Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

Out of all the monsters that mostly had it out for Ygor it always seemed to be Larry…

Dracula? Maybe a close second but every time he got close to that damn fleabag he would leave with bites, scratches or whatever he could manage to dig into his skin. He was practically his favorite chew toy. Victoria always had him make routine checkups on the security cameras, to make sure that the enclosures for these monsters were all up to speed checking things like hinges, bolts or generators. They may have had a slip up or two…..maybe every so often but things would always turn out well in the end. They had always been on top of their game. Ygor would always leave Larry’s cage for the end, always dreading what sort of scar he’d have to get stitched up next on top of the numerous ones he already had. That fact never phased Victoria. Her being a Frankenstein they were just “scratches” as she’d put it dryly as ever. He was always used to her downplaying his pain but he agreed to this. Despite the dread he would suck it up and try to be the one in charge here, show this rabid infected mutt who's boss.

The time came to check on his cage. The sounds of bats squeaking and swinging on the metal chains above made him more skittish then he usually would be. He wasn’t sure what to expect this time around from the beast but he was already examining his arms, poking his pale veiny skin under his gloves for a new spot where he had expected to be scratched next. He sighed and inhaled through his teeth, once this was over he would be free to go lie down in the cemetery and soak up the soil in his pores like a worm. It wouldn’t be good for his new wounds but Ygor needed his Ygor time. He didn't get it often but it was his and Victoria thankfully didn’t need much from him tonight but this.

Ygor turned the corner expecting to be greeted with Larry's cage.

He dropped everything to the floor, tools spilling out of his bag.

In front of him was the sight of the cage with its doors completely ripped off its hinges bent so effortlessly. Metal pieces like the door jammed in the walls above, similar to his first arrival in Darkmoor. Ygor's face completely paled, breath unstable at the sight, he did not wanna deal with this tonight. His eyes darted all over the dark corners of the catacombs that seemed to stretch for miles. With trembling hands and a watchful eye he reached for something in the bag and fished out a walkie talkie like device, on the other hand, a reflex hammer for defense. Ygor pressed the side of the button of the device. “D-Doctor…..are you there?”

He whispered. No answer. Ygor slowly backed away from the cage and he tried again.

“Doctor Victoria, please answer me!” he whispered louder, squeezing the device.

The device beeped back. “What do you need?! This better be important Ygor…”

“W-we uh ....may have a situation??” He squeaked

“What kind of situation…?”

“I- uh…a.. very hairy pointy long toothed situation….he’s….he’s gone…”

The walkie talky stopped beeping, leaving Ygor in silence for a minute or two…Ygor knew she was processing and he was cringing at her reaction. He could already see her face turning red with rage.

“How the hell did you manage to screw this one up!”

she was louder which made Ygor jump. He tried covering up the speaker to the walkie talky desperately to try not to attract the monster.

“Why are you blaming Ygor for this already!! All I did was show up and Larry was missing! You can’t blame everything on Ygor even though it's easy for you!” he whined. Ygor flinched at the sound of noise turning his back with his hammer ready to swing.

“Its not because it's easy…it's because you're incompetent at the simplest of tasks. You do however make it easy to question why I hired you at all! You didn't even check the enclosure last night did you…? i knew you came back a half hour earlier then you should have”

Ygor lowered his head in shame and groaned to himself at being called out for this and it was something he couldn’t deny “Ygor hates being close to Larry! Three nights ago he almost undid the fresh stitching on my arm! Ygor doesn’t want to be armless again! I was just getting used to this one!”

“Well you're about to lose a lot more than that arm because of your incompetence"

Beads of sweat were forming on his face at her words. Not an inch of him could stay still as he slowly paced around looking for any sign of the creature. The intensity of the situation was weighing on him as he pressed his back against a wall clutching the stones tightly. Sure he had gone through this same situation plenty of times before but it was never pleasant. He hated the way Larry’s attacks were so sudden, so powerful, they would knock the wind out of him. He always left Ygor hurting the most out of all the monsters.

“F-fine whatever it’s Ygor’s fault! Ygor doesn’t know where he is! He could be anywhere ! What should I do…!?” He pleaded. He could hear Victoria’s audible groans at his panicked response.”Give me a second…do you have the tranquilizers in your bag”

Ygor nodded “Yes….”

