"I said where the hell did you get this car?!" Soneya's friend demanded angrily.

Both of them had stalked up to within a couple meters of us, and our tall strong pack leader moved to put herself between them and Lia and myself.

I could tell by her body language she was tense. Not as stressed as when that guy with the rifle confronted us, but her shoulders were set and her hands had clenched into fists. Meanwhile her ears were pointed slightly forwards towards her friends, while her tail stood out behind her.

Lia and I were both tense as well, she stood right up close against my right side. She was probably completely hidden behind our pack leader, while I was just far enough over to the left that I could see past her and keep an eye on her two friends.

She took a deep breath then stated in a forced-calm voice, "Shane? Calm the fuck down. It's me, ok? I'm Alpine."

The one who'd been doing the shouting, Shane apparently, took a breath like he was about to challenge her but Soneya cut him off.

"I know I look different ok?" she stated. "The last few days have been fucked, but I swear I'm Alpine. You, me, and Michael just graduated together at Pennsylvania College of Technology, in Williamsport. The three of us went to the same college, but Luna went to MIT. All three of us share an apartment near the campus."

The wolfgirl continued, "We came up here to hike the international section of the Appalachian Trail, to celebrate our graduation. We were summer graduates, that's why we're here in the autumn. Nobody else around here would know all that, right?"

Shane and Michael exchanged a quick look, then Shane responded "Lots of people know that stuff about us. You could probably figure all that out just by looking us up on social media."

"Fine," Soneya sighed. "You came out as gay on the drive up with Michael. And the two of you hooked up as soon as you got here. That's why you left me alone on the trail, so you could go off and celebrate your new relationship in private."

Her voice was starting to sound stressed as she continued, "Is that on your social media too? I haven't had a chance to look yet, because I've been dealing with a lot of life and death bullshit for the last four fucking days! We only just got into town a few hours ago, and I'm tired ok? I just want to lie the fuck down in a real fucking bed and get some sleep!"

She was almost shouting by the time she'd finished, and her hands and shoulders were shaking slightly. On top of that, it felt like the temperature around us had gone up a few degrees. It went from a typical cool September evening to feeling like a hot August afternoon.

I could tell the two guys felt the heat as well, maybe even more than I did. They both had flushed faces, while beads of perspiration were starting to form on Shane's forehead.

On the other hand I was pretty sure they wouldn't guess that the sudden localized heat-wave was caused by the wolfgirl in front of them, but they could definitely see how stressed she was. The only question in my mind is if they realized this was a dangerous situation, or if they just saw an hysterical young woman who maybe stole their friend's car.

"Alpine?" I asked quietly.

I used her hiking name since that's how her friends knew her, and as much as I wanted to help calm her down I also didn't want to give them any extra ammunition to doubt or question her. What I really wanted to do was defuse the situation, but I had to tread lightly since I didn't know the guys and didn't know what the dynamic was like between Soneya and them.

One of her ears twitched and twisted around to focus on me, but she kept the other one and both eyes on her friends. She was still our leader and despite all the stress, or perhaps because of it, she was still protecting me and Lia. She wouldn't turn her back or take her eyes off the two friends who were currently potential threats.

"What is it Tori?" she asked in the same forced-calm voice she used earlier.

I kept my own voice soft and tried to sound soothing as I suggested, "Maybe we shouldn't be having this conversation out in public? If we're going to keep talking with your friends I think it'd be best if we could do it somewhere private."

Both guys were looking at me as I spoke, then their eyes returned to Soneya again. Shane looked like he was about to challenge the tall strong wolfgirl again, but Michael spoke up first.

"What fuck just happened?" he asked nervously. "Why's it suddenly so hot out here? This isn't normal."

Soneya took long slow deep breath, then let it out in an equally long sigh. And as she did that, the temperature around us gradually dropped back down to normal levels. She still seemed tense, her shoulders set and fists clenched, but she'd stopped shaking.

She stated calmly, "That's a good idea Tori. Shane, Michael, if you two want to talk let's go somewhere else. I'm guessing you two have a room here? We can go there with you and talk in there if you like."

The guys looked at each other, and I got the impression Shane wanted answers. He still seemed like he wanted to challenge Soneya, and neither of the guys believed she was really their friend. Michael on the other hand seemed uneasy. He might have even guessed that the wolfgirl was somehow responsible for the way things got uncomfortably hot.

"We're not taking three strangers into our hotel room," Michael replied in a flat tone as he shook his head. He seemed to be a little more level-headed than Shane, who looked like he wanted a confrontation.

Michael was still focused on Soneya, and while he didn't raise his voice it was clear he was on edge as well. "It's impossible, you can't be Alpine. So where is he, what have you done with him? How'd you get him to tell you that stuff about us?"

