Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

After an eventful day at the town market, the villagers scramble to their homes before sunset for fear of the monsters that appear out of the shadows.

Courtney, alone at last in her small but comfortable home, lets down her long, blonde hair from her bun and gets ready for bed. She turns on her soundboard noise to help her sleep through the nightmares. The calming voice of the man screaming puts them right to bed.

Shayne falls to the ground, bones cracking and claws extending from his cuticles. His flannel rips apart as his body gains even more muscles. His hairs grow rapidly and his eyes turn a reflective yellow. The person that has been consuming his thoughts has turned from his desire for love to his desire to slaughter. However, he manages to push that bloodthirst down with the last bit of humanity he can hold onto. He heads home instead, where his roommate is fast asleep.

Courtney wakes up, surprised by her dream. She’s known this guy her whole life! Why can’t she get him off of her mind all of a sudden?! She has an urge to check up on him, to snoop into his life.

…Would using her powers of foresight be a violation to him? No! It’s fiiine! They shut their eyes, focus their mind, and check out Shayne. They get an answer--a startling, horrifying answer. But premonitions aren’t always what they seem. Maybe it’s just telling her he’s a hairy guy? Maybe he’s a beast during-

The next morning, a body is laying in the middle of town, torn to shreds. The villagers surround it. Poor, poor Damien.

Shayne is genuinely devastated. This was his best friend, his roommate, his platonic soulmate! And he’s the only one who knows who did it. He will have to live with this guilt for the rest of his life.

The town mayor, Garrett, realizes they don’t have enough information to pinpoint the murderer. Courtney, on the other hand, believes she can gain all of the knowledge needed by staring into each and every villager’s eyes.

“Look at me!” She tells the mayor. She stares for a solid ten seconds.

“Oh! Are you-”

“I’m catching a vibe!” She nods her head. “Vibe caught.”

She turns to Shayne. “You! Look at me.”

He smirks and nods. “Hey.”

She knows this man. Very well. He’s acting strange today. “You’ve never done that in your life.” It might just be the stress of the situation, but for once in a long time—since he’s taken the beanie off, to be exact—Shayne isn’t sending her a feeling of butterflies or making her blush…

But she must check every villager before coming to that conclusion. Because she really, really doesn’t want it to be true.

She turns to Ian, only to be met with emptiness. A completely quiet brain.

That checks out.

Without solid evidence, they can’t turn to execution quite yet. They all go back to their homes, attempting to barricade for the next night.

Shayne, riddled with guilt and shame for what he’s done, can’t fight his bloodthirst any longer.

Courtney uses her ability to dig deeper on Shayne. All of her instincts are telling her one thing, but she really, really doesn’t want that to be true.

She jumps, startled by what she sees in this vision. Horrified. Before she can scream, a claw slashes at her throat. She falls to the ground, holding her neck. Desperately trying to keep the blood from pouring out. Had she still been asleep and oblivious, she’d be dead by now. But thanks to her notoriously horrible sense of men and her magical ability, she was already up and alert, able to duck away enough from the beast to run out of her home and into the cover of the forest.

The next day, the villagers notice the absence of Courtney’s bright and cheery presence. They check in her home, only to see splatters of blood. They deem this a murder scene.

“I think it was Shayne!” Ian declares, pointing at him aggressively. He’s noticed Shayne’s interest in Courtney, and he is the first to come to mind for this despicable act.

“I think it was Shayne!” Garrett agrees.

“What?!” Shayne asks, surprised, praying that his horrible poker face is good enough to fool these town idiots. “Why do you think it’s me?”

“Ian! I think Ian’s the tanner and he’s trying to get killed.” Garret says, pointing at him now.

“…What do you mean?” Ian asks meekly.

“I think you are the tanner, Garret!” Shayne says.

“I think it was Garret!” Ian says, moving his pointing finger to him.

“Why?!” Garret asks.

“My mind has changed!” Ian declares.

“Fine, Garret!” Shayne jumps in.

Garret says, “I am not the werewolf! Now I think it’s Ian.”

On three, everyone points to who they believe should be executed.

Shayne points to Garret.

Garret points to Ian.

Ian points to Shayne.

Shayne makes the strategic switch to point at Ian.

The guillotine makes for a swift death.

Ian's head rolls, revealing that Ian…was the tanner. A curse falls onto the village, as each and every one of the villagers has failed.

Chapter Text

Shayne breathes out a sigh of relief that is entangled with deep remorse. All of this death and destruction weighs heavy on him. The steel chains have done nothing to prevent his massacres, and the traps he sets in his room every night barely slow him down.

He starts heading back to his home, earlier than the other villagers as it’s only mid day, when a memory of last night flashes in his mind. That’s right—there was no body found…

Could Courtney be alive?!