“I’ll try to search the cameras for any activity…you just try to last for a little while okay? Scream if you need anything” Ygor nodded his head. Every breath came out wavering “o-okay…sounds good ....Ygor will…scream loud ...if he doesn't rip out my vocal chords first” he muttered bitterly as he looked into the pitch black darkness. Ygor set the device in his front apron pocket and reached into his bag for his tranquilizer. On the other hand, held his reflex hammer like a baseball bat, getting ready to whack somebody on the head with it. He drew out a syringe from the red leathery bag, once it was in his hand he approached the darkness of the surrounding catacombs. Wincing at each step he took, even his tiptoes sounded booming against the silence. The tints in his goggles made it hard to see where he was going. His eyes were already bad enough.

“Come on out Larry!” he whistled. “Ygors .…..got a treat for you……..” He kept whistling again, whipping his head around at the slightest water drop.

“The treat is not Ygor himself....but if you’d like i’ll throw in a fresh digit or two…..again …..Not Ygor’s…..” He rolled his eyes “I bet you’d like that anyways” He grumbled to himself. The darkness just continued to get darker. At this point he could keep going and fall into a bottomless pit if he was unlucky enough. Ygor hesitantly put the reflex hammer in his back pocket and instead reached for a small flashlight. The light illuminated the skull covered walls before him and the intricacies around them. He hoped it would bring some sort of comfort to him but he was just as lost as ever, the light from the Wolfman's den was getting smaller and smaller with each step. Where the hell was this furry fleabag hiding?! He wasn’t sure if he should be fearful or annoyed. “L-Larry…..come on…Ygor’s ready to hit the haystack right now…i’m sure you're tired too, Ygor promises your next cage will be very comfy and spacious! You want that, yes?” Still no sounds or anything. More water drips and creaks…Ygor groaned…this guy… he always wanted to attack him. What made tonight so different? Rats brushed past his feet leaving him to shudder at their suddenness.

The device beeped “Any luck?”

“No…..you?”

“i haven't seen him….”

“y-you don’t think he-....” Ygor gulped at the thought of him being free to terrorize. A small part of him wanted to be true. At least there was less of a chance getting mauled down here.

“i dont think so…..at least not yet…”

“Yet!?”

“ Somethings odd…..he's usually one to make a commotion when things go awry….” she pondered to herself. Ygor whipped his head around the darkness, stumbling around aimlessly. Every echoing drop only translating to the sound of a werewolves saliva hitting the stone floors ready to pounce. “Keep searching…i’ll keep an eye out…” she clicked off and Ygor was alone yet again. He sighed, he thought perhaps he could go a day without this but it was his daily curse for something not to go right. He had already spent time swiftly checking by the other enclosures. Dracula was still “sleeping” undisturbed by the silent chaos, thankfully no machinery was ripped out by any large teeth or fangs so he could put that worry away. The Gillman and Ankhesenamuns enclosures were all tightly sealed. Even Dracula’s brides that night were more quiet than usual, it just made Ygor more tense than comforted, he almost wanted to hear a bang, a scratch or a hiss. Anything….he looked at the stretching catacombs ahead. They offered no end to this torment either and his brain ached looking at them. He was about to click the call Victoria when he heard rusty metal creaking behind him.

He jumped to see an old temporary holding cell in the corner. It hadn't been used in some time. Ygor assumed it was there long before Victoria and him set up shop down there. He tiptoed towards it taking a peek inside....cautiously looking around before entering. It was your standard dungeon cell…chains on the wall…skeletons who were there for god knows how long, none of which phased the grave robber himself just useless parts in a useless room with nothing to show for his curiosity…except for a dead rat on the ground….he squinted shining his flashlight on it. It had been freshly mutilated beyond recognition except ....for those little paws he was so used to holding in his hands all the time….

“S-Scratch ?” his voice quietly broke, reaching down to touch the broken rat body. He could recognize his favorite catacomb critters without much help. He was choked up at the sight of it…they had both gone through some real scraps together, he was his little buddy…

Something dropped on his shoulder from the ceiling that made him screech. Ygor spun around and shined his flashlight at it…another one

“Sniff….” Ygor's chest felt tighter and his heartbeat ringed. He hopped to his feet as more rat corpses rained from the ceiling dodging them if he could, followed by an all too familiar growl. He swore he could see the reflection now of two animalistic daggering eyes piercing through him. Ygor nervously chuckled “T-There you are Lar! Ygor was worried about you hehe! But uh…I see you just wanted a quick midnight snack! A snack on Ygor’s most beloved companions!! T-that's okay!!! Friendships are temporary after all!” He rambled trying to convince himself he could talk himself out of this, all the while squeezing the tranquilizers to the point he could imagine it breaking in his gloved hands. The shadow of the hairy beast hopped down from the ceiling, crouching on its bent legs slowly crawling towards him. Ygor instinctively held the needle in front of him like a weapon upon his impact, backing away towards the light of the door he had entered from.

