(A/n: Thank you mike204 for your constant show of enjoyment of these chapters and also those that have faved and followed this fic! ^^ just remember you can always request a chapter and I'll try my best to make it good but it's totally okay if you don't want to. Anyways please enjoy)

Chapter 23: Eternally Cursed (Pt. 2- Final)

Half a week goes by after the worrisome incident that took place that Friday evening, Stan hasn't been to school since then. Because..he's gone missing, ever since Sunday. Today is a humid Wednesday, only one more week left until Summer break. But Kenny isn't as excited about it anymore, not when his boyfriend is out there somewhere. And that's not all. Last Saturday he was acting very strange, the events of that day are still fresh in Kenny's mind.

/

That morning, at the crack of dawn, Stan had stirred from his sleep. His rousing didn't get overlooked by Kenny, who was watching him like a night owl. As soon as Stan's eyes opened a smidgen, a deep blue glow peeked through the thin gaps of his eyelids. Kenny blinked then rubbed his eyes, thinking they were playing tricks on him since he hadn't closed them for several hours. Faint shuffling disturbed the silence, and the next thing Kenny knew he was face to face with Stan. Startled, he held eye contact with the noirette, the vibrant iris' slowly ensnaring him in a trance. They looked equally eerie and ethereal in the darkness.

Stan continued to stare at him without as so much as a blink, Kenny unable to avert his gaze, he didn't even want to. Those eyes were just too-Stan looked away, laying back down and shutting his eyes. Kenny sat there in a daze for a few seconds, shaking his head then rubbing his eyes again. He frowned at Stan's figure, incredibly confused as to what just happened. He already had to fight to stay awake, but now there wasn't a need to keep it up. Stan's eyes were imprinted in his head, he felt like he'd dreamt them but they were too vivid for that to be the case.

A pungent smell of metal filled the air. Feeling a sense of urgency, as soon as Kenny moved one of his comatose legs, the blood in his limb throbbed painfully, then surged throughout his whole body. He bit back a groan but couldn't quell his body from twitching. Once the tingling subsided he forced himself to get out of bed, being mindful not to kick Stan. Once his bare feet touched the carpeted floor, he turned on the lamp, checking the time to see that it was 6:12 a.m. He looked over at Stan, the dark brown sheets only covering his waist and further downward, exposing the red stain in the middle of his shirt. That was more than he anticipated. He quickly went to fetch the first-aid kit and washcloth he'd used previously from the bathroom. Returning to Stan's side he pulled his shirt over his chest, placing the kit and cloth down on the mattress and immediately began to peel the heavily drenched gauze off. Perhaps him sitting up caused more blood to ooze out. Kenny wanted to smack himself, if he hadn't been so distracted with his uncanny eyes he would've noticed sooner.

After removing the first layer of bandages, Kenny paused. Was he seeing this right? No surely not, his eyes must be getting back at him for not sleeping. Clearing his jaded mind with a shake, he resumed his task with nimble yet careful fingers. Every time he took off a plaster, he began to realize that what he saw on Stan's bloody abdomen wasn't a hallucination. Stripping off the last bit, Kenny gathered up the rest of them and threw them away. He scanned Stan's torso attentively, the scratch marks were nonexistent. Or at least it seemed that way, there's too much blood for Kenny to know that for sure. He grabbed the blue washcloth, groaning irritably when he'd forgotten to dampen it. He went to soak it in water in the bathroom, coming back to wipe off Stan's stomach.

He didn't stop until the cloth absorbed all the red fluid into itself, his eyes did not deceive him. The three deep gashes were completely gone, the only traces had been the bloodstains. Kenny didn't know what to think, or what to do. Should he feel relieved that Stan's life was no longer in danger? He really wanted to, but this was just too sudden for him to accept so easily. He still didn't know how he got those scratches in the first place after all. He studied Stan's face, he looked strangely relaxed though his sickly complexion hadn't changed.

Kenny closed the kit, and headed back into the bathroom. Putting it underneath the sink, he turned on the faucet, thoroughly rinsing off the washcloth. Using the light in Stan's room, he glanced at his reflection in the mirror. His droopy eyelids-no his overall appearance gave blatant indication that he hadn't slept a wink even though it was only one night he'd missed. A yawn slipped past his lips, with sluggish movement he trudged out heading towards the nightstand to turn the lamp off. Before doing so, he placed Stan's shirt back over his stomach, caressed his hair, then twisted the knob engulfing the room in semi-darkness. The sky gradually displaying a morning hue through the window curtains.