He inhales deeply. He can still access some of his wolfish abilities even in his human form. Massive waves of different smells flood him at once, but he can pick out her scent easily. Her sweet, stunning scent. He follows his nose into the forest.

Courtney wakes up with a sharp pain in their back. Disoriented, they look around. The culprit of their back pain was the hard dirt ground and a tree root. As they turn, all they see are trees, trees, and more trees.

…What? Why are they in the forest???

That’s when the memory hits them.

They grab their neck, a deep shock of fear striking their chest. Are they about to die?!

Their neck is completely smooth. Save for their tattered and bloodied clothes, no sign of last night remains.

So what now? Pick a direction and try to head back to the village? But what if he’s there?!

They turn and turn, panic setting in.

When a stick cracks behind them, Courtney jumps.

“Woah, woah! It’s okay! It’s just me!” Shayne says, hands raised.

She screams and sprints away.

He sighs, pained. That look of terror…from her…that rips him apart inside.

He runs after her.

Why is it taking so long to catch up?! His enhanced speed should have closed the gap by now!

…Unless she, too, has enhanced speed now.

Thankfully, Shayne knows this forest very well. He cuts Courtney off, slamming into her and pinning her against a tree.

She screams and scratches at him. She punches his face, sending him to the ground.

That was quite a surprise.

“Ow! Okay, okay! I don’t want to hurt you, I never did! I’m sorry! But you’re like me now! You can’t just run back to that village. If they find out what you now are, they’ll…they’ll…” He shivers at the thought of losing her.

Shaking, she steps backward. What?! A werewolf?! Her?! Deep down, she knows he’s right. She’s known since she woke up alive. That’s the only explanation.

“I’m really, really sorry Courtney.” Shayne says, eyes reflecting deep sorrow. “I tried my best to stay away, but I…I just couldn’t.” His voice cracks, a tear falls.

She keeps taking steps away from him, shaking her head. “No. You’re wrong. You’re lying!” She sprints away, heading in a direction she believes is random but in reality is the familiar scent of her town…that she can now smell from miles away.

Chapter Text

Anthony travels as a lone wolf, successfully killing off townsfolk before they even realize what’s happening. He enacts enough bloodshed to fill an ocean.

He arrives at yet another town.

His wolf senses spike–there’s another werewolf here.

New to this town, Arasha wakes up in the dead of night with a sense of dread washing over her. She uses her newfound psychic ability to search for the source...to no avail.

Courtney, living in denial, wakes up covered in blood. She showers to wash it off, telling herself that everything is fine.

When people scream outside of her house, she stuffs her ears to block out the noise and starts doing chores around her house, humming her favorite tunes.

A body is found, head bashed into human guacamole.

Arasha, wanting to help her new home, admits to being the seer to her fellow villagers despite the risk of the werewolf targeting her for it. Her naivety to the whims of hysterical townsfolk quickly leads to her running for her life, as they all believe she is the one killing everyone and are set on executing her. She barely escapes, having now learned her lesson: keep her cards close to her chest. Lie and deceive until the truth must be revealed.

Another night approaches.

Courtney turns again. This time, she’s more conscious than her first night out hunting.

She crawls around, sight red with her bloodthirst. She sees movement in the corner of her eye and charges right at it, growling deep in her throat. She draws her clawed arm high, and she swipes down at her prey-

Her body is slammed into the wall of a house, a big clawed hand gripping her by the throat. She looks into unfamiliar wolfish eyes, gasping for air.

“Stay out of my way.” The beast of Anthony growls. He throws her to the side and disappears into a victim’s home.

Terrified, Courtney scrambles back into her house and slams the door behind her. Shit! Another one?! What does she do?! This is her home, it’s all she knows! But she just can’t stay. Even without this new threat, she has to admit to herself that she’s a danger to others. Even though she doesn’t mean to hurt them, she does.

She packs the few belongings she can take with her and leaves her hometown, stepping into the darkness.

Chapter Text

***Flashbackwards to when Courtney runs off back home, away from Shayne.***

While every fiber of his being wants to follow Courtney, Shayne realizes he needs to give them space and heads in the opposite direction.

He keeps travelling until he hits the harbor. It will be easier to leave Courtney alone if he’s in the middle of the ocean.

He sneaks onto the boat. He sees many new faces, but is surprised to see…Ian?! Ugh! Stupid tanners getting resurrected! Hopefully he doesn’t remember his past life. Hopefully he doesn’t recognize Shayne.

Shayne goes into an empty cabin and falls asleep immediately from his exhaustion.

The next day, everyone wakes up when the cruise is over the Atlantic.

Shayne can’t get his mind off of Courtney. He decides to distract himself in any way possible. He heads to the boat deck, where everyone is hanging out.