“n-now imagine that maybe you didn’t want to use Ygor’s head as a chew toy and instead Y-ygor just helped you take…a nice 24 hour doggy nap where you stay quiet and nobody has to di- AHHH!” The beast swiped its staggering claws at Ygor, missing by an inch, though it had cost him his balance. He had slipped on one of the dead rodents that Larry had finished off before. Ygor comically crashed on his back with a forceful thud against his skull. His tranquilizer dropped from his hand rolling into the inky blackness of the room. A bit dazed, Ygor squinted his eyes only for them to widen at the beast’s closeness to him. His teeth bared inches in front of his face, drool seeping out of his mouth over Ygor. Ygor patted the ground frantically for the tranquilizer but there was nothing. In a panic he lifted his reflex hammer at Larry “S-stay back you freakish fiend! Don’t come any closer!!! Ygor’s had just about enough of you for one week!! Ygor will be so relieved once you're put back in chains and I'll be the one to do it!” Ygor tried to sound brave. With a loud growl Larry grabbed Ygor's armed hand and slammed it down squeezing it tightly that his bones felt like they were about to crack, claws digging into his skin under his shirt. Ygor whimpered in pain, any bravery that he could muster up against the beast was draining and replaced with a harsh paleness on his face. He was shaking like a piece of paper in the wind trying to remove himself from Larry’s grasp but every struggle caused the Wolf-man to latch on tighter, tearing through his shirt. He used his feet to try to pry his way off the floor. He could feel the pained stinging tears forming under his goggles while Larry's other paw pinned him down slashing through the chest. Ygor’s teeth gnashed against the pain. He knew how these attacks would go and this one was going to be gnarly, there was nothing he could do about it. He could only imagine the facial reconstruction surgery the doctor was going to have to perform on him after this and the bandages that would make him look worse than Jack Griffin.

“N-nghh!!! n-no!!...no! please! I-ill give you your space I promise!!! Ygor won’t bother you anymore! I won't go near the cage for months, y-years!! Just spare me!!!”

Ygor begged, trying to wince away from him as much as he could. Larry pulled him closer with such ease, a startled gasp escaped from him, the rapid heartbeat in him only getting ever faster. He was directly under the jaws of this hairy creature. His eyes locked with Larry's the entire time, scared if he broke contact he would come for the attack instantly.

“Ygor! Where did you go! I lost you on surveillance” his communicator clicked on the ground next to him. Yet another item of importance that slipped from his grasp. It was reachable though…just slightly below his hand…he inched it closer, his pinky brushing against the button.

“.....D-Doctor….” Ygor squeaked with barely a whisper. “

Ygor? What is it? speak up i can barely hear you”

“I-I!-” a shaky pained hiss escaped his lips at the sensation of Larry's claws digging deeper into his chest, the dark red making itself present, stopping Ygor's plea in its tracks before he could make one. He gave a trembling pained whine. Those feral intense eyes almost looked as if they said scream….speak….and I'll make sure you’re nothing more than a smear when i’m done with you…. Ygor kept his wobbling lips forcefully sealed, squeezing his tear filled eyes tightly shut as if to command everything in his power to not shout, Victoria's voice continued to constantly beep through the device fading into background noise.

“What’s happening out there! Ygor! answer me you idiot!”

How he longed for any sort of desperate cry to escape him. He only held his finger on the button and silence poured through on her side praying maybe she’d understand his predicament. His hand was strained with pain, he couldn't hold it forever and it slipped away.

“stay where you are! I’ll sen-”

The beast launched the device at the wall with a quick swipe. It shattered into several pieces against the floor. Spit droplets rained on the tip of his giant nose. The creature opened his enormous jaws showing off those glistening slobber covered gums. Ygor could almost see his reflected mortified expression in one of those canines. He had never seen Larry so patient with his food, including him…He was observant with him…so calculated like he was trying to savor this attack, get a taste of his fear for as long as he could.

Despite the hopelessness of his predicament Ygor was thrashing against him kicking and squirming doing whatever he could to get away. He couldn't feel a single struggle from Larry's end at holding him down as he was brought closer and closer underneath him. Ygor's body sank into the floor as far as it could, turning his constantly scuffling head away from him. With a loud snarling growl the side of his head slammed into the stone flooring so abruptly in its place a shriek escaped his lips. All his veins went ice cold to the forceful grip Larry had on his skull, squishing his cheek against the hard floor. His eyes came face to face with one of his dead rat friends, only causing him to let out a shuddering sob. He felt the skin on his cheek breaking and dripping with new fresh drops of crimson near his nose. He couldn't move an inch in any direction. He wasn't sure if it was out of fear or exhaustion. It didn't matter how many times he went through this, how different it was, it always got worse and worse with each incident.

