//------------------------------//
// Chapter XXII- Surrounded by Hairballs 
// Story: Schoolhouse Shenanigans! 
// by Dragonborne Fox 
//------------------------------//

Blake sighed as he sprawled his body across the cold floor of the forest. It was only a brief rest that was to last about thirty minutes at most, but good gracious were his legs and brain overworked! He and Alexis were the only two persons--four counting Katie and Fenrir--who were not, to be blunt, under the influence of the wolf. Even Natalie carried the curse and Matt was to blame. But what the hay? At least there were no casualties of any sort; it was only them getting used to their other forms so as to use them appropriately. The two infants, now one-year-olds, were also unaffected and they were asleep snuggled into their mothers' fur. The night was somewhat crisp with hints of winter air still lingering about, but not as much now since spring was at least supposed to be on its way. Ini, Mini, and Meini as well as Wing and Fang were all huddled into a blanket and they were busy telling each other bedtime stories.

"Daddy?" Alexis asked as she eyed the moons.

"Yes?" Blake replied as he sat up and glanced at his child.

"Why is mommy...well...fuzzy?" Alexis asked, cocking her head to the side, "Why does she have big teeth now?"

"Werewolves are by nature that way. Most are also...err, how shall I say, savage." Blake answered. "But they don't mean to be that way--the Goddess of the Hunt controls the majority of them like puppets on a series of strings. But the lot I find myself surrounded by cannot be affected by those strings, only by their rage should it take over."

Alexis nodded, fully grasping the concept. "Why aren't they affected by those 'strings?'"

Blake pointed at Natalie before saying, "Your mother picked up on magic charms. They won't control the times she changes--she has to do that manually. But after she changes, she then controls what she does from there on out."

Alexis nodded once more. A grin etched on her face.

Nick was busy running around on all fours in his new form and he, quite frankly, was giving his mom a rather hard time. It was catch-me-if-you-can at this point. Lance was already laying on the ground and he was dizzy. His eyes spun so rapidly they were black crooked swirls. Matt was busy scouting the area using scent alone. Something didn't sit right with him, and his ears were kept straight up half the time, occasionally moving his ears to and fro to catch the faintest sounds. Fenrir was tending to an itch right between Katie's wings. Even with her nine tails she could not get that one spot and it sure drove her wild in agitation! Natalie was chowing down on a rice ball; keeping one eye on her meal and the other on Matt, whom she knew was at unease. Coryza was looking towards the pond where Lance first transformed. The brilliant blue moonlight that somehow reflected from dual vermillion moons bounced off the bogwater and seemed to illuminate the area.

Anna had just managed to grasp her son by the tail and hoist him off the ground when the roar of a beast--no, the roar of a lion--shook the area around them. Matt pushed both of them out of the way shouting to high heaven and back as a sword appeared in his clawed hand. It wasn't a sword--it was the Gaia Axe. In his other hand he held a manticore by its face. It roared and tried to swipe at its adversary and this sight had some sort of electric impulse on Natalie as she suddenly gave her child to Coryza to hold as the Epoch appeared in her hand. She too lunged forward and in doing so ended up kicking Lance right in the muzzle. He, in turn, got out of his stupor and jolted to his feet before drawing his gunblade and Shadow Blaster. Anna put Nick down onto the ground before the Crimson Dragon Bow entered the palm of her hands (but not before telling him to stay put). The manticore had just managed to push Matt off of it when a red wolf-like woman suddenly jumped onto its back and held a piece of metal against its maned neck. The woman refused to relent whilst the beast reeled onto its hind legs as its tail tried fruitlessly to stab her. It roared and roared as the she-wolf leaned her body to and fro just enough to dodge the deadly stinger and in turn make the beast do an awkward dance of sorts. It went forward two feet, then to the right five, and on and on. At one point it nearly fell over on its back and stung itself. Roaring in pain, the beast suddenly flung its mass towards a tree and in doing so managed to coax the she-wolf to let go. It turned and was just going to finish her off when another wolf-person hit it on the back with a giant mechanical contraption. Instead of incapacitating the beast, it served only to make it more purple with rage. It nearly stabbed the wolf-person in the eyes when a hand--a brown, furred one at that--grabbed it just below the stinger and the beast found itself spinning in circles above the hand's owner. The wolf-person let go and the manticore roared one last time as a loud SPLASH echoed into the night.

"I knew this was a bad idea." Matt growled as he helped Natalie to her feet, "But we're all okay now."

"Good thing I packed an umbrella." Coryza sighed as she shook a black umbrella she held before her free of water.

Alexis felt a sudden pang of pain at her midsection. She clutched her stomach and grit her teeth tightly. Tears began streaming out of her eyes and she shouted, "Mom! It hurts!"

Natalie's ears perked before dropping flat on her head. Her eyes shrunk and her jaw dropped only for a moment before she snapped it shut.

"You have some more explaining to do." Blake sighed to which Natalie nodded as she hugged her child so as to soothe her woes. "Looks like I do."