Ian pukes, asking for medicine. His body isn’t used to his lack of the dark magical curse or to being alive again. And he’s seasick.

Everyone is introducing themselves. Shayne makes up an identity: “I’m Dale…uh, yeah I just retired early…uh, I’m an investor…and uh and now I’m just gonna live on this cruise for the next…year. Uh, you know my ex-wife, she…she found another man. So I’m living my best life here. Uh, you know. So, you know, gonna find a cruise wife.” He bites his tongue to stop himself from saying anything further. Was any of that believable?!

“Well, that’s interesting.” A woman says. “My name is Liz Beth, and um, my husband passed, and um, I’ve accrued a bunch of uh…cash. And I’m on this cruise to just celebrate my womanhood. And I’m interested in finding another husband.” She looks at Shayne. “And I have family in Portugal, and so…that’s my plan!”

“Best of luck to you, Liz Beth.” Shayne responds, completely uninterested. Courtney is still the only thing on his mind.

“...Okay?” She says back. “You don’t like my sparkly jacket?”

“Uh…it’s great. Uh…yeah, anyways…” Shayne responds, barely present.

Ian introduces, “Hello, everyone. My name is…” He stares blankly into the distance, grasping for memories that are no longer there. A beheading would do that to a person. “Sorry, I forgot. My name is…uh…uh…” He decides to pick a new name. What’s a good name? “Robert?”

Shayne sighs of relief. Ian has no recollection, good. He zones out while the others introduce themselves.

His attention is pulled back when he hears Liz Beth say, “Dale seems like a red flag to me because he wasn’t interested in me.”

The others quickly take her side against him.

Panicking, Shayne manages to say, “Oh, that’s messed up. That’s really messed up. That makes me suspicious of HER!” He points to Liz Beth. “That’s werewolf behavior right there.” He would know.

“Shut up, Dale!” Liz Beth hisses.

“Woah, I never said it was a werewolf!” Spencer points out from the telecoms.

Liz Beth gasps. “That’s exactly what I was thinking about!”

Shit! He’s said too much! Should he slaughter them all right now?! NO! He can’t listen to the monster inside.

“What, you said there’s just a wolf running around?” He asks, attempting to calm the guests. “Is there like an exhibit on this cruise or something?”

“You put the ‘were’ in it.” Spencer points out again, not letting Shayne confuse the crowd. “Sorry, I shouldn’t be saying anything.” Spencer backpedals, not wanting to be the werewolf’s next target. “I’m sorry.” Spencer checks the cruise cameras, breathing deeply. No suspicious activity yet.

“So, yeah. I think it’s Dale.” Liz Beth says again.

“I think it’s Liz Beth.” Shayne reiterates.

“Just make out already!” A guest shouts out.

“No!” Shayne says.

“I will!” Liz Beth shouts. “I. Want. To!”

“I’d rather jump overboard than kiss her.” Shayne states.

They all head back to their rooms and head to bed for the night. Shayne decides to chain himself up with the boat’s anchor, which proves fruitful when he wakes in the morning with the clothes he slept in and no blood on him.

Despite this, a murder still took place. There is another werewolf on board.

Relative to werewolf senses, Shayne’s scent is quite weak. He can’t figure out who the beast is. So he asks the guests, nobody has any sort of insight on anyone else here?”

“Why would you want to know?”

“Yeah?”

“Yeah!”

Shayne continues, “If by some chance, somebody on this ship has some sort of psychic abilities-”

“Do you want the seer to reveal themselves?” Ian asks him pointedly.

Shit. “Oh, uh, well, okay, no…but…”

“I guess at this point the seer has seen two people.” Ian realizes aloud.

“They should help us!” Liz Beth states.

Shayne sighs of relief. He admits truthfully, “Look, I have no suspicions or assumptions at this point.”

While they all discuss, their host Atlas whispers what he saw through his psychic ability to Liz Beth.

The news quickly spreads, and they all turn on Ian.

He gets a vivid sense of deja vu while they drag him to the edge of the boat and throw him overboard.

As they look over the railing, they see a mass of wolvish fur.

They all cheer, safe at last.

The cruise docks at the next destination, and everybody is kicked off.

Chapter Text

Courtney makes their way to another village after an unsuccessful week attempting to live alone in the woods. They couldn't hunt enough food and are starving. They are injured and had to cut their hair after it kept catching on things. They have to face it: they need people to survive.

They are welcomed into a house by a woman with a bright smile and alarmingly wide eyes. “I know you’re a werewolf!” Amanda whispers, smiling. She notices Courtney’s startled expression and clarifies, “I’m a minion. I’m an ally to werewolves.”

Too exhausted to think, Courtney falls asleep on the offered bed.

Amanda goes to bed soon after.

