In Which Sam gets control of the wolf...

[likely_evil]

ooc: Murphy is lieu_murphy and the rest of the pack are all her NPC's. Co-Written with the mun

It was strange walking into the home that Murphy had in the park, especially when he was walking with Murphy and flanked by two wolves. And there were others waiting at the house, and he could feel all their eyes on him.

He had a day to get accustomed to the place and where he was going to live. It was more than he had expected by far, and now he was missing his laptop and Ipod. The biggest reason he had left it behind was because he didn't think there was going to be a lot of electricity. His cell phone he could charge quickly at the ranger station or some of the rest stops, but yeah, this was nice. His room was better than the crappy motels they stayed in, and he didn't have much clothing to fill the drawers but it was the first time he had been told that this something was for him to use on a longer term basis. As it was, he usually had to fight Dean for more than a drawer, and here he had the whole room.

And the bed was the best mattress he had slept on in years. He snuggled under the covers and didn't want to leave when morning came. But he heard the others going down to eat, and he could smell the food cooking, so he joined them and kept to himself and didn't really look up much. One of the men at the table smirked at his behavior, and it reminded Sam a bit of his brother when he had gotten the better of Sam in some kind of prank war.

As the afternoon passed, Sam started to get nervous and found himself pacing. So far there had been no direction as to what he was needing to do tonight, and the fear of changing was gripping at him. Finally, Murphy entered the room. "Sam, come with me," she ordered, and he stopped pacing and quickly followed her out, and then downstairs into a dirt cellar.

"What's this..."

"This is where you're going to be spending the next few days."

He looked around and bit his lip. "But what am I..."

"You're going to do nothing. Just sit here and stay like a good little boy."

"But it's almost..."

Murphy gave him a look and Sam quickly lowered his gaze to the floor. She sighed. "You're going to change, and we can't stop that. But we're going to work on making sure your wolf brain knows who's in charge. Once we get that accomplished, then you can start to get the control. It's not going to be easy, it's going to take time, and you're probably going to take a good beating in the process. But it's what needs to be done, Sam. You want to control your wolf, right?"

"Yes."

"Then I suggest you strip out of those clothes soon, or you're going to lose them." She started for the stairs and looked over her shoulder at him. "And Sam, do us all a favor and don't resist the change. It only will make it last longer on you."


It was three days later and Sam was curled up in the corner of the cellar, only in his boxers as he tried to block out the soreness and pain he was feeling. He had no memories of what had been happening, and he woke up with fresh scars all over his body the first night, and this morning his throat hurt as if he had been choked hard, plus his ankle hurt and he thought a rib had to be broken. There was blood on the ground again, and he could taste it in his mouth as he tried to spit it out again.

The door opened and Murphy walked down, dressed in loose clothing and sporting a few new scratches on her arms. Sam just whimpered and curled himself up into a smaller ball as he squinted in the light. She gave him a gentle look, then walked over and knelt beside him. "You're hurt, Sam. The last night of the cycle has past, so let's get you upstairs and patched up, alright?"

"Did you do it?" he asked, his throat hurting. He was scared about leaving the room in his condition and the others seeing him like that.

"Mostly." She looked at him and shook her head. "Your wolf side is a lot stronger than we thought. When you learn to control it, that power will be an asset. It also explains why you black out, since it has complete control over you. But last night was a good step in the right direction, and next month if the wolf doesn't recognize me, it will soon remember."

She stood up and held out her hand. "Come on. Heather will patch you up, and then you can join us for breakfast again."

He took her hand and got up, his ankle not able to support him well as he hobbled to the stairs. He was pretty much aware that he was only in his underwear, but he was hurting a bit too much to care and figured that after he was patched up, he could find something to put on.

Heather, a red-head around Sam's age, was waiting for them at the top of the stairs with two first aid kits. Murphy stepped to the side and let the smaller woman take over. "Come on, the couch will be better."

She led him to the living room and the large, comfortable couch there. Once he was seated she got to work patching up his scratches, bruises and wiping away the blood. She was gentle, like she'd done this before.

"I'm Heather," she said, wiping gently at the blood around his mouth. "I was like you once, you know. This rogue wolf in Chicago bit me. You'll get through this and then it's great. You'll love it here. We're like a big family."

