21-
Werewolf wounds heal quickly. Jonah told me that. Everything still hurt, but the lacerations on my stomach were already nothing more than slight marks. The sun still hadn't risen. I was in the shower, soap in my hand, and after spending an hour in there the blood was finally all gone. I turned around.
Gabe was beside me, relishing the feel of the water on his naked skin.
He opened his eyes slowly and turned to me, looked me in the eye.
"You saved my life," I said.
He shook his head. "It was my fault in the first place." He turned away from me. "Besides, Kara was the psychobitch."
I smiled. Staring at him, I saw everything I'd loved in him coming back to the surface.
I slid my arms around his waist and hugged him from behind. I kissed his neck.
"I'm sorry," he said.
"Me too."
He turned around, hands on my hips, and looked me in the eyes. The water poured around us. "Can you forgive me?" he asked.
I nodded. "This time."
"This is the only time."
He leaned in slowly, cautiously, and then he kissed me. It felt good to have his kiss back, his hands around me. It's what I needed. But then he stopped, pulled away, and reached down to lift me up. He held me in his arms, pushed the shower open, and headed to the bedroom. He slipped me onto the sheets and then crawled on top of me, still dripping, and kissed my neck. He worked his way down, past my breasts, past my belly button, and I found myself guiding his head between my legs.
"That feels good," I told him, closing my eyes and letting him work his magic. He kissed my thigh, slowly working inward, and when he came to the center I moaned in pleasure. His tongue worked up and down, and I let out a surprisingly loud moan.
"Oh, more, Jonah, more."
Everything stopped.
I felt Gabe's hands, wrapped around my legs, tighten their grip. His fingernails dug into my skin. As he lifted his head, I felt his stubble. It was rough and almost painful.
"No," I pleaded. "No, don't stop."
"What did you call me?"
I realized what had happened.
Shit.
"You slept with him, didn't you? You didn't just tell him you liked him. You slept with the bastard."
I sat up. "Hello? Kara?"
His eyes flashed in anger. "No," he hissed. "No."
And then I saw it.
"Oh my God."
His tight grip was cutting into my skin.
His eyes had done more than flash.
"She bit you."
Gabe froze. His claws let go of my legs and he backed away. His entire body was morphing. Hair was growing over everything, his muscles were bulging, his nose was becoming a long snout. Razor-sharp teeth burst out of his jaw for the first time, and they were already coated in blood when they dug into his lips and shredded his skin. He fell to the floor and coughed up blood, and then he threw his head back and howled.
"You bastard!" I screamed, getting to my knees and crawling forward. "You let her change you into a werewolf!"
And then my vision blurred. I screamed and fell to the bed, digging my face into the pillows. When I looked up, everything was coated in green. I tried to scream, but it came out as a deafening roar. I fell to the ground and ran over to the closet. The full-length mirror showed exactly what I expected it to.
My long, brown hair had become the hair of a panther. I was still standing on my hind legs, and I felt the power building in my arms. The muscles were still growing. I had long claws at the end of each hand, and a long, black tail that licked behind me. I growled, and with my teeth bared I saw that they were long and sharp and deadly.
Gabe was snarling.
I whipped around, ready to slash at any attacker who dared to contend with my claws, but Gabe was lying on the bed and looking at his new features in shock. Nothing about him was hostile.
"It's done," somebody said.
"Everyone," another voice said.
"Oh, God, oh, oh." Followed by moans.
They were coming from all around me.
My ears threw back and I roared.
I could smell the entire street.
I fell to my knees, and begged for it all to stop. And it did. I could feel the hair going back into my body, the teeth retreating into my gums, the claws turning into fingernails. I blinked and the green was gone. Suddenly everything was dark, more blurry, cast in shadow.
I couldn't hear anybody anymore.
I stumbled out the door and down the steps, coughing and trying to control an growing urge to bleed something. Not for any particular reason, just to watch it suffer.
Something in the back of my mind roared.
I threw the door open and stepped out onto my block.
And there they all were. All of them. The dark and hungry misfits, the bastard songs of the full moon. Twisted hybrids of men and animals walked the streets. Werewolves were joined by tigers, bears, snakes, and chameleons. On the rooftops, a man with batwings was screeching. Even a creature that resembled a rabbit burst out of a door, hopped onto the street, and hissed at a passing animal with sharp teeth.
I watched them all go by, the only human on the street.
And I wasn't even human, any more.
A twisted fox crept up next to me, and rapidly became human. Standing before me was a dark Hispanic woman, completely naked. I looked down and realized I was, too. She extended a hand. I took it.
"The name's Carmen," she said.
"Terra."
"You're the last on the block. It's a pity you had to take out such a prominent member of our community in the process." She smiled. "But don't worry about it. Somebody will take Kara's place." Carmen took my hand and led me down into the street. "I think you'll quickly find that you prefer the animal counterpart that resides within you now. If you can contain the bloodlust."
"Can we change willingly?" I asked.
"The strong ones can." She grinned. "And, from what I've seen, that means you." She paused, and then grinned. "Come with me."
She smiled at me, and then morphed back into the fox creature and bolted down the street. I watched her go, disappearing into the night. I wanted to follow her. Suddenly my vision became green.
~*~
Gabe and I didn't last. He was too weak. I should have known when he fell to temptation. Or when he cried in the corner countless times. But I learned eventually. Carmen taught me the finer parts in life, and soon I was completely independent and a rising member in the community.
The house had been fixed up nicely, and the police investigation was short lived. The entire squad had been changed. The architects renovated the houses, fixed them up nicely, and it wasn't long before a 'For Sale' sign was put up in the front yard.
I greeted the new couple on their second day in town.
They welcomed me in. I retracted my teeth and entered their lives with a smile.