That’s when Arasha sneaks into the house, grabbing everything valuable in sight. She stealthily walks up to sleeping Courtney and snatches their bracelet right off of their wrist. However, Courtney’s long nails scratch Arasha as she takes it.

The villagers wake up from their uneventful night. It was anything but quiet. They heard unusual noises…holwings…and are at a town meeting to figure out what exactly happened. What exactly lurks in the shadows, ready to hunt its prey. Hunt them.

Villagers claim innocence first. Arasha, drowning in guilt, admits to being a robber. After being exiled from the last village, she has no money and stole out of necessity. But she claims to have given everything she stole back out of her guilt.

Courtney, despite knowing how big of a threat another werewolf is, claims to be a seer. She holds her breath, waiting for an actual seer to yell at her for being the werewolf or point out that only one seer can be in a village, and that she is not one.

That doesn’t happen.

She breathes out deeply as relief washes over her.

The villagers all become suspicious of Arasha for immediately coming clean about being a robber and claiming to not have kept anything she stole.

Arasha fidgets with Courtney’s bracelet in her pocket, her fingers twitching uncontrollably as her nails slowly grow longer and longer.

The villagers vote for execution. An innocent villager and the town troublemaker meet their fates.

The next night, Arasha’s bones crack and her nails extend into claws. She runs out of her home and into her neighbor’s.

Courtney is woken up by the screams of Amanda. Concerned for her kind caretaker, she runs out of her room to see an unfamiliar werewolf attacking her. Growling, Courtney lunges at Arasha and sends her fleeing away.

Amanda gasps for air, a deep cut lining her chest.

Courtney sighs, knowing what this means for her new friend.

The next day, there is another town meeting. Like before, the villagers come clean first. Amanda is in no condition to advocate for herself, but people are getting suspicious of her. So, Courtney makes a bold move and claims to be the werewolf.

To her delight, people believe she’s a minion instead and are too afraid to vote for her death.

A villager is executed.

On the third night, Arasha takes drastic measures to stay inside for fear of facing Courtney again.

Courtney tends to Amanda and chains her up well, but runs out of time to secure themself.

A newcomer heads into town. Courtney’s ears perk up at the howl, and they join in.

Startled by the howling that night, yet another town meeting is held. This time Amanda claims to have been up to trouble, followed by the same old villagers coming clean again, followed by the guilty robber Arasha claiming to slip back into her bad habits.

The newcomer, Chanse, decides to pretend to be a seer when he realises nobody else is.

This leaves Courtney to do what worked last time and admit to being a werewolf.

Suspicious of the stranger, they turn on Chanse and execute the werewolf. He barely escapes with his life.

The fourth moon rises into the night sky.

Chanse and Arasha howl at the bright, round light.

The villagers meet once again in a cozy town tavern. This time around, Arasha keeps her role to herself at first. Chanse, in a disguise, claims to be the troublemaker…which isn’t completely a lie, as he was up to no good last night.

As the townsfolk dissent into arguments, the tavern doors slam open. Everyone turns to the newcomer in silence.

“I’m the seer.” Shayne declares. “And I know what Courtney is.”

The blood rushes from her face. She hoped to never see him again. Well...a part of her longed for him, but the logical part is telling her to run far away.

“Courtney is the doppleganger.”

…Wait, what?!

Everyone turns to Courtney now.

Why would he do this?! What does he want?!

He’s backed her into a corner. Her only option is to play along. She spins up a story about becoming a seer when coming in contact with Shayne, and then getting a vision of Chanse as…a werewolf.

Chanse of course turns on her, telling everyone that she is a werewolf.

She starts panicking, but Shayne quickly turns the tide back onto Chanse.

It seems as if Chanse is done for, but some villagers pick up on the sudden alliance between Shayne and Courtney.

Could they be werewolves together?

The voting takes place. Courtney’s heart sinks. The majority points to her.

As the enraged villagers charge her, she stands frozen in shock.

Shayne lunges at the angry mob, snarling and bashing his wolvish teeth. They back up, and he grabs Courtney and runs for the forest.

Chapter Text

Shayne and Courtney run and run until their legs give out.

“What the FUCK, dude?! Why did you do that?!” Courtney shouts at him.

“I was trying to help, okay? I saw some people start to turn on you and I knew I needed to jump in right then.”

“I didn’t need your help. I had it. I already survived three of those.”

“I’ve been through hundreds. You are really good at convincing them, but sometimes the only option is to run or fight.”

“Whatever. Don’t expect me to thank you after everything you’ve done.” She turns her back to him, her head a jumble of strong emotions.

Shayne sighs. “No, I don’t. In fact, I should be apologizing. I’ll tell you how sorry I am every single day. This life, being a werewolf…it’s tough. It’s lonely and isolating. I wouldn’t wish it on my worst enemy, let alone…”

She turns to him, curious. What is she to him?

