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Chapter 3

Sunday, 26th May 1994

Gabriel woke up with the morning sun shining into his face. His head was dizzy from oversleeping, and at first he didn't recognize his surroundings. A wooden bed, a wardrobe, a small writing table... then he remembered. He slowly stretched himself and lay back on the bed, enjoying every moment of his laziness, a happy smile on his face.

When he finally got up, he noticed he was alone in the lodge. He climbed down the creaking staircase and after a little sleuthing around he discovered the kitchen. A note stuck on the fridge caught Gabriel's eye. It was from von Glower.

"Gabriel,

I had to go and take care of some business and did not want to wake you up. You can find some eatable things inside this refrigerator, and there is a coffee maker on the table, if you need any.

I'll be back at noon,
Friederich"

He must be kiddin'! Do I need coffee? Heck, I haven't had a decent cup ever since that night I was attacked by villagers with torches!

He helped himself to a large mug of coffee and a generous share of the "eatable things". His immediate needs taken care of, he began a lighthearted exploration of the lodge. The only difference from the one in the Bavarian National Park was that he now had a room with a view. It looked upon a bright and cheerful clearing. All in all, it was nice to be alive...

The blissful harmony was suddenly shattered to pieces by a false note. Right, Gracie. He had almost forgotten. He had to write to her, keep her busy and away. He went up to his room, sat at the writing table and stared at the empty sheet of paper for a long time.

Come on, now isn't the time for a writer's block! He slapped his forehead with his hand repeatedly, but it only made him angrier. He began to pant heavily and jumped to his feet, hitting his knee against the table edge in the process.

"DAMMIT!"

He grabbed the chair and threw it across the room, where it crashed into the wardrobe. This little act of wanton destruction brought a storm of ideas into his mind. He grabbed the pen and started scribbling on the paper in a frenzy.

When he finally stopped, he was almost exhausted. He tried to read it over, but gave up quickly and proceeded to fold it and shove it into an envelope. His mouth felt dry, and after a few unsuccessful attempts to lick the envelope, he reluctantly used glue.

He seated himself on the bed with a sense of satisfaction. Just then, the wooden staircase began creaking its horrible noise and soon afterwards there was a tentative knock on the door.

"Gabriel, are you awake?"

"I'm wide awake, come on in!"

Von Glower opened the door and advanced towards Gabriel with a warm smile.

"Hello Gabriel, did you sleep well?"

"Yeah, first time in two months that I actually wake up in bed." He grinned sheepishly. "Uh, sorry 'bout that chair, I'll buy ya a new one."

Von Glower cast a quick glance towards the writing table and, not seeing the chair at its usual place, looked around the room and spotted its debris near the wardrobe. He breathed in sharply and seated himself next to Gabriel on the bed.

"You must accept my guidance, Gabriel. You have to learn to control the beast. It's the only way you'll be able to live with your dual nature."

"I know that, Friederich. I was hopin' you'd teach me."

"Then we must start today, with a simple enough thing. The first step is to control the beast's appearance. Come."

He took Gabriel gently by his arm and led him into the bathroom, facing the mirror. Gabriel passed a hand through his hair and smiled to his reflection. His restless eyes met Friederich's intense gaze for an awkward moment.

Friederich was the first to break the silence.

"You need to use this mirror to seek the beast within you. I cannot tell you how to do it, only where to start. Stare at your reflection trying not to move your eyes. After a while your image will fade out and you will begin to see a dim contour of your beast. You must then find the means to become one with it. I cannot help you there, it is something you must discover for yourself."

Gabriel listened to him in silence, his left eyebrow just a little raised.

"You will find it easier with a dim light and nobody around you, so I'll be waiting in your room with the door slightly ajar so that you can get out if we both Change. Are you ready to give it a try?"

"As ready as ever. See you on the other side..."

The bathroom was dark and friendly. Two brown eyes stared back at Gabriel from the mirror. He took a deep breath. It was still and dark and he could feel his heart pulsing slowly. He let his mind wander around aimlessly, waiting for a change. He was staying in the midst of silence, yet his ear began to catch familiar sounds from within. He could hear the sound of his breath, the beating of his heart and the flowing of his blood. He ceased thinking and surrendered himself to the rhythm. Two yellow eyes were now looking out of the mirror, surrounded by a vague grey shape.

Gabriel's hand dashed instinctively for the missing talisman. The yellow quickly reverted to brown and the mirror threw back the image of his own frightened face. He staggered out of the bathroom and fell shivering on the bed. He soon felt von Glower's comforting hand on his shoulder.

"I know you feel disappointed, but it usually takes more that just the first try."

"But I was almost there! The wolf looked out through my eyes! And then I freaked out and scared him away."