Sam looked over at her and he tried to offer her a small smile. "Is it always going to be this painful?" he asked her.

"Not once you get control. The transformation will always hurt, there's no way to stop that, but once you have control you won't have to be dominated and then you'll find your place in the pack. It'll be better then." She smiled, "It took me three months to really get the hang of it, but I got through it because it's worth it. It really is."

He took a deep breath and winced, and let it out as a soft chuckle. "Up until a few days ago, I wouldn't have believed that there was a good side to being a werewolf. It's not something you rush out to become."

"Murphy, Kirmani, the others, they were born like this you know. Not everyone becomes a werewolf," she said, making her touch gentler in response to his wince. "There's a bunch of weres out there. Murphy's friendly with a local weregrizzly and we know there are a few werefoxes around. It's like everything else in the world, there's a good side and a bad."

Sam looked at her in confusion. "Wait... did you say weregrizzly?" He had never heard of that before.

She nodded. "Werebear, we just call him weregrizzly because that's the species of bear he is."

That just added to his confusion. "I never heard of that. I know foxes are from Japanese mythologies as Kitsunes, but I never heard of a bear."

She chuckled and patted him on the head like he was a puppy. "You've got a lot to learn, Sam."

He whimpered a bit at the pat. "Apparently. It'll give me something to do until next moon cycle."

"Oh, don't worry, Murphy will find something for you." She began to pack up her kits. "You're all patch up. Might as well get a nap in and then you'll want to eat something. Transforming is exhausting."

Sam reached out for her hand and squeezed it. "Thank you," he said softly.

"Hey, anything for a pack mate. Murph, he's good!" She stepped back and let Murphy take over again.

"So, you want to get some rest?" Murphy asked, standing at the end of the couch. "Or you up for a little more meet and greet?"

"I would, but I would also like to wear something more than my underwear," Sam gave a small smile. "I'm starving too, so if it involves bacon I'm all for it."

She nodded, one corner of her mouth tipped up in a smile. "Alright, go upstairs, get changed. We'll be waiting in the kitchen. With bacon."

"Minus the pain and the bleeding, I think I'm going to like it here," he said, pulling himself up out of the couch and starting for the stairs to his room. He wondered if he had packed the pain pills Dean had swiped for him that went along with the vision headaches he got sometimes. Oh yes, there they were, those blessed sweet pills. He took one, then got himself dressed in very loose fitting clothes. He then slowly made his way back downstairs, being careful of the stairs with his ankle and then limped into the kitchen and stood in the doorway. He thought it would be better to wait and be invited to the table again.

The pack was gathered around the table, except for Heather and Butters who were cooking. Murphy smiled, which was a silent invitation. If Sam wanted to take it, there was an empty seat.

Nodding to her smile, he slipped in and sat down in the empty seat. The smells in the kitchen were wonderful and his stomach growled just a bit, and it was louder than he would have liked and he bit his lip in embarrassment.

There were a few chuckles from those gathered around the table, but the first plate of food went to Murphy. She started eating so that when another plate was set down in front of someone they could eat as well.

"So, this is the pack," she said between bites. "Kirmani's the beta, second in command."

"Otherwords, if the boss isn't here, I'm in charge," Kirmani said with a slightly glare just to restate his position.

Murphy rolled her eyes, "Morgan's next to him. Then Heather and Butters. Anna's still sleeping. She's my daughter and a pup. Be gentle with her or you won't like what happens."

"She's a sweet kid," Heather said, putting a plate in front of Sam. "And she'll try to make friends. Murphy's just protective."

"We're all protective of the pup," Morgan said, his voice deep and commanding. He was about Sam's height and African-American. "You will be too."

Kirmani was the one that reminded Sam of Dean. Sam nodded at his statement, looking at them all through his bangs that hung down over his eyes. It kept his head down a bit, but he could see everything. He matched the names with the faces and he knew he wouldn't forget them. He was too well trained not to.

When Heather set the plate down in front of him, he gave her a quick "Thank You" and instantly went to eat because he was really starving. "I don't plan on hurting anyone," Sam said after he swallowed his first mouthful of bacon. "I do want to thank you all though. I know you didn't have to take me in. I appreciate the help."

