Shifting Fortunes

Sorry for the long wait, but it's time for some new characters to enter the fray and give this story new direction. Retribution is coming, but the plot will need a little time to build. No sex this time, but I hope you like meeting the new Weres just as much as I had creating them :)

Huge shout out to Andi for editing and revising this chapter for me until it was perfect :) You're a gem! I tinkered a teensy bit after I got it back, so any mistakes are my own.

———

Katie and Connor gripped hands tightly. They had scented and recognised strangers of their own kind just in time. They were hidden neatly behind a fallen pine tree with debris from the branches scattered over, forming a shelter which hid them from view. Newly fallen snow over the branches helped shield them further. They were ready to change into their animals in a heartbeat, both calling their animals up to just beneath the surface, to lend them strength. Suddenly two Weres burst through into the clearing in front of them, fighting wildly.

The two Weres, a male and a female, were attacking each other in full force and by default too distracted by their fight to scent them. Connor watched them through a small gap, saw them striking and chasing - using trees not just as shelter to duck behind and deflect a blow, but also to catapult themselves off of and onto the other in breath-taking style. It was incredibly impressive as they blurred around the clearing, he'd never seen anything like it. He and his sister would not be able to outrun them and they would not survive, so he pushed down the feelings that were screaming at him to run. Their best chance was to wait and hope that their fight would draw them away again.

He squeezed Katie's hand again, feeling how icy cold her fingers were. They were ill-equipped to deal with this weather without shelter, despite being able to change into their shaggy beasts, and it had been folly of them to try. But, as elder sibling, he had determined that they should continue to travel while the snow fell. His need to put as many miles as he could under their belt could now end both their lives - not only from the fighting Weres, but also from the icy cold.

Connor gripped his sister's hand tighter and gave her a penetrating stare; her fear-filled blue eyes stared back at him glassily and she shivered against him. She looked tired, hungry and scared.

He turned his attention back to the two fighting. They were quite evenly matched, and now that his heart rate was coming back under his control, his curiosity was peaked enough to notice that while he most definitely scented them as Weres, they fought in human form. He couldn't see enough, but there was something odd about them - something animalistic though their human side remained in control. He wanted to move to get a better view, but he daren't make a sound. They had seen others of their kind rip each other apart - had nearly been killed themselves by them too. To rile two angry Weres...and yet...as he looked closer and let his senses drift out, he didn't feel any anger, no fury wafting off them, no waves of madness that he was used to as they athletically and gracefully danced around each other with determination. They made no sound, wasted no breath on such silliness and weighed each move before they made it.

Tense minutes passed and they still didn't leave. It was then he realised with a jolt that the fighting Weres were only sparring! The thought filled him with a modicum of relief. But still, he kept quiet, waited and watched as their breathing became heavier, neither being able to one-up the other, until finally they both rested with their back against trees opposite each other.

Now he could only see the girl's face, and he was overwhelmed by her beauty. Blonde hair, now damp with sweat and flyaway strands framed her face, the length obscured by the way she had knotted it at the top of her head. She was starting to smile as she panted and he noted that she no longer looked animalistic - she just looked like a soft, human girl and she was starting to laugh. He felt Katie twitch at his side as she heard the chuckle from the other girl, but he just squeezed her hand to stay quiet again as he strained to hear the other Were.

"You've gotten faster. I couldn't catch you this time," the girl said appreciatively to the man out of Connor's vision. He heard his rich laugh though.

"Or maybe you've just gotten slower," the male teased her and he came into view suddenly, leaning a hand either side of her head and leaning down to kiss the blonde. Connor found himself feeling a small spear of jealousy. Not necessarily for the blonde herself, but that these two Weres had found each other and had happiness - they appeared so care-free! How had they achieved it? Did they not know their kind were hunted by their own?

Were they part of the faction of rabid Weres that sought the need to wipe every Were from the planet that didn't obey them? He and Katie had barely escaped with their lives, and he knew it was sheer luck that they had made it out unscathed. The two months they'd spent with the pack was the worst of their lives. It had opened their eyes to horrors and a hell they should have never seen.

