[A/N] Moon 2 means chapter 2! Only this time it's a bit dull (in my opinion.) But I still hope you will enjoy it and not drop this story. So have fun!
Chapter 2 Explaining to do
The next morning Will awoke when the first rays of sunlight touched her face. For some faint reason she felt tired yet completely energized. Another thing that bothered her was the weird dream she'd had. Killing chickens and hurting Irma… She refused to open her eyes and came out of her bed on touch. She noticed that she was naked except for the small bits of cloth that were around her shoulders. Also an indescribable pain came from her right ear. She opened her eyes and searched her room for her mirror. Her eyes widened in shock. Her ear was bleeding, her red hair was smeared with something and she saw drips of blood on her bed and the ground. Her hands still had some blood on them and she yelled in horror. Her mother rushed in and saw how Will was positively freaking out. Will looked shocked at her mother, not exactly knowing what to say.
"So you're not lucky, huh?"
Will looked confused at her. Her mother sighed and walked to her closet. She pulled Will's second nightgown out of it and gave it to Will.
"Here, go take a shower to get that blood out of your hair. I'll nurse your ear and we'll talk over breakfast." She said before walking out of her room.
"Mom! What?" Will said confused.
Her mother didn't return. Will didn't feel well and felt even scared as she walked to the bathroom. The thing that made her feel as if she needed to throw up was the taste of raw chicken lingering in her mouth. She brushed her teeth long and noticed that her canines had grown a bit and were pointier. She quickly closed her mouth and clasped her hands in front of her mouth. Tears ran down her eyes. She couldn't believe that she was in so much trouble. Hopefully her mother knew something about this. She came out of the shower and put on her second nightgown. She had the idea that she had to stay at home today and she wasn't planning on complaining. She walked into the living room and smelled immediately a weird scent. Her stomach turned and she nearly puked. She managed to swallow it.
"Mom, can we open a window? I think I'm gonna be sick." She said.
She saw her mother standing in the kitchen, stirring in a big kettle.
"Please don't tell me you're making soup again. Besides, I don't think I can eat anything." Will moaned.
"I bet. What did you eat last night?" Her mother said.
Will raised her eyebrow. She wasn't planning on telling her mother what happened, or what she thought that happened.
"We ate broccoli and fish, remember?" She said nonchalant.
"I meant after you transformed Will." Her mother replied.
Will was standing still and looked scared at her mother.
"H-How?" She stammered.
"When I checked up on you, you were gone and your nightgown and underwear were laying ripped on the ground and the window was open." Her mother explained. "I just hoped you had the same luck as me…But then again, with two werewolf families in your blood I shouldn't be surprised."
Her whole world seemed to collapse. Did her mother say werewolf? And did she say two families?
"Wh-What do you mean?" Will asked, at the verge of tears.
Her mother noticed something had happened. She stopped stirring and motioned that Will should sit down. Will took a chair and her mother sat next to her and started to bandage her head to nurse her ear.
"You had a dream, right?" Her mother started.
Will nodded at first but then shook her head.
"I..I thought so…I hoped so…But now..The chicken taste…the blood…my ear…It really happened?" Will said scared and guilty.
Her mother sighed as she kissed her daughter on her head.
"I'm sorry sweety." She said. "I should have told you sooner, but I hoped you were lucky.. You see, I and your father come from a long line of werewolves. Your father is, just like you, a real werewolf. I had the luck to stay… uhm… 'human'."
Will's eyes widened at this revelation. Also an indescribable anger started to rise in her. She knocked her chair over and looked angrily at her mother.
"When were you planning on telling me?" She growled angrily, not noticing how she started to growl.
Her mother didn't seem surprised and stayed calm in front of her raging daughter.
"When you were ten…But your father and I started to argue and it slipped my mind…And when we came here I hoped I could tell you but you became so distant from me." her mother said.
"Lame excuses!" Will bellowed. "If you'd told me earlier I could have done something against it! I hurt Irma because of you!"
Her mother's eyes widened in surprise.
"Did she bleed in front of you a couple of days before?"
Will's anger was diminished a bit by her mother's sudden question. Not only did her mother not reply to her anger she also seemed to be wanting to ask stupid questions.
"Yeah, she cut herself." Will said annoyed.
Susan shook her head.
"You couldn't stop yourself, Will." She said. "When you transform your memories as a human disappear. You'll first try to satisfy your wolfish hunger before going after human flesh. Normally that would be a random person, but if you've smelled a blood scent of a human before the transformation, you will hunt that person."
Will growled angrily and grabbed her mother's shoulders in anger. She noticed that her mother was wincing under her grip but that didn't stop her.
"That's bullshit!" Will growled. "I had moments that I was myself. I recognized them! Why did I regress back?"
Her mother seemed surprised with that news. She breathed slowly and tried to pry Will's fingers off of her.
"If you would start to let go of me, I can explain." She said.
Will angrily loosened her grip on her mother and noticed the small bruises that were coming up. Her mother noticed that Will had seen it and started.
"As you can see, I'm bruised after you grabbed me. Now that your wolf blood has awakened you need to be careful. Your strength, smell and hearing have increased." She explained. "Also, if you haven't noticed yet, your temper has increased as well."
