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Chapter 21

An urgent, but familiar howl pierced the night and Sophia felt her ears reflexively swivel towards it. The howl wasn't speech in the way humans communicated, but it carried meaning all the same:

"Where are you?"

Shadow was so close, yet still paradoxically unfathomably far away. Sophia was exhausted, her fore and hindlegs felt like they were made of lead. But there was no time to rest. Through the trees, on the eastern horizon, a faint glow heralded the coming dawn... and catastrophe.

Pausing her climb, she turned her muzzle skyward and answered with a howl of her own, "I'm coming."

Then, front and back legs screaming in protest, she resumed her trek up the seemingly endless hill. After what felt like ages, she could finally see her destination.

Thump, thump, thump.

Her strength gave out at the sound and she collapsed as it grew louder. With barely enough strength left to lift her head, she peered up the incline. Shadow appeared above her, his handsome figure starkly illuminated against the brightening sky. She tried to cry out a warning, but her tortured lungs could produce nothing.

'Too late', Sophia thought.

Thump, thump, thu...

... eep! Beep! Beep!

"No!" Sophia heard herself scream as terror-fueled adrenaline surged through her.

Then, her vision cleared and she found herself sitting upright on her own bed, her alarm chirping away next to her. The dream shattered into wispy fragments as consciousness returned, but the primal fear remained. Reaching out with an entirely human hand, she shut off her alarm and then scooted back to lean against the headboard. Trying to slow her thudding heart, she tried to remember what had been so urgent, so terrifying. Yet, every time she tried to grasp a remnant of the nightmare, it seemed to evaporate.

I was a wolf... I think. And Shadow was there. It all felt so real, Sophia pulled her blanket up to cover her shivering form. Everything is okay. Nothing is wrong.

Leaning over, she turned on her bedside lamp, illuminating her bedroom. Everything was as it had been when she had gone to bed. A full trash bag was still sitting next to her bed and her desk chair had a pile of laundry she had dumped there after rewashing.

Huh, I wonder if my sense of smell has gone back to normal. Sniffing, she didn't detect any strong odors, or any odors for that matter. Seems like it.

Taking advantage of the adrenaline still coursing through her, Sophia threw off her blanket and clambered out of bed. Grabbing her robe hanging from the back of the door, she threw it on and pulled it tight. Twisting its handle, she pulled her door open. No longer held at bay, the air in the hallway flowed into her room and she wrinkled her nose.

Nope, everything is still really smelly, despite the off-putting signals coming from her nose, she couldn't help a wry smile. Today is going to be interesting. A perk of being a werewolf I guess.

Sophia shifted her weight uncomfortably, trying to keep from coughing or gagging as she waited with several other students at the crosswalk. The girl standing next to her had apparently doused herself in floral perfume and the concentrated fragrance absolutely burned Sophia's sensitive nose. With another student directly behind her, all she could do was pray for the crossing signal to hurry.

After an agonizingly long wait, the signal changed and she darted forward. The aggravating miasma quickly faded as she hurried to the other side of the street. Her respite was all too brief though, as she reached the stream of students walking towards the entrance of the school. A boy hurried past her, his thick hairspray clinging to him like a thick cloud. Reflexively, Sophia brushed her nose as additional smells reached her. Just within the small crowd of students around her, she could detect an overwhelming array of different perfumes, detergents, colognes and shampoos. Her eyes watered as she did her best not to show any outward discomfort.

Almost inside... Sophia gripped the straps of her backpack tightly as she walked up the school steps...

... And felt like she had slammed into a suffocating wall of odors of every description. So many, her brain couldn't begin to make sense of it all.

"The hell?" a boy snapped as he walked into her from behind, sending her stumbling forward.

"Oh, sorry," she mumbled as she willed her feet to start moving again.

It felt like every step brought a fresh assault on her senses. She passed a boy at his locker who had applied so much cologne that it smelled like he had bathed in citrus. A girl sprayed herself with perfume, releasing a dense cloud of vapor that sent Sophia into a coughing fit. Another girl had failed to fully rinse her hair and the smell of shampoo hung thickly around her. All that and more was enough to make her want to find the nearest exit and never return.

How am I going to survive this? She wondered, forcing down the urge to pinch her nose. Great, my nose is perfectly fine with body odor.

