Author's Note: This is the story of Phelan Greene, a character featured in the second part
of The Postmodern Werewolf.
The Greene family was the average family living in Houston, Texas and they lived
around the Garden Oaks area. Cyrus Greene worked at a radio station. Adela Greene
was a hygienist and worked at a nearby dental office. Phelan, their only son, was seven.
Their city had changed in the past few decades. It had gained a rail system. There was one
at first which started in 2004 when the Super Bowl was here and more tracks were put in
place over the years. It had gone from a city that wasn't exactly known for a tourist
attraction to one that could bring in as many visitors as San Antonio. Buffalo Bayou even
had something similar to the Riverwalk. There were just shops and small cafes. There were
no hotels because Buffalo Bayou was smaller than the San Antonio River.
One summer they took a vacation to Big Bend. Phelan loved being outdoors. One
day's activities was a walk through the forest. Breakfast consisted of waffles. Their leader
kept notifying them of the time so that they could leave on time. Time was eventually up and
the group began their walk.
The forest was wonderful, Phelan thought. There must be all sorts of animals here.
He was so absorbed in it, by the time he looked up, there was no one around. He shouted,
"Mommy! Daddy!" Nothing. No one responded. He walked around aimlessly trying to find the
group and soon lost his balance on a ledge that he didn't see in time.
He tumbled and he tumbled. He landed with a thud and his knee was cut badly. He
cried and cried. They were all scrapes, but they hurt very much. He then heard a noise
coming from the bushes. He first thought he had been found, but he was very wrong. It was
a wolf. He backed up as much he could. He was very scared and didn't want to get hurt
more, or worse. The wolf slowly approached him and started to lick the wounds. The saliva
burned a bit and then quieted down. In fact, it seemed relaxing. The wolf nudged him trying to
get him to move. Phelan got up and said, "What now?" The wolf started to walk away. Now
was his chance to get away. He started to walk in the other direction when the wolf got in
front of him and nudged him again. Phelan shouted, "What do you want!?" The wolf
whimpered, but kept nudging him. This kept up until the wolf got him into an empty cave. The
sun was setting and the boy was getting hungry. He moaned, "I'm so hungry." It was unlikely
that the wolf understood. The wolf got up and went out. The boy wasn't sure what to do. He
decided to stay just in case it rained because the sky looked a bit cloudy. The wolf came
back sometime later with a rabbit and bent down and started to eat it. He came back and
presented the boy with some meat. Phelan wasn't sure, but his stomach rumbled again. He
Held out his hands and the wolf dropped the piece of meat into his hand. The boy was still
leery, but hunger was powerful. He brought it slowly to his lips and ate the piece of raw
meat. It was something. With little else to do, he went to sleep.
Phelan heard birds chirping. He saw no wolf and he walked out. He called out and
heard a voice shouting, "I've found him." Some park rangers appeared. They scooped him up
and carried him away. He then talked about the wolf and they whisked him away to the
nearest hospital.
His parents hugged him and then they asked the doctor, "Does he have rabies?" He
shook his head and said, "Test came back negative. The cuts seem to be fine. I've given him
a vaccine just to be sure. He's our little camper now." The boy was rubbing himself because
of the shots but he was cheerful and eager to get home.
His condition remarkably improved over the next few weeks. The visible scars had
dwindled down to nothing. They soon forgot what happened. What was important was that
he was safe. One night they gave him a bubble bath. It was the night that changed their
lives.
In a year or two, he would need to take a plain shower, but for now, he would get
frothy bubble baths. He used to play in the water, but increasingly he would just take a bath.
He started to rinse off when he clutched his belly and cried out in pain, "Make it stop! It
hurts." He thrashed about the tub splashing soapy water everywhere. His mother was going
to call the doctor when her husband said, "No. Look!" Adela Greene returned and saw that
their son was changing into something that they only read about. Thousands of blond hairs
sprouted all over and grew long into a furry pelt, the limbs reshaped, the face changed as
Phelan grew a snout, and a tail formed. They said nothing as Phelan looked at himself all
over. He whimpered, but his parents got a bucket and rinsed him off. They told him to get
out of the tub and they dried him off with the hairdryer. They then wrapped him in a town and
hugged him and told him that it was going to be all right. Mrs. Green then got to work on
the boy's undies and pajamas making room for a tail. She presented them to Phelan and he
put them on in the privacy of his room. He looked in the mirror and saw a wolfish face looking
back. Sad, yet interesting. He walked back out. His father sighed, "It's late Phelan. Try to go
to sleep." Phelan went to brush his teeth and use the bathroom. He then walked silently into
his room and slept.
