Chapter Nineteen: Transformation

(Prayers By Night, Part 2)

***

Tension hung heavy in the pool house.

After getting inside and setting Nick down and getting several towels and a heater working to dry him off, Hayden had then grabbed herself a towel and dried off as much as she could. From there, they separated into two groups—Allison staying with Nick, Hayden, Kaitlyn, Abi, Dylan and Ryan sitting together and Nora and Sarah in a corner together. Outside, thunder boomed as rain sheeted down, amping up the uneasy atmosphere that had lasted ever since the pool and leaving them inside until the rain died down and they could move on.

And hope neither the hunters or the monster would be searching for them in the rain.

As she sat next to Nick, making sure he was dry, Allison checked her bow and arrows were also dry—God knows she didn't need them wet and warping tonight—when she heard Nick mumble, "Allison..."

Allison turned, looking at Nick as he gave her a remorseful look. Allison's heart twisted—on the one hand, she wanted nothing to do with him. On the other...

On the other, she knew the bite must be affecting Nick somehow, the infection altering his personality. Once it was treated, he'd be back to normal—back to being her Nick.

"Don't try to speak, Nick. Just rest," she murmured, resting a hand on his icy skin. That worried her—that despite the heater, he was still frozen to the touch.

"Fuck... I'm sorry," Nick apologised. "I should have let you go. I... I'm really sorry."

Allison bit her lip, looking at Nick before she squeezed his arm and whispered, "It's okay. It... it wasn't you."

Nick didn't reply and Allison didn't say any more, lapsing into silence as she hoped what she said was true. That he'd be normal once the infection was gone.

She hoped.

***

Something was wrong with Nick.

Hayden had been thinking that all night, ever since he first mentioned he wasn't in any more pain. First that, then the snapping and sudden, uncharacteristic aggression, then the fast healing that had taken eight-year-old scars away, now the pool? Something was very, very wrong with her brother, had been ever since he got bitten.

But what? What was wrong with Nick?

A pained yell from Dylan snapped Hayden out of her thoughts as she tuned back in, seeing Kaitlyn rewrap Dylan's stump. After Nick had been set down with an army of towels and a heater to dry him off and Hayden had also found a towel and dried off as much as she could, Kaitlyn had set to work on treating the stump after Allison had given her the go-ahead while she made sure Nick was okay. Hayden moved closer to Dylan, holding his shoulder in support as he involuntarily jumped every time Kaitlyn touched the stump where his hand had been.

"Quit moving so much!" Kaitlyn scolded before, finally, she finished rewrapping it with bandages they found in a first aid kit near the towels and she stepped back.

"It's pretty clean from what I could tell," Kaitlyn informed as she sat back down in her chair. "I mean, it's not bleeding. But you need to see a doctor."

"I think most of us do," Hayden murmured, eyeing Abi and Sarah, still near Nora. Eyeing Nick.

She held her best friend comfortingly, his face screwed up with pain as Kaitlyn pulled out a bottle of painkillers and told Dylan, "Look, this is all I got left from the nurse's station."

"Ooh. Fun," Dylan snarked as he took them, Hayden rolling her eyes even though she felt relieved. If Dylan was quipping jokes, he should be fine, right? 

Right?

"You better hope we find you some real help before they wear off," Kaitlyn muttered as Dylan dry-swallowed the pills.

"We should cauterise it, but we don't have anything to make a fire and I doubt any of us are willing to go back to the bonfire. If it's not bleeding and doesn't show any signs of infection, it should be fine," Allison called over.

"Thanks, Dr. Allison," Dylan quipped dryly.

"No problem," Allison returned before refocusing on Nick.

"I'll go see if I can get any extra towels for Nick," Abi said, standing up. "Hayden, do you..."

"I'm good," Hayden assured, smiling. Abi tried to return it, before leaving to find some more towels.

After she left, Kaitlyn told them all, "We need to be keeping a record of everything that happens, for the police."

"Yeah... dead girl in the pool needs some explaining, huh," Dylan agreed.

