Fic - Due South - "Through the Looking Glass (3/4) - RayK/Fraser, Ray/K/human!Dief [mature]
Title:Through the Looking Glass
Author:tres_mechante
Fandom: Due South
Pairing/character: Ray Kowalski/Benton Fraser, Ray Kowalski/human!Diefenbaker
Rating: FRM (Mature)
Word Count: 30,850 approx.
Kink: magic/supernatural elements; first time; angst; flirtation; seduction; mind fuck
Notes/Warnings: magic; language; angst; character death(temporary!); animal-to-human transformation; vampire; male/male sex (not graphic); first times; violence; developing feelings; disturbing images (nightmares); crackishness
Thank you to the ficfinishing gang, who cheered me on to greater word counts.
Many thanks to cincoflex and vr_trakowski who encouraged me every step of the way.
Very special thanks to mizface, my First Reader, who read the story as it was being written (warts and all), offered thoughts, asked questions, gently pointed out the inconsistancies/errors, and encouraged me to keep going simply by asking “More please?”
Summary: Ray’s life has taken a turn for the strange, what with a gruesome murder, creepy witnesses, the woodland version of Hotel California, and a squirrel with attitude. But then along comes some guy claiming to be Diefenbaker and that's when things get weird.
Artist:sly_fuck Thank you for the art!
~~~~~~~~~ ~~ ~~~~~~~~~~ ~~ ~~~~~~~~~~
Part 1
Part 2
Part Three
Ray froze.
“Ray?”
Ray spun around to face the speaker. It was the new guy from the care package delivery crew.
“You can see me!” exclaimed Ray, shock evident in his voice as he stated the obvious. “How did you get here? Wait - how do you know my name?”
The man took a tentative step forward. “It’s really you. I thought...I was scared that...” The man trembled as his voice gave out. Without warning he launched himself at Ray.
The two men hit the ground hard. When Ray was able to catch his breath, he opened his eyes and found a pair of golden brown eyes staring back at him. The weirdest feeling of familiarity washed through him.
“I know you - at least, I think I do.” Ray’s mind didn’t want to make the leap, but his heart began to pound eagerly. “Who are you?”
The other man backed up, allowing Ray to sit up. Ray’s gaze travelled over the face in front of him. Up close, the face belonged to someone pretty close to his own age, with lines around slightly tilted eyes and bracketing a mouth with thin but soft looking lips. The shaggy - and definitely not stylish - hair had a kind of salt-and-pepper thing going on. It looked almost familiar.
Ray hesitantly reached out and brushed his hand against the hair; sense memory kicked in. He knew this, the coarser outer hair and the soft hairs closer to the scalp.
The man’s eyes closed as he sighed and leaned into Ray’s touch. “Missed you,” murmured the familiar stranger.
Ray choked back a sob and the other man to open his eyes. Ray stared into the golden brown eyes - wolf eyes - and soundlessly mouthed one word. “Dief.”
Equally soundless was the reply. “Yes.”
Ray broke. All the grief and fear and confusion, all the feelings of helplessness poured out in a torrent of tears for the first time since his ordeal began.
Wrapped in Dief’s arms, Ray found himself held close, nuzzling into Dief’s neck. He met with warm skin and rough wool rather than fur, but burrowed close just the same. He was home, or as close as he’d been in more than three months - as close to Fraser as he would ever be again.
A cold gust of wind prompted them to reluctantly pull apart.
Ray wiped his eyes and ran his sleeve under his nose, feeling embarrassed about his meltdown. However, when he looked at Dief, the wolf - man, whatever - was doing much the same thing.
Dief smiled tentatively. “I missed you, Ray.”
“I missed you too, buddy - a lot.” Ray looked up at the darkening sky. “We should get inside before dark. Weird shit happens around here, kind of like you - but you’re a good weird, don’t get me wrong. It’s just--”
Dief interrupted. “Understood. I agree we should not be outside when it is dark.”
Ray grinned to hear Dief talk. After all the times he’d imagined conversations with the wolf, hearing the man’s voice was a little odd.
They helped each other to stand and faced each other somewhat awkwardly. Ray made the first move, pulling Dief into another hug, albeit a much shorter one.
“Let’s go,” said Ray, gesturing for Dief to precede him. Dief held back, looking a bit puzzled. Ray frowned. “What? Tick tock, daylight’s a-wasting.”
“Ray, you need to lead. I do not know where you live.”
“Pfft, pull the other one, buddy boy. I mean, you’re the guy who keeps leaving me rabbits. Don’t know where I live - riiight,” scoffed Ray. “Jeez, you really had me going there. I was thinking maybe some kind of bunny serial killer or something was running loose, but now that I know it was you all the time I feel better. And, you know, kinda pissed that you didn’t just say something before.”
Dief’s face was a study in confusion. Ray couldn’t help but think the head tilt and furrowed brow were pure wolf-Dief. Of course, he’d mastered that oh-so-innocent look during his donut snatching exploits, so he wasn’t really buying it.
“Never mind. Come on, I don’t want to out here after dark - it’s not like there are streetlights around here.” He turned and headed back to the cabin, Dief dutifully following along.
Ray opened the cabin’s door. “Come on in,” he said, watching the way Dief stared at everything around him. Ray laughed out loud as Dief jumped when the cabin’s interior suddenly lit up.
“You have power,” exclaimed Dief. “But I did not see any wires...” He stepped outside and looked around before coming back in. He looked adorably confused.
Ray grinned. “Oh, that’s nothing. I can start a fire without matches.”
Dief grinned back. “You rub sticks together - I saw Ben do it lots of times.”
Ray just reached into the woodstove and touched the kindling, which immediately burst into flame.
Dief’s jaw dropped as he stared at the fire. He looked up at Ray in shock. “Ben never did that!” He thought for a moment. “That is why you believe I am Diefenbaker.”
“Yep. When it comes to the weird that is my life, you my friend are barely a blip - a welcome one, but a blip all the same.” Ray closed the stove door and began preparing food. “I hope you’re hungry. I’m thinking a fried supper. I’ve got leftovers from that last rabbit, and some vegetables and bread. How are you at chopping?”
The two men worked companionably to prepare their meal. By mutual agreement they put off any serious discussions until after they’d eaten. Instead, they talked about food they missed - Dief missed donuts, while Ray really wanted pizza - the antics of Rocky the squirrel, and other trivialities. Out of long-standing habit, Ray spoke a little louder than usual and made sure he didn’t face away from Dief when talking. The human Dief seemed to hear okay, but then so did doggy Dief most of the time.
Dinner over and dishes tidied, they settled on the bed with cups of tea - “some sort of twigs and flowers crap, but it doesn’t taste too bad” - and began the process of catching up on each other’s lives since That Day. Ray shared some stories of learning to live with magic instead of modern conveniences. Dief shared a bit about being a wolf in people’s clothing.
“I like thumbs,” said Dief. “But it took a long time to learn human things.”
Ray nodded sympathetically. “I’ll bet. But you seem to have adjusted okay. You even talk like you’ve always been human - except for that little accent and odd word use ting, which is kind of cute really.”
Dief smiled, and if he’d still been a wolf his tongue would have been lolling out of his mouth. “Szymon and Roza have been very good to me. They taught me a lot.”
“Simon and Rosa, those are the people who came with you to deliver the food? Thanks for that, by the way.”
“You are welcome. Yes, Szymon and his grandmother Rosa found me and gave me a home.” Dief’s eyes shifted away. “I-I was not right when they found me.”
“Not right? Oh, you mean kind of fucked in the head.”
“Bad word, Ray,” chastised Dief. “But yes, if you mean very confused and afraid.”
“You seem okay now,” observed Ray.
“Now, yes.” Dief clearly did not wish to say anything else, and judging by the flush on his cheeks, he was feeling embarrassed by whatever happened.
Ray figured he’d get the rest of the story eventually so he changed the subject a bit. “So, these folks who took you in, they taught you English?”
“Now you are being silly, Ray. Ben taught me English; they taught me...what they speak.” Dief didn’t seem too sure which language it was.
“I’m glad you had good people to help. It can’t have been easy finding yourself suddenly human,” said. Ray.
“Much to learn,” was the response. “But it helped, being with people who cared.”
“Want more tea?” asked Ray, suddenly need to do something.
“I do not wish to impose,” demurred Dief.
“Knock off the formal crap. I wouldn’t have asked if it was a problem, so if you want some just say so,” sniped Ray.
“Then, yes, thank you.”
When Ray fumbled the kettle, and then spilled tea on the table, Dief went to him and pulled Ray into a hug. Ray held on tight, trembling uncontrollably.
Ray finally let go with a sigh. “Sorry, sorry. It’s just...sorry.” He got a cloth to wipe the mess on the table. When he returned to the table, Ray was shocked by the look on Dief’s face. With his eyes dark and wet, and lips trembling, Dief looked devastated.
“Hey, buddy, you okay?” Ray was getting seriously freaked by Dief’s behaviour.
“Alone,” whispered Dief.
“What?” Did Dief mean he wanted to be left alone?
“You. You were alone...all that time, so alone.”
“No, hey, no, it’s okay. I’m okay, really.” It was Ray’s turn to comfort his friend. When Dief showed no sign of calming, Ray did the only thing he could think of to soothe the other man.
Guiding Dief to the bed, Ray settled against the pillows and pulled Dief down until his head rested on Ray’s chest. While they’d been roommates a lifetime ago, they’d often fallen asleep like this after a particularly difficult day.
While the lights slowly dimmed, Dief burrowed closer, shifting slightly until his ear was centred right above Ray’s heart. Ray brought his hand up and began carding through Dief’s hair. Gradually, the former wolf’s trembling lessened and his grip around Ray’s middle eased.
Hoping that Dief had fallen asleep, Ray quietly spoke into the dark. “I didn’t know what to think at first. It was all too much to take in, you know? Then I started to remember stuff. The worst was this picture in my head of you lying still after that old bitch hit you, and Fraser lying in a pool of blood. I thought - well, I guess I hoped - that I was dead, too.”
Dief’s arms tightened around him briefly, but that was the only reaction.
“When I finally clued in to the thing about the lights and the fire...jeez, I damn near burned down the cabin ‘til I got a handle on it,” chuckled Ray. “Anyway, that’s when I started to think maybe I was crazy, that none of this was real and I was safely locked up somewhere; maybe you and Fraser came by to visit sometimes, even if I was too whacked to know it.”
Ray continued his playing with the hair at Dief’s neck, much the way he’d done when it was fur and Dief had four legs. It was a comforting motion, although Ray could not say for sure which one of them needed the comfort more at that moment.
“I guess what I’m trying to say is that I got through it.” Ray hesitated, but since he was being honest felt compelled to confess, “The hardest part was - is - not knowing for sure. I mean, god, Dief, I knew Ben was dead - I saw it happen. I still have nightmares about it. But I didn’t know what happened to you. I sure as hell didn’t know what happened to me.”
Dief raised his head and shifted until he could share Ray’s pillow. They stared at each other for a while, both clearly exhausted from the emotional turmoil of the day. Finally, Dief raised a hand to tentatively pet Ray’s hair.
“We are okay,” said Dief. “We are together and we will go home.”
Ray tried to look confident. “Yeah, buddy, we’ll go home. And we’ll find those damned vulture broads and make them pay.”
“Yes, they will pay for what they did, you have my word,” said Dief.
“Uh, Dief...?” Ray had an unsettling suspicion that Dief was not talking about an arrest. “They’ll go to trial and everyone will know what kind of monsters they are.”
Dief agreed, “Of course, Ray.” But his smile said otherwise.
Ray shivered looking into those alien pale eyes, suddenly realizing that on the inside Diefenbaker was still a wolf. Ray blinked, and suddenly Dief was merely a human again, albeit with oddly coloured eyes.
Ray was startled when Dief suddenly reached up and tapped him on the nose.
“Sleep now, Ray. We will - we’ll - talk of getting out of the circle, going home and finding the killer of our pack-mate.” With that, Dief sighed and closed his eyes.
“Uh, yeah okay, sure thing, buddy. G’night.”
After so many months alone, it felt weird to have someone else in his bed. Ah hell, who was he kidding? For the first time since this whole nightmare started, Ray felt like he might actually get a proper night’s sleep.