Without warning the sensation of rows of sharp jagged teeth enclosed around his neck. Like a bear trap full of a bunch of little knives.

Ygor let out a guttural choked scream as Larry viciously tore into his flesh, blood pooling down the side of his neck petrified like stone, trying to keep himself from suffocating on his own blood. The bite burned, it felt hot with a warm spit that entered his blood stream. He tried to claw at the floor to get himself away, reaching for the familiar blue light of the catacombs but he was dragged by the neck like a toy deeper into the old cell, smearing against the mess of blood and rat guts. He could feel his vision blurring from blood loss, figures were becoming shapes and the corners of his eyes were getting darker. The beast wasn’t letting up any time soon, only continuing to shake him around and bite deeper into his neck, dragging out his slow torture. Ygor could feel his heart skipping beats hoping his heart would stop or Larry would.

Let it end….please god just it end

To his surprise…it did end….Larry had quickly released him and his crushing body weight had disappeared from off his chest, replaced with the sound of a high dog whimper. Ygor could hear a deep loud groan before a dark figure was thrown effortlessly across the cell. Ygor’s chest heaved, so desperate to breathe trying to resist that inky blackness threatening to take him yet again. His body couldn't resist shaking or trembling but that was good to him, he was still moving in a way so he was alive. He could still taste the blood building up in his throat.

“Found....Ygor….Wolf got him…” A deep familiar voice called out.

“Is he still breathing?" Victoria's voice beeped through another small device, he could almost make out concern from her tone but he couldn’t tell if that was just due to his lightheadedness messing with his thoughts.

His vision was starting to clear up a little, to see the tall form of Victoria’s creature standing before him. He gently pushed Ygor’s body into a sitting position. Ygor winced in agony from the neck wounds still bleeding out.

“Nghhh!!...c-careful……y-you…..mmm…m-moron” his breath hitched with every word.

“Ygor….talk….”

“Give him the device” Victoria demanded.

The monster obeyed, handing the device to the nearly dying lab assistant.

“mm-b-boss?...” Ygor mumbled through the pain.

“You sound horrible…I'm assuming that the encounter didn’t go according to plan…how bad is it…?”

Ygor tried to shift himself up a little despite his bones feeling like they were all broken. “o-oh y-you know how it is…..some cracked ribs here .....some s-scrapes and bruises there…Ygor’s throat is a little flemy but its a-all s-super duper…..” Ygor said deliriously, only pausing to hack up more blood on the floor shaking to hold himself up. His arms slipped and he found himself lying on his side curled up quivering and struggling to breathe.

“I’ve heard enough from you…bring him to the lab and make sure he gets here in one piece, we’ll deal with Talbot later”

“Yes Doctor” the monster groaned in agreement. Ygor was in no mood to argue this time even if he tried, the darkness was threatening to return….and he felt his consciousness slipping from the scene.

The last thing he remembered was staring back at his dead rat friends motionless eyes… before everything was consumed by black…

Chapter Text

 Warm blankets were the first things he could feel wrapped around his frail form. 

  His legs were a tangled mess in the sheets. His head throbbed, ached and pounded as he came to. Slowly the world began to re materialize around him into dim and blue mixed lighting. That familiar cold draftiness of the lab hit his face, his eyes didn’t need to fully process to know where he was but at least he knew he was some kind of safe, as safe as he could be in Darkmoor. 

Ygor groaned, turning his body on his side, a sharp pain shot up through his neck as he tried turning it to the side. He hissed 

“ah!- ow ow ow…” he tried to readjust, his body still felt just as horrible…but not as horrible as it did before. 

He reached to touch neck and greeted with a thick layer of bandages wrapped around the spot Larry had sunk his fangs into. His hand trailed to his chest and it had been patched up where the beast had slashed his claws through. The memories were still vivid in his mind, every fresh tear into his skin, He shuddered at the thought of it, did he die? He couldn’t remember or tell if he died; it wasn't something he normally could. All he knew was he still felt incredibly fragile and every movement felt like he had been locked in a washing machine dryer spinning for hours.

   Around his cot were medical curtains shielding him from the rest of the lab's cold blue glow. Not that they really did much, to Ygor this was like a secondary bed. He had spent so much time in this little corner due to his many “oopsies” as he’d quote.