Will growled a bit at it but then noticed that her mother was right. She was getting angry way too quickly.
"Also try to keep your growling and baring your teeth to a minimum. You don't want people to suspect you, right?" Her mother said as she pointed at Will's raised lip.
Will quickly lowered her lip and crossed her arms after she'd set her chair up straight.
"Now listen." Her mother said as she got up and walked to the kettle.
She poured some of the green damping liquid in a cup and gave it to Will. Will looked warily at it. It reeked and it had a nasty colour of green. Will had to compare it with Blunk, sending more shivers up her spine.
"You need to drink this. It's Wolf Bane potion." Her mother explained. "When you transform tonight you'll have better control of your transformed state. You will still feel hunger, but at least you won't go on a frenzy as last night. Too bad that the shop owners are on strike today... Or else I would've bought some raw meat you could eat."
"So this means I will not go after my friends?" Will asked warily.
"Yes, but you need to drink it three times a day on days with a full moon. Then the potion will have a lingering effect and you'll be as 'normal' as possible." Her mother explained.
Without further questioning Will placed the cup at her lips. She closed her eyes and pinched her nose before drinking the whole cup in one gulp. She felt how the thick slimy liquid ran through her throat. Immediately after that a gagging reflex came over her and she had to stop herself from throwing it back up.
"You can better kill me." She complained. "I don't think I'll be able to drink that stuff three times a day on days with a full moon."
Her mother laughed a bit.
"You sound like your uncle when it happened to him." She said. "Too bad he enjoyed hunting chickens a bit too much…"
Will looked at her mother and saw the pain in her eyes. She decided not to ask her about her uncle as it seemed to bring back painful memories. Talking about painful memories…Irma! Will lunged herself at the phone.
"Will, what are you doing?" Her mother asked.
"Irma! I nearly killed her! I need to know if everything's alright!" She said scared.
Her mother quickly stood next to her and took the phone away.
"I'm sorry sweety." She said. "But if you'd call her, you would raise suspicion. It's better to wait for her call."
Will seemed to want to argue with her mother but realized she was right. A depression fell over her when she realized how much her life would change. She growled softly.
"As if having my period wasn't troublesome enough…" She complained.
…
Cornelia was NOT happy. Not only was there the scary howling from last night, but when Napoleon returned he told her Irma and her dad were wounded and that her mom had passed out. Lillian seemed to feel that something was wrong and Cornelia had decided to go to the other girls to check up on them. She'd went to all of their houses and was now walking with Taranee and Hay Lin. When she'd knocked at Will's house she got her mother. Will's mother told her that Will was sick and not allowed to go out. Right after that she'd gotten the call from Irma, saying that she was in the hospital and that she had to stay until 3 o'clock. So she and the others had decided to go to her, hoping to get more info. On their way to the hospital they passed a large group, discussing something.
"Yes, the whole lot. Dead."
"The man said a wolf did it."
The three girls looked worried at each other and decided to follow the group of people. They arrived at the battery cage and saw a bigger group of people standing there. With a lot of difficulty they managed to push themselves through the masses but when they did, they wished they hadn't. In front of the factory giant stains of dried blood were on the ground and there were still several bodies of chickens laying around, guts laying around and even a heart. Cornelia felt her breakfast coming back and Taranee and Hay Lin were both looking green as well. They noticed Matt standing near them, looking grim. Once they managed to get his attention he walked with them to the hospital, while telling them what had happened. The girls were shocked when they heard about the werewolf and by now Cornelia's skepticism had disappeared. But what truly scared them was that the werewolf seemed to be capable of magic.
As they arrived at the hospital they got welcomed by a smiling Irma. Both her shoulders were bandaged and she couldn't exactly wave her arms but other than that she seemed fine. She'd told the girls about how she had to expose their secret and that she was kinda wondering if they could do it in one fell swoop, telling all their parents. This made the others feel a bit scared but they realized that it would be saver if they told their parents now in the hope that they would be a little prepared if the werewolf attacked them. After adding Will to the conversation through telepathy and after some very good arguments Will relented. All of the girls noticed that Will was terrible hesitant to tell, but they understood cause they knew how scared Will was of losing her mother. Will's only condition was that they would tell it at her home, seeing that she was sick. The girls left Irma to persuade their parents, which surprisingly enough went pretty well.
At half past 3 everyone had grouped in front of Will's door. The Hales, Lairs, Cooks, Hales and Lins together with Matt, Napoleon and Huggles were waiting to be opened. The only one missing was Yan Lin, who'd taken it upon her and her twin sister Mira to keep the restaurant open. The door slowly opened and they saw Will looking tiredly through the door. Everyone, Irma, her father and Matt especially, noticed the bandage around Will's head. Will looked almost guiltily at Irma before letting them in.
"Come in." She said gloomily.
As they entered, they noticed a penetrating smell lingering in the apartment. They all wrinkled their noses.
"Boy Will! Are you cooking your sock or what?" Irma joked a bit.