"Hey, it was either that or we end up hunting you so." Kirmani shrugged. "Sort of figured you'd rather live."

"Story of my life," Sam muttered softly to himself, then he nodded. "Living is the much preferred option." He looked around at everyone, biting his lip. "You all seem happy being like this... and I mean with being a werewolf, because I can see why you'd be happy being a family. Did you always feel that way about yourself and this... condition?" He wanted to say curse but he knew some of them might take offense on that and he edited himself carefully.

"Nothing wrong with being a werewolf." Kirmani outright glared at Sam until Murphy cleared her throat and he reluctantly focused back on his food.

"Kirmani's right, Sam, there's nothing wrong wih being a werewolf. The only real problem is how we're precieved by almost everyone else out there," Murphy said, taking over the conversation. "What you know about werewolves is what has been popularized, basically mindless shapeshifters who go nuts and furry every full moon. Are there werewolves like that? Yes, the loup-garou. The French version of what we are. They're insane. We're more like... spirit shifters. In our hearts, we're wolves. We just happened to be human too. And yes, we can spread the condition if we're not careful but we are and look around."

She gestured to the table and the house, "Why wouldn't we be happy as werewolves? That's what give us the pack, the family. Without it who knows what we might be, how alone or without help we might be. This is better. Sometimes harder, but better."

Sam lowered his gaze when Kirmani snapped at him, but looked up at Murphy when she was talking, then around at the table. "Maybe it's just because this is still new in me, but I was human. Not a wolf. My heart is human, and it just doesn't feel right to me. Frankly it scares me. I'm never going to be the same person again."

"It gets better," Heather said, "Really, Sam. You don't have to be afraid of it."

"You and Heather should talk more. She was like you once." Murphy glanced at Heather who nodded. "She can help."

Sam looked over at Heather and nodded, giving her a small smile. "I'd like that." He was curious though about other things. "So I know you're a ranger, but does everyone else have jobs here too?"

"I work at a local clinic," Butter pipped up for the first time, but kept his eyes down and made sure not to look at anyone, not even Sam.

"Morgan's park of the rescue unit, but he mostly trains and works in the winter. I do trail guides," Kirmani cut in before Butters could say more. "Heather works at a local sporting goods store. We lead pretty normal lives, kid. Especially since we have control."

"So I guess I'm the house maid until I get control over myself," he joked, giving a half smile.

"You don't go into town until you have control," Murphy said, her tone leaving no room for argument. "We'll find work for you around here. You want something let Heather know and she'll get it for you."

His smile dropped and he nodded. "Ok." He looked down at his plate, and somehow all the food was gone. He barely remembered eating most of it. "I do plan on earning my keep. I get bored easily otherwise."

"Everyone in the pack earns their place," Kirmani said. "You're not getting any special treatment, kid."

"You can babysit," Murphy said, "Watch Anna when she comes back from school, when the rest of us aren't around either."

Sam considered this. "I can try. I've never babysat before."

"Anna's a good kid. She'll mostly want to read and draw. Just make sure she doesn't go out into the woods on her own and help her with her homework if she needs it." Murphy wasn't going to risk her only pup. She wasn't going to talk about why Anna was the only pup either. Every pack member had a past and Murphy didn't really talk about hers. "You do that, you're golden."

"Alright, that I can do." He nodded. Homework would be a breeze for him, and if she was quiet like that he would be able to handle it. "Anything else I need to know?"

"If a big burly guy shows up looking for me, smells a little funny, just tell him to head to the station." Murphy wasn't going to explain that either.

Sam just blinked and nodded. "... ok."


After breakfast, Sam went upstairs to take a nap. And his nap turned into a sleep that lasted until the next morning. He could have slept further, but he was woken up and made to get out of bed. As the days went on, he came to learn that the pack had a routine and he was going to have to fall in line with it. He was still nervous around the others, and he never realized just how much he was going to miss his brother. The text messages between them were short, but Sam was grateful for the connection he had with Dean. Eventually he found himself a chair in a corner of the living room and spent most of his free time curled up in it and reading. There was a small library of books and he hadn't read a few of them. It kept him out of everyone's way.