Hayden nodded. "They're gonna find it really suspicious, even if we told the truth about eyepatch lady and just finding her there."

"Ugh. Easy, guys," Ryan muttered.

Hayden winced. Right. She'd forgotten the body was Kaylee—that Ryan, Sarah, Nora and Dylan had known her well, especially Ryan and Sarah.

Sarah... God, Hayden felt so bad for her, knowing that the girl she probably knew very well, that she'd probably grown up with,  was now dead. At least she had Nora to comfort her over her grief.

"I mean like, photos, whatever we can," Kaitlyn elaborated, drawing Hayden's thoughts off of Kaylee and back onto the cops. "I've got a funny feeling the cops are not gonna wanna believe any of this crazy shit unless we got some hard proof."

Hayden nodded. "They'll probably call us crazy instead of actually listening to us. So yeah... we'll definitely need evidence to back up our words and what happened to Nick and Sarah."

"From now on, if you got your phone, and you see something, take a photo or video or whatever," Ryan declared.

Hayden and Dylan nodded affirmatively as Kaitlyn said, "Yeah."

Looking over at Allison and Nick, she asked, "You okay there, Allison?"

Allison nodded, a worried look on her face before Kaitlyn suggested, "Look, why don't you find Abi? Make sure she's doing okay on her ankle."

Accepting the suggestion, Allison got up and headed off to find Abi. Hayden bit her lip, hoping Abi was okay, that her ankle wouldn't heal beyond repair because of tonight.

That they'd all be okay after tonight.

***

Allison found Abi looking at a photo on the wall—a photo of a younger Ryan, Kaylee and Caleb and Sarah. Seeing it punched Allison in the gut. God, Sarah must be crushed knowing that Kaylee was dead and Caleb...

Caleb might have no idea his sister was gone.

"Hey Allison," Abi greeted.

"Hey," Allison replied, staring at the phot along with Abi.

As they did, Abi wondered, "Wonder where Caleb is?"

Allison shrugged, before she looked at Abi and asked, "Is your ankle okay? Now we have a moment to breathe, you should be resting it."

"Oh. It hurts a bit, and it's not exactly fun to walk or run on it. But I'm okay. I hope," Abi answered, smiling at Allison. She didn't return it.

"Okay, but be careful. We don't want to turn that sprain into a break," Allison warned, Abi nodding.

She turned and walked off, heading to the shower as Allison followed her, watching her carefully as she turned and headed toward the lockers, opening one and pulling out a drawing of a ghost-like woman near a full moon, white eyes staring at Allison.

Allison shivered. "That's freaking creepy."

Abi nodded, before she murmured, "This place was so different like twelve hours ago."

"Yeah, it was," Allison muttered, even though she wasn't talking about Hackett's Quarry.

Abi understood, though, putting her arm around Allison comfortingly. Allison accepted it, before pulling away as Abi put the drawing back and closed the locker and they headed off back to the others, Allison moving the heater closer to Nick as Abi joined up with Nora and Sarah.

"Here. Is that any better?" she asked as she sat down next to Nick.

"Thanks," Nick replied, closing his eyes as he took in the heat.

Brushing back some wet strands of hair—and fighting back the shudder at feeling his chilled skin—Allison dropped her hand as she murmured, "Hey."

Nick didn't respond, looking dazed. 

Allison frowned, but she tried not to worry. Nick would be okay. He'd have to be, once the infection was treated and he was normal again. He was just sick, but he would be himself once he was better.

Wouldn't he?

***

Across from the couple, Hayden, Kaitlyn, Dylan and Ryan stared at Nick, then at Nora and Sarah, before Kaitlyn said, "Yo something is not right with that boy. Or with Sarah."

At that,  Hayden sighed. "You too? I thought I was the only one who noticed it."

Dylan nodded and commented, "Dude is real sick."

"Sarah's less so, but... they're not doing so good," Hayden affirmed, looking in concern at her brother.

"Did you see how he freaked out in the water?" Ryan questioned.