He looks into her eyes and his breath catches.

“Let alone…what?” She asks, holding his gaze.

He shakes his head. There are no words to describe this. He leans in, and she closes the gap.

Alright you freaks can go read a werewolf smut novel I’m not writing that shit lmao. "And the naughty knotting knotted."

Chapter Text

Shayne, always up before the sun, attempts to sit up…to no success. Sharp pain makes him realize just how rough last night was. He appears to have several broken bones and still-healing scratch wounds and bite marks.

Courtney is fast asleep beside him. They are surrounded by their shredded clothing, and many trees that were standing tall the night before have fallen to the ground.

Courtney wrapped around Shayne’s arm, they head into another village. This time, she feels different. Safe. Confident. Untouchable. Who would dare face two werewolves?

Arasha would. She sneaks into their home when they’re both fast asleep, magic potion in hand. She makes sure both Shayne and Courtney will not wake up any time soon with just a few drops from the flask. She drags Shayne away.

This revenge on Courtney for turning her feels really satisfying. Her dark cloak hides her devilish smile.

Courtney wakes up to an empty bed. Slightly concerned, she heads out to the kitchen. He’s not there. The bathroom door is open, and the couch is empty. “Shayne?” She shouts out. She’s met with silence.

Panic starts kicking in.

She heads out of her home, looking around. She starts banging on doors. Nobody has seen him.

The panic morphs into rage. Did he leave her?! Did somebody take him away?! Either way, her emotions cannot be contained.

Within the hour, the town is painted crimson. The houses are crumbled. Flesh and bones litter the fields.

Still no sign of Shayne.

Courtney howls at the full moon, her werewolf state even stronger than most nights.

She will find Shayne. And whoever is responsible will regret this.

Chapter Text

After hours of trying to pick up Shayne's scent to no avail, Courtney’s heart sinks with the thought of never seeing him again.

How could she find him???

That’s when she remembers–her life before.

She was a seer. Could she still have the ability of foresight?

Courtney shuts their eyes and focuses. All of their thoughts are directed towards one thing. One person.

At first, all they see is the darkness of their own eyelids. But then…they see a different kind of darkness.

Stones dimly lit by torchlight. Rusting chains. Sounds of people in pain. No–not people, exactly. Werewolves.

Her vision zooms out, and she gets a glimpse of a town. The town’s welcome sign depicts its name: Big Asslandia.

Her glowing yellow eyes snap open, and she lets out a deep growl.

Shayne wakes up with a pounding headache. He blinks awake, disoriented.

Where is he? What’s going on???

He tries to move, but the chains snap him back into place. As he struggles, the metal burns his skin. He lets out a howl.

“Aww, poor doggy not reacting well to the silver?” Arasha asks, lowering her hood.

“Look, you’ve got the wrong guy. I don’t know you, you can just let me go.” Shayne says, trying not to panic.

“But I do know you, Shayne Topp. You aren’t just here for my revenge. You aren’t just my trophy. No, you are going to help me gain the power I deserve.”

Courtney enters the town under the name Trilby, a hat maker.

She still can’t pick up Shayne’s unique musk.

She searches everywhere, talks to every villager, but she still can’t find him.

Hope escapes her as the sun sets, but that’s when she sees it.

Shayne, with a glowing chain around his neck, attacking Trevor.

Before she can say anything, Shayne runs away.

She follows him below a home into what appears to be a dungeon. Many werewolves are inside, all with similar collars around their necks.

She needs to free him. But she needs help doing it.

Who can she turn to? Who would break into this place?

Courtney goes to the village hall and tells them all of her psychic vision, and that there is a werewolf in the dungeon.

The angry mob quickly believes her and storms the doors down. Before they kill the werewolves, Courtney sneaks by and sets Shayne free. As they escape Arasha’s dungeon, Courtney steals some random potions of hers. Between that and releasing all of her werewolves, Courtney feels a little better. But she is nowhere near done in her revenge.

The angry mob of villagers are all killed within seconds.

The next day, the remaining villagers are freaking out at all of their murdered loved ones. They argue and argue as the sun sets. The second it dips below the horizon, everybody falls asleep at once as if a spell has been cast on the entire town.

Two werewolves awaken in the dead of night.

Angela and Trevor, starved in the dungeon, attack the weakest prey they find: the village baby.

Courtney startles awake with the vision, the baby’s cries echoing in her head. This vision…it’s a hard one to bear. Thankfully, Shayne is there to comfort her.

The next morning, the town is awakened by a young woman’s shrieks. “NOOOO! MY BABY BROTHER!!!”

They all run out to see Arasha holding the village baby…or, at least, the body of what used to be the baby. The head was ripped clean off.

