Mask of Stone

“Would you and your friend come join us at our table for a drink or two?” Two reproachful grey eyes sized him up, then she replied: “Really, I don’t think so…”

“Oh, come on Danielle. Sure we’ll come. Why not?” Her friend shot Danielle an acrid glance.

Relieved, he led the way back to where Josh was waiting, turned back to see her and her friend exchanging a few words, following him. All evening, he had been trying to work up enough courage to ask her, but her friend’s grey and reproachful eyes had always discouraged him. “Oh come on, I’m sure she won’t bite your head off,” Josh had teased him. “Look what an enticingly shy smile she has!”

“Hi. My name is Janine, and this is my shy friend Danielle.”

“Pleased to meet you”, Josh replied levelly. “I’m Josh, and the guy who so cheekily invited you is called Ian.”

They spent what was left of the evening chit-chatting about inconsequential stuff. Josh was rather attracted by the shy blonde Danielle. She had something secretive to her, and though she was at first taciturn, he felt she would warm up any second to his charm. That was, if the bartender hadn’t come up to them, telling them the place was about to close for the day.

 “Listen, how about we go to Danielle’s place, it’s only a few blocks away, and the walk will do us some good…” Janine suggested.

“Fine by me, as long as you don’t mess up the place. No drinking in my house… And don’t tell the O’Connors about it. I don’t know if they’ll appreciate me bringing strangers into their house.” She didn’t see Josh paling with shock.

“Danielle is house-sitting there for awhile, and she is so darn scared about any of the ancient moose-heads falling off the wall that she doesn’t even dare turn the stereo up.” Janine joked as they made their way up to the formidable semi-fortress of the O’Connors. As they walked, a sudden howl froze Danielle in her tracks.

“I don’t think it’s a good idea if you go up there right now.” She whispered.

“Oh, is that your old tale of werewolves again, my dear child?” Janine patronized. “You still find someone to believe you, or did you just get into the habit and can’t stop now- like a drug addict or so?”

“Very funny. Listen, just forget about it.” They had reached the manor of the O’Connors, well known to the local youth as a place of ridicule. The O’Connors were… strange, to say the least. They had developed a peculiar obsession about people, especially strangers, since their only son had vanished from the face of the earth one night.

“Aren’t you afraid all there by yourself in those old lunatics’ home?” Josh asked.

“Oh, so you see in me the little girl living all by herself in a big, scary house? Time for the valiant hero to turn up and save her from the dark ghosts that haunt the past and present, is it?” She closed her eyes, breathed deeply. “Sorry. I get a bit… upset in that place. I forget its effects on me when I’m away for a few hours; it always takes me by surprise…”

“It’s alright. I know what you mean.” His voice was soft, understanding. She overplayed the moment by patting her pockets for the keys and unlocking the heavy oaken door. It opened with an ominous creak, and Danielle emitted a strangled curse when the cat came out, hissing at them.

“Wow. Even the pets at this place are accommodating.” Ian commented wryly.

“Would you wait here for a second? The power at this place has failed again. I need to find the main switch and turn it on again. Happens frequently here –The alarms, you know.” She didn’t sound entirely convincing, but they agreed to wait nonetheless.

Just as she turned to walk off into the dark, a growling sounded from behind them, and a hound –or was it a wolf? - advanced on them, menacingly barring its teeth. With a completely unladylike curse, Danielle whisked around and- Josh could not believe his eyes! Close enough for him to touch, a scene he had often seen in bad horror movies unravelled. Clothing tore as limbs stretched and distorted. In the gashes of tattered cloth, he could see how white skin was replaced by silver fur. Ivory teeth grew in a matter of seconds, a beautiful oval face lengthened and deformed into a snout.

There was a hiss as time caught up with events. With canine grace, the wolf bounded towards their wolverine attacker. A growl, half of a bark, a strangled yelp. Two canine bodies inseparably intertwined. The one black as the ending night, the other like liquid silver. Plants were uprooted, earth sprayed on the petrified onlookers as the wolves fought for superiority. The silver female lost ground to the stronger and larger male. Growling, she backed away, almost brushing Josh with her tail. Another growl with bared teeth, a sudden leap. Blood flowing. The victorious silver shaking a bloody patch of fur, spraying the statuesque humans with droplets of blood. A black wolf limping, fleeing into the night.

The silver female let out a howl that teemed with the lust of a won battle. She turned reproachful grey eyes towards the humans. Shaking with dread, they started backing away inch by inch.

The haze in her eyes cleared away like dawn rising over a battlefield, and with a whispering of magic, canine form was replaced by human silhouette. With regret, she looked at the shredded remains of her clothes. “Oh, how I hate this.” Danielle sighed. “Excuse me while I get myself cleaned up.” She sidled past them, her bare limbs shining from the exertion of the fight, her breathing shallow and rapid.

Janine slid to the floor, her legs refusing further service. She stared into the night, breathing through unnaturally red lips in a deathly pale face. She stayed like that for half an eternity, until, unexpectedly, the lights switched on, blinding the three of them.