"Yeah, he was like a... was like a fish out of water. Right?" Dylan affirmed.

"Uh... sure," Ryan said.

"He shouldn't be though," Hayden murmured. At the looks sent her way, Hayden elaborated, "Nick and I...  we grew up on the coast. Been in the water for most of our lives. We've known how to swim since we were kids, and we're both strong swimmers. Really strong swimmers. You guys have known that since that first afternoon we all swam in the lake."

Nods came at that, the afternoon coming clearly to their minds. It was the first break they had for all the counsellors and they decided to swim in the lake to celebrate. And once Hayden and Nick hit the water, it was clear that none of them could match the twins' swimming ability or how at home they were in the water. How much they loved it, especially Nick.

Specifically, Nick.

Hayden nodded, seeing their looks. "Exactly. And Nick... he loves the water, more than even I do. He was always the one who refused to get out of the water when we were kids and our parents told us to, who's always asking me to surf one more wave even if we'd wipeout more than not, always the one ready to dive back in or get in the water first before anyone else can, all of that. We joke and call him a fish about it, but it doesn't change anything. Nick loves the water, and he knows how to swim. He shouldn't have acted like that in the pool, he should have known how to swim. Since he didn't..."

Hayden cast another concerned glance back at him. "That's really weird. And worrying."

A heartbeat of silence, before Ryan agreed, "Yeah, that is weird."

"You know, something was weird when Allison and I tried to clean his wounds, too. At the lodge. Both his and Sarah's," Kaitlyn revealed, as Hayden turned to Kaitlyn, knowing exactly what she meant.

"What do you mean?" Ryan asked.

"Well all of their clothes were all bloody, but... I couldn't find where they bit. Or scratched. Or whatever. And Nick just kept moving around. Like he didn't want me to see how badly he was hurt," Kaitlyn explained.

Hayden nodded. "Yeah, and he didn't want us to use the water to clean the injury. Allison used disinfectant to clean it instead and so did Nora. And Allison kept saying that when Nick was first bit, it looked deep enough to need stitches, but it didn't look that deep when we saw it. And..."

Hayden swallowed, before revealing, "Before we left the cabin, right up till we met you guys, I checked his leg to see how it was and I couldn't find it either. But more than that... his scars on his leg were gone."

"So? Scars disappear sometimes," Dylan argued, shrugging. "That's not weird."

Hayden gave him a flat look. "Uh, scars that have been on my brother's leg since he was eleven years old because he was stung by a box jellyfish, one of the most venomous jellyfishes in the world, while we were on a family trip to Cairns and which despite receiving immediate medical attention haven't disappeared or faded away for eight years, and are now suddenly gone? That not weird at all to you?"

Looking cowed, Dylan admitted, "Okay, that is weird."

"Huh," Ryan said, to all that Hayden and Kaitlyn had revealed.

"Rabies?" Dylan suggested.

"They're not frothing at the mouth," Ryan noted.

"I think Allison and maybe Nora would beg to differ," Kaitlyn muttered.

"Point."

"And rabies doesn't explain Nick's bite or scars just suddenly disappearing," Hayden pointed out, before she added, "But now that you mention it, Sarah's been avoiding me and Nick like the plague ever since we got out of the water. Like she doesn't want us to get her wet."

"And isn't aquaphobia a symptom of rabies?" Kaitlyn questioned, on a roll now.

"Hydrophobia. Yeah. but I think it's more about a fear of drinking. Not just getting wet. This was more like..." Ryan replied, searching for an apt way to describe it.

"Like he'd been shoved into acid, not water," Hayden supplied right as Dylan said, "Like my cat in the bathtub."

"That works too," Hayden admitted, because it was like that. Sort of.

"Yeah," Ryan murmured, as they all looked at Nick, wondering the same question Hayden had been thinking all night:

What was wrong with Nick? What was wrong with him and Sarah?