He was also counting the days in his head and it was getting close to that time again, and he started to get a bit nervous about what was going to happen. It grew until he found himself back in the cellar again, arms wrapped around his knees as he fought to keep the change from coming. He was terrified and rocked in place as he felt the wolf clawing at his insides, wanting to get free and attack something. He tried to hold on through that pain until he couldn't bear it any longer and he gave up.

It was different this time and he screamed in pain as he felt the change. He wasn't blessed with the blackness of passing out, but instead the wolf made him feel each and every change. His jaw aches as the fangs grew and the senses overloaded his mind. He watched in pained terror as his fingers changed and his nails grew, and then it was like he was possessed and he had no control over himself and watched himself stand and howl, daring someone to open the door and come down at him.

As alpha Murphy couldn't ignore a challenge like that. She stepped into the basement and changed into a wolf at the top of the stairs. Growling low in her throat she started down the stairs, ready to remind the wolf who was in charge.

The wolf snarled at her, but didn't attack. He sniffed the air, remembering the beating that it had taken last month at the hands of that one. Sam could now see what the wolf was remembering and he was amazed he had even survived that. He begged the wolf not to attack. He knew Murphy would only win again and he didn't want to feel the pain. The wolf, however, snarled and flexed his hands, wanting revenge.

Murphy bared more of her teeth, not the least bit afraid even of a monstrous looking thing like this hybrid. This wasn't the wolf Murphy knew was inside the boy. She just had to draw Sam out. She moved forward with confidence and years of experience backing her. She could take him, she had done it before and would have no trouble doing it again. If he needed a reminder, she would give him one.

The wolf went to strike, using Sam's hunter trained agility and it's own power to slash a hand down at the wolf, aiming right for the eyes to blind the wolf. He had been weak last time, but he needed one more chance to try and dominate.

She was no fool. She dove under his swipe and slammed her full weight into his legs, clamping her jaws around his calf. She bit hard, not enough to do permanent damage but enough to make her point. She was no fool and no one's beta.

That brought the wolf down to a knee and Sam screamed inside at the pain he felt tearing through his body. The wolf responded with a growl and went to tackle the wolf, trying to use the advantage of having full arms to wrap around the wolf and hold her down so he could bite her in return.

She liked to wrestle with a certain bear and bears had arms. She used her smaller size to her advantage and slipped through before he had a chance to get a good grip. Running behind him she got his tail in her mouth and yanked, then let go and leapt onto his back, biting at the scruff of his neck, now becoming a dead weight to try and drag him down.

The wolf howled again, trying to reach back and grab at her. He struggled to find a way to smash the wolf on his back into something but his leg didn't respond and he fell to the ground and aimed to land directly on top of the smaller wolf and break her under him.

He was too slow, too big. She leapt off and got around in front of him again, snarling and snapping at his face, backing him towards a corner. If he was cornered she could work on drawing Sam out. The wolf had control, but she wanted Sam.

The wolf swiped at her in response, refusing to budge and couldn't get up to try and overpower her with the height. So he held his place, the stubbornness coming straight from the will born from a Winchester.

She didn't back down an inch. She snapped at his hand, snapped at him, pushed him back and back as much as she could and she could move him, she had confidence and the alpha status to back her.

Pushed into the corner, the wolf just panted and glared at her, not lowering his gaze and watching her carefully and just waiting for a moment to try and attack.

She didn't give him one. She had done this before and he was no different from any other wolf she had confronted. She wouldn't give until he did, but he had to give first and she would make sure he did, even if it meant hurting him.

The wolf snarled at her, crouching down in front of her. It wasn't a submissive pose though. He was planning on springing on her, and just waiting. Waiting for that right moment... and then he jump at her, fangs and claws aiming to do as much damage as they could.

He wasn't going to get a chance, she wouldn't give him one. She stepped into him, snapping, snarling. She couldn't claw like him, but she was quick, light on her feet and not afraid to put herself in danger if she needed to.

The swipe at his chest had the wolf growling but he fell back into the corner. The pain was unbearable and Sam just wanted it to stop. Wanted the wolf to realize he wasn't going to win and just stop. But the wolf tried to swipe again, more to keep her away now than to dominate.