Ray wasn’t sure what woke him. For the first time in what felt like forever, he had fallen in a deep and mercifully dreamless sleep. The first thing he became aware of was the body next to his. Unlike in his nightmares, this one was putting out heat like crazy. He turned to his bedmate just as he began to thrash and cry out.
Dief.
Ray hurried to untangle them both from the blankets and tried to calm his friend. He quickly found the only way to keep Dief from hurting either Ray or himself was the wrap himself around the struggling man. Ray kept up a quiet stream of words in Dief’s ear. “Shh, you’re okay, buddy. You’re safe. No one will hurt you. I’m here, Dief. You’re not alone, I’m right here and you’re fine. It’s just a dream, buddy, just a bad dream.”
Eventually, Dief’s movements stilled, although he continued to cry and moan a little. Once he’d settled, Dief leaned back into Ray, who was only too happy to provide both support and comfort.
“You okay, there buddy?”
Dief nodded slightly.
“I’m going to let you go now,” warned Ray as he began to loosen his hold.
“No!” cried Dief, grabbing at Ray’s arms to hold him in place.
“Shh. I’m not going anywhere,” soothed Ray.
After awhile Dief’s breathing slowed and his body became totally lax. Ray hoped he’d fallen asleep.
“Bad things.”
Apparently not. “Bad things? You mean in your dream?”
Dief shrugged. “Bad things - dead things try to take you away.”
Ray felt a shiver run down his spine, and it had nothing to do with the lack of blankets.
“What do you mean by tried to take me away?”
“It wants you,” said Dief, turning to look at him. “The dead wants you to be one with it. It will not rest until you have been claimed. It will kill anyone or anything that comes between you.”
Ray was mesmerized by the way those golden eyes seemed to glow. A slow blink from those non-human eyes freed him from that spell.
“Uh, dead things, right.” A vague tickle of memory - a faded nightmare - teased the back of his mind. However, Ray ignored it in favour of urging Dief back to sleep.
“Do you want some water or something?” he asked. “Or do you have to piss?”
Dief just shook his head, looking suspiciously toward the door
Ray drew his attention again. “It’s locked up tight, buddy. Nothing is getting in here, you got that?”
Dief smiled tentatively and snuggled closer to Ray. “Thank you.”
“Welcome. Now go back to sleep. It’s too damn early to get up.”
“Yes, Ray,” said Dief, not at all meekly.
They stayed in bed until he sun was well and truly up - and Ray’s bladder threatened unpleasantness. Morning routines completed and breakfast on the table meant no more delays for their talk.
Ray set his cup down and leaned forward. “Okay, spill. How’d you break through the bubble?”
Dief set his cup down and mirrored Ray’s posture. “I came through the door.”
“The door.”
“Yes. There is a door between inside and outside.”
“Dief, I’ve got to tell you, I’ve never seen a door anywhere except for here,” said Ray, indicating the cabin door.
“I don’t know what to tell you, Ray. That is how I got here.” At Ray’s sceptical look, Dief offered, “I can show you, if you like.”
“Hell yes!” said Ray, jumping up from his seat.
“Language, Ray,” said Dief in perfect imitation of Fraser.
That sobered them both, but the moment passed without comment. Neither man was ready to talk about their lost friend.
They followed the path toward the area where they’d met the night before. Ray playfully jabbed his elbow into Dief’s side. “I can’t believe you didn’t say something, anything, before last night,” he said. “Why did you keep quiet? You had to know I’d want to see you.”
“Ray, I did not come through the door until last night.”
Ray stopped, forcing Dief to stop as well. “Wait. You’re saying last night was the first time you made it this side of whatever that is?” he asked, waving vaguely to indicate the barrier.
“That is what I have been trying to tell you, yes!”
Ray wasn’t sure which thought to chase first. He finally settled on “Well, what made you do it last night?”
“I felt you.”
“Felt me?”
Dief took a step closer, as though willing Ray to understand. “That day, when the tingle came from the stick - you remember that right? I knew, knew, you were there. I could almost see you.”
“Yeah, yeah, I remember that day. I remember thinking you could see me, but I didn’t know it was you.” Ray shook his head in wonder. “That was a while ago. What kept you?”
Dief grabbed Ray’s arm and urged him onward. “The time was wrong.”
Ray decided then and there that he was not going to try to understand any of this. It would probably go easier on him if he just let Dief explain in his own weird way - kind of like dealing with Fraser, actually.
“There, you see!”
Ray looked where Dief pointed, but all he could see was a tree. It was a very large and handsome tree, but still, it was a tree.
“It’s a tree,” said Ray.
Dief gave him a look of exasperation that could only have been learned from Fraser. “Look!” He points to the centre of the trunk.
“Sorry, Dief, but I’m still just seeing a tree.”
Dief pulled Ray closer to the tree and then traced his finger over the scarring on the trunk. Ray stared at the trunk some more. Huh. It did sort of look like a door, if you squinted and tilted your head until your neck hurts.
Ray nodded to himself. Well, it’s not like that was the strangest thing he’d heard of lately. “So. How does this work?” He imagined magic spells and potions and cackling over a cauldron like in that Shakespeare play Stella had dragged him to once.
Dief sighed sadly. “It’s locked now.”
“I don’t suppose you’ve got a key?”
“Not exactly,” said Dief.
Ray tried his best to be patient. “Then how the hell - yeah, I know ‘language’ - how the hell are we supposed to open that door.”
Dief looked a bit sheepish, which was more than a little disturbing on the face of a guy that spent most of his life as a half-wolf.
Ray crossed his arms over his chest and gave the other man his best tough cop look. “Spit it out.” Before Dief say anything, Ray warned, “And don’t you dare tell me you don’t have anything in your mouth to spit out.”
Dief’s jaw quickly snapped shut. He cleared his throat. “The key is magic - and it will only open when the moon is fullest.”
Ray stared hard at Diefenbaker. “So, what you’re saying is that you’re stuck here until the next full moon.”
“Yes. Is that okay? I can stay with you?”
“What? No, you go sleep under a log somewhere. Are you stupid? Of course I want you to stay with me. Jeez!”
Ray shook his head and turned to walk away, not really mad but wanting to tease a little bit. However, he quickly found himself face down in the dirt with roughly 150-plus pounds of ex-wolf on his back.
“Thank you!” exclaimed Dief, licking Ray’s ear for good measure.
“Hey!” Ray tried to bat him away. “What did I tell you about doing that?”
The weight suddenly left, and Ray rolled to his side, propping his head on his hand. Dief was on his back giggling - giggling! - and looking ridiculously pleased with himself.
“Dief, Dief, Dief,” sighed Ray. “What am I to do with you?”
Dief just turned his head to grin at him, strange gold-brown eyes almost glowing in the dappled sunlight. Ray tried to maintain an aura of exasperation, but knew fondness bled through the mask. Seriously, how was he supposed resist that dopey happy look?
Ray heaved a heavy sigh and hauled himself to his feet. “Since we’re not leaving yet, we have chores to do.” He reached down to help Dief up. “It’s a little late for fishing, but let’s go see if anything is willing to bite anyway.”
By day’s end, Ray was pretty sure he’d never laughed so hard in his life. Certainly, he’d never view fishing in quite the same way again given Dief’s hands-on, full-body approach. Leaping in after the fish might have worked as a wolf, but as a slightly clumsy man, he was no threat to them - other than maybe the fish dying of laughter.
~~~ ~ ~~~
Ray drowsily stretched and plumped the pillow behind his head. Damn, he felt good. A soft sleepy grumble beside him betrayed Dief’s displeasure at being disturbed. Ray clumsily patted his arm in apology. “Sorry buddy.”
He turned his head and looked out the window, trying to gauge the time. Dawn was just beginning to break. Ray wanted nothing more than the burrow under the blankets - Dief sure put out a lot of heat - and sleep for another couple of hours. However, duty called, so he crawled out of bed, raced across the room and got the stove started before racing back to bed.
A shocked yelp greeted him when cold feet met warm legs.
“Sorry, sorry. Jeez the nights are getting colder,” muttered Ray as he curled himself into a ball to conserve warmth. It didn’t take long before he found himself being spooned by a very warm body. With a contented sigh, Ray pressed himself closer to Dief and drifted back to sleep.
It was much lighter out when they finally crawled out of bed. The sun was trying to break through the clouds as they made their way to the clearing. Once they’d settled in to wait for the food delivery - “it’s not take-out, Ray” - Rocky decided to meet the newcomer.
The squirrel’s approach was unusually timid, even after more than a week of observation from a distance.
“Rocky, old pal. Come and meet a buddy of mine.” The squirrel edged closer, tail twitching nervously. “Rocky, meet Diefenbaker. Dief, this is Rocky.”
Dief shifted until he was stretched out on his stomach, chin resting on his crossed arms. He held perfectly still.
Rocky considered the newcomer warily before coming closer. Much to Ray’s amusement, the wolf - ex-wolf - and the squirrel seemed to be in a staring contest; he wondered who was winning.
A strong gust of wind stirred up some dust, causing Dief to sneeze suddenly. Rocky jumped back and toppled over. Ray laughed until he cried.
Rocky scolded them both and left, his small body radiating irritation.
Ray grinned and turned to share his amusement with Dief, but the other man’s attention was focused just beyond the clearing. Ray turned his head and saw the teen and older woman who had accompanied Dief previously.
Both Ray and Dief stood as the visitors approached the edge of the clearing. A couple of baskets were set down and pushed through the barrier. Dief slowly walked toward the barrier, stopping just a few feet away.
Ray joined him and laid a comforting hand on Dief’s shoulder. “Do they know you’re here?”
Dief nodded and shrugged. “They hope that I am here, that I am safe.”
Szymon approaches the barrier and starts talking. There is no sound, but Dief is paying close attention and Ray realizes he is lip reading. Dief’s smile is tinged with sadness when Szymon and Roza walk away.
Ray and Dief gathered up their packages and returned to the cabin. When they got inside, Ray set his package down and took the basket from Dief, setting it on the table.
“Come on, buddy, talk to me.”
Ray was pleased that Dief didn’t try to distract him or plead ignorance. The two men sat opposite each other at the table. Dief took a few steadying breaths.
“When I first came here, when they found me, I was...wild. I could not understand them, did not know what had happened - my body was not mine,” Dief paused, clearly gathering his thoughts. When Dief continued his story, Ray was brought to tears at the confusion and pain Dief endured because of his transformation. He was reassured by Dief’s description of his stay with the old woman and her grandson.
“They took good care of you,” said Ray.
“They are simple people, superstitious, but they have good hearts. They saw...something worthy in me.”
Ray reached across the table and patted Dief’s hand. “I’m glad,” he said. “At least when I woke up I was still me, mostly. I don’t even want to think about you going through that without those people around to care about you.”
Dief turned his hand until his fingers could twine with Ray’s. “They knew - know - I’m not like them, that I’m not supposed to be like this.”
“You mean human?”
“Human, yes. When the tingle happened before - Roza is the one who told me about the door and the secret to passing between.” Dief’s eyes glowed gold briefly. “She helped me find you.”
“I hope I get the chance to tell her how grateful I am.” Ray squeezed Dief’s hand.
“Szymon, just now, he did not know if I could see him, but he said that they hoped I was successful.” Dief actually blushed. “He, Szymon, said they wished me luck in my heart’s quest.”
“Huh.” Ray had to think about that. “When we leave here, will they welcome you back? Do you think they’ll help us?”
Dief nodded quickly. “Oh, yes, we will be taken into their home. And if it’s in their power, they’ll help us go home.”
They sat quietly for a few minutes, each lost in their thoughts. With a quick slap of a hand on table, Ray reached over and pulled their care packages closer. “Well, let’s see what we’ve got.”
Dief opened a soft bundle and discovered heavy wool clothes. “Oh, good, I was hoping for something warm.” He grinned at Ray. “It’s much cooler without fur.”
Ray laughed so hard he almost fell off his chair. “Wow, they must really like you,” he said, revealing the contents of the basket. “There’s like twice as much food - and cookies! Oh my god, they sent cookies!”
Dief grinned at Ray’s delight over the oatmeal cookies, and reached over to pick up a sealed jar. He held it up for Ray to see.
“Is that...? Oh that is so good. That, my friend, is greatness - milk to go with the cookies. I am officially in heaven.”