Hayden wanted to scream in frustration. God, she hated feeling so helpless, to know something was deeply wrong with her brother and being unable to help him or fix it, let alone know what was causing it. Rabies seemed logical, especially for the sudden aggression, but how did it explain the infection? How did it explain Nick's bite healing so quickly and then his scars just suddenly vanishing? How did rabies explain any of that?

What's going on with you Nick? she whispered, looking at him. What is happening to my brother?

And did she want to know the answer?

***

As Hayden, Dylan, Kaitlyn and Ryan talked, Sarah was apologising to Abi for snapping at her, and at Nora for refusing to let her go earlier at the pool, before Nick had fallen in.

"I'm sorry. I'm really, really sorry.  I don't... I don't even know why I did that," Sarah apologised, hugging her knees to her chest as guilt stormed inside her at what she'd done. How uncomfortable Nora had been... how shocked Abi had looked...

"I'm just really sorry," she whispered.

"Hey, it's okay. It's the infection, right? It's probably making you act like that," Nora assured, holding her hand.

Abi nodded. "Yeah. Messing with your head. It's not you."

Sarah swallowed, looking down as she whispered, "Sometimes I feel like... I don't..."

"Hey, hey, hey," Nora soothed, holding her as she stroked her hair, assuring, "It's okay. We're gonna get through this. It's gonna be okay."

Sarah clutched Nora tightly before harshly pulling away, not wanting to act like she had done at the pool before. How she held Nora so tightly, how she smelled so good, some part of her whispered what it would be like to have just one taste of her...

Sarah shuddered, holding herself as she whispered, "What the fuck is wrong with me and Nick?"

Abi and Nora looked at each other, not having an answer—that, just like Sarah and Nick and everyone else, they had no idea what the fuck was happening to them.

Sarah clutched her head, eyes screwed up at the buzzing in her head, her skin itching feverishly, like something was trying to claw its out of her, to explode out of her. Her ears rang with all the noise she could hear, how loud her heart was beating, so fast Sarah was surprised it hadn't burst out of her chest. Her eyes darted around at Nora and Abi, landing on Nora as her mind buzzed erratically.

Smells so good, she always smells so good. Love her so much... does she taste as good as she smells? Just one little bite...

"No!" Sarah exclaimed in horror, scooting back as she met the pool house wall, panting loudly, heart thumping louder, fast as a rabbit.

"Sarah?" Nora asked, resting her hand on Sarah's arm and she flinched.

"Leave me the fuck alone, Nora! Just don't touch me, okay? My skin feels like it's on fire..." Sarah snapped, curling into herself and breathing heavily, hand fisted tightly into her hair.

"Sarah, babe..." Nora murmured.

"Just leave me alone, Nora. You just... I can't deal with you right now. My mind's a mess and I feel like something's crawling underneath my skin and everything is just so goddamned loud and you smell so freaking good and I'm so fucking hungry!" Sarah hissed, still holding herself close, fingernails digging into her scalp.

"Is she okay?" Abi whispered.

"I don't know. Sarah, honey, talk to me," Nora said softly, reaching out to rest her hand on Sarah's shoulder, only for her to flinch away and bare her teeth at her.

"What part of leave me the fuck alone doesn't register to you?" Sarah growled, eyes narrowed as her mind snapped and howled, thoughts whispering to lunge, to attack, to snap and bite and claw and get out of there and defend herself no matter how much blood was split.

"Sarah, I'm trying to help you, to be there for you. I'm just trying to help you, babe," Nora said, hurt and pleading in her eyes. "This... this isn't like you. Sarah, what's happening to you?"

"You just can't leave it alone can you?" Sarah hissed, hackles rising, teeth bared.

"Sarah..."

"Just leave me alone!" Sarah snarled. "Just get out of my space before I rip your throat out"

Nora stared at her in shock, as did Abi. "What did you just say?"

Sarah panted, thoughts of her teeth in Nora's throat, in Abi's, filling her head, blood and meaty flesh in her mouth, of attacking her, of tearing her apart...

Like that, clarity pierced through her bloodlust and Sarah's eyes widened in horror.

"What am I thinking?" she whispered, looking at Nora in horror. "Nora, I... I don't..."

