Double Secret

'Right.' he said, petting her head. 'Let's go, dinner's waiting.'

She nodded and looked around the field one more time before getting in the car.

**

Back at home they ate and watched an action movie they wouldn't be able to watch with their mother around. She couldn't stand the amount of violence in this one. Romy had draped herself across her brother's lap as usual. She had forgotten the scare she had at the library, but now she felt hot and a little groggy. Luis noticed she felt warmer than usual from his lap and his hands resting on her back.

'Sis? Are you okay?' he asked and felt her forehead. It looked like she had a fever.

She rolled on her back. 'I don't feel too good, no.'

'Better get you to bed then.' he said and she held up her arms. 'Carry me?' she asked and he grinned. 'Anything for my poor little sister.' he said and lifted her up in his arms.

She snuggled up to his chest as he held her close, taking her upstairs and into her room to put her on her bed.

'Help me undress?' she asked.

He rolled his eyes and sighed. 'Only this once.' he said, helped her take off her sweater and pants, then put on one of her night shirts before tucking her in.

'Thanks.' she whispered while he made sure she was comfortable. He caressed her forehead and cheeks. She kissed his fingers once, then closed her eyes.

'Sweet dreams, and be well in the morning.' he said, then went down again to watch the rest of the movie.

Before going to sleep, he peeked into her room and heard her soft breathing. He figured he'd let her stay home tomorrow even if she felt better, to make sure she got enough rest. Not long after he fell asleep a wail woke him up. Before realising what happened his door slammed open and a whining creature came through the doorway. He moved back at once against the wall at the sight of clawed feet and hands, sharp fangs and glowing eyes in the little light from outside. There were no swearwords he could come up with to express his fright. In the moment it took for the creature to move in his direction he grabbed the baseball bat from a shelf next to his bed and swung it back, intent on hitting it with all his might. The creature let out another whine and stumbled back on the floor against his desk. 'Brother, no!' it whined terrified, tucking in its legs and holding up its arms in defence.

He gripped his bat tight, getting off his bed and taking a closer look at the trembling creature whining '..it's me.. ..it's me..'. He recognised the shirt it wore. 'Romy..?' he said and it took a peek from behind it's arms. 'Yes.. It's me..' it said. He watched the tear filled eyes and knew it was her. He didn't understand why, but he knew it was his little sister. His own little sister Romy.

He dropped the bat on the floor, staring at her. 'How..?'

She lowered her arms, looking up at him in desperation. 'I don't know.. I woke up to find myself covered in fur and when I looked in the mirror I saw this ugly creature staring back at me.' she said, holding up her hands covered in light brown fur and claws at the end of her short fingers. 'I'm scared, brother.. Help me.. Please help me..'

He knelt down next to her and she crawled into his arms, crying while he held her, stroking soft down the back of her head and hoping this turned out to be a freaky dream. When she had calmed down a little bit he helped her to his bed where he cradled her gently on his lap.

'What have I done to turn into this.., this horrible thing?' she whined.

He wiped her short wet muzzle dry with tissues. 'I can't imagine what caused this, but you're not horrible.'

'But I am!' she said. 'I'm covered in fur! I'm like a horror dog! A werewolf!'

She cried again and he pulled her head against his chest. 'Yes, but then you're the cutest version I've ever seen.' he whispered while cuddling her.

She let out a chuckle and hit his arm weakly. 'This isn't funny. You wanted to kill me with your bat.'

'I know, but you scared the crap out of me when you stormed in like that. You could at least have knocked.'

That drew out another chuckle and hit on his arm. 'I hate you..' she whispered.

'I know. So keep doing that instead of hating yourself.'

She caressed his bare and wet chest. 'You're soaked from my tears, sorry..'

He stroked her head. 'I don't care. If my little sister needs to cry she can use it anytime.'

The comfort he gave her relaxed her enough for tiredness to force a yawn out of her and he lifted her chin up. 'Let's try to get some sleep. Then we'll try to figure things out in the morning. You can sleep with me if you want.' She nodded and they snuggled up together under the blanket. He stroked her hand in his with his thumb. 'You do feel very warm and soft.'

'Didn't I before?' she chuckled, feeling a little happy.

'Well, yes, but this is different. Not saying better, so don't go all woman on me and twist my words around.' he chuckled.

She grinned. 'Oh, I will when it suits me.'

