The next time I see Brent I’m going to remove his… (ahem)

Sunday night I went for a jog to the gym (I love that it’s within jogging distance to my new apartment now) and worked out for a bit. I was pretty exhausted afterwards, which was excellent because it made the wolf less restless.

I rounded off my day by going to the supermarket. By the time I was done it was around 9pm. I was so ready to be at home on my couch watching TV, or something equally intellectually stimulating, but I still had to lug my groceries home. Unfortunately I did consider a cab, but I can’t really afford the fare for what would essentially be a 10 minute walk.

I was walking along a semi-biggish street (it would have been quicker to take less well lit streets, but I thought it would be safer to stick to main thoroughfares) and cursing the people who stole my car, when a mid-age lady pulled up behind me in a mini-van.

She wound down her window and gestured me over… Nothing about the situation seemed off, but the wolf in me still sent out a warning growl.

I’ve done a couple of self defense courses* and every single one of them have said don’t go sticking your head inside anyone elses car, and don’t go getting close enough to be dragged in. So even though she looked harmless I didn’t go any closer, I stayed on the footpath, under a well lit section of the street and smiled in a way that said I was listening, even though I wasn’t doing what she wanted.

She leaned over the seat to talk and said: “Hey there, this probably sounds a bit weird, but I saw you at the supermarket – you look almost exactly like my daughter! Anyway you look exhausted, and I look like I’m heading in the same direction as you – I’m going to Queen Street. Would you like a lift at all?”

She looked nice enough, and smelt human enough, but I shook my head. I thanked her for the thought, and then lied about how my place was only a few doors down the road, and how my (big scary) husband would shoot me if I got into the car with a stranger – even if she was woman and drove what was clearly a soccer mum van.

The woman spun some bullshit story about how she’d hate to see her daughter out walking at night, and kept pressing me to accept a lift.

The hair on the back of my neck rose, and I firmly turned her down and was about to continue on my way when a thick strap wrapped around my neck.

The scent of something ‘other’ was faint (he must have showered, and been wearing new clothes) but it was there. He tightened the strap until it was hard to breath, and tried to shove me towards the car. I freaked and remembered that all the self defence courses had also said NEVER allow yourself to be taken to a secondary location. Nothing good ever happens there.

I turned my head and sank my (not quite human anymore) teeth into the guy’s thumb. The strap loosened suddenly, and I turned just enough to sink my elbow back into his stomach, and then grab, squeeze and twist his balls.

He howled like a woman, and I turned a bit more and raked my fingers across his eyes. Then I ran flat out towards an up-market building that I’d seen a doorman at before. The door man was not there, but a night time security guard was.

I was aware enough to force the bits of me that hadn’t quite stayed human to return to their normal shapes (teeth, eyes, ears, claws) so that I didn’t freak him out any more than I already had with the blood, and the terror.

He let me in, and I sank down onto the floor without even taking my backpack off, shaking like a leaf with adrenaline overdose.

The security guard said something and touched my shoulder, and I was still so panicked that I damn near took his arm off by dropping him into a hold from Taekwon Do.

Naturally he wasn’t quite as sympathetic to my plight as he had been before I attacked him (what can I say, the guy should have known better than to touch a freaked out female!) But he did call the cops, who showed up in a blaze of lights and sirens.

They insisted on taking statements, DNA samples from the blood on my fingers, and having my throat checked out at the hospital. I’m pretty bruised up today, and even though essentially there’s nothing they can do about a severely bruised and scraped up throat, it still took freaking HOURs of poking and prodding. Exactly how you want to be spending the wee hours of Monday morning after a crazy surge of adrenaline and were-wolfiness.

I finally ended up catching a cab back to my place at 4 in the morning (it cost a bomb, but I decided that one attempt on my life was enough for the night).

Don’t laugh at me, but I took an hour long shower, checked all my windows and doors twice, then locked myself in the bathroom, and slept in the tub in my wolf form. It was stupid, but the big solid bathtub felt safer than my bed… so that’s where I stayed.

The whole situation stank of fucking Hyenas. (well not literally… I don’t think either of them were actually hyena, but the method, and all that was definite tricky-hyena-fuck-upery.) Is it just me, or does this sound a bit like I’m a marked woman at the moment?

Oh… and I need to go replace those groceries today, because somewhere in-between having the strap placed around my neck, and raking the guy’s eyes I dropped them on the street. (Not that I regret that because, hello, still alive. But still it’s a pain in the butt.)

* Just a note of self defense: I do ITF Taekwon Do, which is actually more of a martial art than a self defense. We do spend a bit of time on self defense – grabs releases and holds – but my instructor also makes a point of organising self defense seminars and letting us know about the ones he hears about outside of my immediate club.

I’m firmly of the belief that every single woman should make the effort to go out and find a practical based self defense program to attend – and if it’s made especially with woman in mind than it’s even more valuable. Most communities have them advertised, and if you’re lucky you may even find a free one (they are less common).

The statistics on violence, and sexual violence especially, towards women are staggering and scary, and should make you ANGRY – no matter what country you are in. It’s absolutely negligent on your part if you don’t make every effort not to become one of those statistics. Educate yourselves on the risks, and then PRACTICE making yourself safe as often as you can.

Without the skills I learnt over the five or six programs I’ve attended so far, along with Taekwon Do, I would probably be in a very bad place right now.

(End of rant/ preachy werewolf, I promise!)