Jase? Stick to the plan!”

Jason didn’t know much about the plan, but Baylee figured he knew enough. He’d told his friend, and only his friend about how he felt about his life lately, and Jason had wonderfully understood most of it. It must have had something to do with knowing the kid for most of his life. It had been the only constancy in his life, accept for his parents and the band. Also, Baylee was fairly sure that someday, Jason would make one hell of a shrink.

They didn’t say much for the rest of the walk through the city. Baylee was sure now they’d dumped Richard somewhere in the centre and his confidence about this whole thing peaked once more as they came nearer and nearer to the edge. At this point, they could already kind of smell the stinking swamp that began directly after the high building to their right. He felt his phone vibrate vigorously in his jeans pocket, but knew better than to pick it up. He’d dare to bet all his money on it being Richard that was calling. The bodyguard could wait. Baylee would give him a call once they were done with the plan. Nobody had to know where they were going exactly, as far as he was concerned.

As long as they didn’t get lost. That would be one hell of a stunt. He could already read the newspapers titles. People got lost in these swamps every week and not a word about them. But no, Baylee was already guaranteed the front page, of course. Just one more reason why this needed to be done.

At the edge of the humid swamps, he turned on his heels and looked up at Jason, who was only just one inch taller than him. It was time, he decided.

“Jase?” he began, looking his friend questioningly and importantly in the eye, ”you ever heard ‘bout the Valdir swamps’ truth?”

“Course, it’s where you go when you want things to be done… certain things… but… no… you don’t really believe that, do you? It’s just a myth, Bay!” Jason exclaimed laughing, throwing his hands in the air for effect.

“Dude! I know! But… wouldn’t it be fun to try?” Baylee questioned challengingly.

“And then what? What are you gonna ask them?”

Baylee didn’t answer, just stared at his friend, a small grin forming.

“No!” Jason said, “No man, that’s just… wrong…”

“Who cares? He started it!” Baylee replied heatedly, “I mean, if it wasn’t for him, I wouldn’t have to be like this!”

“We talked about this! If it wasn’t for him, you wouldn’t ‘be’ at all!”

“Arrgh, you don’t know what it’s like, Jase! Always that ‘oh, aren’t you that kid of the Backstreet Boy?’ or ‘oh my Goodness, he looks just like him, how cute!’ I wanna be my own man, damn it! Is it really that hard to understand?”

“I just think you’re taking this a little too far, just chill out man.”

“Look, if you don’t wanna come, don’t!” Baylee yelled, confidently stamping into the swamp.

“And leave your sorry-ass all by itself?” Jason replied, hurrying to catch up with his friend.

Their destination lay almost in the middle of the swamps. It wasn’t hard to reach, all they had to do was making sure they didn’t get stuck in the sopping ground and walk straight ahead. But if Mom could see him like this, she’d freak out, that much was for certain. He’d never hear the end of it. That’s why they had to be fast. Before Richard would call his mother, or God forbid, his father. Dad would surely tear him a new one, he’d be mad as hell, but Baylee thought that was just hypocritical. Like Dad had never run away, in fact, lately it was all that he was doing, so what harm was there in taking a trip with Jason into the swamps?

They’d be back before dinner.

The wide open space in the swamp was remarkable, even if there hadn’t been the tallest tree he’d ever seen in the middle of the area. The ground here was more solid than it had been at the edge and for a moment they stood still, just taking it all in. The place had something, something sanctuary and it was hard to take the few steps towards the tree, as if they were invading some kind of holy land. For a place this legendary, not many tourist came here, almost none.

Probably had to do with the ‘curse’. Baylee still had to laugh whenever he read or even thought about that.

Curse. Right. There was no curse, it was just a swamp with a really tall tree in the middle.

Curse… ha!

And just to prove his point, Baylee and Jason were now here. Or that was what he kept telling himself. Because somewhere, in some hidden, dark teenager part of him, he wanted this to work.

Afraid to break the solemn silence, Jason first looked nervously at him for a while before speaking. “So, what are we supposed to do now?”

The real answer to that was that Baylee had no idea, but Jason wasn’t supposed to know that. “It’s about transformation, Jase,” he whispered patiently.

“So?”

“So? Transform something!”

“How?”

Baylee thought about that for a minute, then a sudden, rather brilliant if he said so himself, idea sprang to mind, “We burn something!”

“What?”

“Look, if you burn something, it becomes a different element, right?” he waited for Jason to nod before continuing, “so burning is transformation! See, that’s why I’m the brains and you’re just the muscle.”

Jason didn’t necessarily agree with that, but decided to let it go for now, “What do ya wanna burn, Einstein?”

“We’re in the woods, right? How hard can it be?”

They went to find a handful of rotten branches, and some moss while they were at it. It had to be done perfectly. Solemnly, Baylee held up the lighter he carried with him secretly. Just another thing Mom and Dad would freak out about. The branches burnt like they had been destined to.

“Now what?” Jason whispered.

“Ssh!” Baylee hushed him, more than a little caught up in the fire. Mesmerized, he stared into the small flames, knowing the words by heart now, but still a little afraid that he’d do it wrong. His heart had picked up speed and was beating insanely fast now, to the point he thought he might faint if he moved one more inch. Swallowing thickly, he cleared his throat.

“Behold, great Valdir, we ask you for the truth!” he spoke in a voice that sounded much more grown up than he had thought possible. His voice had been on the verge of changing this year and the grown up voice sounded way too much like his Dad’s for his liking.

Especially Nick teased him about that fact. “We ask for transformation!” he said loudly as he scattered a few of his father’s greying hairs he’d brought with him into the fire. This was going to work, he could almost feel it.

He’d show his Dad what it was like to be in someone’s shadow.

Or so he thought.

When he came home, Mom was pissed. He wasn’t very interested in what she had to say though, as he quickly began the search for his father.

“Where’s Dad?” he questioned.

“You are not even listening to me Baylee Littrell!” Mom exclaimed frustratingly.

“Yeah yeah, I know, I won’t ditch Richard again, alright? I promise,” Baylee replied patiently, looking at his mother as innocently as he could for someone who’d just stomped through the swamp and performed the ritual of Transformation on his father.

“You know, if this was the first time, I’d believe that promise, but I can’t even count all the times you’ve dumped Richard in the city,” Mom announced as she walked towards the kitchen angrily. Only Mom could walk angrily like that.

“Then maybe you guys should look for another bodyguard,” Baylee answered sweetly. His mother turned around, glaring. Baylee smiled knowingly. It wasn’t like bodyguards were growing on trees and it was only a matter of time before Richard would quit the job and they had to look for yet another bodyguard. And not most security jumped at the chance of guarding a spoilt 13-year old.

“I’m sorry,” he whispered, looking at the ground, waiting for his Mom to melt.

“I know sweetie, but you can’t keep doing this. For all I know you were smoking pot with that Jason-kid. You’re grounded.”

Great.

“We weren’t smoking…” Baylee began, but quickly closed his mouth, cause it wasn’t like he could actually explain what they had been doing instead, compared to that, smoking pot seemed like just a little prank, “how long?” he murmured defeated.

“Two weeks.”

“Fair,” Baylee told her quietly. “Where’s Dad?”

“Where do you think?” Mom sighed.

Baylee’s eyes lit up as he figured it out. “Right,” he said as he took off. Faintly he heard his Mom ordering him to stay in the house. He sprinted to the studio in the basement at top speed, trying to tell himself to calm down, that it most likely hadn’t worked, that it was indeed just a myth. He reached the door, steeled himself and stepped inside.

His heart sank as he saw his father sitting at the panel, studying something that looked like a new lyric sheet, oblivious to his son that had come in without announcement.

“You’re still here,” Baylee began, trying to keep the disappointment out of his voice, but knowing he failed at that.

Dad turned slowly on the desk chair, facing him. “And you’re here too, surprisingly,” he mumbled, returning his gaze back to the sheet.

“I was missing,” Baylee countered.

“I know.”

“And you don’t even care!”

“Oh I do, believe me,” Dad spoke.

But Baylee didn’t believe him. Angrily he snatched the sheet out of his father’s hands. Dad looked up, his eyes turning dark in anger. “Give me one good reason why I shouldn’t kick you out,” he growled. People didn’t know it, but Dad was a pro at growling. Baylee didn’t budge though.

“I was missing! Mom grounded me because she thought we were smoking pot, and you don’t even care where I was!”

“Were you smoking pot?” Dad asked incredulously in a monotone voice.

“No! of course not! But that’s not the point!” Baylee yelled in frustration, “The point is, you don’t care where I was!”

“Where were you?” Dad questioned finally.

“I’m not telling you!”

His father threw up his hands in defeat, “Look, I know you’re growing up now, and that you sometimes need some time on your own to hang with your friends, and although ditching a bodyguard isn’t the smartest thing to do, I know I was just like you when I was your age.”

“What if I don’t wanna be like you?”

Dad didn’t answer and instead pointed at the sheet grasped in his son’s hand, “Can I have that back now?”

Glaring, Baylee threw the sheet at his father before storming out.

3.

Dinner was hell that evening. He tried his best to keep his eyes on his plate, but couldn’t help the toxic glares sometimes drifting to his father. Dad obviously did his best not to notice them, but Mom did.

“Is there something I should know about?” she questioned finally with a sigh.

“No,” father and son said in perfect unison.

“Alright then,” Mom replied perplexed. Baylee felt a little guilty, after all, it wasn’t her fault that Dad was being an idiot.

“It’s not about you grounding me, alright?” he assured her and she shook her head smiling. “Oh, and the pancakes are awesome,” he added for good measure.

After dinner, he made sure to clean up his plate and leave the room quickly. He halted when he heard Mom’s voice.

“What’s going on between the two of you lately?” she questioned Dad.

“Puberty probably,” Dad answered and Baylee could almost see him shrug, even if he wasn’t in the room to see it actually happen. He narrowed his eyes in disgust. So easy shoving it all off on puberty.

“You mean him or you?’’ Mom countered and Baylee smiled. Good old Mom, sticking up for him.

“Hey, I’m not the one ditching Richard each time I’m going out,” Dad defended.

“No, you’re just keen on ditching everybody when you’re going out,” Mom replied heatedly.

Uh, oh, this wasn’t really going the right way, Baylee decided. Still he couldn’t get himself to walk away from the scene. Mom was partially right in her accusation, except only that Dad didn’t ‘ditch’ anybody when he went out. He actually rarely got out of the house. The band had decided almost three months ago that it would take a well-deserved hiatus for an undecided time, and only the occasional meeting with its members conserved its existence. Mom had told him it had happened before. Those had been different times though. Those were the times Baylee had been born, times of family extension, times in which everyone was basically too busy with their own stuff, whether it were personal problems, solo albums, business expansion, or child birth, to help preservation of a boyband.

Very much unlike what was going on now. Cause now, nobody was too busy with anything. It was just that the glitter and glamour of being in a pop band was getting old. The motivation was gone with the wind and just because nobody actually had the guts to quit, the hiatus was called. In terms of rediscovering motivation and taking some time off the busy world, it actually worked. Most members were doing their own stuff, celebrating the married with children life and even Nick had gotten his wife pregnant and was exceptionally okay with that. And although he often called for reassurance and confirmation from Dad, he seemed to be looking forward to the birth of his daughter. Dad had taken the time off to become more concerned about producing and writing, which was probably why he spend most of his days in the basement studio with other artists.

On the surface, the hiatus had done nothing but good for band members and their families, but Baylee knew better than that. Although he’d longed for most part of his life for his father to stay home with him and Mom, now that it was actually happening, Dad seemed further away than ever. As a child of a celebrity, Baylee could have proudly claimed that the contact between him and his parents had been exceptionally good. Had been. And who knew, maybe it was puberty plaguing him, but that was just part of it. Cause how could he explain the rather strange occurrences where Dad would just up and suddenly disappear for a day or two. Nobody knew where he went, not Mom, not the band members, and certainly not Baylee. If he didn’t know any better, he’d think his father had a mistress somewhere. But he did know better.

A mistress. Ha. Not ever in a million years.

The fight went on for a little while longer, Mom obviously seeking an explanation for Dad’s distant behaviour. It ended abruptly when Dad stormed out of the kitchen and Baylee had to duck away in order to prevent his father from seeing him. Try explaining this kind of spying to one of your parents. Wouldn’t be pretty.

He didn’t get much sleep that night. His head was so full of secret, prohibited rituals, distant fathers and frustrated mothers that he actually believed he was dreaming when he heard the sound downstairs. He still believed that as he walked down slowly, cautiously. His curiosity got the best of him and with a little more confidence, he approached the basement when he heard the sound again. It sounded like a dog in distress and he mentally kicked himself for being scared of Keeko.

The usual happy yapping of the small Maltese dog was nothing compared in loudness to the fearful squealing she produced when she was absolutely terrified of something. Baylee opened the door, that led to the basement’s stairs, slowly and descended carefully, a little scared he might fall in the darkness of the night. The lights were down in the studio and when he turned them on, he had just about enough time to see a flash of white fur shoot passed his legs towards the open door.

“Keeko, get back,” he yelled at the miniscule Maltese as the squealing intensified in loudness. Venturing after his dog, he crouched down at where the dog was hidden under the studio desk.

“Come here, you little monster,” he said gently, stretching out his arm to reach the white dog.

Normally, that helped when the Maltese felt distressed, but not now. Keeko shrunk even further back and howled pathetically. “What’s gotten your panties so tied up?” Baylee questioned wonderingly.

The sudden growl made him jump. Keeko almost never growled, and when she did, it didn’t sound like this.

Turning slowly in his crouched position, Baylee closed his eyes, having the nagging feeling that whatever scared the crap out of Keeko, would surely do the same to him.

He wasn’t wrong.

As he opened his eyes, he was faced with what he was sure was a full-sized wolf staring down at him intently.

4.
With round eyes, he stared at the huge beast, still crouched and not daring to make a movement or sound.

The wolf was mostly white, with only some grey and black features on its back and the top of its head.

The eyes were unusually blue and staring straight into Baylee’s. He felt his heartbeat quicken and did nothing to control his gasping, panicked breathing. Somewhere, a voice in the back of his mind said that he should calm down. Wolves knew exactly when their prey was scared and wouldn’t hesitate to take advantage out of a helpless victim.

But what could he do? Moving was not an option, cause the animal would jump him as soon as he did and would probably go straight for his throat. Keeko wasn’t of much use either, the wolf would consume the Maltese with only one bite. Maybe even without a bite at all, maybe it would just swallow the poor thing whole. Just thinking about that made Baylee sick to his stomach and he nervously watched the door, looking for a way out.

Maybe he’d be fast enough to reach it and close it before the wild animal could react. Maybe, if he didn’t consider wolves’ absolute instinct and agility, maybe then he’d get out of here alive.

One thing was to keep eye-contact, as long as he did that, Baylee was sure the animal wouldn’t take initiative. Not for now anyway.

It was the wolf that moved first. Taking a slow step towards the boy, it let out a sound that sounded almost like a combination of a growl and a human moan. Baylee shrunk back, not much unlike he’d seen Keeko do minutes before. Flailing his arms in panic, he screamed incoherently at the animal. It seemed to work somewhat, as the wolf lowered its head and put the ears in its neck, taking a few steps back, the nails on its paws tapping the wooden floor of the studio noticeably.

“Get back! Filthy monster!” Baylee yelled panicked, taking courage from the wolf’s slightly retreating behaviour. The beast growled again, and Baylee could have sworn it sounded offended.

The wolf currently residing in his father’s studio continued to stare at Baylee with its piercing blue eyes. Baylee stared back. Cautiously, he brought up his arms, ready to try and ward off the animal if it should decide to attack.

“J-Just, err…, t-take it easy, alright,” he stuttered in a voice that shook with fear, much like the rest of his body. “I’m just gonna… ya know, g-gonna…” he trailed off as the wolf growled again. It didn’t sound angry, but well, Baylee could be fooled so easily in that case.

Keeko had stopped squealing, feeling her master’s distress and had started growling too, though it sounded rather pathetic and ridiculous compared to the wolf’s menacing, deep sound. It did distract the wild beast however and Baylee decided it was time to go for it as he jumped up and sprinted to the door with what felt like the speed of light. The wolf let out a contorted bark, but before it could follow him, Baylee slammed the door to the studio shut. His heart pounded in his ears as he leaned his back against the now closed and locked doorway. It took a while to get himself under control and to realize that Keeko was still in there.