'Great.' he sighed. 'Sleep tight, little sis.'

'Sleep well, big bro.'

***

The next morning she woke up first, sadness filling her chest at seeing she hadn't dreamed the whole thing. She wanted to cry but she felt a squeeze from her brother's arm around her and a nuzzle against the back of her head. "I can be a pet to him at least, if I never change back." she thought and stroked his arm gently. Not much later she felt him stir, then stretch and yawn. She turned around to face him, smiling softly while he looked sleepy into her eyes.

'I'd like to say good morning, but we haven't been dreaming last night.'

'No, we haven't, but I do feel a little better thanks to you, so it's good morning.' she said and gave him a quick kiss. 'Oops.' she said. 'Force of habit.'

He pulled up one corner of his mouth. 'Just don't lick me all over my face.'

She started poking him, making him laugh. 'Oh, you wish! I'll lick you all over like a rabid dog and you'll love it!'

He defended by tickling her and managed to jump off his bed while she squirmed. He sat on the floor, leaning back on his arms and took a few deep breaths while she calmed down, sitting on her knees on the bed. She caught a glimpse of herself in the mirror and looked away. 'Did you mean it..?' she asked after a moment.

'Mean what?' he asked.

'When I said I looked like a horror dog..'

He tried to remember last night and realised what she meant. 'Yeah, I do.' he said, smiling softly. 'The light brown colour and fluffy fur suits you.'

Her tail wagged once and she took a glance at the mirror. 'I'm scared though.'

He nodded.

'I'm afraid to look at my body.'

'I think I can imagine.'

She fumbled with the hem of her shirt. 'Will you tell me how I look?'

He gave her a gentle smile. 'Sure.' he said. 'If it'll help you.'

Feeling nervous, she stepped off the bed and stood before him. 'Take your time.' he said. 'I don't think there's anything to be afraid of.'

She nodded slightly and took a few deep breaths to slow down her racing heart. Then she grabbed the hem of her shirt and pulled it up over her head to hold it in front of her chest. She watched his face as he looked up and down her body.

'You're somewhere between dog and human.' he said. 'Your legs resemble those of a dog, your upper body and arms look more human, although covered in fur, your face resembles that of a dog again, but you do have a cute short muzzle and big floppy ears.' he said, then noticed a slight wag from her tail. 'Your curly tail is cute too.'

She felt embarrassed and looked away. 'Geez, I told you to look, not make me out like some cute puppy dog.'

He grinned and stood up, turning her towards the closet door mirror and squeezed her shoulders lovingly. 'Then look for yourself. It's true.'

She glanced once to get used to seeing her reflection. It did look like a dog standing on her hind legs for a moment. She glanced several more times, looking up from her firm paws and legs to her face, which caused her most trouble. Seeing the caring look on her brother's face helped her look at hers, and she did get the feeling of seeing a real puppy dog. She lowered her hands, revealing two small humps on her chest. "At least that shape hasn't changed." she thought and a slight smile formed.

'See? Despite what happened, you're still very cute.'

'Shut up.' she said. 'But thanks..'

The alarm clock startled them and he shut it down with his heart pounding in his chest. 'I'll call in sick at school. That'll give us some time to think of something.'

She nodded and he grabbed his pants before going downstairs. She looked back at her reflection, her white panties contrasted with her light brown fur and she wondered if that area had changed or not. She took a deep breath and pulled down her panties, expecting the worst, but all that showed was a little crease in the short fur covering her chest and abdomen. She spread her legs a little and moved a finger carefully down there. A tingle went through her hips when she slid her finger across her clit and pussy. It hadn't changed beyond being covered in short fur, although it seemed sensitive now. She had never felt so sensitive there and wondered if it felt normal like this for other girls.

When she heard her brother come up the stairs she pulled her panties up quickly and went out of his room. 'Did you call?'

'Yeah, told them it looked like we came down with the flu and would stay home for at least a few days. I also let Will know and he said he'd tell Clarice.' he said and thought she was scared again. 'You okay? Feeling scared again?'

She shook her head. 'Not so much anymore. I'm going to look for something I can wear.'

'I'm going to take a quick shower, then we'll have breakfast.'

**

'Damn.' Luis said.

'What?' Romy asked, chewing slowly on her sandwich.

'That big dog we found on the road!' he said. 'Maybe that's the cause.'