"Connor, I can feel your fear and anger, you're scaring me! We'll be found!"

his sister panicked and blasted her thoughts into his mind.

Shit!

, he thought. He'd taken his eyes off the Weres as his thoughts wandered and when he looked back they were gone. A feeling of dread came over him. He did not think that they had just disappeared off from whence they came. He knew they would have immediately felt his fear that he'd been masking up until that point. His skill in masking wasn't as great as his sister's, but his mental lapse had been his downfall.

"

Katie, shift but don't run just yet,"

he whispered mentally to his sister, already lapsing into the brown bobcat that had served them well. His sister had the same bobcat, and they had found using the same animal to be useful more than once when needed. They were each other's double in the bobcat's form. With their ability to mask their scents, they were both able to allow only the bobcat's scent to show through - not their own. This unique skill had confounded the rabid Were pack members and had allowed them their escape - not knowing who to chase, and who was who had been too much for the least intelligent pack-members.

The bobcat at his side was tense and prepared to run for her life at his word. He was mournful at the sight of their shredded clothes on the ground beneath them as he carefully wiggled out of the last scrap of his torn shirt. They would have to stay as animals until they found clothing, and that could be dangerous.

"We're going to have to split up,"

he was already shushing down Katie's panic and disagreement at his words in her mind. He felt the reluctant agreement settle over their sibling bond and he was reassured she knew what she had to do. Time seemed to stand still, their breath frosting in the air around them.

They were here!

Connor heard his sister's mental scream and her bobcat's wild snarl as she tried to race out from under the branches. They had waited too long! One huge black wolf and a massive white tiger were blocking their only escape as they somehow dropped from over their position to land in front. Their snarling, snapping jaws were paralysing Connor with fear, ears pinned, paws strained out in front, ready for action. The black wolf seized his sister's bobcat by the scruff as she tried to scurry past and threw her back into their hiding place.

****

Samantha's wolf was seized with anger and suspicion as it threw the small bobcat back next to its doppelgänger. The two were clearly animal shifters; their scent was identical, though she had no clue how that was possible. Each should have their own. Sam fought her humanity back to the top and tempered the wolf's hostile gaze down a notch - the impressive white tiger at her side was doing more than enough to frighten the two bobcats into collapsing against each other in a scared heap.

Who were these two Weres? What were they doing here on their land? Were they a threat? Many questions filtered through Sam's mind, but logic prevailed. There was no way Rutherford would have sent them - they were untrained and unskilled. They had failed to protect their position, had allowed herself and Jake to get the drop on them, and one had tried to bail with its legs between its tail, while the other just froze in fear. She could feel the fear reeking off both of them. She also felt an odd excitement thrumming through her body at meeting two more of her kind. Jake was all she knew.

Sam caught a movement out the corner of her eye, and turned to look back at the white tiger. She could see the question in his eyes as they both took in the situation. The tiger chuffed and quickly darted in to grab one of the small bobcats by the scruff of its neck. It clawed and hissed in anger, its clone immediately trying to come to its defence, only to be restrained in the same way by a big Sumatran tiger which had appeared in place of the black wolf. The bobcat blinked in shock as it tried to take in that this shifter had not only changed from one animal form to another, but it had done so in the blink of an eye.

****

"

Connor!"

Katie screamed in her head as her brother was wrenched from her by the white tiger. They meant to rip them apart! In the blink of an eye, even as she leapt hissing and spitting towards the tiger, she found herself in the same predicament as her brother - in the jaws of a new orange tiger. She blinked in shock. The orange tiger had replaced the black wolf in a heartbeat. No Were she had known could do that - who were these Weres? It became abruptly clear the situation was hopeless. They couldn't fight them,

she

couldn't fight them - there was no way out, and she was done clawing for her existence.

