Temperance (Patreon)

Written for Rose Crowley to help fill a gap between content on her server while she was working on her "American Werewolf In London" tribute and now presented here!

Sarah sat in her chair with her legs together, knees bent and to the side.  The hemline of her dress brushed against her socks when she adjusted her position briefly.  She picked at her dress to settle it comfortably before laying her hands back on the Bible lying on her lap.

Seven children of varying ages were arrayed before her in a semi-circle.  The youngest at four years old, Michael, squirmed where he sat, rocking back and forth with his legs crossed while tapping his hands on the floor.  The oldest was Sarah's neighbor, a nine year old girl named Rebecca, who sat perfectly still with her eyes focused intently on Sarah.

"Now, then," Sarah said, eyeing each child in turn.  She spoke as clearly as she could while using what she thought of as her 'adult' voice.  Although her eighteenth birthday was a few months ago, her own parents and every other parent still treated her like a child and it frustrated her to no end.  "This morning is a free lesson.  What would everyone like to talk about?"

They called out their answers, starting quietly until others began repeating themselves, louder and louder until a few changed their answers to mimic the older children and a consensus was formed.

Adam and Eve, of course, she thought to herself.

The Old Testament was the more fantastical set of stories, easier for the smaller children to grasp than the more complicated messages told later.

"So, what would you like to-" Sarah started to say.

"Did God really make Eve with Adam's rib?" Jacob blurted out.

"Yes," Sarah told him.  "God made Adam fall asleep and He took one of Adam's ribs to make Eve."

"Why didn't God just make-"

"How many kids did they have?" a louder voice asked.

"We don't know exactly," Sarah answered.  "We do know Cain, Abel, and Seth but they also had daughters-"

"Are you going to have any kids?" another voice yelled out.  A few of the older kids giggled at the question.

"I-" Sarah blushed but she held herself firmly against their onslaught.  She refused to show embarrassment in front of children half her age.  "Of course I will.  A lot of children.  I just-"

"Who are you going to marry?" Abigail, an eight year old with huge bright eyes, asked.  "Is it Dillon?  Do you like Dillon?"

"My sister says she likes Joseph Miller," Naomi giggled.  "She said she sees them talking together a lot."

"Are you in love with Joseph Miller?" little Samuel asked while bouncing in his spot. "Did you kiss him?  Are you gonna marry him?"

"Stupid, you can't kiss someone until-"

"We don't call people 'stupid', Abigail.  And we were talking about Adam and Eve," Sarah said as clearly as she could while she clenched the Bible in her lap.  She could feel the tips of her ears burning.  Keeping her face as straight as possible, she ran a finger through her hair as if settling loose strands to allow herself a moment or two to compose herself.  A single scrunchy held her shoulder length brown in a loose ponytail.

Oh no, she groaned internally while pressing her lips together and staring over the heads of the children.

She could feel it starting.  A strange ache cascading through her body, touching every nerve until her body was awake and needy.  Now that he was mentioned, she couldn't stop thinking of Joseph and it warmed her body.  She'd spoken to him just yesterday so his easy smile was fresh in her mind.  And his broad shoulders.  There were few times she was able to be alone with him under the watchful eyes of the adults but she took every chance she could despite what it did to her.

Sarah pressed her legs together, sliding them back and forth while her lips trembled.  Her heart beat faster and the redness of her shame blossomed over her chest.  She breathed through her nose, as slowly and evenly as she could but she soon felt the echo of her heart between her legs.  It was slow at first and she tried to focus on the lesson she should be providing but it was impossible to ignore.  The kids chattered amongst themselves as a low hissing began to fill her ears while the throbbing increased.

"I'll- I'll be right back," she told her class, standing and laying the Bible on her seat.  "Be good or your parents will hear about it afterwards.  Watch them for me, please, Rebecca."

She left without waiting for a response, threading her way through the scattered toys until she reached the small adjacent bathroom.  As soon as she was inside, she closed the door and leaned against the sink with her hands on the side of the counter.  Her clit stiffened from the blood flow and she could feel her labia against her thighs.  They were swollen and warm and she spread her legs when she realized she was squeezing them against her sex.

"Oh, please, Lord," she whispered in a quiet prayer.  Her trembling hand turned the handle for cold water.  She cupped her hands beneath the flow to splash her face.  And again.  And again.  Sarah emptied her thoughts as best she could but it felt like an immense struggle.

"I'm sorry.  I'm sorry.  I'm sorry," she groaned.

The repetitive motion of the cold water against her skin brought memories of her father whipping her with a belt when she was younger.  He'd caught her with her dress up, curiously exploring her own body and he had been furious.  She remembered the pain on her backside, abrupt and as sharp as the water splashing against her face but so much worse.  His face was demonic in her remembrance, steeped in tall shadows with an exaggerated mouth that howled at her.  The words were lost to her now but for the next month after the beating, she'd had to fast while being forced to listen to nightly sermons on the sins of masturbation.  They watched her constantly during that month and even after.

She'd done her best to be good but, as the years passed, the sensation that had first made her curious only grew stronger and more complex.  She hated it as much as she yearned for it.  It was getting worse but even more troubling was that she was finding excuses to make it happen and Joseph was a particularly handsome excuse.  He was also her salvation.  If she were able to marry him, she could-

Sarah held the water in her hands.  She brought her face down into it, holding her breath while touching her nose to her palm to let the water cover her face completely.  After a slow ten count, she tilted her hands to let the water run down into the sink.

Now she looked up at herself, searching her face for any signs of what she'd been thinking.  Looking for the red that marked the indecent thoughts.  Water dripped from her slightly jutting chin and the tip of her upturned nose.  More droplets clung to her thin eyebrows.

"Plain," she told her reflection, reaching up to drag the tip of her finger over her eyebrow, forcing the droplets to curve around her eyes and down her cheeks.  She watched the water fall, tracing the path they took until she reached her lips.  Now she ran her finger over them, touching the faint grey outlining the soft skin and the dull pink inside.

Her family stayed together in their little community, hidden away in their own world but she'd seen other girls on brief trips into town.  She'd seen the way they dress and the way they painted their faces with makeup.  Her mother had even pointed them out to her so she could loudly call them whores while describing every single fault she saw in them.  Sarah had been forced to agree with her, knowing she would be punished if she didn't fall in line.  But, the entire time, all she could think was how alive they looked.  They were unrestrained - bright and colorful and joyous in their expression of life.

"Plain," she said again, blinking once before grabbing a hand towel to pat her face dry.

The children were moments away from running around the room when she entered.  Rebecca was in tears, yelling at the others while they ignored her until Sarah stepped into the middle of the group with a harshly yelled 'quiet!' and a single raised finger.  Sensing her anger, they settled quickly and she took her own seat while opening her Bible to a random page.  She flipped forward a few more pages and read to them without pause in order to finish the hour before releasing them to their next lesson.  Once they were gone, she busied herself with cleaning the room.  When the room was almost tidied, Sarah's mother came for her.

"How were the children?" her mother asked.  She stood by the door, surveying the room while Sarah finished cleaning.  Her hair was pulled back into a tight bun that highlighted the severity of her face.

"Distracted," Sarah said while placing stuffed animals into a large wooden Noah's Ark.  As was I, she didn't add.

"You have to be firm with them or they'll never listen to you," Delilah told her.  "Whether that's in words or by your hand, you need to learn to keep them in line.  Your own children will test you more than these will."

"Yes, ma'am," Sarah said, tugging at her dress when she stood.  "I'm finished."

Her mother nodded and turned, walking outside without waiting.  Sarah followed, turning the light off before closing and locking the door with the ring of keys she held.

Scarlet clouds streaked with orange blanketed the evening sky.  Sarah glanced at them before following after her mother.  They walked quietly together down the sidewalk, waving at a few of their neighbors who stood outside bringing in groceries or tidying their yards.  A few children played under their parent's or older sibling's watchful eyes but most families were already inside, settling down and getting ready for dinner.

The wind brought the distant sounds of children laughing and occasionally the even more faint smell of food cooking from houses she passed.  She loved the outdoors and found herself smiling for the first time today while staring up at the multicolored sky.  At times like these she truly could believe in the divinity of Heaven.  For if God shaped the world as beautifully as it was now, surely His domain must be unimaginably wondrous.

