# How Not To Graduate 1: Arrival

By: TheDragonBoy

## Content

Chapter 1: Arrival

“Does it feel real yet?” Jack asked, raising his voice over the constant, dull racket of metal wheels on rails. Fiona turned her muzzle away from the train window to smile at him -- and as always, the warmth of his friend’s smile sent a giddy little shiver up his spine.

“…No, not really,” the werewolf admitted. She’d agreed quite eagerly when Jack suggested this adventure together, but… despite the days they’d spent on tracks, and the weeks on waves, the truth still hadn’t sunk in. Fiona looked calm on the surface, but after all these years together Jack knew his friend’s tells: the werewolf’s tail always gave away her real feelings! And today it was twitching ever so slightly, hinting at her nervous excitement.

(Could Fiona smell that he was feeling almost exactly the same way, Jack idly wondered?)

“Yeah, me neither,” Jack replied, sharing a hesitant grin with his friend. He’d spent a significant portion of his young life somewhat literally trapped in his aunt’s house for his own safety. He’d never expected that someday he’d get the chance to travel, to see the world like this -- frankly, he’d never thought he’d get the chance to survive to adulthood. The odds were already bad enough, dodging hungry predators between classes: the idea of going on an actual adventure seemed like a distant, dangerous dream. Definitely not something he should dare to hope for.

And yet here he was: Jack the marked human, all grown up and going to college! Traveling abroad, no less! And even better, Fiona was there with him. His smile towards her widened as he reveled in their surreal situation for a moment. The instant he’d heard about this exchange program he wanted to apply for it, but he’d still hesitated: it was a big, hungry world out there, for a marked human like him. But as soon as he’d seen Fiona’s face light up at the idea, he’d known he was going to be brave and take the leap -- no, they would do it together.

It was pretty wild though, how life had turned out this way. Just one or two changed moments, a different decision here or a bit of bad luck there, could have easily put them both on an entirely different path. Forget about just staying local to study: they might have not ended up attending university at all, or Fiona might have gone on to study without him, or Jack easily could have ended up in a belly -- many, many potential bellies.

They might’ve never even shared their first kiss, or actually started dating.

Yes, they both really had gotten lucky: so many events needed to go right, for them to get here together. But Jack’s mind wasn’t on those alternate worlds of ‘What If’ -- both he and Fiona were happy they were in this one, together, at the end of their final train ride… finally about to arrive in the town where they’d spend the next six months.

Fiona sat up straighter and focused forward, past the window. “Hey, I think I can see it!”

Jack came closer to squint out with his human vision. It took a moment, but eventually he saw it too. “Yeah, I think that’s it! That’s…”

_________________________

“…um, on second thought, maybe we shouldn’t have come to a place called Nom-shire?”

Jack was the first to speak, after stopping to gape for what must have been multiple minutes.

There were a lot of eye-catching features which they certainly did not have back home, like the abundance of pavement, the tall buildings, and the thing which struck Jack most: a very large picture up on a wall, showing a predator grinning over a stuffed belly. A caption read in big, bold print: “Sign up for VoreDash today! This could be you!”

Fiona was still too overwhelmed to reply. She hadn’t even finished processing all the new smells hitting her nostrils, let alone the sights and sounds. What were those big, metal vehicles rushing down the roads!? And why did she feel the urge to chase them!? Above all, there were so many different people, so many different species: canines and felines and humans and a fox who–

“Excuse me, dearie, are you Fiona Lupella?”

The werewolf blinked at the tall, motherly vixen who’d walked up to her with a warm, welcoming smile. “Oh! Um, yes-” Her mind cleared after a moment and she took a few quick sniffs. “Mrs. Rava?” Fiona asked politely, recognizing the woman’s scent. She’d been sent a little card in the mail before she’d left home, with a letter and a scratch-and-sniff patch, sending one back in turn. Why rely on photos when scent could convey so much more to any half-competent predator?

“Oh please, Mrs. Rava makes me sound old. Call me Mira!” the vixen insisted with a smile, waving a paw negligently. She stepped back to get a better look at Fiona, visibly restraining her urge to groom and fuss over her new werewolf guest. “But aw, you poor thing, traveling on an empty belly? I’d thought for sure you’d have eaten someone on the train, otherwise I would’ve brought lunch to the station…”

“Oh no, that’s fine, Mrs. Ra-- I mean, Mira!” Fiona insisted -- though it was an awfully nice thought. “I was a bit too excited to eat.” But it was the fox who looked excited now, eagerly looking the younger woman up and down, practically vibrating as she visibly held herself back. “It’s nice to meet you,” Fiona said with a smile, caught halfway between relief at Mira’s warm, welcoming affection and light anxiety over the motherly fussing she already knew was coming.