   There was something not right about this feeling to him…this wasn’t his first rodeo with Larry, he had been in many accidents and deaths beforehand. When he came back from those he couldn’t move an inch, the doctor had always had to help him get around but this time…he just felt like he had a sick feverish ache...

  Ygor hobbled out of bed, limping to see if he could make it from behind the curtain without falling on his ass. He stumbled around a bit and his walks had no coordination but it was manageable. He clung to the side of the curtain for support, shaky knees wobbling under him. He was able to make it to the operating table, propping himself up against it. 

  Victoria was hard at work stitching together fingers to parts of an arm, fixing up the damaged goods he had brought her the other night. He could still remember her disappointment but he was happy she didn't just toss away his work. She was making do with it. 

  “Doctor?” Victoria’s eyes snapped on him to his surprise, breaking her out of her sewing spell. 

“You're awake i see…thats good..i thought you would’ve died in your sleep but your heart managed to stay intact, you should consider yourself lucky he got pretty close”

“How long has Ygor been out?...”

“Not long, a day at least…”

Ygor rubbed his neck, picking at his bandages “So you're saying Ygor made it this time? I didn’t….you know” He trailed off.

“You were fine, you just lost a lot of blood, you’d think we’d be dealing with vampires, especially around your neck..it wasn’t pretty. I’m surprised he didn't break any major arteries"

Ygor picked at that spot again curiously, Victoria slapped his hand in response.

“Don't touch it you idiot!”

“Sorry! Ygors just a little bruisey, that's all! Feels like Ygor turned on the wrong side of the bed! it couldn't have been that bad right Boss?” he tried to play off with a nervous smile. 

She rolled her eyes “it was messy, not exactly a precise cut but if you must see…” Victoria pulled down a projector screen and with a click of a button appeared the images of Ygor's wounds from different angles. Those deep claw marks in the chest and the red gushing bites all around his throat that made him look like he was taken a bite out of like he were a piece of pie. Ygor's face was damp and turned sickly pale at the mere sight of them.

“yeesh...it was that bad” he mumbled, shying his eyes away from the gruesome display before him. Victoria clicked it off.

“i was ready to add it to the list your many demises but you were still breathing and pretty well too…for a man who was attacked by a werewolf that is”

Ygor rolled his eyes “oh haha! It's better than trying to breathe after a Gilman attack that's for sure…all that gargley blood water mixed with claws” he sarcastically exclaimed. Ygor adjusted himself to sit on the operating table swinging his feet as he tried to get used to the lab's harsh lighting. 

“What else do you recall? You disappeared completely from my view. I was sure all rooms close to the monster's chambers were wired, an oversight on my part” she admitted, looking away, almost ashamed about that fact. It was a weird thing to see, the Doctor showing any admittance to failure.

“Last thing Ygor recalls is not being able to breathe at all…but on top of that Ygor’s werewolf allergy hasn’t gotten any better” Ygor was about to scratch the bandaged area but Victoria glanced at him with those dagger eyes that made his blood run cold and he lowered his hand.

Ygor shook off the urge  “It was all so strange boss….Larry..he was hiding..being all sneaky-like, Ygor wouldn't have known he was there if it weren't for the rats!”

“The rats?” she gave a puzzled furrowed look 

“Yes yes the rats! Ygor remembers seeing them all dropping from the ceiling one by one! First Scratch…then Sniff…all chewed up and mangled…their little bodies bleeding like jelly donuts...” Ygor was cringing at his description  “m-my poor little angel’s treated no more than quick treats to be thrown away…” Ygor's voice broke into a shaky wobbling sound. Victoria always thought Ygor’s “friends” were disgusting the way they were always climbing all over him, sleeping cuddled against his neck, it made her squirm in her skin. Disease ridden and filthy, but she had to admit he made it convincing to feel bad for them but not for very long. 

“Focus Ygor, What else happened?”

  Ygor wiped a tiny tear from underneath his copper lenses “Larry hopped down from the ceiling, Ygor was getting ready to make the jump on him but Ygor slipped on one of his dead friends and Larry got the jump on me instead! and eh…you know the rest” Ygor nudged his head toward the empty screen. “Just another lovely night in the catacombs.....speaking of that…..what uh… happened to Larry?” he asked with a visible tinge of anxiety.

“Don't worry about him, after you were brought back here i had him sealed in a tighter enclosure…one that shouldn’t need any major maintenance check ups in the next few days, he’s still incapacitated right now but I won’t have you working with him for the time being”

 Ygor was getting ready to protest but his head quickly snapped up.

 “B-but i- wait….really?”