No way in hell he was going back though. Somewhere he knew that if the wild canine had wanted to eat them, it would have jumped at them the moment Baylee had turned around to face it. But that didn’t really matter. Keeko was well hidden under the desk and no way the wolf could reach such a small, tight space. Keeko was safe for now. Baylee hoped so at least.

Soundlessly, he ventured up the basement stairs, still shaking madly.

He jumped about a mile up in the air when he saw his mother standing in the living room, a frying pan raised in her hands. He was sure she’d jumped too, cause she let out a short yelp and turned towards her son.

“Baylee! Holy cow, I thought you were a robber!”

Without a word, Baylee ran into her, wrapping his arms around her waist and sobbing into her nightgown.

Hesitantly, Mom pushed him back after a few minutes, looking into his face.

“Sweetie, what’s going on? What were you doing downstairs?” she questioned, quite reasonably. Baylee only shook his head though. He couldn’t tell Mom what he’d seen in the studio, she’d go down there to show that there was nothing to be afraid of, and then she’d surely get eaten by that monster.

Though some part of him had come up with the idea that it all must have been a dream. There usually didn’t live any wolves in or near the area where they lived and Baylee had actually never seen one in real life before his encounter in the studio. Just another thing, how did a wolf actually get in there? The studio could only be accessed by the basement stairs, which meant you first had to be in the house to get in. Doors were locked at night, and mostly during the day as well, so how had the animal gone in? Was there some kind of secret passage to the basement he wasn’t aware of?

Possibly, the house was big enough for numerous secret areas and hallways he’d never seen or been in, although he’d lived here for most of his life. But then still, what wolf was smart enough to find it when Baylee himself hadn’t even known it existed?

It must have been a dream. A stupid, extremely vivid nightmare. He swore he’d almost been able to smell the creature. He looked up at Mom and gave her a shaky smile.

“I was just hungry,” he replied lamely, “I walked downstairs and there was this sound from outside, scared the hell out of me.”

Mom looked sceptical, but nodded, “Are you telling me you’re scared of the dark now?” she questioned.

That sounded like he was an 8-year old wuss, but was better than trying to explain hallucinations of white wolves in the basement. He nodded embarrassed and Mom shook her head, chuckling.

“Come on,” she urged, grabbing her son’s shoulder, “let’s get back to bed, tomorrow we’ll have to look for your father again,” she sighed.

“He’s gone again?” Baylee questioned, trying to sound surprised. Dad disappeared every now and then to emerge after a day or two like nothing had happened.

“Yeah, why does that man never even tell us when he’s leaving the house?” she sighed in frustration. Baylee shrugged. He didn’t worry too much about his father.

Not like he worried about Keeko. Dad could take care of himself, but a little Maltese locked in with a grown wolf was destined to become an easy fast-food meal.

5.
In the three days that followed, Baylee became rapidly convinced of the thought that it had all been a stupid dream. Although he hadn’t seen Keeko anywhere, although he swore he sometimes heard noises from down the basement stairs, it must have been a stupid dream.

Keeko had probably found herself locked down there and was making those noises and without Baylee or Dad opening the door, there was no way she could come out.

Although Baylee had convinced himself of having had a nightmare, something still stopped him from going down, so he wouldn’t be able to free his dog.

And Dad… well, Dad was still gone. Longer than usual. It made Mom and the others a little anxious, but Baylee knew he’d come back soon enough and life would go on like nothing had happened. He always did.

Baylee didn’t know what eventually gave him the courage to walk down the basement stairs four days after his traumatizing, nightly expedition. Maybe it was concern for Keeko, who was still locked down there somewhere without much food other than bags of chips and the occasional candy. Maybe it was the sheer curiosity and need to prove that he’d been dreaming before. Cause if he hadn’t been, that wolf was most likely still down there, trapped into the confined space of the studio’s office desk and probably mad as hell for being left alone for four days without a possibility to escape.

That fact alone prevented Baylee from actually getting in. No thank you sir, he’d just look through the tiny window of the office door to see if Keeko was there.

Only a little confidently, he peered inside and his heart sank to the ground, then started pounding madly in his ears as he saw the white wolf curled up on the desk, obviously asleep. The drawers of the desk were ripped open and Baylee saw several torn bags of snacks and mutilated bottles of soda lying haphazardly scattered on the floor.

But that wasn’t what surprised him most. The biggest surprise was Keeko. Or the fact that she was still alive. Baylee watched with his mouth wide-open as the small, white ball of fur raced around the room, sniffling several empty bags of chips before taking off in a mad run again. She didn’t seem to mind the giant white wolf on top of the desk.

Baylee turned around in astonishment, exhaling as he pressed his back into the wooden door with wide-open eyes. He closed his eyes, counted to ten and turned around to watch through the window again as he opened his eyes.

He wouldn’t have believed his dogs behaviour if he hadn’t seen it with his own eyes. Did Keeko have a death wish? That was the only explanation that he could think of when he saw her getting closer to the desk, hesitating only a split second before jumping on the table, inches away from the wild animal asleep on it.
Maybe it wasn’t asleep? Maybe it was dead? Maybe Keeko had killed it?

Baylee quickly discarded that thought when he saw the wolf move its tail slightly when Keeko jumped on top of it. Its ears flattened against its neck and Baylee’s eyes went large when he realized what that meant.

Forgetting that the studio was more or less soundproof he began to yell at his dog. What was she thinking?

That thing was going to eat her and she was just going to let it happen? She was practically asking for it.

Keeko didn’t care less for the wolf’s warning attitude and happily trotted over the animal’s back before reaching its head and jumping off, suddenly yapping in ecstasy. The wolf’s eyes opened and revealed two pissed off puddles of blue. Baylee inhaled sharply and held his breath as he watched how the carnivore turned its head, growled at the yapping Maltese and listlessly flapped its tail at Keeko. Keeko only saw this as an invitation to start running in fast circles around the larger animal, almost becoming a white blur with the sudden speed she possessed.

“Oh my God,” Baylee choked out as he suddenly remembered where he’d seen this ritual before.

This was exactly the way Keeko reacted whenever Dad came home.

The pieces fell together in a dizzying speed and Baylee felt lightheaded as he stumbled back into the wall across.

The blue eyes, the strange behaviour, the fact that his father was missing…

He took a deep breath, opening the door slightly, immediately greeted by his ever so happy Maltese dog.

He stared at the desk table, not paying Keeko any attention as he saw the wolf slowly raised its head and watched him with an angry expression on its animalistic features. The large carnivore slowly got upright, stretching its muscles and Baylee took a careful step back, suddenly not so confident anymore.

The wolf never broke eye-contact as it jumped off the desk, growled something at him and then headed for the door.

Baylee stayed frozen for a few more seconds before following the animal into the basement. “No, wait!” He called. “Dad, wait!”

At lightning speed, the wolf turned around, baring its teeth as it barked at him, and clumsily bumping its tail into a piece of furniture that was gathering dust in the basement. Its nostrils flared as Baylee slowly came closer, kneeling in front of the animal and staring into its light blue eyes.

“I’m sorry. This is all my fault,” he spoke quietly. A low grumble from the wolf’s throat confirmed his statement. “I’ll fix it, alright? I’ll find a way to fix it.”

6.

Four days earlier.

Brian sat down, scoffing incredulously as his son’s footsteps fled the basement. He had no idea what had gotten into the kid, or Keeko, for that matter, who had returned to crawling under the desk the best she could, just like she’d done when he’d found her. Although he could tell something strange was going on, he didn’t quite understand what it was. His vision seemed compromised, only distinguishing yellow and brown colors. He’d decided that this was the worst hangover he’d experienced in quite a while. He felt kind of funny walking too, and the smells… dear Lord, the smells were literally everywhere.

“Stay back!” A tiny voice said and Brian turned his head, frowning. He was sure there was no one else in the cramped room besides him and Keeko… so…
This day had started out really strange, and it had only just begun too. He’d woken up, had seen Keeko, who was practically frozen in shock. Had tried to calm her down. And then his son had walked in, nearly in the same state as the Maltese. Was he missing something here?

“Stay back! Please, don’t eat me!”

What the fuck?

It came from under the desk and when Brian bent down, he could see Keeko’s shaking form staring back at him.

The small dog squealed pathetically, pressing herself a little further back into the wall.

“G-get back!” the Maltese wheezed and Brian’s mouth dropped open.

Keeko talked.

Keeko. The dog he’d brought home from Japan years ago.

It talked. Why did it talk?

He blinked a few times and shook his head, trying to clear the strange haze that had accumulated in his mind. Stay away from the liquor next time, Brian, he told himself.

“Stay away, I said!” Keeko growled at him and he tilted his head, wondering if he should say anything back.

Sure, he talked to his dogs all the time, but he wasn’t used to them saying anything back.

“Keeko?” he stammered in confusion.

“You know my name. Why you know my name, wolf?” the small dog replied defensively.

“Y-you’re my dog…” Brian said uneasily.

This made Keeko pause for a second. “I’m not your dog, wolf,” she said eventually.

“What are calling me ‘wolf’ for?” Brian asked, feeling more and more confused as the seconds passed by. Keeko observed him intently for a few moments, not understanding.

“I know wolf when I see wolf,” she replied eventually.

“I’m not a w-” Brian started, looking down; then jumped up in shock. “What the hell is happening?” he yelled, panicking. His hands looked like white paws, the nails loudly tapping the wooden floor as he stomped down a few times. He turned around, bumping into a few boxes on his left. He felt his heart almost stop when he looked at the reflection in the mirror. The wolf that stared back was almost entirely white, with only a stripe of colour that ran from the top of its head to the end of the tail. His eyes were unusually blue and whenever Brian raised his hand, the reflection would raise its paw.

This was beyond insane.

Brian tried to look back over his shoulder, stunned by the large white tail that carelessly swept into a pile of lyric sheets, scattering them all over the confined office space.

He must be hallucinating.

“What are you doing, wolf?” Keeko’s voice cautiously asked. Keeko’s voice. It became stranger the longer he considered it.

“I’m not a wolf!” Brian snapped, “I’m Brian!”

Keeko narrowed her stare, then took a tentative forward, “Very funny, wolf,” she growled, “Brian is man.”

“I am a man!” Brian exclaimed, wondering who the hell had drugged him.

“You look like wolf,” Keeko concluded seriously. “I know wolf when I see wolf. I don’t like wolf.”

“I didn’t ask for this!” Brian countered in frustration, not caring that he was basically involved in a heated discussion with his Maltese.

“Wolf don’t wanna be wolf?” Keeko asked in confusion, slowly but surely finding the courage to come out of her hiding spot under the desk. “You strange wolf.”

“I am not a w-” Brian sighed, deciding it was no use. Keeko wouldn’t believe him unless he had proof.

Curiosity seemed to get the better of the small Maltese though as she peeked her head out from under the desk.

Brian studied her for a minute, “You can come on out, I’m not gonna eat you.”

“Wolf not hungry?” Keeko asked.

“No,” Brian grumbled, feeling his stomach growl in response.

“You strange wolf,” Keeko repeated, finally crawling out from under the desk.

“You can say that again,” Brian said absent-mindedly, looking at the door. “We should get out.”

Keeko let out a sound that sounded a bit like a laugh, “Can’t open door, wolf. Human closed it.”

“You don’t know that unless you tried,” Brian muttered the phrase he’d said to his son a billion of times. “We just have to find a way,” he said, pushing one of the desk chairs towards the door with his nose. The chair smelled of sweat and chewing gum, he realized. Once he was sure the chair was solidly pressed against the wall, he jumped up on it, trying to keep his balance as the chair turned with his momentum. He was well aware of Keeko’s eyes following his every move as he pressed one of his paws against the door handle. Closed.

Baylee had locked him in here.

He felt a spark of anger coursing through him before realizing that for all Baylee was aware of, there was a wild wolf in the studio. He snorted, a low growl that could only be of an animal escaping his mouth.

Thankfully, underneath the door handle was a knob that could unlock the door from the inside out. He grinned to himself, but felt his confidence slowly drain away when he realized that his paws could not physically turn the knob. Narrowing his eyes at the thing, he decided that this was the time for some desperate measures. Yet, after having attacked the door knob several times with his teeth, Brian decided that doors were solely something that humans could handle.

“Goddamnit.”

Defeated, he slowly got off the chair and sat on the floor. He started to wonder if Baylee would be brave enough to come back to the basement and rescue his dog.

What if Leighanne came down here? She would probably call the police; have him killed without knowing better. His heart hammering in his throat, he started to pace back and forth, irritated by the constant clicking of his nails on the wooden floor. The studio was soundproof; there was no way anyone could ever hear them down here. He relented a bit in the fact that his wife usually didn’t come here if she knew he wasn’t here. His stomach growled again and the smell of the potato chips that were hidden away in one of the desk’s drawers was so strong, it almost drove him automatically. Grabbing the drawer with strong jaws, he was glad to know he could at least open something.

Standing awkwardly on his hind legs, he rummaged through the drawer until he found what he’d been looking for.

Keeko gasped when he turned around with the bag of chips in his mouth. Her eyes widened and he could practically see the saliva streaming out of her small mouth. He dropped the bag and took a step back, studying it thoughtfully. “Now how do we open this?” he muttered.

Keeko squealed softly, overcome with the desire of having a full bag of potato chips to their disposal, but not being able to eat it because it was the wolf’s food. “Rip it, rip it,” she said quickly.

Brian frowned at the uncivilized thought of having to destroy a bag of chips with his teeth, inevitably scattering the whole studio floor with the food from the force, but his hunger was greater now and before he knew what he was doing, the bag was back in his mouth and he shook his head wildly to break it open. It didn’t take long before chips flew in every direction and Keeko gave an agonized yelp full of longing. Brian didn’t pay her attention, immediately chowing down on the potato snacks, growling in warning when Keeko came closer. The small Maltese immediately shrunk back, deciding to let the wolf finish first. Most of the chips was gone now and Brian realized that he’d never eaten anything this quick in his life. He saw Keeko quivering underneath the desk and took a step away from her, more than a little disturbed how his instinct had completely taken over once he was hungry.

He wasn’t a wolf.

He shouldn’t be acting like one either.

He sighed, curling up after jumping on the desk. He closed his eyes, but opened them again when he heard Keeko whimper in desperation. “Go on,” he murmured.

Keeko squealed, immediately reappearing from under the desk and licking up what little remained of the potato chips. “Thank you, wolf.”

“I’m not a wolf.”

“Okay.”

Brian rolled his eyes, moving around to see if he could get a comfortable enough position on the desk. “How do dogs even do this?” he wondered, grumbling as he put his head on his front legs and sighed in resignation.

When Keeko was finished eating, Brian saw her disappear underneath the desk again. He shook his head, wondering when Baylee would return. He would have to have a serious conversation with that child once he came back.

The wolf had incessantly stared at him for over ten minutes. Ten minutes of utter silence after Baylee had made a feeble attempt at explaining what he thought had happened. He couldn’t read his father’s mind, but his best guess was that Dad was thinking of all the reasons why he shouldn’t tear his son a new one.

Baylee hoped he came up with some good reasons.

“M-Maybe if we go back to the swamp, we can somehow, I dunno… undo it” he tried helplessly and the wolf narrowed its eyes even further, not buying his proposition. “Well, you can’t stay here!”

Five days was a long time to be missing. Baylee was actually quite impressed by the fact Mom hadn’t completely freaked out by now. It was only a matter of time before she went to the basement and found the wolf there. That would be bad. Baylee could already imagine how she would call animal control to get the wild carnivore killed.

Maybe if he told her the truth.

No, she wouldn’t buy that. He couldn’t blame her, cause it did sound kinda insane.

“Come on, we gotta go!” he urged his father. Dad gave him an angry snarl, but when he did follow his son closely, all the while grumbling things only he could understand.

They walked the basement stairs slowly, quietly. Or, as quietly as possible when you were accompanied by a clumsy wolf that had no idea how to properly behave like a wolf. Baylee did his best not to laugh at his father’s outrageous antics, cause he knew Dad would have his throat if he so much as snickered.

“Wait here,” Baylee whispered, holding up a hand to clarify his suggestion. “Imma see if the coast is clear, I’ll be right back,” he promised. Dad halted instantly.

“Good dog.”

Baylee closed the door before the wolf could jump him for that remark and chuckled slightly. He slowly crept through the house, trying to see if there was anyone there who would be severely disturbed by the sudden appearance of a wild wolf. That counted for almost anyone. Just when he thought there was no one in the house, he heard his Mom’s voice coming in from the back door. Cursing silently, he followed her voice and heard she wasn’t alone.