“Still, I want to make sure you’re properly well fed while you’re staying with us, dearie! Wouldn't do to leave a houseguest…” Mira blinked, trailing off. “…hungry…” She sniffed the air, more deeply. Already visibly starting to drool a little, the vixen swiveled her muzzle to track the oddly… delicious scent that had entered her awareness, finally noticing Jack’s presence.

Jack tensed at the rather familiar sight, slipping his hand into his pocket to grab his wand. He’d expected -- hoped -- to make it literally five minutes before getting pounced on, but…

Mira turned towards him with a warm smile, exactly as welcoming as she’d been toward Fiona. “Oh! Hello, you must be Jack!” the vixen said, shaking his hand with one paw. “I heard there was a human coming with Fiona, but your name was marked 'Jack, Eaten' on the student paperwork, so I assumed you were more of a 'packed lunch for the train' sort of deal. Silly me…” Mira laughed. “But anyway, it’ll be lovely to have you as our guest as well!”

Jack reeled a bit, very much expecting a hungry maw and not a friendly greeting. “Um, no. It’s Jack Eten, actually,” he clarified awkwardly. “It’s, um… it’s pronounced Eh-ten.”

“Yes dear, Ea-ten, that’s what I said,” the vixen replied, radiating motherly patience.

“Jack’s my boyfriend,” Fiona inserted, seeing where this exchange was (or wasn’t) going. She’d already had enough discussions regarding his unfortunate last name.

Jack braced himself for a sharp reaction: confusion, some kind of hostility… but instead Mira beamed at the two of them. “Aw, that’s so sweet! My Vicky is the same way with her pet, I’m sure you’ll all get along famously. By the way, this is Jamie. Come say hi, dear.”

Jack and Fiona both frowned, about to inquire about that ‘pet’ comment… but before either had a chance, a new face was quickly approaching and introducing himself. A human face, at that!

“Hey there, I’m Jamie, top of the morning to you!” he said enthusiastically, coming closer.

“But… but it’s evening…” Jack protested in confusion.

Jamie laughed. “Eh, it’s morning somewhere… Anywho, welcome to Nomshire!”

The young man smiled at them as his scent wafted past Fiona’s muzzle. Her eyes widened just a touch: wow, he smelled… pretty good. Had someone marked him, like Jack? No, the scent wasn’t the right flavor for that, but still. Maybe Mira was right: she was hungry from the trip.

*gurgle*

Fiona tensed again, this time from embarrassment. Mrs. Rava hadn’t made any real predatory advances toward Jack, the least she could do was keep her stomach quiet and not make this new human uncomfortable either. Fiona knew her manners, she would never disrespect a fellow predator by pouncing on their human out of the blue… no matter how good he smelled.

Wait, was this how her friends acted around Jack? No wonder he felt uncomfortable sometimes, when hanging out with predators. Though admittedly, this ‘Jamie’ guy didn’t look uncomfortable. Actually, he looked right at her and gave an even bigger smile, looking almost bashful himself.

“It’s great to meet ya, Fiona -- and you too, Jack! Hope the trip wasn’t too long?”

“Likewise,” Jack replied, the arrival of another human calming him down a bit after the vixen’s enthusiastic greeting. Enthusiastic predators had never been a good sign, even friendly ones.

Meanwhile, Fiona was busy looking the new human up and down, the first she’d actually met in this strange new place. He seemed comfortable around predators, like he’d never been hunted before. She decided that was a good sign, for Jack’s safety… and for her own future hunts.

“Would you two like some help with your bags?” Mira offered. “You sure have carried them a long way to get here! Jamie, sweetie, can you help bring them to the car?”

“Car?” Fiona slowly repeated, tilting her head to one side in confusion.

“Sure thing,” Jamie said, hoisting their bags over his shoulder. “Over here, guys, this way!”

Jack and Fiona followed their hosts toward one of those large, metal vehicles that they’d been watching rush down the roads, and each took a moment to visually inspect and/or sniff at it.