“I mean it, I don’t want you going anywhere near Larry Talbot, that’s an order”

Ygor looked stunned to hear this. Usually after his many deaths; she'd just send him right back out there into the jaws of the beasts that tormented him but no…she was willing to give him some grace this time. Ygor let out a chirpy sigh of relief.

 “Oh thank goodness! You are much too good to Ygor!….don’t you worry Doctor! Ygor can get back to work on anything else you need just say the word and i’ll be there!” Ygor hopped off the table. Victoria's eyes widened at the sight of him hopping off with the same amount of energy he usually tried to carry but he yelped at the dull pang in his unhealed legs, Victoria propped him up with an arm around him.

“Oh no you don’t! look at yourself..you’re still a big heaping mess, more than you usually are, you're in no position to be taking on any kind of work right now, as much as i hate the idea you still need rest” She helped him towards the curtained medical bed.

“But Ygor feel’s fine Doctor really! It looks bad, yes! But Ygor doesn’t feel as bad as it looks! Maybe little sharp aches here and there but Ygor only feels sick and I've worked feeling so much worse!” he tried expressing.

“I know that….but it doesn’t change the fact that i would rather you be at your best when your working this time so there’s less room for mistakes like these ” she protested

“You’ve never cared about Ygor being at his best before, you always say “As long as you can move and you can breathe you can work” Ygor imitated In her voice. Victoria scoffed at his laughable impression of her. “Oh please….I didn’t say it like that…but mark my words you are going to stay put or i’ll go get the chloroform myself” she demanded.

Ygor squeaked in horror “NO CHLOROFORM!!”

“Than just listen to what I'm saying to you, I don’t even want you to step foot outside the Manor…i just want you to stay right up here where i can see you”

Victoria sat Ygor down back on the rickety old bed. It wasn't very well cushioned but it was an upgrade to his cot. When he looked at Victoria he could tell something was off, the way her irises wouldn’t stay still, drops of sweat glistened on her forehead  “Doctor, you're scaring me a little…whats happening?”

“Nothing is happening, I just think I've pushed you too far this time around and I don’t want you to not injure yourself any further on the job…I've been too careless with your safety…I think it's time that changes” She put her hand on his shoulder. Ygor’s heart fluttered at her touch and his face flushed. Through her stress she looked sincere. Ygor wanted to believe her that maybe the Doctor was being more laxed…but at the same time he knew his Doctor and laxed she was not…. “What are you not telling Ygor boss…? you can’t lie to me…whatever it is, Ygor can handle it…you remember what you promised Ygor right?.....No more keeping me in the dark….” Victoria's expression softened up. She retracted her hand from his shoulder internally wincing at that statement.

She knew he was right. They had promised to stop keeping secrets after Victoria had finally come clean to him about his deaths and revivals, keeping it from him in the beginning. Ygor was a grown man, probably older than her, he could take it, at least that's what she was hoping for…he’d find out sooner or later and she rather him not find out on his own. “Alright fine…Hold still for me okay” Ygor tilted his head in confusion but nodded. Victoria began to cut the bandages around Ygor’s neck, snipping it bit by bit, a deep heaviness crept in the pit of his stomach. Victoria had snipped through every layer of bandage now.

“Feel your neck” Ygor’s hand hesitated but he stroked the side of his neck....his eyes almost bugged out of his goggles to feel nothing but his own neck wrinkles, no ripped skin, or stitching or scabs, just the rough texture of his aged grime covered skin that there's always been.

“T-this is where Ygor got bit yesterday” He shuddered

“You did….and you healed up before I could get to work on you”

Ygor could feel his chest getting tighter “I don’t understand boss…is..is there something wrong with Ygor?!” Victoria could tell he was getting agitated. She wasn’t sure if he should just tell him or let him figure it out. Ygor was trying to make sense of it all….it didn't take long before he started picking apart his other bandages around his waist. He frantically tore into them like a birthday present throwing them on the ground. These ones were much more compact. Finally Ygor looked down at his bare chest and let out a choked gasp. It was a blank canvas untouched by anything. His old scars from his past accidents seemed to have faded as well. The spots were still tender but there was nothing to indicate a struggle from prior attacks. The pieces in his mind started to click together, an icy grip tightened around his heart. He kept patting his boney rib cage all over,  shaking his head in the horror of it all. 

“Now Ygor-”

“No….no no no I’ve- Ygor’s never had a problem like this before, I’ve never been marked by a wolf in all my life!! I’ve been curse-free! Every bite with no reactions!” 

“Every time you’ve been bitten you died before the curse could ever take hold, this time though you were holding on by a thread just long enough for the infection to fully save your life…it was an incredible sight to behold really, how such gruesome wounds could be healed so quickly, it was beyond anything I could do with my resources” She awed.