"You must try again, Gabriel, but later. Now go outside a bit, warm yourself in the sun. I will join you soon after I have my lunch. I am as hungry as a wolf!" He smiled to Gabriel and exited the room.

***

Gabriel and Friederich lay side by side in the grass of the clearing for a long time, bathed by the rays of the sun, reveling in each other's presence. They had all the time in the world. The joy of long-awaited companionship filled them with a new lust for life. They jumped to their feet and began racing each other through the forest, laughing out loud like teenagers. Gabriel was the first to get tired and he threw himself down on a heap of moss near a large tree.

"And I was supposed to be the older one," laughed von Glower, sitting down next to Gabriel.

"Just gimme a coupl'a days."

"Alright, if you promise to keep your training away from that old staircase in the lodge..."

"So I'm not the only one who can hear that creakin'! Whew!" And they were seized by another fit of laughter.

"Friederich, what have you been up to this mornin' while I was busy wreckin' your furniture?" asked Gabriel after they had both calmed down.

"I went to my apartment and arranged for Gunther to bring us some more supplies. I also passed by the club in the hope of meeting some of the members, but it was deserted."

"No guardian of the treasure?"

"Oh, of course, Xavier was there, and he had some interesting piece of information to share... Apparently your friend Grace was there yesterday evening asking the club members about you."

"What?!? How did she get in? Geez, it's a private club after all!"

"I was told she caught Preiss' attention."

"The things she'd do to hunt me down! And did she find out anythin'?"

"Xavier wouldn't know, because she left for a drink with Preiss soon afterwards."

"Then I'm surprised she hasn't knocked at the door yet! I should post her letter while I still can!"

"If you give it to me I will post it for you. I'm taking another little trip to Munchen this afternoon. Up you go now."

He jumped up, straightened his shirt and grabbed Gabriel's hands, groaning with effort as he tried to drag him to his feet. He had almost made it when Gabriel struggled, slipped from his grip and fell back on the grass, making Friederich lose his balance and land on top of him.

They exchanged an embarrassed smile. Gabriel laughed uneasily and looked away. They helped each other up and set back to the lodge, both suddenly interested in the little flowers and any other nature wonders that happened to be close enough to the ground.

***

It was late afternoon and Gabriel was lying on his bed, waiting for von Glower to come back from Munich. His sleepy eyes kept returning to the open bathroom door.

Now's the time or I'll never get it right.

He slowly got up and entered the bathroom.

Upon his return, von Glower was stopped in the middle of climbing the staircase by a familiar howling. The well-known thrill came over him instantly and he leapt up the rest of the stairs to Gabriel's bedroom. The grey wolf jumped at his mate with a happy growl. They collided into each other and rolled on the floor, rubbing their thick furs together. They were out the window and into the woods in no time.

Trees and bushes flew by like so many shadows. They ran together, their senses alert, fresh cool air filling their nostrils. The woods vibrated with a wordless song of joy, and they vibrated in its rhythm.

On they ran, through a magic mist that Gabriel recognized, because he had sometimes glimpsed parts of it in his former Schattenjaeger dreams. It was all around him now and the exhilarating experience was almost unbelievable, even for the open-minded creature he thought himself to be.

He raised his head to the moon above and howled out his flooding passion. The Black Wolf joined him in his deep voice, and their beastly song reverberated through the twilight.

Small animals scattered away from their path, but the two wolves did not pursue them. The sheer pleasure of running together drove them on, deeper and deeper into the heart of the woods. It was only when they arrived to a small clearing that Gabriel had a sudden strange feeling of terror. He stopped dead in his tracks.

The Black Wolf stopped a little bit further, sensing Gabriel's apprehension. He turned to his grey mate questioningly. Gabriel raised his snout and started sniffing the air. He could sense a strong nauseating smell coming from a small bed of white flowers he hadn't noticed before in the center of the clearing. Lilies?

The feeling of unknown dread and cold grew more intense with seconds. Then suddenly a dim form appeared to Gabriel's startled eyes. The image focused little by little, but Gabriel knew who it was even before he saw the huge silver wolf. He let out a small whimper. The Black Wolf looked at him, not understanding, and Gabriel realized he was the only one who could see Ludwig.

All of von Glower's senses screamed danger, but its cause eluded him. There was no fight he couldn't win as long as he could stare his foe into the eyes, but he was helpless when he didn't know from where to expect the first blow. He bared his teeth and the hair on his back stood on end. He started backing away slowly, a deep menacing growl rising from his throat, his yellow eyes alert to every small movement in the clearing.

Gabriel watched the ghostly appearance in silent horror. The beast motioned towards him, then bared his teeth and snarled at the Black Wolf.

He wants us to attack Friederich together! Why the son of a...

The silver apparition seemed to wait for a sign. There was no time to waste!