“We should really call the police,” a male voice suggested. Baylee would recognize it anywhere.

“And then what, Kevin? Have the entire press on our heads?” Mom countered. “They would just love a story like this. Imagine: Backstreet Boy leaves family and friends for no particular reason.”

“Is that what you think?” Kevin replied heatedly. “What if he didn’t leave, what if someone made him leave?”

Baylee’s eyes widened. They were talking kidnap. They were talking violence. They were talking police search parties on his ass.

“I’m sure it’s not that bad,” Mom whispered lamely.

“Do you know something I don’t, Leighanne? Cause if not, we have no way of knowing how bad it is.” Kevin fired.

“It’s just four days, I mean, he’s left before, he always comes back. Aren’t you just a little overreacting, Kev?”

“Maybe, but he’s never missed a bandmeeting before, so I’m kinda worried here, and you should be too.”

“Do the others know about this?” Mom questioned concerned.

“Well, I’ll say. It was pretty obvious when he didn’t show up during the conference.”

Mom sighed. “Okay, if he doesn’t show up before tomorrow night, we’ll call the police.”

Baylee decided it was time to show his face at this point. He found his mother and Kevin sitting at the dining table, obviously engaged in a heated discussion.

He hadn’t seen his father’s cousin in months and was amazed by how different Kevin looked. His hair was slowly but surely turning grey, as he didn’t care to dye it anymore now that the band was on hiatus. His green eyes were as piercing as ever, but held such a worried glance that Baylee physically shrunk back at the intensity in them.

When he came in, the conversation silenced and Mom and Kevin turned to look at him. “What’s going on?” Baylee asked as innocently as he could manage.

“Nothing honey, we were just talking,” Mom tried to reassure him immediately. Baylee did his best to avoid rolling his eyes. It was always the same. Nobody told him anything ever, because as far as they were concerned, he was just a kid. If only he knew what he’d done. If only they knew he was the cause of the whole problem to begin with.

Mom would ground him for years. Dad for life, definitely.

He shrugged, pretending not to care. “I’mma go outside to play with Keeko.”

“Keeko is back?” Mom asked, surprised.

“Yeah, guess she was in the basement and got stuck. I got her out though.”

Mom raised her eyebrows, “Wow. Well, good job.”

“Thanks,” Baylee replied softly, not looking at her.

The lie stung even more if he got praise for it. He walked out of the dining room quickly, returning to the basement. His father was obviously not happy with Baylee shutting the door in his face and it was fairly creepy to see the look of human disdain on a wolf’s features.

“The halls are safe, they’re in the kitchen,” Baylee said quietly, “Kevin is here.”

The wolf grumbled something before sliding past him into the hallway. Keeko yapped once and Dad growled at her. Keeko silenced immediately. As strange as it was seeing the wolf in his father’s studio, it was even more unsettling seeing him in the large entry hall of their home. The light was more natural here and Baylee was amazed by the crystal clear whiteness of the canine’s coat. It didn’t help that this particular wolf would be stupidly easy to spot from a mile away.

“We should go outside,” Baylee whispered and Dad nodded. Both Keeko and the wolf flashed past him when Baylee pulled open the heavy front door. “Wait!” Baylee yelled.

The animals turned to look at him, the wolf immediately started to pant because of the warm afternoon summer sun that was heating up the pathway. The wolf’s thick coat was meant for cold environments, Baylee knew and it wasn’t a particularly good idea to keep a wolf in a southern urban area in any case. “You gotta be careful,” Baylee muttered, “what if someone sees you?”

Dad narrowed his eyes and shook his head, obviously not used to his son telling him what to do. Baylee shrugged and led the animals around the house into the backyard, making sure to avoid being seen through the windows of the house. Mom and Kevin would have a fit if they could see him now. Although Baylee knew that Dad wouldn’t hurt him, the wolf looked positively starving. They’d need to find a food source soon, because Baylee didn’t think Dad would be particularly good at hunting wild rabbits for food. Carefully looking around, Baylee snuck between the two large trees on the right side of the backyard. When he was little, he used to call this place their own private little woods. It wasn’t big by any stretch of the imagination, consisting of maybe fifteen trees, but whenever he played outside, it had felt like he was in some kind of wild forest. When he was about six years old, Dad had even built a fort between the two trees in the middle, with wooden planks and metal pallets. The wood had gone a bit weary since then, and the metal was starting to rust, and Baylee was sure he hadn’t really played here in years. He looked back at his father, who was still perched on the grass right outside of the ‘woods’. The idea of getting into the old fort didn’t seem to appeal to him.

“Come on,” Baylee waved at him, “Nobody will find you here,” he said. Dad looked back nervously; then seemed to make up his mind and followed his son into the woods. He sat down right outside the old fort and looked up at Baylee questioningly.

“It’ll be cooler here,” Baylee explained, “Wolf’s don’t really do summer in big southern cities, you know?”

Dad growled quietly, reminding Baylee that it was his fault all along. Baylee sighed and opened the plastic flap that served as a door. “I’ll see if I can get some water and some chicken from the fridge,” Baylee mumbled, noticing his father’s mouth immediately started to drool at the mention of food. “Mom won’t find you here, but she thinks you’re missing, so we gotta get this right again before she calls the police for real.”

Baylee bit his lip, wishing his father could communicate in other ways than growling and grumbling and looking angrily at him. “Can you howl?” he added as an afterthought.

Dad tilted his head in confusion. “Just try, like this,” Baylee muttered, closing his eyes and trying to imitate a wolf’s howl as best as he could. Dad looked at him, unimpressed and shook his head. “We need to have some sort of code,” Baylee sighed, “when something is up, you howl and I’ll come.”

Dad rolled his eyes, but threw back his head and howled anyway. It sounded loud and eerie and sent shivers running down Baylee’s spine. “Wow,” he whispered. He could blame the howling on the neighbour’s husky. It should work.

“Alright, tomorrow we’ll go to the swamp and we’ll get you back to normal,” Baylee nodded, trying to convince himself. “You stay here for now, I’ll get the chicken.”

Dad’s glare followed him all the way to the edge of the woods.

Brian had never been a fan of camping. Bugs would creep almost anywhere and it was either too cold and too wet, or too warm and too dry for his comfort. Right now it was the latter. The thick fur on his body did not help any matters as the sun shone bright in the cloudless sky. The trees’ shadows brought some relief, but the itching remained. He couldn’t understand how people preferred sleeping under the stars over sleeping in their own, well-made beds. He hadn’t built a luxurious house with all the comforts they could ever need for nothing. He was not an outdoors person.

He stomped down on one of the bugs that got a little too close and panted. The remainders of the chicken Baylee had brought back with him lay next to his tail and he chewed one of the bones absently, wondering how he could have ever ended up here. He’d done a lot of thinking in the four days he’d spent in the basement.

He wondered if something like this had ever happened to other people and how they got back to normal, if they ever did. Just the thought of having to spend the rest of his life as a wild canine was more than he could handle.

Keeko was intently staring at the chicken bones and Brian rolled his eyes, flinging one of the bones in her direction. Although Keeko was certainly not the smartest conversation partner out there, it was far better than nothing and the easy ways in which he could satisfy the six year old Maltese were kind of amusing to watch. Although Keeko still didn’t comprehend that he wasn’t actually a wolf, she seemed to have picked him as her new best friend forever, just because he provided her with food every now and then. He smiled to himself; the Maltese and the Wolf, now there was a story right there.

Brian sighed as he heard and felt his stomach rumble.

The little portion of chicken that Baylee had given him was not nearly enough for a full sized wolf. He could smell every single wild rabbit that wandered around in his backyard, but he knew that he wasn’t supposed to leave this spot. If his wife came out and saw him stalking in the perfectly cut green grass in pursuit of a defenceless little rabbit, she would definitely scream. Maybe he could eat the bugs? He shuddered at that idea, despite the heat.

No bugs.

His ears pricked up when he heard the branches break a couple of yards away. The smell of rabbit was stronger now and he silently thanked the Lord for sending this meal his way. He got up slowly, trying not to make any noise, focusing on the rabbit’s sounds with all his might. Keeko seemed to know what he was doing, because she, for once, did not make a sound. Brian held his breath, placing one of his paws soundlessly on the soft, mossy ground and keeping his head low. He licked his lips when he finally caught sight of the small animal that was still completely oblivious to his presence. He did feel a little bit sorry about what was going to happen, but considering the rabbit infestation had been quite a problem in his backyard for a few months now, he figured one more or less didn’t matter.

Staring intensely at the rodent, he got closer and closer and finally he jumped. At the last possible second, the rabbit turned and saw him before jumping out of his way. Brian was left to pound on the now empty spot, but didn’t give up. The rabbit was fast, but the wolf was hungry and his legs were larger. The prey zigzagged from side to side and it was dizzying at first, but Brian soon found out that it would always meet in the middle and with one swoop, the rabbit was suddenly in his mouth, struggling wildly, its legs bashing against his jaw. Without giving himself the time to get second thoughts, the wolf bit down and the rabbit stilled.

Brian dropped the animal immediately. He’d just killed a rabbit with his teeth. The thought was more than disgusting. Keeko’s happy barks surely brought him out of his trance and the Maltese danced victoriously around the dead rabbit. “We got rabbit, we got rabbit, we got rabbit,” she squealed excitedly.

“We?” Brian grumbled.

“Wolf got rabbit,” Keeko whispered, standing still.

“Are we supposed to eat this with hair and blood and all?” Brian wondered, but his stomach growled in response. The first bite was strange, but then everything seemed to go automatically as he devoured the small animal mercilessly. He made sure to leave a small portion for Keeko. Keeko was ecstatic.

Listlessly, Brian lay down on the ground. It was too warm to even think. He cursed himself for drinking all the water Baylee brought at once. Why did he have to be a wolf? Why couldn’t he have been transformed in something with a little less hair? He rolled onto his side and put his head on the ground, panting loudly.

Dogs really needed better heat management, he thought, because the panting was exhausting. He had no idea what time it was, but it looked like it was going dark soon.

Maybe then he could get out and drink water from the pond without being seen? His tongue felt like dry paper in his mouth now and his legs seemed to be made of lead. He was so thirsty, he couldn’t wait until nightfall.

It was sort of strange to him how his motivations and thoughts seemed to be driven almost solely by basic needs like food, water and sleep. He guessed it was the animal counterpart of the wolf’s body and brain that he’d been transformed into. It would yearn for the taste of food, any food, for that matter. It would devour a raw rabbit without thinking twice. It would sneak out of its hiding place to quench its thirst. He made sure to hide behind every little bush on his way over to the pond. He cursed himself again for having the pond in such a clear sight from the house. He’d liked to watch over his backyard, including the pond, from the living room whenever he was working on writing songs or making music. If anyone was in the living room, they would certainly be able to see the snow white wolf drinking from the pond’s water. He stood behind the bush closest to the pond, contemplating if he should just wing it and drink and maybe run if he was seen, or if he should wait and find a better way.

The decision was made for him when he looked up and saw someone moving inside the living room of his house.

Damnit. He immediately lowered his head back down.

Maybe it was Baylee.

Maybe not.

Should he howl?

He could howl.

He howled. The sound cut through the air and birds flew up from the trees. Brian cringed at the loudness. It didn’t really sound like something you could blame on the husky next door, unless the dog had gotten an amplifier. He saw the figure in the living room get closer to the window and sighed in relief when he noticed it was his son. Brian stepped away from the bushes and looked directly at him. He saw Baylee hurry out of the room and sighed.

“What are you doing?” Baylee called as he ran outside.

The boy was wearing a jacket, which Brian found ridiculous, considering the heat. “Mom could have seen you!”

Brian squinted at him in annoyance; then looked at the pond. Baylee’s eyes widened in understanding. “You need more water?” he asked and Brian nodded. Baylee looked up at the sky and mumbled, “It’s way too warm for you here.” Brian nodded again.

“I got an idea,” Baylee said, pushing the wolf back to its place behind the bushes and then he ran to the house once again. With a frustrated growl, Brian lowered his head. He eyed one of the ducks that sat opposite of the pond and wondered if he should just catch it and bring it back to the fort. No. He’d done enough killing for today. He didn’t look forward to the moment Baylee found out he’d hunted a wild rabbit and ate it. It wasn’t something he was proud of, though his hunting skills had been superb. They would come in handy if he did need to live out his life in the wilderness. His stomach clenched at that thought.

Baylee came back out of the house with a water hose in his hands. Brian smiled to himself, immediately understanding the idea. The boy fitted one end of the hose to the outside tap near the pond and then started rolling the thing out into the ‘woods’. Brian slinked back behind the trees as well as Baylee ran back to the pond and turned on the tap. Brian decided that the water was the best he’d ever tasted as he swallowed it down in large gulps. Baylee came back with a complacent smile on his face and Brian took the end of the hose in his mouth and aimed at his son. Baylee screeched as the cold water hit him in the stomach first, and then in his face. There, Brian thought; that was for turning him into a wolf. Dripping wet, Baylee looked at him and grinned, then took the hose in his hands and pulled.

Before the hose could leave his mouth, Brian bit down and held on tightly. They were both pulling now and Baylee laughed, trying to avoid the stream of water that Brian was still attempting to aim at him. He gave another quick pull and the hose sprang free from the wolf’s jaw. Baylee grabbed it and directed it at his father, who welcomed the cold water on his overheated coat immediately. Keeko was running circles around them and tried to catch the stream with her mouth.

“Baylee?” A voice suddenly came from the backdoor of the house. Baylee and Brian both froze and Baylee dropped the hose immediately.

“Yeah?”

“What are you doing?” Leighanne asked and Brian felt his heart hammer in his throat as he heard her voice get closer. Baylee was waving at him to get into the fort and he quickly got to his feet.

“Me and Keeko are just playing with the hose,” Baylee answered as innocently as possible. Brian couldn’t help but frown at the smooth lie as it fell from his son’s lips.

“Okay,” Leighanne said, “Make sure to put it back when you’re done. Dinner is almost ready.”

“It’s pretty dry here,” Baylee answered and Brian could see his wife from behind the planks of the fort as she stepped into the Woods carefully, “I think I should leave the hose on for tonight, it’ll be good for the ground.”

“Maybe,” Leighanne hesitated; then looked at the fort, and Brian lowered his head immediately. She shook her head; then looked back at her son, “Do you even ever play with that fort anymore?”

“Sometimes,” Baylee shrugged.

“That’s a lie,” his mother smiled. “Your father did his best on that, you know?”

Baylee sighed and turned to the fort as well, “I know.”

Ajamu watched the two trudge across the swamp. The boy couldn’t be older than twelve or thirteen; his blond, wild curls dancing with every step he took. Ajamu sensed a universal, innocent naivety in him, like most children his age possessed. There was also a sense of guilt, which undoubtedly had to do with the reason he came here. He didn’t seem to mind the white wolf following him closely. Ajamu would have found that weird; dangerous even, but she could see the animal’s true form. The middle aged man didn’t seem pleased with his swamp surroundings as he slunk through the mud and branches. Ajamu smiled to herself. It had been over seventy years since a true transformation had taken place. Sure, kids came here all the time, often jokingly trying to curse each other. The last time something actually happened though, was seventy years ago. Ajamu remembered it well. The young child had turned his sister into a deer. Ajamu didn’t exactly know the technicalities of how the ancient curse worked, but she knew that when the right circumstances were met, the curse could be quite powerful. Old spirits and old magic were at work here, she knew. She respected the old swamp and in turn, it gave her all she needed to survive. They were one and the same, they lived through each other.

Ajamu hadn’t been a hundred percent sure it would work though. Not until she saw it with her own eyes. The pair moved slowly, the boy talking all the while in a hushed tone and the wolf growling things back at him. It was clear the father was in no way amused with the situation. Ajamu smiled to herself and nodded. The curse would never have worked if there wasn’t a big lesson, a big change in the future for these two.

Something powerful, something big, something neither would ever forget. That’s how it was supposed to work, at least.

It wasn’t without danger though. These curses were ancient and merciless. The longer they were active, the more effect they had on the subject. Ajamu could sense that the man already felt it, the era old instinct of a predator, a wild animal that had no business in the near proximity of a child. The longer the man stayed in this form, the stronger the instinct would become and once it took over completely, there would be no way back. Ajamu moved silently through the trees towards the spot the two travellers were slowly walking. They halted immediately when they saw her. The boy stopped talking and the wolf actually growled at her. She scowled at him and he stepped back, unsure.