Both men jumped at the sudden clap of thunder. Without them being aware of it, the weather had turned ugly. They quickly ran outside, bringing in firewood and the bedding which had been laid out to air.
They’d barely made it back inside just as the heavens opened and the deluge began.
The rest of the day was spent lounging around, remembering. There was something about the storm that led them to talk about Fraser. They shared stories and memories, laughing and crying through the afternoon and into the evening.
Eventually, after a light meal, they return to the bed, settling into their normal position. Ray carded his fingers through Dief’s hair, occasionally scratching his scalp, making Dief groan and snuggle closer.
“I missed your heart so much,” murmured Dief after a lengthy silence.
Ray chuckled, finding himself charmed by Dief’s odd bouts of quaintly formal speech. He wondered if it was a wolf thing, a Fraser thing or just because he was getting used talking like a person. Ray decided he really didn’t care. He lightly fisted his hand in Dief’s hair and gave a playful tug. “You know, I always wondered if you actually heard my heart or just felt it thump.”
Dief lifted his head and rested a slightly pointed chin on Ray’s chest. “Both.” He suddenly grinned a very canine-looking grin and confessed that he could hear better than Fraser believed, but not well enough to survive alone in the wild, at least not for long. “I am deaf in one ear, and the other is not as good as a wolf should be, worse than human even. He taught me to read lips so I would always understand.”
“Huh. I always had the feeling your deafness was just selective hearing - you know, that you just ignored whatever you didn’t want to hear,” said Ray. “I guess I owe you an apology.”
“You weren’t entirely wrong,” admitted Dief, resting is ear over Ray’s heart once more. “But sometimes it was just fun to pull Ben’s leash.”
“You mean yank his chain.”
Dief looked up. “Did you say something?”
“Freak.”
“Understood.”
Ray felt his eyes prickle. “God, I miss him.”
Dief dragged himself up until he could share Ray’s pillow. “Me, too.”
Ray reached over and buried his hand in Dief’s hair. Dief reached over and laid a hand on the side of Ray’s neck. They lay like that for a long time, silently sharing their grief until they fell asleep.
A squishing sound intruded into Ray’s dreams. He opened his eyes, a little confused at first. The sound came again, this time from just outside the door. Ray looked over, squinting, trying to remember if he’d barred the door earlier. When no other sound came, he gently eased away from Dief, who grumbled but did not wake.
Looking out the window, he couldn’t see anything out of place, but was relieved to see the rain had stopped. He went to the door and felt for the bolt. The door was locked. His hand hovered over the latch, but he finally drew back. His gut was telling him not to go out - and he’d learned over the years to listen to his gut.
Ray crawled back in bed, but only managed to doze fitfully until dawn. His mind was too troubled to allow for deep sleep.
The morning found Ray inspecting the ground around the door, looking for footsteps or other evidence of a late night visitor. He was interrupted by Dief frantically calling his name.
He came around the corner and almost ran into Dief, who was standing still, staring at the cooking pit. A fire had been started with a rabbit roasting on a spit.
Ray looked at Dief. “Please tell me you did that.”
Dief just shook his head.
“Damn. It wasn’t a dream.” At Dief’s puzzled look, Ray said, “Remember when I asked you about leaving me rabbits? This is what I was talking about.”
Dief looked as unsettled as Ray felt.
Ray was not happy - no sirree, not in the least. Although the appearance of the mystery rabbits had kind of creeped him out, Ray wasn’t one to turn down a meal. In fact, he’d come to enjoy it. Until now.
“This would be much easier with a shovel,” groused Ray. “I still don’t get why you freaked about eating it.”
Dief kept looking around worriedly, as if he expected something to jump out at them. “Tainted,” was all he said.
Ray sat back on his heels and looked up at Dief. Why Dief couldn’t have been the one burying Bugs was beyond him. Weren’t dogs supposed to enjoy digging? Dusting his hands off, he stood and walked over to his jumpy friend.
“Look, Dief, I’ve been eating those things for a while now, and I haven’t dropped dead yet.”
Dief looked at him, eyes glowing gold in the sunlight. “Not yet, but soon.”
Ray actually felt the hair on his neck stand up. “Alright, enough with the cryptic shit. What’s going on?”
“I...I really am not sure.”
“And I call bullshit.” Ray’s gaze did not waiver and it was Dief who looked away. Ray blew out a big breath. “Yeah, okay. Let’s go home.”
Dief followed quietly. The sun continued to shine, but the day suddenly seemed dreary.
They entered the cabin and settled much as they had the first night - opposite each other at the table. Fortified with tea, they sat silent - Dief staring at the table, and Ray staring at Dief.
“I can’t let this slide, buddy. You know that.”
“I really don’t know where to start.”
Ray almost said “at the beginning” but thought better of it. “Anywhere, start anywhere.” When Dief continued to look lost, Ray made the decision for him. “You said the rabbit meat was tainted. In what way? You mean like poison or something?”
Dief looked oddly relieved to have a place to start. “Not poison, not exactly. It-there was blood on it.”
Ray was confused. “It was a dead rabbit. And yeah, I try not to think about it, but I’m pretty sure blood’s part of the whole dead and being cooked thing. Like steaks.”
Dief shook his head. “No, not rabbit blood - dead blood.”
“Dead blood.”
Dief whined low in his throat and rubbed his hands over his head, ruffling his hair vigorously. “The blood wasn’t...right. It was not rabbit. Oh, I cannot explain this! It smelled wrong - it felt wrong.”
Ray narrowed his eyes in thought. “You’ve still got wolf senses? You can smell things I can’t.”
“Yes! Ray, I am not natural - I’m a wolf but not. That is unnatural. The taint on the meat is the same - it’s wrong, and I can’t tell you why.” Dief’s frustration was like another presence in the room.
“Okay. Easy,” he said, reaching across the table to rest a hand on Dief’s wrist. “I’ll take your word for it that something’s wrong. I trust you.” He was reward with a look of gratitude at that declaration.
Ray stood and collected their cups. “Right. So here’s the thing. We know that whatever it is only comes at night.” At Dief’s nod he continued. “So we have to, I don’t know, maybe set up a stakeout to find out what’s going on.”
Dief perked up when Ray mentioned stakeout. “When do you want to do that?”
Ray stared off, thinking. The dead bunnies didn’t show up on a regular timetable, but it would probably be at least another three or four days - well, nights - before it happened again. “Let’s say three nights from now. We can hide out in the trees--”
“No!”
Ray looked at Dief thoughtfully. “As I was saying, we can sit in here where it’s dark and keep watch. That okay?”
“Safer.”
“Are you sure you don’t know what’s out there?”
“No, I don’t know.”
Ray picked up on the way Dief emphasised the last word, but didn’t comment. Frankly, he wasn’t sure he was ready for whatever theory would be offered. Like his Uncle Nick used to say, never ask a question unless you’re damn sure you want the answer.
The two men went about their chores as though it were just another day - which it was if one didn’t count the cremation and burial of a rabbit. The smell from the burning body was still in Ray’s nose; he was pretty sure vegetarianism was in his future somewhere.
They went for a long walk, neither mentioning it, but both looking for some clue as to the identity of the other person in their little magic bubble. Dief seemed to pay particular attention to shaded areas and niches suitable for hiding.
Their route took them past the clearing, where Ray was surprised to see a couple of packages. “That shouldn’t be there,” he said. “It’s too early. Or did I miss a day somehow?”
They each gathered their unexpected treasures - “you take this one - it stinks” - and headed back to the cabin.
“I wonder why the extra stuff,” said Ray, trying to peek inside the bundle without dropping anything.
“Something bad is happening,” answered Dief, sounding pretty sure of himself.
“You think so? What would that have to do with giving us goodies?”
Dief hesitated and then stopped, allowing Ray to catch up. “The hope is that a bigger...tribute, is that the word? They hope that if they give more then bad things will stop.”
Ray almost dropped what he held. “A bribe, you mean? Hey, I’m a victim here. I’ve got nothing to do with whatever is going on out there.”
“They, the people in the village, they believe that something powerful lives here...wila? Yes, that’s it, they said a wila,” said Dief, pronouncing it vi-wa.
“Wait, I know this... My grandma used that word. It’s a-a kind of fairy or something.” Ray was suddenly aghast. “They think I’m a fairy? Do I look like Tinkerbelle to you? Jeez!”
Dief tried to calm Ray. “The wila is very powerful - they are not little dancing lights,” he said. “They are respected and feared. Roza says they can appear as very beautiful young women or ugly old men and they trick people; sometimes even kill them if angered.”
Ray gave Dief a glare. “I grant you I’m not a kid anymore, but I’m not an old man - and I’m definitely not a young woman.”
“True, but you are uncommonly beautiful, Ray,” said Dief, turning to continue on to the cabin. “I would follow you anywhere.”
Ray tripped over his own feet. Did Dief just come on to him?
~~~ ~ ~~~
Safe and snug behind the bolted door, Ray and Dief took turns bathing in front of the stove. Ray felt a little weird at first - he’d been alone for so long the idea of anyone seeing him was a bit unsettling.
Dief just rolled his eyes - where the hell did he learn that? - and told Ray it wasn’t the first time he’d seen him without clothes. “You didn’t have a problem with this when I stayed with you before.”
Ray couldn’t argue with that. While Dief settled on the bed with a cup of tea, Ray got the pan of water ready for his sponge bath. Man, he’d sell a kidney for a proper tub or a shower.
Deliberately keeping his back to Dief, he washed quickly and thoroughly. The entire time, Ray felt he was being watched. Sure, once Dief settled, he had angled his body away so he wasn’t looking directly at Ray, but... Ray still felt like he was on display. He would be damned however, before letting on how much it bothered him - or how much it kind of turned him on.
“Your turn,” he said, turning to back to the other man. He was met by dark gold eyes. “Uh, I’ll just heat up the water some more for you.”
“Thank you,” said Dief, getting up from the bed.
Ray fixed himself a cup of tea and settled down on the bed, deliberately turning away. Although he couldn’t see what Dief was doing, he was very aware of the sounds - his imagination easily filled in the blanks.
Clearing his throat nervously, Ray tried to keep his imagination from running wild. His eyes fell on the table and the coiled garlands of garlic. “What are we supposed to do with those things?” he asked, pitching his voice louder than usual since he was facing away from Dief.
There was a pause in movement from the other side of the cabin. “Oh. That’s for protection.” The sound of water splashing was loud in a room suddenly too small.
“Huh. Are we supposed to wear it, ‘cause I’ve to go tell you that I’m not wearing that smelly stuff - and if you do, then you’ll be sleeping outside.”
A snort was the only answer.
Ray almost jumped off the bed when the mattress unexpectedly bounced. He turned to see Dief sitting beside him, wearing pants but no shirt. Ray was suddenly glad Dief was hard of hearing, because otherwise the other man would hear the way Ray’s heart kept skipping beats.
“We put them up around the door and window, just hang them inside, maybe some outside, too,” said Dief.
Ray sat up and looked over at the garlands. “Man, I didn’t know garlic grew that big.” He suddenly shot Dief a look of disbelief as he connected the dots. “Vampires? They believe in vampires?”
“Roza said wapierz destroyed her village when she was young. Those will keep it from coming inside.”
“Dief, there’s no such thing as vampires. That’s just stupid made-up stuff to scare people.” Ray shook his head. “The dead don’t walk around, buddy. That’s just not possible.”
Dief gave Ray a pitying look. “Ray, think about what you just said.” Dief gestured vaguely around him and then to himself. “Well...?”
Ray groaned and flopped back. “I am an idiot!” he yelled, covering his face with his hands. “Sure. Why not? Starting fires without matches, doors in trees, living in a magic bubble, a wolf in people’s clothing - why not vampires, too?”
“That’s the spirit,” said Dief, patting Ray on the head.
“Watch it, pal,” growled Ray, hiding a grin as Dief nimbly danced out of reach. He sighed. “So, I guess we should put this stuff up now, huh?”
Hanging the garlands took a little ingenuity since Ray had neither hammer nor nails. Once it was done, however, they both seemed to relax a bit more.