"Hey, it's okay. It's... it's the bite. It's affecting you," Nora said. "Though maybe it's rabies..."

"I'm sorry," Sarah whispered. "I'm so sorry, I—OW! Fuck!"

Sarah hissed in pain as she shook her wrist wildly as a sharp burning pain shot up her arm, demanding, "Nora, Abi, get this off me!"

Abi did, and Sarah stifled another hiss as Abi's bracelet made contact with her raw skin as she slid off the thing causing her pain—her chain bracelet, spooling in Abi's hand like links of silver moonlight.

Once it was gone, Nora grabbed Sarah's wrist before she could pull away, looking at the raw red skin of her wrist, the shape the same as her bracelet.

"What the hell?" Nora breathed as Sarah tugged her hand away, holding it protectively to her chest. 

"What happened?" Abi asked.

"Sarah's bracelet burned her. But... she's been wearing that bracelet for as long as I've known her and it's never hurt her," Nora answered, looking both confused and worried at Sarah.

Sarah looked down, panting heavily as her body shuddered with the feverish, skin-crawling itching, the earlier mention of her bite making her shoulder twinge as the memory of the monster's teeth flooded her raging mind, of fur and yellow eyes in a lupine face—

Sarah froze.

Lupine... full moon... bite...

Holy shit. Sarah knew what was wrong with her and Nick. What had attacked them, what had bitten them—what was changing them.

It wasn't possible—it shouldn't be possible. And yet it made so much sense. It explained so much—the creature that attacked them that wasn't like any bear or wolf, the quick-healing bites, how her senses were so heightened, why she and Nick were suddenly so aggressive. The water... she didn't know how to explain that. Maybe that was something that had never been discovered or part of the myths. Her bracelet—her silver bracelet.

The arrows... Allison's arrows...

Sarah's eyes widened as she looked at Nick, as her sharp vision picked out the burn on a leg that now bore no evidence of the bite—a burn in the shape of an arrowhead, right before he'd fallen into the water.

All the pieces clicked horrifyingly into place as Sarah stared at her shaking hands, already seeing the hands of a monster instead of her own.

How long did she and Nick have? It had been slow, but how much more time did they have left? How much longer could their humanity hold out before it couldn't any longer? How long could they fight it until they couldn't anymore?

What would happen if they couldn't? What would happen to their friends, to Allison, to Hayden? To Nora?

Sarah's heart stuttered, horrifying images flooding her mind of what could happen.

"Sarah?"

Sarah whirled to Nora, and she whispered, "You need to get the fuck away from me."

"What? No way, Sarah, I'm—" Nora began,  holding her shoulder, but Sarah grabbed her hand and hissed, "You and everyone else need to get the fuck out of here! Talk to Hayden—she'll know. You just need to get away as far as you can from me and Nick!"

"Sarah, you're not making any sense!" Nora exclaimed, Abi also looking confused.

No, no. Nora and Abi had to understand, they had to get what Sarah had just realised, they had to tell everyone, make sure Allison could use her arrows if the worst came—she was the only one who could actually hurt them with those arrows—they had to get as far away as they could from her and Nick.

Before it was too late.

***

Allison sighed, running her hand over her face. God she felt so fucking exhausted. When was this night going to end and they could get out of here without worrying about being torn to pieces or their heads blown up?

She just wanted herself, her friends and Nick to be safe and okay. Was that too much to ask for?

"Allison."

Allison turned to Nick. "Yeah, Nick?"

Nick panted, and in the light of the heater, Allison saw his eyes flicker yellow. Allison frowned. That's weird.

"Can I ask you something?" he whispered.

"Yeah, of course," Allison said, trying to ignore the sudden noise that had sprung up between Sarah and Nora.

"No, you don't understand, Nora!"

"Then make me understand! Sarah, what is going on?!"

Ignoring them, Allison focused on Nick as he questioned, "Do you like me?"

Allison frowned. "Nick..."

"Please, just... tell me," Nick said, eyes still glinting yellow.

