Curse of the Werelupe: Part Eight by rachelindea
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Kieavin stared at how different her brother looked. It had only been a few days and already Fanger was looking less civilised and more wild. His fur was a mess, full of dirt and barbs, and lying mangy against his body. His voice had even gained a harsher accent, an angry tone, but it was still his voice. He regarded all of the assembled pets coldly. Redfang grinned at him. “Of course you’re one of us,” she said. “Shadowheart welcomed you into the pack and you accepted. You can’t break your word like that.” “Break my word?” Fanger asked. “I never gave my word. You make it sound like I don’t have a choice.” “You don’t.” The cool, calm voice interrupted smoothly and another Werelupe strode out of the shadows. Much larger than the other two, he seemed to fill the entire Woods with his looming presence. He stared down at Fanger. “You wanted to be one of us. Your old family—”
“His old family is right here,” Kieavin interrupted. “And you put it just about right, whoever you are. We are his family. And nothing can or ever will change that.” She wasn’t being calmed by the Werelupe’s smooth voice. To her it sounded sickly sweet. The massive Werelupe swivelled his head to look at her with red, bloodshot eyes. His breathing became heavy. Fanger stood still though, frozen in the act of thinking. His face was slowly changing as each thought presented itself to him. “Shadowheart,” he said hoarsely. The big Werelupe faced him, and his eyes narrowed as he saw the red colour of Fanger’s eyes draining away with every second. In desperation he threw back his head and howled to the night sky. Redfang joined him. For a moment the red flared back to light in the glowing green eyes, but then it slowly faded. Finally it was only a tiny red dot, suspended on the verge of completely disappearing. Minotaur watched in wonder as his brother’s eyes changed ever so slowly, his face softening, and his stance relaxing at the same time. He saw Shadowheart’s eyes widen in almost fear, and the Werelupe leapt forward, aiming a swipe at Fanger. Instinctively Minotaur brought up his Rainbow Gun and fired. The force of the blow sent Shadowheart toppling to the ground, roaring in anger and humiliation. Fanger backed away slowly, shock registering on his face. He stared at Minotaur, who brought the gun up in a salute and grinned. “You really shouldn’t depend on me so much,” he said jokingly. Redfang launched herself towards the Yurble, seeking to avenge Shadowheart’s dignity. But suddenly Kieavin was there, her Leaf Shield brought up and crunching unintentionally into the Werelupe’s cheek. Redfang howled and jumped back, her eyes murderous.
Jenn was over by Fanger, Gioama at her side sending off the occasional arching beam of rainbow light. They all rocketed into space, missing completely. Shadowheart was back on his feet, prowling around them, while Kieavin and Minotaur joined Gioama in a protective circle. More Werelupes threaded through the trees, no doubt attracted by the sounds of fighting, and the howling that accompanied it. They grinned with slack jaws, showing of sharp fangs. Jenn shivered and put a hand on Fanger’s head. The Halloween Lupe stared up at her, his eyes wide. The red dot still played there, on the very edge of his vision. But through the green he could see the people who actually cared about him. He remembered his dream now, with the honeyed voice talking to him, telling him to leave. At first he hadn’t wanted to believe it. But then he had woken up, and then idea had taken root, very soon flourishing into a seedling that grew and stretched its branches to the sky.
He turned to survey the Werelupes still sauntering to the edge of his family. His family... Shadowheart had just recently been his family. And he had never done anything to prove that he wasn’t as nasty as Minotaur. Then Fanger saw Shadowheart claw Gioama over the head. No one should attack a pet that young. Especially if they were twice the size of a normal pet. He felt a growl beginning in his throat, and it soon turned into a snarl that silenced the everyone around. Shadowheart stared at him.
“You can join us, Daggerclaw,” he began, but Fanger interrupted him.
“My name is Fanger,” he said loudly. The words were a comfort to him. The words echoed. Fanger... Fanger... Shadowheart narrowed his eyes. “If you so wish,” he snarled. “But we have no obligation to help anyone called Fanger.” At his words the Werelupes surrounding them tightened so that escape was impossible. Fanger looked at Jenn again, seeking reassurance. But to his surprise it was Minotaur who comforted him, placing a blue paw on his shoulder.
“You can decide, brother,” he said softly. “If you want to join them you can.” Gioama nodded slowly, his eyes widening as he spoke. “If that’s what you want. Because we’d never force you to do anything.” Kieavin patted Gioama’s flame-coloured back, looking unusually serious. “What he said.” Jenn smiled. “I can’t say much more than that,” she said feebly. “So you can decide.” But she gripped his fur tightly. It was their concerned faces, as well as the acceptance that they were showing, that made the last red in Fanger disappear. His eyes shone clearly and he stepped forward, facing Shadowheart bravely. But he no longer felt any fear, just anger. And hatred. “I’ve made my decision,” he growled. “I want to go with my real family, and nothing you do or say can stop me.” He turned to the other Werelupes and stared at each one in turn, until they shuffled and looked away. Only Redfang’s eyes remained blank and fixed on him. “And if you knew who your real family was, you’d leave as well.” There was silence. Then Shadowheart laughed. The sound echoed around, chilling all those who heard it. “No one can break the spell,” he said, casting Fanger a dark look. “Than what did I just do?” Fanger asked, turning to stride away. He didn’t see Shadowheart’s reaction. He tugged Jenn’s shirt gently as he passed, as an incentive for them to follow. Ahead of them the Werelupes parted to let them through, standing silently on the sidelines. All remained silent except for the five sets of footsteps. As Gioama passed the Werelupes he was sure he saw green glinting in more than a few eyes. It was only when they were safely away that they heard the howl of a Werelupe. Two weeks later...