“Who are you?” the boy asked. His voice was steady, but Ajamu could feel the uncertainty in him. She put on her friendliest smile.

“My name is Ajamu, I live here in the swamp,” she introduced herself, and when the two visitors didn’t react, she continued, “I see that the two of you have a problem.”

The boy studied her intently, his brow furrowing, and then pointed at the wolf, “You know what he is,” he stated, rather than asking.

“He is your father,” Ajamu replied, her smile remaining.

The boy seemed taken aback by her straight answer and the father looked at her strangely, “Can you fix him?” the boy’s tone was adamant, but his eyes were pleading.

“I cannot,” Ajamu admitted and the child’s face fell and a low rumble came from the wolf’s throat.

“You did this to him!” the young man said, angry now.

Ajamu looked back at him, unfazed by his temper, “I did not do this to your father, Baylee.”

The boy’s eyes widened at the mention of his name. “Who are you?” he whispered.

“I have already told you. Your father has been cursed by an ancient power that lives through these woods, lives through many, many woods. I do not control it. Nobody does. Although you have initiated the curse, you did not control it.”

The child looked at her, not understanding. She sighed, “The two of you are in this situation because you are meant to be.”

The boy and the wolf looked at each other for a second, “What do we do?” Baylee asked quietly.

“You must travel north,” Ajamu explained slowly, “Deeply in the woods of Minnesota’s Superior National Forest lies the most ancient source of this magic. This could undo the curse. The woods are deep, however, many dangers are ahead.”

The child bit his lip nervously, “Why do I feel like I just got trapped in a fantasy movie?”

“This is not a movie, young man,” Ajamu replied immediately, “And you need to stop thinking of calling the police on me, you cannot call anybody when you’re an animal” she said, pointing a finger towards the wolf, who stepped back guiltily.

“How do we get there?” Baylee asked and Ajamu melted at the naive innocence in his eyes.

“I’m confident you will find a way.”

“I can’t get a wolf on a plane.”

“I have told you where you need to go, it is up to you now. I must warn you though. The journey will not be easy, but you must hurry. The biggest danger can come from the inside,” Ajamu whispered, looking into the wolf’s light blue eyes, “You’ve already felt it, haven’t you?” The wolf looked back at her for a moment, then nodded slowly, worry suddenly clouding his thoughts.

“Dad? What is she talking about?” Baylee asked, uncertain.

The father looked at his son helplessly and Ajamu cleared her throat, “The longer he stays a wolf, the stronger his wolf instinct will become. The more he will become a wolf, the less he will still be your father. Once the transformation is complete, there will be no way back.”

The young boy paled and Ajamu could feel the panic that raced through him. “How long will that take?” he choked out quietly.

“It’s hard to say, it differs per case. Seventy years ago, it took the girl three weeks to fully transform. She was not a predator though. Wolves are dangerous animals, Baylee. Be careful.” The wolf shot her a hurtful glance, but Ajamu ignored him as she kept her gaze on the young boy. “Just remember that the strongest thing in these types of curses is family. Find allies that you trust on your journey and you will make it.”

“Has anybody ever turned back?” Baylee whispered fearfully.

“A few have,” Ajamu said.

“Do you think you could pass as a dog?” Baylee asked his father.

The man looked at his son indignantly, but nodded nevertheless. “Alright then,” Baylee swallowed.

“I wish you luck,” Ajamu told the two before disappearing into the swamp again.

“Okay, so we send her a text, saying you’ll be home soon and not to worry,” Baylee said, clutching his father’s phone in his hands. He’d taken it with him when he’d let Dad out of the basement. There was no need in Mom finding it and freaking out; assuming Dad had gone missing without taking his phone.

Dad looked at him from where he was laying on the ground. “She’ll be pissed at you for sending a text and not calling her, but that will have to do.” Baylee stared hopelessly at the eighty missed calls from the last six days. About seventy percent were from his mother, and the others were either angry managers or the guys themselves. “Do we tell her where you are?” he asked his father, who seemed to think about that for a moment, “I mean, where do you usually go?” It sounded a bit accusatory, but that was how Baylee felt about his father just randomly leaving now and then.

The wolf made a whining sound and Baylee sighed, not for the first time wishing that his father could just speak with him. He’d like to know where his father went when he left and put an end to the mystery, but for some reason, Dad never disclosed his location. And it was not like he could tell him now. “We can’t tell her,” Baylee mumbled, “we mustn’t tell her we are going to leave.”

The wolf whined again, putting a paw on Baylee’s leg. “She’ll never believe me,” Baylee whispered, “She’ll have you taken away or killed.”

Dad tilted his head and then looked down, nodding. “You wouldn’t believe it either,” Baylee said quietly. The thought of a young boy conversing with a wolf in the backyard would set any parent off. “Do you think they’ll send search parties after me?” Baylee smiled, “Backstreet Boy’s son runs away from home; parents are unavailable for commentary.”

A noise that sounded a suspicious amount like a human groan left the wolf’s throat and he lay back down.

Baylee laughed. He was pretty sure he’d make the news, but it was the least of his concerns, as he still had no idea how to make it all the way to Minnesota with a wolf in tow. The witch in the swamp had said they’d needed allies and friends, but Baylee was pretty sure no one in their right mind would believe him when he told them his father had transformed into a wolf and he needed to break the curse by travelling into the woods of Minnesota. Jason, maybe, could be a companion, but that would mean two children ran away from home and Baylee wasn’t sure if he wanted Jason to get involved.

And could he convince somebody to go with him without knowing what the journey was for?

Maybe.

Baylee’s eyes lit up when he got an idea. He stared at the names on the phone that had been calling repeatedly. They were desperate to know where his father was and if Baylee could provide them with even the vaguest answers, there might be a chance of an ally there. So Baylee decided to call the first name that appeared on the missed calls besides his mother. The phone rang only once before it was picked up.

“Brian?” The voice sounded astonished and maybe a little bit angry.

“No, it’s Baylee,” Baylee replied.

“Bay?” Nick sighed, the disappointment evident in his voice, “wait, you got your dad’s phone? Do you know where he is? I’ve been trying to call him for days.”

“I-I kinda know where he is,” Baylee stammered, wondering if this was such a good idea after all as he looked at the angry wolf’s face. “But I can’t tell. We gotta go get him.”

“Wait, what?” Nick sounded incredulous and Baylee sighed. “Is this a joke?”

“No! It’s... it’s complicated, alright? But we gotta go get him, he is in Minnesota.”

“Why can’t he come by himself?” Nick replied and Baylee could tell Nick no longer took him seriously.

“He’s kinda... stuck there,” Baylee said and saw the wolf shake his head and grumble from the corner of his eye.

“Baylee, are you okay?” Nick asked, a hint of concern now in his voice.

“I’m fine!” Baylee barked into the phone and tried to ignore the wolf’s snort. Nick was making him look like an idiot. “Can you just come over here?”

He heard Nick sigh on the other end, and although he knew Nick was practically at the other side of the country, he had never been able to deny Baylee anything. “There’s something up with you.”

“Whatever,” Baylee mumbled, “Just come up here, please,” he pleaded now, “I have something to show you.”

“Fine, it’s not like we’re working now anyway,” Nick sighed and Baylee felt a sense of relief. If he could tell his mom he was going with Nick, she wouldn’t freak out as much as she would when he just up and left. Nick was probably curious enough now to take a plane trip over here just to see what Baylee had to show him.

After saying goodbye, Baylee turned to his father, who was staring intensely at him. “What?”

The wolf rolled his eyes and shook his head, clearly not happy with the situation. Baylee just shrugged, “Well, it seems like I’m the one that has to make the decisions now,” he told his father. The wolf’s eyes narrowed and a low grumble left his throat. “I’m not scared of you,” Baylee said, although knowing it wasn’t the truth. The witch in the woods had said his father would eventually turn into a normal wolf and wolves were dangerous beasts. Baylee shook whenever he thought about the notion that his father could turn on him, without meaning to. He hoped they got to their destination before that could happen. But still, he felt a shiver run over his spine whenever he reminded himself of the dead rabbits he’d found in a neat little pile outside of the fort. His old Dad would never have been able to kill a rabbit with his bare hands, but this wolf seemed to have zero problems whatsoever.

Baylee knew that they didn’t have nearly enough meat in the house to satisfy a wolf’s diet, but the dead rabbits were an unwelcome sight.

He’d already packed his bags at the time Nick showed up in his rental car. He’d kinda hurt his mother when he said he needed to go with Nick to do some ‘guy’s stuff.’ First Dad had left, and now her son was leaving as well. Baylee had promised he’d be home by the end of the week and although he didn’t exactly know if it was true, it had made his mother a little less tense. He ran over to the backyard when he saw Nick pulling up in the front lane and pulled his Dad out of the fort with the dog leash. Dad was absolutely furious that Baylee had put a leash on him and although Baylee had tried to explain that it would help with the illusion that he was a dog, rather than a wolf, it didn’t make his father less pissed. The wolf shook his head wildly as Baylee pulled him out, growling and grumbling, his sharp teeth bared. Baylee rolled his eyes and decided to just drag the wolf over to the car then, if he was going to make a fuss.

“Can you just behave, it has to look like you’re trained properly,” Baylee hissed as they neared the car. Once Nick was in clear sight, the wolf suddenly stopped struggling and walked next to Baylee perfectly.

“Holy fuck!” Nick screeched out when he caught eyes on them. The color in his face drained away immediately and he fell back against his car, bracing himself.

“Baylee, for fuck’s sake, what the hell do you think you’re doing with that?”

“Relax,” Baylee said, “It’s just a dog.”

“That,” Nick replied, pointing a finger, “is not a dog. Get away from it!”

“It’s a hybrid and he’s really friendly,” Baylee defied, “A cross between a husky male and a wolf female, if you must know. It’s from a friend who can no longer take care of it.”

“Why? Because it’s too dangerous?” Nick questioned, although he seemed to calm down somewhat. “I don’t believe your parents would just let you have an animal like this.”

“Well, my Dad’s not here and my mom.... doesn’t exactly know about the dog.”

“Oh, for crying out loud,” Nick sighed, bringing a hand to his face and sagging against the car, “Is that what you called me over for? To get rid of a dog?”

“Sort of,” Baylee replied, biting his lip.

“Your Dad’s not really in Minnesota, is he?” Nick grumbled.

“Not exactly, no,” Baylee admitted, staring at the ground, “But he said he’s going there.”

“How do you talk to him if you have his phone?” Nick wondered.

“I, eh, he emailed me,” Baylee said. Lying was hard. Couldn’t he just tell Nick the truth? No, not yet. Nick would laugh at him and call his mom. And then he’d be in even more trouble than he already was.

Nick looked at him sceptically, “Whatever. I’m guessing this dog is going to Minnesota as well then?”

Baylee nodded silently and Nick looked at him sternly, “Bay, you don’t have to lie to me, alright? If your Dad is not in Minnesota, that’s fine. I’ll help you get rid of the dog, just keep it away from me.”

Baylee nodded again, opening the car door. A loud yapping sound cut through the air and he looked up. A small ball of white raced towards him and then jumped up into the car. “I guess Keeko is coming too,” Baylee mumbled.

“Oh God, we’re gonna have a canine invasion here,” Nick muttered. “Wouldn’t that wolfdog eat her if she as much as breathed his way?”

“No no,” Baylee said, getting into the passenger side after letting the two animals into the backseat, “They’re actually best friends.”

“Unbelievable,” Nick grumbled. “Does he have a name?”

“Thomas,” Baylee replied carelessly. “But you call him Thom.”

The highway stretched out before them and Nick blinked a few times. They should be finding a hotel to sleep for the night, but Nick wondered if they’d ever find one where they’d allow pets like the two currently sitting in his backseat. Baylee had asked if they shouldn’t be taking a plane to Minnesota, but Nick had argued that customs wouldn’t probably allow a hybrid wolf dog to be transferred to another state, even if they could convince them that the dog was indeed a dog.

Nick didn’t blame them.

Looking in the rearview, he shivered again. The dog looked decidedly more like a wolf than a dog and its behaviour was very odd, to say the least. It didn’t bark, it didn’t get excited, it just stared out of the window, and sometimes, Nick could swear it stared back at him when he looked through the mirror. How did Baylee ever end up with this animal? He hadn’t been able to get much out of the young teenager about the dog’s history. Baylee had insisted he’d gotten it from a friend, but what kind of parents would let a child keep a dog like this? Sure, it wasn’t acting aggressively or anything, but it looked terrifying. If Nick would have seen it on its own, he would have surely called animal control, assuming it was a wild wolf, and not a dog. That was actually what he’d intended to do when he’d met up with Baylee, regardless of what the boy was trying to convince him of.

Because the dog didn’t act like a dog.

But then again, it didn’t act like a wolf either. It was silent and calm as it sat in the backseat, patiently waiting for them to get to wherever they needed to go. Not even the best trained dog in the world could sit still for such a long period of time and the way the dog watched him through the window every now and then confused Nick even more.

There was certainly something wrong with this dog, and Baylee seemed to know exactly what it was, but refused to say anything. Nick sighed and turned off the highway. “I guess we could sleep here in the car for the night.”

“We’re not even in Missouri yet,” Baylee mumbled.

“No, but I’m tired, and I don’t want to crash the car. Especially not with an exotic animal in it.”

“I already told you, he’s not an exotic animal. Just a dog.”

“Sure,” Nick grumbled, “He doesn’t even react to his name.”

“I didn’t say he listened very well.”

“At least the Maltese is sleeping. I think we should follow that example.”

“But I don’t want to sleep in the car,” Baylee muttered.

“Too bad, you brought the dogs; you deal with the consequences of not getting a place to sleep.” Nick replied sternly, looking around, trying to find a quiet parking spot between the trees. He shouldn’t have come.

He should have stayed home when he suspected that Baylee was messing with him. The boy really seemed to have a problem, but refused to let him in on that secret. What? Was he just using Nick as a driver?

Minnesota was a long drive, and at this rate, it would take them at least two days to get there. He should have just stayed home. His wife was pregnant, for crying out loud! She’d let him go when he told her he was going to help Baylee find his father, but couldn’t tell if she believed him or thought that he just needed an excuse to get away from the thought of pregnancy for a while.

Was that why he’d agreed to come so readily?

Nick shook his head, finally stopping the car at what looked like a silent picnic place in the woods. The dogs would love it here, he figured, although he wasn’t sure if the hybrid loved anything at this point. He suggested to let them out for a while and Baylee immediately agreed. The Maltese woke up upon opening the car door and instantly jumped out. The wolf dog looked at them first for a moment before sighing and getting out of the car much slower. Nick swore he could see it roll its eyes as it ventured after the much smaller dog. Baylee bit his lip, “Don’t go too far, Thom,” he called after the dogs, as if it would understand.

“You don’t need a leash or anything?” Nick mumbled as he watched the retreating animals. “It would sure be a shame to drive all the way just to lose the dogs here.”

“Nah,” Baylee said, “They’ll be back in a flash, just watch.”

Baylee seemed to be right. After just five minutes, the two canines appeared again. Nick recoiled when he saw the wolf dog trot over to them with what seemed to be a dead duck in its mouth. “Oh for God’s sake, he killed a duck.”

Baylee’s eyes darkened, “Yeah, he does that sometimes. It’s a bad habit.”

The dog seemed undisturbed as it went to lay next to a tree and carefully dropped the duck to the ground.

Nick’s stomach churned. “Baylee, come sit here for a minute,” he said, not taking his eyes off the wolf dog.

They sat down silently at the picnic table and Nick noticed his friend’s son avoiding any type of eye contact. “Bay,” he sighed, “What is going on here?”

“I already told you,” Baylee replied silently.

“I know, and I don’t believe you,” Nick said back in the same tone, still watching the dog, who was now carefully examining its caught prey, “There’s something very strange about that dog, and I have a feeling it somehow connects with your father missing, how am I doing so far?”

Baylee’s gaze dropped to the table and Nick assumed that the boy was contemplating telling the truth, or coming up with another lie. It took nearly two full minutes for the teenager to reply, but when he looked up, Nick could see desperation and tears in his eyes and knew it was the truth the boy had decided on, “It’s Dad.”

“What?” Nick’s brow furrowed and the wolf dog looked up at them immediately, seemingly startled.

Baylee looked down at the table again and licked his lips, steeling himself before continuing, “The dog, it’s Dad.”

“Are you okay?”

“No!” Baylee yelled, “I screwed everything up and now Dad’s cursed and a dog. Well, a wolf, technically. It’s not a hybrid, it’s an actual wolf.”