"And what's with the fucking ears and tails?" Shane added. "What the fuck are you people?"

Our wolfgirl took another deep breath. She sighed, "Look guys, I'm really not in the mood for this shit ok? You want to know what happened to me? Fine. After you two left on Sunday I continued hiking by myself. By Tuesday night I made it as far as Mount John Allen. I was setting up my camp for the night when all hell broke loose. There was a massive earthquake, like the mountain was trying to shake me off it. I lost almost all my gear, I nearly died."

She continued in a low voice, "A few hours later I sprouted wolf ears and a tail, I met these two foxgirls around dawn Wednesday morning and the three of us teamed up to get out of there together. Since then? I figured out I'm trans, turned into a wolfgirl, almost got shot by a fucking deranged hunter, and narrowly avoided a run-in with a bunch of fucking soldiers. We only just got out of the park this morning, then caught a lucky break and got a lift into Amqui."

Her voice remained low, but there was a bit of a growl in it as she finished, "Don't ask me how or why I've got the ears and tail because I don't fucking know. I don't know how I turned into a girl either. All I know is it happened after I realized I'm trans. So like I said, the last few days have been beyond fucked. And right now, all we want is a quiet night in a warm bed."

The guys exchanged another look, but I could already tell Shane was still sceptical while Michael maybe looked uncertain. Then he stepped closer to Soneya, and in a voice that was almost a whisper he asked her something. He was quiet enough that my big fuzzy ears only caught the first few words, "If you're really Alpine, then..."

Soneya's response was even softer, and with her facing her friends I didn't catch any of it, apart from the name 'Luna'.

Whatever she said though seemed to do the trick. Michael's eyes widened, while Shane's jaw dropped. And both of them were left staring at her.

"Holy fuck," Shane mumbled.

Michael glanced at him and added, "You owe me twenty bucks. I told you last spring I thought she might be trans."

"You what?" Soneya demanded. "How the hell could you guess that? I didn't even know myself until a couple days ago!"

Her friend shrugged, "Sorry Alpine, but you were a really obvious egg. Your shell was pretty damn dense though."

By that point almost all the tension had faded, and I finally suggested "Can we take this discussion somewhere else now? I really don't think we want to continue talking about this in the parking lot."

A few minutes later the five of us were squeezed into a booth in the hotel bar. The guys were on one side, while Soneya and Lia and I were on the other. It wasn't exactly comfortable, especially with our tails, but I had a feeling we wouldn't be there very long. At least I hoped that was the case.

As soon as we were seated a waitress came to take our order. Me and Lia just asked for juice, while both Shane and Michael ordered pints of a local craft-brewed beer. And Soneya ordered a whiskey and cola, which made both her friends smile.

"Glad to see some things never change," Michael commented. "Then again, some things probably do. I bet you've already got a new name picked out, right?"

He added with a grin, "You've probably had something in mind for ages. And what about your friends, how about some introductions?"

She was blushing slightly as she nodded, "I'm going by Soneya Amarïs now, it means 'sound of the moon'. And these are Tori and Lia."

"Victoria Chapman," I added, "But everyone calls me Tori. And my little sister, Lia."

Lia just nodded quietly, but I could tell she was feeling shy and anxious. I figured if anyone tried to talk to her I'd answer for her, and if she got too uneasy I'd offer to take her up to our room. And by unspoken agreement, none of us mentioned that Lia was originally a fox. I was pretty sure none of us were going to mention anything about the other magic we'd experienced either.

Then Soneya introduced her friends, "That's Michael Write and he's Shane Farnsworth. We've been best friends since high school."

"So how did you three hook up?" Shane asked. "And just how close are you? You seem pretty comfortable cuddled up together in the booth."

Our wolfgirl's blush got even brighter, while Michael gave his boyfriend a friendly jab with his elbow.

My cheeks were a little warm too but I responded, "Lia and I were camping by Lac Côté when the earthquake hit. Our tent was wrecked but we salvaged most of our gear. We're not serious hikers like Soneya though, and we were kind of lost. It was a lucky break we met up with her."

"Right," our wolfgirl nodded in agreement. "They had gear, food, and water, but didn't know what to do or where to go. I've got the experience and know-how, but had nothing but the clothes on my back and my emergency survival stuff."

I added, "Me and Lia made it back to my car, we'd parked in the lot near Lac Thibault but the earthquake trashed the car, the lot, and the roads too."

"So I told them I was parked here at Amqui," Soneya took up the story, "Tori and Lia agreed to share their food and everything with me, and I'd get them back to civilization here."

Shane asked, "So I guess you two sprouted the fox ears and tails when Alpine got his- I mean her wolfy changes? Or uh, sorry if this is insensitive but did you two change completely as well?"