The villagers immediately turn on each other, pointing fingers.

“You were living in the same house as him, Arasha!”

“What’s going on with you two, Angela and Shayne? You look like you know something!”

Crumbling from the sudden stress, Shayne says, “Alright, I gotta be honest with you. I’m psychic.”

“You’re the seer?”

“I’m the seer, dude.”

Shayne starts clearing villagers, pointing at Amanda and Arasha and saying they’re not werewolves. The villagers believe him and turn on others.

Courtney catches on. They don’t know that a seer can be a werewolf too. Does the same apply for witches?

Shayne continues, “Look, I’m telling you guys this because I know that someone here’s a witch, and they have not saved anyone.” He looks at Courtney, and a silent conversation happens between them in seconds.

She agrees to claim that…eventually. For now, she decides to lighten the mood by asking, “Could one of you be a bitch-a witch?”

It works. People laugh.

They continue to debate.

Finally, it’s time for the reveal. Courtney lets out their inner witch, rubbing their hands together and cackling ominously.

By process of elimination, the villagers realize the culprits are Trevor and Angela.

“I’ll tell you something right now.” Angela declares, unbuttoning her denim jacket. “I’ll tell you something right now. And will you listen to me when I say it?”

“Yeah.”

“I am a villager.”

They all laugh at her.

“You’re still laughing. Oh yeah, what about THIS!” She rips open her jacket to reveal…a shirt with words that read: “I’M NOT A WEREWOLF”

“WOAH!”

“WOW!”

“WHAAAAT?!”

“What are you going to do about it NOW?!” Angela shouts.

“Wow. But THIS DOES NOT MEAN THAT YOU ARE NOT A WEREWOLF!”

“HOW WOULD I BE WEARING THIS SHIRT?!” She shouts back. “HOW. WOULD. I. BE. WEARING. THIS. SHIRT?!”

“Well, I don’t know now!”

“That is a good point.”

“YOU CAN’T GET THIS IF YOU’RE A WEREWOLF!”

“I am 100% voting for Angela!”

“NOOOOO! THIS IS SUPPOSED TO EXONERATE ME!!!” Angela begins turning against her will as the stress and anger takes control.

The accusations turn into bloodcurdling screams as Angela rips them apart limb by limb.

When the last scream is cut short, she turns back and shouts, “DO NOT BELIEVE WHAT YOU READ! Fuckin losers!” She howls at the moon.

Trevor turns with her, and he attacks Amanda.

“NOOOO!” Courtney shrieks, running to her dear friend. Her heart sinks as Amanda bleeds out. What does she do?! What-

Clanking in her pocket gives her an idea. The potions she stole from Arasha! But what do they even do?!

If she doesn’t act now, Amanda will die. She has no choice. She pours the mysterious glowing liquid into her friend’s dying mouth. She waits, horrified.

At first, nothing happens. She feels Amanda slipping away.

But then, the blood begins to reverse, slipping back inside. The wound heals up, and within the minute it’s as if there was no wound to begin with. Amanda’s eyes flutter open.

Courtney finally allows themself to cry, now knowing that Amanda is okay.

Chapter Text

The following morning is confusing for everyone.

For some reason, werewolves, seers, witches, masons…everybody feels like a villager.

Nobody can access their abilities.

Everybody blames each other. Who did this? Who do they kill?!

That’s when a new face appears, smirking at his work.

“Alright, guys. This has gone far enough. It was a prank. You are all villagers.”

“I hate you!”

“God dammit!”

“GET HIM!!!”

The powerless villagers charge the Great Wizard.

He freezes them with a swipe of his hand. “Let’s have a little fun, shall we?”

Chapter Text

Spencer turns them all into werewolves and places them in a room with a stage and a microphone. “I’m bored! Impress me with some talent!”

“Who’s starting?” Courtney asks the werewolves, putting an escape plan together in their head.

“I am.” Arasha answers, gripping the microphone with her clawed hand.

“Woah. Okay!” Courtney responds.

“Don’t do something stupid!” Chanse tells her.

“I won’t!” Arasha reassures.

“Guys, give her confidence!” Amanda tells them. “You got it, girl!”

Arasha sings into the mic, smiling. Proud of herself. "oooOooOoo!"

“...Wah?!” Chanse exclaims, shocked and disappointed.

“Ope!” Courtney lets slip.

Amanda’s head falls. “I spoke too soon.”

Everyone laughs.

“That was it! That was her song!” Tommy says.

“Do the REAL one. You got it.” Angela hypes.

“...That…that was the real one…” Arasha responds softly. “Thanks.”

“It’s okay, restart!” Amanda says.

They all clap for her.

She sings the same thing but somehow even worse.

They all laugh. And point. And laugh.

Arasha’s cheeks get hot as the embarrassment drowns her in anguish. They are all laughing at her. They will PAY!