Her smile faltered when they approached their house.  She'd lost herself in the feel of the natural world around her but their home immediately grounded her back into really.

"Your father will be back soon," Delilah said while unlocking their door.  "And your sisters should be here any moment.  You'll help with dinner tonight.  I'll watch while you prepare everything.  Fried chicken with mashed potatoes and gravy and buttered green beans on the side.  And tomorrow morning you'll be making biscuits from scratch."

"Yes, ma'am," Sarah said after following her mother inside.  It took effort not to sigh.

"Wash up.  I'll be waiting for you," her mother told her.

Cutting words guided Sarah through dinner preparation.  The hardest part that she still struggled with was multitasking - ensuring she was starting each part at the proper time and then maintaining them.  Her father came home when she was setting the green beans to the side with a pat of butter on them.  She heard the creak of his favorite chair and the faint humming click of their television followed by the loud ranting of a news anchor.  Sarah focused on the chicken while the potatoes boiled.  The kitchen was sweltering in the summer heat and she could feel an occasional drop of sweat slide down her chest and back.

With Delilah's final approval, dinner was called.  Her sisters, Ruth and Phoebe, helped lay out the food while her father sat down at the head of the table.  They served him and then their mother when she sat at the opposite end before filling their own plates. Delilah tapped little Phoebe's plate loudly when the girl added only a few green beans and she quickly used the tongs to dump more.

"Father, will you?" Delilah asked while bowing her head.

Daniel, with his freshly shaved face, thick glasses, and dour expression bowed his head.  Sarah felt a pang of fear and anxiety as she tried to read into his expression.

Was he happy?  Upset?  Frustrated at work?  She twisted her fingers together while stress knotted together in her stomach.

The overhead lights refracted through his glasses, casting strange lines of lights over his drooping jawline until his face appeared to stretch.  Sarah's knuckles whitened and she lowered her eyes.  Her father's rasping voice, spoiled by years of smoking, led their prayer and they echoed the proper responses in turn while their food cooled before them.  When it was finished, Sarah forced herself to swallow the bile that rose in the back of her throat before she trusted herself to take a bite of food.

They ate in silence as they always did once prayer was finished and the women cleaned up while their father sat on the back porch to smoke.  Evening lessons followed with their father speaking this time.  It began with Bible readings but quickly mixed with politics.  Sarah saw her father's anger and she recoiled from it when he raged about a recent law granting transgender people bathroom rights.  She didn't quite understand everything he was talking about but it disturbed her, only not quite as much as his reddened face and occasional spittle.  His eyes found hers when he neared the end.  He spoke about maintaining their purity, opening his mouth to say more on the subject before biting off the words with a sour expression.

Sarah kept her eyes to the ground when they were excused for bed.  They took turns getting ready with Phoebe, the youngest, going first.  Sarah focused on every little part of her routine in order to calm herself and, bit-by-bit, it worked.  She changed into her nightgown once in her small room - a luxury that Ruth would inherit when Sarah married and moved out.

She hated that she feared her father and she blamed her body's weakness for it.  He was her father, loving and kind and nurturing and- and-

"He is," she whispered while toying with the strings at the front of her gown.

If she hadn't been weak as a child, if she hadn't given into temptation, things would be different.  She wouldn't have lost their trust and respect.  She wouldn't have allowed the sin to take root and fester, growing wilder as she grew older.  It was her fault.  He loved the rest of them, especially Phoebe.  He stared at her so lovingly and it made her heart twist in envy - another fault.

Sarah flicked off her light before turning to her bed to kneel and pray but she paused to stare through her slanted window shades.  The moon was painfully bright and nearly full.  She'd never seen it appear so large before, or so clear.  Not a single cloud obstructed her view and she was mesmerised by its appearance.  It was terrifying in its immensity, as if it were a baleful eye observing her from an unending void.  And yet- and yet- it's brilliance made her ache in a way she'd never felt before.  It was sadness but also longing and the sense of loss.  Loss of what, she wasn't sure but the emotions were powerful and sudden and a single tear formed in the corner of her right eye.

She staggered and exhaled a ragged breath, breaking the spell as she wiped the tear away.  The emotions fled but the loss remained and she channeled it, looking towards her parent's bedroom.  Loss of her father's love and affection, she knew.

I am still his daughter, she told herself.

Now she knelt, arms against the narrow bed with her body bent.  The words wouldn't come.  She floundered, focusing internally on what exactly she wanted to say.  The air was still as if holding its breath and an eerie sensation settled upon her.  It felt as if God were truly listening to her now, in this moment.  She liked to think that He was always there but there was power surrounding her now and even she could feel it.  Clasping her hands firmly before her, she finally spoke.

"Lord," Sarah began.  "I- I know I haven't always been a faithful servant.  I've sinned.  I've sinned so many times.  You've heard my prayers.  I'm trying, Lord.  I'm honestly trying but I'm weak.  I need strength.  Strength to deal with these sinful urges.  You made me, Lord, and if it is my burden to have these temptations, I only ask for the willpower to channel those energies in a more appropriate way.  With your wisdom and guidance, these- these base animal impulses won't rule over me.  In your name, Lord, I pray.  Amen."

She stood but the air was heavy and it resisted her movement, throwing her off balance.  Sarah fell, reaching out to brace herself as she landed on her hands and feet, staring at the floor with her body stretched out. When she tried to move, the world moved around her and she groaned, suddenly nauseous.  The girl closed her eyes while her stomach churned until she took a chance to open them.

Bars of moonlight criss crossed her body and the floor beneath her.  She watched them for a moment before dragging herself back up to her knees with her right hand on the bed next to her.  When everything stayed where it was, she pushed herself up to stand on two legs.

Her room was back to normal.  The previously thick air felt no different than before and the moon was a bright dot high in the sky.  She stared at it, amused that she'd thought it so large earlier.  But, when she tried to turn away to climb into bed, it held her gaze and her heart raced.

Hairs lifted on the nape of her neck as she studied the face of the moon.  Lost in its beauty. It lit her dark room until she felt like she was standing in sunlight.  It bathed her in warmth, caressing her body with loving fingers that left a trail of shivering gooseflesh in their tread.

It woke her and she moaned, dropping to her knees while barely catching herself with her hands on her bed.  Even as she crawled beneath her covers she could still feel its presence around her but even more so was the low, throbbing ache between her thighs.

This- this is a test, she told herself while clenching her fists against the bedsheet.  I prayed and now God is testing me to see if I'm-

"Haaaaaaaaaah," she groaned, leaning her head back with her mouth open.  She curled her toes while bending her feet inward.

Sarah's lips trembled, showing her canines while she ground her teeth together.  She exhaled and snarled, surprising herself with the ferocity of the sound as she tried to hold herself together.  It was worse than it had ever been and shockingly sudden.  Her legs trembled when she pressed them together and she felt the dampness of her panties rub against her smooth skin.

"I won't," she told herself, hasher than she'd planned.

Her fingers dug into her flesh but that sensation sparked a different kind of pleasure.  She moaned again, turning her head to muffle the sound while lifting her hips to squeeze and massage her ass, groaning and moaning and finally, licking her pillow case when her traitorous hands reached inward to claw at the inside of her thighs.  Sarah bit at her pillow, ostensibly to silence the lustful sounds she was making but, more so because the urge to bite and feel something between her teeth overcame her.

"Nggh," the girl groaned, shaking her head slowly back and forth with the pillow in her teeth.

She breathed through her nose but opened her jaws, turning her head fully to press her face against the pillow.  Her right hand pulled at her soaked panties, outlining her swollen labia.  She moaned and pulled harder, enjoying the strange taste of pain it brought when the panties dug into her flesh.  Her left hand clenched at the bed and she rolled to her stomach with her knees bent beneath her.  Sweat beaded on her brow until she lowered her forehead onto the bed.  She opened her mouth again, flashing her teeth briefly before letting her tongue free.

The girl dragged her tongue against the sheet beneath her with a low growl.  She tugged her panties aside before rubbing herself, splaying her fingers against her fleshy outer lips and then slowly sliding her middle finger over to rest against her pink, glistening pussy.  Her finger dipped inside and she raised her ass while nipping at the sheets.

