Nathan felt rather... at peace. He was floating in complete darkness with no light anywhere in sight. It was strange though. Nathan swore he was just thinking of something but the thought completely slipped his mind. This place was so calm and warm. There was unbelievable warmth around him. It was then that Nathan realized he could feel something soft brushed against his side, Nathan's hands curling around tufts of hair. Nathan looked down at his hand and saw it wasn't just hair but fur. Unbelievably soft brown fur, like the color of the sweetest chocolate you've ever tasted. It was pretty to look at and seemed to shimmer as Nathan rubbed it between his fingers. It was so soft! It was almost addicting to touch it. He was happy to realize his face was half buried in this soft brown fur, his body practically enveloped in it. Nathan smiled, feeling so calm and happy that he almost fell back asleep, when the fur underneath him started to vibrate like a mini earthquake. Also, the fur was moving! Not by much. It rose up a little, than down, before rising back up again in a steady rhythm. Nathan realized the fur was breathing! It was also... purring? It wasn't exactly like a purr, nothing he'd heard a cat make before, but the fur was making this rather rumbling noise similar to a growl but it seem inviting somehow. As if the fur was just as happy to be cuddling with him.

"That's nice," Nathan thought with a giggle, petting the fur, when some of the fur rose up resting on his lap. It wasn't like a large tuft of fur had randomly reached out or anything. No, Nathan slowly realized he was looking down at a tail! It was so very soft too.

Nathan caressed the tail from the base to the tip, over and over again, which caused that rumbling purr to start up again. It was coming from his right, Nathan lifting his head up from the fur to follow the path from the tip of it's tail to it's back and, finally, Nathan found himself looking down at the head of a large wolf who was laying with it's head resting on its paws. It looked to be sleeping too, fully content as Nathan petted it, but it cracked an eyelid open as Nathan's petting paused as he stared in amazement at this beautiful wolf. Where had it come from? It seemed rather friendly, lifting its head to gaze down at Nathan through eyes of startling silver. It was like looking into the stars themselves, Nathan transfixed as he stared into the wolf's eyes and it stared back into his. Slowly, it brought its head closer, its body curling tighter around Nathan drawing him closer, until he could feel it's breath fanning his face. The stayed liked that what felt like an eternity, the wolf letting out that rumbling purr and Nathan couldn't help but smile as he felt unbelievable joy. Then the wolf tipped it's snout down, drawing even closer until their foreheads were pressed together.

A connection like no other...

Nathan could somehow feel his own hand caressing the tail, his own body pressed against his side, and so much more. It was like the wolfs senses were becoming his own and vice versa, his hand twitching as the wolf eagerly wanted Nathan to continue the petting which he did and it brought them both such bliss.

"This feels nice," Nathan thought, letting out his own rumbling purr as he cuddled into the wolf's side when there was a flash of light in the far distance. Something was glowing and it was getting brighter. "What's that?" Nathan asked with a sleepy yawn, the wolf nuzzling the side of his face making Nathan giggle when the wolf suddenly stood up. "Where are you doing?" Nathan asked with a whimper, reaching for the wolf as it walked away deeper into the darkness as the bright light drew closer until it completely enveloped Nathan...

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"Nathan!" Issac's voice startled Nathan awake who let out a wheezing gasp, Issac and all their classmates swimming into view. Nathan remembered what happened before he blacked out and about the strange dream he just had but he couldn't focus on that now. He still couldn't breathe! "Nathan! What the hell?" Issac asked as his hands fluttered over Nathan's body looking helpless and panicky as he could do nothing to help Nathan.

"What's wrong with him?" a girl asked in the crowd as they all watched Nathan choke and spasm.

"I don't know!" Issac snapped, looked around frantically but there was nothing nearby that could help Nathan. He could only watch as Nathan curled up into a ball clutching at his chest, Issac looking ready to have a panic attack himself. "Where the hell is the damn nurse!" Issac practically screamed, a few other students racing back towards the school to see what was the hold up.

Everyone kept murmuring and talking all around Nathan but he could barely hear them. Everything was getting blurry around him and he could feel some kind of change going through him. Was he dying? Is that what this feeling is? Nathan's body kept twitching and he swore he could feel one of his arms become as flimsy as a noodle before... morphing? It felt like it took on a whole other shape but that must be in Nathan's head, right? Whatever he was feeling, or what he thought he was feeling, all thoughts seemed to cease as Nathan felt something new. Like someone was watching him... Well, there were a lot of people staring at him, a whole crowd of his classmates gawking over him to be exact, but this feeling was far more intense than the others. That's when Nathan saw someone through the sea of legs standing all around him. This person was crouching just a few feet from the edge of the crowd just staring at Nathan but he couldn't see who he was because Nathan's vision was starting to go dark. What he could make out was a pale hand against dark clothing rising up to a mouth with plush pink lips from the cold. Those lips pursed into an almost pout before making a gentle shushing sound that carried through the air over the noise of the crowd.

