Chapter Text
Adaine already despised this place.
So when people started turning into vampires and werewolves, Fabian jumped into action. “We need to find everyone,” Fabian spoke over the music. Without a response from her, he started running further into the Black Pit leaving her behind back in the whiskey bar area, confused and just that simple order from Fabian.
Remembering the moon cycles from her divination classes she knew it was nowhere near the full moon. Something else was turning these people into their forms but with no clear communication with her friends, she couldn’t rely on it.
Then, Adaine remembered the bouncer that Fig tricked in the beginning. With no other hope besides running further into danger with little to no strength or any type of dexterity. Adaine ran past the others turning into vampires and werewolves, clutching onto her orb and making her way through more people.
Hearing the sounds of music coming from the speakers or band nearby, along with what she recognized as Fig’s, glass shattering, and more chaos from zombies snarling, vampires screeching, and werewolves barking. Running further before she ran outside for the bouncer.
“It’s bad! It’s bad! Vampires, they’re werewolves-” Adaine yelled out. Almost out of breath as she came to a skidding stop in front of the entry.
Before she could even explain more, the sight of the bouncer was unsightly. He was taller, with claws, and hair all over as he was transforming into a werewolf. “Not again! Not again!” He yelled, clawing at his body, thrashing as his eyes became dilated and his body further transformed into its true form.
Shit
Adaine ran back inside, the werewolf in front of her snarled and barked. Almost like a reflex at this point, she raised a finger to it and shot a ray of sickness. The green bile shot from her fingers as the monster started puking and became sick from her spell.
The sound of music coming further inside blaring in her ears, shooting, clattering of swords, axes, and more fighting further in. All while she was having a completely different fight.
Adaine took a breather for a few seconds. A werewolf, the same one that she just hit with her ray of sickness. Twisting and trying to get away, she used her divination, knowing the werewolf would hit her one way or another. She forced fate for a split second against the claw which narrowly missed her face.
But missing the claw meant taking the bite to her right arm.
She felt the canine teeth sink into her arm, breaking through the fabric of her uniform blazer and her button-up sleeve. Pressure and pain shot through her arm as it started to throb. Yelping as she pulled her arm away with its canine teeth raking across her arm while pulling on it.
Tears welled in her eyes with the pain being worse than from the corn fight and from the car Fig crashed Luckily, it seemed the werewolf had its fill as it let go of her. A chuck on her flesh missing from the bite and the dragging. Blood flowed onto her arm, the fabric stained and blood dripping onto the floor.
Suddenly, Adaine’s ears rang as she dropped her orb onto the ground with a thump and a crack, letting it roll across the club floor. She couldn’t breathe properly as her chest heaved, but it wasn’t the way she recognized her panic attacks. Throbbing with pain her arm was trembling.
At this point, tears fell as she felt something spread from the arm into the rest of her body. With her little collected thoughts left in her mind, she recognized it as the lycanthropy spreading.
Collapsing onto the floor on her side, not hearing anything with the ringing in her ears. Adaine clutched onto her arm while sobbing and gasping from the pain.
Her heart was pounding, her ears ringing, tears falling, heavy breathing, throbbing pain, and lycanthropy spreading inside of her from the bite. She hated this, hated her family, hated Fabian leaving her side from the start, ringing in her ears and…
The pain seemingly started to numb in her arm.
Adaine’s breathing was no longer uneven but deep and slow.
Her vision started to blur but she could see the blurry light of her orb on the ground. Rolled against a wall of The Pit. She used her other arm to pull herself closer to it. Maybe she could get to the others, fight whatever they need to, and help in some way…
Adaine breathed in, trying to calm down more. She reached out with her good arm. Her ears slowly started to stop ringing as her fingertips were just barely touching the orb.
But just as the ringing stopped
The music could finally be heard.
The loud music played through her ears was louder than before. Adaine winced as she pulled back her arm to try to cover her ears.
Everything started to feel wrong.
The clothes were too tight, everything too loud, and her body started to feel uncomfortably hot. Then something started to feel wrong in her arm that was bitten. Before Adaine could comprehend the feeling something suddenly snapped!
The music is even louder.
Yelping in pain she grasped her arm once more, Adaine with blurry vision tried to get a good look at her arm again. Then another snap in her shoulder, yelping with tears gathering again with another snap in her arm, another in her shoulder, and another this time in her good arm. Adaine cried, yelping and at this point screaming in pain.
Moving from her side she got onto her hands and knees, pressing her forehead against the cold floor. Tears once more welled in her eyes.
The music was ringing in her ears at this point.
Adaine heard the snapping turning into cracking. Accompanied by the sound of fabric tearing which she recognized as her blazer. Her bones were cracking and snapping out of place as she cried more on the ground.
Then, the music dropped with a repeating beat, and the voice of somebody ringed out through The Black Pit “Th-Th-That's all,”
A breath of fresh air came into her lungs as Adaine reeled back. Breathing suddenly even as she felt her body slowly shift back into place. Thankfully no more snapping happened in the shift back.
