Abracadabra, Howls, and the Furry Guardians

On The Edge

Would it be so bad if I just ripped their throats out?

That and many other intrusive thoughts occupied Marika's mind as she waited in the line with a blank expression. Anyone who didn't know her would assume she was unbothered by the slow staff and annoying clients. No one knew the potent emotions brewing, threatening to spill out and cause mayhem.

Tate had warned her about it. He even told her to avoid public spaces as much as possible as nothing could trigger her anger more than the regular mundane stuff, things humans didn't even think about, even if they were mildly annoyed. However, just because she was no longer human, it didn't mean that she didn't have to do those irksome chores to have enough money to live on.

"Number 124! Does anyone have number 124?" the clerk yelled out because humans were apparently as blind as they were annoying as the number was clearly visible on the flashing sign board.

Of course, some people seemed too lazy to bother looking up from their phones, which rubbed Marika the wrong way. It was such a small thing, but her enhanced senses made it hard to cope.

"Oh, yes, it's me," an annoyingly slow elderly gentleman exclaimed, shuffling toward the counter.

Marika dug her already longer-than-normal nails into her skin to stop herself from just tearing through all the humans, young and old alike, and getting what she needed so that she could escape to the freedom of the outside world and away from the suffocating four walls that were feeling more and more like a cage that she was once stuck in.

Secretly, she checked her reflection in the glass window nearby, ensuring that her large red ears weren't poking out of her hair. Luckily for her, since they were as red as her hair and she had such voluminous hair, it was still okay. She could see their outlines but was sure no one else would notice as they blended in so well with her hair that you would only spot them if you knew what to look for. And these particular people didn't know anything.

Finally, her turn came, and since it was so slow, it made her question if the humans were purposefully doing everything in slow motion or if her faster-than-average reflexes were making it seem so. Either way, she quickly signed the documents, escaping the overheated bank saturated with sweat, fear, desire, hatred, and many other potent scents, making her head spin. She was pretty sure that more than one person in there was in heat, that more people than would admit hadn't bathed in a while, and that quite a few had some injuries.

All in all, it was a torture. Especially since Marika hadn't eaten anything since she woke up. After some time, even human chewy meat starts sounding delicious if you are starved enough.

"Hey, Tate," Marika answered the phone with another rumble in her stomach, making a loud noise. "I'm all done. And I didn't spill any guts if you were fretting about that."

"I never thought you would. I was just worried," Tate said sheepishly. "This humidity is making everyone more on edge than usual, and since you are relatively new to the transformation, you are bound to be more susceptible than the rest of us. That's all."

Yeah, yeah... And that has nothing to do with the car stomping incident.

Even though her thoughts were bitter, Marika knew she gave them enough reason to worry. However, it wasn't something that she could control. It seemed like adjusting was more difficult for her because of her fiery personality than for anyone else.

"Fine, fine, I don't want to argue with you again," Marika said, but she did want to argue with him, to let out some of the frustration; she would have loved to fight him, but that was out of the question as he would never break the rules. "I am starving. Can you take me on a short hunting trip?"