Bedtime brought a return of tension, at least for Ray. Dief, however, was relaxed as ever, squirming and wriggling until he was comfortably draped over Ray, head on heart as usual. Ray tossed and turned - well, mentally anyway seeing as how he was kind of pinned down - while he tried to get a handle on the changes happening between him and Dief. He was petty sure the former wolf started it, but maybe Ray had been the one to give off signals of some sort.
It wasn’t like Dief was actually an animal, but he wasn’t always a person, so did that make this attraction thing sick? What if - “Hey!” Ray yelped at the unexpected bite on his collar bone.
Dief’s pale eyes glared. “You think too loud. Stop it. Sleep now.” And with that, he gathered Ray closer and settled back in position, ear centred over Ray’s rapidly beating heart.
Ray slept.
~~~ ~ ~~~
Dief was excited to be on a stakeout with Ray. So much so, in fact, that if he’d still had a tail Ray was sure it would be wagging.
As night fell, they kept to their usual routine and went to bed when they normally did. In the dark, the bed was moved closer to the window so they could keep watch outside without being seen.
Ray looked over at Dief, amused by his enthusiasm. “You do remember being on stakeout, right? The hours, sometimes days, spent waiting for something that never happens? Boring as hell.”
Dief just grinned at Ray. “I had fun,” he said, suddenly leaning in to lick Ray’s ear.
“Stop it! Jeez, what is it with you and my ear?” he grumbled, secretly tickled by Dief’s playfulness. “Now settle down.”
They watched for any movement in the yard. Without a radio, newspaper or even a deck of cards, the time seemed to move slowly.
Ray tensed. “What’s that?”
“Where?”
Ray pointed to the far end of the yard, near the tree line. Dief moved in front of Ray to get a better view. After a few moments, he shook his head. “There’s nothing there - just branches moving.”
“Yeah, okay,” said Ray, staring intently into the night. He’d been sure something moved out there, but he trusted Dief. His friend’s hearing may be iffy, but his eyes were still freakishly good.
The wind picked up, causing leaves to skitter across the yard and branches to perform some kind of demented dance in the shadows.
“Where did that come from?” asked Ray as fast-moving clouds obscured the stars, and added to the darkness outside. A clap of thunder shook the cabin and surprised twin yelps from Ray and Dief.
Looking anywhere but at one another, the two tried to cover how startled they’d been.
“I did not know you were afraid of thunder,” commented Dief, carefully straightening his shirt.
“Me? Nah. But you, well you sounded like a scalded cat there, buddy.”
“A cat, Ray? A cat?”
Ray smirked at him. “Yeah, a cat - you want to make something of it?”
Dief’s answer was to pounce. The resulting wrestling match had both men laughing, although it took Ray a moment to realize the odd sound from Dief was in fact a laugh. A few minutes later, breathless and grinning, they called a halt when Dief finally managed to pin Ray down.
Ray’s smile slipped away with the realization that something hot and hard was pressed against his hip. He called up dim light for the room and looked up at Dief, who had a hungry, almost predatory look in his eyes.
“Uh, Dief?”
“Ray.” Dief’s eyes drifted closed as he rubbed up against Ray a few times. “Feels good,” he groaned.
Oh, yeah, Ray definitely agreed with that. He rubbed back against Dief a few times before grabbing his friend’s hips to hold him still. “Wait. Just hold it a minute.”
Dief’s eyes snapped open and he looked almost afraid. “I’m sorry, I’m sorry,” he whimpered and struggled to get away. “I did a bad thing.”
“Hey, whoa there. I’m not mad, Dief. You didn’t do anything wrong.” Ray was reminded of a mutt he once saw during a bust. The dog shivered and shrank back from everyone, as though it expected to be beaten.
Ray pushed Dief back a bit and sat up, but then grabbed Dief’s shirt to keep him from moving away altogether. “Shh, just hold still a minute, ’kay?”
Dief held perfectly still as he straddled one of Ray’s legs.
“It’s been a long time since I, you know. I mean, I haven’t even spent quality time with my right hand since I got here.” Ray struggled to find the words to explain. “This all feels a little…fast. We need to slow down, that’s all.”
“Not mad?”
“God no, Dief, not mad, I swear.” Ray hesitated before adding, “I just don’t want any regrets after. You are my friend, you got that? My friend. And there’s no way I’m going to risk that just to get my rocks off.”
Dief held Rays’ gaze, seeming to search for something. Whatever he found appeared to reassure him. He smiled and wriggled a bit. “Can we do this?”
Ray bowed his head to hide his embarrassment. “Well, the moment’s kind of passed.” He looked up in surprise when he realized Dief was still hard. It only took a moment to make a decision. “That’s not to say I couldn’t help out a friend.”
When Ray nudged his knee against Dief’s cock, Dief whined low in his throat. “Yes.” But when Dief began to hump against him, Ray held him still.
“If it’s all the same to you, I’d like to do this the human way.” Ray dislodged Dief and slid back on the bed until he was against the wall.
Dief pouted - honest to god pouted. “Humans do it like this. I saw Ben like this once. He rubbed against--”
“Hold it. I really don’t need to know that. What I meant was…what I want is…ah shit, come here.” He wrapped a hand around Dief’s neck and pulled him in for a kiss. As kisses went, it was spectacularly bad, given that kisses work best when both participants work together.
Ray had an epiphany.
Dief was virgin. Yeah, he had puppies somewhere, but that was his four-legged self. This Dief was completely inexperienced - he’d never taken his new body on a test drive to see what it could do.
Holy. Crap.
Ray pulled back and, when he had Dief’s attention, whispered, “Do what I do.”
The next kiss was soft and gentle and Dief really was a fast learner. It went from chaste to dirty faster than the Goat could go from zero to 60. Maybe it was the whole canine thing, but Dief had a really talented tongue.
Ray shuddered and pulled back enough to strings kisses along Dief’s jaw and down his throat.
Dief suddenly twitched and pulled away. “Tickles,” he said, rubbing a hand over Ray’s scruffy beard.
Ray held Dief’s hand still. “I tried to shave it with a knife when it started coming in, but almost cut my damn throat. It just seems easier to chop it off when it’s too long rather than try to get rid of it altogether.”
Dief nuzzled Ray’s throat. “I like it,” he said. “You would be a beautiful wolf.”
“Yeah?”
“Oh yes, Ray. Beautiful - long limbs and strong muscles, meant to hunt and run.” Dief suited action to words and carefully ran his hands over Ray’s arms and chest before shifting back enough to caress Ray’s thighs. “I would follow you, take you as mate, protect you always.” The last words were smothered in a kiss.
Ray deepened the kiss and rolled so that he was above Dief, holding the other man down, sliding hands under his shirt to touch the hot skin that had kept him warm at night. He gave himself over to the moment, momentarily surprised at how quickly his cock rose to the occasion.
Ray didn’t know if he’d ever be ready to go all the way with a guy, but what they were doing right then felt pretty damn good. Everything blurred after that thought. Clothes were peeled away from skin, moans and gasps filling the small cabin as they lost themselves in sensation.
It wasn’t tickling exactly that woke him, but the sensation was strange all the same. Ray pried his eyes open enough to look down. Dief was licking his chest and stomach.
Dief was licking their come off his body.
“I know you doggy types lick everything, but really, don’t you think that’s kinda gross?” muttered Ray.
Dief glared at the ‘doggy types’ comment, but continued licking until he was done. He hauled himself up Ray’s body until they were nose to nose. “Don’t knock it if you haven’t tried it,” he said before planting a big wet kiss on Ray.
Ray savoured that kiss, weird taste aside, and rolled until Dief was under him again. Who knew he had such an alpha streak? When the kiss ended, Dief looked at him uncertainly.
“Friends?” asked Dief.
“Oh yeah. Nothing will ever change that, I swear to you,” he vowed. “We’re good - greatness, even.”
“Greatness,” echoed Dief with a sigh and a smile.
Ray wrestled a blanket up over them and they snuggled together, Dief’s head over Ray’s heart. Ray doused the light and drifted until his surroundings melted away. He was barely conscious of the residual stickiness on his skin, the rain beating against the roof or the glowing red eyes peering through the window.
~~~ ~ ~~~
After almost a week of rain and near freezing temperatures, sunlight woke them one morning with the promise of a beautiful day. Ray smiled contentedly at the warm weight sprawled across his chest. They’d come a long way since that morning when they’d faced each other as lovers for the first time, all shy smiles and tentative touches. They’d even ‘gone all the way’ - and didn’t that just sound like they were a couple of teenagers.
With a huge stretch Ray dislodged his lazy lover, happy in a way he hadn’t been in a long time. “Up and at’em, Dief. The fish are calling.”
Scrambling from their warm cocoon, Ray was glad they’d set up make-shift toilet facilities inside. He really didn’t feel like freezing his nuts off first thing in the morning.
While Dief gathered the bedding to be aired outside, Ray threw open the door - and screamed. Dief caught him as he fell to his knees retching. Dief’s sudden stillness told Ray what Dief had seen.
The broken bloody body of a squirrel had been nailed to the door with a long knife.
Ray wiped his sleeve across his mouth and swallowed hard. “Rocky, no... Who would do that? Who would kill the little guy?”
Dief gave him a hug. “Not him, not Rocky,” he said repeatedly. “Ray, look - look! It’s too small to be Rocky. It’s not him.”
“Not him?” Ray braced himself to look. The body was definitely on the small side, and now that the shock was wearing off, he could see that the tail was a little too dark as well. “He - it, whatever - has gone too far.”
After several attempts to at least catch a glimpse of the mysterious killer of bunnies, Ray and Dief had pretty much given up and resigned themselves to merely disposing of the carcasses. After all, the next full moon was fast approaching and then they could get the hell out of there.
But this was too much.
While Dief pried the little corpse from the door, Ray went in to get their makeshift shovel, with a quick detour to the water pump so he could splash his face and rinse his mouth. Rounding the house, he stopped and swore.
“Son of a bitch!” The bastard had left another rabbit cooking over the fire pit - this one still in its little fuzzy coat. “Dief!”
Dief came running around the corner and slowed as he approached. “Oh.”
“If this was Chicago, I’d say the perp was gearing up for something ugly and advise the vic to relocate as fast as possible.”
“It’s still good advice.”
Ray scrubbed hands through his hair and over his face. “When can we leave? That full moon has to be soon.”
Dief put an arm around Ray. “Three nights - this night plus two.”
“Okay. We can’t catch this guy - hell, we can’t even see him - so we just have to stay alive until the door opens.” He wrapped an arm around the other man’s waist and squeezed. “We can do that, right?”
Dief squeezed back. “I always have your back, Ray.”
“Back at ya, buddy.”
The process of cremating and burying the two small bodies was even worse than the first time. Ray figured it was the smell of burning fur - too much like burning hair.
Once that was done, they began preparations for their escape. Emergency supplies were hidden near the doorway between inside and outside the bubble, as Ray called it. The preparations took longer than expected since they also made sure to clear the path of obstacles that could trip them up in the dark.
Dusk had fallen by the time they hurried back to the cabin. Just as Ray was about to leave the tree line, Dief hauled him back forcibly.
“Hey! What the--” Ray’s indignant squawk was cut off by a hand across his mouth.
“Dead thing,” whispered Dief in his ear.
Ray went very still. Eyes darting around the yard, he tried to see the threat. Dief, however, pulled him deeper into the shadows.
“We need to get inside,” whispered Dief.
“Is it still here?” asked Ray.
“Not sure. The scent is confused - new and old.”
Ray thought for a moment. “Okay, here’s the deal. We stay in the tree shadows until we’re in line with the door and then we just run like hell. How’s that work for you?”
Dief trembled slightly. “No choice,” he said. “I lead and you stay close.”
“Yeah, sure.” Dief’s eyes were better than his anyway.
Single file, they began circling the yard around the cabin. Ray thought he heard a noise behind him and whirled around, but saw nothing other than the trees. When he turned back to Dief, the other man was gone.
“Dief?” he whispered. “Where’d you go?”
A twig snapped beside him and he quickly spun toward the noise. “Dief?”
The shadows seemed to take on a human form. As the other person got closer, he could see that it was not Diefenbaker. Ray backed up until he bumped up against a tree trunk.
“Who are you?” he demanded, although his voice wavered slightly.
The other person stopped, face in shadows, but definitely male, and somehow familiar.