Jamie hauled their bags into the trunk, then opened the door for the rather confused pair of visitors. “You’re gonna have to explain how this ‘car’ thing works to me…” Jack admitted, as he awkwardly climbed inside and fiddled with the weird little buckles on the seats.

“Jamie, dear, could you pull up a video on your cell phone to explain?” Mira suggested.

“What’s a… cell phone?” Fiona asked hesitantly.

“Wait, you don’t have cell phones where you’re from?” Mira asked, looking puzzled. “I thought all kids these days were obsessed with social media…”

“Social… media?” Jack echoed blankly.

“We’ll tell you all about that stuff on the way!” Mira promised. “But let’s hurry up and get going: the sooner we get home, the sooner we can do something about that empty belly!”

_________________________

“So, wait -- you’re saying that when you push buttons, you cause… intricate, tiny bolts of lightning to move through this metal box and become pictures?” Jack asked, after an hour of explanation. “It sounds like something I’d expect to read about in a comic book…”

“That’s… not entirely wrong?” Jamie admitted. Jack grinned, feeling a little smug that he’d grasped it all so quickly! He looked over at Fiona, who… apparently wasn’t listening? She had her whole entire head sticking out the window. What was that about?

So fast! So fast! she thought excitedly, letting her tongue flop out to catch the rushing breeze.

Must be a wolf thing, Jack decided. …Whatever it was, it was cute.

Mira cleared her throat from the front seat. “We’re here, everyone!” she announced cheerfully, as she parked beside a cute little suburban house. “Jamie can help explain more of that stuff later, if you like, but let’s get you both settled. And more importantly, fed!”

Fiona finally rejoined Jack: she hadn’t heard a word he or Jamie had said on the drive; she’d been nearly hypnotized from the moment Mrs. Rava had lowered the glass. At first she’d just wanted to better experience all the scents and sounds outside, but then the wind in her fur had just felt so good… Fiona stretched for a second, enjoying the breeze: this place was amazing!

Jack leaned closer. "Wow, this new tech stuff is confusing, and Jamie barely even started to explain that ‘internet’ thing…" he muttered. “I hope our classes aren’t this hard!”

"I don't know… I feel like I understand cars pretty well, at least," Fiona said proudly.

It was a short walk up the driveway, but both Fiona and Jack already felt more at ease: Jamie’s friendly conversation and Mira’s motherly energy had quickly broken the ice.

Despite all the newness they’d been surrounded with, the house seemed normal enough. And their two hosts Mira and Jamie seemed very nice. Not only were they welcoming and patient, but it didn’t seem like either of them were moments away from trying to turn Jack into dinner, which was a major win. Yes, it seemed like the Rava house might be a nice, calm place for Jack and Fiona’s college stay. Though, didn’t their letters say something about sharing the house with another college student, Mira’s daughter?

“Vicky, dear, we’re ho--!”

The vixen was interrupted by a blur of vibrant orange fur as the door opened. Before Jack knew it, he found himself pinned to the ground, staring up into the uncomfortably familiar sight of an open, drooling maw, with little strings already descending to greet him. Jack gulped: with the new and unfamiliar experience of the car ride, it had slipped his mind that he was still eminently edible. If anything, it should have been shocking that it took this long! And with his wand pinned, he was just glad that Fiona was nearby enough to save him, when his head inevitably ended up lodged in yet another throat…

"Mom, you brought home dinner?” asked a happy voice. “Wherever you got him from, he smells delicious…" An orange snout sniffed at Jack, before the accompanying maw yawned open. Jack scrunched his eyes shut as a wet tongue eagerly slathered across his entire face. "Hi, what's your name, can I eat you? Good thing you showed up ‘cuz I’m starv--"

The surprise orange blur was tackled in turn by a blur of brown fur, accompanied by a familiar threatening snarl. Turning onto his side, Jack was treated to a glimpse of Fiona growling atop a fox, who bore an oddly striking resemblance to the kindly vixen they’d been driving with.

“Okay, okay, jeez -- you can have him if you want him that badly!” The vixen tried to wriggle free, but the angry werewolf kept her pinned with the strength of a predator who worked every day to chase down her meals. Vicky stopped struggling as she realized she couldn’t slip away, looking up at the unfamiliar wolf with a new expression. “Damn, you’re pretty strong!” The fox flexed under Fiona’s grip, clearly enjoying the wolf’s strength rather than trying to escape. “It’s kinda hot. I’d love to get pinned down like that again soon -- you free after class Friday?”