Her bones crack. Her fangs and claws extend. She leaps from the stage and starts enacting her revenge, teeth and claws slashing aimlessly.

Tommy is the first to join in on the bloodlust.

Unbothered by the chaos, Trevor picks up the mic and starts singing his original song, “Troublemaker! Just a Troublemaker.”

“SHUT UP!” Tommy growls, leaping at him.

Trevor ducks away and sings, “Insomniac, you can’t sleep!”

Everyone turns wolvish, except for Courtney. She stays silent. Stealthy. She slips through the shadows. She robs Trevor. Then she robs the rest of them.

Chanse, Arasha, and Angela tear the place to shreds.

Angela grabs the mic, and fueled by pure chaos uses a magic spell she had snatched from Spencer to silence everyone.

As the werewolves enact their rampage in silence, Angela can’t hold in her laughter. It’s too funny!

“I’m going to pee myself!” She shrieks, hunching over. The scene is still unfolding, but their howls and growls fall on deaf ears.

Chanse and Arasha get into a fight between each other. Their mouths are open wide, but no sound escapes them.

Chanse turns to Tommy, attacking him next.

Tommy stops him, noticing that his belongings are missing. Spotting Angela laughing on stage, he connects the dots and attacks her.

Everyone else, pissed that they can’t fully express themselves, follows suit.

Courtney leaves the building with bountiful treasures, nobody suspecting a thing.

Chapter Text

Courtney drags their haul back to their home, slamming the door behind them.

“Shayne! We need to get moving RIGHT NOW!” She shouts, grabbing their go bags.

“What? Why? What happened?” He asks, concerned. He sets his Breaking Dawn book down and stands up, giving her his undivided attention.

Courtney paces in the living room. “There was this wizard guy and he took everyone’s abilities away and then he made everyone werewolves and now they are tearing each other apart and I stole all of this stuff and so they’ll come for me next when they realize I took from them and I don’t know what this magic dude’s deal is but he’s way too powerful and-“

“Woah, woah! Slow down. Take a breath.”

Courtney stops to breathe in deep, but then realizes she needs to start packing. She scrambles around, grabbing everything important and shoving them in the bags. Their big werewolf claws make this task difficult. “We have to go, Shayne!”

Shayne watches her for a moment, a sense of déjà vu washing over him. “I’m tired of moving! Aren’t you? Why don’t we take a stand for once and build a home, instead of going to a new house every time things get hard?”

“This is different.”

“It’s always going to be something different!”

“Shayne, you didn’t see this guy. He fucked us all up with a wave us his hand.”

He sighs, rubbing his head. When will this all end? When will they be able to relax and enjoy their lives together?

Sudden clawing and howling sounds from outside their house make them both jump.

“Shit! They’re here! We have to go!” Courtney shrieks, running to the back door.

Shayne grabs her arm. “Wait. Just give me a chance, okay? If this fails we’ll leave.”

She looks at him, confused. Annoyed.

He steps outside and walks to the werewolves, his hands raised. “We’ll give you everything back. But we need to talk.”

Convinced that he’s gone mad, Courtney begrudgingly follows him.

“Why don’t we tear you limb from limb and steal from YOU?!”

“Yeah, that sounds good to me!”

They snarl and prowl closer.

Shayne holds his stance. “Look, this wizard guy’s a powerful threat, right? We’re all toast. We can run, but he’ll probably find us eventually. We need to work together to stop him.” He turns to Courtney and gives a look.

She rolls her eyes and throws their belongings back. But…she holds onto one bag.

The werewolves dive for their things.

“I stole from Spencer too.” Courtney declares, holding up his spell book. “Maybe this can take him down.”

Eventually, all of the werewolves agree to fight the wizard together.

Shayne grins. Spencer doesn’t stand a chance.

Chapter Text

The wolfish beings prowl through the forest, sniffing out the despicable scent of their new, overpowered enemy.

Falling behind from the group, Angela, Chanse and Tommy make an agreement “We’re going to take care of each other over all of the rest.”

The pack stops outside of Spencer’s game stage. Most of them turn human for this first moment.

“Follow the plan.” Courtney orders.

Chanse nods. Before he overthinks his way out of following through, he crawls behind Spencer and jumps out at him yelling, “BAH!”

Spencer screams at the startling jumpscare, flailing his arms and stumbling away.

Arasha, the last one still in her wolfish form, uses Spencer’s moment of weakness to attack. Her claws and teeth barred, she really thinks she has him. But Spencer regains his composer just in time to stop the daggers extending from her paws an inch away from his throat.

He chuckles, paralyzing her with his telekinetic powers. “This is going to be funny as FUCK!”

