"Well, the S.P.A. was already tracking the rogue wolf who turned him, so they got to him pretty quickly and got him into the supernatural wing of a hospital for treatment. When he healed crazy fast, like you'd expect, he knew something was up. They didn't have to do much convincing when they told him what happened and what to expect next. He's a quick study, and he made a point of learning as much as he could about the werewolf infection. I'm not saying he didn't struggle with it, but you're probably better hearing about that from him than me," Claude explained.

"What about you?"

Rue carefully unwrapped green glasses and lined them up on the shelves of the cabinet above her. She wasn't exactly short, but it was still a stretch to reach the top shelf.

"Ah, well, I was turned five years ago, just before entering high school. Turned out the girl I asked out in eighth grade was a natural vampire, and she got a bit, um, obsessed, and decided to turn me so I could be 'hers forever' or some shit. It's illegal to turn humans without consent, or to turn minors at all, so she got in a lot of trouble. She didn't tell anyone for a while what she'd done, including me! So I was having trouble adjusting. Always hungry, food making me sick, sunlight hurt, terrible insomnia... It wasn't until my upper canines fell out and my new fangs grew in that I started to suspect what had happened. Then I almost attacked a classmate when he cut his hand in shop class," Claude admitted with an awkward laugh that sounded more sad than amused.

"Wow, that's rough. And fifteen is a terrible time to be going through that, too."

"Eh, I mean, isn't that normally when human-born fae start exhibiting fae traits?" he questioned, looking at her.

"Uh, well, they can. It can also start earlier. Pretty much any time after puberty starts..." Rue said hesitantly.

"Close enough. You can probably relate to what I went through," Claude said, his smile becoming more genuine as he turned away to put more glasses in the cabinet above Rue's head.

She ducked out of his way a bit and focused on putting silverware in the divided drawer instead.

"Well no, not really. I was actually born fae, so I never really had that transition period."

"Oh." Claude looked at Rue, surprise clear on his face. "Sorry, I shouldn't have assumed you were human-born, I just..." he trailed off and shrugged apologetically.

"No, it's fine, you're not wrong. My mother is human."

They were quiet for a moment while they finished carrying the last few boxes of kitchen stuff to the counter. There weren't a lot of boxes left. Claude helped Rue carry the remaining ones to her bedroom, since they contained clothes, bedding and towels, toiletries and the like.

Rue was deep in thought while carting boxes. She felt the weight of her debt to Claude, who had not only helped her unload and unpack, but also shared stories with her. She didn't like the feeling of owing him, and was trying to think how to repay him. She could at least repay a story with a story, she supposed.

"You still want to know what I am?" she asked.

"Yes! I don't really know much about faeries and their different types. Since your ears weren't the right red, I don't think you're a kitsune, and foxes usually have black ears anyway, right?"

"I'm a cù sidhe," she said.

"Koo... Shee?" Claude repeated uncertainly. He followed her as they made their way back downstairs to start putting things away in the kitchen.

"Mhm. A faerie hound. A big, mossy-green dog the size of a small horse or cow, with red ears and fiery eyes, who guides the souls of the dead from their grave to the afterlife, and has a bark so terrifying, it can kill. Or at least, that's how the folklore goes," Rue said with a smile.

"How accurate is the folklore?" Claude asked.

"That much of it? Pretty accurate. We're not all green though. Some are white with red ears and a green tail, and not all green cù sidhe have red ears. We're also not limited to the dead in graveyards, but that's semantics, really. I wouldn't trust any faerie folklore or pop culture media any more than you would vampire folklore and pop culture. After all, you were out in the summer sun when I got here!"

"True. As long as I wear sunscreen, it's fine. I'm not going to burst into flames. Of course, just as all the power and ability of a natural vampire is stronger than a turned one, a natural vampire's weaknesses are also more effective. But even they aren't going to burst into flames. They need sunscreen stronger than anything available to humans and need pretty dark sunglasses to protect their eyes though!"

Rue nodded and smiled slightly.

"You mentioned powers and abilities. You can shapeshift, right? And you're a lot stronger and faster than a human. I guess you have a good nose, based on what you said earlier. What else?"

“Well," Claude hesitated a bit. "I don't want you to think 'shapeshifting' means I can turn into anything. Some natural vampires have multiple shapes, but I can only turn into one thing, and it's not that impressive."

"Oh?" Rue's eyes lit with curiosity and she leaned towards him.

"It's just... A raccoon."

Claude unpacked a small black microwave and took a moment to locate the outlet above the counter so he could plug it in. He even set the time on the clock.

"Oh. That's not what I expected. But honestly that sounds very lucky."

"Er, you think?"

"Well, yeah. You still have hands that way. Raccoons are already pretty scary-smart and adaptable. One with human intelligence would be able to do some pretty impressive stuff."

"Huh. Hadn't thought about it that way. I was always just disappointed I didn't turn into something cool, like a wolf. Especially after I met Luke, I thought it would've been nice to turn into a wolf and keep him company when he shifts."