“Victoria Octavia Rava! That’s enough, young lady, I raised you better than that!” Mira interjected, with her best ‘scolding mother’ tone -- a tone that seemed to be rather well-practiced. “We do not pounce onto guests -- or come onto them! -- the second they enter the door!”

Fiona’s growl trailed off in confusion. Did that fox just… ask her on a date, right after pinning down Jack and trying to eat him? Why did this fox think she’d ever agree? Wait, did Mira just say this was her daughter? They’d be living with a vicious vixen, who wanted to eat her Jack, and…

“Oh, I’m so sorry, Fiona…” Mira fussed, helping the werewolf back to her paws. She glared at her daughter. “I know Vicky can be a bit… forward, but she does mean well. Usually…”

Meanwhile, Vicky trotted back over to Jack for another, very-slightly-less-predatory greeting. “Wow! Nice to meet you, Jack, you smell amazing!” Vicky didn’t wait to hear his response. “Wait, do all humans taste like you, where you’re from? Are you sure I can't eat you?”

“Um… n-no?” he managed, utterly confused at this rapid turn of events. The vixen’s eyes lit up eagerly, and Jack winced. “I-I mean, yes! Yes, I’m sure you can’t eat me,” he quickly clarified.

(Man, Jack had never expected that his high school grammar classes might save his life…)

“Aw, okay, that’s a shame! Let me know if you change your mind!” Vicky told him brightly.

Fiona blinked, cocking her head to the side. Wait, had the vixen just… given up? Just like that? Huh, these Nomshire predators really were strange… But maybe this ‘Vicky’ wasn’t all bad?

“Anyway, sorry for the mix-up: in my defense, you really do smell delicious.” Vicky happily continued. “Wanna come in? I can show you to your room. I’ve also gotten you guys some welcome chocolates and stuff, they were a free gift with my last human on Voredash…”

Fiona’s suspicion redoubled. No hungry pred was ever that nice to prey who’d just gotten away, she certainly wouldn’t be -- was this some kind of trick, to get them both to lower their guards?

“Hold that thought. Jack, can I talk to you for a second? Alone?” Fiona pulled him away, not quite waiting for his answer. After being tackled by an unfamiliar fox, mild manhandling (wolfhandling?) by his girlfriend was actually a welcome change. “Jack, are we sure this is a good idea? I want to make sure we stay somewhere you’ll be safe. This… does not seem safe.”

Jack glanced nervously toward Vicky for a moment. She smiled a big, toothy, eager smile and waved a paw. Maybe Fiona had a point… But then Jack looked over at Jamie. He’d mentioned he’d been living in the Rava house for some time, right? “…I think it’ll be okay? I mean, Jamie doesn’t seem to have any problem staying alive, he’s not nervous around her at all…”

“Jamie, nervous around Vicky? Oh goddess, no!” Mira assured her new houseguests. “Those two have been inseparable since they were little, it’s so cute.”

Both Fiona’s and Jack’s expressions softened. Since… they were little? That sounded familiar… They looked at each other for a moment, with the same thought: was Jamie, like… Vicky’s Jack?

“I actually have a bunch of baby pictures, if you want to see them!” Mira happily continued, beckoning them inside with both paws. “Come on in, they’re right here in the living room!”

“Mom!” Vicky whined, but followed her mother inside anyway -- as did the rest of the group.

By the time Fiona and Jack set down the luggage by the stairs, Mira had already pulled down a worn, well-loved scrapbook. “Aw, look, this was their first day of school together!” the vixen reminisced. Jack and Fiona both leaned in closer: aww, it really was cute seeing bright-eyed, bushy-tailed little Vicky holding Jamie’s hand. “Look at your fluffly-wuffly little tail, Vicky…”

“Ugh, mum…” her daughter whimpered, ears folding back with shame. “That’s it, I’m heading upstairs!”

Mira called after the fleeing younger vixen, "Can you take their luggage up? Oh, and make sure both beds are ready, okay?” Up above, the door slammed. Mira rolled her eyes. “Kits these days. Oh! But look at this picture, you two: this was the day we adopted Jamie!”

Fiona cocked her head in surprise, even as Jack voiced their thoughts aloud. “A-adopted?”