There she was: pale blond hair hanging limply down her shoulders, pale lips in a pale face, a mauve gown hastily thrown over. Josh noted how the colour intensified her grey eyes. Janine turned slowly to face her friend.

“Why didn’t you ever tell me?”

Danielle laughed, an unnaturally high-pitched sound. “I tried to, many times. Remember: ‘That fixation on this fantastical nonsense is only serving to outcast you. If you want to make friends, you’d better become like us.’ You were the one never wanting to listen.”

Janine stared at her, then got up, a slow, labouring movement. “You can never be one of us. You’re a monster.” With a frightening deliberation, she turned and fled off into the night.

Danielle turned towards Ian and Josh. “And you? Do you think so, too?” she rasped, stunned by her friend’s rashness.

“I don’t even know you. How can I be sure that next time, it won’t be me?” Ian asked guardedly, fear lighting his soft eyes into a raging fire.

“I thought so.” Danielle’s voice sounded sad, weary, a little helpless, as she watched Ian dart away into the night after Janine. She looked Josh squarely in the eye. Harshly, she said: “Well, what are you waiting for? Call me monster, call me freak. I know why I kept it a secret. I know why I always pretended to be someone else.” Then, more softly, more hurt, though she tried to hide it behind a mask of stony neutrality. “Please go.”

Josh turned, ready to hurry into the night. He turned back again. “Give me a little time to digest this. How would you react if your date suddenly turned out to be-”

“Be what? A monster? That’s what you’re thinking, isn’t it?” She fixed him with that reproachful, stony stare. “Good bye.”

The door fell into the lock with a muffled thud, and on the one side, Josh stared at it for a moment, then shook his head and snorted derisively. No matter how beautiful, how desirable that girl might be, some things just couldn’t be overlooked, could they? On the other side, Danielle slid down, rested her head against the wood and whimpered into the night. With a pitying mew, a cat sidled from out of the darkness and rubbed against her legs, while, somewhere in the night, a wolf howled with the lustful sound of a recent kill. Another soul she had failed to save. She remembered them all, and the first failure had been worst for her. Yes, she remembered.

***

A slender girl aged maybe seventeen hurried down the street.

“Michael. Touch that human and you’re meat pie!” She called out to a dark haired twenty-year old.

Looking on the scene was a young man, about the same age as the girl, maybe a year or two older. From one of the older families in town. O’Connor, or so.

“Try to prevent me.” Michael’s voice slurred as he made ready to transform. The girl closed her eyes, started to shrink, change, became one with the world – and attacked.

It was a terrible fight, bloody, violent. A fight between dogs, but worse, for dogs did not fight as wolves did, with the terrible, terrible wilderness consuming their souls. In the end, a girl crept back, wounded to the death. Behind her, her enemy, bleeding but victorious, turned to what he considered his rightful prey. It was him she would later, years later, fight again, in the presence of humans she wanted, needed to call friends. She would emerge victorious and yet defeated. She had already tasted the bitterness of being special, singular in her family, who had prided on her being the one, so eagerly awaited after three generations of normal births. She still wasn’t ready to pay the price of solitude.

***

Piece by tiny piece, her stony mask of perpetual control crumbled. Tears ran down her face, unheeded, as she recalled countless struggles. A war she had never volunteered to fight, but a war she was, after all, winning. “And all this to protect those who reject me for being different!” The cat mewed reproachfully. Danielle smiled at it through her tears. “You’re right. I shouldn’t be such a self-pitying wimp.”

She got up with little grace and stood under the shower for a long time. Then she slumped on the bed and fell asleep, weary to the bone. She slept almost all day, troubled by dreams of haunting victims, those she had failed to save, and her own. Yes, her very personal cocktail of regret, pain and doubt. When finally she woke, she felt drugged and less rested than before. But she couldn’t just turn around and go on sleeping. Tonight was her night. In half an hour, she had to be on the streets, patrolling them for the safety of those who couldn’t care less if she died out there today. In fact, they’d probably be relieved.

Somehow, her resentment made the transformation easier to bear. Was this what it was like for the dark ones, those who would not, for the sake of mercy and civility, stay away from human flesh? Were their hearts so filled with hatred that they enjoyed the pain? She slipped out of the back door. She always left it open on her night.

It seemed to be a quiet –thank providence for that- night. Thoughts of curling up in some corner and going back to sleep crossed her mind. No, not viable. Sleeping on a watch! How could that thought have entered her mind! Shocking! To keep herself from thinking such nonsense again, she increased her pace, now trotting along a dark lane she knew to be a favourite haunt of one of the dark ones. Nothing to mess up here... She whisked around as she felt a loop close around her neck. Too late! The dog-catcher only laughed at her struggles, serving only to pull the loop tighter. Well, she wasn’t going to give him the pleasure of strangling herself. She immediately gave in and let herself be led into the truck docilely. If there was one thing that was worse than cats, it was dogs. Proper, barking, tamed dogs. Yuck. Mongrels, the lot of them. The dogs in the truck were watching her unintelligently, with as much fear as most sensible humans –save the dog-catcher- showed. She tried a short growl when one of them bared its teeth. They gave peace immediately.