"No dude, they come from a long line of Canadian foxgirls," our wolfgirl replied in a sarcastic tone. She was smiling though, so we all knew it was a friendly tease.

I smiled too, "Yeah, it happened late Tuesday night or early Wednesday morning. And I'd rather not get into specifics, but both Lia and I have changed more than just growing fuzzy ears and tails."

Fortunately the guys were understanding enough to let the subject drop when I made it clear I didn't want to go into those details.

Michael had a gulp of his beer then asked Soneya, "Will you be heading back to Williamsport soon? And what about your new friends, where are they from?"

The wolfgirl sighed and her shoulders slumped, "I can't go home. All my ID is wrong, my passport and everything? I'll never get across the border. We're going to Tori's place in Toronto. I'm going to stay with her and Lia while we try and figure out the rest of it."

"What about you two?" she added. "I figured you'd be back home already, how come you're still here?"

The guys exchanged a look and a smile. Shane replied, "Part of it was we're still on vacation right? We're not expected back home until next week, so we decided to make the most of it."

"We got a sweet room here," Michael added, "We've been seeing the sights, doing day-hikes, and enjoying a little romantic get-away together."

Shane's smile shifted to a bit of a grimace as he admitted, "The other reason is I'm not sure yet how my folks are going to take it? There's a good chance my dad's going to flip when he finds out I'm gay."

"I guess you're in a similar situation?" Michael asked. "Have you talked to your folks yet?"

Soneya shook her head, "I emailed my mom after we got to the hotel this afternoon, just to let her know I'm safe. I didn't say anything else though, I have no idea how I'm going to break this to her and dad. Especially since I look and sound completely different? I can't just call up and tell them I'm trans when they won't even recognize my voice."

After a pause Michael offered, "When we get back I could try and talk to your folks if you like? At least let them know that me and Shane met you, that we know you're really you?"

"Thanks man," the wolfgirl smiled. "I don't know yet how I'm going to handle it, but I'll keep that in mind. Just, don't say anything to them until you hear from me about it? I might take you up on that, but like I said, I have to figure out how I'm going to handle it first."

He nodded, "Of course. I get it, me and Shane will keep out of it unless you ask."

The conversation stalled slightly there until Shane spoke up. He shook his head, "Dude I still can't fucking believe that's you. I mean, how the fuck did you turn into a girl?"

"I can believe she's a girl," Michael added with a wry smile. "Though I never would have expected she'd be a wolfgirl. At least you turned out hot as fuck, right?"

That got our hot wolfgirl blushing again, but rather than respond she changed the subject. "Look guys I'm glad we had a chance to talk, I'm glad we got through the rough stuff and you know it's really me? But me and Tori and Lia want to get rolling first thing tomorrow morning, and like I said we've had a rough few days. So if you don't mind, I think the three of us are going to go turn in for the night."

"Ok Alpine," Michael replied. "I'm glad you're all right. And uh, actually I guess we never asked this but are you ok? I mean, are you happy like this? With how you look, how you've changed?"

Soneya was quiet for a few seconds as a thoughtful expression settled on her face. Then she turned and looked at me and Lia for a moment, before looking back at her friends. Finally she nodded, "Yeah I am happy. I won't lie, I'm still really fucking stressed about a few things. And I'm still getting used to having a tail, and having my ears ontop of my head. But I feel comfortable like this, in a way I never felt comfortable with myself before. I don't think I'd ever want to change back, even if I could."

Both guys smiled. Shane stated, "I'm glad you're happy Alpine. Er, Soneya. And Michael's right, you look hot as fuck. Even if I'm not into girls I can still appreciate the beauty, you know?"

"Anyways we won't keep you any longer," Michael added. "I'll pay for the drinks, don't worry about that. You girls have a good night, and drive safe tomorrow. Keep in touch, ok Soneya? I expect texts and emails and phone calls. Let us know when you get to Toronto."

Hearing her friends refer to her as a girl and use her new name had a positive effect on our wolfgirl, I could feel it in how she let go of a little more tension. She thanked them both, then the three of us awkwardly exited the booth. We exchanged some final pleasantries and bid each other good night, then we left the guys at the bar and made our way back out to the lobby and over to the elevators.

By the time we got to our room all the stress and tension were gone, and the three of us were utterly exhausted. Soneya probably more than Lia and I, since the whole ordeal had been extra stressful for her. The wolfgirl looked like she was almost on autopilot as she stumbled into the bathroom with her new nightshirt in hand.

I quickly stripped out of my clothes and pulled on my own nightshirt, then helped Lia do the same. My little sister and I took turns in the washroom when Soneya was done, and despite a momentary concern on my part it turned out Lia didn't have any trouble using the facilities.

Then the three of us all climbed into the big bed together, and I was pretty sure all three of us were asleep as soon as our eyes were closed.

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