Adrian jolted in bed when a loud ringing echoed through the room. He snarled, springing into a protective stance, instantly baring his teeth as he tried to find the source of the sound.

Moments after the ringing, chatter started in the hallways, along with audible groans of annoyance. Scents of predators and prey alike started to flow strongly past his room while Adrian slowly calmed down.

Licking his lips, the boy huffed tiredly and flopped back into the comfortable pile of blankets, enjoying the residual heat before it was lost.

A yawn slipped from his lips before he stretched, pausing mid motion when his door creaked open. Adrian instantly grumbled and dropped back in the warmth of his nest, eying the newcomer worriedly.

He recognized him as one of the twins he was introduced to last night. "Good morning little one. Hope you slept alright cause it's going to be a long day. I'll be guiding you through the school, showing you the ropes."

Ropes?

Adrian's eyes barely peeked over the frame of the upper bunk bed as he watched the buffalo warily. Why would he leave his comfy warm den to look at some stupid ropes?

What the fuck are ropes, even?

The man seemed to realize his mistake and chuckled. "Come on kid, no need to be so jumpy. I'm Sebastian, teacher at the faculty here. I'm going to show you around the classes, introduce you to a couple of people."

Another knock on the door made both of them look up, Sebastian grinning as Charles peeked his head inside.

"Right on time as usual, Charles." The bull huffed, shaking his head slightly before approaching the bed. "C'mon kiddo, I know you can understand us. Either you come willingly or I'll carry you over my shoulder."

Even the mere mention of being manhandled had Adrian's hair bristling in the nape of his neck. An angry hiss started from deep in his throat, showing his displeasure, especially when the bull took a few more steps towards his nest.

"Sebastian..." Charlie cautioned, tongue flicking in the air at the scent of Adrian's stress hormones. Adrian could tell from the stubborn set in Sebastian's jaw and the almost playful challenge in the man's eyes, that he would fulfill his threat.

With an annoyed, rumbling exhale, he dropped out of his bed, landing fluidly before straightening up. Both men were watching him, one wary and the other grinning broadly.

"Good, follow me little one." Sebastian said, earning himself a frown and a headshake from Charles. "One of these days, you're going to bite off more than you can chew, Sebastian." The serpent stated as he followed behind Adrian.

"But until that day, I'll have fun pushing peoples buttons." Sebastian retorted with a chuckle. Adrian heard a deep sigh behind him, followed with a muttered "Should've asked Michael, he's the more level-headed one..."

A snicker came out of Sebastian as he looked over his shoulder. "Too late now." The bull paused beside the door and looked straight at Adrian. "After you." He said with a curtesy.

A low hiss slipped from Adrian's chest, knowing that, if he refused to comply with the bull, he'd be dragged around by the stubborn man.

He slid past the bull, shivering at being so close to a potentially dangerous foe. Adrian wasn't foolish enough to underestimate him simply because the man was a herbivore.

Hell, Adrian still was recovering from the injuries sustained from a herbivore. Well, omnivore but still.

Even a herbivore, a prey animal, could deal a world of pain. And the amount of raw power that was emanating from Sebastian was more than enough to clue him in that this herbivore was lethal.

What was it with this place and having herbivores as lethal as some predators?

He assumed that the adult herbivores were particularly dangerous simply because they were in such close quarters with Feral predators on a daily basis.

One could only imagine what would happen to an adult trying to manhandle predators if his shift was that of a sheep or a rabbit...

So Adrian grumbled, showing his displeasure at being manhandled around, while he just wanted to remain in the room, where he knew he was relatively safe.

Instead, he was being guided through a vaguely familiar hall, leading to a room that smelled acrid with fear and pain. Above all that, it stunk of disinfectants that burned in the nose.

Fear...stress... DANGER!

Adrian could feel the hairs in his neck stand on end, a low warning hiss rumbling through his chest the second he felt Sebastian behind him.

"Aw, come on kid. We're not gonna hurt you. Just one last check up and vaccination before you can roam around freely."

He didn't wanna have anything to do with that room. If Adrian didn't have a tight control over his more animalistic side, he would've shifted instantly when a hand landed on his shoulder.

As it was, Adrian expelled a deep, threatening hiss, could feel his gums ache. Simply due to the amount of stress that was being heaped onto him, he could feel his body partially shift.

