For a short while, the two of them just sort of sat there in silence. Derek imagined she was considering the options and weighing them, trying to decide whether she ought to just stay put or trust him and hope for the best. Derek didn't know who was in there, so he didn't know whether she had any reason to think she could trust him. If it was Rikki hiding in there, then he'd like to think that she'd feel comfortable trusting him by now, but if she was some woman he hadn't met yet, then there was no reason to think he wasn't about to lead her to the slaughter. Then there was the whole gray area in between.
She seemed to decide it was worth the gamble, though, and she stood, looking back at her clothes before looking back at him. Derek laughed. "Jesus, if I wasn't also a werewolf, this would be the actual weirdest non-conversation I've ever had. Yeah, I got it," he said, pushing himself to his feet. "Stand in the doorway, so the door doesn't shut us in, will you?" he asked, waiting until he was sure that the door wasn't going to do exactly that and then crossed the room to retrieve the pile of human clothes in the corner. "Let's hope I can find this thing again."
Derek headed back out of the room and closed his hand into a fist briefly before flicking his fingers outward to open his hand again, claws extended. He'd taken to leaving marks on the walls in his wake so that he could find his way back where he'd come from, and it had largely been working except for the fact that the claw marks only tended to stay until they all went to sleep. By morning, he always had to start over again.
Running his claws against the wall as he walked, Derek was careful to scent the air and listen every few seconds, wanting to make sure that if he heard or smelled any humans coming around, he could duck into a room with the wolf so that she didn't scare anyone. If the wolf was stronger than the human inside, a scared human could sound like a lot of fun to chase and Derek wasn't going to let that happen if he could avoid it.
It took several minutes to find their way to what Derek was pretty sure was the right hallway. It was hidden behind a door this time, but it looked longer than the light was willing to allow them to see. "Last time, I walked down this hallway for like three hours before it finally ended. That should be plenty of space for running. It's not the woods, but in a pinch, it could be worse."
Derek shut the door behind them and started to undress, not bothered by the fact that he wasn't not alone. She was undressed; he imagined that nudity was as big a deal to her as it was to him, which was to say not at all.
Once he'd disrobed, Derek crouched to gather all of his things and hers into a pile, tying them into a little makeshift bag made out of the shirt he'd been wearing. He didn't trust leaving their things here and hoping they could find them again at the end of the run. He'd run with them in his mouth just to be sure. Then, satisfied he'd secured their belongings, Derek stood again and closed his eyes, letting himself shift. His shift was smooth and painless, quiet and almost graceful and he dropped to all fours as the fur took over and the wolf came out in kind. His dark eyes lit up blue again with energy and contentment; this was his favorite form. Not in this house, but generally speaking. Finally, Derek tilted his head down to pick up their things in his teeth, looked over at her to acknowledge her, and then took off, tearing down the endless hallway to run off some of his energy.
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She seemed to decide it was worth the gamble, though, and she stood, looking back at her clothes before looking back at him. Derek laughed. "Jesus, if I wasn't also a werewolf, this would be the actual weirdest non-conversation I've ever had. Yeah, I got it," he said, pushing himself to his feet. "Stand in the doorway, so the door doesn't shut us in, will you?" he asked, waiting until he was sure that the door wasn't going to do exactly that and then crossed the room to retrieve the pile of human clothes in the corner. "Let's hope I can find this thing again."
Derek headed back out of the room and closed his hand into a fist briefly before flicking his fingers outward to open his hand again, claws extended. He'd taken to leaving marks on the walls in his wake so that he could find his way back where he'd come from, and it had largely been working except for the fact that the claw marks only tended to stay until they all went to sleep. By morning, he always had to start over again.
Running his claws against the wall as he walked, Derek was careful to scent the air and listen every few seconds, wanting to make sure that if he heard or smelled any humans coming around, he could duck into a room with the wolf so that she didn't scare anyone. If the wolf was stronger than the human inside, a scared human could sound like a lot of fun to chase and Derek wasn't going to let that happen if he could avoid it.
It took several minutes to find their way to what Derek was pretty sure was the right hallway. It was hidden behind a door this time, but it looked longer than the light was willing to allow them to see. "Last time, I walked down this hallway for like three hours before it finally ended. That should be plenty of space for running. It's not the woods, but in a pinch, it could be worse."
Derek shut the door behind them and started to undress, not bothered by the fact that he wasn't not alone. She was undressed; he imagined that nudity was as big a deal to her as it was to him, which was to say not at all.
Once he'd disrobed, Derek crouched to gather all of his things and hers into a pile, tying them into a little makeshift bag made out of the shirt he'd been wearing. He didn't trust leaving their things here and hoping they could find them again at the end of the run. He'd run with them in his mouth just to be sure. Then, satisfied he'd secured their belongings, Derek stood again and closed his eyes, letting himself shift. His shift was smooth and painless, quiet and almost graceful and he dropped to all fours as the fur took over and the wolf came out in kind. His dark eyes lit up blue again with energy and contentment; this was his favorite form. Not in this house, but generally speaking. Finally, Derek tilted his head down to pick up their things in his teeth, looked over at her to acknowledge her, and then took off, tearing down the endless hallway to run off some of his energy.