Her thoughts were a red haze full of sharp teeth and pleasure but she was too far gone to care.  The moon watched over her daughter as Sarah slipped her finger into her tight pussy, growling as she fingered herself.  She snarled and grunted like a beast while pressure built deep inside her belly, twisting and coiling and-

---

Sarah woke to a still house.  Her sodden nightgown clung to her body and even now she could feel sweat against her skin.  She moved and groaned when her joints ached.  The night was a blur that left her anxious but something else was mixed into her emotions, a steadiness that was new to her.

It took more effort than it should've taken but she levered herself up, pushing until she was sitting with her legs before her.  Her blanket was pooled on the floor beyond the foot of her bed and there was a peculiarly sharp scent that made her groan when she inhaled.  The soft creak of springs drew her attention, snapping her head around to point toward her parent's bedroom.  Muscles flexed beneath the base of her ears when she heard a rasping sound.

Now that she was listening, she heard a plethora of sounds surrounding her: birds calling, cars driving past and what sounded like people talking on television.  She closed her eyes to focus.  The warbling sounds of conversations touched her ears, fragments that were just barely beyond her range of hearing.

Scents gradually tugged at her awareness, winding past the overwhelming scent in her room.  Her mother's perfume, their shampoos and the smell of food.  She wiped drool from her mouth with the back of her hand before rubbing it against her nightgown.  Her right ear twitched when she heard her mother's heavy sigh from the other side of the house.  She would come to wake her soon.

Sarah slid from her bed.  Once standing, she grabbed her nightgown to pull it off before walking to her closet to hang it.  She paused, sniffing loudly while rubbing her tongue against the roof of her mouth.  Gathering the nightgown in her hand, she raised it to her face, sliding it over her lips while huffing and inhaling, taking in the scent of her cum from the night before.  She groaned and it wavered into a rumbling growl.  Her pupils widened as she felt the lazy heat warming her body.

"No," she gasped, throwing the gown into the hamper in the corner of the room.

When she reached down to completely undress, her hand froze, hovering over her belly.

Her panties were torn in several places, strips hanging loosely from the elastic band still attached to her body.  She touched the fabric while wrinkling her brow.  Her unkept pubic hair was exposed and the powerful smell was centered there.  She growled again while breathing deeply and leaning with one hand against the wall.

A muffled cough made both of her ears tremble when they tried to lean back in cautious alertness.  Sarah shook herself.  She pulled at her panties, snapping them easily with one hand and then wadding them up before tossing them into the trashcan by her bed.  A narrow dresser within her closet held more panties.  She took one and stepped into it, frowning at how tight they felt when she pulled them past her knees.  They hugged her, outlining her pussy while digging into her side but she ignored them while dressing as quickly as she could.  Her mother was brushing her teeth based on the quiet pacing and the rustling of her bristles against her teeth.

"Good morning, mother," Sarah said several minutes later.  She stood dressed in a skirt and blouse at the counter in the kitchen but turned to look at her mother as soon as she heard her step into the kitchen.

"Started already?" Delilah asked, peering over her daughter's shoulder.  "Good.  I'll wake your sisters."

Sarah scattered flour on the counter before scooping dough from a glass bowl set to the side.  She covered the dough with flour, scattered more and kneaded it, pressing and rolling and flattening with her hands while listening to the house slowly wake around her.

Lawnmowers started around the neighborhood like a slow string of firecrackers.  Her ears itched as she listened to the world outside and she found herself tasting the air occasionally for stray scents.  She leaned into the dough with both hands before pulling them away, ready to roll the dough again but a peculiar sight stopped her.

A faint pattern was outlined in the smooth white mixture.  She leaned in.  Threads of gold cracked her irises while she narrowed her eyes.  There was a raised circle with lines intersecting together but it was too delicate and broken to make out details.  She touched the lines as carefully as possible until she realized it was exactly where she'd placed her right hand.

Ghostly fingers touched her nape.  She shivered, licked her lips and glanced towards the living room where her mother was busy cleaning.  Sarah turned her right hand while her heart raced.

"Oh.  Oh, Lord," she gasped quietly, staring with wide eyes.

The lines covering her palm were gone.  No, not gone, rearranged into a wide circle that encompassed the bottom of her hand.  Within the circle was a five pointed star.  Her temples throbbed as she touched the circle, following it with her finger.  Now she saw brown hairs in the folds between the joints of her fingers and more in a staggered line below the center of her palm.  She turned her left hand but it appeared normal until she saw the same hairs scattered along her fingers, the webbing and the bottom of that palm.

Sarah snatched her hands to her side, clenching them into fists while her chest heaved.  Her lips trembled, showing her canines.  The intense urge to run filled her - to race away and escape whatever fate had befallen her.  She'd failed.  The memory surged within her, touching herself in bed the night before just after begging for the strength to resist her urges.  She'd given into them like a common beast and now she was marked for her sin.  Marked for anyone to see.

After checking to ensure her mother was busy, she looked at her hand once more.  Her fingers felt sore now that she focused on them and they ached when she flexed her hand.  She brought her fingers to her mouth, biting at them.  The fingertips were especially tender but her gnashing teeth lessened the pain.

Her fingernails bulged, bending in the center with the edges raised to show the flesh beneath.  She whined and licked her lips until she worked up the courage to lift one.  It lifted further but the wrinkled flesh beneath was dark rather than the pink she expected.  Random brown hairs covered the backs of her fingers and hands and she was terrified to realize she couldn't remember if they'd always been there.

"No, no, no," Sarah groaned, shaking her hands by her side.

"Did you say something, Sarah?" Delilah called from the living room.

"No, ma'am," she answered, bending back to the dough to finish her work.  There was no other choice, she had to keep going despite what was wrong.

I'll- I'll pray harder and work harder, she told herself while pressing a cup down into the dough to separate the biscuits.  It's nothing.  There's no reason for anyone to see my hands.  I'll just hide them and pray.  And beg for forgiveness.  I'm fine.  I'll be fine.

Fine holes opened around the wispy, nearly translucent hairs at the nape of her neck.  Dark brown shafts of hair slid through the openings, stretching her flesh as more formed, rooting into waiting capillaries while miniature muscles attached.  She groaned, bowing her head when they began to spread, flowing down her nape in thin, scattered patches until they reached her shoulders.

Blood rushed to the new capillaries which sent a wave of heat through her chest and neck.  She shivered and moaned when the heat reached out, touching her nipples until they ached and stirred, tightening in twisting motion.  Nerves pinged throughout her body while the pale skin above her breasts became mottled with red.  Vertebrae clicked in a wave, pushing against her back.  She moaned again and slid to her knees while clutching the handles of the drawers in front of her.  Her spine popped, pulling apart slightly and she growled, grinding her teeth against the pain.

Despite the pain, the growing pleasure was intense.  Her fingers itched to touch her pussy but she clenched them hard against the handles until pink turned white.

"P- please," she moaned, panting with her small tongue hanging free.  "P- p- please d-"

Her tailbone cracked and she bucked, dropping her hands to the floor to claw at the hardwood while spreading her knees as best as she could within her skirt.  A narrow wet strip appeared in the taut crotch of her panties.

"Have to- have to get up," she gasped, pulling herself slowly to a standing position.

She could smell herself clearly and that only made it worse but she pushed herself through it, washing her hands before preheating the oven.  Each step of the process took immense willpower.  There was an emptiness inside of her, a hot, angry void that needed to be filled.  Drops of sweat formed on the back of her neck, trapped by the thin brown fur hidden behind her hair.  She wiped her forehead with her forearm while continuing her work.

Her father was awake now.  She heard the bed creak just before his feet thumped softly against the floor.  The thought of him seeing her now sent a cold chill down her spine, helping to calm the heat threatening to consume her.  She set a pan on the stove, adding a bit of oil and turning the pan to spread it before dumping ground beef inside.  The oven beeped its readiness so she slid the pan of biscuits inside, closing the front before stirring the pot of gravy at the back of the stove.

Sarah's eyes stared far into the distance while her hands moved around the stove, stirring beef and gravy.  The girl refused to allow any thoughts to take shape within her head.  She barely heard herself answering her mother when she came into the kitchen.  Her sisters came in soon after to help lay out breakfast and she followed.  Minute by minute, the urges lessened until she breathed a silent sigh of relief in the middle of her mother saying grace.  When her stomach growled loudly, she helped herself to a second serving of food, piling on as much meat as she dared.