“Mm-hm!” Jamie said with a happy nod. He leaned up against Mira, as the fox gave him a big hug. “I’ve lived with the Ravas my whole life: they’ve been such a loving family to me.”

“It was the happiest day of our lives~” Mira murmured, as she lovingly groomed Jamie’s hair.

Neither Jack nor Fiona could quite believe what they were hearing. It had been a big enough shock back home when they’d announced their relationship, but over on this side of the world there was a fox family that had actually adopted a human as her own child? That was incredibly wholesome, to know that predators and prey could live as equals here, as a real proper family…

“So Jamie is… Jamie is actually your son?” Fiona asked. She was quickly seeing this fox in a new light. Apart from her own mother, she’d never met another predator who’d ever truly open her house -- her family! -- to a human. Maybe some families could transcend species…

"Son? Well, often I think of him like a son, but of course not -- he's our pet, silly!"

The hopeful smile dissolved off Jack’s face faster than if he’d been dunked into a predator’s stomach. Simultaneously, Fiona cocked her head the other direction with renewed confusion.

Words failed them both.

“…What?” Jack finally managed.

“B-but… humans aren't pets.” Fiona protested at the same moment. Humans were a lot of things: they were powerful and intelligent, cunning and filling and delicious, especially when they squirmed (and dammit, now her stomach was rumbling again) but they weren’t… domesticated!

"Oh, maybe not where you're from yet, but humans actually make wonderful pets, really!” Mira absently replied, still browsing the scrapbook. “Jamie, show them your collar, dear!"

The human obediently pulled out a pet tag from under his shirt, to Jack and Fiona’s dawning horror: ‘Property of the Rava Family’, it announced. “This is how predators know not to eat me, without asking Mira or Vicky for permission!” Jamie told them proudly. “Don’t worry, they’re very responsible pet owners: they make sure I stay fed, go for walkies, and…”

Fiona’s jaw opened and closed several times as she tried to formulate a response. This couldn’t be real. This was just nuts, right? Humans were not pets! She was not dating a pet! But it was a quelling look from Jack that actually got her to stop. With a subtle wave of his hand, he motioned for her to calm down. The wolf felt the fur on the back of her neck settle, as she took his advice.

…Jack was right, as usual. They both knew better than anyone else that relationships between humans and predators could be weird and complicated, and come with plenty of strange labels. They’d both heard worse words than ‘pet’ before. And besides, they definitely didn’t need to pick an argument with their hosts on their first night here.

“Back where I grew up, you’d never see any human off a farm…” Mira reminisced. “But things really are much better this way, with free-range humans! They’re such wonderful companions, I don’t know how we ever lived without them…” Mira’s ears suddenly perked up, as Fiona’s stomach growled again. “Oh! Silly me, here I am talking about humans while you’re hungry! I can go grab one for you, if you’d like -- it would only take me a minute.”

“Oh! Um, thank you, but I’m fine, really!” Fiona said. Nobody had offered to hunt for her since she was a pup: sure it was a bit condescending, but also touching. It was nice: an older predator trying to make her feel at home here. “Don’t worry, I’ll catch myself breakfast tomorrow.”

“Are you sure? It would really be no trouble, dear…” Mira offered. “I’d hate to have a guest go to bed on an empty stomach…”

“Fiona is the best huntress in her class, she won’t have any trouble catching a meal!” Jack told Mira proudly.

The werewolf’s tail fluttered at her boyfriend’s compliment. “I’m a bit tired tonight, that’s all…”

The vixen nodded. “Don’t worry, I totally understand,” Mira replied. “You’ve had a long day traveling -- we’ve already prepared a room for you, it’s upstairs on the left. Sleep well!”

Fiona and Jack nodded their thanks, heading upstairs.

“Hey, you gonna go out and hunt before bed?” he asked as they climbed.

“No, I--” Fiona began… then paused, as Vicky appeared at the top of the stairs.

"Nice to meet you, Wolfy!" the vixen said, then winked at Jack. "And g'night, Tasty~"

Fiona growled a little under her breath. “I’m not about to leave you alone with that fox.”

Jack chuckled. “Fair. Though, are you sure it’ll be any safer for you to go to bed hungry with me?” he teased.

Fiona rolled her eyes and smirked, tail flicking playfully. “Well, we've been friends for fifteen years and I haven’t eaten you yet,” she shot back.

