Almighty Therianthropy

Chapter 3

A/N: PLEASE READ: I know I had a warning before about this being an anti-cult fic, but I also want to point out that there is some GUN REFERENCES as well. Let me just say that I do NOT support gun violence or the use of guns in the hands of the mentally ill or really anyone other than law enforcement or soldiers. And since the Guardians are kind of like soldiers and they're fighting werewolves, so they need to use silver projectile weapons. My heart goes out to all the families who have had to deal with the elementary school shooting and other recent shootings that HAVE TO STOP. I don't mean this fanfic to be insulting or influential in any way. BTW, I don't really know anything about guns (my knowledge came solely from Wikipedia and playing Metal Gear Solid) so forgive me if I don't know what I'm talking about. Thank you.

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"Werewolves?" July just now saw the bandage wrapped around Bunnymund's waist. "Oh shit, did they…" She lightly touched the bandage. "I didn't notice! And I fuckin' bear-hugged you!"

"It's alright, mate. Actually…" He looked at the wound under the wrap. "It's healing up quite nicely." That's good. Jack thought.

"Oh, jeez! What the fuck did they want from you?"

"I don't know, but I'm gonna find out." Bunny growled. "But I can't face 'em without the right weapons."

"Ah, and that's where I come in." She crossed her arms over her bikini-clad chest. "You need guns and silver bullets, yes?"

"That's right. Can you help us? Please?" Jack stepped forward.

"Can I? Can I?" July feigned shock. "Look around you, Jack. I built and/or customized everything in this warehouse. I can definitely build you guys some weapons. I'm assuming the other Guardians need them too, right?" Bunny and Jack nodded. "I'll help you… but it's gonna cost you."

"What? What do you mean?" Jack couldn't believe she was asking that.

"That's the other reason I brought the egg, Frostbite." Bunny sighed, rubbing his head. "She likes bargaining."

"I'm the spirit of America, of course I do." She said a little too proudly. "But now the egg has paid for the GrenEggs, not the weapons."

"Right, right. What do you want?" Bunny let out an exhausted groan.

"Simple." She smirked. "I want in on this war. It'll be a chance for me to really let loose. Can't do that with human soldiers, you know."

"In that case…" The rabbit smiled. "Welcome aboard, sheila." Jack didn't look so sure.

"Great! Now let's get down to business!" July pulled out a notebook and gave it to Revere, who held it in his beak. She put a pen behind her ear and picked up some measuring tape.

"So, have you actually… fought in all of America's wars?" Jack asked.

"Every one that was worth fighting in." She replied. "Most of them I tried stopping. If you're asking if I can fight, then the answer would be that I know more about fighting and espionage than you and the Pooka combined."

"For the Moon's sake, don't challenge her, mate." Bunny's ears flattened.

"Is she that good?" Jack asked, very interested.

"So, Jack, have you ever used a gun before?" July went up to the teen, measuring his shoulders.

"Um, I think so, when I was still human." Jack tried to remember as the woman wrote down the measurement in the notebook. "Hunting for rabbits, I think."

"Don't even joke about that!" Bunnymund shivered at the thought. Jack and July laughed.

"So, a musket, huh?" She eyed Jack's staff. "Could I see that?" She asked. Jack hesitated. "No, you can still hold it, I just wanna see." He complied then, holding it out for her. "Cool, I see your powers in the crevices. Can you use your powers without it?"

"No. Not really." The boy wasn't really sure. He never tried using magic without it, nothing major anyway. And he learned – thanks to Pitch – that he could mend it if it broke.

"You sure?" July asked. "Maybe with a little practice. Like this." She held out her hand and bursts of red, white and blue light and fire came out of it. The flowering bursts looked like fireworks. Jack was amazed. He put the staff down and tried making it snow, but nothing much happened except for a few snowflakes. "Oh well. You can try some other time. I'll just make you a handgun instead of a musket. Are you right or left-handed?"

"Right." Jack replied. July nodded and took Jack's right arm, fixing it in a straight position. Then, she measured Jack's arm from shoulder to middle finger. "Um, why are you doing that?" He asked.

"I'm going to make you a gun that's perfect for your size and skill." She explained, now measuring Jack's wrist, then his palm, lastly around his neck. He looked at Bunny for help. He just laughed and shrugged. "Okay, I got it! And I already have your measurements, Bunny. Making the weapons and bullets should take me about a day and a half. In the meantime, you can make yourselves at home, or stay and watch, if you like."

"I'll contact the others." Bunnymund turned and hopped to the stairs.

"Do you still remember how to use the projection communicator?"

"Yes." Bunny called.

"The what?" Jack wanted to see Bunny use another piece of futuristic technology, but… "You know what? I'll stay here." He watched the rabbit go up the stairs. This would be a perfect time to ask if July and Bunnymund were some kind of… couple. But could he really bluntly ask that?

"You want to watch?" July walked over to this big machine while Revere flew across the room to search through what looked like a stockroom. "It's not that exciting, really." She made some adjustments to the machine and Revere came back with a skid-full of silver cylinders.

"You just happen to have that?"

"I have loads of materials. Though I never put silver into the bullet machine."

"That's what that is?" Jack felt like a little boy who had just seen an action film for the first time. "Do you have a gun machine, too?"

"No. I like to do that by hand." She put five cylinders into the machine and turned it on. "Seems to be working." She nodded and went back to the work table, getting tools and parts out of drawers. "Come here; let me show you what I'm making for you." Jack flew over next to her. She handed him a blueprint. "It's a 9 millimeter submachine handgun, the Ruger MP9 model. It's light, fires easy and quick, holds 32 rounds, and will be cold-resistant."