Breakfast was as silent as dinner the night before.  There was no praise for how good the cooking was nor anything else.  When they were finished and cleaning, her mother finally spoke.

"We'll be seeing to Mrs. Gardner this morning," Delilah said.  "She's in a bad way today.  I think the Lord will call her back home soon."

"Yes, m-" Sarah started to say until the plate she'd picked up shattered in her grip.  She screamed, dropping the pieces she held.

"That was our good- nevermind, let me see your hand," Delilah demanded, walking over to her daughter while watching the floor for shards of ceramic.

"N- no, it's- it's fine, I'm fine," Sarah stuttered, hiding her hand behind her back.  The sharp scent of blood filled the room.  It was a rough, pungent scent that burned through her nose and she found herself swallowing excess drool.

"I won't ask again," Delilah told her while holding out her own hand.

Sarah clenched her jaw but lay her right hand in her mother's grasp.  The older woman turned the hand back and forth before releasing her.

"Go wash and bandage yourself," she told her dismissively.  "We have a busy day ahead.  I'll clean up the mess you made here."

The girl rushed as quickly as she could until she was within the bathroom with the door closed behind her.  She held her right hand beneath the sink's faucet as crimson drops fell to the pure white basin.  The scent of it made her dizzy and her eyelids fluttered while her lips parted to show her canines.

A deep, sensuous growl escaped her throat and she inhaled, tasting the scent of her blood on the air.  She raised her hand to her mouth.  Her tongue darted out, lapping the blood with a quick, furtive movement.  And then again, jaw wider, dipping her head to drag her tongue up, licking herself slowly while swallowing every drop until her hand was clean.

The pentagram was unbroken; no wound was evident on the palm of her hand.  She swayed as her tongue made several circuits over her lips and then she stepped back, rubbing her forehead and temples before opening the door.

"Mother's getting angry," Phoebe whispered in passing.  Sarah simply nodded and shuffled to her room to collect what she'd need.  She joined her mother and sisters at the door.  Everything moved a second too slow around her.  Her eyes narrowed as she bent to put on her shoes.  Her father muttered something darkly while a group of people discussed immigration on the television behind her.

"Sorry?" Sarah asked when she heard her mother ask something.

"What's wrong with you?" Delilah snapped.  Sarah blinked and the world realigned.  She swallowed and licked her lips before answering.

"I'm sorry, just- just the sight of the blood unnerved me," she lied.  "I'm ready now."

Once outside, the fresh air assaulted Sarah.  She twisted, dancing around before facing the wind and huffing, inhaling until her legs might burst.  A million scents twined together into a massive cord that she desperately wanted to pick apart.  Ruth tugged at her blouse several times.

"Come on," her sister urged.  "You're being weird today.  Mom's pissed."

"Don't- don't say that word," Sarah said, blinking rapidly and lengthening her stride to catch up to her mother and youngest sister.

A hidden reality lay exposed to her now and she found herself turning to listen to every little sound.  Quick movements startled her into motion.  She jumped a few times, ready to give chase until she reminded herself how upset her mother was already.  In fact, she could smell the anger, red and green, as it wafted away from the woman.  Her posture gave even more away, hunched in on herself, stiff with every step.  Compressed into herself as if ready to lash out at any little thing.

Ms. Gardner called out from inside her home when they finally arrived at the woman's home.  The door was unlocked and they all filed inside to say to say hello.  The ancient, wrinkled widow smelled unwashed.  Sarah's nose wrinkled when she caught the scent of open wounds and feces.  Still, she forced a smile and sat on the couch with her family while her mother shared news from the community.  Long prayers followed shortly afterwards until Delilah stood and called her daughters to begin cleaning.  Ms. Gardner just sat in her reclining, humming an old tune as they worked around her.

Sarah was full of nervous energy, twitching at every unknown sound and holding her breath the best she could while working.  The old woman would die soon, she realized.  Beneath the other smells was something she could only think of as decomposition, as if her internal organs were breaking apart.  She tried to feel sad for her but found she couldn't.  She was old and it was her time.  Past her time.  To be buried and rejoin the earth as part of a great cycle.

They took a break around lunchtime while Delilah prepared food with the meager ingredients she could find.  Sarah's stomach rumbled despite her large breakfast and she ate every crumb of the offered food, resisting the urge to lick the plate clean in front of the others.  Her hand pressed against her belly while the others finished their food.

Small cramps sliced through her belly, making her flinch.  The pain vanished as quickly as it appeared but they continued in waves as milk ducts took root beneath the flesh along her torso.  She scratched at her stomach until the cramps lessened, leaving vague sore spots behind.  Now her skin reacted to her touch, sending little pleasurable electric spikes along her spine when she stroked the hidden growths.

After their break, they left the house to shop for more groceries.  Sarah sweated beneath her blouse and dress while they walked.  She tugged at the neck of her shirt with a growl, trying to allow air inside while sweat coursed down her chest, curving around her breasts and inward, streaming towards her belly button.  Fine brown hairs emerged, catching the droplets until her footstep shook them free.  Hairs pierced her skin in a line down from her belly button, growing thicker with every second until the wide strip matched the curls covering her mound.

Sarah smelled the grocery store from blocks away.  Her ears trembled, the strange new muscles trying to force them upright to betray her eagerness.  Once inside she shivered from the cool air with a satisfied growl.  She followed her mother but lingered in the meat department, hands pressed against the glass of the display case while she inhaled as deeply as she could.  There was hamburger meat leftover from breakfast, she knew, and she wondered if they would miss it if she ate it when they got home.  She could picture herself stealing the container, bringing it into the bathroom and shoving handfuls of cold meat into her mouth and licking the container clean afterwards.  Her throat rumbled with an excited growl while she grinded her canines together.

More chores followed when they returned to Ms. Gardner's house with her groceries.  Despite the heat, Sarah was excited when they went outside to pick weeds and clean up the word.  She found herself pressing her fingers deep into the cool earth and breathing in the scent of the dirt.  Her eyes shined like burnished gold beneath the sun far overhead.

Her sisters struggled while Sarah worked endlessly and eagerly.  Boundless energy coursed through her body and even her mother was forced to take breaks while she continued to work.  It felt good to be kneeling beneath the sun but she often lay her palms on the ground and that was even better with her toes and forefeet bent, on all fours like- like-

She shook her head.  Her mouth was open with her tongue resting against her lips and only now did she realize she was panting while sweat dripped from her nose.  The strange energy pulsed within her and she groaned when she felt it concentrating in her core.  And lower, between her thighs.  The position was making it worse.  She flexed, lowering her stomach with her ass up and her fingers dug deep into the earth, clawing furrows until she forced herself to stand with her legs pressed together.

I won't give in, she told herself.  I won't.

Her pussy throbbed, echoed by her nipples but now also by little points along her belly.  Sarah patted her dress to shake off dirt, taking extra care to ignore the thrill running through her body.  Finally, she went to sit with her sisters but her mother told them they were finished and needing to be home for dinner.

Before going inside with the other three, Sarah's hackles rose and she turned to see the ghost of the moon just above the horizon.  It was full but faded, too earlier in the evening to assert its power.  She moaned and clawed at her belly until Phoebe called for her.

---

Sarah picked at her vegetables while forks and knives clinked around her.  She'd had seconds again but she'd eaten the pork chop first and found her appetite for the peas and mashed potatoes to be diminished despite her hunger.

The fur on her nape stood on end and she bent over slightly at the table to prevent her blouse from touching her belly or her nipples, even though she wore a bra.  Every few minutes she shifted on her seat and she was certain she'd soaked through her skirt.

The energy from earlier was still there.  Worse now, despite trying to calm herself.  The brush of her clothing was torture; she wanted to strip herself bare to be free of it.  She wanted to slide her fingers into her aching, throbbing pussy until she could quench the heat within.  And she worried that wouldn't be enough.  She was restless and hot, sweating even with the air conditioning running.

Her gums had started aching just before they arrived home.  She ground her teeth together to provide temporary relief but the pain returned every time and it extended along her nasal cavities.

Please, Lord, she prayed to herself.  Please grant me the strength to survive this.  I beg of you.  I'm not strong enough.