Nick blinked at the stream of information that was suddenly spewed at him. He could tell Baylee meant every word, but none of it made any sense. Something was definitely wrong with the boy. Maybe the thought of his father leaving had taken its toll on his mind? Poor child.

“Baylee, it’s okay,” Nick mumbled.

“No! You don’t understand!” Baylee cried, “I’m not lying, Nick! Dad’s cursed because of me! And we have to go to a certain forest in Minnesota to lift the curse and I hope we get there in time, because if we’re too late, he’ll actually be a wolf for real.”

Nick’s frown grew deeper as he observed the boy, then the dog that had silently come closer and watched them closely. The wolf dog’s eyes did look familiar now. No.

That couldn’t be. No way in hell. “Baylee, we can find help,” Nick pleaded.

“No!” Baylee yelled, in tears now, “Dad, just show him!”

Nick turned to the hybrid, who was throwing glances back and forth between him and Baylee, uncertain. A high pitched whine escaped its throat; then it started to swipe its paw over the ground.

“What the hell is he doing?” Nick asked, astonished.

Another high pitched whine; then the dog turned, grabbed the half eaten duck and threw it at Nick, before continuing to swipe at the ground. It took Nick a few seconds to realize the dog was actually writing something in the forest ground. His eyes widened at the realisation. Yes, it said when the dog was finished and stepped back to look at it.

“Oh my God,” Nick choked out, his stomach tightening, “Brian?”

The dog nodded excessively and jumped, but Nick recoiled. “This has to be a joke,” Nick brought out, his eyes wide as the dog looked at him with his head cocked to the side, “Baylee, did you train him to do this?”

“No,” Baylee replied, “Do I look like someone that can teach a dog how to write?”

“Oh my God,” Nick repeated, “How the fuck did this happen?”

“It’s all my fault,” Baylee sighed.

Brian watched nervously from the backseat. They were supposed to be asleep right now, but he could tell nobody was actually sleeping. He could hear their breathing and smell the sharp peppermints Baylee had in his pockets. He could smell everything and it steadily drove him insane. Was this what it was like for all dogs? The smells. Unbelievable.

Brian was surprised that Nick hadn’t run screaming once Baylee told him everything. He still wondered if the younger man actually believed Baylee, or if he’d decided to just play along and wondered what he should do with the young teenager who had seemingly lost his mind.

Brian wondered if they hadn’t all lost their minds.

Brian looked at the small Maltese that lay curled up next to him. She was blissfully unaware of the strangeness of their situation. All she knew was that she found a companion in a wolf that not only protected her, but gave her food and a conversation partner. He’d never seen his dog so content. And now that she was on an adventure, she seemed even happier. At least one of us is, Brian thought.

He looked up when he heard a small sound outside of the vehicle. He whined softly when he noticed that Nick and Baylee’s breathing had actually evened out and they were actually asleep now. He hated outdoor camping. What if someone came out here to kill them? They were horribly unprotected. His eyes widened when he realized that they weren’t actually unprotected; he was. He would have to serve as protector. Supposedly, any potential attacker would be scared to death at the sight of a wild wolf camping out in the back of a car. He would have to growl at them and threaten to bite them and he didn’t want to do that. He’d been able to repress the instinctual urges of the wolf in him fairly well since they’d visited the swamp. Alright, he’d let himself slip when he caught the rabbits in the backyard, and today, with the duck, but that was just because he was hungry, and rabbit and duck served as marvellous meals to still hunger. He hadn’t felt any urge to act feral towards humans at all and he couldn’t imagine ever doing so. He would never hurt Nick or Baylee, that thought was even impossible to think.

The noise outside came closer and Brian sighed in relief as he noticed the scent of raccoon getting stronger.

Would raccoon taste the same as rabbit or duck? He shook his head, he didn’t need to think about food right now.

He needed to sleep. But he wasn’t tired. And the raccoon smelled so good. It wasn’t as warm out in the woods right now as it was during the day, and Brian felt alive as he unlocked the car door with his teeth, opened it and jumped out. He made sure to close the door softly before looking around. He stuck his nose in the air, trying to catch the scent of the raccoon. Staying low to the ground, he began to make his way over towards the picnic table. The raccoon was right there, picking at the remains of the dead duck.

Brian felt the branch snap under his feet before looking up. The raccoon stared at him for a flash second before taking off. Damnit. Brian followed its scent the best he could, but the animal was fast as it raced through the trees into the darkness. Without thinking, Brian followed it into the woods, feeling the ground alive under his feet, the smell of nature clung to his nose and the feeling of belonging getting stronger and stronger. The raccoon was tiring, he could feel it. Brian didn’t give up as he saw the raccoon getting slower and slower, shooting from right to left in a blind panic. Did it know it was going to die? With triumph on his mind, Brian jumped at it, but was suddenly roughly shoved aside by another force.

He yelped as he fell on his side in surprise, quickly jumping up to see whatever had so harshly pushed him out of the way. He froze when the bear snarled at him. How deep had he gone into these woods? Where did that bear come from? Why hadn’t he smelled it coming? The small source of moonlight that reached this part of the woods reflected in the bear’s eyes and Brian gulped, slowly retreating and making sure he stayed low to the ground.

He had already screwed the bear out of a raccoon for dinner, so it probably wouldn’t think twice attacking a wolf half its size. He felt his whole body shaking and winced when he cut his paw on a rather sharp rock. The smell of blood didn’t help matters at all. Brian quickly kicked the rock in the bear’s direction, leaving it stunned for a split second, and took off running. He realized he had no idea where he was going, desperately trying to pick up the scent of the car, or the dead duck, or anything that reminded him of the place he’d come from, for that matter. He’s breathing hitched in his throat as he heard the bear’s angry growls behind him. It was getting closer and he was getting tired. Panicked, he began to make sharp turns, trying to throw the bear off his track and hoping that it would be enough. Thankfully, it did create a larger distance between them and Brian continued his tactic until he caught scent of the car again.

With renewed hope, he sped up, running out of the thick woods and unto the open picnic place. He threw himself against the car, yelping and howling for the people inside to wake up and let him back in. They needed to go, they needed to leave, and they needed to not be eaten by a wild grizzly bear. As expected, the big wolf throwing itself at the small rental car did cause some stirring inside and the passenger door was flung open, Baylee looking at the canine with wide eyes.

“What the hell?” the teenager mumbled. Brian wasted no time as he jumped into the now open car and Baylee actually shrieked in fear. “Dad!” Baylee cried out, “what are you doing? Get off me! How’d you get out?” Brian paid him no mind, still in a complete panic as he moved and turned in the cramped front seat of the car. He yelped and whined and growled, whishing that he could just scream at Baylee and Nick to get the car moving and get the hell out of here.

“Jesus, Dad!” Baylee yelled again, spluttering as the wolf’s tail smashed into his face, “Get in the backseat!”

Brian finally got the hint and moved between the two seats and scrambled onto the backseat. He kept whining and growling, then silenced when he heard the bear’s snarl in the distance. The others seemed to hear it as well and Nick’s eyes grew as large as Brian had ever seen them. The Backstreet Boy struggled with his keys for a moment before starting the engine. Panting, Brian stood perched on the backseat, shaking and with his paw throbbing. He felt the car move and Keeko looked up at him with a thousand questions in her eyes, not much unlike the incessant stare Baylee was giving him or the glances Nick was throwing through the rearview mirror.

Brian’s legs gave out underneath him, partly in relief, partly in exhaustion and he dropped unto the seat. He couldn’t explain what had happened, but he was sure Baylee would play twenty questions with him soon enough about it. But right now, he was too tired, as he lay his head on his front legs, growling at Keeko as she tried to lick at the blood that was coming from his right paw.

Nick was mumbling curses as he drove the car out of the woods. Brian felt maybe a little guilty about disturbing his sleep and making him drive in the middle of the night, but he soon forgot about it as he drifted off to sleep himself.

“Would you sit still for a second?” Baylee asked in frustration as the wolf yelped and pulled his paw out of Baylee’s hands. “You’re still bleeding. I still want to know what happened.”

Dad sighed and put his paw back into Baylee’s hands.

The cut wasn’t deep, but it was large and might need stitches. Baylee didn’t exactly look forward to taking his father to the vet. There was blood all over the backseat and Nick assured him that the rental company wasn’t going to be particularly amused by that either.

Baylee pulled the bandage a little tighter around the wound and saw his father wince. “Why’d you get out of the car Dad?” Baylee sighed. Dad looked down guiltily.

“And what was after you?” Baylee continued, “What? Another wolf? A cockroach?”

The wolf rolled his eyes and shook his head. Baylee sighed again. He’d heard the growl in the woods that he knew wasn’t his father’s and could only guess how Dad had found a way to disturb it. “were the two of you hunting the same prey or something?” Baylee grumbled and was surprised when his dad looked away. He hadn’t meant it, it was supposed to be a joke, but he seemed to have guessed it right.

“You’re kidding, right?” Baylee asked incredulously, tightening his grip around his father’s leg, “Dad! No more hunting, okay?” he pleaded. His father refused to look at him and he sighed in frustration, “Look, I know it’s hard to resist, with this whole wolf thing that’s basically my fault, but what if you’ll turn? You gotta repress it, Dad.”

The wolf looked at him with his bright blue eyes and nodded solemnly; then whined softly. Baylee released his paw, frowning when he saw the blood soaking through the fresh bandage. “We definitely need to take you to a vet.”

Baylee ignored his father’s indignant glare and looked up as Nick came walking out of the motel’s office.

“They said we could spend the night here, or whatever is left of it,” Nick mumbled, showing the keys. “They don’t allow animals though, so I guess they’ll have to stay in the car. We’ll keep a window cracked open.

Nobody in their right mind is gonna break into a car with a wolf inside.”

Baylee bit his bottom lip thoughtfully, “He’s still bleeding though,” he mumbled, “I think he needs stitches.”

Nick sighed, exhaustion evident in his eyes. “We’ll find something for that tomorrow. Now I need sleep,” grumbling, he tossed the keys towards Baylee. “I’ll lock the them in the car, you can go ahead and go to our room.”

Baylee watched Nick lead the animals into the car and lock the door. He smiled a little when he saw the struggle of Nick calling the wolf Brian. He wasn’t sure if Nick was entirely realizing what was going on yet.

He made the wolf promise at least three times to not leave the car before he shut the door and trudged over to where Baylee was standing. “I’m gonna need to check myself into a psych ward when I get home,” Nick mumbled as Baylee opened the door. “I just told a wolf not to be a dumbass and stay in the car.”

“It’s not really a wolf,” Baylee reminded him as they stepped into the room.

“Right,” Nick grumbled.

The next morning, the wolf wouldn’t get out of the car when Baylee opened the door. He could see his right paw was swollen and the bandage had turned red completely.

“Damn it all to hell,” Nick growled, examining the injured limb, “Y’all haven’t got enough trouble. Remind me next time you lecture me about irresponsible behaviour, I’mma refer to this particular moment, Brian.”

The wolf whined quietly, trying to get up, but failing. Keeko was by his side, not moving an inch. “What do we do?” Baylee asked, concerned.

“Vet is our best bet,” Nick sighed, getting up, “Don’t know if they’re particularly happy with wolves though.”

“Maybe we could go for the hybrid story?” Baylee suggested.

“Come on,” Nick shook his head, “I barely even believed that, and I haven’t been educated about animals.”

“They’ll treat wild animals, though, right?”

“If we wave with a wad of cash, they will,” Nick nodded, stretching.

“We don’t really have a choice, do we?” Baylee mumbled.
“Not really,” Nick confirmed, “We better hurry, before it gets really infected.”

It took a while before they found a decent vet’s office and came up with a believable enough story. Baylee gulped nervously as he steeled himself in the car. Nick got out, picked up the injured wolf from the backseat and carried him over to the entrance. Baylee got out as well and followed them quickly. The woman at the desk got up immediately when she saw them enter. “What happened here?” she asked, astonished.

“We found him at the edge of the woods,” Nick said, sticking to the story they had rehearsed, “I think he cut his paw on a stone or something sharp.”

“That’s strange,” the woman said, “There are no wolves in these woods.”

“I know,” Nick grumbled, putting the heavy animal down on one of the examining tables, “He’s really tame, so I’m guessing it’s not a hundred percent pure wolf. Might be a hybrid of sorts.”

The woman frowned, “His tameness might just be because he’s injured,” she muttered, touching the bandage carefully. “Though I do see what you mean. Wild animals are usually a lot more timid, sometimes even aggressive. I guess you were lucky it hasn’t lashed out at you.”

“Must be a hybrid then,” Nick insisted and Baylee saw him bite his lip.

“We don’t usually treat wolves,” the woman sighed, “Or hybrids, or any wild animals for that matter. We’re a pet clinic, sir.”

“But, miss...” Nick paused, leaning over, “Mendez. Can I call you miss?”

“It’s Dr., actually,” doctor Mendez answered sternly and Baylee felt his insides tighten.

“Ah, alright,” Nick said, “well, Doctor Mendez, we found this animal injured at the side of the forest, and we don’t want it to get an infection and die. Please, can you help it?”

Doctor Mendez sighed, looking at the wolf on the table, “I suppose I could. But I would have to call Animal Control, because there’s no known wolf hybrids in this area.”

Baylee felt like throwing up as he watched Nick get a few shades paler, “I understand,” Nick said, his voice shaking. “But you don’t need to call them though, because we’d like to keep him.”

“Sir, this wild animal is highly dangerous, you surely have no idea what it is capable of, it could-” The doctor was interrupted by a pathetic whine coming from the table. Mendez sighed again, her shoulders slumping,

“Fine, we’ll treat it first.”

“Thank you,” Nick nodded.

“You hold him down though,” Mendez warned, “It could be really unpredictable.”

“Fine,” Nick mumbled, leaning over the animal as the doctor got out a syringe.

“I’m going to sedate it first, so we can look at the paw.” The wolf whined again as the needle sunk into his back, then he stilled completely. “There,” Mendez said, “You can let him go now. Please take place in the waiting area, I’ll be with you soon.”

After about half an hour, the doctor returned. “He’ll be fine. He’s gonna not want to put pressure on that leg for a while, but he should heal up nicely. I’m going to have to talk to you about this animal though.

Because this is definitely a wolf, and not a hybrid, like you suggested.”

Baylee sighed and tried not to show the fear he felt. This woman was surely going to call the police. Wolves didn’t appear in these woods, she said it herself, so that meant that Nick and Baylee were lying. And smuggling wild animals was very illegal, he knew. They would need to escape somehow, before the cops showed up.

“I already told you, we found it near the woods, I don’t know how it got there,” he heard Nick insist.

Mendez sighed, “That is not my concern. However, I am obliged to inform the authorities whenever an unfamiliar wild animal shows up in the area. There will be no way you can keep it, as it is a wolf.”

Nick released a frustrated sigh and Baylee watched him with large eyes. They needed to leave. Now. Take the drowsy wolf out of the recovery room and make a run for it. They couldn’t let Animal Control show up and take Dad. “We understand,” Nick mumbled.

“I appreciate that you care for this animal,” Mendez said softly.

“Can we say goodbye to him?” Baylee asked in a small voice.

The doctor nodded slowly, “It’s gonna be really groggy from the anaesthesia and painkillers though.”

Baylee nodded, getting to his feet, “Come on,” he glanced meaningfully at Nick.

Baylee saw him immediately when he entered the room.

The wolf lay completely oblivious in the middle of his cage, his tongue half out of his mouth and his eyes closed. “Dad,” Baylee whispered, kneeling next to the large cage, “Dad, we gotta get out of here.”

The wolf opened one eye; then sighed in annoyance as he turned onto his other side. Baylee shook the cage in frustration, “Dad, they’ll take you away if we don’t leave now, we have to go!”

A deep sigh, and then the wolf slowly looked up at him with droopy eyes. Baylee unlocked the cage quickly and Nick stepped in to pick the wolf up. The animal lay completely limp in his arms, nestling his head against Nick’s shoulder and falling asleep again. Nick shook his head, not believing the carelessness with which Dad seemed to handle the situation. Baylee couldn’t blame him for being drugged up though. He opened the door, peered outside and then called Nick over. They were going to run in a straight line to the exit.

“Now,” Baylee mumbled and they took off, running as fast as they could through the office. Baylee barely noticed Doctor Mendez rising from her place behind the desk as he threw open the door and held it for Nick and Dad to pass through.