Will sighed deeply and walked to the kitchen. The others walked further in and noticed several chairs were set ready in the living room. The families sat down while Will came back with a mug. When they saw what was in the cup they suppressed a gag.
"Geez Will, I was just joking!" Irma said. "But I'm not thirsty…Not anymore anyway."
Will grimaced a bit at the joke.
"It was not meant for you. It's Will's medicine."
Everyone turned around and saw Will's mother coming in. She was carrying a plate with coffee and gave it to the other parents. To the teenagers' horror they saw that Will swallowed the liquid. They nearly gagged as well as Will.
"I didn't know you would give us a horror show." Irma joked again, though she was still shivering as she could still see some of the green liquid lingering in the cup.
"Believe me that I'd rather skip the horror as well." Will muttered defeated as she placed the cup on the table.
A short silence fell on the group, in which was clear that the girls were aching to ask Will what had happened to her as well as tell their parents the truth.
"Well… Seeing that no one is planning to speak, I'll start." Susan said while looking at the group. "Could someone please explain to me why Will used puppy-eyes on me and asked me to rearrange our living room?"
The girls all looked at each other, seemingly at a loss for words, when help from another angle came.
"Is this about last night?" Irma's father asked, his eyes fixed upon his daughter.
Irma shifted uncomfortably in her seat, while Will's eyes widened in shock. Taranee noticed Will's reaction, but she thought Will didn't know how Irma's father found out.
"Did something happen last night?" Hay Lin's father asked concerned.
Irma's father nodded briskly and pointed at his arm, which was now bandaged and pretty much immobile.
"Last night Irma was attacked by a monstrous wolf." He explained. "At first, Anna and I thought she had a nightmare and hurried to her chamber, with Chris close behind us. But when we entered we saw a big wolf, I believe red in color, breaking through Irma's window and trying to attack her."
"A wolf?" Taranee's mother asked, her eyebrow creased. "Tom, you must be joking."
Tom shook his head.
"Believe me Theresa, I'm not." He said. "It howled, it growled. Believe me, I know when I see a wolf."
"It was no wolf, dad." Irma suddenly said darkly.
Everyone looked in shock at Irma, who balled her fists.
"It was a werewolf." She said a bit dramatic.
A silence followed in which the adults looked incredulously at Irma. Her father placed his good hand on her leg and smiled.
"Honey, I'm not sure what I saw, but I'm quite sure it was no werewolf. Those don't exist…"
"Then explain how it howled my name?" Irma replied. "And it even seemed to recognize me for a short moment. Dad, there is more to this story than you know. There is more to us than you know."
"Hay Lin, what does she mean?" Hay Lin's father asked concerned.
"Cornelia, do you know what she is talking about?" Cornelia's mother asked.
The girls looked darkly at each other and decided that this was the best shot they got. They got up and looked at the parents, feeling terribly scared. How would their parents react? Would they accept them?
"We… We've been lying to you for three years now." Will slowly stammered, suddenly finding more interest in the floor than the people around her.
"What do you mean?" Her mother asked, concern ringing in her voice.
"We've been doing other stuff besides studying and going out." Irma said calmly.
"Don't tell me it's drugs. Taranee, I thought I raised you better than that." Theresa interjected, making Taranee sigh.
"No mom." Taranee said softly. "But when you hear what we've been doing the past three years, I think you would almost wish I did."
The parents looked in shock at their children. The girls looked concerned at each other and Irma pushed Will a bit forward.
'I think you should tell them. Or better, show them.' She said telepathically to Will.
Will nodded and managed to look up at the parents. She could see the worry in their eyes and for a second, she felt terribly guilty. But then she saw Napoleon flicking his tail while smiling and how Matt tried to hide his own laughter and a smile formed on her lips. Things wouldn't change if they found out, she was sure.
Will took a deep breath and walked out of the room. The parents all looked in confusion and Will's mother was on the verge of calling her when Will re-entered the room. This time she held a small amulet in her hands, the same she'd been wearing for three years. She held it up for everyone to see.
"You see this?" She asked quietly, making everyone nod. "This is the source of our secret."
"Your necklace?" Susan asked confused.
Will nodded.
"Yeah, you never wondered where I got it, did you?"
Susan's eyes widened and she shook her head. Now that Will mentioned it, she'd never bothered to ask about the necklace. The only thing she could clearly remember was that Will suddenly had it with her, at all times.
"I know that necklace. My mother used to keep it in her closet." Hay Lin's father said briskly. "I don't understand why she'd given it to you instead of her own granddaughter."
"Chen!" Hay Lin's mother scolded. "That's your mother's business."
"No mom." Hay Lin said. "It's okay. Cause you know. The reason why Will got the necklace is because she's our leader."
"Leader?" Cornelia's mother repeated. "Leader of what?"
"The Guardians." Cornelia replied. "You see mom, we… We…"
"We posses magical abilities and protect the Earth and other dimensions from evil." Taranee said quickly, reddening a bit in the process.
The parents looked speechless at their daughters, but it was clear that their thoughts were aligned. They all really seemed to think that their daughters were hallucinating.
"Who gave you the drugs? Was it that Uriah kid?" Theresa said angrily.
The girls sighed deeply and looked awkwardly at their parents.
