Chapter 7

"So… let me get this straight, you're saying that you've been turning into a werewolf at night?" Tucker asked doubtfully. "Uh huh." Danny nodded, before breaking into a hacking fit. It was the morning after Vlad's attack. Sam and Tucker were paying their morning visit to Danny.

"Dude, are you sure you're okay? You didn't look this bad yesterday." "Yes, I'm fine." "Do you think it was those pills Vlad gave you? Sam asked with concern." "No he was playing with my nerves then, I didn't have a fever until after he left." Danny sniffed miserably. "Or until after he gave you the antidote."

Danny looked thoughtful, "I never thought of that." "Well, was there anything weird about it?" She pressed. He smiled bitterly, "Like I could tell, he said it tasted horrible and I should get it over with quickly." "So?" "So, he forcefully shoved it down my throat. Such nice person." Sam looked a bit taken aback at this; Danny didn't miss the look on her face. "What? Don't tell me you thought he would be gentler, this is Vlad we're talking about, remember? The evil, plotting, fruitloop whose only friends are his cats?" "I know; it's just that it still surprises how far he's willing to go just to get what he wants." "Um, okay."

"Anyways, I brought the books you wanted." Sam said, changing the subject while piling them on the bed." Danny thanked her and began rummaging through the stack, muttering, "I can't believe I'm desperate enough to read a book." "They're really not that bad," Tucker told him. "Says you." Danny scoffed, pulling out an ancient looking handbook. "If we could find information on the Fright Night in here, then why wouldn't there be-" Danny paused and coughed harshly again, "something about that wolf?" He finished weakly, flipping through the pages.

"Why don't you lie down, we can look it up." Sam said, putting a hand on his shoulder, careful to avoid the one with a cast on it. "Honestly, I'm fine." Danny stood up and walked across the room as if to prove it, only to collapse in a chair by the door. "Yeah, you look really healthy," she said sarcastically. He shot her a look that meant to be angry, but ended up being one of pure exhaustion "Come on; get back in bed before you have a heart attack," Tucker said firmly, holding out a hand. Danny reluctantly let his friend help him back across the room.

"Look, school is starting soon, we have to go." Sam told him taking the books in her arms. "What are you doing?" "Tucker and I will look for information on the wolf today and YOU will focus on resting." Danny crossed his arms and frowned moodily in embarrassment as Sam tucked him in. Tucker couldn't suppress a giggle. Ignoring that, she told him, "We'll be back after school." "Hmm!" "Good, we'll see you then."

After the door closed, Danny closed his eyes and focused, using his noticeably wolf enhanced senses. He could hear his friends walking down the hall. It wasn't until they reached the waiting room when Tucker finally burst out with laughter.

Later that afternoon, Sam and Tucker returned to find Danny in a softly snoring in a deep sleep. Messy raven black hair betrayed the fact that he hadn't combed it in days. Tucker looked in disgust at the puddle of drool forming on the pillow. Sam seemed to find it cute. They left shortly after to leave their friend in peace.

Danny woke up about three hours later. Wiping slobber from his face, he sat up and looked at the clock. 6:47. Feeling a lot better than he had that morning, he yawned and fell freely back onto his pillow. Footsteps came from the hallway outside. Danny looked up in time to see Sam and Tucker enter the room for the third time that day.

"Have a nice rest sleeping beauty?" Sam asked, closing the door behind them. "Uh huh." He replied pleasantly. "Well you look better," Tucker added, indicating to his friend's cheeks, which had taken on a softer shade of pink since that morning. "You're still burning though." Sam said, putting a hand on his forehead. "Um, I guess." He said quickly, scooting away from her. The color of his cheeks deepened.

"So… did you find anything?" "Find anything?" "About the wolf?" "Oh right!" She replied, pulling out the handbook. "You were right, she is in here." Showing him a page with a detailed sketch of a white wolf. "What does it say?" Apparently her name's Lunai, she's like a legend in the ghost zone, leading a pack of fellow werewolves. "Uh, so she has a human form?" "Well, no." Tucker joined in the conversation, "It makes sense when you think about it. Cause where do you think the original werewolf came from?" Danny gave him a blank look. "Ghost wolves! They're pure werewolf, without a human side, not like what you are. You're only part wolf now."

He nodded, slowly understanding this. "There's something I don't get, this Lunai just went psycho when we landed outside." "Maybe because she was mad that you tackled her?" Tucker said, like it was obvious. "No, it's different, there was something going on with her eyes." "Well duh, if someone was trying to kill me there would be a wild look in their eyes too," "It's not that!" he replied impatiently, hugging his knees in a distressed sort of way. "Alright." Tucker sighed, letting the subject drop.

Danny took the silence as an opportunity to try walking again. His friends looked slightly alarmed as he stood up, but soon their alarm turned to relief. Danny was making his way across the room with little trouble at all. He sat down on the same chair by the door, looking very pleased with himself. His friends were staring at him now. "What?" Sam pointed at him. Danny looked down; he was covered in the chestnut fur again." "Ugh, just what I need, another problem." "How are you going to hide that when the nurse checks on you?" "Um, well…. We could always- OH MY GOSH WHAT IS THAT!" he jumped up, a dog-like tail swept around his ankles. Tucker and Sam broke into hysterical laughter.

Danny flattened his wolf ears in an offended way, "Come on guys, this is serious!" "Sorry," Tucker said, still snickering, "but you have to admit that was funny." "Ha ha." Danny said without any emotion, flipping the light switch off. "What are you doing?" "The light was bothering me." His friends exchanged worried glances while his back was turned. "So…. Can we at least let a little light in?" Tucker asked, opening the window. Moonlight lit the room. Danny narrowed his eyes, the silvery light made his mind feel hazy. "We've been here longer than I thought." "No, it's just because winter's coming, the days are getting shorter." Sam told him.

Neither of them noticed their friend staggering unevenly in the back of the room. Both jumped when a various medical tools clattered the ground. Danny was crouching in a corner "Danny?" Sam asked cautiously. He pressed his head against the wall and began to shake violently. Suddenly he snarled a real, wolf-like snarl. Sam stepped back fearfully. Danny turned to face her. Just like Lunai, the pupils had faded from his eyes, this time leaving two spheres like glowing sapphires.

He looked slightly confused. Tucker and Sam gave each other uncertain glances. Without warning, Danny's stare turned to a demon-like scowl, snarling again, he advanced toward Sam. With wolf/human hands, he pinned his friend against the wall, digging his claws in her arms.

Behind them, an idea occurred to Tucker and he closed the blinds to the window. Danny abruptly released Sam as his eyes returned to normal. They gave each other a bewildered look. Then he noticed the blood welling up in the claw marks on her arms. His claw marks.

His friends watched Danny, unsure of what to do. He backed away looking drastically upset at what happened. Then the werewolf did the first thing that came to mind. Ripping the blinds off the window, he dived outside and fled into the night before Sam and Tucker could stop him.