Chapter 11

The Wolves-Bane Ritual

Ashling looked around nervously, shivering in fear and keeping as close to the edge of the group as possible. If they didn't make it to where the demon had told them to meet him in time, things could get troublesome. As in big-murderous-wolf-monster troublesome. The terrified Shinigami made sure that she could slide into nearby shadows if need be. She wasn't going to allow herself to attack her friends again. She couldn't imagine if she hurt one of them, especially Ronald, who was walking by her side and holding her hand reassuringly.

Claude had told them to meet him at a well-known, but little visited, field on the outskirts of where the Shinigami lived. He had insisted that it be on the night of a full moon, and was adamant about this point. Apparently, it was important for the Wolves-Bane Ritual he was going to perform.

Ashling sighed in relief when the field came into view; they had made it before the moon had risen. Two figures stood next to a tall, concave concrete wall that had not been there last time any of them had been to the field. It was obviously something the demon had built for the ritual. When the Shinigami got closer, they saw that the two other people were none other than Claude and a somewhat short woman with blue-gray eyes and glasses. The woman smiled and waved to them as they approached.

"I assume you are the Shinigami Claude told me about. Awesome!" she said with a wide grin.

"Yes. And you are Miss Silver, I presume?" William asked.

"Yes, but please don't call me "Miss". It's so old fashioned, makes me feel old. I'm Silver, writer and Cognitive Psychologist! I study how the mind interprets art, and am working with lab rats at the moment. But enough of that." the strange woman turned her attention to Ashling, who went red in embarrassment.

"You must be Ashling. I'm terribly sorry about what's happened to you, but don't worry. Claude's going to fix it. Right?" Silver turned to look at Claude with a smile.

Claude bowed slightly, trying to stay formal in front of the others, and smiled softly.

"Yes, my lady." he said confidently.

"Ah, don't start being all boring now! Come on, let's see this ritual of yours! I'm really curious!" Silver said excitedly, walking toward the wall.

Claude and the Shinigami followed her, looking up at the gray stone wall expectantly. There were two heavy metal shackles hanging from it, and two stuck firmly in the ground in front of it as well. The overhang from the curve shielded the part under it from the moon, but it wouldn't for the whole night. There were all sorts of strange symbols carved into the wall, and Ronald narrowed his eyes as he looked over them. He had no idea what any of this meant. All he could do was trust the demon; and that was a very dangerous place to be.

"What do you plan to do?" he asked, looking up into Claude's gold eyes.

"Simple, really. We chain Ashling up to this wall. It's built so that the moon will not touch her until just the right moment. She will change form, and it will activate the glyphs I carved into the wall. Their power will remove the curse of the werewolf, or "Vyrwolf", as we call them back home in Hell. It will be very painful, Miss Ashling, but you will never turn into a wolf again. You will be completely cured." Claude turned his attention to the young Shinigami, who nodded understandingly.

"I understand. It'll hurt. I don't care, let's do it! I'm sick of being a freaking dog." she spat the last word angrily, and Claude actually chuckled at her.

"I once knew someone else who despised dogs. He was more of a cat-person, but that's irrelevant. Come on." he motioned for her to stand in front of the wall.

Ashling walked to the wall and stood in front of it, and Claude carefully bound her to it with the shackles. He made quick work of the ones on her legs as well, then backed away from her.

"It's done. The rest will take care of itself. We can sit at the edge of the field and wait. We don't want to be close when it happens. The screaming is going to be enough of an issue without being able to clearly see her thrashing and writhing as well." he said in a complete monotone.

Ronald shot Ashling a worried look, but she smiled and motioned for them to do as Claude had said. She didn't want them to see her become a monster again, then turn back while in agony. The group walked to the edge of the field and sat down, watching quietly as the moon appeared and rose higher into the sky with each passing minute.

"Do you have what I asked you for, Mr. Spears?" Claude whispered to William hurriedly, Silver's hand in his.

The Shinigami nodded slightly, trying to keep as quiet as possible.

"Yes, and you'll get it after this works." he replied, keeping his gaze on the wall several yards away.

Claude sighed and nodded, returning his attention to Silver, who had just starting talking to him about the rats back at her lab. William smirked a bit at the sight of them. To imagine a demon being able to feel love at all was a preposterous notion, yet here it was before him. It was...pathetic. The demon was more of a leashed dog than even Sebastian had been. It was curious, really. Perhaps he ought to have someone look into that. It was always best to be one step in front of the enemy.

His train of thought was broken by a shrill cry of pain. The group went tense; the moon's light was shining into the curved part of the wall where Ashling was. Her cries of agony continued and quickly became growls and snarls. Claude sighed.

"It begins." he muttered softly, feeling Silver shudder next to him.

The group only grew more tense as the werewolf howled and whimpered in agony. The wall began to glow a vibrant purple, and the glyphs began to peel away from the wall. Silver and the Shinigami gasped as they began to form a sort of cage-pattern around the wall.

"Claude, what's going on?" Silver asked, looking at him.

She was surprised to see his eyes glowing the same vibrant purple as the symbols, and he ignored her question, trying to keep his focus on helping the process.

After a few minutes of the wolf's cries, the symbols shattered silently, and the cries stopped abruptly. Claude smirked in satisfaction, and his eyes returned to their normal gold color. The group sat in silence for a moment, waiting for the demon to say something. After a moment, he obliged them.

"It is done."

So, did it work? Or has Claude done something terrible? I'm expecting two more chapters to this. Thanks for reading! Allons-y!

~Silver