“Who the fuck are you?” repeated Ray, voice more angry than scared now.
“Hello, Ray.”
Part 4
Author:tres_mechante
Fandom: Due South
Pairing/character: Ray Kowalski/Benton Fraser, Ray Kowalski/human!Diefenbaker
Rating: FRM (Mature)
Word Count: 30,850 approx.
Kink: magic/supernatural elements; first time; angst; flirtation; seduction; mind fuck
Notes/Warnings: magic; language; angst; character death(temporary!); animal-to-human transformation; vampire; male/male sex (not graphic); first times; violence; developing feelings; disturbing images (nightmares); crackishness
Thank you to the ficfinishing gang, who cheered me on to greater word counts.
Many thanks to cincoflex and vr_trakowski who encouraged me every step of the way.
Very special thanks to mizface, my First Reader, who read the story as it was being written (warts and all), offered thoughts, asked questions, gently pointed out the inconsistancies/errors, and encouraged me to keep going simply by asking “More please?”
Summary: Ray’s life has taken a turn for the strange, what with a gruesome murder, creepy witnesses, the woodland version of Hotel California, and a squirrel with attitude. But then along comes some guy claiming to be Diefenbaker and that's when things get weird.
Artist:sly_fuck Thank you for the art!
~~~~~~~~~ ~~ ~~~~~~~~~~ ~~ ~~~~~~~~~~
Part 1
Part 2
Part Three
Ray froze.
“Ray?”
Ray spun around to face the speaker. It was the new guy from the care package delivery crew.
“You can see me!” exclaimed Ray, shock evident in his voice as he stated the obvious. “How did you get here? Wait - how do you know my name?”
The man took a tentative step forward. “It’s really you. I thought...I was scared that...” The man trembled as his voice gave out. Without warning he launched himself at Ray.
The two men hit the ground hard. When Ray was able to catch his breath, he opened his eyes and found a pair of golden brown eyes staring back at him. The weirdest feeling of familiarity washed through him.
“I know you - at least, I think I do.” Ray’s mind didn’t want to make the leap, but his heart began to pound eagerly. “Who are you?”
The other man backed up, allowing Ray to sit up. Ray’s gaze travelled over the face in front of him. Up close, the face belonged to someone pretty close to his own age, with lines around slightly tilted eyes and bracketing a mouth with thin but soft looking lips. The shaggy - and definitely not stylish - hair had a kind of salt-and-pepper thing going on. It looked almost familiar.
Ray hesitantly reached out and brushed his hand against the hair; sense memory kicked in. He knew this, the coarser outer hair and the soft hairs closer to the scalp.
The man’s eyes closed as he sighed and leaned into Ray’s touch. “Missed you,” murmured the familiar stranger.
Ray choked back a sob and the other man to open his eyes. Ray stared into the golden brown eyes - wolf eyes - and soundlessly mouthed one word. “Dief.”
Equally soundless was the reply. “Yes.”
Ray broke. All the grief and fear and confusion, all the feelings of helplessness poured out in a torrent of tears for the first time since his ordeal began.
Wrapped in Dief’s arms, Ray found himself held close, nuzzling into Dief’s neck. He met with warm skin and rough wool rather than fur, but burrowed close just the same. He was home, or as close as he’d been in more than three months - as close to Fraser as he would ever be again.
A cold gust of wind prompted them to reluctantly pull apart.
Ray wiped his eyes and ran his sleeve under his nose, feeling embarrassed about his meltdown. However, when he looked at Dief, the wolf - man, whatever - was doing much the same thing.
Dief smiled tentatively. “I missed you, Ray.”
“I missed you too, buddy - a lot.” Ray looked up at the darkening sky. “We should get inside before dark. Weird shit happens around here, kind of like you - but you’re a good weird, don’t get me wrong. It’s just--”
Dief interrupted. “Understood. I agree we should not be outside when it is dark.”
Ray grinned to hear Dief talk. After all the times he’d imagined conversations with the wolf, hearing the man’s voice was a little odd.
They helped each other to stand and faced each other somewhat awkwardly. Ray made the first move, pulling Dief into another hug, albeit a much shorter one.
“Let’s go,” said Ray, gesturing for Dief to precede him. Dief held back, looking a bit puzzled. Ray frowned. “What? Tick tock, daylight’s a-wasting.”
“Ray, you need to lead. I do not know where you live.”
“Pfft, pull the other one, buddy boy. I mean, you’re the guy who keeps leaving me rabbits. Don’t know where I live - riiight,” scoffed Ray. “Jeez, you really had me going there. I was thinking maybe some kind of bunny serial killer or something was running loose, but now that I know it was you all the time I feel better. And, you know, kinda pissed that you didn’t just say something before.”
Dief’s face was a study in confusion. Ray couldn’t help but think the head tilt and furrowed brow were pure wolf-Dief. Of course, he’d mastered that oh-so-innocent look during his donut snatching exploits, so he wasn’t really buying it.
“Never mind. Come on, I don’t want to out here after dark - it’s not like there are streetlights around here.” He turned and headed back to the cabin, Dief dutifully following along.
Ray opened the cabin’s door. “Come on in,” he said, watching the way Dief stared at everything around him. Ray laughed out loud as Dief jumped when the cabin’s interior suddenly lit up.
“You have power,” exclaimed Dief. “But I did not see any wires...” He stepped outside and looked around before coming back in. He looked adorably confused.
Ray grinned. “Oh, that’s nothing. I can start a fire without matches.”
Dief grinned back. “You rub sticks together - I saw Ben do it lots of times.”
Ray just reached into the woodstove and touched the kindling, which immediately burst into flame.
Dief’s jaw dropped as he stared at the fire. He looked up at Ray in shock. “Ben never did that!” He thought for a moment. “That is why you believe I am Diefenbaker.”
“Yep. When it comes to the weird that is my life, you my friend are barely a blip - a welcome one, but a blip all the same.” Ray closed the stove door and began preparing food. “I hope you’re hungry. I’m thinking a fried supper. I’ve got leftovers from that last rabbit, and some vegetables and bread. How are you at chopping?”
The two men worked companionably to prepare their meal. By mutual agreement they put off any serious discussions until after they’d eaten. Instead, they talked about food they missed - Dief missed donuts, while Ray really wanted pizza - the antics of Rocky the squirrel, and other trivialities. Out of long-standing habit, Ray spoke a little louder than usual and made sure he didn’t face away from Dief when talking. The human Dief seemed to hear okay, but then so did doggy Dief most of the time.
Dinner over and dishes tidied, they settled on the bed with cups of tea - “some sort of twigs and flowers crap, but it doesn’t taste too bad” - and began the process of catching up on each other’s lives since That Day. Ray shared some stories of learning to live with magic instead of modern conveniences. Dief shared a bit about being a wolf in people’s clothing.
“I like thumbs,” said Dief. “But it took a long time to learn human things.”
Ray nodded sympathetically. “I’ll bet. But you seem to have adjusted okay. You even talk like you’ve always been human - except for that little accent and odd word use ting, which is kind of cute really.”
Dief smiled, and if he’d still been a wolf his tongue would have been lolling out of his mouth. “Szymon and Roza have been very good to me. They taught me a lot.”
“Simon and Rosa, those are the people who came with you to deliver the food? Thanks for that, by the way.”
“You are welcome. Yes, Szymon and his grandmother Rosa found me and gave me a home.” Dief’s eyes shifted away. “I-I was not right when they found me.”
“Not right? Oh, you mean kind of fucked in the head.”
“Bad word, Ray,” chastised Dief. “But yes, if you mean very confused and afraid.”
“You seem okay now,” observed Ray.
“Now, yes.” Dief clearly did not wish to say anything else, and judging by the flush on his cheeks, he was feeling embarrassed by whatever happened.
Ray figured he’d get the rest of the story eventually so he changed the subject a bit. “So, these folks who took you in, they taught you English?”
“Now you are being silly, Ray. Ben taught me English; they taught me...what they speak.” Dief didn’t seem too sure which language it was.
“I’m glad you had good people to help. It can’t have been easy finding yourself suddenly human,” said. Ray.
“Much to learn,” was the response. “But it helped, being with people who cared.”
“Want more tea?” asked Ray, suddenly need to do something.
“I do not wish to impose,” demurred Dief.
“Knock off the formal crap. I wouldn’t have asked if it was a problem, so if you want some just say so,” sniped Ray.
“Then, yes, thank you.”
When Ray fumbled the kettle, and then spilled tea on the table, Dief went to him and pulled Ray into a hug. Ray held on tight, trembling uncontrollably.
Ray finally let go with a sigh. “Sorry, sorry. It’s just...sorry.” He got a cloth to wipe the mess on the table. When he returned to the table, Ray was shocked by the look on Dief’s face. With his eyes dark and wet, and lips trembling, Dief looked devastated.
“Hey, buddy, you okay?” Ray was getting seriously freaked by Dief’s behaviour.
“Alone,” whispered Dief.
“What?” Did Dief mean he wanted to be left alone?
“You. You were alone...all that time, so alone.”
“No, hey, no, it’s okay. I’m okay, really.” It was Ray’s turn to comfort his friend. When Dief showed no sign of calming, Ray did the only thing he could think of to soothe the other man.
Guiding Dief to the bed, Ray settled against the pillows and pulled Dief down until his head rested on Ray’s chest. While they’d been roommates a lifetime ago, they’d often fallen asleep like this after a particularly difficult day.
While the lights slowly dimmed, Dief burrowed closer, shifting slightly until his ear was centred right above Ray’s heart. Ray brought his hand up and began carding through Dief’s hair. Gradually, the former wolf’s trembling lessened and his grip around Ray’s middle eased.
Hoping that Dief had fallen asleep, Ray quietly spoke into the dark. “I didn’t know what to think at first. It was all too much to take in, you know? Then I started to remember stuff. The worst was this picture in my head of you lying still after that old bitch hit you, and Fraser lying in a pool of blood. I thought - well, I guess I hoped - that I was dead, too.”
Dief’s arms tightened around him briefly, but that was the only reaction.
“When I finally clued in to the thing about the lights and the fire...jeez, I damn near burned down the cabin ‘til I got a handle on it,” chuckled Ray. “Anyway, that’s when I started to think maybe I was crazy, that none of this was real and I was safely locked up somewhere; maybe you and Fraser came by to visit sometimes, even if I was too whacked to know it.”
Ray continued his playing with the hair at Dief’s neck, much the way he’d done when it was fur and Dief had four legs. It was a comforting motion, although Ray could not say for sure which one of them needed the comfort more at that moment.
“I guess what I’m trying to say is that I got through it.” Ray hesitated, but since he was being honest felt compelled to confess, “The hardest part was - is - not knowing for sure. I mean, god, Dief, I knew Ben was dead - I saw it happen. I still have nightmares about it. But I didn’t know what happened to you. I sure as hell didn’t know what happened to me.”
Dief raised his head and shifted until he could share Ray’s pillow. They stared at each other for a while, both clearly exhausted from the emotional turmoil of the day. Finally, Dief raised a hand to tentatively pet Ray’s hair.
“We are okay,” said Dief. “We are together and we will go home.”
Ray tried to look confident. “Yeah, buddy, we’ll go home. And we’ll find those damned vulture broads and make them pay.”
“Yes, they will pay for what they did, you have my word,” said Dief.
“Uh, Dief...?” Ray had an unsettling suspicion that Dief was not talking about an arrest. “They’ll go to trial and everyone will know what kind of monsters they are.”
Dief agreed, “Of course, Ray.” But his smile said otherwise.
Ray shivered looking into those alien pale eyes, suddenly realizing that on the inside Diefenbaker was still a wolf. Ray blinked, and suddenly Dief was merely a human again, albeit with oddly coloured eyes.
Ray was startled when Dief suddenly reached up and tapped him on the nose.
“Sleep now, Ray. We will - we’ll - talk of getting out of the circle, going home and finding the killer of our pack-mate.” With that, Dief sighed and closed his eyes.
“Uh, yeah okay, sure thing, buddy. G’night.”
After so many months alone, it felt weird to have someone else in his bed. Ah hell, who was he kidding? For the first time since this whole nightmare started, Ray felt like he might actually get a proper night’s sleep.
