“Of course I’m not referring to you, James. I apologize for how that sounded,” Andrew apologized and James gave him a simple nod in return. Lily discreetly covered her mouth to hide the smirk she couldn’t resist.
“I’d think you of all people wouldn’t laugh at something like that,” James said with a frown and she attempted her best “who me” look.
“I don’t know what you are talking about,” she told him fighting hard to keep her face straight as she got up from the couch.
“I saw you hiding behind your hands,” he snapped. Lily wasn’t sure why but she smirked as she walked up to him.
“I wasn’t exactly laughing James and you should lighten up. Sometimes you just need to laugh about things,” she told him, patting him on the shoulder.
“I will make you eat those words woman, just you wait!” James replied frowning even more.
“Sure you will James,” she told him with a sarcastic tone then pressed her lips together to keep from laughing. “Good night Andrew and good night Doctor Thompson,” she told them, leaving the room to go to her bedroom. Both gave her a nod in acknowledgment. Man that felt good, she thought happily as she slowly walked up the stairs, but she immediately scolded herself for goading him. Goading werewolves were what helped get her into this mess. Lily really needed to learn how to keep her mouth shut.
Lily shut the door of her room and walked over to the window. She looked up at the moon that had just risen above the tree tops. It was nearly full, only two more days left actually. She could feel whatever had changed inside her stir restlessly and the moon itself became almost hypnotic for her. She just stood there staring at the moon as if there was nothing else in the world. Realizing what she was doing, she shook her head and closed the curtains. She dressed in her pajamas and threw herself on the bed, hoping to get some sleep, but it didn’t come. She could almost feel her insides crawling, twisting, and morphing into something else.
Lily was determined to enjoy the next two days since they would be her last as a simple normal human, but it was easier said than done. Her skin tingled with anticipation, her mind raced and her stomach twisted in nerves. Everyone had eagerly given her advice and tips on what to expect from her first shift and other pieces of good to know stuff, to the point she was feeling overwhelmed by the information overload.
What had surprised her most was that Liz had been very encouraging, kind, and understanding. Lily couldn’t stop the weirdest questions from popping into her head too. For example, what would happen if she was allergic to dog hair? By the time, the fated night was approaching Lily had started to seriously doubt her sanity.
Andrew knocked on her door, announcing that the time had come. Her stomach dropped to her toes and she nodded weakly to no one in particular. “You’ll stay in the shed. If you shift you can easily get out and if you don’t shift then you will be protected from us,” he explained. The full moon was always a touchy night for werewolves, it was the one night they were forced to shift and the one night the wolf was more in control than the human.
“Alright,” she replied quietly and checked to see if she had everything she would need for the night. She followed him toward the shed, taking deep breaths.
“Good luck Lily,” Lacy cheered and Lily smiled at her weakly. Sandy swallowed her up in a tearful hug.
“No matter what you’re my little sunshine,” Sandy told her and Lily’s smile grew a little stronger.
“Nothing can bring you down Liliput, I know from experience,” Tony teased her. Liz frowned at Tony’s words but forced a smile when Lily looked at her directly.
“Yeah, no worries Lily,” she stated and Lily nodded.
“No worries,” Lily repeated as if trying to convince herself. Chris gave her an arrogant smirk with an impish look on his face. “Don’t Christopher,” she warned him, pointing at him with her index finger and he gave her a “who me” look.
“What do you mean, I was only going to wish you good luck,” he replied with a small smile.
“Yeah, I’m sure,” she replied back with an eye roll.
“Good luck,” James told her and she simply gave him a nod in reply. She felt as if she was walking down the corridor of Death Row to the gas chamber. “Everything will be fine, either way Lily,” Andrew told her before leaving her alone in the shed. She set down the bag with spare clothes and began pacing the small area of the shed with extreme nervousness.
Time passed and Lily started to feel sick to her stomach. She heard several howls echo into the night from those who have already shifted. She’d waited in the shed for an hour and nothing. Could it be that Andrew was right, that this idiot had been playing with her? She thought and glanced at the clock she had brought with her. The sun had set and it was nearing eight o’clock.
At 8:30 she smiled, shaking her head. It was all a bluff, she thought with a smile as she left the shed. She was sick of this man’s twisted games. She looked up at the moon, her smile growing. It was incredible that she’d actually made herself feel different just because she was told she was changing. She hurried towards the house; it wasn’t safe to be outside with the whole pack running around the forest.
Just as she reached for the back door of the house hot searing pain washed over her. She gasped in surprise and fell to her knees. Oh no, it can’t be, ran through her mind as she let out a slow painful moan. She heard a sickening pop and a stinging pain burned through her shoulder. Lily looked over and saw her shoulder had somehow popped out of its socket.
It was happening, I’m changing into… one of them, she thought horrified her ribs, one by one, cracked and snapped. Lily felt as if someone had kicked her in the chest. Tears welled up in her eyes as she fell on her side. Her whole body seemed to tense and contract inwardly, forcing her into a fetal position. A scream of pure agony tore from her throat as slowly one by one the bones in her body snapped out of place and hot pain seared through her. Oh God, how they can do this every month, she wondered through the pain.
Tears flowed down her cheeks as she continued to cry out, wishing she’d just die already so it would stop, but it didn’t stop. Once she felt as if every bone in her body had been smashed to dust something else started to happen. Another scream ripped through her raw throat as what she could only assume was her body morphing into the wolf form. Whatever was happening, it made the pain she suffered before looking like a scrape on the knee in comparison to what she was experiencing now.
He laughed silently in pleasure as he watched Lily leave the shed. God Andrew was so predictable. Well, at least it made his job a whole lot easier since he wouldn’t have to go looking for her in the woods. She slowly made her way up the porch steps towards the house. She obviously didn’t believe him, probably thought he was playing with her. Not that he could blame her, he did enjoy toying with her.
He ruffled his fur watching her scream and fall to the floor as she started her first transformation. He chuckled silently, wondering what was going through her mind. He smiled with morbid pleasure as she was changed into her wolf form. She was dark black which highlighted a cobalt blue from the moonlight. Satisfaction filled him; he had chosen the perfect woman for his plan.