"Sarah, you're not making any sense!"

"No, Nora, please just listen to me!"

Allison bit her lip before she answered, "Nick, of course I do. I've liked you since we first met. I just... didn't say anything before because I was afraid of losing my friend."

"That's such a... that's such..." Nick muttered under his breath.

"Such a what, Nick?" Allison pressed.

Nick panted before whispering, "Such a cop out answer."

Allison stared at him. "What? Nick, that's the truth. Seriously, why did you even say that..."

She looked away, trying to process, to get her raging thoughts in order. The argument between Nora and Sarah didn't help. And come to think of it, she could have sworn she heard Sarah yell out in pain a few minutes ago...

"Allison."

"What, Nick?" Allison asked curtly.

"I've got something to ask you."

"What is it, Nick?" Allison questioned, voice harsh but she didn't care even as part of her whispered this wasn't Nick, Nick wouldn't act like this, this wasn't the boy she'd befriended and then fallen so hard for.

"Why don't you like me, Allison?"

Allison gaped at him.

"Nick, I do like you," she said, not understanding why Nick thought she didn't all of a sudden. Sure, she'd been harsh earlier, but she was just trying to make sure he didn't die from his infected bite. And what happened with the pool...

"N-No... no you don't... You don't like me at all, do you?" Nick muttered tersely.

"What do you mean? Of course I do!" Allison exclaimed.

"Tell me the truth," Nick demanded.

"I am! You're just not listening and believing me," Allison retorted defensively.

"God... I sure know how to pick 'em..." Nick muttered.

"Wait what? What the hell are you talking about? You're the one who's been acting like the asshole recently," Allison demanded, straightening up and feeling confused.

"You're not getting it, are you? Poor Allison, too harsh, too cold to let anyone in," Nick spat at her.

"Stop. That's not..." Allison started, but faltered.

"Chews them up, then spits them right back out. Right off the bone," Nick muttered, sounding delirious.

"Stop, this isn't you, Nick. It's the infection, it's twisting your mind, you'd never say that, this isn't you, I—" Allison started, because she was right, she knew she was right, the infection was twisting Nick into someone he wasn't.

But as she did, Nick lunged and grabbed her arm.

Allison froze, staring at Nick, at the blank, animalistic look in his eyes, and in her hesitation, he pulled her back then threw her against the wall. Pain cracked across Allison's head as the arguing cut off between Nora and Sarah and attracted the attention of the others as Ryan shouted, "Whoa!"

"Whoa, Allison!" Kaitlyn shouted. 

"Nick, what the actual fuck?!" Hayden yelled, running to Allison as she slowly sat up, blinking the stars out of her eyes as her vision slid between blackness and colour.

"What the fucking hell Nick!?!" Nora yelled as Sarah mumbled, "No, no. This is bad, this is bad, fuck."

"Allison, everything okay?" Ryan questioned.

"Nick, why the fuck did you do that?!" Hayden demanded as Allison felt the taller girl help her up, glaring at Nick. "You'd never do that! What's wrong with you?!"

"Whoa... holy shit," Dylan breathed.

"Nick?" Hayden said, her voice sounding tremulous, more afraid.

Through her blurry vision, Allison saw Nick leap up on all fours before standing up, yellow eyes staring at her and Hayden, no recognition within them. Instead something predatory and animalistic was in there, almost...

Almost monstrous.

And in that moment, Allison knew. Whatever the infection had done to Nick, it had changed him.

And taken the boy she loved away and left a monster in his place.

***

Hayden was in shock as she stared at her brother.

Her brother, looking at her with yellow eyes, a grin on his face that was too animalistic, too hungry, for her liking, as he stared at her not as if she was his sister, not as if she was his best friend—in fact, he stared at her like he didn't recognise her at all. He stared at her and at Allison like...

Like they were prey he was about to tear apart and devour.

That shattered her heart along with the realisation if she didn't do something, Nick would do more than what he'd done to Allison, that he might even kill them.