"We'd figured you wouldn't believe us. It does sound crazy." Irma said with a grin. "But it is true and we can prove it."
"How?" Cornelia's father asked skeptically.
"Like this." Will said before holding the jewel in the air. "Guardians unite!"
A blinding light show followed, in which the parents had to look away. Within seconds however, it ended and everyone looked shocked at the girls, who'd transformed into their Guardian forms. A new silence fell in which the parents were trying to recollect their thoughts.
"You…You…You're so beautiful!" Lillian said, being the first one to actually speak and rushed to her sister.
She walked around her and slightly tugged the skirt, to which Cornelia responded by making the plant next to the door pick Lillian of the ground. Lillian first shrieked in terror, but when she realized it was Cornelia who did it, she squealed in joy. Then Cornelia looked at her parents.
"I control earth." She said with an uncomfortable smile. "And I'm telekinetic."
"Cool." Lillian said as she turned around in the plant's vines.
Irma shot a small jet of water at Cornelia with a grin and then turned to her parents.
"Well…You've seen me use water last night. I can also use a bit of mind control and turn water into ice." She said. "So…This is the explanation."
Cornelia grumbled darkly and put Lillian down. After that the plant shot at Irma and held her in the air on a leg. Irma started shrieking, but it made the others laugh and thus lifting the awkward silence. Will nudged Taranee, who nodded in understanding. She formed a small fireball and burned the vine around Irma's leg, making Irma fall to the ground and creating another round of laughter. Irma grumbled a lot while Cornelia restored to plant to its former glory.
"I… I use fire." Taranee said, a little shaken. "And I can make a telepathic link between the girls.
With that she made a lot of non-burning flames, which bobbed near the heads of the parents. They all scared back but Peter was the one to notice that they didn't burn, when his arm accidentally went through it.
"Taranee…." Peter said softly, still in awe of what was happening.
"My little girl…" Theresa said broken.
Taranee felt how tears were coming up, but Hay Lin quickly turned the attention to her. She flew up and blew a small breeze which extinguished the fires.
"I can use air, just like grandma." Hay Lin said, making her father gasp. "Grandma was the one who told us about our powers. She was a Guardian before us… Oh yeah, I can also go invisible!"
With that Hay Lin disappeared from sight, making the parents gasp in surprise. She then reappeared next to Irma, who was grinning at the reactions of their families.
Then the attention went to Will. She grinned and blew some strands of her hair away, leaving sparks in the air.
"Billy, channel five." She then said. "Ed, tune three and James, open up, if you please."
Everyone looked confused until suddenly the television switched on to channel five, Will's cell phone played a certain tune and the refrigerator went open without anyone opening it. With a snap of her fingers everything went back to normal. As the parents watched, they could see how Will created several sparks in her hands and how she threw one at the couch.
"Quintessence."
The couch came to life and awkwardly walked through the room until Will directed it back to its original place. The silence that followed was a big one, in which Will uncomfortably shuffled.
"I.. Uhm.. I use Quintessence, or rather life energy. I can speak to electrical appliances and I can make them hearable for other magical people." She said with a small blush. "That explains why I sometimes talk to appliances… I'm not crazy."
Will used the Heart to return everyone back to normal and looked around, hoping that none of the parents would continue questioning.
"Why?"
The girls looked at Susan, who was looking almost heartbroken at Will.
"Why were you chosen?" She asked. "What have you done the last three years?"
"We don't know why we've been chosen, Mrs. Vandom." Cornelia replied. "We only know that Hay Lin was chosen due to her connection to Yan Lin and to us and that I was chosen to be the Guardian of Earth because I am the closest to the magical source of our planet."
"What is that?" Cornelia's mother asked concerned.
Cornelia looked awkwardly from her mother to her little sister. The Regents caught the cue and went to stand next to the girls.
"Uhm.. It's not a what, mom." Cornelia said. "But a who."
"What do you mean?" Lillian asked confused.
"That the Heart of Earth, the magical power of our planet, is within a human." Taranee explained carefully. "And Cornelia is the one who is always near that power."
"It's you, little toad." Cornelia said with a nudge to Lillian. "You hold the magical power of this planet."
Lillian's face brightened considerably, but both their parents shook their heads.
"No, you must be wrong." Cornelia's father said. "Lillian couldn't…."
"That's what I thought too." Cornelia admitted. "But when this evil witch went after Lillian, we knew it to be true."
"What?" Cornelia's mother said shocked. "Are you telling me that Lillian is a target for anyone who is power hungry?"
At this Matt shook his head.
"Not anymore, Mrs. Hale." He said. "You see, at the night that the witch tried to take Lillian's powers, Cornelia devised a plan. She had been telling a bed time story which Lillian had wished to be true. This actually happened due to her incompetency with her powers. But thanks to that story, we also managed to deplete the power and create certain Regents to hold on to her power until she is old and wise enough to use them."
"And who are those Regents?" Cornelia's father asked.
"That would be me, the dormouse and Mattie-boy over there." Napoleon answered with a purr.