  Ygor paced in a panic “Is that all you have to say Doctor!? Not! OOPSIE DAISY YGOR! YOU’RE GOING TO TURN INTO A GIANT DOG VERY SOON!! HAVE FUN PEEING IN THE BUSHES FOR THE REST OF YOUR MORTAL DAYS!! ” Ygor sweaty palms tugged at the straps of his goggles tapping at the lenses with his knuckles. Victoria held him still strongly by the shoulders.

“You need to get a grip on yourself! Freaking out isn't going to change your situation!” She yelled. Ygor tried to calm his breathing but it was hardly steadying.

“Easy for you to say! The only thing that will change my situation is a permanent silver bullet through the back of Ygor’s skull! You may as well just put Ygor down right now like the dog he’s going to become! Go ahead Boss, just do it now! It's been wonderful working with you!!!” Ygor lowered his head in defeat and pushed his bangs up to reveal his wrinkly forehead. Victoria forcefully pushed his forehead away causing him to yelp in surprise "Put that away, I’m not going to kill you!”

“T-then what will you do with me? Are you going to chain Ygor up in the catacombs like Larry? doomed to live in darkness forever!” Ygor said dramatically flopping onto his bed in a wave of despair. He hugged his pillow bringing his knees closely in and burying his face.

“I’m not going to do that either…as easy as it would be….well…perhaps if things get out of hand that could be a good last resort” She quietly mumbled. Ygor's body flinched at that response.

“So you would do that to me!!” He yelled muffled through the pillow

“I just told you I wouldn’t! This is exactly why I didn’t want to tell you yet. I knew you’d run a mile with this news before I could get to understanding the full scope of the situation!” She shoved his pillow away from his face so she could get a good look at his face, not surprised to see a big stupid frown beneath. 

“Yes you’ve been bitten…and you're showing early signs of Lycanthropy like quickly healing wounds...but that's only the bare minimum…unless there’s something else you're not telling me you’ve been feeling…”

  Ygor sighed “No nothing else…besides my cranky body betraying me...and the pounding in my head….” Ygor pulled the pillow closer as his only source of comfort. “What are we going to do boss?…you and I both know there’s no way out of this for Ygor…” he shivered.

Victoria sighed she couldn’t admit she didn’t have a plan for this at all. Her first thought when she had brought him to the Manor wasn’t "what am i going to do if my lab assistant turns into a werewolf?” She knew it probably should’ve been the first thing on her mind. These monsters didn’t come without their risks, turning into the very things she had sworn to capture and study was a very high possibility indeed. A possibility she and Ygor had been extremely lucky at avoiding up until this point. Anyone in Darkmoor would find it really easy to abandon a person in Ygor’s predicament, release him into the woods and let him fend for himself or worse, end him right there on the spot. Victoria was not going to do any of those, despite his enormous amounts of flaws that cost her all the time. There was truly nobody like him out there who was more scientifically brilliant at engineering than he was. Not only that but the only person in town to show her any bit of loyalty without fear…and a companionship she had never been able to find in any of the citizens of Darkmoor… 

Victoria sat down next to him and rubbed her palm on his arm. 

“You’re right…there is truly no way out…that's something you're going to have to try to come to terms with…but what I can do for now is monitor your condition, make it bearable, you're forgetting what we do here. We may capture monsters but we do more than just keep them chained up, we have years of research on our side…thats more than what Talbot had when he turned” 

Ygor peaked up at her from behind his fluffy shield…his breathing starting calm and steady a little more trying to convince himself of her words. He nodded.”r-right…..your right….you always are Doctor…” Ygor still didn’t sound quite too sure of his admittance but perhaps the more he said it the more he’d believe it.

Victoria smirked “I am right…besides…you should have nothing to worry about for a while…the moon has just passed, nothing is going to happen to you tonight”

“Then why do you need Ygor here? Why can’t I leave if it's not important?”

“I’m just playing it safe, if this is going to be a new normal i want to see how your body reacts the next few days ” Ygor breathed in and let out a heavy exhausted sigh. He rolled flat on his back, he wasn’t sure how he could rest with the news buzzing in head that in a month or so he's going to have undergone a horrible transformation he can’t stop or make better. It's not like Larry's transformations got any special pain treatment, there's nothing you could do for the shifting of painful twisting bones and a mind you can’t control.

“Are you sure Ygor didn’t just get dark rabies….” he whined.

“Dark rabies wouldn’t heal you up in less than a minute…”

Ygor groaned “If that stupid green dunderhead didn’t show up to save me then maybe Ygor would still be fully human” he crossed his arms.

