A Family Forgotten

Chapter 11: A Woman Scorned

Warnings: See Chapter 1

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Anita wasn’t stupid. She knew when people were lying to her or even ignoring her. So it really pissed her off when Richard started to ignore her whenever he was near her and did his best not to interact with her at all. Then as if she couldn’t be anymore pissed, Jamil, Shang-Da, Sylvie and most of the other wolves she knew, began to do the same. And when they cringed away from her and refused her beast, she was certain of it.

She had tried to corner Jason to see if he would tell her what was going on, but the young wolf always seemed to be two steps ahead of her. She had even thought about going to Jean-Claude and making him order the wolves to explain their avoidance behavior but changed her mind. Better she get to the heart of the matter herself. So now she was hunting down Richard. He had some explaining to do.

In the back of her mind, Anita thought that perhaps confronting an Ulfric only two days before a full moon was one of the stupidest things she had ever done but she needed answers.....now.

~*~*~*~* Richard’s House *~*~*~*~

With Daniel finally there the house became a hive of activity. Harry and Daniel seemed to somehow convince Jamil to join them every time they started to play a game, whether it was clue, poker or even Halo. This both surprised and pleased Richard. Jamil was a great enforcer and a wonderful friend but sometimes Richard worried that Jamil didn’t open up to people other than Shang-Da, Sylvie and himself.

Of course this only happened when other pack or lycanthropes weren’t around, which was becoming less frequent. After Harry’s tirade in the Lunatic Café, word quickly spread through the lycanthrope community that Anita was a danger to everyone. Soon he had the alphas of every type of lycanthrope in town beating down his door for explanations to the rumors spreading like wildfire. Richard had even had the pack there begging him to expel Anita from the pack. So, although not yet official, Anita was no longer Bolverk or Lupa.

The only animal that hadn’t distanced themselves from Anita were the leopards. Everyone knew how loyal the leopards were to Anita and so no one wished to be the one to tell them what being near a necromancer could do to a person.

Richard rubbed his temples, his eyes closing. It had taken almost 10 hours before the lycanthropes had decided that it would be his responsibility to tell the leopards and the Master of the City. The other alphas had told him that since he was tied to both and the information had come from his cousin, that he should be the one to break the news and deal with the problems that this would cause.

‘They must be trying to drive me into an early grave. If Anita doesn’t kill me for this, the stress most likely will.’ He rested his elbows on the table, head in his hands.

He knew that he should have contacted Jean-Claude as soon as it was decided and just get the whole thing over with. However, he didn’t. He just didn’t want to have to deal with the hissy-fit Anita was sure to throw. Especially since she seemed to be carrying more and more weapons lately. He didn’t want to risk Harry’s life or the lives of any of his wolves. A pissed off Anita, Richard knew, was a VERY dangerous thing.

“Richard!”

He looked up at Harry who was bouncing up and down excitedly in front of him. “Yes?”

“Can we go back to the zoo again?”

Richard smiled. “Now why would we do that? You were just there.”

“But we didn’t get to see everything.....” Harry pleaded.

“Well if someone didn’t want to go back to the snake house three or four times....” Richard sighed in amusement.

“We didn’t go back that many times.” Harry denied.

Richard heard Jamil chuckle as he walked into the kitchen where they were.

“Of course not, pup.” Jamil chuckled and ruffled Harry’s hair. Harry glared and tried to flatten his hair. “We went seven times.”

Harry gaped with open-mouthed shock. His jaw closed with an audible click. “Well, at least it was a magical number,” He muttered under his breath, chagrined.

Richard’s smile widened and he leaned back in the chair watching the two as they continued to argue about the zoo. He found more and more good things about Harry being a part of his family and pack everyday. While he knew everything that came with Harry wouldn’t be all sunshine and roses, he was still glad the younger boy was here.

He just wished he knew why Harry smelled like a large feline and some exotic spice. He knew what Harry’s cat, Bastet, smelled like and it didn’t match the feline scent that was on Harry and seemed to grow stronger the longer he was in St. Louis. Then there was the strange violet flames that had burned around Harry whenever Anita and Animators was mentioned.

‘It seems almost like whatever this secret is, it is making him draw that part of himself deep inside, caging it away, whenever we get into the city or when we drive past a cemetery.’ Richard’s eyes narrowed briefly. ‘I don’t think I want to know what would happen if Harry and Anita met.’

“Well?”

Richard blinked. Harry stood before him, hands on hips, eyes staring him down (or at least attempting to). Harry growled under his breath when Richard didn’t answer right away. Richard caught sight of Jamil smirking behind Harry.

“Yes,” Richard tried.

Harry smiled triumphantly. “Good. So tomorrow we’ll go back to the zoo.”

Richard blinked, at a loss and Jamil started laughing. It was a quiet, but deep, laugh. Harry turned on his heel to march back into the living room where Daniel was but stopped before he could get past the kitchen doorway. Richard and Jamil both froze as well. Tires could be heard squealing to a stop in the driveway, quickly followed by the sound of a car door slamming shut. Richard watched as Harry’s body went taunt, small flames beginning to flicker to life around his hands and feet.