At this several mothers started to shriek and Cornelia's mother fainted in the process. Several fathers recoiled and looked in shock at the cat, who was licking its paw. Lillian was looking with big eyes at Napoleon while Chris started to grin.
"Cool, how can it talk?" He asked.
"That's Lillian's mistake." Napoleon answered. "She wished I could talk and made me her familiar."
"Napoleon talks!" Lillian said as she hugged him closely. "He really talks! We're going to have so much fun!"
The parents were still looking incredulously at Napoleon while the Guardians and Regents looked at the display. Will leaned to Cornelia and Matt.
"I really thought she would ask when her magic lessons would start." She whispered, getting a relieved sigh from the both of them.
"You've fought a witch?" Susan finally managed to say, seemingly deciding that it was better not to ask anything about the Heart of Earth.
The girls nodded.
"Yeah, she was Will's predecessor who went a bit power mad." Irma explained. "She was really nuts, but we caught her."
"Oh! And before that, we fought an evil prince in another dimension and saved Elyon when her brother, the prince, tried to suck her dry." Hay Lin added with a grin.
"Elyon? But you told me you didn't know anything about her!" Tom said angered.
"Yeah dad. How would it have sound if I had told you that Elyon was a princess and now a Queen of another dimension. And that she wasn't born here and anything. You would have send me to a mental clinic." Irma said annoyed.
At this the other parents muttered their agreement. But they couldn't believe it, or rather, they didn't want to. On one hand, it explained why their daughters had been acting so weird for the past three years. On the other hand they hadn't expected to hear that they'd been fighting evil. Taranee was right. They'd rather heard that their children had been doing drugs. Finally Irma's father decided to breach the silence.
"So, do you know why that…That werewolf tried to attack us?" He finally asked.
The girls looked uncomfortably at each other. Will tried to keep her face as straight as possible. She didn't want to give anything away, but if she'd looked too neutral, it would be noticed as well. She nearly let out a sigh of relief when Napoleon took command.
"I don't know." He purred. "Perhaps it's a new enemy of the girls, or just a threat to Earth…"
"Wait a second Napoleon." Irma interrupted. "If the werewolf is just a threat to Earth, it's also our enemy."
Napoleon shook it's head and looked at Irma.
"I'm sorry doll, but it's only your enemy when Kandrakar says so. And you haven't had a call, so it means that you are not needed." He said rather harsh.
"Napoleon!" Cornelia said shocked.
Napoleon's tail went in the air and he looked sternly at the five girls.
"No. We are the Regents of Earth. It is our job to protect it. Not just yours. If we need your help, we'll ask you." He said sternly.
The girls looked in shock at him, while he glared back.
"I'm sorry to interrupt this…Btu what is Kandrakar?" Susan asked, breaking the glare wars between four girls and a cat. Will had been standing passively and Susan had a feeling that she would be noticed if she hadn't stepped in.
"Kandrakar is the place where our powers come from." Will said, quickly jumping on the opportunity to get the attention away from the current topic. "The Oracle was the one who chose us to be Guardians."
"And he will be the one who will tell us to hunt that werewolf!" Irma growled annoyed. "Will, fold us to Kandrakar now!"
Will looked shocked at Irma, before shaking her head.
"N-No, Irma. I won't." She said, her voice a bit unstable. "Your father's explanation and your wounds are proof that it's too dangerous to go hunt it."
"With the five of us we can easily take it!" Irma replied forcefully. "Come on Will, we took down a snake as big as Corny's apartment building!"
"As long as the Oracle doesn't summon us, I won't." Will said resolute.
Susan noticed that Will was getting angry again, but she wasn't sure of what to do. She hoped Irma would stop her demands or else Will's secret would be blown within seconds.
"Why are you so against it? You're normally the first the jump at such opportunities." Cornelia suddenly said.
Will clenched her fists and started to breath heavily. She was getting angry and she was having more and more trouble with containing it. Luckily Taranee jumped in.
"Hey, Will's ill. Perhaps it's better to just wait." She proposed.
"But don't you think it's suspicious that Will didn't answer to your call last night?" Irma accused. "Or that her right ear is wounded? The same ear my father shot?"
Will had fallen silent. She could feel how everyone was looking at her, demanding an explanation. Sweat pearled over her face and the urge to scream overcame her. The Heart lighted up and a sudden idea came to mind. She took a deep breath and looked directly at Irma.
"If you want to know." She said coldly. "I woke up somewhere in the night. I don't recall hearing a howl, but I know I had a terrible headache. Which became worse during the night. I wanted to get an aspirin, not wanting to wake my mother. So I got up and went to the kitchen, but I noticed that I was terribly wobbly. As if the walls and ground were moving. As I walked into the kitchen, I nearly fell. I tried to grab the sink, but I missed it. Instead I managed to hit a knife, which had to be cleaned, and I knocked it on the ground with me. I fell first and the knife managed to slice me in my ear."
Irma and Cornelia had raised an eyebrow, but Taranee and Hay Lin had gasped. Susan decided to aid Will in the lie.
"I heard a lot of noise in the kitchen and when I went to look, I saw Will on the ground with blood coming from her ear and the knife sticking out of her ear. I was shocked and rushed towards her, finding that she had a fever. I put the bandage around her head and gave her an aspirin. I was glad when I found that her fever had gone down with several degrees this morning." Susan added.