Kenny climbed into bed, he considered pulling the thick bed sheet over himself also but instantly thought against it. Laying down on his side, he scooted closer to Stan, allowing his body heat to warm him up. Since he seemed okay now, maybe it wouldn't hurt to get an hour or two of sleep.

. . .

Kenny slept far longer than intended. When he'd awoken it was the mid-afternoon, however that wasn't what shocked him. Stan wasn't in bed. Kenny shot up and bolted out of the room, coming to a halt when he found the teen sat on the sofa in the living room eating a bowl of cereal while watching t.v. He'd changed clothes, showered even. Kenny stood there stunned, questioning if what he's seeing right now was real.

"S-Stan?" He uttered so low that he doubted the other heard him over the television's speakers.

Pausing, his spoon hovering near his agape mouth, Stan looked towards his way. Normal sapphire eyes locking with uneasy hazel. "Hey Ken." Then Stan resumed eating, facing the screen.

Kenny could only stare in utter bewilderment, this wasn't a dream was it? Or perhaps all that occurred yesterday was? He honestly didn't know and it was making his head hurt, he just didn't understand how Stan became well enough to be up and about. A brief memory of the missing scratches flashed through his mind, but were they truly gone though? There wasn't even a scar left on Stan's skin, it was as if he'd never gotten injured at all. With a sigh, Kenny turned and went back up the stairs. For now he needed to clear his head and a shower would do nicely, he'll question Stan later.

Entering the noirette's room, the lingering stench of his blood proved that last night did indeed happen. Telling himself to drop the topic for the time being, Kenny took a ten minute shower- the first five minutes was spent washing himself while the other five was to destress.

By the time he was finished, walking out with a towel tied around his waist, Stan was putting clean sheets on his bed.

"Wanna tell me what happened to you yesterday?" Kenny wasted no time asking, heading for his dresser for some underwear and clothes to wear.

After smoothing out the black and white striped blanket, Stan stood still for a second before turning his way. "I don't remember."

Kenny frowned at the hollowness in his tone, setting his choice of clothing on the surface of his dresser. "You don't remember nothin'?" He faced Stan. "Like what attacked you?"

Stan copied his expression, his eyebrows knitting as if he's trying to recall even the smallest detail. "I..do remember hearing something whimpering in an alleyway near the convenience store, it sounded like an animal. When I went to go check, it lunged at me?" He shook his head to indicate that he wasn't sure what had caused him to black out exactly.

Well Kenny already figured some kind of beast had to have given him those wounds, though how it managed that without damaging his shirt was a huge mystery. "So you don't feel any pain or anything?"

"Nope."

Kenny eyed him for a moment, seemed the scratches really did heal. Somehow. He faced away to put on his boxers. "Did you tell your folks yet?"

"No, you told them I got jumped by some bullies didn't you?"

That he did, good thing Stan followed through with it. Just as he was about to slip on his jeans, warm fingers brushed along the upper part of his thigh then up to his butt cheek, giving it a squeeze. He jolted with a bright blush. "D-dude what're you-"

"I wanna properly thank you for taking care of me," Stan whispered in his ear in the most seductive voice he'd ever heard him speak in.

And that was the start of Stan's weird behavior. Kenny didn't mind it, but he just couldn't ignore the fact that this was the very first time Stan had offered to take the initiative to have sex. He was too shy before - which Kenny found cute - and was most times reluctant. Kenny never pushed for he was satisfied with just kissing or making out. Sex wasn't forbidden, they did it on special occasions. Today was just an ordinary day.

Ever since then Stan behaved like an entirely different person, even in front of his parents. Who would've thought the following day he would suddenly disappear without a word, never to be seen again.

"Kenny?" Hazel eyes flutter rapidly, looking up from the floor and into lime-green eyes filled with concern. "You coming in?"

Realizing where he is, Kenny nods. "Y-yeah." He joins Kyle in his room, the redhead closing the door. They amble to sit on his bed, Kyle shrugging off his bookbag and lowering it down by his feet on the floor. On weekdays such as this Sheila was usually strict when it came to her sons inviting schoolmates over, but since Summer vacation is drawing near, she's lightened up on the rule, although Cartman is prohibited from stepping foot into her home due to a past accident. Not like Kyle would ever bring him here again.

The two sit in uncomfortable silence, one has a lot on his mind while the other wants him to pour out all of what he's thinking about. When it becomes a minute of just awkward quietude, Kyle decides to speak.

"They still haven't forgiven you yet?"

Kenny makes a face, guilt, sadness, and anger are his current emotions. "Yeah, they don't even want anything to do with me anymore."