Ray wasn’t sure what woke him. For the first time in what felt like forever, he had fallen in a deep and mercifully dreamless sleep. The first thing he became aware of was the body next to his. Unlike in his nightmares, this one was putting out heat like crazy. He turned to his bedmate just as he began to thrash and cry out.
Dief.
Ray hurried to untangle them both from the blankets and tried to calm his friend. He quickly found the only way to keep Dief from hurting either Ray or himself was the wrap himself around the struggling man. Ray kept up a quiet stream of words in Dief’s ear. “Shh, you’re okay, buddy. You’re safe. No one will hurt you. I’m here, Dief. You’re not alone, I’m right here and you’re fine. It’s just a dream, buddy, just a bad dream.”
Eventually, Dief’s movements stilled, although he continued to cry and moan a little. Once he’d settled, Dief leaned back into Ray, who was only too happy to provide both support and comfort.
“You okay, there buddy?”
Dief nodded slightly.
“I’m going to let you go now,” warned Ray as he began to loosen his hold.
“No!” cried Dief, grabbing at Ray’s arms to hold him in place.
“Shh. I’m not going anywhere,” soothed Ray.
After awhile Dief’s breathing slowed and his body became totally lax. Ray hoped he’d fallen asleep.
“Bad things.”
Apparently not. “Bad things? You mean in your dream?”
Dief shrugged. “Bad things - dead things try to take you away.”
Ray felt a shiver run down his spine, and it had nothing to do with the lack of blankets.
“What do you mean by tried to take me away?”
“It wants you,” said Dief, turning to look at him. “The dead wants you to be one with it. It will not rest until you have been claimed. It will kill anyone or anything that comes between you.”
Ray was mesmerized by the way those golden eyes seemed to glow. A slow blink from those non-human eyes freed him from that spell.
“Uh, dead things, right.” A vague tickle of memory - a faded nightmare - teased the back of his mind. However, Ray ignored it in favour of urging Dief back to sleep.
“Do you want some water or something?” he asked. “Or do you have to piss?”
Dief just shook his head, looking suspiciously toward the door
Ray drew his attention again. “It’s locked up tight, buddy. Nothing is getting in here, you got that?”
Dief smiled tentatively and snuggled closer to Ray. “Thank you.”
“Welcome. Now go back to sleep. It’s too damn early to get up.”
“Yes, Ray,” said Dief, not at all meekly.
They stayed in bed until he sun was well and truly up - and Ray’s bladder threatened unpleasantness. Morning routines completed and breakfast on the table meant no more delays for their talk.
Ray set his cup down and leaned forward. “Okay, spill. How’d you break through the bubble?”
Dief set his cup down and mirrored Ray’s posture. “I came through the door.”
“The door.”
“Yes. There is a door between inside and outside.”
“Dief, I’ve got to tell you, I’ve never seen a door anywhere except for here,” said Ray, indicating the cabin door.
“I don’t know what to tell you, Ray. That is how I got here.” At Ray’s sceptical look, Dief offered, “I can show you, if you like.”
“Hell yes!” said Ray, jumping up from his seat.
“Language, Ray,” said Dief in perfect imitation of Fraser.
That sobered them both, but the moment passed without comment. Neither man was ready to talk about their lost friend.
They followed the path toward the area where they’d met the night before. Ray playfully jabbed his elbow into Dief’s side. “I can’t believe you didn’t say something, anything, before last night,” he said. “Why did you keep quiet? You had to know I’d want to see you.”
“Ray, I did not come through the door until last night.”
Ray stopped, forcing Dief to stop as well. “Wait. You’re saying last night was the first time you made it this side of whatever that is?” he asked, waving vaguely to indicate the barrier.
“That is what I have been trying to tell you, yes!”
Ray wasn’t sure which thought to chase first. He finally settled on “Well, what made you do it last night?”
“I felt you.”
“Felt me?”
Dief took a step closer, as though willing Ray to understand. “That day, when the tingle came from the stick - you remember that right? I knew, knew, you were there. I could almost see you.”
“Yeah, yeah, I remember that day. I remember thinking you could see me, but I didn’t know it was you.” Ray shook his head in wonder. “That was a while ago. What kept you?”
Dief grabbed Ray’s arm and urged him onward. “The time was wrong.”
Ray decided then and there that he was not going to try to understand any of this. It would probably go easier on him if he just let Dief explain in his own weird way - kind of like dealing with Fraser, actually.
“There, you see!”
Ray looked where Dief pointed, but all he could see was a tree. It was a very large and handsome tree, but still, it was a tree.
“It’s a tree,” said Ray.
Dief gave him a look of exasperation that could only have been learned from Fraser. “Look!” He points to the centre of the trunk.
“Sorry, Dief, but I’m still just seeing a tree.”
Dief pulled Ray closer to the tree and then traced his finger over the scarring on the trunk. Ray stared at the trunk some more. Huh. It did sort of look like a door, if you squinted and tilted your head until your neck hurts.
Ray nodded to himself. Well, it’s not like that was the strangest thing he’d heard of lately. “So. How does this work?” He imagined magic spells and potions and cackling over a cauldron like in that Shakespeare play Stella had dragged him to once.
Dief sighed sadly. “It’s locked now.”
“I don’t suppose you’ve got a key?”
“Not exactly,” said Dief.
Ray tried his best to be patient. “Then how the hell - yeah, I know ‘language’ - how the hell are we supposed to open that door.”
Dief looked a bit sheepish, which was more than a little disturbing on the face of a guy that spent most of his life as a half-wolf.
Ray crossed his arms over his chest and gave the other man his best tough cop look. “Spit it out.” Before Dief say anything, Ray warned, “And don’t you dare tell me you don’t have anything in your mouth to spit out.”
Dief’s jaw quickly snapped shut. He cleared his throat. “The key is magic - and it will only open when the moon is fullest.”
Ray stared hard at Diefenbaker. “So, what you’re saying is that you’re stuck here until the next full moon.”
“Yes. Is that okay? I can stay with you?”
“What? No, you go sleep under a log somewhere. Are you stupid? Of course I want you to stay with me. Jeez!”
Ray shook his head and turned to walk away, not really mad but wanting to tease a little bit. However, he quickly found himself face down in the dirt with roughly 150-plus pounds of ex-wolf on his back.
“Thank you!” exclaimed Dief, licking Ray’s ear for good measure.
“Hey!” Ray tried to bat him away. “What did I tell you about doing that?”
The weight suddenly left, and Ray rolled to his side, propping his head on his hand. Dief was on his back giggling - giggling! - and looking ridiculously pleased with himself.
“Dief, Dief, Dief,” sighed Ray. “What am I to do with you?”
Dief just turned his head to grin at him, strange gold-brown eyes almost glowing in the dappled sunlight. Ray tried to maintain an aura of exasperation, but knew fondness bled through the mask. Seriously, how was he supposed resist that dopey happy look?
Ray heaved a heavy sigh and hauled himself to his feet. “Since we’re not leaving yet, we have chores to do.” He reached down to help Dief up. “It’s a little late for fishing, but let’s go see if anything is willing to bite anyway.”
By day’s end, Ray was pretty sure he’d never laughed so hard in his life. Certainly, he’d never view fishing in quite the same way again given Dief’s hands-on, full-body approach. Leaping in after the fish might have worked as a wolf, but as a slightly clumsy man, he was no threat to them - other than maybe the fish dying of laughter.
~~~ ~ ~~~
Ray drowsily stretched and plumped the pillow behind his head. Damn, he felt good. A soft sleepy grumble beside him betrayed Dief’s displeasure at being disturbed. Ray clumsily patted his arm in apology. “Sorry buddy.”
He turned his head and looked out the window, trying to gauge the time. Dawn was just beginning to break. Ray wanted nothing more than the burrow under the blankets - Dief sure put out a lot of heat - and sleep for another couple of hours. However, duty called, so he crawled out of bed, raced across the room and got the stove started before racing back to bed.
A shocked yelp greeted him when cold feet met warm legs.
“Sorry, sorry. Jeez the nights are getting colder,” muttered Ray as he curled himself into a ball to conserve warmth. It didn’t take long before he found himself being spooned by a very warm body. With a contented sigh, Ray pressed himself closer to Dief and drifted back to sleep.
It was much lighter out when they finally crawled out of bed. The sun was trying to break through the clouds as they made their way to the clearing. Once they’d settled in to wait for the food delivery - “it’s not take-out, Ray” - Rocky decided to meet the newcomer.
The squirrel’s approach was unusually timid, even after more than a week of observation from a distance.
“Rocky, old pal. Come and meet a buddy of mine.” The squirrel edged closer, tail twitching nervously. “Rocky, meet Diefenbaker. Dief, this is Rocky.”
Dief shifted until he was stretched out on his stomach, chin resting on his crossed arms. He held perfectly still.
Rocky considered the newcomer warily before coming closer. Much to Ray’s amusement, the wolf - ex-wolf - and the squirrel seemed to be in a staring contest; he wondered who was winning.
A strong gust of wind stirred up some dust, causing Dief to sneeze suddenly. Rocky jumped back and toppled over. Ray laughed until he cried.
Rocky scolded them both and left, his small body radiating irritation.
Ray grinned and turned to share his amusement with Dief, but the other man’s attention was focused just beyond the clearing. Ray turned his head and saw the teen and older woman who had accompanied Dief previously.
Both Ray and Dief stood as the visitors approached the edge of the clearing. A couple of baskets were set down and pushed through the barrier. Dief slowly walked toward the barrier, stopping just a few feet away.
Ray joined him and laid a comforting hand on Dief’s shoulder. “Do they know you’re here?”
Dief nodded and shrugged. “They hope that I am here, that I am safe.”
Szymon approaches the barrier and starts talking. There is no sound, but Dief is paying close attention and Ray realizes he is lip reading. Dief’s smile is tinged with sadness when Szymon and Roza walk away.
Ray and Dief gathered up their packages and returned to the cabin. When they got inside, Ray set his package down and took the basket from Dief, setting it on the table.
“Come on, buddy, talk to me.”
Ray was pleased that Dief didn’t try to distract him or plead ignorance. The two men sat opposite each other at the table. Dief took a few steadying breaths.
“When I first came here, when they found me, I was...wild. I could not understand them, did not know what had happened - my body was not mine,” Dief paused, clearly gathering his thoughts. When Dief continued his story, Ray was brought to tears at the confusion and pain Dief endured because of his transformation. He was reassured by Dief’s description of his stay with the old woman and her grandson.
“They took good care of you,” said Ray.
“They are simple people, superstitious, but they have good hearts. They saw...something worthy in me.”
Ray reached across the table and patted Dief’s hand. “I’m glad,” he said. “At least when I woke up I was still me, mostly. I don’t even want to think about you going through that without those people around to care about you.”
Dief turned his hand until his fingers could twine with Ray’s. “They knew - know - I’m not like them, that I’m not supposed to be like this.”
“You mean human?”
“Human, yes. When the tingle happened before - Roza is the one who told me about the door and the secret to passing between.” Dief’s eyes glowed gold briefly. “She helped me find you.”
“I hope I get the chance to tell her how grateful I am.” Ray squeezed Dief’s hand.
“Szymon, just now, he did not know if I could see him, but he said that they hoped I was successful.” Dief actually blushed. “He, Szymon, said they wished me luck in my heart’s quest.”
“Huh.” Ray had to think about that. “When we leave here, will they welcome you back? Do you think they’ll help us?”
Dief nodded quickly. “Oh, yes, we will be taken into their home. And if it’s in their power, they’ll help us go home.”
They sat quietly for a few minutes, each lost in their thoughts. With a quick slap of a hand on table, Ray reached over and pulled their care packages closer. “Well, let’s see what we’ve got.”
Dief opened a soft bundle and discovered heavy wool clothes. “Oh, good, I was hoping for something warm.” He grinned at Ray. “It’s much cooler without fur.”
Ray laughed so hard he almost fell off his chair. “Wow, they must really like you,” he said, revealing the contents of the basket. “There’s like twice as much food - and cookies! Oh my god, they sent cookies!”
Dief grinned at Ray’s delight over the oatmeal cookies, and reached over to pick up a sealed jar. He held it up for Ray to see.
“Is that...? Oh that is so good. That, my friend, is greatness - milk to go with the cookies. I am officially in heaven.”