On her back, she sighed deeply. Tears fell on the sides of her face, getting into her messed-up hair. Finally breathing right she calmed down. The music was doing something, and she didn’t bother with her bite mark right now…
Adaine felt something stir deeper inside the pit of her stomach.
She shakily got onto her knees and felt the blood on her arm dry onto her blazer and sleeved button-up. Adaine knew she looked like a mess. Looking up and straight forward she saw the same wolf that she attacked and that bit her. He was sitting down on the floor as well.
“Agh, kid look-” The man spoke up. He was still in the wolf form clutching his head that was bleeding from something else, possibly from another wolf or vampire.
“That…what…” Adaine spoke up. Her words were stuck in her throat. Sitting on her knees as tears no longer fell but her face was still wet from them. She stared at him with a blank face, not knowing what to do at this moment.
“Lycanthropy, I-I don’t get insurance and if I did I would get cured but like…” Speaking up he motioned to his werewolf form. He stood up more as he walked over to Adaine slowly.
“I…uh…Augefort has a position open,” Adaine hesitated for a moment before speaking again, “Guidance counselor,”
“Oh, hey thanks kid,” He spoke as he walked in front of Adaine. Holding out a pawed hand to the blonde.
Adaine took the paw with her good arm. With shaky legs she stood up from the floor, the idea of her orb abandoned as it lit with a faint glow in the corner of her eye. The blood and tears on her are now drying. She sighed heavily and let go of the man’s hand after a few seconds of gaining her composure.
“My name's Jawbone kiddo, thought I saw you and some more kids earlier,” Jawbone spoke before he moved past her. Adaine turned her head to witness what he was doing, Jawbone was kneeling and grabbing her orb. Without even needing to look further she could see the crack it had from when she dropped it prior. Wincing to herself, she knew her father would notice or someone at home. Jawbone stood back up and held out her orb to her.
Adaine hesitated just for a few seconds. She reached out and grabbed her orb back, capturing a grunt in her throat from the bite in her arm, it was somewhat numb but still hurt like whenever she moved her arm.
“I-I have to…go” She muttered under her breath, still shaky in her legs while she clutched her orb close to her chest again. Without waiting for a response she turned and almost sprinted away out back into the front.
Cold air immediately hit her, and the sound of sirens in the distance, and more ruckus coming from inside became noticeable from here. The distant sirens hurt her ears more than they should have, she thought it must've been from the loud music from earlier affecting her hearing…Shuffling her orb underneath her arm she shrugged off her blazer. The dark blue sleeve was covered in her blood and her white button-up sleeve was also stained. Her blazer seams were ripped around the shoulders from earlier.
She threw the blazer into a nearby trash can and cast the mending cantrip on her sleeve. Light blue magic fixing the seams along it. However leaving the blood stains still there, a contrast to the white. She’ll have to use another blazer from home and most definitely throw this shirt away. No shot of trying to get the blood stains off even with mending and she didn't have prestidigitation ready on hand.
She tried her best to remember anything about lycanthropy. That it was a curse, full moons, and the basics. That werewolves couldn’t stand sil-
“Adaine!” A familiar voice behind her spoke up.
Adaine turned to the voice behind her, holding her orb. Fig and Fabian were rushing towards her along with the other trailing behind. Gorgug let Kristen lean on him and she looked badly hurt with the others. While she was still looking behind her like she was looking for something. Riz looked around with a paranoid look in the direction of the sirens blaring.
“Adaine what happened?” Fig spoke, placing her hands on Adaines shoulder. Before grabbing Adaine’s arm and inspecting her injured arm. Only seeing the blood and not the bite hidden underneath the now-fixed sleeve.
Damn it. What should Adaine even say? Hey, got bitten even though you can’t see it and possibly cursed with lycanthropy now. Also, I gave a random man our school name for the guidance counselor position.
“I thought we agreed on finding everyone? What happened back there?” Fabian came up, covered in his injuries and some blood that was possibly not his with his rapier covered in blood as well.
Adaine tried to speak before Riz cut her off. “We need to go, the police are coming soon, we need to go before we get caught. Zayn got away but he’ll get to school tomorrow so we can catch him then.”
Damn it. She didn’t want to interrupt with the possibility no, 100% chance that she's been cursed with lycanthropy.
“We need to rest or go home. Not my parents they suck,” Kristen spoke up as she now started leaning on her staff and no longer Gorgug.
“My house is almost down the street, we can rest there for the night” Fabian turned to the others, placing a hand on Adaine’s shoulder with his rapier in the other hand.
Gorgug, Kristen, and Riz started making their way down the street. Fig still held her arm with Fabian trailing behind the three. Fig let go of her arm as they walked side by side. Playing a soft and low familiar tune. Adaine felt something on her arm, while not seeing it she felt the wound almost stitch itself back up. Not fully and enough but good for Adaine. She smiled wearily at Fig who gave a smile back.
However the pit of her stomach, the unrestless stirring came to a stop.
Again, for the second time, Adaine hated this.