She had to do something, no matter how much it felt like every inch of her was screaming not to do it.

Before she could second-guess, Hayden grabbed the shotgun off the floor and pointed it at Dylan. The torch lit him up, and Hayden's finger shook as she saw Nick's face, the face of someone she'd known literally since birth, the person she'd survived primary school and high school with, the person enduring uni with her, the person who was there for her during her allergy attack and she was there for him with his jellyfish sting and all the bumps and bruises and broken bones they endured together, who was there for her and comforted her and supported her when she came out to him,  the person who'd always been there for her ups and downs and she for his, who'd always teased and ribbed her and she in turn would tease right back, especially about his latest crushes, but she knew deep in her bones would always have her back and annihilate anyone who wished her harm or said anything about her and she would for him, the person who complained about it being too early for whale watching but always stayed by her side to see the whales as they drank coffee and had breakfast, who was the first to charge a wave and they raced each other to catch the biggest wave first and laughed if one of them had an epic wipeout but always watched each other if it was too dangerous or the current too strong or if a riptide or shark was near, the person who could always make her laugh and share in her laughter and be there for her when she needed a shoulder to cry or support and always knew how to calm her down and cheer her up and whom she always offered in exchange to him, the person she could entrust her deepest secrets with, that he could trust her with his deepest ones. 

The person she knew better than anyone in the world and who knew her better than anyone in the world, who'd always been there for her and she for him, no matter what came their way. Who was her other half and she was, that only together were they a whole set.

But in that face was someone—something—she didn't recognise. Something that wanted to hurt her, without hesitation. Something that wasn't the brother she knew and loved, had twisted him into becoming something he would never willingly be.

And, if a shred of her brother was still in there, Hayden knew he'd want her to do this no matter how hard her hands shook, no matter how much her heart was breaking, no matter how all of her was begging, screaming, at her not to do this and that it felt physically painful to try and do it. That if he hurt or even killed her and Allison, he'd never forgive himself. That it'd rather be him than her, so he couldn't live in a world where he knew she was dead because of him.

A world that she would have to live in, even if it was what he would want her to do if it meant she would survive—even if it meant he wouldn't because it was saving her from himself.

"I'm so sorry, Nick," she whispered, tears burning her eyes, streaming down her face.

Then, with what felt like everything within her was shattering, Hayden pulled the trigger.

The gunshot cracked like her heart as it hit Nick in the shoulder, the pained noise he made tearing Hayden apart further as she dropped the gun, a piece of her dying as Nick thrashed, crying out in pain as he died.

Except... he didn't.

Hayden watched, as Nick sat up, clutching his injured shoulder as he convulsed and groaned with pain and disturbing, animalistic noises, baring teeth that were not teeth but fangs.

"No," she breathed as she watched in horror as her brother underwent some sort of horrific transformation, paralysed. "No!"

Rising on all fours, Nick let out another monstrous noises as he stood up... and exploded.

Blood spattered all over Hayden and Allison, on everyone, but Hayden hardly cared as, where Nick had been standing, a tall humanoid monster covered in dark fur with animalistic legs, long arms with claws on humanoid hands, a lupine face and ears, and yellow eyes shining in the dim light. A tail waved erratically as the thing that her brother had become growled before lunging at her and Allison.

Without thinking, Hayden stood in front of Allison, raising an arm to protect her face as a snarl and claws flashed before her eyes, then pain erupted across her arm.

Hayden screamed, clutching her arm as three, bloody claw marks striped across her arm, staring in shock and horror as the monster now charged at Nora—before Sarah tackled it with an inhuman growl.

The Nick-monster tumbled across the ground and despite what her brother had turned into, despite what had happened to her, Hayden's heart lurched with it as Sarah growled, eyes glinting yellow as the Nick-monster stood up, growling.

"Nick?" Hayden whispered, staring at the monster, searching—hoping—for some sign her brother was still in there.

Nick—the monster—no, Nick—stared at her, yellow eyes flashing. For the briefest second, recognition seemed to shine in those yellow eyes, before it faded and he growled and leapt out of the window, leaving them all to stare in horrified, stunned silence as a loud, bloodcurdling howl came.

