With a growl, I tore after him. I caught up just inside the forest and vaulted onto his back. We went down together, rolling and snarling and biting. Then teeth clamped around the bottom of my muzzle. As I struggled, he forced my head back, exposing my throat. I kicked at his underbelly. He snorted as my claws made contact, but didn’t let go. He pushed me onto my back and pinned me. Then he released my muzzle and looked down at me, indecision flickering in his eyes. His head shot down to my throat, and I wriggled frantically, trying to pull out of the way, but he only buried his nose in the ruff around my neck and inhaled deeply. Then he shuddered, legs vibrating against my sides. A moment’s hesitation. Then a soft growl, and he twisted off me and dove into the woods again.

I scrambled to my feet and set off in pursuit. This time, he had too much of a head start, and I could only get close enough to see his hindquarters bounding ahead, teasing me. He flicked his tail up. Mocking me, damn him. I surged foward, getting close enough to hear the pound of his heartbeat. Then he veered and crashed into the forest, off the trail. I chortled to myself. Now I had him. Cutting a fresh path would slow him down just enough to let me—

A brace of ptarmigan flew up, almost under my feet, and I skidded to a halt, nearly flipping over backward in my surprise. As the panicked birds took to the sky, I got my bearing again, looked around…and found myself alone. Tricked. Damn him. And damn me for falling for it.

I found his trail and loped after him. Before I’d gone a hundred feet, a soft gurgling moan rippled through the silence. I stopped, ears going up. A grunt, then panting. He was Changing. Did he think that would save him? Not likely.

I dove into the nearest thicket and began my own Change. It came fast, spurred by a healthy double shot of adrenaline and frustration. When I finished, he was still in his thicket.

I crept around to the other side, pulled back a handful of leaves and peered through. He was done, but recovering, crouched on all fours, panting as he caught his breath. By the rules of fair play, I should have given him time to recuperate. But I wasn’t in the mood for rules.

I sprang onto his back. Before he could react, my arm went around his neck, forearm jammed against his windpipe.

I leaned over his shoulder. “Did you think you could escape that easily?”