She pondered about it. 'But why aren't you affected then? You were handling it more than me.'

He nodded. 'Maybe it didn't have an effect on me, whatever it had, or was.' He gulped down the rest of his milk. 'I'm going to look for it.' he said and wanted to leave the table but she put her hand on his. He looked at her pleading eyes. 'Come back quickly.' she said. 'I'm afraid being alone. And be careful.' He leaned closer and placed a gentle kiss on the top of her muzzle. 'I will, sis.'

She watched him drive off and hugged herself, smelling his scent in her fur and relaxed a little.

**

He drove the whole length of the straight piece of the road several times, then stopped at the spot he guessed where they had found the animal. There was no sign of it anywhere he walked up and down the road. Disappointed he drove back home.

'It's gone.' he said, finding his sister waiting for him at the door.

'Gone?'

He nodded. 'Not a trace. Maybe it wasn't dead after all.'

Romy grabbed his shirt and moved tight against him. 'What if it's coming for us?'

He embraced her, stroking her hair. 'Then it would have come to us already. It probably wandered off somewhere.'

'But then it might infect more people.'

'Yeah, so let's see if there are reports about it.'

They started with the first source of information they had, the internet. They knew not to expect much but had to start somewhere. Luis sat at his desk, typing queries into several different search engines while Romy leaned against his back with her arms around his shoulders, checking out the results and websites. Most were fantasy and horror sites with the standard werewolf, werecat, and were-anything stories. Some sites claimed they were real but the evidence looked really bad. Some sites discussed genetic engineering but none showed anything remotely close to mixing of different species, let alone humans and animals.

After several hours of fruitless searching Luis had to stand up and stretch his sore legs. 'Damn.' he said, rubbing the back of his thighs. 'I need a break. My head's full of junk.'

'I'm getting hungry.' she said, then looked at her hands. 'Unfortunately I don't think I can make you something without getting hair in it.'

He grinned and ruffled her hair. 'Don't worry, I'll make us something.'

Luis made them grilled sausages and they were so tasty, the siblings were stuffed when they crashed on the couch. He laid back and Romy snuggled up to him. His phone beeped and he read a message from Will. 'Clarice asked if she needed to get us anything and come by. He'd join her then.'

'No!' Romy blurted out. 'They can't!'

'Don't worry.' Luis said as he replied. 'I'll let him know we're fine and will message them if we do need something.'

She nodded and let out a sigh of relief.

'I need a nap. All that food is making my head feel more stuffed after searching the internet for so long.' he said, putting away his phone and closing his eyes.

'Yeah..'

He turned his head and looked at her face, seeing the sadness in her eyes. 'We'll find something.'

'I just can't get the thought out of my head that we won't, and I'll be like this for the rest of my life. What will I do? Where can I go?'

He moved his arm back. 'Come here.' he said. She turned to him and laid her head down on his shoulder, her muzzle in his neck and her arm around his chest. 'If it comes to that, I will take care of you and be by your side.'

She smiled softly. 'You're going to have even less chance of finding a girl, you know that?'

He grinned. 'You'll just have to be quiet and I'll tell them you're my pet.'

'Meanie!' she said and pricked her claws in his chest.

He laughed and took her hand in his. 'All right, all right, I'll let you talk.'

'I'll make you talk.' she said and bit gently in his neck, causing him to squirm.

'I give up!' he said. 'I won't call you my pet.'

She let him go and looked at his devious grin. She was happy he was at her side and managed to cheer her up. She gave the bite mark in his neck a soft lick. 'Maybe I'll let you once in a while.'

He squeezed her hand. 'We'll try not to let it come to this.'

She nodded and closed her eyes, thinking she hadn't realised he smelled so good before.

**

By the time they woke up they were refreshed enough to take on another marathon search. Still, there was nothing that they hadn't seen before and even Luis felt bad. 'Sorry sis, looks like this is a dead end.' he sighed.

She squeezed him lightly with her arms around his shoulders and nuzzled his neck. 'Don't apologise, you've looked all day for my sake.'

'I had hoped to find at least one clue.' he said, stroking her arms. 'I'll try the library tomorrow. And I could check out the book stores, those with older and second-hand books.'

'I don't know how to ever make it up to you.'

He grinned a little. 'I'll think of something to make you remember your whole life.'