“Hey, wait!” The veterinarian called as Baylee threw the door closed behind him. They ran over to the car and Baylee saw the doctor grab her phone from out the corner of his eye as Nick pulled open the backseat door and hastily placed the sleeping wolf inside.

“We gotta hurry, we gotta hurry,” Baylee said nervously as he climbed into the passenger seat. Keeko yapped happily upon their return and danced around the unconscious wolf in excitement. “She’s calling the police right now.”

“God damn it,” Nick cursed out loud, fumbling with the keys. This was the second time in twenty four hours that they needed to make a rushed escape. Baylee sighed, wondering how they would ever make it to Minnesota with the police on their tail.

Nick couldn’t say he was particularly happy with the situation, his thoughts clouded with worry as he slung the duffle bag over his shoulder and stepped away from the trunk. They were going from bad to worse. Sure, I’ll bring you to Minnesota, drop your dog off and make my merry way home. That’s what he’d agreed to. Not: sure, I’ll dump the rental car with the GPS tracker in the ditch somewhere and we’ll see how we ever make it to Minnesota now. He was pretty sure the veterinarian had caught a glimpse of the licence plate, and although he hadn’t given his real name to the rental company -a precaution many famous people tended to make-, he was positive that they’d have a way of tracking the car to avoid it getting stolen. He groaned out loud at the thought of another headline that had ‘Nick Carter’ and ‘police’ in it, even though all of it was Brian’s fault.

The white wolf tried his best not to yelp with ever step he took, but Nick could not be bothered to care about his pain at this very moment. “You better suck it up,” Nick grumbled, leaving the car keys in the door; “It’s at least twenty miles to the next rental, and you can forget it if you think I’m going to carry you for one more second.”

Brian gave a frustrated growl, but Nick just shrugged, “Y’all didn’t have to leave the car and go on an adventure in the woods. It’s your own fault, now lie in it.”

The wolf silenced, slowly limping behind them as they walked along the road to the city. Nick still had a hard time believing any of his current situation was actually happening. Maybe it was one of those weird ass stress dreams? He’d had them quite frequently lately, with the prospect of a son on the way. Was this what it was like to have children, he thought wearily as he watched Baylee and Brian saunter behind him. They’ll worship the ground you walk on for ten years and then they’ll turn you into an animal?

No, thank you.

He’d always seen Brian as the perfect father type, and Brian had acted like he was the perfect father type as well. Nothing was ever wrong in camp Littrell, but what if that was not the case? What had made Baylee decide -although it probably had been meant as a joke originally- to take such drastic measures and get involved with this kind of powerful magic? Even if Baylee hadn’t believed that it would work, there had to have been some underlying motivation for him to even attempt this kind of foolishness.

Was it any of Nick’s concern?

No. But now it was. Now he was involved. And if something was wrong between Brian and Baylee, he didn’t have a lot of faith that he and his own little Odin would make it fine. Growing up in the show spotlight was extremely hard, Nick could attest to that, and he imagined that it would be even harder if your father was a popstar legend that you had to somehow live up to. He’d suspected that that was Baylee’s main problem, because wherever he went, people would always mention his father instead of focusing on him. Is that what it all boiled down to? Did Baylee just need the attention from the world, or from his dad, for that matter?

Could it really be that simple?

And how was turning his father into a wolf going to help? So many question swarmed around in Nick’s mind.

Why was Brian a wolf? If he’d ever imagine him as an animal, a wolf would have been the furthest from Nick’s mind. A monkey, definitely. A cat, maybe. Not a wolf.

Not even a dog.

Maybe he didn’t know Brian as he thought he did.

He looked behind him, sighing as he saw Brian getting slower and slower. The burning afternoon sun was making matters worse and Nick ruffled around in his back to retrieve a bottle of water. Missouri was no place for a wolf, Nick thought as he poured the contents over the wolf’s head, who gave him a grateful look as he licked his lips. They needed to stop and rest, he noted as he looked at the wolf’s paw, which was already swollen again and looked extremely painful. “Why did you have to leave the car, Brian?” he mumbled, refastening the cap of the bottle and putting it back in the bag. “We could have been in Iowa by now.”

It was the main thing Nick didn’t understand. There had been no incentive last night for the wolf to ever need to leave the car and venture out into the woods. None.

It didn’t make any sense, and Brian would just guiltily look at the ground whenever Nick asked him about it. Nick suspected that there was a part of the whole transformation story Baylee had purposefully left out and it made him angry. What was Baylee so afraid of? It couldn’t possibly get any worse than this. But deep down, Nick knew. He’d seen the way Brian had devoured that duck, or how he’d growl menacingly at Keeko if she as much as came near his food. It was more than terrifying and Nick couldn’t begin to think where this kind of behaviour came from or where it would lead them. Because that wasn’t Brian; that wasn’t human. Not in the very least.

His feet felt extremely sore when they finally reached the next town. He hoisted the duffle bag a little higher on his shoulder and the courage sank into his shoes as he watched the busy streets of the suburban area. “Okay look,” he said after calling father and son over, “There’s no way we can go through this town without being seen. You,” he pointed at the wolf, “Are going to be the poor little doggy that hurt its foot while chasing ducks, and you,” he moved his finger to Baylee, “are the innocent little kid that needs to get to Minnesota. I’ll stay behind and hope no one recognizes me,” Nick grumbled, pulling out the dog leash from his bag. Brian flinched away at the sight.

“Too bad,” Nick commented, fastening the leash around the wolf’s thick neck, “You are going to act like the perfect dog, and you’re going to listen to everything Baylee will tell you. Exaggerate it if you must. People need to think you’re harmless and exceptionally well trained. You’ll do fine, you’re a performer after all. Show them some tricks, because the two of you will get attention, give them no need to call authorities of any kind, got it?”

The wolf nodded, perplexed, and Nick handed over the leash to Baylee. It didn’t take long before the first people noticed them. A boy and a girl sprinted over, glee on their faces, awe in their eyes. “Is that a wolf?” the girl asked curiously.

Baylee shook his head, “Nah, he’s a white husky. He’s very friendly, you can pet him.” Nick saw the quick flash of anger in Brian’s eyes at Baylee’s suggestion but quickly resumed his role as the harmless dog.

“Won’t he bite?” the boy questioned, uncertain. Nick didn’t blame his fear, because the wolf was very large for a Husky.

“Are you going to bite, Thommy?” Baylee asked in a high voice, grabbing Brian by the sides of his head and peering into his eyes. “You’ve never bitten anybody, have you, Thommy-wommy?”

Brian started to pant excitedly and Nick had to keep Keeko from jumping out of his arms and join the excitement. The children stretched out their hands carefully and petted the wolf’s head. “Can he do tricks?” the boy asked with large eyes. “Can he sit?”

Brian promptly sat down at the command.

“Apparently so,” Baylee laughed. The children were beyond themselves, the girl hopping from one foot to another as if she needed to pee, but was actually just really excited.

“What happened to his foot?” she asked, pointing at the wolf’s injured leg. “Did he get in a fight?”

“Nope,” Baylee said, “He was just uncareful while chasing the ducks in the pond, isn’t that right, Thommy? That stone was really sharp, wasn’t it?”

Brian just stared back at him, pretending to be completely clueless, then jumped up and wagged his tail. “You wanna show them our trick?” Baylee asked with wide eyes.

“Yeah! Do a trick!” the children both yelled and the wolf wagged its tail even harder. Nick smiled in amusement.

“Okay, Thommy,” Baylee called to catch the wolf’s attention, “Bang!” he said, pretending to make a gun with his fingers. It took two seconds for Brian to figure out what was supposed to happen and then the wolf fell to the ground, lying completely still with his tongue out of his mouth.

The children cheered and petted the wolf some more, “Where do you live?” the girl asked eagerly, “can we come over and play with the dog some more?”

“Actually, we’re on vacation,” Baylee said, a little bit of hesitation in his voice, “We live in Georgia.”

“Aww,” the boy seemed disappointed. “It was really nice meeting you though, Thommy. And you too-”

“Baylee,” Baylee provided.

“Baylee,” the girl smiled. Baylee smiled back. Nick raised his eyebrows. “You can have my facebook, if you like,” the girl offered.

“Thanks,” Baylee grinned. “But I don’t have facebook.”

Liar, Nick thought, but couldn’t help but grin as well.

They left without the girl’s facebook, but Baylee had scored her cell phone number nonetheless.

“Unbelievable,” Nick grumbled. “That whole dog thing did wonders for you, didn’t it?”

Baylee just smirked back at him. “There’s a car rental place a few street’s over, I checked,” he mumbled.

“You are dismissing the subject,” Nick commented. “Brian, dude, what do you have to say about all this?”

Brian glared at him from underneath the dog leash and Nick heard him grumble something. “Excuse me?”

Brian nipped at his ankles in response and Nick playfully danced away, “Can’t catch me, you’re on a leash!” The wolf knew better than to pull on the leash.

Just one pull and Baylee would be lying on the street.

And he was supposed to be a good dog. He walked elegantly next to the teenager as best as he could, avoiding his front right paw mostly. Nick noticed that most people were trying to avoid them, shooting nervous glances towards the wolf, but not daring to say anything and seemingly confused that such a large canine was following the small teenager’s commands to a tee. Nick imagined it must have looked impressive.

The new rental car was even smaller than the last one, and the wolf barely fitted on the backseat. But it was the best thing Nick could get at the moment and it was far better than walking to Minnesota; that was for sure.

“Aaaand, we’re in Minnesota,” Nick announced as they drove past the welcome sign. Brian opened his eyes at the loud voice and tried to stretch on the tiny backseat. Keeko gave him a snarl as he accidentally kicked her off the seat. She was unbelievably cranky today and Brian had no idea why. He experimentally stretched his right paw, which looked a lot better and felt better as well. The swelling was almost entirely gone and putting it under water for a few hours had been a good idea. He smiled at Keeko as she tried to jump up on the backseat again.

“Stop kicking me, wolf,” Keeko growled at him.

“Will you fight me if I do?” Brian replied, bemused.

“I will.”

“Very well,” Brian grinned slyly, blocking her path with his hind leg. She shot him a death glare and remained on the ground. Brian sighed, leaned down and picked her up by her neck. Then he put her next to him on the seat. “There.”

“Stop kicking me, wolf,” Keeko repeated, curling up.

“I cannot promise anything, it’s too small in here,” Brian answered.

“The two of you back there be nice, or I will turn this car around,” Nick said jokingly. He seemed in a good mood now that they finally had reached Minnesota. Brian could smell the forests and the wilderness and his heart leapt at the thought of roaming through the woods. He wondered what Nick had to say when he found out they’d need to walk halfway across the national forest before getting to their destination. It would never work taking the car through the thick woods and they could probably only get through on foot. Still, Brian wouldn’t mind walking. He was getting more and more claustrophobic in the car and the smell of the trees was so tempting.

Still, he couldn’t fall for temptation.

When they finally let him out at a rest stop, he wasted no time before letting loose of his built up energy and racing around the picnic building a few times. He wagged happily at the few people that had spread out their blanket at the other side of the building and were watching him with trepidation. Plopping down to the ground, he turned on his back, showing them they had nothing to fear from him. With a loud yelp, he stood up and started running again. His paw no longer hurt and the ground felt amazing. His speed was astonishing and he made some sharp turns, his nails scratching over the stone. This was life, this was living, this was...

Nick’s angry face.

Brian came to a scrambling halt right before Nick’s legs. Nick glared down at him; then, with one swift movement, attached the leash to the chain around Brian’s neck. “Would you stay the fuck here for once,” Nick grumbled, before sitting down in the grass. Brian immediately smelled the sandwiches and stared at Nick expectantly.

“I suppose you can wait, like a good dog,” Nick commented.

Brian narrowed his eyes; then grabbed one of the sandwiches out of the bag without a sound. Baylee laughed and threw him a piece of chicken breast. Brian marvelled at the taste. “We have a long road ahead,” Baylee commented, “We should pack provisions.”

“How far do we have to go into the woods actually?” Nick questioned, ripping a piece from his sandwich and propping it into his mouth. Brian licked his lips at the sight.

“I dunno,” Baylee muttered, “Miles, probably.”

“So you don’t know exactly where you’re going?” Nick sighed.

“She didn’t exactly give precise directions,” Baylee replied, “I think she mentioned a lake.”

“We’re going to have zero reception in those woods, Bay,” Nick mumbled.

“We could buy a map. Isn’t that how you old people used to do it?” Baylee smiled.

Nick groaned, burying his face in his arms. “When all this is over and back to normal, you both owe me big time. I’m going to make fun of you for eternity.”

Brian rolled his eyes at him and lay back down. But then he saw something moving right next to the picnic building. Oh God, was that a squirrel? Keeko had mentioned that rabbit and duck were okay, but squirrel was the absolute best of the best. They were hard to catch and extremely valuable and absolutely delicious.

Brian licked his lips as he stood up. Nick tightened his grip on the leash and leaned over to him, “Don’t even think about it,” he grumbled. The smell was too good though. With a quick pull, the leash was ripped out of Nick’s hands, and the Backstreet Boy almost fell over as the wolf charged at the unsuspecting squirrel.

The people on the other side of the building screamed as he came rushing towards them, but Brian paid them no mind, solely focusing on the small rodent as it shot from left to right, presumably in search of a tree to climb and be safe. Brian grinned triumphantly as he chased it to a closed of corner near the building and then lashed out.

“Thommy!” he heard behind him, but didn’t look up as the squirrel writhed in his grip. It squeaked as he bit and then it went completely limp. Dead. “Thommy! Drop it!”

Brian turned around, staring at Baylee as the boy pointed at the squirrel in his mouth, “Bad dog! Bad dog, Thommy! Drop it!”

A low rumble escaped the wolf’s throat as he kept a firm grip on the dead animal. Why should he drop it? He caught it. He’d chased it, and he’d caught it. It was his. Keeko had been pestering him about squirrels long enough, it was time he got to taste one. And he wasn’t sharing. The squirrels blood was running down his mouth and driving him mad and he lifted his prize high into the air before trotting to the side of the picnic area and dropped the squirrel in the grass.

“Oh my God,” he heard someone call out, “Is that your dog? He just killed an animal. There’s children here, for crying out loud. Control that thing!”

Brian’s attention was only directed at the squirrel that was now lying between his feet. Keeko was absolutely right, he thought as he ripped into the animal’s flesh, it tasted heavenly. The taste and smell were a true sensation, so captivating that he didn’t notice the guy getting closer and reaching out a hand to him.

He snarled aggressively, flattening his ears to his head and baring his teeth. The man jumped back immediately; then pointed at him, “It wanted to bite me! It’s freaking vicious!”

Brian growled warningly, picking up his squirrel and trotted over to Baylee and Nick. He immediately dropped his prey when he saw the look in his son’s eyes. The tears were streaming over the boy’s face, “Why’d you do that?” Baylee whispered, shaking his head incredulously. Brian cowered and looked up at the boy, whose disappointment was etched into his face. He whined softly, wanting to apologize for losing control, but knew that Baylee wouldn’t understand.

“Come on, we have to go before he calls the police,” Baylee mumbled, grabbing the forgotten leash and sternly walking to the car. Brian winced as he saw his reflection in one of the car’s windows. His white fur had turned completely red all the way down to his front legs. He looked at Baylee helplessly. Baylee was looking at the ground, “Just get in the car, Dad.”

Baylee mostly kept quiet the rest of the way. He noticed Nick’s nervous glances and had expected Nick to interrogate him about what happened, but Nick was silent. To be honest, Baylee had never expected it. His father wouldn’t just storm out on a camping site full of people and kill a squirrel and lash out at a total stranger. That wasn’t his Dad. That was something far, far from it. The thought that they had a potential wild beast lying on the backseat was making his stomach churn.

“Bay?” Nick finally whispered, and looking in the rearview, Baylee could see that the wolf and the dog had both fallen asleep. He bit his lip at the sight of the still pinkish hue of the wolf’s fur.

“Yeah,” he mumbled.

“What was that back there?” Nick questioned. Baylee shrugged, curling his fingers around the handles of his bag and biting his lip. He was not going to cry right now. Not gonna happen. Not with Nick right next to him.
“That wasn’t really your dad, was it?” Nick’s tone was friendly and soft and Baylee looked up at him.

“He can’t control it,” Baylee whispered, his voice shaking.

“Will it get worse?” Nick asked slowly.

Baylee sighed, “The witch in the swamp said that it is a dangerous curse and that we had to hurry. If the transformation is complete, he will be a wolf for real.”

Nick nodded, biting his lip thoughtfully, “You might have wanted to warn me of that earlier.”