A few days after Stan's abrupt disappearance, Kenny came clean. He told the Marsh's what had really happened to their son that evening, Shelly was present at the time. When he was done speaking, Shelly - who was often cold towards her little brother - was worried about him. The parents' initial reaction was that of incredulity, later shifting to rage that he'd waited till now to tell them the truth. That he'd lied and now their child was nowhere to be found.

"I understand that they're upset, but they shouldn't blame you for this," Kyle says. "It's not like you knew he was gonna up and leave, if anything they should be mad at the police. They're just taking their sweet time finding him, some help they are." He shakes his head, disappointed but not surprised. The officers in this city are not reliable, you report a crime of any kind or file a missing persons report and they'll work at the speed of a sloth. There's probably two or three of them that take their job seriously, it's just sad that they don't get recognized over the bad bunch.

"I know, that's why I've been goin' out to look for him myself," Kenny admits, then his posture tenses. "Tonight I'm gonna check the woods."

"Again?!" Kyle asks taken aback. "Why at night though?"

"Cuz I never had any luck findin' him in broad daylight, and plus it's the only likely place since no ordinary animal could've given him those scratches," Kenny reasons, the three red and bloody lines marred on pale skin causing him to inwardly shudder.

Kyle tightens his lips into a line. When he'd first heard about Stan being fatally wounded from Kenny, he was naturally skeptical. He could think up quite a few creatures that could leave behind such marks, however none live remotely close to this small town. But the serious gleam in his hazel eyes pushed the doubt away, of course Kenny wouldn't make up something like that out of the blue, not even as a joke. "Still, it'd be too dangerous for you to go alone. Let me-"

"No," Kenny shakes his head. "Since it's gonna be dangerous you're better off not taggin' along, I can't have your folks hatin' me too if somethin' happens to you."

"But-" The steely look on the blonde's face renders Kyle unable to further voice his complaint. He doesn't see a point anymore, his parents most definitely won't let him out once it's the evening for any reason and sneaking out isn't his forte like Kenny's. He heaves a defeated sigh. "Fine. I better see you at school tomorrow." Kenny can only give him a small smile.

*That Night*

It is now midnight. Kenny did say he was going to search for his boyfriend at night, however he didn't think of a specific time. Being out here, standing in front of the coppice akin to an abyss, makes him regret his decision. The moon is hidden by an array of thick clouds, occasionally blowing a faint breeze. He zips up his orange jacket. What makes the setting twice as scary are the owls' hooting, the rustling within bushes, and the snapping of twigs from random places inside the woods. Honestly had this been anybody else Kenny would not be doing this, rather he wouldn't even consider going to such lengths. Just imaging Stan lost somewhere in the darkness all alone sends an apprehensive chill done his spine.

Kenny glances at the flashlight in his hand and grips it tightly, feeling unprepared. Well he didn't necessarily know what all he needed to bring to begin with. He's just looking for his missing lover is all, just not during the day like he'd always been doing. All he has on him is this flashlight, his smartphone, and a switchblade for cutting any shrubs and tree branches that obscure his path. At least he hopes that will be the blades purpose.

With a deep breath Kenny advances forward flicking on his flashlight.

He tries not to flinch at every stick that breaks underneath his feet, nor at the various sounds that are close by. He feels like a character in a horror movie, picturing someone shouting from behind their television screen for him to turn back and go home, and possibly calling him names as most people would do when they see a person doing something as crazy as this. "I-I'm doin' this for S-Stan, I'm doin' this for Stan..." Repeating those words like a mantra in his head, Kenny shines his light in every direction, going nowhere but straight so as to not lose his way upon returning. With Stan hopefully. The intense intrusion scares some unseen critters away, but not two owls that are perched side by side on a long, lanky tree branch. They don't even blink, giving Kenny a vaguely curious stare from their beady black eyes. Swearing nervously under his breath, he picks up speed.

After walking for what feels like hours, Kenny takes out his phone for the time. It's 12:31 a.m. He frowns sadly at his lock screen, he'd changed it to one of his favorite pictures of him and Stan, he has a lot but this one is most memorable to him. It was when they'd went out on their first date. Feeling tears building up in his eyes, Kenny turns the device off and puts it back into the pocket of his jacket. It's hard to believe that only thirty minutes had passed, because it sure didn't feel like it did. He then wonders how long he's willing to be out here for, he's not worried about being absent from school, he's skipped several times before. As for Kyle, he can just call him later, to let him know he came home alive. Kenny doesn't really want to leave here unaccomplished, he's literally scoured the places he suspected Stan to be in only to find him not there, even the alleyway where he'd been attacked in. Where else could he be?! He's still in this town...right? Just where could he have gone to if not...?