At this all the girls looked at Will in concern. Susan noticed that only Napoleon seemed to be suspicious of Will, but she didn't think too much of it. He was a cat after all.
"Will… Sorry for giving you a worse headache." Taranee said softly.
Will gave her a weak smile.
"It's okay T." She said. "You didn't know."
"And I'm sorry for being all suspicious." Irma said softly.
Will sighed darkly and gave her a wry smile.
"I understand why." She replied, making Irma smile at her.
"So.. Kandrakar?" Irma asked.
Will shook her head.
"No. Not now. Not when I'm better." She said resolute. "This is a job for the Regents. Not to give you a chance for revenge, even if I think you deserve one."
Irma wanted to open her mouth, but Will looked darkly at her.
"No means no." She said dangerously, making Irma swallow her words.
A new silence reigned in the room, in which the girls looked awkwardly at each other. The parents looked lost at their daughters. They weren't quite sure what just happened, but they did realize something. Their daughters, or at least a few of them, were willing to go and find this werewolf.
"I agree with Will." Theresa said sternly, making her daughter look shocked at her mother. "It's too dangerous for you to go. I don't want to lose you because of some job you were forced to take."
"Mom!" Taranee moaned.
"No." Theresa said. "And I assume this Oracle guy is the one who gave you your powers? I want to have a talk with him."
Taranee groaned unpleasantly and several other parents agreed with Theresa's statement. Both Irma and Taranee gave Will a look, who only shrugged a bit.
"Perhaps we should keep them under house arrest. That way that Oracle guy will know that we do not condone to this kind of child-labor." Taranee's father proposed.
At this all the girls looked shocked. Their parents were actually thinking of locking them up! They had never thought this could happen.
"What?" Cornelia said shocked. "You can't do that!"
"And why not, young lady. We are your parents." Her mother said sternly.
"We save planets!" Irma said astonished. "Are you saying that we should stop worlds from being controlled by tyrants?"
"At the cost of your own life?" Her mother interjected. "And us not knowing what kind of dangers you encounter?"
More arguments followed, the girls trying to defend their point while the parents tried to get their way. The only people who did not actively participate in the argument were Matt, Huggles, Napoleon, Chris, Lillian and Will. The Regents decided that it was better to stay silent, cause they had a feeling their heads would be bitten off if they dared to interject. Lillian and Chris were way too busy with talking to each other about Lillian's powers that they didn't even notice the big fight. Will did not participate because she knew it was pointless. The girls had accepted their role and could always decline it, yet they didn't cause they knew they were doing good. She did understand the parents' point of view, but they were now being ridiculous. Locking them up would only make things worse.
The wolf inside her, the part that she felt getting angry and blaming it on her being a werewolf, was growling annoyed. A lot of noise which was drumming firmly on her ears and now that her hearing had improved, it immediately pointed out that it was a bad thing as well. Her ears now thumping, Will made a choice. The choice of giving into the monster inside of her and hoping she wouldn't expose herself.
"SHUT UP!" She yelled at the top of her lungs.
She breathed deeply, trying to stay calm, but it became increasingly more difficult for her to do so. Not only were her friends close to the edge, their parents were also pushing the button. She saw her mother looking critically and she knew that she had to remain in control.
"This is not the reason why we told you all about this." She said, her voice quivering a bit. "We have been doing this for three years now and we will continue until one of us truly decides to stop. We are doing this because we are helping people and that's something we all like. We love our jobs, even if we complain about the hours. We told you about this because we trust you and want to protect you in the best way we can. This werewolf is dangerous, but we don't know if it is our enemy or if it attacked at random. That's why only the Regents will investigate it. We will jump in when they ask or when another one of us is attacked. The only thing I ask you is to stay at home at night. That way we can protect you easier."
None of the parents seemed to like the idea, but the looks on the faces of their daughters made them clear that what Will had said was true. They looked grim at each other, but in the end they nodded their heads.
"You are right." Theresa admitted darkly. "We may not like it, but you girls are doing a fantastic job. Just promise me that you'll be a bit more open to us from now on."
Taranee smiled at her mother.
"We will mom. And thanks." She said.
The girls went to hug their parents, while the Regents sighed in relief. When Will hugged her mother, Susan could feel how tensed Will was and decided it was better to give her some more space. Therefore she placed her hand on Will's head and gasped.
"Oh no." She said concerned. "Your fever is coming back."
Will figured out what her mother was trying and was silently very grateful. She could use some time alone now.
"I think it's better for us to go now." Cornelia's mother said, getting up. "Are you coming Lillian?"
"Yeah, but I want Matt to come with us too!" Lillian said. "I want to see my powers!"
At this both Matt and Cornelia sighed in defeat.
"I'll come." Matt said, getting a hug from Lillian.
He turned to Will, but he refrained himself from kissing her, not wanting to get sick himself or accidentally make her condition worse. He gently took her in a hug and brushed some strands of her hair behind her ear.
"Get well soon, okay?" He said to her.
