Part Five

"Aster, I order you to bite Jaden," Satorius said, pointing at him. Aster felt the familiar stiffening of his body before he transformed, whipped around, and bit Jaden's hand. Jaden cried out and then growled as he shifted into a brown wolf, his brown-gold eyes showing evil in them.

"Well done, Aster," Satorius said, the silver wolf turning to him. "With Jaden on my side, I have no need of you anymore." He put a finger to Aster's forehead. "I trap you in wolf form forever. Your dueling career is over and you will live as a cursed, but talking wolf."

"No," Aster whined as he felt his humanity being taken from him. He then watched Satorius and Jaden walk away and he whimpered. "What have I done?"

"Aster? Aster!" The boy felt someone shaking his shoulder and he awoke to sunlight and his human form. Just a dream, he thought with relief. He sat up and saw Satorius standing over him. He leaped to his feet and stared defiantly at him. "I guess you found out that I didn't bite Jaden. I told you before, I won't bite my friend and he's going to…" He broke off when he saw the gentle smile on Satorius' face; a smile he hadn't seen lately. "Satorius?" he whispered hopefully. "Is it really you?"

"It is, Aster. Jaden expelled that evil force last night. Your friend was quite eager and determined to help you. Sadly, the curse can't be broken and you will remain a werewolf."

Aster waved a hand back and forth. "I'm not too concerned about that. You have been freed and the world is safe. My curse is trivial compared to all that and I still have the pendent so I can still duel on the pro circuit."

"Speaking of which, I found these. Apparently, yours was part of a set of four." Satorius reached into his pocket and pulled out three pendents that matched his. "Never hurts to have a few spares," he added as he passed them to Aster.

"Jaden, I cannot thank you enough for what you did," Aster said as he laid on the floor of the dorm room in wolf form as it was night.

"I was happy to do it and I was meant to beat him. I'm glad you two are together again."

Aster's tail swished. "He's promised to try to accommodate my curse as I duel. I let him know that I can't duel on the full moon and that I'll have meat cravings at times."

Jaden looked a bit sadly at him. "I wish your curse had broken when I won. It's not fair that you're still cursed."

"I know, but considering how I treated you when we dueled those two times, I feel I probably deserved it."

"No way," Jaden insisted. "No one deserves to be cursed."

"Maybe, but I am and I am learning to handle it. Satorius found three spare pendants that he gave me so I don't have to worry if I lose the one I'm using."

"Three spares?"

"Yeah. Satorius said that mine was part of a set of four."

"You still obeying Satorius' orders?" Jaden asked.

"I asked him to give me an order. He did but I didn't feel my body stiffen like it would before. I simply change every night, whenever I get angry, and on the full moon as well as whenever I like."

"Oh, good," Jaden said as he got up and kneeled beside Aster.

"It is." Aster tilted his head Jaden looked quite intent about something. "Jaden? You okay?"

"Fine. I'm just thinking that since the danger of being infected to serve that evil force is gone…"

Aster stared at him. "You want me to bite you?"

"Not just him," Hassleberry said as he came down from his bed. "I do too."

"Are you sure? This is a permanent curse."

"We talked about it and we're sure. Though, I don't think Sy wants bitten." Jaden looked at his best friend.

"Definitely not sure," he replied.

"Well, I could turn you two tonight and bring the pendants tomorrow so if Syrus does decided to be bitten, one of you can do it and you'll have his pendent already. If he decides not to, I'll just collect the extra next school year."

"Next school year?" Hassleberry repeated.

"Yeah. I'm still enrolled there." Aster stood as Jaden pushed up his jacket sleeve. He wrapped his jaws around the arm and gently bit down before releasing and giving Hassleberry the same treatment. Both boys went through the same painful transformation that didn't include howls from them. Instead, they examined their claws, paws, and bodies.

Jaden laughed as he jumped up and down on his legs. "Oh, this is great! I look so cool and strong."

Aster's tail swished at the joy in Jaden's voice and then he chuckled as Hassleberry seemed to be chasing his tail which was also embarrassing. "Hassleberry, you're a wolf, not a dog," he said.

"I know, but there's something following me."

Syrus face-palmed. "That's your tail," he scolded.

Hassleberry stopped and craned his neck to look back. "Oh," he said simply.

"Aster, I think biting Hassleberry was a mistake," Syrus said. "He's not too bright sometimes and that's when he's human."

"Hey!" Hassleberry growled. "You think you could do better as a werewolf than me?"

"I wouldn't be chasing my tail at least."

"Maybe, but we'll never know as you're too cowardly to join us."

"Whoa, there," Aster said. "That's a bit harsh. I don't blame Syrus for not wanting to be bitten. I wouldn't jump at the offer if I had a choice."

Hassleberry aimed a foreleg at Syrus. "He also called you dangerous after you almost bit Jaden earlier."

"I would see myself that way if I was in his place and under that evil force's orders, I would be dangerous. Luckily, that's over."

"Will Ja and Hassleberry also have pointed ears now?" Syrus asked.

"I'm sure they will and have sharper senses when human just like I do."

"Sharper senses," Syrus said with soft reverence.

"Come on, Sy. We could all play in the forest tomorrow night and I'd like it if you joined us in that."

Syrus stared at them from his bed before climbing down, pushing up his sleeve, holding out his arm. "Okay, do it." Aster bit down and Syrus painfully changed as well. He turned in a slow circle and flashed a wolf's grin at his friends. "This is cool," he admitted.

"I've always thought so when I was in control of my actions. I do enjoy being a werewolf, especially now," Aster admitted. He saw Syrus' tail wag at this and he knew Syrus would like being a werewolf as would the others.

The four of us could be a pack for the rest of the year and next year too. For now though, I will teach and guide them in being werewolves. Aster laid down and curled up to sleep, the others also deciding to sleep. Aster's curse had become something of a gift that he had bestowed on three friends whom he would teach.