To her left, a dark-haired boy grabbing books from his locker had obviously not showered in some time. Everyone else was not so subtly keeping their distance, but it was comparatively a breath of fresh air to Sophia. While she couldn't say she found it particularly appealing, at least it wasn't intolerable. All too soon, she was past and it faded, leaving the other scents in the hallway to take its place.

I'll just duck in there and wait for the hallway to clear out a bit, she spied the girl's restroom just down the hall from her locker and headed for it.

Opening the door she stepped in. Immediately, the scent of urine and other bathroom smells displaced those from the hall in her nostrils. Unfortunately, she also discovered it had been cleaned recently as the sharp scent of ammonia promptly displaced everything else. Sophia's eyes watered and she reflexively coughed. Reaching up, she rubbed her tortured nostrils.

A blonde-haired girl who had been fussing with her hair stopped what she was doing to stare at Sophia.

"If you're sick, stay away from me!" the girl demanded, holding up her hands in front of her as though to ward Sophia off.

Too distraught to respond, Sophia turned and yanked the door open before scurrying back through it.

Okay, bad plan, she took several breaths, trying to cleanse her nose. I guess I'll just have to tough it out somehow.

Trying to block out the signals her nose was bombarding her brain with, she covered the last few strides to her locker. She frowned as she noticed the paper haphazardly taped to her locker. On it, she recognized an image taken from the Halloween Party video. In it, her face was clearly visible and directly above a large white bone that had been crudely photoshopped in. Gritting her teeth, she tore off the paper and crumpled it.

After inputting her combination, she opened her locker. A meaty, yet slightly sweet smell greeted her. Looking down, she saw a bone-shaped biscuit had been forced through the vents of her locker. Part of it had broken off when it had hit the bottom of the locker. Stooping down, she picked up the broken pieces.

This actually smells kinda good, her mouth watered as she brought it closer to her nose. I wonder what it tastes like...

Snickers from behind her snapped her out of her reverie and her chest tightened. Opening her hand, she let the biscuit fall onto the hallway floor where it broke into several pieces.

"Look, Wolf-Girl was going to eat the doggy biscuit!" a youthful male voice crowed. "You like that, bitch?"

His taunt was joined by laughter.

"I wasn't..." Sophia stammered a protest, feeling herself flush in embarrassment. "I didn't..."

But I was...

"What a good girl!", another kid jeered to more laughter.

The tantalizing smell released by the biscuit's fragmentation only deepened her misery. Not knowing what else to do, she ripped off her backpack and coat and threw them in the locker, not even bothering to hang them up. After grabbing her math textbook and folder, she slammed her locker shut and scurried off, trying to block out their laughter.

I did want to eat that biscuit, she slipped into her desk for math class, trying not to cry. Oh, and I can still smell it on my hand.

Looking around, she realized she was one of the first students in the classroom. Typically, she did her level best not to show up until after the warning bell. Today, she was just glad to be somewhere without any strong aromas. Mr. Pindlewood glanced at her from his desk, his expression turning to mild surprise. Thankfully, he turned back to his computer after a beat.

Homework folder, textbook, notebook, Sophia turned her attention to her desk, feeling shaky. Oh no, I forgot my pencil case!

She considered running to her locker, it wasn't that far, but the thought of confronting the smells and jerks in the hallway made her stomach clench. Scanning the room, she failed to see anything she could borrow and she certainly didn't want to ask Mr. Pindlewood. So, she just sat anxiously staring at her hastily done homework as the classroom started to fill up. After what felt like an eternity, the warning bell rang.

Her mouth turned into a frown as a strong wave of lavender hit her. The girl next to her - Susan - had apparently applied a considerable amount of perfume before coming to class. Gripping the cold metal frame of her desk tightly, Sophia smiled weakly when Susan noticed her gaze.

"Hi, could I borrow a pencil?" Sophia asked quietly. "I just realized I forgot mine."

The girl rolled her eyes, but replied, "Sure, whatever. Just don't chew on it, mutt."

Sophia grimaced at the insult, but Susan rummaged through a bag, found a spare pencil and handed it to her. Sophia couldn't help noticing Susan's hand had left a faint residue of lavender on the pencil. Deepening her dismay, she noticed Mr. Pindlewood watching her with an inscrutable expression. Reaching a hand up, she brushed a strand of hair off her face and tried to look nonchalant.

