Howls and Home Runs (Mascot Matchups #1)

2. Wilder

Chapter two

Wilder

W hen the season ended and all the investigations finished, I was sent to a mascot repair shop to be reconstructed. Something about a new look, a new start. All I know is that after Andy’s death, the team made changes, and I was one of them.

I was made to look more realistic, far more intricate than the other mascots I met with their ridiculous big eyes and round shapes. Monsters and vegetables, really? Come on. Who designed those guys?

The woman who altered my body would talk to me as if she knew I was alive. She handled me with great care while she gave me more lifelike features. My teeth and claws were handcrafted one by one and each ended in sharp points. My height stayed the same, but my head was longer. My ears were taller. My body, more muscular.

I often stared at her walls while she stitched me together. They were covered in images of real-life wolves–such magnificent creatures. Her sweet voice called me handsome and special, making my fur ruffle and tail wag. Her kindness made me feel less like a suit, and more like a living being who mattered.

Baseball season finally arrived, so I was uncomfortably packed up and shipped back to Westland Stadium, my home. Coach Reynar unboxed me with pride.

“You look phenomenal Wilder! Welcome home.” He exclaimed, before hanging me back up in my cold dark locker, leaving me alone once again.

Time since then has passed in misery. Now I feel like my first handler, Jerry, felt. He often felt prickly and cold, devoid of the life I craved, and feeling that way now makes me uncomfortable.

I’m jerked out of my memories when my locker door is swung open. A bright sunny face greets me.

“Hello Wilder! Wow, look at you!”

She carefully takes me out of the locker, cradling me in her warm arms. Her skin’s pale and covered in tan speckles. Tall but not overly thin like James was, I let my eyes roam over this new human. A pale green tank top that compliments her soft green eyes covers her torso, while black shorts show off her long legs. She smells like sunshine, warm and bright, and something sweet I can’t pinpoint. Red hair flops about in a messy braid over her shoulder like a fiery rope as she turns with me, laying me gently on the bench. My nose subtly twitches and my paws clench. I have to will my tail to not wag so I don’t scare her off.

“Lainey, there you are!” Coach Reynar speaks loudly as he enters the locker room. “I see you’ve met Wilder 2.0. He was recently totally reconstructed after the- “

Coach Reynar shakes off the thought, glancing away with a saddened expression before turning back to Lainey with a big smile.

Her name is Lainey. It sounds like music to my ears as I let her name bounce around my mind, begging to roll off my tongue like a soft melody.

“Go ahead and try him on so we can see how he fits.”

“Sounds great!” Lainey cheerfully answers back. God, her voice. It nearly makes my body vibrate with energy.

She picks up my body, detached from my large foam head, and carefully locates the zipper on my back, slowly dragging it down. I sneak a glance at Coach Reynar who lingers a moment too long. I growl, though luckily it sounds like the bench sliding across the linoleum floor. Coach Reynar looks towards my head curiously, his brow furrowing .

“Right. Well, I’ll let you get inside Wilder. Come find me in my office after so we can make any suit adjustments and go over the keeper handbook.”

Lainey glances over her shoulder at him with a smile, “Will do, I’ll be there shortly.” When she smiles at him my paws clench again, making my claws clack against each other.

Lainey pauses briefly to look around the locker room. Noting nothing out of the ordinary, she steps inside me. A warm tingly feeling floods my body and my ears twitch on my head sitting awkwardly next to us. Staring up at my body, I realize my tail is wagging.

SHIT . I try to calm my body but as she pulls the suit over her shoulders I fucking whine . What was I thinking? I wasn’t.

“Hello?” Lainey’s nervous voice echoes through the locker room as she looks around trying to locate the source of the noise. “Anyone there?”

When nothing answers back she slides her arms into the furry sleeves and zips herself in. I grit my teeth to keep from making any more ridiculous sounds.

Picking up my head in her soft hands, leaving the suit paws dangling, she smiles at me.

“Ok Wilder. Let’s do this!”

Plunking my head down over her own, I get the chance to inhale her scent deeply. She smells so good and handles me so gently , I want to keep her inside me forever. Lainey is mine.

My mind wanders away from me, playing images of my Lainey as she takes us out of the locker room and down the hall to Coach Reynar’s office.