He felt Will's grip tightening and he looked concerned at her. She was looking a bit pale. Her eyes shone softly as she nodded.
"See you at school." She said. "Or maybe tomorrow?"
Matt nodded and smiled lovingly at her, while Will could only smile in return. The two separated and the girls each gave their goodbyes. They all left the apartment and entered the elevator. They saw Will looking at them as they got in.
"Is she always like this?" Cornelia's father asked softly as the doors closed.
"Only when needed." Cornelia answered carefully.
"And luckily that's not often. She's scary when she's like this." Irma added.
"And this time she was on our side!" Hay Lin joked.
The girls ended up giggling while their parents looked at them. They still could not understand how their girls could accept this all so easily. Though there was one thing that calmed them a bit.
"At least you're in good hands." Tom said content. "I don't think Will leads you into dangerous situations."
The girls looked at each other knowingly, but they also knew that there was no choice at those times. So they all nodded in agreement.
…
Susan watched how Will closed the door. She had never thought her daughter would have been involved in such dangerous activities. Guilt filled her a bit as she thought of all the times she'd been blaming Will for being irresponsible. She felt even more pity for the girl as she saw how Will slumped to the couch and sat on it with her knees pulled up. The television switched on on itself and it showed "The dogwhisperer" on National Geographic. Will growled darkly as her eyes narrowed.
"Billy, I swear. If this is a joke to you than you better get used to having a hole in your screen." She snarled.
With that the television switched to a cartoon, to which Will relaxed slightly. Susan looked sadly at her daughter when an idea came to mind. Though it was not much, it was at least something she could do to cheer up Will. She went to the kitchen and got her purse. She took a twenty dollar bill and went to the living room, where Will was still sitting.
"Hey honey." She said, gaining Will's attention.
Will looked up and saw her mother looking at her. She was not in the mood to explain her everything she'd done up until now and she merely shrugged her shoulders.
Her mother did not give up and showed the twenty dollar bill.
"What do you say that you go and buy a big bowl of ice cream and we'll eat it while watching some of your old cartoons?" Her mother said.
Will perked up at that thought and looked up. Her mother smiled and gave her the money, after which Will hugged her.
"Thanks." She said.
Susan smiled, a bit guiltily perhaps. This was the first time since long that her daughter hugged her like this and she liked it. She broke the hug and smiled at Will.
"Now go on. I'll prepare the living room for the movies and your… 'special condition'." She said.
At the last part Will grumbled darkly and looked almost sadly at her mother.
"Is it…Okay if I stay here tonight?" She asked carefully. "If I manage to stay myself."
Susan smiled sadly at her daughter.
"Don't worry, you will be." She said. "Now off you go. And buy a lot of ice cream. You look like you need it."
Will rushed out of the house, taking her jacket off the hook. Susan watched how her daughter disappeared and sighed. She knew Will was still terribly down and depressed. She even knew that it was better to not continue questioning about the revelation. But things bothered her slightly. Why did Will say that they would hunt the werewolf if it would attack any of them again? Was she planning on letting her friends kill her if she ended up running loose?
A cracking sound pulled her out of her thoughts. Susan looked down and saw that she'd been holding the chair a bit too tight and made markings with her fingers into it. She sighed a bit and placed it at its proper place. She'd truly hoped Will would've had the same luck as she had. Her eyes went to the window. The sun was still shining brightly, but Susan knew that it was only a matter of time before Will's second night would begin. And even though she was drinking her potion, she could still be cranky or worse.
"Thomas, you really chose a bad timing for a meeting." Susan sighed annoyed as she rearranged the chairs again.
...
Will returned half an hour later with the biggest bowl of chocolate ice cream she could find. As mother and daughter ate the ice cream on the couch, they couldn't help but feel happy. Even though they were troubled by the problems concerning Will, they couldn't deny it that they were happy that they could cuddle next to each other on the couch. They hadn't done it for years and it was something that they had missed. They'd ordered pizza around 8 o'clock and Will drank her last portion of Wolf Bane potion. After that, they resumed their cartoon marathon.
Due to their time together, they hadn't noticed how the sun started to set. Only when Susan yawned and stretched a bit did she look out of the window. Her smile faded a bit when she saw the orange rays of the sun. She gently prodded Will, who was into watching a particular cartoon and pointed outside. Will looked as well and shivered a bit. She cuddled more into her mother and Susan could already feel the goose bumps on Will's skin.
"I don't want to." Will muttered softly, her voice a bit broken.
Susan looked sadly at her daughter and softly petted her hair.
"Don't worry. This time, you are you." She said, trying to calm Will.
Will looked up at her mother and Susan could see the fear in her eyes.
"But what if I'm not?" She asked. "You have no idea how it feels."
Susan watched as Will got from the couch. She started to pace in front of her and Susan noticed how Will's eyes kept wandering to the window.
"I... I... felt like a monster." Will said as she hugged herself. "When everyone was here, I had trouble not growling at them. I was angry so quickly. If you hadn't stepped in I would have lost control."
Susan wanted to get up and hug her daughter again, but Will came to a halt in front of the window. Her eyes were fixed on the horizon and Susan felt it as well. The moon was slowly rising.
