Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

 Kyana ran across the field, she had to get to the forest, she had to get to the forest. If she got to the forest she wouldn't die, she wouldn't be caught.

 Kyana could see the sun about the fall below the horizon.

 Kyana could hear people yelling behind her.

 If she could get to the forest, she could turn and shake them off.

 Kyana reached the edge of the forest, stumbling over a root and hitting the ground. The yelling behind her got louder. Kyana tried to cling to her feet, to grasp to the tree and pull herself off the ground. 

 Kyana couldn't though, feeling a terrible, splitting pain deep in her bones. She did everything she could not to scream, the pain dulling as she just gave into the transformation.

-

Finbar watched Dani chase VR-LA around. His transformations into his wolf form always tired him out these days and he didn't quite understand how those two always had so much energy on full moons. 

 Dani barked at VR-LA, her orange tail unsubtly wagging as she tackled him. VR-LA yelped and fell over, his grey tail also wagging as he playfully fought back. Dani pretended to bite him and VR-LA scrambled away from her.

 Finbar rested his head between his paws, closing his eyes and listening to the sounds of play-fighting, distantly noticing another sound. 

 Another wolf was running and crashing through the forest, clearly exhausted from how they were stumbling.

 Finbar stood up and the other two immediately quieted. Finbar listened a bit more closely, realizing that the running wolf must be quite small. 

 Finbar decided to go investigate, motioning for the other two to stay. 

-

 Kyana collapsed deep within the woods, her legs too unstable to let her keep running. The golden fur of her wolf form was muddy and full of sticks from her repeated crashing into bushes and running through puddles. It all hurt so badly.

 Kyana heard something approaching her, and she tried to move, but couldn't. Her attempts to stand only sent pain through her whole body and caused her to collapse again.

 Kyana eventually saw what was approaching her, a massive brown wolf with what looked to be moss on his back. He stood before Kyana and investigated her, sniffing and nudging at her.

 The wolf barked at her, and Kyana weakly barked back, hoping the wolf wasn't going to attack her.

 The wolf leaned over her, his teeth close to the back of her neck. 

 Kyana closed her eyes, bracing herself to be attacked or killed.

 The wolf picked Kyana up by the back her neck, being incredibly careful.

 Huh?

 The brown wolf began walking back where it came from, just taking Kyana with him.

-

 Finbar dropped the golden werewolf pup he had found down in the clearing he had been resting in with VR-LA and Dani. VR-LA approached to investigate the pup, but Finbar shook his head at VR-LA when the pup flinched.

 VR-LA backed off, sitting in the grass and just watching. Dani sat by VR-LA, clearly very grumpy at a newcomer being brought over. 

 Finbar ignored this in favor of getting sticks out of the poor pup's fur, they'd find her parents when the sun rises. Finbar had quite a few words for them, given how scarred and dirty the poor pup was.

 The golden pup just laid there, limp, as Finbar gently pulled sticks out of her muddy fur.

 Dani seemed to get bored of just watching this, and she nudged at VR-LA to come play with her. VR-LA nudged at her back, but didn't play with her. 

 Dani kept annoying VR-LA, trying to provoke VR-LA into tackling her so they could keep playing. 

 Finbar ignored them both, just focusing on the pup. 

-

 Kyana was very confused about what was going. The brown wolf was cleaning her fur, a grey wolf was staring at her, and an orange wolf was aggressively nudging at and annoying said grey wolf. 

 The grey wolf was being incredibly patient, just staring at her as she laid limply in the grass and the orange wolf kept nudging him. She was too exhausted to try escaping still, and her fur getting cleaned was almost enough to send her to sleep. 

 Kyana was confused, but she didn't think the trio was aggressive. They were nicer than where she came from at least.

 Kyana felt a yawn starting, but held it back. She couldn't show any weakness!

 The brown wolf pulled a stick out from behind Kyana's ear and the yawn forced its way out from her jaw anyway. 