His eyesight got much sharper, gums aching as they parted to allow more teeth through. Adrian snorted, drawing the air into his lungs, analyzing every particle of scent that drifted towards him.

The hairs in his nape extended, shifting partially in response. He could feel his mouth ache where it slowly extended to give room to more and larger teeth.

Already he could see Charles aiming his full attention towards Adrian, could see Sebastian's former happy go lucky attitude grow more serious.

Worrying that maybe, just maybe, today was the day he bit off more than he could chew.

"Easy..." Charles said slowly, taking slow, calculated steps towards Adrian while Sebastian released the panicked teen.

The movement was enough to startle Adrian, jaws snapping shut inches away from where Sebastian's hand was, as the bull had quickly yanked it back.

The stressed Feral snarled, baring his obvious and intimidating weapons, giving both Charles and Sebastian a good look of the two inch long serrated teeth that gleamed with saliva.

Adrian backed away, unintentionally stepping closer to the room he wanted to avoid. He knew he was being herded backwards but what other choice did he have?

If he engaged the pair, Charles would instantly pin him down in his serpent form and if Sebastian were to shift, he could quite easily break a bone or two.

I could shift...I can fight.

Taking another step back, Adrian slowly crouched, bracing himself to shift in a moment's notice if they kept pressuring him. Fingers splaying out to make room for the long, deadly claws that were extending from them.

It was barely audible, but they all heard Adrian's joints pop, bones grinding as they slowly extended... Waiting to fully shift into his animalistic shape.

When he bared his teeth in another threatening display, he could see the slight sparkle of fear in Sebastian's eyes. Realizing fully now that maybe, just maybe... he shouldn't be messing with something that could potentially eat him.

"Ssssettle down." Charles lisped, his own eyes flaring to a dull brown, pupils slitting as his serpent was getting closer to the surface. Warning Adrian that, if pressed, Charles would shift.

But this time, Adrian would give the serpent a run for his money. This time he wasn't drugged and caught of guard but highly aware of the possible threats before him.

He snarled back, baring rows of sharp teeth that could easily pierce into Charles' flesh if he pressed Adrian any further. He wouldn't give the snake a chance to wrap around him.

The second it struck out, he'd go in the kill.

"Look, we're not here to harm you. We're just going to give you some vaccinations." Sebastian muttered soothingly before Charles amended, "Medicine that'll prevent you from getting sick."

Licking his lips, Adrian mulled it over for a moment. He hadn't been sick much in the past, having learned his lesson when he had gotten a cold after he had traveled in the cold whilst being completely drenched. Or perhaps it was due to an injury that got infected...

Being sick isn't fun... But I don't want to go in there...

He let out a disgruntled growl, slowly pushing himself upright, though he didn't quite trust Sebastian or Charles. But the simple reminder of the constant shivering, the inability to properly scent his surroundings...

Mucus that had filled his nostrils, made him short of breath and panting... Pain pulsing through his body to the point where he had curled up, waiting to get better or perish.

The tiredness... the fear....

He had struggled though it on his own, had taken a great effort before he was fully recovered.

"Plus," Sebastian muttered, stepping back to give Adrian some more space. "With a bit of luck, Fiona has prepared a syringe with that tracking chip."

Tracking chip? To get better at finding tracks?.... this world is odd.

Adrian snorted, shaking himself free from the last bit of tension that had snuck in his muscles. His joints and bones popped back to their normal positions before Adrian stretched them with a huff.

When Charles slowly motioned towards the room, he hesitantly approached and peeked inside before stepping in.

Thankfully Charles and Sebastian gave him the time and space to slowly venture further into the room. The nurse, whom Adrian remembered was Fiona, was already standing ready next to the examination table with a warm smile.

"Well, this certainly is an improvement from the last time we've seen one another." She greeted him, eyes scanning over Adrian's body, lingering on the claws that still adorned his fingertips.

Fiona patted the table, indicating Adrian to sit on it. He grumbled but abided, knowing that if he didn't obey, they might call in reinforcements.

Or stick him with a needle and make his body feel woozy again.

And Adrian's hairs already stood at end at the thought of that bear pinning him on the table.