Then he was gone.

"Nick," Hayden breathed again, her knees giving way as she fell to the ground, holding her injured arm, her heart torn in two. Her brother was alive, but...

He'd become a monster.

"Nick," she repeated, a sob following it as she hunched over. An arm wrapped around her and Hayden looked to see it was Allison, her eyes glinting wetly before she let out a quiet sob.

That was when they heard pained groaning.

Hayden and Allison turned, seeing Sarah doubled over in pain as Nora lingered near here, horror in her face. "Sarah—"

In a fast, fluid motion, Sarah grabbed the axe and thrust it into Nora's hands. "Use it."

Nora stared at her. "Sarah, I can't—"

"Yes, you can!" Sarah yelled, a terrified, broken look on her face, eyes shining with tears. "I don't... I don't have much time left. Please, just use it. You won't kill me—it's just steel. Just please, use it and quickly."

Looking at Hayden, she whispered, "Hayden, you know what attacked me and Nick, what Nick turned into, what I'm turning into. Know that Allison... she's the only who has a chance to kill what bit us. Make the same connections I did—full moon, bites. Monster."

Hayden stared at her. "What? Sarah, what are you saying? I..."

But Sarah wasn't listening, turning to Nora and kissing her fiercely, desperately before pulling away.

"I love you," she whispered, voice full of heartache. "What happens next, whatever I become, I need you to know... it can't take away how much I love you, Nora Finch."

"Sarah, please..." Nora whispered, tears in her eyes, before Sarah let out an agonised sound between a scream and a howl, looking at Nora through teary eyes as she roared, "Do it Nora! NOW!"

The minute the word was out, Sarah exploded and in her place, the same type of monster Nick had transformed into, towering over Nora as she growled, hesitating before lunging to attack—

And Nora swung the axe into Sarah's chest, the blade biting deep.

Sarah whimpered in pain, Nora pulling the axe back out as stinking blood oozed out, Sarah stumbling back, before lowering on all fours and leaping out of the window, running away as howls followed.

And leaving Hayden, Allison, Nora, Kaitlyn, Dylan, Ryan and Abi, blood-soaked and stunned into horrified, shocked, grief-strung silence, behind, the axe falling to the floor from Nora's nerveless fingers, all of them staring at those broken windows, the jagged glass in the frames and on the floor shining like silver in the moonlight, at what broke them.

At what Nick and Sarah had become.

***

Yeah... Hayden, Allison and Nora aren't having a good time right now 

(I am sorry for all the pain)

I actually kinda loved writing the build-up to the transformations?? It was fun :) And yeah, Allison was in Abi's place for most of it until Hayden took over for that little scene >:) And I loved writing Hayden talk about how she knew something was very wrong the instant Nick forgot to swim—because, in Australia, it's VERY rare/weird if you don't know how to swim, especially on the coast, so that IMMEDIATELY tipped Hayden off to something being VERY wrong with Nick along with his scars disappearing and him acting like a completely different person, though rabies was NOT the answer

And yes Sarah figured it out!! I know it's hard to believe, but I'm surprised none of them actually did figure it out, especially after Nick transformed, before Laura showed up (though I guess the rain and how the werewolves actually look in the game would throw you off a bit...) And that bracelet might come into play later like Hayden's vial >:)

And yeah, Hayden shot Nick instead of Abi. That hurt a lot to write, especially in writing that paragraph of their relationship/memories, and I'm sorry for the pain that brought along with Nick scratching Hayden once he's transformed 

And then Sarah transformed, but not before begging Nora to hurt her with the axe to defend herself against Sarah once she transformed, and telling Hayden to connect the dots and use her own knowledge of wolves and werewolves to realise that. That whole scene with Nora and Sarah hurt my heart :(

But now, we're more than halfway through the game!! I am so excited for what this next half has in store—and who'll show up soon >:)

Please read, comment and vote!

GhostWriterGirl out!