“I’m the one who sent that green “dunderhead” in the first place” she bit back with a bitterness that edged her voice.

“O-oh….right sorry..” Ygor quickly recovered, anger dissipating back into his gloom. Ygor kept quiet to himself. Victoria could tell nothing she was saying could put his wandering mind at ease. Maybe he was right. She had half expected for him to die before he reached her table but his body was stubbornly keeping himself alive. Victoria pushed strands of dark hair from out of her face trying to keep her composure. One of them was already falling apart over this, she couldn’t fall apart either.

“Look I know you're scared, anyone in your situation would be…but listen to me…i’m not going to give up on you…you have my word that I'm not going anywhere and neither are you even if you try” Victoria gently rests her palm on his hand. Ygor looked up at her, a tired weary smile curved at the corner of his mouth. He squeezed her palm tightly in response, fearing she’d let go of it.

“You’re the best Doctor Victoria….i-i’m sorry Ygor got himself into this mess…I didn’t mean to become more of a burden to you” 

“Just shut up you dork… I carry no burdens” She ran her other hand through his wild unkempt hair. Ygor grinned at the physical affection any chance he got. Being injured or cursed was never fun but being on the other end of Victoria's care when she was in a good mood certainly was.

“You're not practicing giving Ygor head scratchies, are you boss?” he teased with a hint of hopefulness creeping in. Victoria scoffed and retracted her hand to his disappointment.

“You wish wouldn’t you?” she said

“Ygor’s not complaining”  his grin only getting wider…

“Yeah that is if you don’t rip off my hand first” she sneered, still a bit of playfulness in her face.  

“I promise Ygor will try his best not to bite! please!” He begged

“No promises until we see how you behave in your new form but…we’ll see…” She said humoring his weird little antics 

“I thought just moments ago this was your worst nightmare”

“Oh Ygor is absolutely peeing himself! Don't get me wrong but head scratchies would get anybody excited! And makes things less scary for Ygor!” Victoria snickered at him.

“Like I said, no promises”

Ygor always loved this…when it felt like he and the Doctor could just feel like humans, making playful little back and forths, not taking work or the monsters too seriously. He supposed the only monster she really was worrying about now was him…but Ygor couldn’t afford to take himself seriously either. The time came though for Victoria's focus to shift back into reality as she slipped away from Ygor’s hand. His heart stopped for a millisecond, her gloved touch was the only thing that was making him feel safe. She lifted herself up from the bed. 

“W-where are you going?” he asked

“Not far, just to go check on your blood samples, amongst other things” she responded. Ygor pushed his torso from off the bed. “Are you sure you don’t need Ygor’s help? Surely there's something I can do, yes? Like cleaning the beakers o-or-” Victoria sighed and laid tucked the sheets over him. “Stay put, i mean it” she commanded, Ygor sadly slunk back down into his pillow in no mood to agitate the Doctor “I already told you what I need you to do, I'll have work for you soon enough but for now just lay there” Ygor gave of a whimper of defeat. 

“Okay…”

“Is there something I could get for you perhaps, something that will make you more willing to relax?” she asked

“Ygor’s a little hungry…maybe my jar of leeches....and Ygor’s books would be nice” Victoria cringed, but she needed to oblige, anything to get him out of not thinking about his curse. 

“God you’re disgusting…but fine i’ll go get your leech jar and books if that will make you happy” Victoria opened the curtains about to make her leave.

“You're going to be alright” 

“I know I am boss…I trust you” He gave her a reassuring smile. Victoria hesitated but gave him a quick nod before walking off. Her heeled boots fading down the halls. Ygor was met with silence now. Nothing but the lab's machinery to give his ears something to listen to. Ygor couldn’t stand it…He wasn’t sure how strong he was going to be able to keep himself before the dreaded night of the transformation. Time was cruel and never slow. All his thoughts were screaming all at once in his mind.

How painful was it going to be to become a beast? 

Would he be able to control himself? 

Would he remember anything, would he be the least bit aware? 

What if he hurt his beloved Doctor…..

He grasped his pillow, hugging it even tighter against his chest, trying to make the thoughts cease. As his hand brushed against his arm he felt a sudden tiny sharpness…he cried releasing the pillow to see what had harmed him. Ygor swore he thought he saw claws protruding from his finger tips but…only his overgrown dirt covered fingernails were the culprits. Pathetic, not even a day with this and he was already psyching himself out.

“Its…its okay s-she’s right she’s always right” he murmured to himself.

“Y-ygors got it….”