Once they made sure he was asleep, the parents talked about these things outside.
They sat on the rocking bench and talked about their son. Mrs. Greene said, "Who are we
going to call about this?" Mr. Greene replied, "No one. They'd think we're crazy. Phelan
seems to be okay on the inside, but outside..." His wife said, "... he looks like a wolf. I thought
the doctors said there was nothing wrong?" Cyrus Greene groaned, "Nothing wrong? I
doubt this is something that comes up in their journals." He looked towards the window of
Phelan's room. Their son was now something that was only supposed to exist in stories, yet
somehow he was a werewolf. It was getting late so they decided to retire for the night. A
thought entered their minds. They didn't believe in fate, yet they named their son Phelan
which is Celtic for "brave as a wolf" and he turns out like this.
They were still asleep when their son came into the room shouting, "Look at me, look
at me." The parents groggily looked at their son who had become human again. Phelan said,
"I'm human again." Mr. Greene said, "Sorry son, but the full moon is going to rise two more
nights." The boy said, "You mean..?" The image of him as the werewolf filled his mind. Two
more nights of that. It was true, it happened two more nights. The changes then stopped
because the moon had changed to a new phase.
A few weeks later, they received some sad news. An old college friend of theirs had
died suddenly from a hit and run accident. They had to go to Massachusetts. What about
their son? They guessed that they would have to stay to tend to their son because of his
situation, but they looked at the calendar to be sure. There would be no full moon for the
weekend they would be gone. However, they had no family within adequate distance and
their friends were to busy to help them out on such short notice. They needed a babysitter.
Mr. Greene had never had a babysitter for their son and asked a coworker named
Serena Franklin of his if she knew of any babysitters. She said, "There's this teenager
whose name is John Jecong. He's very good, sorta like a big brother type. I think he has a
young brother." Mr. Greene said, "I've never heard of a male babysitter. Are you sure he's
okay?" Mrs. Franklin said, "Yes. There's nothing wrong with him." She knew more than what
she was saying. John Jecong was a werewolf, a honorable one. His reputation preceded him
and she had no problem letting him into the house. Her daughter tried though with spells that
she cooked up herself. Every time he tried to enter the house he instantly came out the
door. She scolded her daughter and told her that he was okay. He finally got in the house.
They were gone a few hours and they returned home. They were pleased with what John did
and paid him well. Even the girl said that she was wrong. He was a good sitter. Mr. Greene
said, "Do you have his number?" She said, "Even better, here's his business card." Not only
did he do babysitting work, but he could also take care of pets and do lawn work. When he
got home, he discussed this with his wife.
She was very skeptical and voiced her opinion openly, "A male babysitter? Are you
sure he's safe?" Mr. Green said, "You remember Serena Franklin?" Adela Greene said,
"The one who made those sinfully delicious chocolate cupcakes?" He said, "The same. She
said this young man babysat for her and she was well pleased." Mrs. Franklin was a very
good judge of character. She said, "All right then Cyrus. Let's call him." He got out the
business card and they dialed the number and pressed a button for speaker phone so that
they could both talk at the same time. A little boy answered, "Hello? Jecong house." Mrs.
Greene said, "Is this John?" The little boy answered, "Nu-uh. This is Joey. One minute
please." The parents smiled, the boy seemed very cheerful. An older boy's voice said, "Yes.
This is John." Mr. Greene asked, "Do you do babysitting work?" The young man replied,
"Yes, sir. Are you in need of my help?" Quite courteous. Mrs. Greene said, "We have a
funeral to go to this weekend and we're not going to take our son." John said, "My
sympathies. How old is your son?" Mr. Greene said, "Our son Phelan's 7. Why do you ask?"
The young man said, "Just for records sir. Address and time you would like me to be there?"
Mrs. Greene gave out the address and time and said, "Are you familiar with the area?" John
said, "Yes ma'am. I live in the Shepard Forest area." She answered, "Wonderful." John said,
"How did you hear about me?" Mr. Greene said, "I work with a woman named Serena
Franklin. She gave me your card and spoke highly of you." The young man said, "I see. Okay.
I've got you down for this Friday at 1700 hours." Mrs. Greene asked, "Before you go,
what's your rate?" John said, "I charge 5 dollars an hour, but in this case we'll talk about it
when I get there." She said, "All right then, see you then."
That Friday, John Jecong arrived at the Greene residence. He found out about their
son's secret since he was a werewolf also. Two days afterward, the Greenes realized that
they weren't alone. There were hundreds of werewolves and other beings they only read
about. Their son would be looked after