-

 The golden pup had fallen asleep. VR-LA watched as Finbar removed the last twig stuck in her fur, and picked her up. Finbar motioned for VR-LA and Dani to follow.

 Dani finally stopped poking VR-LA, running after Finbar to head home. VR-LA stood and stretched before following, the pair pausing to let him. 

 VR-LA moved a bit faster to be able to walk next to Dani and Finbar. He was still curious about the origin of the golden pup, but Finbar would probably tell Dani and him when the sun rises in the morning. 

 VR-LA hoped the pup was okay, she had quite a few scars, from what VR-LA could see, even at this distance.

-

 Dani watched as Finbar set the pup on the couch and pulled a blanket over her. The sun would be up soon, so she didn't get why he was wasting him time. The pup would probably wake up when she turned back into a human anyway. 

 Dani grumbled as she watched VR-LA pull another blanket over the pup, getting ignored. Finbar took a step back, sitting next to the couch. VR-LA joined him.

 Dani didn't bother to join, instead deciding the slink up the stairs of her pack's home to her room. She'd wait out the remaining moments of the night in her room, they could watch the pup they found without her. 

 Dani stretched to pull her door handle down with her teeth and push her way inside, climbing onto her bed and plopping down. 

Chapter Text

 Kyana's return to human form did not wake her, her exhaustion drove her to sleep through it and to wake up confused, smelling food in another room. Room...?  

 Kyana felt so confused, staring at the ceiling which hadn't been above her before as she recalled the previous night. She had ran in her wolf form until she was exhausted, she was picked up by another wolf, the other wolf brought her over to a spot with another two, and groomed her fur until she fell asleep. 

 Oh, she was probably in the home of that trio. 

 It took a moment for Kyana's mind to process that statement, going from tired and calm to bone deep panic. 

 A door opened, and Kyana heard a deep voice speaking to her. "Oh, you're awake! We were starting to worry about you." The smell of food only got stronger.

 Kyana looked over at the source of the voice, seeing a very tall, bald man, who was holding a plate piled up with food. "Are you feeling alright? Didn't want to wake you if you were that tired, I was just going to set a plate down next to you for when you woke up." He explained, walking over towards Kyana and setting the plate down on the table that was next to the couch Kyana was on.

 "Who are you?" Kyana asked quietly, watching his expression change like he was surprised.

 "Oh! Sorry, should've said that first. Howdy. I'm Finbar. And you are?" He smiled at Kyana.

 "I'm Kyana." 

 Finbar held out his hand, offering a handshake to Kyana, which Kyana awkwardly took.  Finbar shook her head. "Your wolf form was so small, I thought you were a pup! What were you doing out there alone?"

 Kyana awkwardly looks away from Finbar and he let go of her hand. "I- uhm..." Kyana tried to think of an explanation.

 "You were doing pretty badly. You don't have to actually tell me, I'm already guessing it isn't a particularly happy reason." Finbar said, receiving a nod from Kyana. "Do you have a place to get back to? After you rest?" Finbar added.

 Kyana decided to answer honestly, just shaking her head and looking down.

 Finbar nodded to show he understood, humming in thought. "Go ahead and eat your food, we can talk more once you are fed." Finbar smiled at her. "I'm going to let the other two know you're awake."  

-

 Kyana was now sat at a dining table with three others. Finbar, a man she had been told was named VR-LA, and a woman she had been told was named Dani. Finbar had already convinced the other two to let her stay and Kyana was pretty sure he was the one in charge, so she wasn't sure why he had to convince them at all. He was the oldest, he's the one that feeds them, and he was the biggest in general, that means he's in charge, in Kyana's mind. 

 Kyana was pushed up the stairs to go get a bath, with a shirt way too big for her and pants just slightly too big for her were pushed into her hands alongside a towel so white that Kyana was a bit afraid the stain it. She was promised more food after she bathed, so she listened.