"I'm so tired Connor. I'm sorry,"

she whispered miserably as she slumped lifelessly in shock and withdrew into her bobcat, counting on her animal's feral nature to protect her from the worst of the pain she was sure to feel any minute now. She was oblivious to her brother's mental screams, muting their sibling bond as she gave in to what she was sure would be a brutal death.

***

"

Katie!"

Connor screamed at his sister mentally even as he hung from the white tiger's massive jaws. The huge cats were loping fast, their weight not even seeming to hinder them as they were both carried away. Where were they taking them? Fear caught in his chest and threatened to cut off his breath as he looked over at his sister in the orange tiger's jaws. She just swung there limp and lifeless. Were they part of the pack? Were they taking them back for judgment and sure death? Their deaths would not be fast - that much he knew from living in the pack. It would be cruel and painful, screams ripped from their bodies in every way imaginable until they would sink blissfully into black oblivion and never awake. They would beg for death he was sure.

And yet...his sub-conscious stirred and whispered, he couldn't ignore it. They hadn't harmed them yet - they were being gentle, if not careful with them in their mouths - their teeth had not punctured his skin. He felt no discomfort. His feelings of suspicion, betrayal and deception tried to brim up within him as he watched his sister sway limply in the orange cat's mouth, but he could spy no blood on her fur. The pack's enforcers would take glee in hurting them any way that they could. Connor resigned himself to wait. They would know soon enough. And sooner than he had thought.

They abruptly slowed to a walk and the tigers were padding up to a wood log cabin. The windows burned bright and warm with the hint of a flickering fire within. He saw the neatly stacked wood and axe near the door under a small lean-to, protecting the wood from the snow. He noticed the welcome mat at the door and an empty boot rack beside it. He was confused. There wasn't even a scent of another Were around.

He tensed himself and looked at Katie again, still withdrawn into herself. He watched as the orange tiger carefully placed her body onto the welcome mat, then used a paw to work the door handle down. He heard the lock click and the door swung inwards. The cat picked his sister back up and carried her into the cabin. He began to struggle again as he lost sight of her, but the cat that held him gave him a strong shake as they followed the orange tiger into the cabin. He gave up resisting at once - his sister was at stake, and so far they hadn't harmed them. If he could play nice, maybe they could get out of this unscathed.

The two tigers placed him with his sister on a fluffy rug in front of the crackling fire. The orange one disappeared briefly while the white one kept watch. Connor leaned against his sister, trying to mentally prod her awake with no success. The warmth at his back felt so good and he was so very tired. He snapped out of it. He needed to protect his sister.

Suddenly the pretty blonde girl reappeared in the room, very human and clothed. She looked troubled, but not angry. Connor was heartened slightly. He was beginning to really doubt that they were affiliated with the pack. Nothing made sense - not this cabin out in the middle of nowhere, the many touches he had noticed that named this place their home, not a lair. Could they really have just happened upon two isolated Weres?

The white cat suddenly disappeared with a flick of its tail and reappeared shortly afterwards fully clothed, and armed with a gun. His fear hissed back into place and he leapt to all fours in front of his sister and spat at them, his bobcat's ears pinned back.

He took a moment to assess them. The blonde was soft and not tall - but he'd seen her move in the clearing - she was agile and fast and could fight like hell. The male was big, well muscled and strong. He was at his peak unlike Connor. Despite his bulk, he also managed to move fast enough to keep away from the blonde - he was the one who had used the trees the most to help him launch through the air. And now he had a gun - no doubt he was a good aim, too. They were both highly skilled Weres and he wondered where they'd learned it all from. He wanted answers.

"What do you want with us?"

he projected loudly at them into their minds. He had the pleasure of hearing the girl cry out and the man blanch with shock at the touch of his mind on theirs. It was a very special ability, he'd learned, that he and his sister shared. Very rare. Only between siblings usually, but even rarer that they could project to others in either human or were form as well. He was glad he had something to put them off balance, because he was feeling very off balance himself. There was zero probability of success if he tried to attack them now - they would simply shift and decimate him or shoot him, leaving his sister unprotected and alone.