"Wow, that sounds pretty cool." Jack had no idea what she just said, but there was some primal part of him that was enjoying having a gun made just for him. "Do you really think this is going to be a war? I mean, we don't even know what they want."

"They made it a war when they attacked Bunny." She got serious. "They should have known what they were going to be dealing with after trying to kill a Guardian. And it's true; we don't know what their goal is, so hopefully when we meet them next we can 'talk' about it."

"True." Jack said. It was still hard to think of having a war with werewolves. Fighting against Pitch was different, because his army was basically horses made out of sand. Werewolves were true flesh and blood creatures, and the eternal teen has never killed anyone before, at least not on purpose. And all of them with guns? Now that was a prompt for an epic movie poster. He could picture North with a gun, and picturing Bunny with one actually made his heart do some flippy-flops, but Tooth and Sandy? Sure, Sandy was freakin' badass with his whips, but still couldn't quite see him with a gun. And he cannot imagine the Tooth Fairy with any weapons in her dainty little hands. "So, what are you going to make the others?"

"That is a challenge." She had already started working. "I'm going to make North a shotgun and Bunny some dual guns. Sandy can mostly make do with the Dreamsand, but I should still make him something, and Tooth… she hates guns… ooo! I could make her a blowgun with silver blow-darts!"

"Ha! Now I can see that!" Jack laughed. "And what about you?"

"I'm making dual guns for myself, too." July said. "That's what I've always been comfortable with."

"I see." The winter spirit looked around some more, remembering that July said she built everything in this place. God, she built a fucking tank? And a car? And she's fought in every American war? With guns and tanks? "So, what did you mean when you said we were similar?" He was wondering how that could be possible.

"Well, when Bunny was telling me about you, he said somewhere in his rant that no human could see you, so that's why you were fucking around with his holiday or something." She explained, sneaking a look at the teen. "Then I stopped him and reminded him that it was not something to make light of because… I know how it feels to not be believed in."

"You… you do?!" Jack was really interested now. Someone besides Pitch knows what it feels like?

"Yeah. Remember the Great Depression?" July sighed heavily. "It's really hard, I know. And Bunny should know too, I mean, he helped me through that hard time."

"Helped you?" And the jealous feeling was back.

"As much as he could. So he knows, and he shouldn't have said that so lightly. I didn't tell him this, because at the time he would have just blown me off, but I realized why you caused that blizzard; you just wanted some attention, and didn't quite know how to get it normally." She smiled awkwardly. Jack nodded quietly; that was exactly the reason why he did that. "I gotta say, it's a little surprising to see you two being friends now. After his stupid angry rant I didn't think he'd ever want to see you again."

"Well, it wasn't easy." Jack shook his head.

"Yeah, he can be difficult." July turned to smile at the boy. "But he's a really awesome guy once you get to know him."

"Yeah." He said simply, totally agreeing with her. And that's why I love him so much. "Well, I'm gonna go… see what he's up to."

"Alright! Feel free to raid the fridge!" She called to him after he flew up the stairs. He found Bunnymund in the living room, and his jaw dropped when he saw that the flat-screen TV had turned into that communicator they were talking about earlier.

"This place has everything!" Jack said.

"Is that Jack?" He heard Tooth's voice come from the speakers. He walked up next to Bunny so he could see the screen, and saw North in his factory in one window and Tooth at her palace in the other. "Hi, Jack!"

"Hey, guys!" He waved to them.

"July gave us these things so she could call us." Bunny said. "She couldn't give one to Sandy."

"I'm on lookout for werewolves now, Jack!" North boomed. "I will call if I find them."

"Thanks, mate." Bunny turned off the communicator. "Did you finish making a mess down there, Frostbite?"

"I do have self-control, you know." He flopped down on the couch.

"Well that's something I'd like you to show me once in a while." Bunny sat next to him. The teen prayed that he wasn't blushing. "So how's July treatin' ya?"

"She's great!" He honestly replied. "She really is something."

"I told you she'd like you, mate."

"And you weren't kidding when you said affectionate. She just stared at me and called me gorgeous right off the bat."

"You seem to be getting that a lot lately."

"Ha! You're jealous." Jack jabbed him with his staff.

"Yeah, right." Bunny pushed the staff away. "Actually, she didn't react the way I thought she would."

"How would that be?"

"Thought she'd ask if you were single and to go out with her!" The rabbit laughed.

"So, I was going to be your second payment?" Jack eyed him suspiciously.

"Of course not." Bunny had a lying grin on his face. Jack was actually flattered by that. It means that Bunny thought he was attractive enough to use as a 'payment'. But also, it meant the rabbit didn't care who he went out with. Maybe July likes Bunny and that's why she didn't ask? Or maybe Bunny likes July but is too afraid to… whoa whoa whoa, stop that. The teen thought. What is this, high school? Shut up, brain!

RING RING RING

"What the hell?" The winter spirit jumped out of his skin when he heard an alarm go off. The communicator turned on and North was on the screen again.

"I found those beasts! They're not hiding at all!" North was very worried. "They're attacking people and children out in the open!"

"What?!" Bunny's ears stood straight up in anger. "Where?"

"What the fuck is happening?" July came running up the stairs.

"Sweden! They're in Sweden!" North shouted into the machine. "Let's go!" He hung up.

"Shit, I only have Jack's gun ready!" She held it in her hands. "And four dozen bullets!"

"We're gonna have to make due with that, mates." Bunny and Jack nodded to each other. "Let's hurry!"

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A/N: Why did that take so long? Well, I made sure to write that disclaimer at the top very carefully and whole-heartedly (if you didn't read it I HIGHLY SUGGEST IT). Nothing much happens in this chapter, as you have read. I'm just trying to give July more character and reason to like her. It will get more interesting in the next chapter, I promise! You will find out why the werewolves are attacking!