"Finish the food on your plate," Delilah demanded, breaking the silence.

"Yes, ma'am," Sarah answered, her voice rough and deep.  She forced the food down her throat while staring at the curve of bone from her pork chop.  Her mouth drooled at the thought of biting down on it, gnawing and crunching at the bone until she swallowed the fragments.  The idea of it made her vegetables somewhat tolerable but she still finished after everyone else.

Black flecks appeared between the whorls of her fingerprints as she helped to clean up.  She snatched her plate and her sensitive ears heard the faint 'crick' that preceded it breaking.  The girl relaxed her hand but she saw a faint fracture line that led from her thumb to the center of the plate.  She carried it carefully to the kitchen before returning for more dishes, ensuring this time that she was more careful.

The touch of her clothing was torture as she walked back and forth.  After a few passes, Sarah groaned and leaned against the wall by the fridge.

"I can't- I can't do this," she whispered.

Her body felt tight, as if her skin were straining to contain her very being.  Gusts of air from her sisters walking past her stirred the air and even that light touch made her shiver.  Every inch of her was overly sensitive and she could feel a string of cum sliding down the inside of her thigh beneath her skirt.  Her brain was on fire, throbbing inside her skull and she struggled against the strange urge to lower herself to her hands and feet.

It was the curse, she knew.  Her punishment.  God had decided that if she were to act like a beast, she would become one - standing on all fours with nothing left in her brain other than the desire to rut.

And she wanted that.  Sarah leaned against the wall between the kitchen and dining room, swallowing hard while her hand twitched against her body.  Her knuckles and joints pulsed in time to her heart beat, lightning arcing out to her limbs and down her spine.  Muscles swathed the tip of her loose tailbone while fatty tissue collected around it and nerves reached out to connect.

"Please," she whispered, rubbing her forehead against the wall.

Her ears and cheeks burned until she couldn't take it anymore.  She turned to grab a glass, filling it from the sink and shoving her face into it, lapping at the water with her tongue, curling and scooping it to bring it back into her mouth.  She continued until her tongue couldn't reach but it strained forward, stretching and lengthening to continue drinking.  When she set the glass down, her tongue filled her mouth awkwardly.

Have to do this, she told herself, stumbling into the living room.  Her balance felt off and the nub of her tail twitched in a useless attempt to correct her posture.  Colors appeared dull but the light was bright enough that she shielded her eyes a few times while tidying up the dining room with her sisters.  She scratched at her cheeks and jaw and down to her stomach, growling quietly when she rubbed against a wrinkled spot of flesh half-hidden by her pubic hairs.  Have to resist.  Have to- have to be better-  better than this.  If I make it, maybe God will end my punishment.  This- this is a test.  This-

She fell, cracking her knees against the floor before she could stop her fall with her hands.  Ruth and Phoebe rushed to her side while staring nervously into the living room.

"What's wrong, Sarah?" Ruth asked.  "Oh, you're burning up!  Sarah, you're sick!  Your clothes are soaked with-"

"Don't touch me," Sarah snarled, pulling away.  She clawed the floor and stood, stumbling into a chair before righting herself.  Her tail bulged against her skin beneath her skirt, shifting to help her balance.  "I'm fine.  Don't- don't touch me."

A faint smear of blood marked the floor where she'd fallen.

"Sarah, please, I'm worried," Phoebe said, tugging at her sister's blouse.

Sarah's left hand trembled as she reached out to touch the back of her sister's head.  She bent forward carefully to kiss the girl's forehead.  Her broad tongue unrolled and she opened her mouth to lick her sister's hair briefly.

"Fine, I'm fine," Sarah said.  "I don't want to upset them.  I'll be- be fine in the morning.  Please."

I will, she told herself.  Two more strands of her cum leaked from her saturated panties, trailing burning paths down her legs.  I have to- have to resist this.  I'm not a beast.  I'm not.  I'm not.

The family was called for prayers and Sarah breathed a sigh of relief.  This would help, she knew.  Listening to the familiar words and echoing the refrain.  Hearing the word of God and praying along.  She sat, bowing her head with her hands clenched together but her nostrils widened in quick succession when she smelled blood.

Sarah pulled her hands apart, keeping her palms hidden from the others while they prayed.  The words washed over her and around her as she stared at the pentagram.  Beads of blood seeped from the lines in several places.  She grinded her aching teeth together and closed her hands once more before anyone noticed.

When the proper times came, she mouthed words automatically but her mind was elsewhere.  Her pussy rubbed against the hard wooden chair.  She caught herself rubbing back and forth while her ragged breathing rumbled on the edge of a continuous growl.  The slick pussy lips were swollen and moving, pushing out while rolling inwards.  They grew smooth when skin flowed over her hood to bring it down towards her lips.  Rocking her ass back dragged her distended, spade-like pussy lips against the chair.  Air rushed through her nose when she exhaled with her mouth closed to hide her moan.  As soon as she realized what she was doing, she froze and her clutched hands trembled together.

Her fingernails slowly lifted, separating from their nailbeds.  She rolled her head while wrinkles appeared on the bridge of her nose and her top lip lifted with the motion to briefly show her teeth.  A single thin stream of blood coursed down from her gums, spiraling around her left canine until she swallowed. The black flecks were spreading over the bottom of her fingers and more appeared along the broad sweep of her upper palm.

Hairs slid through the skin at the back of the curve of her neck, spreading out from the fur covering her nape.  They grew long, bending under their own weight as they slowly spread, several hairs growing every few minutes in broad patches until they reached the end of her shoulders.

Sarah swallowed and nearly gagged at the thickness of her own tongue.  She opened her mouth to let the tip rest gently on her lower teeth while breathing through her nose.

"- in your name.  Amen," Daniel intoned.

"A- Amen," Sarah replied, just now realizing she hadn't heard a single word of the prayers.  The smell of her arousal was impossible to ignore.  It was creating a horrifying feedback loop that was gradually helping to erode her resolve.

"Make yourselves ready for bed," Delilah said while standing.  "We have service early in the morning and a full day of chores."

"I'll be up a while longer," Daniel told his wife.  A flicker of uncertainty crossed her face but her lips compressed and she nodded before making her way to their private bathroom.  Sarah watched her father retrieve a cigar from the little humidor he kept on a bookshelf.  Her throat burned when he opened the box and continued even when he stepped out onto their back porch.

"Come on, Sarah," Ruth said, reaching a hand out for her sister before pulling back.  "Let's get you cleaned up.  At least let us help you with that."

"No," Sarah growled, glaring up at her sister.  She snarled, ducking her head and trying to soften her gaze but anger seemed to fill her along with the arousal.  "Th- thank you.  I'll be fine.  Go.  Go first."

Lord, she prayed to herself as static hissed in her ears.  She closed her eyes and frowned, crinkling her brow.  The words wouldn't come.  They hovered in a haze just outside her rational thoughts as her urges howled for attention and her senses screamed.  Everything was too much.  The room was too bright, the sounds of her sisters and mother getting ready were too loud and the rasp of her clothes against her body was too harsh.  I-  I-  Please.  Please.  It's- it's too much.  I'll fail.  I'll fail.

"Whyyyy," she growled, gnashing her teeth together.  Her chest felt cramped in an uncomfortable way.  With every breath her blouse pulled tighter against her body.  "Do you want me to fail?  Is this my punishment?  Is this what you wanted?  To see me on my hands and knees, crawling like a beast, dripping and aching to be- to be-"

She moaned, clawing at her throat.  Brown stubble stood out against the reddened skin while veins and tendons bulged.

Mounted.

It was in her mind.  On hands and feet beneath the full moon, basking in the silvery glow as a male stalked over to her, tasting her on the wind, his cock bobbing free of his sheath.  Presenting herself to him.

Sarah's hand slid down beneath her skirt.  Her thighs were slick with her cum and she moaned when she felt her engorged clit beneath the mass of flesh that was her changed pussy.

"These arrren't my thoughts," she growled, clawing her hand back up through her pubic hair.  The girl moaned and squirmed when she felt sharp points scraping her body.  She brought her hand up to her mouth and her tongue lashed out, folding around her fingers to clean them until she bowed her head.  "You're doing this to me.  Lorrrrrd, why?"