"Out of the way!" Coach Brunt's unmistakable booming voice called out over the crowd as he and a flurry of teachers clamored out of the building along with the school nurse. "What's going on here?" Coach Brunt demanded of the students that quickly parted for the crowd of teachers revealing Nathan still curled up on the ground but he found he was slowly calming down. That strange feeling of change was disappearing too and his arm also felt normal.

"Now what's happening?" Nathan wondered as he took in a deep breath. He took in several, actually, as he realized he could breathe!

"He suddenly collapsed!" Issac said as the nurse rushed forward to check on Nathan when the body slowly sat up. He was very shaky but he found that he was... fine. "Nathan?" Issac asked as Nathan brought a hand up to his forehead, his breath evening out to normal as the melting feeling went away and his bones seemed to solidify.

"I... I think I'm okay... maybe," Nathan said even as the nurse held up a small flashlight to shine in Nathan's eyes, watching his pupils dilate before checking the young man's pulse.

"What exactly happened here? Who's responsible for this?" Coach Brunt demanded as he looked around at the students, his glare sweeping the crowd causing them all to squirm.

"I am!" a voice called out, both Issac and Nathan shocked to see peach-fuzz guy raising his hand in the air drawing everyone's attention his way. His friends on either side of him averted their gazes, having not expected him to give himself up either. "We were joking around asking him to show him where the wolf bit him when he suddenly started freaking out. We didn't mean to. It was just a joke!" peach-fuzz guy said with a shrug but he clearly wasn't taking this lightly.

"I think he might have had a panic attack," Issac piped up, talking to the nurse while Coach Brunt was chewing peach-fuzz guy and his friends out. "Those guys started howling and suddenly it was like he couldn't breathe!" Issac went on as the nurse asked Nathan if he felt any discomfort or pain anywhere.

"He seems alright for the moment but I think it'd be best to let him rest a moment in the infirmary. We'll contact your guardian and let them know what's happening," the nurse said as he stood up, both Issac and the nurse helping Nathan onto his feet and slowly guiding him back towards the school.

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"You sure you don't want to go to the hospital? Make sure everything is okay," Issac asked for the millionth time as Jessie drove them over to Sally's orphanage to drop Nathan off. She'd left work a little early when Issac had called her to let her know what happened and Nathan almost found himself being taken to the hospital whether he liked it or not.

"Did he have one of those 'fits' the doctor mentioned? Are you sure you're okay?" Jessie asked and had peppered Nathan with a million questions even as Nathan was eating a pudding cup in the nurses office feeling relaxed and calm. He'd felt rather shaky just after his little episode outside but once he was inside and was able to catch his breath in the heated interior of the nurses office, Nathan felt much better and had been discussing his history paper with his history teacher when Jessie had arrived. "I still think you should make an appointment with your doctor and let him know what happened. The nurse said you most likely had a panic attack and you might have one again for all we know. Maybe I'll talk to Sally about taking you to a psychiatrist. They'll know how to help you better," Jessie said to Nathan, mostly mumbling to herself.

"I'll be alright. You guys should go home and get yourselves some dinner," Nathan said with a sigh as both Jessie and Issac started discussing plans to send Nathan to a psychiatrists office, group therapy, maybe taking him on a little vacation to get his minds off anything wolfy. "They always act like this whenever I get hurt," Nathan said with a roll of his eyes and an affectionate smile, but it was a little pained as he reminded himself that he wasn't actually a part of their family. Issac was just his friend with an awesome mother who raised her son on her own when she finally kicked her deadbeat husband to the curb who did more drinking and lounging around than working. Jessie was the definition of an independent woman who worked very hard to take care of herself and Issac. "They should be focusing on their own lives. I'll deal with my own problems," Nathan thought to himself which sounded a little cold to his own ears but he told himself that it was the truth. What happened earlier was just a little accident, nothing more. He was fine now and, even if it happens again, he can deal with it. At least, that's what Nathan was thinking when Jessie pulled up in front of Sally's, putting the truck in park before turning around in her seat to look at Nathan having come to a decision.

"You should call your doctor and let him know what happened today. Ask him to get a consultation with a psychiatrist so we can find out what happened today and how to prevent it from happening again, or at the very least, how to deal with it when or if it comes around. I'm also getting you one of those alarm necklaces they give to old people so you can call the police at a moments notice if you feel like your having another attack," Jessie said seriously as she stared Nathan in the eyes, having already guessed he was going to insist on dealing with this on his own. "No 'buts' mister. I'm ordering the necklace for overnight delivery so it'll be here by tomorrow. Let's go talk to Sally," Jessie said before getting out of the truck leaving Nathan to gawk at her.

Nathan turned to Issac, hoping he could talk her mother into seeing reason, but Issac also hopped out of the truck and even held open the door for Nathan with a satisfied smirk on his face. "You do know not everyone treats their friends like this, right? Much less their son's friends?" Nathan asked as he carefully exited the vehicle per Issac's instructions for fear he'd open his stitches.

"We're just special like that," Issac said, following Nathan to the door like a little puppy.