Growing increasingly troubled by his thoughts, Kenny fails to see a root that's protruding out from the ground and ends up getting his foot caught beneath it's arch. His source of light flying out of his hand and landing far away from him, he falls face first onto the ground. Something sharp digs into his skin.

"Ooouch, fuuuck," he groans. He pushes himself up, then winces. Forcing himself up on his knees, he inspects his body, bits of leaves and dirt clung to his frame and were probably in his hair, but he's more alarmed about a stick embedded in his stomach, barely inches away from his bellybutton. It's not in deep thankfully, however it was pointy enough to stab him. Clasping the branch firmly, he braces himself before yanking it out. He exhales deeply out through his nostrils, tossing the twig to the side angrily. A red stain is slowly percolating through both the fabric of his shirt and jacket, fucking great. He looks around for his flashlight, dread heavily setting in when he can't find it. It must've shut off when it collided with the ground, making the scenery all around him pitch black. Well, luckily he brought his phone. Taking it out and quickly putting in the code to unlock it, he notices that it is unnervingly silent, he would like for the crickets to be chirping at least. The ominous silence is short lived when noise comes from a distant bush.

The disruption made Kenny's heart lurch, but he assumes it's just a deer scampering away. But when he hears it coming his way, his breath gets caught in his throat. Hesitating for a split second, he directs the light in the direction he heard the rustling come from, hoping it would scare the animal into going in the opposite direction.

The moment he does, he only manages to get a glimpse of blue before he's tackled onto the ground. Crying out in pain, before Kenny can even do anything he registers a heavy weight towering over him, hot breath puffing right in his face. He trembles clenching his closed eyes tighter, craning his neck to get away from the moist breathing on his skin. Doing that earned him a growl, as if the woodland creature was warning him not to move a muscle. It starts sniffing him.

This is definitely not a deer, is it a bear? Did bears even have blue eyes? The clouds drift from over the moon, allowing in some pale illumination.

"Augh!" Snapping his eyes open from the acute pinch, they enlarge in horrified shock. The silhouette pinning him down doesn't have the stature of a bear, rather that of a dog but only slightly bigger. But that doesn't reassure him at all, this is his very first encounter with..a wolf. It's attention is on the spot where he'd been pricked at, it's nose inhaling the scent of his blood. Kenny pales, it's probably thinking of eating him. As subtly as he can, he feels around for his phone praying that it didn't go too far when it suffered the same fate as his flashlight, but only soil, twigs, and leaves makes contact with his palm and fingers. "God fuckin' dammit!"

Sensing his accumulating fear and the faintest sounds of movement, the semi-large hound looks him in the eyes, scintillating blue meeting his terrified hazel ones. But suddenly, Kenny gets struck with a sense of familiarity. He'd seen them before, these unearthly yet bewitching azure iris'.

Then again he could be mistaking them, making a blind connection just because he'd only seen them once. Plus Stan had miraculously recovered from his injuries.

His lips forming into a bittersweet smile, Kenny looks away as tears surface in his eyes. "Of course you're not Stan..." He feels so stupid for even thinking that, and for also muttering that out loud. His trip here was also a bust, and now he's about to die. He could use his switchblade to defend himself or grant him a chance to flee, but..he lost all of his motivation. He doesn't know where else to look for Stan, and the police apparently don't give a damn about him. For all they know he could be dead in a ditch somewhere, the disturbing, probable thought further darkening his mood. Without Stan, what's the point of living anymore? Sure he has his family and friends, but Kyle will soon despise him as well. Stan was like a brother to him. Kenny wouldn't be able to endure his hostility combined with the hate of the noirette's family all his life, being constantly reminded of his selfish discretion verbally or from their glares alone.

Dying by the jaws of a wolf will undoubtedly be painful, but at least no one will be able to find his corpse in the middle of the woods. Well not his mutilated corpse that is.

Closing his eyes, Kenny welcomes death just as something soft and wet grazes his cheek. He expects sharp fangs to sink into his flesh next, instead his cheeks get caressed again. Puzzled, Kenny slowly opens his eyes, sliding them over to witness the beautiful-eyed wolf wiping his tears away. Why is it doing that, is it trying to get rid of the unnecessary salt before it devours him? He thinks that but can't help but notice the way it's licking him, it feels..tender.

The wolf stops, making eye contact with him again. In those pools of blue Kenny detects sadness and pity gleaming in them, increasing his confusion. Why feel that way when you're about to eat him? Could it perhaps be having second thoughts? Misinterpreting his tears as if he's pleading for his life to be spared? Kenny wants to laugh, he's thinking too much into this again. His bewilderment shifts into frustration.