“You did though.” Jack said patiently. “That is absolutely a thing that happened.”

“Yeah? Well, you put on a skirt right after, and punched a different werewolf in the nose.”

“Touché,” Jack relented with another chuckle, then paused. “Man, fuck Arthur…"

Fiona stuck out her tongue in disgust at the mental image. “Ugh, not in a million years…”

They both shared a laugh… “Oh, she said it was on the left, right?” Jack recalled, realizing they’d just ended up perched at the top of the stairs, chatting.

“Yeah, right -- the left.” They finally started moving again, but they continued to chat. “Wow, I am so glad we’ll finally have our own room again.”

“You said it, Fi. I’m looking forward to not having to sleep in all my clothes again.”

“Right? Imagine how it is with fur.”

“Maybe half as bad as it is with sweat.”

“Whatever. Are we sticking with our normal ‘no looking’ rules? Because let’s be honest, as soon as we get in there, I’m tearing this stuff off.”

Jack reached out to turn the handle, as they finally arrived. “Go wild,” he offered.

And she might have… except that they both quickly noticed one thing as they opened the door.

“Um, Mrs. Rava?” Fiona called, down the stairs. “I thought you said there were two beds?”

Mira’s reply drifted up to them. “Don’t worry, there are! Jack’s bed is over on the floor…”

Jack paused, trying to make sure he wasn’t going blind. Against one wall of the room, there was a nice, normal mattress. Pretty comfortable-looking. Nice pink satin sheets, pillows, and so on.

And against the other wall… “That is a dog bed.” Jack finally said.

“Yep.”

“I’m not sleeping on that.”

“Yep.”

“…everyone’s going to assume I’m your pet here, aren’t they?”

“Yep.”

They both sighed together.

“Don’t worry, you can sleep with me,” Fiona assured, finally starting toward her suitcase to start unpacking. Jack felt a little jolt shoot up his spine at her words.

“Y-You sure? You don’t mind?”

“Well you’re not sleeping on the dog bed,” she repeated, keeping the conversation light. Jack started to smile at the thought, despite his other rising feelings. Though her back was turned, he noticed Fiona’s tail give a little flutter.

“…Well, in a way, I guess I will be sleeping in a dog’s bed,” the human joked. “I hope I don’t wake up covered in fur…” His attempt at humor was quickly met with a ballistic shirt to the face, fresh from his girlfriend’s luggage.

The conversation trailed off after that, as the two of them passed the time silently pulling things out of their suitcases, filling shelves and drawers. After a few minutes Fiona spoke again, a little hesitantly. “If I’m not gonna get out of this stuff…” (she tugged at her shirt) “…I’m at least gonna brush my fur before we sleep.”

“Sure,” Jack replied, yielding the bathroom. Understandably, Fiona hadn’t torn off her clothes, considering she didn’t have her own, private bed to retreat into afterwards. Jack hadn’t really thought that far ahead, his mind was still preoccupied with the idea of… It wasn’t really a big deal, Jack told himself. He’d shared a bed with Fiona before -- a few times, at least -- and that had even been before they were dating. Now it shouldn’t even be a small deal, right? This was a normal dating thing.

…Except, well, that was exactly the thing: they hadn’t slept in the same bed since they’d started dating. And now they would be. For the first time… or at least, the first time as a couple.

The marked man took a few deep breaths, trying to keep calm. He knew she could smell his… Well, he might call them ‘nerves’, but more honestly, his excitement. When she did reemerge, the werewolf didn’t mention a thing about his scent, simply offering him his turn in the bathroom, but Jack didn’t immediately take it. Instead, he fumbled idly with his possessions, working up the courage to pose his question.

“You know, Fi… You don’t have to sleep in your clothes, if you don’t want to.” The words hung in the air, for just a second too long. “I-I mean, I don’t mind if you want to, you know, let your… fur… breathe or whatever.” Jack swallowed.

The werewolf froze for a moment, turned just away from him -- which was good, because Jack was avoiding eye contact anyway -- but he still glimpsed her tail giving a little, excited twitch.

“Oh am I glad you said that,” Fiona admitted. “Really wasn’t looking forward to six months sleeping like that. Same for you, alright? I mean… We are dating, so I guess there’s no harm if we end up seeing each other in our… underwear, right?”

