Chapter Three – Transformations and Reactions

Tai was officially bored. They had been waiting for the sun to go down since around 5:00. Right now it was 9:42. It had been four and a half hours for goodness' sake! Tai groaned. How could he be expected to sit around doing nothing for two and a half hours! There was nothing to entertain himself with, and Matt wouldn't let him go home. He was about ready to gnaw off his own arm for the sake of some kind of distraction! This kind of thing had to be illegal. He closed his eyes and moaned in frustration.

Matt came into the kitchen with TK right behind him and announced, "Alright Tai. We're starting."

"Finally!" Tai hauled himself out of the kitchen chair and followed the brothers into Matt's bedroom. He plopped down on Matt's bed and crossed his arms over his chest.

"This had better be good," Tai growled. "I'm missing a party for this and I had to wait here for four and a half hours. I am not very happy." Tai looked around the room . . . and blinked. "And why exactly are the windows and door framed by garlic? And have crosses nailed over them?"

"To keep us from running off and draining the blood from random innocent people, of course," Matt said as if it were the most obvious thing in the world.

"Oh, of course," Tai replied sarcastically while rolling his eyes. "How idiotic of me not to have realized that right from the beginning."

"Sorry," TK apologized sheepishly. "We've kind of gotten used to these transformations."

"It's alright," Tai sighed. "When –? Oh!" Matt and TK had started changing.

Matt's blond hair was now streaked with black, and his lips became so red, they looked bloodstained. He paled until his skin was white enough to rival snow, while his canines became longer and sharper. His eyes went from blue to gold outlined in black, and his pupils lengthened and narrowed to slits. They looked exactly like a cat's eye. Matt's nails extended and became claws. Wings sprouted from his back. They were black, torn, and leathery; like shredded bat wings. Last of all, his ears elongated and turned to points at the tips.

TK, meanwhile, was going through similar changes. His hair was also streaked with black and his lips only just a few shades lighter than his brother's. He was also as pale as new fallen snow, and his teeth also got longer and sharper. His eyes changed just like Matt's had. Instead gold, though, they turned an eerie shade of green. His nails didn't get any longer, but they also turned into claws. Wings sprouted from his back, too. TK's wings, however, were dark brown and not torn. Also, last of all, his ears underwent the same changes as Matt's.

A fully transformed Matt advanced on Tai, eyes narrowed, fangs bared, and wings spread. "Do you believe us now?" he hissed. His voice had changed. It was soft and cold; it sent shivers down Tai's spine.

"Do you?" TK asked. His voice had remained the same but there was a threatening quality to it. It sounded friendly enough, but it was not a voice you would want to hear if you were alone in a dark alleyway.

Tai couldn't do anything but stare. He'd managed a small nod in answer to both brothers' queries, but that was it. It was way too much to take in; in spite of the incredibly blunt warning he'd received. His best friend and his best friend's younger brother had just turned into vampires. He had just seen them transform into vampires. In his opinion, he had every right to be completely and utterly shell-shocked.

Eventually, he managed to rein in his scattered thoughts sufficiently enough to form a coherent sentence.

"W-wow. That was . . . amazing . . ."

Matt raised one of his eyebrows. "Is that all you have to say?" He sounded almost insulted.

"Aw c'mon, Matt. Don't give 'im a hard time; it's not like this is an everyday occurrence." TK cut in.

Matt flopped down on the bed. "Sorry, I'm just kinda grumpy. It's been a while since . . . that . . . guy . . ."

At the mention of 'that guy', TK looked at his feet. "Yeah . . ."

Tai looked from one brother to another, his curiosity piqued. "What guy?" he inquired.

Matt and TK both glared at him. "You don't want to know!" Matt snapped menacingly.

"Yeah," TK agreed. "You really don't want to know. I sure wish I didn't know . . ."

The two brothers sighed and stared despondently down into their respective laps.

"Come on," Tai groaned. "You've told me this much. What's the harm in telling me a bit more?"

"What's the harm!" Matt hissed. He pounced on Tai, knocking him over, and pinned him to the bed. Matt leaned down until he and his best friend's faces were mere centimeters apart.

"Matt –" TK called out.

"Be quiet, TK," Matt interrupted. He turned back to Tai. "You really want to know? Think about it first, Tai. We're vampires. As in, creatures of darkness? Do you really want to know?" he demanded.

Tai nodded. "I really want to know. Everything." he answered in a frightened whisper. "Don't keep secrets from me. Please."

Matt let him up. Both of the brothers were avoiding his gaze again. Matt began speaking.

"He was just some random guy who happened to be in the wrong place at the worst time . . ." Matt began.