"Honey, I've placed some blankets near the window in my room. So if you feel like sleeping there or laying there I wouldn't mind." Susan said.
"And if I...Attack you?" Will replied, though her attention was towards the window.
Susan saw shivers going over Will's back.
"Don't worry. I can protect myself." She said soothingly. "But if I were you I would undress myself, unless you want to go on a shopping spree with Cornelia cause your clothes were ripped."
Even if Will did no longer reply to her words, she did start to strip herself. Susan started to shiver as well and held her breath when the first moonbeams fell through the window. Will, who was now stark naked, took a sharp breath and started to shudder badly. Even if Susan had seen it countless of times before with her brothers and husband, she still couldn't stop feeling pity as Will bend forwards, her face contracted in pain. With growing interest she watched how Will's limbs were growing and how red fur was covering her rapidly.
The transformation came to a halt and Susan saw a red werewolf standing near the window. The werewolf looked carefully around and suddenly turned around, startling Susan. Susan was looking right into two bluish white eyes and she saw how Will opened her mouth, showing an impressive row of teeth. She also noticed that Will was wearing the pink necklace, which seemed to have transformed with her into a collar with the jewel engraved in it, though her fur was covering it slightly. If the jewel hadn't lighted for a moment, Susan wouldn't have noticed it.
"Will?" She asked carefully.
Will rubbed over her head and looked again surprised at her mother.
"I... I am in control." She said surprised, almost sounding happy. "I'm in control!"
Susan noticed how Will's voice had become raspier and heavier than before, but she sighed relieved.
"I told you, didn't I?" She said a bit teasingly.
Will took the liberty of sticking out her tongue, making her mother grin. A growling sound followed and both looked a bit worried at Will's stomach.
"You... Can go out, you know?" Susan slowly suggested.
At this Will shook her head strongly.
"No." She said resolute. "I'm not going to risk anything tonight. I'm going to stay here and... And..."
Will started to sniff into the air and Susan raised an eyebrow. She certainly hoped Will wouldn't smell her blood because she wasn't sure if Wolf Bane would stop the blood lust on the first night as well.
Suddenly Will shot behind the couch, which seemed to be a bit cramped.
"Someone's at the door!" She whimpered scared. "And they have meat! Do you think someone found out?"
Susan's eyes widened as she now too smelled the scent of raw chicken. Not a few seconds later someone knocked on the door. Susan shot a worried look at Will, who was making herself smaller and smaller. She sighed and walked to the door as they knocked again.
"Don't!" Will whimpered, but Susan ignored it. She could always tell these people to go away.
She opened the door slightly and looked through the cranny. Her eyes widened in surprise. Yan Lin, a young lady Susan faintly recalled as a friend of Will, an older African American woman with grey streaks in her black hair of which Susan was sure she'd seen once before and Napoleon were standing in front of the door. When the girl noticed that Susan had opened the door she waved casually and put on a big cheesy smile. Susan's eyes wandered from the girl to Yan Lin, who was carrying a bag from which the scent of chicken came from.
"Can I help you?" She asked politely, opening the door a bit more.
Yan Lin smiled friendly in return and the other older woman nodded gently.
"Long time no see Susan." The older woman said. "I see you still are in control during the full moon."
Susan looked surprised at the older woman, who smiled at her.
"Uh... What do you...?" She started before the young girl interrupted.
"Kaddie, you're being mean. The woman only met you once or twice before. And then you went off to another planet. You can't blame her for not remembering you." The girl said with a grin.
The older woman glared annoyed at the younger girl, who returned the glare with a cheesy smile. She older woman then sighed and smiled again at Susan.
"I'm Joe's wife." She said. "We met at a moon gathering years ago, just after you'd married Thomas. I'm Kadma..."
Susan's eyes lit up in recognition.
"Yes!" She said with a nod. "Now I remember! How have you been?"
Kadma smiled at her.
"I've been well. I've recently moved to Heatherfield and I'm waiting for Joe to follow. But that's not the reason why we're here." She replied.
Susan started to feel a bit nervous.
"Oh?" She asked. "Then why are you here?"
"Is Will home?" The young girl blatantly asked. "I wanna see her."
Before Susan could answer she noticed that, while she'd been talking to Kadma, Napoleon had disappeared. A hiss and a bark came from the apartment and a feeling of dread filled her when Kadma's, Yan Lin's and the girl's eyes went from her to the door.
"Found her!" Napoleon's voice called out.
Susan turned around and saw Will glaring at the cat, who was sitting on the couch. She heard the door open behind her and she could see how Will's look went from anger to complete shock and fear.
"Hello Will." Yan Lin said.
[A/N] So... The girls confessed and Will is planning to lock herself in her apartment every moon. But how did Yan Lin, Cassidy, Kadma and Napoleon figure out what her secret was? And what is Kadma's relation to Susan exactly? I can tell you this, those who've read Lexvan's stories should know where this is going.
I think this was a rather dull chapter, don't you think? Well, I'm sorry to say that the next chapter will be dull as well (in my eyes) but the one after that will be interesting.
More fun the next moon and chapter!
Please review!