A single set of loud, angry footsteps marched up from the car to the house causing Richard to stand up and move behind Harry, placing his hand on the young man’s shoulders. Jamil, on Harry’s right looked toward Richard, nodding at what he saw in the Ulfric’s eyes and going quickly to the living room to be at Daniel’s side in case the person storming the house meant trouble for the only full human here.

As Jamil left, Harry’s growling got louder and Richard had to use a bit more strength to keep him from charging into the other room. He was concerned that Harry was far stronger than most of the lycanthorpes he was familiar with, considering how young he was.

He could hear the storming feet pause briefly in the living room before heading toward the kitchen. Their sound, if possible, even angrier.

“Anita.” Richard murmured cautiously as the footsteps halted in the doorway.

The woman he had once so badly wanted to marry, stood across from him, her eyes promising death. Beneath his hands Harry’s body began to heat up, muscles bunching, and the flames growing brighter, longer. Anita didn’t even seem to hesitate as she stormed into the kitchen. As her eyes landed on them, Richard saw her steps falter, fear flashing briefly through her eyes before being swallowed by her anger.

“What the HELL is going on?” She demanded, voice high and shrill.

Richard felt his wolf stir, it’s anger at Anita being in its territory surged through him. “I should be asking you that.” His voice low and hard. “You are the one barging into my home uninvited.”

Anita either didn’t hear the threat in his voice or didn’t care.

“He’s the prick...” She said, jabbing her finger at Harry, “.....whose making the other lycanthropes ignore me!” She snarled in Harry’s direction and Richard could feel her beast moving. “What did he say to them, Richard?”

A demand. A threat to his pup. His wolf growled and the violet flames at Harry’s hands and feet burst to life, swirling and twisting like living things.

“Don’t you talk to him like that, you bloody stupid bint!” Harry surged forward out of Richard’s grasp. Harry stopped in Anita’s face, glaring, the violet flames growing larger, hotter. “You have no right to speak to him like that!”

“I have every right! I am Lupa! I am Lukoi! So I will damn well speak to him anyway I like!” Anita said hotly.

“You aren’t Lukoi! You aren’t Lupa, the pack decided! You are a threat to the pack!” Harry snarled back.

Richard suddenly realized things were going badly, much more so than he had anticipated. With a movement so sudden and fast, Harry pinned Anita to the wall. His hand tightened on her neck, the flames going even brighter and Anita screamed.

Fear!

Hate!

Fear.....hate....fear!

The smell was overpowering.

Harry pulled Anita away from the wall with his hand still around her neck then slammed her back against the wall, hard enough to crack the plaster. His pale, sun kissed skin slowly turned black, his ears moving up his head. Face changing, growing cat-like, tail growing out of his tailbone.

Anita’s wail grew louder, her eyes wider.

Fear...hate...fear..pain..pain...FEAR! Throbbed in the air.

The hands holding her throat tightened. The scream stopped. Her scent grew sharper.

“You bloody spawn of the pit, dare to speak to us like that! Your kind are an affront to the dead. Vile, death raping bitch!” Harry snarled revealing long, white canines and growing longer. “You are lucky I don’t kill you now.”

Hate began to take over her fear. Richard watched as her hand crept back to grip her gun. Richard felt his skin ripple, his beast surging beneath his skin. Harry squeezed Anita’s throat tighter. Anita’s eyes seemed to impossibly widen further, almost as if they would pop out of their sockets from the pressure Harry was exerting.

Richard’s wolf howled. His pup was strong!

Harry, taller than he had been, pressed his face next to Anita’s. Her eyes tried to follow his face, gun creeping to press against Harry’s abdomen.

Richard didn’t hear what Harry said over the rushing noise in his ears, the howl of his wolf and Anita’s blood curdling scream. Whatever happened next, he wasn’t sure. He knew only blackness.

* * *

Jamil and Daniel froze in the doorway. The sight of a calm, loving Harry turning into the ferocious, snarling cat-man shocked them still. What was happening was something they weren’t likely to forget. Harry, looking like a dark Egyptian Cat-God, bathed in eerie violet flames. Anita , skin deathly pale, eyes wide and bloodshot, mouth wide in a silent scream. Richard, eyes golden and glittering, skin shifting to fur, face becoming wolf-like. Wolfman. What happened next neither man would later be able to explain.

Richard howled, Anita screamed, and Harry, grinning with wide saber-like teeth, stepped back. His hand drew away from Anita, though the flames lingered like a noose around her neck. Then her body arched and black flames poured out of her mouth and eyes. The violet flames around her neck went still before striking, snake-like, at the black flames, consuming them. Anita and Richard both dropped to the floor, body limp.

Daniel was the first to speak. “Harry?”

Startling red cat eyes looked back at him from the midnight colored face. Slowly Harry blinked, the flames doused, body flowing back into its familiar human shape.

Harry looked sheepishly at them from very green, but human eyes. “Sorry about that. Instinct got the better of me.” With that said his eyes rolled into the back of his head and he collapsed to the floor, abdomen stained red.

Tbc…


AN: Woot! I am very pleased with this story so far. It is getting more exciting, no? Something that will please everyone is that chapter 12 is already written and just needs to be typed and beta'd. Also chapter 13 has been started. Heh. I am very pleased with myself.