It was a lucky grab, but she got his wrist in her mouth, clamped her jaws down and twisted, trying to hold him into submission.

The wolf's face hit the floor and he howled in pain at the teeth digging into the soft flesh there. Sam cried out as well, and if the wolf wasn't going to beg her to stop, he would. He couldn't take this anymore. "Stop..." Sam said, the words coming out as a growl first. "Stop." he tried again, but it was still a growl. He cried out again in frustration, unable to get the control enough to speak clearly.

Murphy wouldn't let go until he had control. It would hurt and she might feel bad about it later but right now there was no mercy. He would get full control before she would let go.

The wolf shook his head, not wanting the human inside to get control. But he shifted and Sam forced him to stay down. No, this is my body. And I want this to stop before you make her destroy it. "Stop!" Sam shouted, the voice deep and growly, but the word was able to be made out. It was hard to talk with a mouthful to teeth. Sam made the wolf lie still, submitting to her. His fingers curled in pain before it relaxed in her grip. "Please... stop..." came out as a whimper.

She let go and stepped back, still braced for an attack though.

The wolf didn't move, twitching. He was trying to get control again now that the alpha had moved away, but Sam was determined to make this fight end. The wolf's stubbornness stemmed from Sam and he was going to take control of that again as well as of his body. He shut his eyes, whimpering as the wolf attack him mentally, looking for weakness. But he couldn't give up. He needed this control if he was ever going to get out of this damn cellar and stop the pain.

Taking a risk, Murphy shifted back to human form so she could speak. "Sam, you want to see your brother again? You control it. The only way you can have that life with him again is to make it submit to you. Kick it in the ass, kid. Come on."

Dean. Just that one word gave him the strength he needed and he pushed that wolf deep down into him. He was in control. Sam was the one who lived here, and the wolf was a part of him. Not separate from him. But he didn't want it. He wanted it to go away. How could he keep the control if he didn't want this thing at all? But he knew it wasn't going to be possible to get rid of the wolf. It was there, pumping in his blood. His blood. His body. The wolf was his, not the other way around. And he needed to teach it that too.

Slowly, the body started to transform back into the human man, and Sam's jaw opened in a silent cry of pain as everything shifted back to where it was supposed to be until he was a naked man on the floor of the cellar with tears streaming down his cheeks as he shook in pain and exhaustion.

"Kirmani! Get me a blanket!" Murphy yelled up the stairs before going over to Sam with a smile. "That's it, kid. You're on your way."

Kirmani came down the stairs after a moment and handed off a quilt. Murphy put it around his shoulders and then with Kirmani's help got Sam up the stairs.

Sam shivered and curled into Murphy as they carried him up, whimpering and just pressing his head against her. She was the one who was going to take care of him and he knew it and he was hurting and needed comfort. The wolf was still trying to break free, but he refused to let it win.

The rest of the pack was waiting upstairs too. They helped take Sam into the living room where they got him more blankets. Murphy stayed with Sam, running her fingers gently through his hair.

"You're alright, Sam. You got it."

He kept fighting until it was almost morning, then he finally felt the wolf give up. His breathing calmed down at that point and he relaxed and curled into the blankets a bit more. His head moved to press up against Murphy's hand, responding to her touch finally before he wearily opened his hazel eyes to look up at her.

She smiled with something close to motherly pride, "That's a boy."

Sam gave a small smile, then just curled up more in her lap. "It's not done yet," he whimpered. "It's going to come back again."

"Yeah, but it's not going to win. You've got control now." She put an arm around him and tucked the blankets in around his shoulders. "It gets better from here on out. Promise."

"I hope so," he whimpered, closing his eyes again. "I'm so tired... and my hand hurts."

"Get some rest. Heather will patch that up for you." She gestured for the other woman to come in but stayed put so Sam didn't have to move.

"You did great, Sam. I told you you'd get it," Heather said gently as she crouched down next to him.

Sam turned his head to look at the others, seeing them all there and watching over him. A small smile came to his face. He felt truly safe here, and he just closed his eyes and drifted off to sleep and trusting them to take care of him.