Gabriel howled in warning and dashed for his mate. The Black Wolf started violently and began to move his gaze in a frenzy all around him. His heart raced, gripped by the cold fear of the unknown. His painfully acute senses warned him of the impending blow only a split-second before it came.

Gabriel saw the silver beast strike, sharp fangs tearing at the flesh of his helpless friend, heard Friederich's agonizing howl and threw himself at Ludwig with all the power of hatred and despair. But his jaws only clashed into one another, for the ghost, having exhausted his temporary powers, vanished back into the purgatory it had come from.

The clearing was deserted and quiet. The grey wolf slowly approached his wounded mate. The Black Wolf lay in the grass, eyes closed in pain, blood gushing out of a vicious cut that spread over the upper part of his torso. Feeling the touch of Gabriel's snout on his face, the Black Wolf opened his tired eyes. He gave Gabriel a look of reassurance and his eyelids fell close again.

Gabriel hesitated for a bit, then bent down and carefully started licking the bleeding gash. A faint gasp escaped from the weak wolf's throat, but he let his wound be cleaned. Gabriel noticed in surprise that the bleeding had almost stopped and the wound was beginning to heal by itself. He backed away a little, and felt a stinging pain in his leg. He stepped aside and quickly looked down to see a huge silvery fang lying in the grass, at the place where his hurting paw had been.

It must've snapped off when Ludwig bit Friederich...

His attention was drawn back when his mate hesitatingly tried to rise to his feet. He was beside him in a second, helping him up. The two wolves' eyes met, and Friederich's glowed with gratitude and some other undecipherable feeling. He slowly started limping towards a dark path that led away from the clearing, Gabriel by his side, ready to help.

Their slow and painful journey through the dark woods finally led to a small hidden cave opening. The thick heap of straw inside the cave showed that it wasn't the first time it had been used as hideout. Von Glower got in and lay himself down on the straw. He seemed exhausted with the effort. Gabriel took one last look at the wound, which didn't seem to be worse, and with a sigh of relief cuddled near his friend and went to sleep.

***

Gabriel awoke to a strange rough sensation on his naked skin in some dim, soothing light. It took a few seconds to grasp the meaning of what his senses told him. He was lying totally naked on a bed of straw in a cave in the middle of nowhere and he wasn't alone. He could feel Friederich's warm body pressed against his left side. His irregular breathing and restless stirring showed he was having a troubled sleep.

Gabriel stole a quick glance at his friend's torso. He was prepared for the sight of hanging raw flesh and dried blood, but it seemed the eerie light played tricks with his eyes. In place of the former deep slash he saw only a small scar.

This can't be... I saw his chest ripped to the bone!

Without stopping to think, he carefully put out his hand and touched one end of the scar. It felt the same way it looked - healed. Hesitantly, he began to gently trace the whole contour of the scarred tissue. He could feel the warmth of the skin under his cold fingertips as they slid further across the smooth surface. The sensual path brought his hand above Friederich's throbbing heart. He lingered there for a while, life at its rawest pulsing against his fingers. He pressed his palm down on his friend's chest, feeling the inner rhythm of his strong body.

Gabriel suddenly heard Friederich's breath become shallow and precipitate and looked up to see what was wrong. His heart skipped a beat when he saw his friend watching him with a desperate, haunted look. He soothingly reached out to touch his face, but it only seemed to make matters worse. Friederich closed his eyes and a strangled moan escaped from his throat.

"What is wrong, Friederich?", asked Gabriel in his softest voice.

Von Glower opened his eyes and gave his friend a look of painful desire. Realization dawned on Gabriel little by little while he stood there, unable to take his eyes off his friend's torn face.

It was like the rest of the world had just disappeared and they were the only ones alive, lost inside the never-ending twilight. No white or black here, just an infinite variety of gray shades. For a long moment Gabriel just stood there, staring into the gray of Friederich's eyes, unknown desires slowly filling his body.

He put out his hand for a second time and reached for his friend's face, without paying notice to Friederich's feeble protest. His fingertips began caressing the smooth warm skin, clumsily at first but increasing in boldness as they lightly touched the hot forehead, brushed away a lock of dark hair, circled around the eyes down to the tensed face.

Friederich watched him do this maddening exploration, his slightly parted lips letting out small gasps of hot breath. Gabriel's fingers ended their search upon his friend's lips. The feeling of soft burn against his skin was exhilarating.

He heard Friederich let out a sigh and before he knew he was surrounded by his friend's arms, feeling his excited breath burn against his own mouth. Their lips approached ever so slowly, hearts pounding out of their chests, eyes clouded with passion. The intensity of the kiss made Gabriel almost faint. He abandoned his body to his mate's breathtaking caresses.

The twilight outside gradually faded to white morning, but this did not reach inside the little gray cave.

continue to chapter 4 >>

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