She pricked her claws into the sides of his chest again, making him laugh. 'Maybe I should just keep this form. It does have some advantages.'

**

They spend the evening eating dinner and watching comedy to take their mind off things for a bit. When they were tired enough they went upstairs. Romy fiddled with her night shirt, the only thing she could wear now.

Luis understood. 'Go, I'll keep the light on for you.'

He saw her smile and her tail wagging, then she hurried to the bathroom to brush her teeth. He shook his head and smiled, tidied up his bed a bit, undressed and read a few pages from his book when she walked in. 'Ready now?' he asked and she nodded, crawling into bed with her back against his front.

'Good night, sweet brother.' she whispered, turning her head to him.

'Good night, cute little sister.' he whispered, putting a kiss on the side of her muzzle and held her close.

His comfortable warmth and smell made her fall asleep quickly again.

***

Luis felt strange, remembering pieces of a dream where he chased his sister, seemingly on all fours, when he woke up. He felt relieved she was sleeping in his arms, then noticed he didn't feel fur against his legs and arms. He propped up a bit and found her back in her human form. 'Sis! You're human again!'

With a moan she stirred, stretched a bit, then rolled towards him with half open eyes. '..what..?'

'Sis! You're back to normal!' he said, pulling the blanket away to look at her.

She looked at herself, then laughed, overjoyed to be herself again. 'Brother! I'm back!' she said and hugged him tight, kissing his cheek.

He kissed her back on her cheek, holding her tight. 'Everything's normal again.'

'Yes, normal.' she said after she got out of bed and checked herself in his mirror. when he went to the bathroom she pulled down her panties to look at the patch of now light brown hair between her legs. "That's different though." she thought, but if the change in colour was all that changed, she didn't mind. Curious to see if the sensitivity had gone, she touched her pussy and let out a soft moan. It hadn't. The tingling feeling was pleasant, so she stroked soft with her fingertip around her clit and along her pussy lips. When a moan escaped her throat the moment she pushed against her clit she startled herself. Feeling embarrassed she pulled up her panties and went to the bathroom to take a shower.

'So, everything back in place?' Luis asked when she walked in.

He was just rinsing off and she took off her shirt and panties to get in directly after he was done. 'A hundred percent human again.'

'Too bad, I was thinking of buying you a nice collar today.' he chuckled.

'Hey!' she said and smacked his ass. 'I'll put you on a leash! Now get out, it's my turn.'

He dried himself off as she moved under the shower with the water already at the right temperature. She never needed to fiddle with the handles when she got in right after her brother. Feeling the water run down her skin was almost like a thing she hadn't experienced in ages. If she would've still been covered in fur she couldn't feel this.

'Do you feel like going to school today?' he asked, hanging the damp towel on one of the bars.

She splashed water in her face for a moment. 'I still feel kinda tired, so I'd like to stay at home for today.'

'Okay. I'll message Will to notify the teachers we'll be back on monday.' he said, leaving the bathroom.

**

Through the day the siblings read and watched a couple of movies in between naps. By evening the stress from the last days had faded away. Romy was using her brother's lap as a pillow as she often did when they were both reading. He was absent-mindedly scritching her stomach when he noticed her giggling.

'What?' he asked, looking down at her grinning face.

'I'm no longer a pet dog, you know?'

'Huh?'

She nodded with her head to his scritching fingers.

'Ah.' he said, stopping it. 'Then again, you always do curl up with me like you are one. Maybe I will have to treat you like one.'

She put her book away and clawed at his stomach, growling. 'You'd like that, wouldn't you? I'll bite you!' she said, growling into his shirt, making him squirm and laugh.

'I give! I give!' he said, trying to ward her off. 'You're not a pet dog!'

She growled and clawed him more until they heard her phone beep several times. Smirking at her brother she backed off. 'Lucky you.' she said, and read her messages. 'Clarice asked if it's okay to come and watch the spy thriller she talked about last week. She bought the DVD today. Will can bring a bottle of vodka for mixing drinks.'

'Sure. We've got enough snacks and soda.'

Soon after dinner their friends arrived and settled with everything in front of the TV. Will made the mix and served everyone a big glass. 'To Clarice, for providing tonight's entertainment.' he said, holding up his glass.

'Yay girl!' Romy said, settling between her brother's legs, who sat back on the couch with Will next to him and Clarice next to Will.