Short, silky black hairs prickled the flesh on the back of her ears.  They twitched in response as the hairs crept over the skin until they were completely covered.  Wisps of hair lifted in a peak over the rounded curves of her ears.  More hair, gray and long, began to grow inside her ears.

"We're done, Sarah," Phoebe said but Sarah simply nodded her bowed head.  "We'll- we'll see you in the morning, okay?"

They left when she didn't answer but Sarah listened with her eyes closed, picturing their movements based on every little sound her sensitive ears picked up.  When she could no longer wait, she unfolded and padded into the bathroom, leaning forward onto her toes and forefeet.  Her ankle bones creaked with every step.

Sarah shielded her eyes against her glare inside the bathroom.  She turned off the light and moonlight returned, soaking the room in shades of gray and silver.

"You're doing this to me," she repeated, staring through the pebbled texture of the privacy window.  Her hands reached up to the neck of her blouse and she pulled.  The short, curved tips of dense black claws sliced through the fabric as if it wasn't there.  Her nails pulled free and blood soaked into her shirt but she continued to pull until her claws caught on the wire running through her bra.  Veins bulged on her biceps.  She pulled, cutting into her soft flesh until the straining band of the bra broke.  Her breasts bounced free and she moaned, turning finally to stare at herself.

Her golden eyes glowed blue briefly when the tapetum lucidum behind her eyes reflected moonlight.  Sarah's lips parted and she reached up to touch her face.  Blood covered the tips of her fingers from where her claws pierced her flesh.  Black streaks marked the pink of her lips but she traced them with her fingertips, painting them red.

The sensitive wrinkled points on her belly twisted slowly as sweat-matted fur grew around them.  They pushed out into teats while the surrounding skin darkened into miniature areola.  Sarah moaned as they tightened on her belly.  Three of them welled with translucent milk that flowed down the nipples and into her spreading pelt.

Fur grew from the edge of her jaw while the bones screeched. Her lips bulged when her canines began to lengthen, twisting as they pushed through her gums.  Her top fangs curved until she could no longer close her mouth fully and strings of drool fell to her chest.  The bottom fangs angled outward while growing.  Skin stretched taut over her face, pulling her nose back until her nostrils faced forward.

Sarah growled, baring her fangs while gripping the sink.  Her claws cracked against the porcelain.

"Doing this," she snarled.  "To me."

The face fascinated her.  Feral.  Fearless.  Her face.  Fur was spreading higher over her cheeks while cartilage crunched in her nose and her jaw strained forward, dragging flesh and fur while her face changed shape, humanity fading in place of a fearsome predator.

Morality was a false skin she was gradually shrugging off.  She could smell her father's cigar and there was no fear in the thought of him.  Her fangs and claws could rend flesh.  Her mother's stare was nothing compared to the golden eyes staring back at her.  The judgemental whispers that seemed to follow her wherever she went were the whimpers of wounded prey.

"Don't- don't want- beast," she panted.  Pain wrecked her body and she snarled again, grinding her teeth together.  Her jaw popped while bones fractured and healed, longer than before.  Her muzzle grew with every passing second.

It was the point of no return.  Arousal was twisting within her, the oversensitivity growing worse until she thought she'd go mad from it.  Even the pain could barely match it.  It was consuming her entirely, filling her with endless thoughts of fucking.  Her gentle thoughts of holding Joseph's hand were no more, instead she was grabbing his hand to shove against her pussy while gripping the back of his head to kiss him deeply.  Shoving him down so she could grind herself down against him, soaking her clothes with her cum.  Marking him as hers.  Nipping and biting and clawing at his clothes until he was naked.

Sarah howled, throwing her head back with her arms to her side and her fingers spread to show her claws.  The window rattled in its frame until her voice dwindled.  Agony lanced down her spine, forcing her to the ground when her vertebrae once more pushed against her back.  The ruff of fur covering her nape was spreading again, crawling over the bulging muscles growing beneath her skin while she arched her body and then flexed down, raising her ass.  Her claws gouged the flooring, tearing thick strips of wood free.

Someone was pounding on the door and shouting.  Sarah glanced up at them and growled.  Her ears were unfolding, whorls and curves filling out while pushing to sharp tips that slid through her hair, longer and longer until they flexed back in anger.  Blood flecked spittle flew from her mouth when deadly fangs filled the gaps in her jaw.

The door rattled.  Sarah leaned back and her skirt strained against her side.  Her body was being pulled apart as muscles tore and regrew, stronger and more dense than before.  The panties hidden beneath her skirt pulled tight when her hips expanded to match the rest of her body.

Sweat coursed down between her breasts.  She trembled and bowed her head, working through the pain as her skirt lifted and twisted against her growing tail.  Her thighs bunched, hard lines rising as they swelled.  Dark claws tore through the tips of her socks to sink into the floor beneath her.  Fatty tissue formed, pushing against the bottom of her fingers and palms, filling out the black-speckled flesh until her thick padding slid against the smooth floor.

Sarah leaned back on her feet, gathering her strength.  With a roar, she leapt, slamming the door open.  Her skirt snapped free, falling to the ground before she rolled.  Her tail, half-furred and still growing, lashed the air, helping to balance her when she slid.  Screams filled the house but she ignored them, digging claws into the ground and racing through the house, ducking her head briefly to shatter the front door and escape into the night.

The massive full moon followed Sarah as she raced down the streets.  Fur continued to grow over her tail as it pumped up and down.  The wolf girl scented the air, searching for wilderness and ignoring the shouts of people stepping out to see what was happening.  She covered ten blocks in minutes before turning and following the faint scent of trees far in the distance.

Cars screeched behind her.  She grabbed onto the hood of a stopped truck and it groaned on its shocks as she pulled herself up and then jumped, leaping over several lanes of traffic at once.  The further she ran, the more peaceful the world became and she thrilled at the feel of wind ruffling her fur while her raised tail streamed behind her.

A huge forest greeted her after an hour of running and she still wasn't tired.  Sarah paused at the entrance.  She turned to face the moon, raising her muzzle high while standing on two feet.  The girl bayed, pouring her emotions into the ear piercing howl until her throat was raw.  When the echoes of her voice faded, other wolves howled in return and she lowered herself to her hands and feet, stepping past the tree line to vanish deep into the woods.

---

Sunlight warmed Sarah where she lay on her back in the middle of a bed of leaves.  She groaned, lifting her heavy, sore arm to rub her eyes.  Tall trees surrounded her and she could hear the rushing sound of water running nearby.

She raised her hand in front of her face, spreading her fingers to block the sunlight from her eyes.  Flashes of her midnight hunt filled her mind like the tail end of a fading dream.  The girl turned her hand to see the faint lines of the pentagram etched into her palm.  She lowered her hand with a sigh before running both over her body, massaging her breasts before sliding them further to the tangle of her pubic hair, now mixed with dirt and twigs.

The freedom was intoxicating and terrifying.  She knew she couldn't go back home.  There was no way her family didn't know what had happened to her.  Even the neighbors would know, now.  She was lost to them.

"I prayed so hard," she said, swallowing hard.  "But to whom?"

She felt strong.  The face in the mirror was a vivid memory.  It was hers, now.  Without her family, she would have to define her own boundaries.  She would have to define her faith and what shape it would take.

Sarah lay still, just breathing in the warm morning air while processing what had happened to her.  She replied the past two days, examining every thought, every feeling, every little detail she could recall.

As she remembered the night before, she felt her body stir and she hissed out a slow breath.  The slowly building arousal and the unearthly heat that followed was still clear in her mind and she writhed on the ground while raising one hand to her breast.

There was no one here to judge her.  Her father was miles away and she would never see him again.  Her other hand pulled at the wild hair covering her lower belly and she moaned while pressing her heels into the dirt to lift her ass.

You could be whoever you wanted to be, a voice whispered, mixing with her own until she wasn't sure if she thought it or heard it.

There was time, she decided, to learn who she was.  But, first-

Her hand slid down between her thighs to touch the wetness already there.

She was done with the shame of her own body, of her own needs.  The forest was filled with the sounds of her unrestrained moans and growls and eventual screams of pleasure.