“Yeah, right, of course not.” Jack nodded in agreement, trying to sound casual and not reveal how his heart had leapt at the mention of seeing Fiona in her underwear. Because… there was a pretty good chance of that, wasn’t there? They were going to be together in the same bed. That’s why Fiona hadn’t gotten undressed right away in the first place.

…Together.

…In the same bed.

…without their clothes… for six whole months.

“Are… we still doing the whole ‘no looking’ rule?” Jack asked awkwardly, a moment later.

“Oh! Um, yeah, of course. That’s what I meant,” she quickly clarified -- almost too quickly, Jack thought. “I just meant that if we saw each other by accident…”

“It wouldn’t be the end of the world, yeah.” Jack agreed… also a little too quickly.

There was a loooooong pause, as the pair practiced their ‘no looking’ skills.

“…So, you gonna wash up?” Fiona nudged softly, reminding him that the bathroom was free.

“Um, yeah. Right.” He finished putting away the last few things he’d been fiddling with, then grabbed his toiletries and shut himself away for what would apparently be his last few moments of actual privacy for the night. He tried to breathe slowly, being casual and deliberate as he got ready for bed, but he knew it was futile. She could definitely smell his excitement, couldn’t she? She could probably hear his heart beating faster. It was hard to keep secrets from a girlfriend -- let alone a werewolf girlfriend. But somehow, that knowledge felt kind of… exhilarating.

Jack spit out his toothpaste and dried his hands, putting his toothbrush down next to the one Fiona used to clean her fangs every night. Certain aspects of Fiona’s body had always been… intimidating, for him, but they were usually the features she used to churn humans like him into slop, rather than the curves that resulted from the aftermath. But the former had never scared him off before, and he wasn’t about to let the latter change that now.

Gathering his courage, Jack opened the door and stepped back into the room, braced for whatever he might see. With mingled relief and disappointment, he found his familiar werewolf already curled up in bed, with her clothes tossed on the floor nearby. Only her head and her tail were sticking out from the blankets, leaving the rest of Fiona’s body as a vaguely wolf-shaped lump hidden under the covers.

Oh, right. Makes sense: of course she would have taken the chance to get cozy while I was in the bathroom, Jack told himself. Nothing to think twice about.

“I left the light on for you,” Fiona said softly. When they’d shared rooms previously, she was usually the one to turn out the lights, on account of her canine night vision. Maybe tonight she’d just been in a rush to get into bed before he returned? She had seemed eager to get her clothes off… or maybe his girlfriend was just as distracted as he was, and it had just slipped her mind?

“Thanks, I’ll get it…” he replied, working to keep his voice steady. Sure, he didn’t have her eyes, but he was fairly confident he could find the bed in a dark room, even with his nerves.

(Probably.)

A click, and the room went dark, except for the faint traces of moonlight peeking through the fluttering curtains at the open window. As silently as he could, Jack navigated to the bed, feeling along for a soft edge of the mattress. He found it… but found something else as well, Fiona pulling the dangling tip of her tail away as he brushed it. He heard her shifting, making room for him. It was his turn to get in, but there was just one problem. He still had his clothes on.

He paused for a moment and considered giving Fiona some kind of a warning, but decided it would make things even more awkward. Obviously, Fiona had thought ahead enough to undress herself while he was away, so she was clearly intent on keeping up their normal ‘no looking’ arrangement. He just needed to turn his back like they usually did, and get it over with.

So that’s what he did: hesitantly, he turned away from the bed and started undoing his buttons, starting at the top of his shirt and moving downward. He… didn’t need to ask to make sure she wasn’t looking, right? Of course she wasn’t. It was pitch black anyway, so it’s not like she would be able to… He gulped. See in the dark, with her predatory senses. Her eyes, honed by evolution to pick out human figures in the night. Whatever! The point was she definitely wasn’t staring with glowing, wide eyes behind his back as he pulled down his pants and left them on the ground, and he definitely didn’t need to peek over his shoulder to check.

Of course he trusted that she wouldn’t be watching him -- how could he not trust her, after all they’d been through? -- but… what if she was cheating? He’d have no way to know. When it did come time to turn and face her, now bare of everything but his boxers, Jack hesitated for an instant. But he forced himself forward, until he could see the vague, plush outline of Fiona in bed. She was lying with her head turned away, like she’d almost certainly been the entire time.