Both men jumped at the sudden clap of thunder. Without them being aware of it, the weather had turned ugly. They quickly ran outside, bringing in firewood and the bedding which had been laid out to air.
They’d barely made it back inside just as the heavens opened and the deluge began.
The rest of the day was spent lounging around, remembering. There was something about the storm that led them to talk about Fraser. They shared stories and memories, laughing and crying through the afternoon and into the evening.
Eventually, after a light meal, they return to the bed, settling into their normal position. Ray carded his fingers through Dief’s hair, occasionally scratching his scalp, making Dief groan and snuggle closer.
“I missed your heart so much,” murmured Dief after a lengthy silence.
Ray chuckled, finding himself charmed by Dief’s odd bouts of quaintly formal speech. He wondered if it was a wolf thing, a Fraser thing or just because he was getting used talking like a person. Ray decided he really didn’t care. He lightly fisted his hand in Dief’s hair and gave a playful tug. “You know, I always wondered if you actually heard my heart or just felt it thump.”
Dief lifted his head and rested a slightly pointed chin on Ray’s chest. “Both.” He suddenly grinned a very canine-looking grin and confessed that he could hear better than Fraser believed, but not well enough to survive alone in the wild, at least not for long. “I am deaf in one ear, and the other is not as good as a wolf should be, worse than human even. He taught me to read lips so I would always understand.”
“Huh. I always had the feeling your deafness was just selective hearing - you know, that you just ignored whatever you didn’t want to hear,” said Ray. “I guess I owe you an apology.”
“You weren’t entirely wrong,” admitted Dief, resting is ear over Ray’s heart once more. “But sometimes it was just fun to pull Ben’s leash.”
“You mean yank his chain.”
Dief looked up. “Did you say something?”
“Freak.”
“Understood.”
Ray felt his eyes prickle. “God, I miss him.”
Dief dragged himself up until he could share Ray’s pillow. “Me, too.”
Ray reached over and buried his hand in Dief’s hair. Dief reached over and laid a hand on the side of Ray’s neck. They lay like that for a long time, silently sharing their grief until they fell asleep.
A squishing sound intruded into Ray’s dreams. He opened his eyes, a little confused at first. The sound came again, this time from just outside the door. Ray looked over, squinting, trying to remember if he’d barred the door earlier. When no other sound came, he gently eased away from Dief, who grumbled but did not wake.
Looking out the window, he couldn’t see anything out of place, but was relieved to see the rain had stopped. He went to the door and felt for the bolt. The door was locked. His hand hovered over the latch, but he finally drew back. His gut was telling him not to go out - and he’d learned over the years to listen to his gut.
Ray crawled back in bed, but only managed to doze fitfully until dawn. His mind was too troubled to allow for deep sleep.
The morning found Ray inspecting the ground around the door, looking for footsteps or other evidence of a late night visitor. He was interrupted by Dief frantically calling his name.
He came around the corner and almost ran into Dief, who was standing still, staring at the cooking pit. A fire had been started with a rabbit roasting on a spit.
Ray looked at Dief. “Please tell me you did that.”
Dief just shook his head.
“Damn. It wasn’t a dream.” At Dief’s puzzled look, Ray said, “Remember when I asked you about leaving me rabbits? This is what I was talking about.”
Dief looked as unsettled as Ray felt.
Ray was not happy - no sirree, not in the least. Although the appearance of the mystery rabbits had kind of creeped him out, Ray wasn’t one to turn down a meal. In fact, he’d come to enjoy it. Until now.
“This would be much easier with a shovel,” groused Ray. “I still don’t get why you freaked about eating it.”
Dief kept looking around worriedly, as if he expected something to jump out at them. “Tainted,” was all he said.
Ray sat back on his heels and looked up at Dief. Why Dief couldn’t have been the one burying Bugs was beyond him. Weren’t dogs supposed to enjoy digging? Dusting his hands off, he stood and walked over to his jumpy friend.
“Look, Dief, I’ve been eating those things for a while now, and I haven’t dropped dead yet.”
Dief looked at him, eyes glowing gold in the sunlight. “Not yet, but soon.”
Ray actually felt the hair on his neck stand up. “Alright, enough with the cryptic shit. What’s going on?”
“I...I really am not sure.”
“And I call bullshit.” Ray’s gaze did not waiver and it was Dief who looked away. Ray blew out a big breath. “Yeah, okay. Let’s go home.”
Dief followed quietly. The sun continued to shine, but the day suddenly seemed dreary.
They entered the cabin and settled much as they had the first night - opposite each other at the table. Fortified with tea, they sat silent - Dief staring at the table, and Ray staring at Dief.
“I can’t let this slide, buddy. You know that.”
“I really don’t know where to start.”
Ray almost said “at the beginning” but thought better of it. “Anywhere, start anywhere.” When Dief continued to look lost, Ray made the decision for him. “You said the rabbit meat was tainted. In what way? You mean like poison or something?”
Dief looked oddly relieved to have a place to start. “Not poison, not exactly. It-there was blood on it.”
Ray was confused. “It was a dead rabbit. And yeah, I try not to think about it, but I’m pretty sure blood’s part of the whole dead and being cooked thing. Like steaks.”
Dief shook his head. “No, not rabbit blood - dead blood.”
“Dead blood.”
Dief whined low in his throat and rubbed his hands over his head, ruffling his hair vigorously. “The blood wasn’t...right. It was not rabbit. Oh, I cannot explain this! It smelled wrong - it felt wrong.”
Ray narrowed his eyes in thought. “You’ve still got wolf senses? You can smell things I can’t.”
“Yes! Ray, I am not natural - I’m a wolf but not. That is unnatural. The taint on the meat is the same - it’s wrong, and I can’t tell you why.” Dief’s frustration was like another presence in the room.
“Okay. Easy,” he said, reaching across the table to rest a hand on Dief’s wrist. “I’ll take your word for it that something’s wrong. I trust you.” He was reward with a look of gratitude at that declaration.
Ray stood and collected their cups. “Right. So here’s the thing. We know that whatever it is only comes at night.” At Dief’s nod he continued. “So we have to, I don’t know, maybe set up a stakeout to find out what’s going on.”
Dief perked up when Ray mentioned stakeout. “When do you want to do that?”
Ray stared off, thinking. The dead bunnies didn’t show up on a regular timetable, but it would probably be at least another three or four days - well, nights - before it happened again. “Let’s say three nights from now. We can hide out in the trees--”
“No!”
Ray looked at Dief thoughtfully. “As I was saying, we can sit in here where it’s dark and keep watch. That okay?”
“Safer.”
“Are you sure you don’t know what’s out there?”
“No, I don’t know.”
Ray picked up on the way Dief emphasised the last word, but didn’t comment. Frankly, he wasn’t sure he was ready for whatever theory would be offered. Like his Uncle Nick used to say, never ask a question unless you’re damn sure you want the answer.
The two men went about their chores as though it were just another day - which it was if one didn’t count the cremation and burial of a rabbit. The smell from the burning body was still in Ray’s nose; he was pretty sure vegetarianism was in his future somewhere.
They went for a long walk, neither mentioning it, but both looking for some clue as to the identity of the other person in their little magic bubble. Dief seemed to pay particular attention to shaded areas and niches suitable for hiding.
Their route took them past the clearing, where Ray was surprised to see a couple of packages. “That shouldn’t be there,” he said. “It’s too early. Or did I miss a day somehow?”
They each gathered their unexpected treasures - “you take this one - it stinks” - and headed back to the cabin.
“I wonder why the extra stuff,” said Ray, trying to peek inside the bundle without dropping anything.
“Something bad is happening,” answered Dief, sounding pretty sure of himself.
“You think so? What would that have to do with giving us goodies?”
Dief hesitated and then stopped, allowing Ray to catch up. “The hope is that a bigger...tribute, is that the word? They hope that if they give more then bad things will stop.”
Ray almost dropped what he held. “A bribe, you mean? Hey, I’m a victim here. I’ve got nothing to do with whatever is going on out there.”
“They, the people in the village, they believe that something powerful lives here...wila? Yes, that’s it, they said a wila,” said Dief, pronouncing it vi-wa.
“Wait, I know this... My grandma used that word. It’s a-a kind of fairy or something.” Ray was suddenly aghast. “They think I’m a fairy? Do I look like Tinkerbelle to you? Jeez!”
Dief tried to calm Ray. “The wila is very powerful - they are not little dancing lights,” he said. “They are respected and feared. Roza says they can appear as very beautiful young women or ugly old men and they trick people; sometimes even kill them if angered.”
Ray gave Dief a glare. “I grant you I’m not a kid anymore, but I’m not an old man - and I’m definitely not a young woman.”
“True, but you are uncommonly beautiful, Ray,” said Dief, turning to continue on to the cabin. “I would follow you anywhere.”
Ray tripped over his own feet. Did Dief just come on to him?
~~~ ~ ~~~
Safe and snug behind the bolted door, Ray and Dief took turns bathing in front of the stove. Ray felt a little weird at first - he’d been alone for so long the idea of anyone seeing him was a bit unsettling.
Dief just rolled his eyes - where the hell did he learn that? - and told Ray it wasn’t the first time he’d seen him without clothes. “You didn’t have a problem with this when I stayed with you before.”
Ray couldn’t argue with that. While Dief settled on the bed with a cup of tea, Ray got the pan of water ready for his sponge bath. Man, he’d sell a kidney for a proper tub or a shower.
Deliberately keeping his back to Dief, he washed quickly and thoroughly. The entire time, Ray felt he was being watched. Sure, once Dief settled, he had angled his body away so he wasn’t looking directly at Ray, but... Ray still felt like he was on display. He would be damned however, before letting on how much it bothered him - or how much it kind of turned him on.
“Your turn,” he said, turning to back to the other man. He was met by dark gold eyes. “Uh, I’ll just heat up the water some more for you.”
“Thank you,” said Dief, getting up from the bed.
Ray fixed himself a cup of tea and settled down on the bed, deliberately turning away. Although he couldn’t see what Dief was doing, he was very aware of the sounds - his imagination easily filled in the blanks.
Clearing his throat nervously, Ray tried to keep his imagination from running wild. His eyes fell on the table and the coiled garlands of garlic. “What are we supposed to do with those things?” he asked, pitching his voice louder than usual since he was facing away from Dief.
There was a pause in movement from the other side of the cabin. “Oh. That’s for protection.” The sound of water splashing was loud in a room suddenly too small.
“Huh. Are we supposed to wear it, ‘cause I’ve to go tell you that I’m not wearing that smelly stuff - and if you do, then you’ll be sleeping outside.”
A snort was the only answer.
Ray almost jumped off the bed when the mattress unexpectedly bounced. He turned to see Dief sitting beside him, wearing pants but no shirt. Ray was suddenly glad Dief was hard of hearing, because otherwise the other man would hear the way Ray’s heart kept skipping beats.
“We put them up around the door and window, just hang them inside, maybe some outside, too,” said Dief.
Ray sat up and looked over at the garlands. “Man, I didn’t know garlic grew that big.” He suddenly shot Dief a look of disbelief as he connected the dots. “Vampires? They believe in vampires?”
“Roza said wapierz destroyed her village when she was young. Those will keep it from coming inside.”
“Dief, there’s no such thing as vampires. That’s just stupid made-up stuff to scare people.” Ray shook his head. “The dead don’t walk around, buddy. That’s just not possible.”
Dief gave Ray a pitying look. “Ray, think about what you just said.” Dief gestured vaguely around him and then to himself. “Well...?”
Ray groaned and flopped back. “I am an idiot!” he yelled, covering his face with his hands. “Sure. Why not? Starting fires without matches, doors in trees, living in a magic bubble, a wolf in people’s clothing - why not vampires, too?”
“That’s the spirit,” said Dief, patting Ray on the head.
“Watch it, pal,” growled Ray, hiding a grin as Dief nimbly danced out of reach. He sighed. “So, I guess we should put this stuff up now, huh?”
Hanging the garlands took a little ingenuity since Ray had neither hammer nor nails. Once it was done, however, they both seemed to relax a bit more.
Bedtime brought a return of tension, at least for Ray. Dief, however, was relaxed as ever, squirming and wriggling until he was comfortably draped over Ray, head on heart as usual. Ray tossed and turned - well, mentally anyway seeing as how he was kind of pinned down - while he tried to get a handle on the changes happening between him and Dief. He was petty sure the former wolf started it, but maybe Ray had been the one to give off signals of some sort.