“I was scared you were going to leave.”

“And let you deal with a potential monster all on your own?”

“He isn’t a monster,” Baylee mumbled, “He’s just acting on instinct sometimes. Wolves are predators, you know.”

“They’re unpredictable, Baylee,” Nick said quietly, “They can kill.”

“He wouldn’t do that,” Baylee replied stubbornly, “He’s still my dad.”

“Tell me,” Nick said, hesitating, “when the transformation is complete, would there be anything of Brian left?”

Baylee closed his eyes and let a sob escape his throat, then shook his head slowly. “I’m scared,” he admitted, feeling like a five year old.

“I understand,” Nick mumbled; then he sighed. “Why did you do it, Baylee? Why did you get him cursed?”

Baylee looked at his hands and shrugged. “I don’t know. I never thought it would work. I was just... stupid, I guess. I mean...” he paused, looking up at Nick, “I love my dad, but I sometimes hate him as well, you know?”

To his surprise, Nick nodded in understanding. “That’s why he’s your dad, that’s what they’re for.”

“I know, but... it’s so much more. I just wanted... I guess I wanted to not be referred to as the son of that Backstreet Boy for once. I guess I wanted him to be something else so that I could be my own man and be who I am, not whose son I am. Does that make any sense?”

Nick nodded again, “Pretty much. But that’s not his fault. You took your frustration out on the wrong person.”

“I know,” Baylee whispered, “I just wished he would spend time with me some more. He’s gone all the time, you know? It isn’t the first time he’s gone missing.”

“Do you know where he goes when he leaves?” Nick frowned.

“No,” Baylee shook his head, “He never tells me or Mom. Do you know?”

“I’m not sure,” Nick said, chewing his lip, “I don’t think it’s my place to tell you, even if I did know.”

Baylee studied him for a little while. Nick had changed a lot from when Baylee had gotten to know him. He was more mature and responsible. Mom would be proud if she knew. Dad would be too. Baylee smiled through his tears, “Thanks,” he said.

Nick’s eyebrows shot up, “For what?”

“For not treating me like a little kid,” Baylee said.

“Oh no, I’m terrified of you,” Nick smiled, “I don’t want to end up as a camel.”

“Camel?”

“Definitely a camel.”

Baylee laughed a little too loud and noticed his father jerk awake on the backseat. Baylee smiled at him, “Nick wants to be a camel,” Baylee informed.

The wolf blinked at him sleepily; then turned to Nick questioningly, “It’s not as much that I want to be a camel, but more that I think that’s what’s going to happen regardless.”

“We’d have to travel all the way to the Sahara to turn him back,” Baylee laughed.

“Yes, be glad it’s only a wolf we’re dealing with here,” Nick sighed before cursing, “I don’t think we can tread this terrain with a car anymore.”

“This is where we start to walk then,” Baylee mumbled.

Nick nodded, gripping the steering wheel tightly before letting it go. “I’m not exactly much of a hiker.”

“Neither am I,” Baylee admitted, “Do you have your walking shoes on?”

“Yes.”

“Then we should be fine.”

They got out of the car quickly and Baylee looked around as Nick locked the doors. The forest was large and dark, not a place for a young child and a popstar, but definitely for a wolf. It was cold up here and he shivered, looking at the tall pine trees that seemed to touch the heavens. He noticed the wolf pricking up his ears and saw the longing in his eyes. Should they keep him on leash? Probably not. That would only cause aggression. Baylee turned around as Nick splayed out the large forest map over the hood of the car. He pointed towards a blue spot on the map.

“There’s the Poplar lake,” Nick said. “We’re supposed to go there, aren’t we?”

Baylee nodded slowly, “How far is that?”

“Far,” Nick sighed, “We’ll have to go around a lot, because the mountains are too steep to climb. It’ll take us like four or five days. Maybe more, if mister Squirrel Catcher over there has any more surprises in store for us.”

Dad looked up curiously at the word squirrel; then glared in annoyance. Baylee frowned at him, “You know, his hunting skills would come in handy if we want to have fresh rabbit for dinner.”

“Ew,” Nick shook his head, “No thanks. I think we’re packed enough to not need to rely on your father’s wildlife killing talents.”

Their journey began with Nick leading the way, holding the map in front of his face constantly and pointing out where they needed to go. To his credit, the wolf stayed close to them and followed obediently, slinking behind Baylee and insisting on carrying Keeko on his back. Keeko was ecstatic at the sight of the large forest and squealed in delight every now and then. The further they got into the forest, the darker their surroundings became and it didn’t take long before they needed to take the flashlights out of their bags. The wolf obviously saw perfectly without a flashlight, but Baylee could barely make out two trees in front of him without it. It was getting very cold now and he tightened his coat around him. He looked up, only barely being able to see the sky through the thick foliage. They’d been walking for maybe two hours and his legs already felt sore from climbing the hills.

It was going to be a long way.

Nick stared into the flames, wringing his hands above the fire. It got damn cold up here, he thought as he looked over at Baylee, who was now fast asleep, lying against his father’s side, whose warm, thick fur provided some relief from the cold. Nevertheless, Nick had piled at least three blankets on top of the boy. It was summer, for God’s sake, why was it so cold?

The wolf, on the other end, seemed to have no problem whatsoever with the cold, nor with exhaustion. After four hours of walking through the woods, Nick’s legs had literally given out and he’d barely been able to set up camp and make a fire. Brian, meanwhile, seemed to have energy to walk at least twenty more miles. Nick watched the wolf nervously as the animal was restlessly biting at the stitches in his paw.

“Hey,” Nick called out, “Quit picking at that.”

Brian tilted his head, looked at him as if to determine whether he should take him seriously or not, and then tucked his leg back underneath him before staring at Nick a little longer. Nick felt a shiver run through him. Although it was night, and they were in a thick forest, Brian was able to see him perfectly. The little sliver of moonlight that came through the foliage made the wolf’s crystal white coat seem to glow in the dark and his light blue eyes were torches in the blackness.

The wolf was definitely in his element here, and Nick got the eerie feeling that Brian might be too. Ever since Baylee had told him about the potential danger the transformation might entail, he’d been paying close attention to the wolf’s behaviour, and didn’t come up with a lot of promising results. Since they’d entered the woods, there was a true wildness to Brian, a longing to be free. Nick could see it in his eyes, and knew that only common sense was keeping Brian with them right now.

What would happen if common sense made place for instinct?

He didn’t want to think about it, so Nick stood up slowly. It was time to get some sleep as well. Baylee and he would sleep in the tent, Brian and Keeko would stay outside and be on guard. Nick wasn’t exactly sure how he felt leaving Brian alone and in charge of protecting the camp, but figured that he’d rather have Brian kill a dozen more rabbits, ducks and squirrels than being attacked by a grizzly bear in their tents.

Baylee groggily peered up at him as Nick nudged the teenager awake. “Come on, it’s warmer inside.”

“Dunno,” Baylee yawned, “Wolf fur is pretty effective as well.”

“I don’t think it would be fair to turn him into a pillow though,” Nick smiled. He stretched his stiff legs as he walked towards the small tent he’d been able to buy on such short notice. “Stay close, alright?” He said to the wolf, who had leapt to his feet eagerly. He probably couldn’t stop Brian from hunting down rabbits, but he could threaten him with the leash. He just hoped they’d make it to the lake soon.

Nick wasn’t sure how long he’d slept, or what woke him up. He opened his eyes to complete darkness, so he figured it wasn’t morning yet. He grumbled and sat upright, wincing because of his sore muscles from sleeping on the ground. His eyes widened when he heard the noise. Scrambling for his flashlight, he stumbled over Baylee’s legs, who mumbled something before continuing to sleep.

The howls cut through the air like a knife and left him shivering. There were multiple, he noted, and they were too far away to be Brian’s. He searched the camp site and soon found Brian standing at the edge of the camp, behind the smouldering remains of the fire. His body was completely tensed up and he was peering nervously into the darkness of the trees.

“Are those... wolves?” Nick asked and a shock ran through Brian as his voice broke the silence. The wolf whined in fear and Nick frowned. “Shit,” he mumbled. “What do we do?” Brian looked at the tent, then ran over to it, perching himself right before the opening and looked at Nick expectantly.

“What? You wanna stay inside?” Nick asked. Brian nodded frantically.

“You’re scared of those wolves?” Another nervous nod.

“They’re probably miles and miles away. Plus, we got fire.”

Brian growled in frustration, then took the openings flap in his mouth and went inside. Nick shook his head.

They got a coward for a wolf. Nick didn’t understand.

The howls were barely audible and far away and moreover, wolves didn’t usually attack campers, they were known to avoid humans at all costs.

But wait.

They would attack another wolf on their territory.

Brian probably knew this as well. Would they be able to smell him? Could he smell them? A white ball of fury sprinted in between Nick’s legs and jumped onto the wolf, who yelped in surprise. Apparently Brian wasn’t the only one that was terrified by the wolves outside.

Keeko quickly jumped off of him and hid behind one of the tent’s poles. Nick sighed as he lay back down, his space now severely compromised by the large wolf lying in the middle. There was no way he could lie on the ground without lying half on the wolf. Oh well, at least Baylee was right. The wolf’s coat did provide some nice warmth.

Brian sighed in relief as he bent down to drink from the creek’s water. It had been a while since they’d encountered any fresh water and he relished the taste.

It was cold, freezing his stomach, but he drank greedily. From the corner of his eyes, he could see Nick and Baylee filling up their bottles as well.

They’d been walking for two days now and the lake of their destination was getting closer, but they weren’t there yet. He held his right paw under water for a while. The cut had closed up almost entirely and it wasn’t bothering him as much anymore, but he didn’t want to get it infected either. The forest ground was dirty and alive and full of germs. In another life, he would have run screaming from this place immediately, but now... Now it had a charm to it.

He sniffed the air first; then the ground. There was so much to explore here, so much life and nature.

“You turning into a sleuth, Dad?” Baylee laughed, “Want me to throw a stick?”

Brian grumbled at him, offended. He wasn’t a dog. He was a wolf. No. He was a human.

Right.

Nick was already on his way again and Brian scrambled to follow him. Nick was their leader; he’d know what to do. Nick had fire. Brian had to follow. He walked next to Baylee and nudged the backpack. There was food in there, and he was hungry. He wondered if Baylee still had that chicken breast left. That was great food.

“Not now, Dad,” Baylee mumbled and Brian sighed. He could smell no ducks or rabbits or other small prey.

And he was hungry.

So he waited. Like a dog. And he wasn’t a dog, dammnit.

He was a wolf.

No.

Human.

What did a human do when it was hungry? Brian frowned, remembering something about three meals a day. It was a dumb concept really, especially out here in the woods.

Why not eat while there was food? The smell of bread was intoxicating as if wafted through the backpack into his nose. It wasn’t fair. That was his food as well, not just Baylee’s. And he was hungry.

He started to grumble softly as he walked with his head low, trying to resist smelling the backpack now. They were walking far too slow. In his own tempo, they’d already be at the lake right now. In fact, Brian believed they’d already be back at the car right now.

The smell of bread was drifting into his nose again and he gave a frustrated whine. No. He had to try and think of other things. What would he do when he was turned back to normal again? He would ground Baylee for at least three years; that was for sure. He wasn’t exactly angry at the boy, because he hadn’t really meant for it to happen, but still, he could be at home right now, working in his studio with nobody to bother him. He could sing and sing and sing and maybe then one day, it would sound good again. He sighed.

He looked up at the sudden smell.

Deer.

A deer was too big to catch on your own, he knew that.

But wouldn’t it be nice? He could eat for days off of that. And he wouldn’t need Baylee’s stupid sandwiches.

Licking his lips, he slunk even lower to the ground, soundlessly following his son’s footsteps and trying to put the thought of deer out of his mind. God.

He was hungry.

When they finally set up camp, he shot Baylee a sour look for making him wait this long. Like a dog. He wanted his own bag. He wanted to determine when and what he ate. It was unfair. Baylee gave him two sandwiches, which he ate in a matter of seconds and kept staring at his son expectantly.

“Want another one?” Baylee asked and Brian nodded impatiently. Another sandwich was thrown his way and he caught it in midair. There was cheese on this one. Not as tasty as the chicken ones, but it would do. Baylee gave the last sandwich to Keeko, who had jumped off Brian’s back to collect her food. Brian growled at her.

She hadn’t even bothered to walk the whole way here, had instead lifted on his back the entire time. What had she done to deserve a sandwich?

And then the bread was gone.

And Brian was still hungry.

And he hadn’t meant for it to happen. Looking back, it was one of the worst mistakes he could ever have made.

It wasn’t his fault. It happened almost automatically.

He couldn’t stop it, he wasn’t in control. The hunger was. It was consuming him, making his decisions and telling him what to do. And he was sorry. So, so sorry.

It wasn’t his intention.

But yet, deep in the middle of the night, while Baylee and Nick were sleeping, the hunger became a living, breathing thing. And there were no squirrels. No deer.

No ducks. Not a single rabbit. He’d scoured the entire area around the campsite and there was nothing but bugs and earthworm and moss and tree. And he was so hungry.

He’d winced at the loud squeal when he bit down. He turned when he heard the stirring inside the tent. He instantly dropped his prey, burying it under a few burned out logs of wood. The flashlight that shone in his face was blinding him and he blinked, flinching away from the intrusive beam of light. After a second, Baylee’s face appeared above the light and the boy frowned deeply at him. “Dad?” he asked, urgently, “Dad, what did you do?” Brian stayed still as Baylee panicked. “Dad? What happened?”

Brian stared back at him. He knew he was guilty, but he was hungry as well. Nick came up behind Baylee and cursed out loud at the sight of the red that painted the wolf’s entire front. “Dad?” Baylee asked again, fear layered deep within his voice, “God, Dad, where is Keeko?”

That was the moment for Brian to start moving again. He growled aggressively at the two people that were closing in on him and flinched backwards.

“No!” Baylee screamed as he caught sight of the small Maltese that lay underneath the wet logs. The dog was breathing heavily, a deep, long gash in its neck draining the life out of it. Brian saw Baylee fall to his knees beside the while little dog and growled again, defensively this time. The boy looked up at him, horror in his eyes, “No,” he sobbed, shaking his head in disbelief. “Please tell me you didn’t do this.”

Brian stumbled backwards, unsure of what to do. He’d done something very, very wrong. But he was hungry. Why did nobody acknowledge that? He growled again, this time arching his back and baring his teeth. Baylee scrambled backwards with a dying Keeko in his arms.

“Get back!” Nick’s voice came from above him and Brian had just one second to jump back before the torch was waved in his direction. He let out a noise that sounded somewhere between a growl and moan and kept jumping backwards as Nick kept swinging the torch at him. “Get back!”

Brian snarled, trying to duck underneath the tall man to get back to Keeko and Baylee, but Nick would have none of it. “Get out of here!” he yelled at the wolf.

Brian looked at him for a second, then turned around and sprinted into the darkness.

Baylee couldn’t move. He’d vaguely noticed Nick taking the dead dog from his hands, but he couldn’t move. It was all over. Everything had failed. He mentally kicked himself over and over. Maybe if they’d been faster?

Maybe if he hadn’t let his father rot in the basement for four days, it would all have been fine? Maybe if he’d never gone to the swamp to transform his father in the first place, they’d never find themselves in this situation.

Nick seemed very pissed, and Dad hadn’t come back.

Baylee wondered if he was full wolf now. Would he still have the same memories? Would he still know who they were? Would he have eaten them if Keeko hadn’t been there?

Baylee felt sick.

He slowly stood upright, seeing the sun peer through the trees perhaps in an attempt to comfort him. He silently picked up his backpack, watching absently as Nick demolished the last of the tent and shoved it into his bag. They shared a look; then Baylee started walking.

“Where do you think you’re going?” Nick questioned, surprised.

Baylee turned around with a sigh, “Back to the car,” he mumbled.

“I’m sorry, I thought we had a lake to visit,” Nick stated, his eyebrows raised.

“It’s no use. He’s gone. He turned,” Baylee said, his voice shaking.

Nick looked at him for a moment, then frowned, “We don’t know that for sure.”

“Come on! You saw him! You’re the one that told him to go!”

“That’s cause he was dangerous in that moment, Baylee,” Nick’s eyes softened, “He didn’t have it under control, but that doesn’t mean he’s gone for sure.”

“Really?” Baylee looked at him, hopeful. Maybe Nick was right? Maybe they still had a chance? Maybe they could still go to the lake?