---

Sarah crouched behind the old Ford pickup the Millers used for their construction company.  Her hand rested against the passenger door while she closed her eyes.  The loose, open shirt she'd stolen fluttered against her chest when a gust of warm summer wind flowed around her body.  A thin spray of brown fur , slick curls matted with sweat, stirred in the wind and she groaned in approval, clawing at the door.  The metal shrieked and her ears, backed with black stubble, flexed in annoyance.  Her fingernails bent backwards to reveal the obsidian tips of her claws.

She wore capris two sizes larger than her normal size but they still strained against her body.  It was the first time she could remember wearing pants but it was the only thing that fit in the pile of clothes she'd stolen.  Her lips trembled to show canines too large for her jaw.  She'd walked into a laundromat just before noon after surveying to make sure it was empty and she thanked God for the trusting people in her community who left their laundry unattended.

Sharp biting cramps assaulted her back, forcing her to her knees.  She snarled, reaching behind her to grab at the lump of her twisting tail.  The skin surrounding it felt feverish to her hand but it was the pants causing the pain.  Her claws ripped at the waistband, tearing through fabric and elastic until the tip of her growing tail was freed.  The red marks she'd made around her tail healed within seconds to leave pink flesh dotted with brown hairs.

She raised her chin, inhaling as the wind coursed over her body once more, cooling her for a brief moment.  Joseph was alone, cleaning his father's shop.  The other scents - the ones that weren't him, were old.  Sarah reached up to her neck, rubbing the skin slowly.  She could feel the sharp tips of the fur beginning to emerge, piercing her flesh hidden beneath her hair.

There wasn't much time.

Sarah stood and her tail, barely two inches long and hairless, pressed down against her pants.  She stepped forward and her ankle clicked, the bones within sending hot daggers of pain when they scraped together.  There'd been no shoes at the laundromat or anywhere else.  It was awkward, at first, walking on her bare feet but she'd grown used to it over time.  Now she found herself leaning forward on her forefeet while her heel lifted and her ankles groaned.  Tendons stood out on the tops of her feet.

Her footprints widened with every step as muscles pulled bones apart.  Drops of blood mixed into the dirt around her shed toenails  The broad outline of the balls of her feet grew narrow while the shape of her toes appeared in the dirt.  Subsequent steps showed the transition of her feet with her paw prints, tipped with five deep holes from her claws, taking the place of her narrow footprints.  She could feel the way her foot compressed against the flesh within but the sensation was remote due to the tough, leathery charcoal colored padding.

The seams of the pants tore along her thighs to show bulging muscle that was just beginning to grow.  Thick veins stood out on her taut flesh and the pants continued to tear in a jagged line down to her calves.  Tufts of brown fur, mixed with gray, covered the back of her calf muscles.

Standing before the door of the shop, she inhaled once more with a needy moan.  She gripped the door handle and it snapped when she twisted it while the door itself bent under the sudden pressure.  Three screws, sheared in half from the force of the hinge being forced down, clinked against the concrete floor.

"Who the-!  S- Sarah?!" Joseph gasped.  The push broom he held clattered when he dropped the handle.  "Wha- wha- what are you-  They said you ran away!  Are you okay?  You look, uhh, you like-"

She studied him with golden eyes, hungry and bold and when she stepped forward, he stepped back, bumping into the table behind him.

"Are you- are you-" he stammered, his eyes darting down to her cleavage.

Her chest was tight, ribs bowing open, pulled by the expansion of her body.  Pleasurable twinges signaled the swelling of her breasts to match her growing frame.  Layers of muscle pushed against fatty tissue and she growled, clawing at her dipping neckline when her breasts strained, pushing together while hairs slowly crept over their curves.

"Do you want me?" she asked, her deeper voice adding sultry notes to her words.  He was a year older than her but he looked up to her as she stood on her forefeet.

Red soaked into the white shirt when her fingers touched the neckline.  She pulled, slicing through the fabric with a black claw, slowly dragging her finger down to show her hairy belly and the curls of fur spreading over her mons.  They escaped the waistband of her pants and Joseph stared at them while licking his lips.

"I- I-" he stuttered.

Sarah moaned, grinding her teeth when her fangs began their descent.  She took the two sides of her shirt in her hands, pulling them apart while shrugging the shirt off her shoulders until it slid down to the floor behind her.  Her tail, half a foot long with fur scattered over the length, swayed back and forth behind her, hidden by her body.

He gripped the edge of the table when she lowered herself before him.  The seat of her pants ripped loudly to show her bare, slick pussy.  Sarah inhaled with her broad tongue pressed against her upper lip.  Her ears were unfolding, the bulges popping as cartilage moved within, forcing them flat before flowing up, unrolling the round edges into wide triangular tips that flexed just outside her hair.

"S- Sarah, I-"

She leaned into his crotch, inhaling deeply while nuzzling against his dick.  When he twitched, she snarled, staring up at him with sharp eyes while her left hand gripped his hip.

"I haven't- I don't know what to do," the boy said, reaching for her head before pulling his hand away.

The claw on the tip of her pointer finger slipped into the hole of his zipper and she pulled until it reached the end of the track.  A quick tug ripped it free and he jerked in response.  She pinched her fingers together at his button to undo it completely.  His cock was erect with the head just beyond the band of his white underwear.

His scent was intense and she drooled.  The tip of Sarah's tail dragged against the floor beneath her when she pulled his underwear down to free him.  She'd never seen a cock up close, or so big.  The smell of it made her shiver and she growled, her throat vibrating into a rough, slow purring sound when she pressed her nose into the fold of his thigh, nuzzling against his testicles .

"We- oh, oh, oh Lord, that feels- Sarah, we shouldn't-" he whispered.

She looked up at him and he stared at his reflection in her golden eyes as her tongue folded around his shaft.  Strings of door connected his dick and her mouth briefly before falling to her chest.

"Oh!  Oh, Lord!" Joseph yelled, grabbing her head as her rough tongue lashed against him.

When she reached the tip, she bent her head and her jaw clicked.  She pushed, opening her mouth to take all of him.  His dick slid between the curves of her top fangs, held in place as she pressed down.  It bent in her mouth and she gagged briefly before swallowing and pushing forward.  Her teeth scraped his skin and the boy hissed while gripping her hair tightly.

Cum dripped freely from her pussy in steady drops that gathered to pool under her.  Breathing through her nose, she bobbed slowly, back and forth.

"S- S- S- oh!"  His cock swelled suddenly, surprising her.  When she tasted his cum, her eyes widened further.  She closed her lips around him with a growl while swallowing and clawing at his ass.

Sarah dragged the boy, pulling him around and then pushing him down until he lay back on the ground.  When she opened her mouth, his cock slapped against his belly and she licked her lips.  The taste of his cum and his cock still filled her mouth.  Now she crawled over him on all fours.  Her erect nipples dragged against his shirt and she felt the answering echo from the unformed teats along her belly.

"Your eyes are so beautiful.  I- I never noticed," Joseph whispered, caressing her cheek.  She nuzzled into him and then sat back, sliding her pussy over his dick, coating him in her cum.  He jerked, mouth open with his hands flat against the ground.

She reached for his hands while leaning back, pulling them up to her chest until they were against her breasts.  She squeezed his hands and then let go but he held onto her, caressing her gently.  His palms brushed against the tips of hairs just beneath the surface of her skin and she moaned loudly, grabbing his hands again to pinch them against her nipples.

Leaning forward, she licked his lips and mouth.  The head of his dick pressed between her lips, forcing them open.  She bent further, check-to-cheek, growling as she pushed back against him.

"Ohhhhhhhhhh," Joseph moaned, staring at the ceiling while hugging her tightly.  She hissed and snarled but continued to move, ignoring the pain when he forced her tight muscles open.

Sarah clawed at the concrete while pushing herself up.  She felt her pussy lips touch against his pubic hair and she pulled forward, groaning with her eyes closed.  When she felt the head near her opening, she flexed back.  The pain was lessening now and she squeezed him tight, tensing the muscles within while gradually speeding up.  The fur on her belly brushed against his shirt and midriff and her tail curled behind her, trembling as she rode him.

Muscles bulged along her spine.  She growled, arching her back and then bending forward when her spine popped, pulled apart to lengthen her body.  The shewolf shoved her ass down, snarling through the agony in hopes that the rising pleasure of fucking the boy beneath her would help it to subside.