***

She was curled up in her kennel, just bidding her time. Some time, they’d come and open the gate, and then she’d be away before they could look twice. She could smell the fear of the dogs, and did everything to encourage it. Only the humans around her were too stupid to see what they had really caught. The dog-catcher thought he’d made the catch of his life, telling everyone who’d listen that he’d get a big bonus when her owners –to think of the shame of belong to someone, like a common dog- came to fetch her, happy to see her well. Not in your lifetime, buddy, she thought to herself. She tensed when she heard voices approaching.

“Now, Josh, you be mighty careful with that one... Ai don’t wanna lose the bonus she’ll be earnin’ me when her owners come get her. She’s a real bitch that one, and mighty clever. She has fight, that one, but when she saw she was trapped... That one, she’s got training, ya know. Now, have fun taking the lady for a walk.”

“Don’t worry, sir.” Josh grinned when he saw her. Oh, no, worst case scenario! That... that human, going to take her for a walk. Like a dog. She shook herself with the thought.

“Now, come my beauty. Now that’s a nice girl.” He crooned. Nice girl? Nice girl? This nice girl would like to show your nice butt her nice teeth.

On second thought, rather not.

“Now we two are going for a nice long walk, right?” Right. And then straight home, to wash the stink of you off me. Hey, keep your dirty paws to yourself. No touching. NO petting. NO RUFFLING OF MY HAIR! I’m not a dog!

They stepped out onto the street. She pulled a little and he gave way. Good. At least you have some manners. Bad enough that I have to walk on a leash. He willingly followed as she led the way back to the O’Connor’s house.

“Ah, so this is where you live, isn’t it? Well, how about we ring and see if anyone’s home. I wanted to talk to your caretaker anyhow.” Josh held the leash loosely as he stepped up to the door to ring. Her chance. She tore away, but she wasn’t entirely quick enough. He caught on to the leash in the last moment. Danielle cursed inwardly. Then she took a chance and nipped his hand lightly. He let go, cursing. She slipped away to the back door, him running after her.

At last she was back in the safety of her room. Immediately, she transformed back and was busy fumbling with the collar and leash when Josh came in. She froze. “Out. Immediately.” Noticing she hadn’t yet donned clothes, she grabbed the nearest shirt and threw it on hastily. “You have no right to be here.” Her voice was calmer than she felt. In fact, she managed to put some cold derision in she wouldn’t have thought herself capable of.

“I think I have the right to some answers.” Josh retorted, anger lacing his voice. “You bit me!”

“Don’t worry, I’m not catching. And besides, it’s your own fault. Don’t pretend you didn’t know it was me. You treated me like a common dog.”

“Well, what proper wolf would let herself be caught like that? Naturally I assumed you to be a real dog.”

“Oh right. And you didn’t even have the brains to make the right deductions when I led you here, right? Well, that proves one thing: humans are so stupid, they’d get killed without the like of us risking our very lives for them every single night of our lives.”

“Without the likes of you, humans wouldn’t even be threatened.”

“Except by your own stupidity, you mean?” At last, she had gotten rid of that stupid, humiliating collar. She threw it down at his feet and went on a hunt for proper clothing. Over her shoulder, she said: “Close the door behind you.”

“Why should I? This is my house, after all.”

She froze, limp fingers dropping the dress she was holding. “That’s impossible. He died. He died four years ago. Because I failed. You’re a liar.” Her voice broke as she remembered, for the second time, her failure.

***

...In the end, a girl crept back, wounded to the death. Behind her, her enemy, bleeding but victorious, turned to what he considered his rightful prey.

Time had passed. She didn’t know how much. Strong arms picked her up, carried her to she didn’t know where. Gentle hands took care of her, washed her wounds, dressed them. Fed her patiently with warm, nourishing broth. Nursed her back to life. Rescued her from beyond death with urgent, loving words. Her impressions of where she was were hazy at best, until, at last, she felt good enough to get up. She was in a forest shack, only a few minutes’ brisk walk away from the town. She waited for her saviour to turn up again, but the day passed and he didn’t. The night passed and he didn’t. No sense in waiting; he probably didn’t want to meet with a recovered werewolf. Who would?

She never visited the shack again, although she had often wondered about the happenings in that month. She had racked her memory for answers and found none. Until she had forgotten.

***

“You? But how... why? I don’t understand. You should have been dead. I failed.”

“Isn’t it obvious?” He asked softly. His sensually strong hands twisted, deformed into paws that struck the ground as his body adjusted. Nails hardened into claws. Red fur replaced soft skin, nose and mouth merged to form a muzzle. His gentle brown eyes stayed the same, fixing her. He shook the tatters of his clothes off his body, every movement strangely sensual.