He unfreezes her, but she is still under his puppeteering powers. He forces her to dance as a disco lowers from above. A catchy tune from way after this time starts playing from an unknown source. Spencer laughs as she dances against her will.

Angela turns wolfish next, but Ian stops her, pointing at Chanse who is still on the stage. It appears Spencer has forgotten about him. So, Chanse turns and stalks his prey. Before striking, Chanse glances at Angela. Her eyes wide, she tries to convince him not to. To save himself. He looks away and attacks.

Chanse joins Arasha on the dance floor. He didn't even make it a yard before getting caught.

“I will never take care of anyone but myself again.” Angela vows, exasperated.

Courtney takes out the spell book that she stole from Spencer, flipping to a page she found earlier.

“Courtney, I don’t like this.” Shayne voices at her side.

“I know. But this is our last chance.” She responds, rubbing his arm.

“This is bullshit, though! Why you?! Why not any of them?!”

“Shayne, I’m the only one who has studied this book. Please don’t be mad.”

“I’m not mad at you, I’m mad at-” He looks up, seeking out something to blame. His eyes land on the moon, and a sudden urge to howl fills him. He resists, unwilling to give themselves away. “I’m blown away! I cannot believe this!”

“Shayne is changing his faith right now.” Tommy states jokingly.

“Maybe I believe in demons but not angels!” Shayne admits.

Angela laughs at that, clinging onto humor. The pain of losing her best friend to that monster of a wizard breaks her heart, and all she wants to do is collapse and sink into the earth.

“Okay.” Courtney states. “I will go up there and read off the spell. Shayne, you take your hunting weapons and defend me. The rest of you stay here. If this doesn’t work out…well…you know what to do.”

The power couple sneaks onto the stage behind Spencer. Shayne nocks his arrow and points it at Spencer’s turned-away head.

Courtney opens the book and reads the spell that should sever Spencer’s connection to magic. She glances up when she finishes, her shoulders falling when she sees that Chanse and Arasha are still dancing.

“I don’t think it worked.” Shayne whispers, glancing at her.

“That’s because it didn’t.” Spencer states from right behind Shayne.

Before he can react, Spencer grabs his weapon away.

“You all deserve to be tortured.” Spencer says, a mischievous grin growing on his face. With a few waves of his hands, he sends Shayne to the center of the stage and the three others to stand around him. Shayne flails his arms and legs in what looks like an earnest attempt to dance.

“Oh, god no!” Courtney cries, using all of her strength to try and shut her eyes to shield herself from the horrid sight unfolding before her.

“Make it stop!” Arasha pleas. “I’ll do anything!”

“What is wrong with him?!” Chanse questions.

“He looks like a towel trying to dance!” Angela yells, laughing.

Spencer turns to her voice.

“I’m already bored!” She whines, stepping towards him.

“Angela, do you want me to add you to the dance floor?” Spencer offers.

“No!” Angela shouts as the rest of the pack sneaks onto the stage to drag Shayne, Chanse, Courtney, and Arasha away.

Spencer senses them and whips around. “Get back to dancing! DANCE!” He orders.

Everyone now dances, tears streaming down their grooving bodies.

“I hate you Spencer!”

“You suck, man!”

“Make it stop!”

“I’m tired!”

Spencer takes their voices away, and they continue to shout at him in silence.

Shayne, new to his faith, looks up at the bright, full moon again. “Please!” He prays. “If anyone is out there, please help us!”

After a long moment, the last of his hope fades away. This is their fate. To be the pawns to this evil wizard’s games. Forever.

“SPENCER AGNEW!” A booming disembodied voice from above declares. “YOU MUST STOP THIS AT ONCE!”

Everyone looks up to see a stern face in the moon.

“Anthony!” Ian shouts, joyful to have found his long lost platonic soulmate.

“HEY, BRO! WE GOTTA CATCH UP LATER! BUT FOR NOW, SPENCER I SWEAR TO GOD I GAVE YOU THOSE POWERS AND I CAN TAKE THEM AWAY!”

Spencer throws up his hands. “Okay, okay! I’m sorry! I was feeling left out and just wanted to hang out with you guys! I’ll stop it.” He severs his manipulative connection from them. “I’m sorry guys. You can go.”

They all stumble to a stop, and awkwardly look around at each other.

“...What now?”

“I don’t know. I was kind of bored before this all, to be honest.”

“Same. And lonely.”

“Maybe we keep fighting, then? With each other.” Chanse asks.

“What if we fought with our eyes closed?” Arasha suggests.

“What?!” Shayne exclaims, incredulous. “What if we just didn’t fight?”

“What if we had to just kiss each other and see who the kisser was?” Courtney suggests, glancing at Arasha.

“Let’s practice that right now!” Arasha says right before making out with Courtney.

They all kissed happily ever after.

The end!