"Just fuckin' eat me already."

Letting out a meek whimper, the wolf nudges it's nose against his face. Kenny's aggravation vanishes in that instant, just why is it acting affectionate towards him? He cannot comprehend this. Unless...

"S-Stan...?" The wolf goes taut for a brief moment, then removes itself from on top of Kenny. The teen sits up, ignoring the ache in his abdomen. He stares at the animal who's sitting on it's hind legs with a turmoil of emotions. "I-is that..really you?" His response is a slow nod, the wolf actually understood him-no Stan did! Kenny is left speechless, fresh tears spilling from his eyes. His boyfriend is now a wolf, it explains the scratches he sustained. Kenny doesn't even bother to question how a wolf had slipped into town, he's just elated to know that Stan is alive even if he's no longer human...

Kenny frowns dejectedly at the realization, there's no way he can return home with a wolf in tow. No one would believe him anyway if he told them that it was Stan, it would only make the Marsh's abhor him more and the townspeople would think he'd gone crazy. Stan pads over to his side, once again licking his tears away. "Can you turn back into a human?" Stan stops to shake his head. "Yeah figures, if you could you would've been done that." Kenny suddenly embraces Stan in a hug, burying his face into his smooth fur. The accustomed fragrance of citrus had long since been replaced with that of nature. "I don't wanna leave without you though. I've been searchin' for you every single day, and I've finally found you. Only to see you like this..." Understanding his pain, Stan raises his paws up to his back. They stay like that for a few minutes until Stan separates, much to Kenny's displeasure. Stan then crawls away, going behind him. Kenny dries his face with a sniffle, before he can ask where he's going, the wolf comes back carrying something in his mouth. He gently places it on Kenny's lap.

"My phone." Kenny picks it up for closer examination, with the help of the moonlight he can see that the screen has a tiny crack in it. He turns it on, and it does so without fail. It's a minute away from being one o'clock. A pang pierces his chest at the cheerful image on his lock screen, but he doesn't cry. At least he has memories of the times he shared with Stan before his transformation stashed away in this device, he'll surely miss interacting with him like they used to. He feels a light tap on his arm, looking over at the black wolf to see him pointing a paw behind him. "You want me to go?" Stan nods although he looks just as doleful about it from the droop of his ears. "But I-"

Shaking his head, Stan beckons him to follow. Increasing his hold on his phone, Kenny shoves it in his jackets pocket then begrudgingly stands on his feet, stumbling from both the dizzy spell and the agitation of his small injury. Stan uses his body to keep him steady, Kenny thanks him. Once he's stable enough to walk, Stan leads the disoriented blonde out of the woods, using his scent to retrace his steps.

After awhile, the clearing of a street comes into view, the headlights of a car zoom by. Stan glances up at Kenny, the hazel eyes that's known for always being bright and mirthful are now dull and lifeless. Stan blames himself for this development, if only he hadn't gone into that alleyway then he wouldn't be this way. No, if only he hadn't left the house at all. Now he's stuck in this form forever...

They stop upon reaching the sidewalk, Kenny remains silent. Stan nudges his leg, urging him to go home. But Kenny doesn't budge. He really doesn't want to leave Stan's side, he might not be able to see him again after tonight. The thought upsets him immensely.

Stan licks his hand, balling it into a fist Kenny gets down on his knees to hug him once more. He couldn't hold back the tears this time, he feels far too distraught not to cry. Stan's own eyes produce droplets of salty liquids, he was fighting so hard to keep them at bay all this time.

"Fuck, I'm gonna miss you so much..." Kenny weeps, not wanting to let go. But in the end he has no choice, they have to part ways. Seeing that Stan is crying also, Kenny plants a kiss on his nose, Stan returning the gesture by licking his. Kenny lets out a short laugh, giving his head a few pats he stands back up. Wiping his cheeks, he sighs. "Guess I better get goin'." He looks down at Stan, the wolf looking up at him. "Hopefully..I'll see you around?" He swears at himself inside his head, see him around where? Stan is practically a prisoner of the woods, if he's caught outside of it even once he'll be hunted down for being a possible threat to the civilians of South Park.

But Stan nods his head, giving Kenny a slimmer of hope. As long as they can see each other again, the woods being the only place is just fine. Feeling somewhat satisfied, Kenny bids him a temporary goodbye and heads home. Stan watches him until his figure leaves his enhanced sight, dashing back into the dark depths of the woods.

(A/n: I hope you enjoyed and the next chapter will be up soon, it's gonna be another anime AU that I had mentioned in chapter 19)