"Thank you, hun. Now let's see. Jacob told me you could understand us?" Fiona asked gently, gaining a slow nod from Adrian. "Very well, I'm going to ask you a few questions, if you could just nod or shake your head, that would be amazing."

Adrian huffed with confusion. Questions? Didn't the two men speak of injections before? Not that he was thrilled with the idea of someone stabbing him with something sharp.

"According to the report, you were found alone in the woods. Was there anyone else waiting for you?" Fiona asked before scribbling on the paper as Adrian shook his head. "Have you always been alone?" he shook his head again, shifting his weight awkwardly on the uncomfortable surface.

The female Eagle proceeded to ask several more questions of Adrian, draining his attention as he couldn't really reply much.

"Did you have any nest mates?" She scribbled down an affirmative response, humming slightly. "Are they still alive?" Adrian huffed before shaking his head, averting his gaze with a long yawn.

Fiona's brow rose as she scribbled more down. "So he wasn't alone... If only we'd be able to figure out how many nest mates he had and what happened to them..."

Adrian huffed, turning his hand to click his claw trice against the table. Everyone's brows rose up in surprise and Fiona swallowed visibly.

Nervously.

"Well, we have an exceptionally smart one here, huh? Three siblings... we'll have to wait until he adapts to language once more before we can find out the specifics but that can wait." Fiona scribbled a few more notes before she smiled, walking over to her desk and returning with a set of syringes.

"Don't worry, these injections are harmless and I'm good at injecting rather painlessly. If I may?" She asked before approaching Adrian calmly when he rolled his shoulder and averted his gaze.

Still, it was reflex to hiss when he felt her prick him in the deltoid muscle. The instinctual tensing of muscles didn't quite help with the following burn.

"I'm sorry but hey, rather a small prick now than rabies later, right?" She chuckled, drawing a thick syrup into a plastic tube. "This is a de-wormer, just to make sure that you are fully healthy and don't have any worms or other parasites hiding in your system. Open up, please"

Rabies? Dewormer?!

Adrian's brow furrowed at the oddity of worms in his body, as he had only seen the thick grubs digging through the dirt on a rainy day. But he did as asked, swallowing the foul tasting liquid and eagerly accepted the cup of water.

"Very well, last injection, I just need your arm please. Thank you hun." She smiled as Adrian held out his arm, watching as she rubbed a damp white fluff over his skin before surprisingly, pricking him with no real pain.

"There we go. It's a little harmless chip, just for your own safety should you ever roam around without supervision." Fiona scoffed, "Some humans like to shoot first and ask questions later."

Oh, Adrian knew all about that. He had been lurking around hunters back when he was younger. But that was before he had realized that humans were a bit too trigger happy. He had been lucky to come out relatively unscathed as the bullet had scraped over his shoulder and not through his head.

Adrian slowly hopped off the table, sniffing at his elbow before snorting at the sharp scent that clung to his skin. Charles chuckled, waving him back to the door with a grin.

"Come on then. Let's reward your good behavior with some nice food and perhaps some time outside, unless you want to retreat back in your dorm?"

Outside... that did sound good. Adrian wasn't used being indoors at all and he felt almost trapped with the constant presence of walls and windows wherever he went.

"So, where to first? Outside or food?" Charles asked before chuckling as Adrian's stomach gurgled audibly, letting everyone know just how hungry he was.

"Breakroom it is." Sebastian snorted with amusement, guiding them to the familiar room. Adrian's nostrils flared at the scents of food, both raw and cooked.

And the smell of other people. He had no intention of interacting with anyone, especially after being harassed with needles and foul tasting fluids.

But... food was a good incentive to at least get him moving... Perhaps he could bear with some social contact for a few minutes...

Maybe...

A.N. You guys are hilarious in your search for Adrian's shift ^-^ Some of you have gotten pretty close :D

And I see some have made a list of all the perceived hints . Hehehehe, though not all of my hints have been caught onto ^-^ 

I was curious if you guys wanted me to make and share a little list of the hints as well, or if you all want to figure it out on your own?

Additional hint of this chapter : Adrian's shift is a real animal that does/ has existed in the real world. I know that doesn't exclude a lot but... all bits count right?

I love you guys,

You are all awesome,

You are loved <3

Shifting2Wolf