The rest of the class filed in, bringing more scents with them. Only a few were unpleasant and those that were were blessedly faint. The deodorant of the boy behind her smelled faintly of coconut and she could smell something floral in the hair of the girl ahead of her. Desperate for a distraction, Sophia let the wolf in her mind she had been keeping at bay all morning take over.

Hmm, that must be peppermint mouthwash, intrigued, she inhaled through her nose quietly to see what else she could pick up. More lavender, that boy isn't wearing any deodorant, ew, cinnamon...

"Ms. Jones?" Mr. Pindlewood's voice pierced her thoughts. "What are you doing?"

Sophia realized she had her head angled up and had been audibly sniffing. Several students snickered and she felt a knot form in her stomach.

"Awoo!" a student behind her mock-howled.

The whole class broke into laughter and Sophia tried to sink into her desk.

"Robert," Mr. Pindlewood snapped, quieting the class. "See me after class."

Sophia glanced up at the teacher, who was no longer focused on her. To her surprise, his eyes shone with a cold fury. The class had gone dead quiet with no one daring to move. Then, the anger left Mr. Pindlewood's eyes and he turned. As though nothing had happened, he walked over to the chalkboard and started his lesson.

After an otherwise uneventful lesson, the bell rang. Sophia immediately returned the pencil she had borrowed, gathered her stuff and darted for the door. Averting her eyes from Mr. Pindlewood, she joined the rest of the class filing out. Stirred by the air, the smells she had finally been able to ignore during class returned with a vengeance. Swallowing, she stared straight ahead as she moved. Even so, she couldn't help smirking a little as she passed Robert. The boy was sitting at his desk sullenly playing with a pencil, his shoulders hunched down.

Here I go again, Sophia took a steadying breath as she left the classroom doorway. Alright, don't let it get to you this time. You can do it.

As before, the crowded hall was full of strong smells which vied to overwhelm her. This time, however, she concentrated on keeping them at the edge of her awareness. It was difficult, but she managed to get to her locker without losing her focus. Briefly, she checked for the doggy biscuit on the floor, but it looked like it had been removed over the last period. The crowd of kids that had bullied her was also nowhere to be seen.

Damn, I can still smell it, Sophia picked up her bag and coat to properly hang them, which sent the now familiar and tantalizing smell into the air. Okay, I do not want to eat a dog treat.

Pretending to tie her shoe, she surreptitiously swept the bottom of her locker with her hand. The motion sent several small crumbs flying out into the hallway. Standing, she was pleased to find she could no longer detect any trace of the biscuit. All she could smell now were the materials of her coat and the iron of her locker. After grabbing her materials for English class, she sealed her locker and headed off.

I think I'm getting better at this smelling thing, Sophia experimented with giving attention to her nose without getting overwhelmed. It's kind of like a superpower. Heh, being a Wolf Girl isn't so bad... Maybe I spoke too soon.

Entering her English classroom, she caught the acerbic scent of lemon room freshener. Frowning, she tried to find the source of the noxious irritant. Distracted, she didn't notice the students standing in the aisle talking until she plowed into the back of one of them. The boy she ran into staggered a step from the sudden impact.

"Oh! I'm really..." She started to apologize when the boy turned.

Sophia's heart gave a flutter as she saw it was Logan. Still rebounding, she took an unbalanced step back. Logan's arm shot out and grabbed her shoulder, stabilizing her. Immediately, she felt heat blossom in her face and she grinned sheepishly despite herself.

"Oh, hi Sophia," Logan greeted her, looking surprised. "Are you okay?"

It took her a moment to realize he had asked her a question, "Uh, I'm fine, just clumsy I guess. Thanks! Uh, bye!"

Before Logan could respond, Sophia had darted past him and to her seat. She plopped into it, feeling foolish. Despite the feeling, she couldn't help glancing back. Logan was still looking at her and she quickly snapped her head forward again.

Was that... a smile? Sophia's heartbeat rose. No, I'm imagining things. There's no way he'd be into me. Keep it together, girl.

She lightly brushed where he had touched her shoulder, savoring the lingering feeling of pressure from his hand. Briefly, she imagined his arms around her as she had many times in the past. Yet, the image didn't bring quite the feeling of excitement she had anticipated. There was that, but a range of conflicting emotions and a strange emptiness in her heart also accompanied the fantasy.

Why do I feel guilty? The bell rang, and she pushed the confusing tempest aside.