Eren

I wake up to a splitting headache on a cold concrete floor. Chains clink as I start to move, and hard metal digs into my wrists and ankles. I blink and look around. I'm in a small room with a heavy metal door. A faint light comes from a thin window near the ceiling. I'm chained to the wall and- naked?! Was I kidnapped? Who would want to kidnap me?

A face appears through the barred window on the door. Levi. Anger roars through me. I give him a deadly glare. "What the fuck is going on?"

He sighs, a bored look on his face. "I promise it's not nearly as bad as it looks."

"Really? Because it looks like you kidnapped me."

"Only technically. Believe me, I did you a favor."

I clench my fists. "Are you insane?"

He sighs and holds something through the bars. "Just take a look at this."

"That's my phone!"

"Yes, I know. Now look at your most recent video. Those cuffs should come off pretty easily." I look down, and sure enough they're several sizes too big, but I'm too angry to really give that much thought. I slip them off my hands and feet and stand up, yanking the phone from of his hand. I shoot him another glare and press play on the video.

It starts with an image of a wolf chained up in this room. It's snarling and pulling at the restraints so hard the entire wall is shaking. Its golden eyes are full of furry and its razor sharp teeth look like they could tear someone apart with ease.

The light slowly gets better, and the snarls turn to whimpers. The wolf collapses on the floor and it's form starts shrinking. The hair recedes. The front legs turn to arms, and the paws to hands. The muzzle sinks back into the head. Eyes, nose, mouth- all become human. My anger starts to dull, replaced by shock as I stare at the image of myself lying on the ground in place of the wolf. I shake my head. "That's impossible." I look up at him. "It has to be edited or something."

He snorts. "How? It's your phone, I couldn't even unlock it. Besides, look at the time stamp." Six thirty two am. Only a couple minutes ago. "And how about that bite mark?"

I look down, running my fingers over the two week old tooth marks on my forearm. "You're saying this is… a wolf bite?"

"Yes."

"I don't even remember getting it."

"That doesn't make it any less real."

I eye him warily. "So what am I doing here?" I ask. "You're not a werewolf too are you?"

He gives me an unimpressed look. "No. I'm a vampire."

"Seriously?" He turns around and opens his mouth. His canines descend into razor sharp fangs right before my eyes. I take a step back. "You've got to be kidding me."

"Don't worry, I only drink from blood bags. And even if I was going to bite someone, it wouldn't be a uh," he makes a face, "werewolf."

I look back at the video. It's still running and the figure- me is starting to move now. My cheeks flush. Wolf or not, I'm still naked. I give him a nervous glance. "Could I maybe have some clothes?"

He nods. "Sure, but you have to shower first. You're filthy. For now you can cover up with this."

He opens the door and tosses me a blanket. I snatch it out of the air and pull it around myself. I debate trying to run away, but I'm curious. I can't say I believe I'm a werewolf, but that video… I shake my head. There has to be another explanation.

He leads me up a creaky set of stairs and into the living room. "Go take a shower. I'll cook breakfast."

My mouth waters at the thought and I go off towards the bathroom. I have to scrub vigorously at my hands and feet to get all the dirt off. I have to admit, it really does look like I was running around on all fours. I sigh. Why am I even considering this? Werewolves do not exist. For that matter neither do vampires, but those fangs did look pretty real.

I let the water flow over my face for a few minutes, and then the growling of my stomach tells me it's time to get out. I see another set of clothes sitting on the counter. They fit even worse than the last pair, but it's better than nothing.

I open the door and the scent of the food all but drags me into the kitchen. Levi's standing behind the stove, spatula in hand. I walk over next to him and stare down at the sizzling bacon.

A moment later, he declares it done and divides it onto two plates. We both sit down and I inhale my food the same way I did the other day.

I finish and look up at Levi, who's still just starting. "You say you're a vampire, but you eat bacon?"

"I don't need as much blood if I eat some human food too, although meat and tea are pretty much the only things I can stomach. The fridge is full of blood if you want to check."

I shake my head and he continues eating. "What made you think I was a werewolf?" I ask once he's done.

"I could tell by your smell. Wolf blood smells very different from human blood. Not very appetizing."

"So… anything else I should know about werewolves?"

He shrugs. "I don't know a lot myself, wolves and vampires are usually enemies."

"Uh, ok, then seriously why are you helping me?"

He gives me a wry smile. "I'll let you know when I figure it out. Anyway, most of what I know about wolves comes from having to fight them. They're manageable as humans, but deadly in wolf form. Our only chance once they've changed is a silver knife, but even then the odds aren't in our favor."

"Sounds like you have experience."

"I do. Most werewolves are not exactly friendly or safe- even to humans. It's the same with most vampires."

"So what, you're a good vampire then?"

"I like to consider myself neutral." He pauses. "Oh, and werewolves are notorious for having really short tempers."

I stiffen. "You've got to be kidding me. You're saying anger is a werewolf thing?"

He nods. "Have you been having issues with it?"

I grimace. "Yeah, you could say that. In two weeks I managed to get kicked out of college, alienate my parents, and lose my boyfriend. I don't suppose there's a way of dealing with it?"

"As far as I know there's only time and practice."

My anger starts to come back and my voice rises. "You're saying I'm stuck like this?"