Fig and Bill Seacaster played sea shanties all night with the pirates in the barrels. The others and Adaine tried to sleep but were ultimately forced awake. Not to mention the drills they had to run in the morning by Bill and the pirates.
Gorgug and Fabian sparred with Bill and the other pirates on how to strike vulnerable points. Riz was chased around the manor and forced to use his stealth to get away and be more stealthy at the moment and to use the environment for him. Fig was made to try strategy more against others and with them. While Adaine and Kristen were the most vulnerable in the group. Doing more running drills with Kristen as the other laid down on the ground from exhaustion in the gardens. Gorgug’s, Riz’s, and Kristen's phones clattered on the floor when Bill knocked them out of their hands. Refusing to let them call or warn a parent.
While Kristen was tripping over her two feet, her staff slowed her down and dragged her to the floor. Somehow, instead of falling behind with Kristen like she would've before. She was running faster than she should have been running. Her breathing wasn’t uneven but steady and deep unlike before like in the cafeteria fight or while running away from Jonny Spells into the car or many more times with the others.
“Adaine!” Kristen yelled out from behind her, “We’re supposed to run together! How are you doing that!”
“Ay! There you go, lassie!” Bill yelled out from the sidelines. Waving his rapier around and pointing to her, “Run! Run!”
Another drill, after another drill, Adaine’s turn to spar with Bill Seacaster. Kristen and Gorgug went after her. Being exhausted as they lay collapsed next to the pool. Adaine held the rapier in her hands tightly, Bill parrying every time she tried landing a blow and pushing her back, she hated this again.
She was exhausted from this already. She hated this fucking fight.
While Bill did another parry against her blow, a stroke of something like anger came to her. But it wasn’t like when she was mad at Aelwyn or her parents. The stirring in her stomach started again as she breathed deeply.
Adaine felt something rise in her throat and before she could comprehend the sound, a low snarl started as Adaine tried another slash against Bill's chest. Frustrated with this entire day, hating everything about these drills even though she was doing more exceptionally than she would've thought. Her heart was pounding in her chest as she focused on a line and the pressure. Bill catching the strike, two rapiers clashing against each other. Adaine flexed her arm more, pushing harder against Bill’s rapier. Forcing the man to step back on his right foot.
“There you go, lassie! Ha!” Bill’s voice and laugh rang out in the backyard. “Keep pushing!”
Bill twisted his rapier, forcing Adaine to let go as she stumbled backward almost falling, her hair stuck to the back of her neck and to her forehead, her face bright red and hot, sweating everywhere. The skirt of her uniform was wrong on her hips, her dress shirt was sticking onto her body, and her tie was fully undone and just dangling off of her neck. She breathed heavily again, burning her lungs with the cold air.
“There you go!” Bill shouted, “Alright then! Rest with the others!” Waving his rapier in the air again as he pointed to Kristen and Gorgug.
After they already missed the entire school day they finally got their phones back without Bill knocking them out of their hands. Fig still played some sea shanties with the pirates while Fabian rode around the Hangman around the neighborhood with Bill riding behind him and taking down mailboxes.
She opened her phone to text messages from her mother and Aelywn.
Bitch Face Cunt (Aelwyn)
Wherever you are Mom and Dad are grounding you when you come back
Also, they know you skipped school.
Mother
Adaine where are you?
Adaine Abernant respond to me now.
We just received the email that you did not arrive at school today.
Me and your father discussed, and you will be grounded for the remainder of the month.
Goddamnit
Adaine sighed as she turned off her phone and slipped it into her pocket. Not bothering to respond to either of them. Before turning on her heel to go back inside.
Adaine went inside Seacaster Manor, finding her way through the place to the dining room where Kristen, Gorgug, and Riz were all eating steak with sides of mashed potatoes and greens even though it was past lunch already. Cathilda, Fabians’s maid, was refilling drinks with a lemonade pitcher.
“Ah! Miss Abernant. Would you care for some food?” Cathilda said. Holding up the pitcher as she motioned to another plate of food in front of the chair on Kristen’s left.
“It’s so good!” Kristen yelled, though muffled through the food in her mouth. The fork and knife were in her hand as she cut through the steak.
Riz and Gorgug nodded with Kristen as Riz used his hand and the utensils were a bit smaller for Gorgug than it was for the others.
Adaine nodded her head before sitting down on Kristen’s left. Taking the glass cup of lemonade in her hand. Practically chugged it as she hadn't drunk or eaten much through the whole day so far. She placed down the glass, reaching for the fork and knife. Trying to scrape anything else she knew about lycanthropy.
However, when Adaine’s hand touched the fork before even reaching the knife. Her skin sizzled and burned like it was in a campfire.
She screamed in pain, standing up and letting go of the utensil. The chair screeched against the floor as everyone panicked. Kristen grabbed her staff right beside her which was leaning on the table, hands glowing with golden light as a spell, Riz and Gorgug were more focused on what caused her scream and Calthida rushed over quickly. Clutching her wrist with her other hand, her burning hand started having blisters, her skin turning red as tears pricked the corners of her eyes again.