Not wanting to keep her in suspense -- and not wanting her to think it was safe to look elsewhere -- Jack reached down, lifting the covers just barely enough to slip underneath, and joined his nearly-naked werewolf girlfriend in bed. This was fine, he told himself: just a normal sleepover.

Their first touch was a gentle brush of her fur against his back, making him shiver. Jack inched a little closer to the center of the mattress -- a mattress that was only just big enough to fit them both -- and that first touch suddenly became a wave. In an awkward instant, their backs bumped up together under the covers. He felt her tail twitch, pinned up between the two of them, and he quickly rolled away a bit to give it room. Wordlessly, she scooted to tuck it out of the way.

Even though they’d only been in contact for an instant, the absence that followed still felt like a void… right up until the touch of Fiona’s fur returned, more gradually this time, as she tentatively stretched back in his direction. He met her halfway, relaxing just a smidge of the sizable tension in his muscles so his body could slump back towards hers.

Jack took a slightly deeper breath -- and almost flinched at how that made them move against each other -- until he realized that it was her breathing too. The twin rise and fall of their chests rubbed her fur ever so slightly against his skin. And he could feel more than fur: her shoulder blades pressing lightly into his, the strap of her bra forming a thin patch of roughness against her otherwise gentle coat, the little lump the base of her tail formed against his lower back…

The warmth of their shared, nearly unclothed bodies quickly filled the little spaces betwixt the covers and sheets. It was very cozy… even as they remained hypervigilant to every sensation.

Now… all they had to do was to try and fall asleep. So they waited. And waited. They let their bodies sink into the bed, let their muscles relax, and waited for sleep to take them. But neither could ignore that this was the closest, most intimate contact they’d ever had, short of when Jack had literally been in Fiona’s belly. This was nothing like that: this was warm and comfortable.

But then again… Could they maybe get even more comfortable…?

Fiona, for her part, was starting to feel that familiar urge to shift her body. But every fiber of her focus was locked on every fiber of her coat pressed up against her… her boyfriend. Jack. She could hardly even believe this was happening. It wasn’t even a big deal, and yet somehow it was also the single biggest deal of all time. And yet still, she wanted a little… more. She was pretty sure if she just kept laying like this, they’d both fall asleep eventually. But what if she just…

Jack felt Fiona pull away from him, and for a moment his poor, human heart sank. But then he felt the mattress jostle slightly, and his heart suddenly leapt back up into his throat.

Fiona heard Jack’s pulse speed up, and she smiled in the dark, the slightest bit of smugness touching the edge of her muzzle. Her boyfriend’s excitement gave her all the courage she needed: Fiona finished rolling over and let her body settle again, now comfortably facing his. Quietly skimming one clawed hand across the underside of the covers, the werewolf reached out, found Jack’s shape under the blankets, and slipped her fingers over his side.

The werewolf felt her human shiver at her touch, so she let her hand rest there, soft and steady. And a moment later she felt him shift, and then his own fingers appeared to meet hers, weaving past her claws. Her already large smile slowly bloomed wider across her muzzle.

Fiona gave into her instincts just a touch, tugging Jack ever-so-slightly closer. Just close enough that her fur once again traced down the length of his body. She wanted to feel him there, feel him with her. And just as the werewolf was settling into that happy feeling of closeness, their positions shifted again.

Jack, mustering all the bravery he had left, nudged the last hair’s-length toward her.

Fiona’s fur seemed to stand on end, from her ears to her tail, as Jack’s warm form pressed fully into her. His back fit perfectly against her empty belly, his shoulders gently pressed her breasts against her chest, his butt sank into the gentle curve of her hips. She rested her muzzle on top of his head, perfectly satisfied, just breathing in the scent of her boyfriend here in her arms.

For once, it was Jack who could feel quite clearly how Fiona’s heartbeat started to pound. Her arm slipped over him, wrapping around his chest, holding him there. She held him with all the firmness that a predator could hold a human, and with all the love that a girl could hold a boy.

“Good night, Fi…” he murmured, and felt her arms gently tighten around him.

The last thing Jack heard, as he fell asleep, was the gentle swish-swish of Fiona’s tail wagging under the blankets. He smiled, even as his eyes drifted closed. They were both so very far from anything they’d ever known, except for each other. But maybe… maybe that could be enough.

Originally Published: 8-May-2024