She was filled by his cock but she wanted more.  Her heat was tearing her body apart, enhancing her already high sex drive until it was an imperative need.  Her ass slammed down against him, splattering his legs and stomach with her cum.  She worked him harder now, moaning and growling when his dick rubbed against the ridges and whorls hidden inside her sex.  Her hands gripped her tits until she felt him reach up to hold them and she once more squeezed his fingers against her nipples.  He pulled them and she shivered with a whine while slamming back down.

"I can't- Sarah, I can't- Hold back.  Longer," Joseph gasped, biting his lips.  She growled and worked her hips, rocking and flexing and shoving and-

Once more he swelled inside of her and she howled, clawing through her hair with her head raised.  She'd sat back, forcing him as far as he could go and his own orgasm finally pushed her over the limit.

Sarah panted, tongue hanging free. She trembled when she shifted against him but leaned forward to lick his lips and nose before laying her forehead against his.

"Need.  A ride.  Into town," she growled.

"Sarah, I- If my dad knew-"

"Please," she begged.  Hooks dug into her upper back, fur creeping over her spine and shoulder blades.   "Please.  Please."

---

The truck rattled over potholes in the road.  Sarah leaned against the window, staring at the lights of the city.  She needed to get out of the car.  The smell of the oil and gas and other chemicals was making her nauseous.  Worse, she was losing time, blinking and realizing they were in a completely different area than before.

Joseph glanced over at her, worried but silent as he shifted gears, slowing when they entered city limits.

Sounds made Sarah's ears stand tall.  She clawed at the door and turned, listening for the source.

"Stop," she commanded and the truck shuddered as it slowed.

A bus stop lay ahead with a slanted roof and two street lamps, both dead.  Sarah stared at it and scented the air but the truck's scent and closed cabin blocked everything.  She turned  her upper body, keeping her back away to hide her more obvious changes.

"Thank.  You," Sarah said, cradling his cheek with her large paw.  Her fingers wrapped around to the back of his head.  She rested the tips of her claws against his skin before pulling her hand away.  "Goodbye."

"Sarah, w-"

She was outside now and didn't remember stepping out of the truck.  It rumbled behind her, blinkers clicking loudly until two cars honked their horn behind him and-

Sarah stood under the canopy of the bus stop.  Two men stared at her in horror.  A third man lay bleeding on the ground.  Behind them, a young woman sat back, her clothes torn and the contents of her purse scattered.

"What the fu-" one of the men said when his nerveless fingers opened to drop the knife he held.  She lunged at him, her weight bearing him to the ground with a sickening crunch.  The other man was fleeing, piss running down his leg but she turned and gave chase-

Moonlight overhead.  Walking up a hill.  Her senses telling her the ground held small prey, trembling in their dens.  Too much work to dig out.  And she was far too proud to bother.  But, there was no forest nearby, at least not where she could-

Gray morning light.  Sarah gasped, jerking awake.  Mud caked her naked body, mixed with pebbles and sticks.  She winced and stared down at her claws.  Thick fur covered her chest and lower belly but she could see the little hairs receding.  Her ears trembled and twisted while she breathed deeply.  Someone was here with her.

"Are- Are you- are you safe?"  a soft voice asked.

"Safe?" Sarah asked in return, turning to see a woman watching her.  "Who are you?"

"You don't remember, then?" the girl asked.  She looked older than Sarah but smaller.

"No, I-" she remembered Joseph.  Seducing him.  Riding him.  The thought took her breath away.

"You saved me," the girl told her.  "From the men.  They were robbing me and- Well.  You saved me."

"Was I-  What did I look like?" Sarah asked her while hiding her hands.  Her paw pads were melting away, skin firming back into place while her claws cracked, breaking and shrinking in a continuous process that left her fingers numb.

"A monster," the girl said bluntly.  "Um.  Um.  Like in the movies.  A werewolf.  A lady werewolf."

Werewolf? she thought, turning the word over in her mind.  She'd never heard it before, not in her sheltered life.  But she knew what a wolf was, of course and that made some strange sense with the changes.

"Did I-" Sarah swallowed, staring down at her body after she saw a mottled yellow and black bruise on the girl's cheek.  "Did I hurt you?"

"No," the girl answered immediately.  "I was so scared but you just came over to me, sniffed me and then pushed me with your big face, shoving me around until I stood up.  Then you walked away but kept waiting for me to follow.  So I did.  I mean, I say you walked but is it still walking if you're on your hands and feet?  Or are they all feet at that point?  You did stand on two feet a couple times but it looked weird.  You were huge.  Oh.  Oh, I'm just rambling, I'm sorry.  I'm still scared, I guess."

"Where are we?" Sarah asked, covering her nudity the best she could.

"Close to the farms outside of the city," the girl told her.  "I've been to them on field trips when I was a kid.  I'm in the foster system now.  Well, I was.  I ran away."

The girl touched her cheek gently, fingers trailing over the bruise.

"I'm Mackenzie," she said.  "I turned eighteen a couple weeks ago.  They forgot- my foster parents, I mean.  When I say 'they', that's who I mean.  They forgot my birthday.  I thought I could just go out on my own but Larry beat me.  He's my foster dad.  Was, I guess.  So, I ran away.  And then I got scared that they would find me so I bought a bus ticket and and-"

Tears streamed down the girl's face.  Sarah moved without thinking, going to her and wrapping her arms around her body.  Mackenzie trembled and bawled, burrowing against Sarah's chest while her tears flowed.  After several minutes, she hiccuped and let out a shuddering breath.

"S- s- s- sorry," the girl said.  "I- I don't have anywhere to go.  I don't have anyone else.  I just don't want to be hurt anymore."

"I don't have anyone, either," Sarah said, her voice rough with emotion.  "Not even any clothes."

Mackenzie barked out a startled laugh.  And then another softer one.  And more until she was giggling.  Sarah stood back while offering a hand that the other girl took.  Mackenzie pulled hard, bringing herself up to Sarah's face to give a kiss on the girl's cheek.  Sarah blinked, touched her cheek and blinked again.

"Maybe we can go together," Mackenzie said.  Sarah could hear the uncertainty in her voice but, beneath it was a sliver of hope.  "We could- we could watch out for each other.  Or, you could.  You were so strong!  Is it like the movies?  Do you turn into that during the full moon?"

"I don't know," Sarah said.  She looked at her palm and the pentagram covering it.  But then she reached up to her cheek again to brush her fingertips over the spot where the girl had kissed her.  Her pulse quickened.  "It just happened recently.  I- I did something wrong, I think.  And I was cursed for it."

"Well, if you were cursed, you would've eaten me, I think," Mackenzie said.  She looked around and started walking.  Sarah followed after a moment.  "But you didn't.  You just ki-"

Mackenzie turned her head slightly to look back at Sarah.

"You just took down those guys like some superhero and kept me safe all night."

"Where are we going?" Sarah asked.

"One of the farms," the other girl told her.  "For clothes."

"And then?"

"I don't know." Mackenzie shrugged.  "Does it matter?  Away from the city.  Somewhere far away.  I'm not going back to that.  I'm done.  I'm done with all of it.  Slapped for my tone of voice, beaten for accidentally breaking something.  Beaten for talking back when I was just trying to ask a question.  Bullied at school.  There has to be something better."

Sarah caught up to the other girl easily.  Mackenzie looked at her again and took her hand, twining their fingers together briefly before letting go.  Sarah's heart raced and she looked away to stare at the ground around her feet with a confused look on her face.

"There has to be something better," Mackenzie said again, softly this time.

Sarah looked up, searching for the moon.  She could feel its presence somehow, just above and to her right.  She stared at it, at the semi-transparent gray orb, so far in the distance.  She remembered her prayer that night in the bedroom.  The feeling of heaviness, of something listening and waiting.  Of an otherness that didn't belong in their world.

"There is something better," she said, finally, still staring into the pale sky.  She breathed deeply and exhaled.

They walked for hours with Mackenzie talking about her life, giving details she could remember until Sarah was coaxed into sharing her own stories.  Her life seemed small and dull compared to the other girl, devoid of anything more than the time she spent in worship and that rankled her greatly.  Mackenzie felt the anger in her words and she reached out again to take Sarah's hand.

This time, she held tight and the pair walked quietly together under the vigilant gaze of the moon herself.  And the world opened before them.