"You'll probably get a handle on it eventually. If you make enough of an effort," he says casually.

"Enough of an effort? It's ruining my fucking life!" I yell. He raises an eyebrow. I take a couple deep breaths and rein myself back in. It's not Levi's fault. "Sorry." I drop my head into my hands. "This sucks."

"So you believe me now?"

I scowl. "No. Maybe. I'm not sure. I don't exactly have a better explanation for what's been going on." I run my hand through my hair. "What the hell am I supposed to do?"

"The only thing you can do. Chain yourself up every full moon and hope you don't fuck up too bad."

I give a dry laugh. "A bit late for that. I'm living on my best friends' couch."

"It's a step up from being homeless."

"I guess." I pause. "So how am I supposed to deal with full moons? I don't even have a basement, let alone the money for chains."

"Silver chains. And you can just come back here."

"Won't that bother you?"

"It's better than having a werewolf running loose a couple minutes from my house. Besides, I installed them for you, it would be a waste not to keep using them."

"Thanks."

"No problem. And call me if anything comes up in the meantime." Levi stands up and takes our plates over to the sink. As he walks past me, I realize the smell I noticed last time is coming from him. I breathe in deeply. There are none of the usual scents of sweat and body odor mixed in either.

He raises an eyebrow. "Do I really smell that weird?"

I blush. "Sorry. I was just wondering if it's because you're a vampire."

He nods. "And if you ever smell another one, run to a crowded area and call me. They will not hesitate to kill you. It'd be a shame if you died after I put so much work into you." I grimace and nod.

After that, Levi drives me back to Mikasa and Armin's apartment. Or I guess I should say Mikasa, Armin, and Marco's apartment. He moved in a little after I moved out to live with Jean, so staying here is challenging. They don't really have the space for me, but where else would I go? I can't afford my own place.

I walk into the main room of the small apartment. One side is taken up by several old but comfortable seats, and the other has a little area that passes for a kitchen. I'm relieved to find the place empty.

I flop down on my couch and pull out my phone, pressing play on the video. I watch myself turn from a wolf into a human. I have to admit, it does look really real. And then there's the anger. That just appeared overnight- along with the wolf bite. I press play on the video again, but it doesn't seem any less impossible the third time around.

An hour later, Mikasa, Armin, and Marco get back. I stand up nervously as they take off their shoes. The last time I saw them I yelled at Mikasa and stormed out. "Hi guys…"

Mikasa nods, looking at me with caution. "Eren."

I drop my head. "I'm so sorry about yesterday. You didn't deserve any of that."

Her face softens and she comes over to pull me into a hug. "I forgive you. I shouldn't have mentioned Jean. I know he's a sensitive topic for you right now."

"That doesn't make what I did any more ok."

She pulls back and stares at me with a worried expression. "What has been going on with you anyway? It's like you blow up at the drop of a hat." Her brow creases. "It's not drugs, is it?"

I shake my head. "No, of course not! I… I don't know what's wrong, sorry. I'll try to get it under control."

The next day, I start out for my job at a jog. I pressed snooze one time too many, and now I'm dangerously close to being late. I cut through the park towards the bus stop. I run past the beds of flowers and and through a section of trees- and stop dead in my tracks.

Right next to the path is a rabbit. It looks way tastier than a live rabbit has any right looking. I catch its scent and start to drool.

Out of nowhere a tingly feeling starts around my ears and lower back. It grows stronger until it's more of a burning itch, and then it stops. The sounds around me are louder and sharper. I can hear everything from the wind in the leaves to a crying child all the way on the other side of the park. Oh no.

I reach up my hands, and sure enough where my ears should be there's nothing but hair, and above that…

I look around frantically. I'm alone, thank god. I quickly hide behind a tree and reach into my pocket for my phone. I open the camera and look in horror at the two fuzzy ears sitting perched on top of my head. Then I look behind me at my other new addition. A fluffy tail. Shit shit shit, this is so not good. I try to will them to disappear again, but nothing happens. I switch to my messages and text Levi.

Me: I AM DEFINITELY 100% CONVINCED I'M A WEREWOLF

Levi: What happened?

Me: I JUST GREW EARS AND A TAIL

Eren: A FUCKING TAIL

Me: How do I make it go away?!

Levi: How should I know?

Me: Then what the fuck am I supposed to do? I'm late to my job!

Levi: First of all, calm down

Me: How am I supposed to calm down? I HAVE A TAIL

Levi: I'm hearing that. Take some deep breaths or something, and then try visualizing them disappearing

I throw my phone down on the grass and pull angrily at my ears, only to find that they're really sensitive and that fucking hurts. Fuck.

But Levi's right. I need to calm down. I have to keep trying. I take a couple deep breaths and close my eyes. Once I'm not so worked up, I imagine my body back the way it should be.

After a couple painfully long moments, the itchy tingly sensation finally comes back. I look behind me and breathe a sigh of relief. No tail. I pick up my phone and open the camera. No ears either. I grin and open my messages.

Eren: It worked! Thanks Levi :D

Levi: Yeah, whatever brat. That's what I'm here for.

I smile, and then my face pales as I glance at the time. I really am going to be late for work, and I'm already on thin ice for yelling at one of my coworkers. I shoot my boss a quick text, and take off at a run towards the bus stop.