Maybe he hadn’t lost his father to the freaky curse yet.

“Come on,” Nick said, waving him over. It was still at least a day’s walk, and the blisters on Baylee’s feet were screaming at him to stop. The forest was getting colder the more they walked towards the north and it consisted of pine trees only now. The ground was bare and hard and Baylee kept tripping over the thick tree roots that stuck out everywhere. He tucked his coat a little tighter around his frame and wished his Dad was there. Not the wolf Dad, but his normal, regular Dad.

True, he would have probably made a quick turnaround and got out if he were dropped in the middle of this dark forest, but at least he would have known what to do.

Baylee was glad Nick was there though.

After hours and hours of walking, Baylee finally was able to get a glimpse of the lake in the distance. He laughed in relief and pointed, “We made it!” he exclaimed to Nick, who smiled tiredly at him as well.

They trudged up to the edge of the lake and then stood still.

“And now?” Nick asked, looking at Baylee expectantly.

Oops. Baylee didn’t really have a plan for the next part. Was he supposed to say something? The water was calm and there was no sign that anything was about to happen at all. He bit his lip insecurely, trying to avoid Nick’s incessant stare.

They tried everything; they went into the water, tried to call out to whoever was in charge of this bizarre situation, they went underwater -Nick even caught a fish somehow- but nothing happened. Baylee sat motionless and wet at the edge of the water, staring aimlessly into the distance, not trying to conceal the big tears that were rolling down his cheeks. Was this it? Did he really just lose his father? And why? How? This was never supposed to happen. They were supposed to come here, turn Dad back to normal and go back home and pretend it had never happened.

“Dad!” He screamed suddenly, his voice hoarse and uncoordinated. “Dad! Come back!”

He wiped angrily at the tears on his face and yelled again, “Dad! We need you here!”

Nick turned away from where he was working on setting up the tent and started to run over. The night was falling and the water from the lake had turned a deep black color. Still, a few glinting lights in the dark was visible. “Baylee, don’t move!” he screamed and ran towards the boy.

Baylee turned around and saw them. Four, maybe even five of them. They growled at him, never taking their eyes off of from him. Baylee swallowed thickly, taking a hesitant step back. The dark gray wolf at the front bared its teeth, looking quite hungrily at the boy.

Baylee cursed inwardly for not having anything to defend himself with him. He’d heard the wolves’ howling cries for two nights now, but had never thought he’d actually run into them. They were closer now, crawling agonizingly slowly towards him, only about twenty yards away. They were smaller than his dad had been, but there were definitely five of them, Baylee could see now. Their eyes were glinting in the dark and Baylee felt his heart beating in his throat madly.

Nick looked wildly around him, searching for something that could beat up a pack of wolves. The panic was rising in his mind as he saw the animals approaching the teenager slowly. They were hunting, that much was clear. They would devour the boy.

A violent shock travelled through Baylee’s body when the leading wolf snarled loudly at him. He took another few steps back slowly, keeping his eyes on the pack. He was shaking so badly he wondered briefly if he would even be able to keep standing on his feet at all. The fear was choking him, “Dad,” he whispered, “I need you.”

Baylee covered his head with his arms when he saw the first wolf jump.

Brian smelled frogs in the air as he got closer to the water. Frogs were absolutely disgusting, he’d decided that when he’d caught one and ate it a few hours before. He’d almost spit it right back out, growling at the taste. It was slimy and stinky and tasted like mud.

But hunger was begging him closer to the water. He’d decided pretty early on to find his own way towards the lake once Nick had chased him away. He wasn’t quite sure about how he knew where he had to go. Later, much later, he would say that the lake had some sort of gravitational pull on him, that he had no choice, no thought but to walk straight towards it.

He heard their howls from miles away and shivered, suddenly extremely aware that he was utterly alone and that if they found him, they would not hesitate to kill him, as he was most likely on their territory. The fact that he was white as snow in a dark, green forest didn’t help matters either. He only hoped they hadn’t caught his scent yet.

Although he could smell the water, he knew he was still quite a bit away from the lake. Even at a trotting pace, it would take at least another half hour to get there. He sighed in frustration. He didn’t really know why he would bother. Would the lake just magically turn him back into himself. Would the lake just magically forgive the murder on his own dog. Would anyone? He felt the now familiar sting of guilt and wished not for the first time that he had been able to control his instincts before he’d bitten Keeko. The dog was most likely dead now and Baylee would never forgive him.

Making up his mind, he lashed out at one of the unsuspecting frogs that resided on the ground a few feet away. You snooze, you lose. His face scrunched up at the disgusting taste, but he was glad he could still the hunger at least a little bit.

He winced when his injured paw came in contact with a rock and held it up as he licked it protectively. He had been fine with it for days now, but whenever he walked on it too long, it would start to throb again.

He wondered if it would be one big gash along his palm when he would be human again, or if he would get completely healed in the process. He lay down with a sigh and closed his eyes. It was still early in the afternoon, it wouldn’t hurt if he rested a little while.

He woke when his nose caught a familiar, exciting scent. Squirrel. So deep and high up in the forest. He jumped up, his stomach rumbling for emphasis. He faintly noticed the sky was darkening before he started his pursuit. He knew the smell drove him off route, but he was god darn hungry and sure he would find his way back. He’d just caught sight of the small animal when a sudden voice cut through the air.

“Dad! Come back!”

Baylee without a doubt. Brian halted immediately, the squirrel quickly forgotten. His ears perked up and he didn’t move, wondering if he would hear it again.

“Dad! We need you!”

And that was enough. Without a further thought, Brian started sprinting towards the lake. He hoped that the child would keep calling, because from this distance, he couldn’t smell him yet. The two people had chased and banned him from the camp rather mercilessly though.

Should he really just return at every invitation?

Apparently so.

Baylee didn’t keep calling, and Brian stood still when he caught an unfamiliar, but strong scent caught him.

He knew immediately what it was.

Wolves.

And they were rather close. If they found him here, he was dead. Would Baylee and Nick be smart enough to stay at the lake? Could he find them there later, when the scent of the wolves was gone? Brian hoped so. Then all his thoughts flew out of the window when he finally was able to smell his son. He could tell instantly that the wolves and Baylee were about the same distance from him and that certainly wasn’t good news. Brian started running again, although a little bit hesitantly. That changed when a high pitched scream echoed through the forest. Panic was suddenly gripping his throat and he flew over the soft forest floor, not caring where his feet landed and only focused on the fastest way to get to his son. He had clear sight of the water now and the terrifying smell of the wolves had doubled in intensity. And then he saw them.

And he didn’t count them.

He didn’t wait until he knew their size and weight.

Because one of them had already latched onto his son’s ankle and the other ones were circling him. With at least the element of surprise working in his advantage, Brian jumped and caught what looked to be the leader in its side. The beast was forced to tear its teeth off of the boy’s foot and together they tumbled over. Brian landed on top of the animal; gave it a stomp with his paw and then ran over to Baylee. The other wolves were watching him apprehensively as he took his place in front of his son; his back arched and his hair standing straight up. He growled menacingly at the pack, who growled right back at him. The leader was getting up and looked rather pissed. Deep down, Brian knew it was only a question of time before they would get in a fight that he certainly couldn’t win on his own.

The growling intensified and Brian narrowed his eyes as the leader took a bold step towards him. They were challenging him. They knew they had the advantage of a larger number, and were probably only holding back because he was considerably larger than they were.

Everything in Brian screamed at him to turn around and check on his injured son, but instinctively he knew that that would be a show of weakness and the perfect moment for the wolves to attack. He couldn’t see Nick from where he was standing, but Brian only hoped that Nick would be able to interfere in time with a stick of fire or something. He let out the breath he’d been holding when the leader took another step towards him and Brian jumped at the pack.

Baylee gasped when the white blur caught his attacker roughly in the side. His ankle was torn up and the pain was flaring through his entire leg. The wolf’s teeth tore at the flesh when his foot was released and Baylee cried out in pain. To their credit the rest of the pack stayed still as the white and the gray wolf tumbled down into the water. The white one landed on its enemy and gave it a kick for good measure before running back to Baylee. It took on a protective position in front of him and Baylee could only watch the confrontation unfolding. The growling was menacing and horrifying; promising blood and death.

Dad was on his own. The white wolf never tore his gaze away from the darker pack. He seemed stronger than any of them individually in any way. He was well fed and larger than them. But as a whole, he didn’t really stand much of a chance against them as a group. Baylee knew that, and he was sure all the wolves in front of him knew it as well. The nearly black leader took a challenging step forward and Dad growled louder, his teeth bared and his fur puffed out. He looked even more terrifying than the wild wolves did with his blue eyes full of hatred and anger.

And then, just as the alpha took another step, Dad suddenly attacked. Baylee knew his father did all of it out of protection, yet the screeching yelps and the growls and screams of the wolves were absolutely terrifying and he whimpered in fear. He couldn’t really keep track of what was happening, but he could tell his father was suddenly covered in gray wolves. They bit at him and flew at his throat, but he defended himself bravely, even though he was on the ground. The wolves kept piling up on him though and Baylee fearfully wondered how long Dad could keep up with the merciless attack. Every few moments, the wolves would stop fighting and circle each other. Baylee could see his father shaking on his feet, his tail sweeping angrily at the floor.

And then they would start again. Dad would kick them off of him before they could do any considerable damage, but he could only concentrate on one at the time. The wolves slowly seemed to realize that as they suddenly started to attack with multiple at once.

Baylee heard his father yelp in fear as the alpha bit into his side, while another wolf clamped unto his shoulder. The white wolf sank to the ground immediately and the rest of the pack jumped at their weakened enemy. Baylee’s stomach turned as he saw the leader’s face was covered in blood. The rough barks and growls were deafening and incessant.

“Hey!” A loud voice suddenly joined the animalistic sounds, “Get the fuck out of here!”

Although a bit late, Baylee still felt relieved when Nick’s torches were swept at the dark mob of wolves.

The wolves backed away, growling fearfully at the fire in Nick’s hand. Nick threw one of the burning, thick branches at them and they yelped. Already, there was quite a distance between the pack and the motionless white wolf that lay in front of Baylee’s feet. The pack hesitantly and collectively took a few steps back before turning and fleeing the scene.

“Where were you?” Baylee screamed, scrambling towards his unmoving father the best he could with his bleeding leg.

Nick swallowed thickly. Now that the immediate danger was over, Baylee felt himself shaking with anger and fear and frustration as his father didn’t move at the sound of their voices. Nick threw his burning weapon into the water and ran over to the fallen wolf. The animal’s solid white coat was now interrupted with large, red splotches, the fur at some parts completely ripped out and the open wounds clearly visible. There was no doubt that the wolf was hurt very badly and Baylee didn’t stop the tears that ran down his face.

“Dad?” he said in a soft voice, laying a shaking hand on a rare part of the wolf’s body that wasn’t affected by blood or injuries yet. “Dad, I’m so sorry.”

The wolf’s large head moved as he touched his son’s leg softly with his nose. He was breathing in shallow gasps and the blood was quickly pooling underneath him, where it was sucked up by the soft forest ground. Baylee bend down, his face touching the wolf’s surly fur as he carefully wrapped an arm around his father’s neck. The wolf’s eyes opened slightly and the animal sighed deeply as his breathing slowed down as he leaned into his son’s embrace.

Baylee’s shoulders started to shake as he desperately tried to apply pressure on the various wounds on the wolf’s body. Nick leaned closer to him, “We should get him into the water,” he whispered, his voice unrecognisable.

Baylee swallowed and nodded; then cautiously let go of his father as Nick gently took the wolf in his arms.

Dad cried out in pain as he was lifted into the air and carried over to the edge of the lake, leaving an ominous trail of blood on the way. The cold water hurt even worse and the wolf whined pathetically as Nick laid him down in the lake.


Nothing happened. There was no magical light that suddenly turned everything okay again, like it would have in the various animated movies Baylee had watched over the years. He sank to his knees next to the brutally injured animal and covered his face with his hands.

“Please,” he whispered to the water, “Please. I don’t know what else to do. Please, I need him,” he begged, tears streaming over his cheeks, “I want him back, just as he was.”

He barely noticed Nick coming to stand behind him. The wolf was struggling for breath now, its wounded body heaving and panting as the ice-cold water seeped through his fur. The animal shivered and whined, trying desperately to get rid of the pain.

“You have done well, white wolf,” Nick said and Baylee frowned at the unfamiliar tone in Nick’s voice. He gasped as he turned around. Nick’s eyes were glowing and his skin had turned an inhumanly shade of white.

The Backstreet Boy bent down and solemnly laid a hand on the wolf’s white fur. “You may rest now.”

“No!” Baylee cried out, grabbing Nick’s arm. The man turned slowly, and Baylee couldn’t tell if he was looking at him, for the eyes were not directly visible due to their glowing nature.

“He has fulfilled his purpose, he saved your life,” the voice wasn’t necessarily Nick’s and its distant and unnatural tone were sending shivers of warning down Baylee’s spine, but still he held his grip on the man’s arm.

“He is my father!” Baylee cried, “I need him!”

“You must find your way without him,” the voice was slow and steady and held no emotion whatsoever, “Isn’t that what you wished for?”

“No!” Baylee spoke again, a sob invading his voice, “I was stupid when I said that, I never meant for this to happen! Please!” he screamed, as he noticed the wolf’s body had stopped panting altogether. The water had turned an ugly shade of red around its body and the animal was once again completely motionless.

Nick, or whoever it was, cocked his head to the side and observed the boy. After a few seconds, a small smile played at his lips and he nodded slowly. “Very well,” he said, “You have done as you must.”

Baylee frowned, but didn’t move as the man knelt beside the dying wolf in the water. His hand was glowing now too, Baylee noticed, and Nick slowly took off his jacket to cover the animal. His hand glowed brighter as he lowered it to the wolf’s head and closed his eyes in concentration. The glowing light seemed to slowly move from Nick to the wolf and Baylee heard his father gasp loudly and his body shook violently, as if it were seizing. The light enveloped the animal’s form and for a few seconds, Baylee could see anything beyond the bright whiteness that swallowed his father whole.

And then the light faded. And the wolf was gone.

Instead, Baylee stared at his father’s beaten and bruised body, which was now neatly covered by most of Nick’s coat. Dad moved slightly, trying to get up, but failing from the exhaustion that overwhelmed him. The most fatal wounds were gone from his body, only a few deep cuts remaining and Baylee’s heart surged as his father opened his eyes and looked at him.

“Dad!” He choked out, flinging his arms around his father’s neck and burying his face against his shoulder.

Dad groaned, slowly bringing up a hand to rest on Baylee’s back. “Baylee, you’re squeezing me,” he mumbled in a hoarse voice.

“S-sorry,” Baylee sobbed, a relieved laugh bursting past his lips.

A moan from a few feet further announced Nick’s awakening. He’d passed out immediately after the light had left him and was now staring at them through dazed eyes. “What the fuck was that?” he demanded.

“I guess it was the thing we came for,” Baylee shrugged, but was secretly beyond amazed at the magical transformation he had witnessed.

Dad winced as he let go of Baylee and sat up slowly.

“You okay?” Baylee asked quickly, concerned.

“Not very,” Dad admitted, “You’re welcome, by the way.”

Baylee nodded his thanks, quickly jumping up to help his father. “You look kinda beaten up,” he noted.

“I was kicking those wolves’ butts though,” Dad smiled tiredly and swayed only slightly when Baylee pulled him to his feet.

“You were awesome,” Baylee confirmed, then turned to Nick, “And you were pretty badass too.”

“Thanks,” Nick said, groaning loudly as he got up and stretched. “Now let’s get some sleep before I call 911 tomorrow.”

“You have reception?”

“I have a super duper phone.”

“You had reception the whole time?”

“Surely. But I’m not going to ask for help when the ultimate goal is transforming a gigantic wolf back to its human size.”

“Very good point. I’m just glad we don’t have to walk all the way back to the car.”

“You and Baylee can’t really walk all that way anyway, you look horrible, dude, we can tell them y’all were attacked by wolves,” Nick nodded at Baylee’s still bleeding leg. The bite was quite deep, but the boy had forgotten about it until this moment. He bit his lip as the pain flared up, back with a vengeance. He nodded sleepily, limping towards the half set up tent. They didn’t bother completing the tent properly and after Nick helped patching up Baylee’s leg and Dad’s various injuries, they fell asleep pretty quickly. They made sure to leave the fire burning outside of the tent though, in order to ward off any wild animals that may cross their paths.