The blonde was the first to recover. "You can communicate with us in animal form," she breathed. It wasn't a question, and her voice was saturated with wonder. Connor allowed a small moment of pride to shaft in, but immediately pressed it back. Was this a trick to disarm him? Lull him into thinking he was in control?

Many emotions flickered over her face, and the man's gun was aiming point blank at his head. He had no doubt the man was a good aim and would not miss his target, moving or not. He let out another snarl. They still hadn't answered his question!

"Who are you?" the girl asked as she moved closer to him.

"

I asked first!"

Connor snarled, pushing his intent that he would attack if she got closer into her mind. His mind boggled that he scented no fear off her, only more wonder.

"My name is Samantha—"

"Sam!" the male hissed at her in shock. The blonde looked at him reproachfully and Connor watched the male roll his eyes. He flicked his own eyes back to the girl to see what she would do. She simply turned back to him with a smile and continued.

"I'm Sam, and this is Jake. I've never met another Were before, aside from Jake of course," she said conversationally. Almost friendly. The man's gun was still cocked, and Connor didn't relax his position. Again, he watched the blonde look at the male, this time exasperated, and was surprised as the man sighed and slowly disengaged the gun and lowered it to his side. He felt himself relaxing slightly. He stopped snarling at any rate.

"

You've never met another Were before?"

he asked the girl, still projecting so the male could hear too, interest and curiosity warring with his suspicion. He watched her shake her head.

"Nope, you two are the first. Who is your friend? Are they okay?" The girl motioned towards his sister lying behind him and he looked over his shoulder quickly to check on her. He tried nudging her mentally again, but there was still no reaction.

"

She's my sister,"

he replied grudgingly, relaxing enough to sit down. His bobcat swished its tail about him, but his ears relaxed and he watched the two Weres intently. He didn't think they intended to hurt him and his sister. He was going to have to take a chance. He didn't want to keep conversing with them mentally either, it was giving him a headache and he needed his mind to be clear.

Connor glanced between the male and female and sighed, felt the change surround him, and his human form appeared crouching naked before them both. His sister still didn't move. He stayed very still as he looked up at them from beneath his blonde wavy locks which had fallen over his eyes. It offered him a thin shield to observe them without his eyes giving too much away.

He saw the way the male's hand tightened on the gun again, but didn't raise it. He let loose the breath he didn't realise he'd been holding. Abrupt movement to his left signaled the blonde leaving the room and he tensed, ready to shift back into one of his more dangerous animals if needed. The viper was very handy and threw Weres off balance - most of them tending to prefer the mammal variety.

The female reappeared with a long coat in her hands which she threw at him. He caught it deftly with quick reflexes. He hesitated then rose quickly, tying it about his big nearly-six-foot muscled frame. He was uncertain what to do now. The small bobcat at his feet didn't even respond to the nudge his foot gave it.

"Well, it's nice to finally meet you," the girl smiled over at him. Connor still didn't know what to think, but he tried a hesitant smile back at her, sure now that if he didn't make any rash moves that they would consider a threat, things would be okay.

"I'm not sure I can say the same," he said ruefully, rubbing the back of his neck in emphasis where he'd been carried. He was startled by the male's quick bark of laughter at his comment and directed his attention back to him. He was a big male, bigger than himself even.

"I was gentle," the male - Jake - grinned at him. The grin startled Connor too - both of the strange Weres had ready smiles now that they felt he was no longer a threat. He was perplexed. This was new. He and his sister hadn't met anyone of their kind who had been kind to them before. They hadn't even met any humans who had been kind to them recently - there was too much distrust in this new world since the Reveal.

He wanted to crouch back down again and try and wake his sister, but was unsure if he wanted to give up his stance now he was standing and dressed. Crouching down would put him back in a weaker position. His eyes flashed between the two Weres who were still just watching him quietly at a safe distance and made his decision.