It wasn’t like Dief was actually an animal, but he wasn’t always a person, so did that make this attraction thing sick? What if - “Hey!” Ray yelped at the unexpected bite on his collar bone.
Dief’s pale eyes glared. “You think too loud. Stop it. Sleep now.” And with that, he gathered Ray closer and settled back in position, ear centred over Ray’s rapidly beating heart.
Ray slept.
~~~ ~ ~~~
Dief was excited to be on a stakeout with Ray. So much so, in fact, that if he’d still had a tail Ray was sure it would be wagging.
As night fell, they kept to their usual routine and went to bed when they normally did. In the dark, the bed was moved closer to the window so they could keep watch outside without being seen.
Ray looked over at Dief, amused by his enthusiasm. “You do remember being on stakeout, right? The hours, sometimes days, spent waiting for something that never happens? Boring as hell.”
Dief just grinned at Ray. “I had fun,” he said, suddenly leaning in to lick Ray’s ear.
“Stop it! Jeez, what is it with you and my ear?” he grumbled, secretly tickled by Dief’s playfulness. “Now settle down.”
They watched for any movement in the yard. Without a radio, newspaper or even a deck of cards, the time seemed to move slowly.
Ray tensed. “What’s that?”
“Where?”
Ray pointed to the far end of the yard, near the tree line. Dief moved in front of Ray to get a better view. After a few moments, he shook his head. “There’s nothing there - just branches moving.”
“Yeah, okay,” said Ray, staring intently into the night. He’d been sure something moved out there, but he trusted Dief. His friend’s hearing may be iffy, but his eyes were still freakishly good.
The wind picked up, causing leaves to skitter across the yard and branches to perform some kind of demented dance in the shadows.
“Where did that come from?” asked Ray as fast-moving clouds obscured the stars, and added to the darkness outside. A clap of thunder shook the cabin and surprised twin yelps from Ray and Dief.
Looking anywhere but at one another, the two tried to cover how startled they’d been.
“I did not know you were afraid of thunder,” commented Dief, carefully straightening his shirt.
“Me? Nah. But you, well you sounded like a scalded cat there, buddy.”
“A cat, Ray? A cat?”
Ray smirked at him. “Yeah, a cat - you want to make something of it?”
Dief’s answer was to pounce. The resulting wrestling match had both men laughing, although it took Ray a moment to realize the odd sound from Dief was in fact a laugh. A few minutes later, breathless and grinning, they called a halt when Dief finally managed to pin Ray down.
Ray’s smile slipped away with the realization that something hot and hard was pressed against his hip. He called up dim light for the room and looked up at Dief, who had a hungry, almost predatory look in his eyes.
“Uh, Dief?”
“Ray.” Dief’s eyes drifted closed as he rubbed up against Ray a few times. “Feels good,” he groaned.
Oh, yeah, Ray definitely agreed with that. He rubbed back against Dief a few times before grabbing his friend’s hips to hold him still. “Wait. Just hold it a minute.”
Dief’s eyes snapped open and he looked almost afraid. “I’m sorry, I’m sorry,” he whimpered and struggled to get away. “I did a bad thing.”
“Hey, whoa there. I’m not mad, Dief. You didn’t do anything wrong.” Ray was reminded of a mutt he once saw during a bust. The dog shivered and shrank back from everyone, as though it expected to be beaten.
Ray pushed Dief back a bit and sat up, but then grabbed Dief’s shirt to keep him from moving away altogether. “Shh, just hold still a minute, ’kay?”
Dief held perfectly still as he straddled one of Ray’s legs.
“It’s been a long time since I, you know. I mean, I haven’t even spent quality time with my right hand since I got here.” Ray struggled to find the words to explain. “This all feels a little…fast. We need to slow down, that’s all.”
“Not mad?”
“God no, Dief, not mad, I swear.” Ray hesitated before adding, “I just don’t want any regrets after. You are my friend, you got that? My friend. And there’s no way I’m going to risk that just to get my rocks off.”
Dief held Rays’ gaze, seeming to search for something. Whatever he found appeared to reassure him. He smiled and wriggled a bit. “Can we do this?”
Ray bowed his head to hide his embarrassment. “Well, the moment’s kind of passed.” He looked up in surprise when he realized Dief was still hard. It only took a moment to make a decision. “That’s not to say I couldn’t help out a friend.”
When Ray nudged his knee against Dief’s cock, Dief whined low in his throat. “Yes.” But when Dief began to hump against him, Ray held him still.
“If it’s all the same to you, I’d like to do this the human way.” Ray dislodged Dief and slid back on the bed until he was against the wall.
Dief pouted - honest to god pouted. “Humans do it like this. I saw Ben like this once. He rubbed against--”
“Hold it. I really don’t need to know that. What I meant was…what I want is…ah shit, come here.” He wrapped a hand around Dief’s neck and pulled him in for a kiss. As kisses went, it was spectacularly bad, given that kisses work best when both participants work together.
Ray had an epiphany.
Dief was virgin. Yeah, he had puppies somewhere, but that was his four-legged self. This Dief was completely inexperienced - he’d never taken his new body on a test drive to see what it could do.
Holy. Crap.
Ray pulled back and, when he had Dief’s attention, whispered, “Do what I do.”
The next kiss was soft and gentle and Dief really was a fast learner. It went from chaste to dirty faster than the Goat could go from zero to 60. Maybe it was the whole canine thing, but Dief had a really talented tongue.
Ray shuddered and pulled back enough to strings kisses along Dief’s jaw and down his throat.
Dief suddenly twitched and pulled away. “Tickles,” he said, rubbing a hand over Ray’s scruffy beard.
Ray held Dief’s hand still. “I tried to shave it with a knife when it started coming in, but almost cut my damn throat. It just seems easier to chop it off when it’s too long rather than try to get rid of it altogether.”
Dief nuzzled Ray’s throat. “I like it,” he said. “You would be a beautiful wolf.”
“Yeah?”
“Oh yes, Ray. Beautiful - long limbs and strong muscles, meant to hunt and run.” Dief suited action to words and carefully ran his hands over Ray’s arms and chest before shifting back enough to caress Ray’s thighs. “I would follow you, take you as mate, protect you always.” The last words were smothered in a kiss.
Ray deepened the kiss and rolled so that he was above Dief, holding the other man down, sliding hands under his shirt to touch the hot skin that had kept him warm at night. He gave himself over to the moment, momentarily surprised at how quickly his cock rose to the occasion.
Ray didn’t know if he’d ever be ready to go all the way with a guy, but what they were doing right then felt pretty damn good. Everything blurred after that thought. Clothes were peeled away from skin, moans and gasps filling the small cabin as they lost themselves in sensation.
It wasn’t tickling exactly that woke him, but the sensation was strange all the same. Ray pried his eyes open enough to look down. Dief was licking his chest and stomach.
Dief was licking their come off his body.
“I know you doggy types lick everything, but really, don’t you think that’s kinda gross?” muttered Ray.
Dief glared at the ‘doggy types’ comment, but continued licking until he was done. He hauled himself up Ray’s body until they were nose to nose. “Don’t knock it if you haven’t tried it,” he said before planting a big wet kiss on Ray.
Ray savoured that kiss, weird taste aside, and rolled until Dief was under him again. Who knew he had such an alpha streak? When the kiss ended, Dief looked at him uncertainly.
“Friends?” asked Dief.
“Oh yeah. Nothing will ever change that, I swear to you,” he vowed. “We’re good - greatness, even.”
“Greatness,” echoed Dief with a sigh and a smile.
Ray wrestled a blanket up over them and they snuggled together, Dief’s head over Ray’s heart. Ray doused the light and drifted until his surroundings melted away. He was barely conscious of the residual stickiness on his skin, the rain beating against the roof or the glowing red eyes peering through the window.
~~~ ~ ~~~
After almost a week of rain and near freezing temperatures, sunlight woke them one morning with the promise of a beautiful day. Ray smiled contentedly at the warm weight sprawled across his chest. They’d come a long way since that morning when they’d faced each other as lovers for the first time, all shy smiles and tentative touches. They’d even ‘gone all the way’ - and didn’t that just sound like they were a couple of teenagers.
With a huge stretch Ray dislodged his lazy lover, happy in a way he hadn’t been in a long time. “Up and at’em, Dief. The fish are calling.”
Scrambling from their warm cocoon, Ray was glad they’d set up make-shift toilet facilities inside. He really didn’t feel like freezing his nuts off first thing in the morning.
While Dief gathered the bedding to be aired outside, Ray threw open the door - and screamed. Dief caught him as he fell to his knees retching. Dief’s sudden stillness told Ray what Dief had seen.
The broken bloody body of a squirrel had been nailed to the door with a long knife.
Ray wiped his sleeve across his mouth and swallowed hard. “Rocky, no... Who would do that? Who would kill the little guy?”
Dief gave him a hug. “Not him, not Rocky,” he said repeatedly. “Ray, look - look! It’s too small to be Rocky. It’s not him.”
“Not him?” Ray braced himself to look. The body was definitely on the small side, and now that the shock was wearing off, he could see that the tail was a little too dark as well. “He - it, whatever - has gone too far.”
After several attempts to at least catch a glimpse of the mysterious killer of bunnies, Ray and Dief had pretty much given up and resigned themselves to merely disposing of the carcasses. After all, the next full moon was fast approaching and then they could get the hell out of there.
But this was too much.
While Dief pried the little corpse from the door, Ray went in to get their makeshift shovel, with a quick detour to the water pump so he could splash his face and rinse his mouth. Rounding the house, he stopped and swore.
“Son of a bitch!” The bastard had left another rabbit cooking over the fire pit - this one still in its little fuzzy coat. “Dief!”
Dief came running around the corner and slowed as he approached. “Oh.”
“If this was Chicago, I’d say the perp was gearing up for something ugly and advise the vic to relocate as fast as possible.”
“It’s still good advice.”
Ray scrubbed hands through his hair and over his face. “When can we leave? That full moon has to be soon.”
Dief put an arm around Ray. “Three nights - this night plus two.”
“Okay. We can’t catch this guy - hell, we can’t even see him - so we just have to stay alive until the door opens.” He wrapped an arm around the other man’s waist and squeezed. “We can do that, right?”
Dief squeezed back. “I always have your back, Ray.”
“Back at ya, buddy.”
The process of cremating and burying the two small bodies was even worse than the first time. Ray figured it was the smell of burning fur - too much like burning hair.
Once that was done, they began preparations for their escape. Emergency supplies were hidden near the doorway between inside and outside the bubble, as Ray called it. The preparations took longer than expected since they also made sure to clear the path of obstacles that could trip them up in the dark.
Dusk had fallen by the time they hurried back to the cabin. Just as Ray was about to leave the tree line, Dief hauled him back forcibly.
“Hey! What the--” Ray’s indignant squawk was cut off by a hand across his mouth.
“Dead thing,” whispered Dief in his ear.
Ray went very still. Eyes darting around the yard, he tried to see the threat. Dief, however, pulled him deeper into the shadows.
“We need to get inside,” whispered Dief.
“Is it still here?” asked Ray.
“Not sure. The scent is confused - new and old.”
Ray thought for a moment. “Okay, here’s the deal. We stay in the tree shadows until we’re in line with the door and then we just run like hell. How’s that work for you?”
Dief trembled slightly. “No choice,” he said. “I lead and you stay close.”
“Yeah, sure.” Dief’s eyes were better than his anyway.
Single file, they began circling the yard around the cabin. Ray thought he heard a noise behind him and whirled around, but saw nothing other than the trees. When he turned back to Dief, the other man was gone.
“Dief?” he whispered. “Where’d you go?”
A twig snapped beside him and he quickly spun toward the noise. “Dief?”
The shadows seemed to take on a human form. As the other person got closer, he could see that it was not Diefenbaker. Ray backed up until he bumped up against a tree trunk.
“Who are you?” he demanded, although his voice wavered slightly.
The other person stopped, face in shadows, but definitely male, and somehow familiar.
“Who the fuck are you?” repeated Ray, voice more angry than scared now.
“Hello, Ray.”
Part 4