A fire crackled welcomingly in the grate, inviting the newcomers in. The four pets trudged in wearily after what had seemed like an endless day of sightseeing. Gioama yawned and lay down on the sofa, stretching catlike out and hogging the entire thing. Fanger didn’t even bother to move his legs away, choosing to sit on them instead. No reaction. The Kougra was fast asleep.
Kieavin followed next, plonking herself down on the rug and supplementing the fire with a little fire of her own. It flared up for a few moments. Minotaur sighed, rolled his eyes, and settled himself down in his favourite armchair. Silence reigned for a while until Kieavin yawned and glanced at Gioama. “I think I might just join him,” she said, lying down. “I mean, who wants to know the history of the Rainbow Pool?” “I’m sure a lot of people would be quite fascinated,” Minotaur said. “Myself not included.” Kieavin stared at him, trying to figure out if he was being sarcastic or not.
Fanger just grunted, joining her on the rug. Sofas already occuppied by another pet weren’t the comfiest things to try sitting on. Minotaur stood up, brushing his blue fur down. Fanger stared down at his own coat. It was still brown, but he liked to think of it as chocolate brown. And his long, shaggy fur was now short and rather handsome. “You know what I think?” Minotaur declared, looking up from his grooming. “Not a clue,” Kieavin answered, unable to stop herself. Gioama stirred. “Whatsit?” he mumbled. Minotaur rolled his eyes. “I think I came up with a new saying,” he said impressively. “Oooh,” Gioama said, enraptured. “What is it?” Minotaur smiled somewhat smugly at his brother’s enthusiasm. “A sibling is a friend taken for granted,” he intoned. “Do you have to put on that deadpan voice?” Kieavin complained. “Nope. I just wanted it to sound sincere.” “It doesn’t matter how you say it, it still means the same thing,” Fanger said. But he was thinking about it. It made sense. If you spent a lot of time with someone, you sometimes forgot about their needs. “Not that I’ll ever take you for granted again,” Minotaur added. “Don’t say a promise you might not be able to keep,” Jenn said, shoving open the front door then slamming it again before the wind came inside, along with whatever it carried with it. “Look what I just bought.” Gioama bounded over at once, and Fanger seized the opportunity to jump onto the sofa. Once there he had a look at Jenn had brought with her. It was the latest issue of the Neopian Times, and she was holding it open so that the others could read it. Then she spotted him and went to sit beside him. The others followed her like she was the north end of a magnet.
Fanger read the article carefully. It was small, tucked neatly into one corner, but it still said a lot. “So there hasn’t been a Werelupe attack since we left?” Fanger said incredulously. “What do you think happened?” “Read the article,” Minotaur said, stepping back. He was already finished. “The large Werelupe who calls himself Shadowheart, a notorious figure in the stories of local, was believed to have been found alone amidst the burnout shell of a village not unlike Neovia. He was alone, and kept insisting that he had been abandoned and that his magic was broken. He then disappeared deeper into the Woods. There have been no such sightings since then.” Kieavin paused to gain her breath, and Gioama continued for her. “Also, many owners are reporting the return of family members that had since then been missing. All of them were Halloween Lupes. No one knows what this means, but experts say there is a hidden link between the two events.” Gioama stopped. “There. You’re the hidden link,” he said to Fanger. Fanger grinned at him. “The missing link, I would call it, seeing as I’m not going to be the one to say what happened.” He tried to sound light hearted, but his voice was shaky. Jenn looked at him in concern, then sensing that he didn’t what any pressing on the issue, she raced into the kitchen, gathering up food for dinner.
“All right, everyone,” she called amongst the clatter. “You have half an hour to do what you want before we have dinner.” Dinner was now an important affair, with everyone in the family joining to eat together. Gioama moaned and reclaimed the sofa by pushing Fanger unceremoniously off. “I’m going to sleep,” he yawned, closing his eyes. Minotaur scooped up a book and tucked his eyes away behind it. “Reading for me,” he said contently.
Fanger cocked an eyebrow at Kieavin, who grinned. “I’m going to try to manage the garden. I’m not going to try and help like I did yesterday.” Everyone in the room groaned, remembering the foul smell of the burnt and mangled food. Everyone was settling down peacefully. Fanger bounded to the stairs. “I might go to the loft and brood,” he said. Kieavin opened her mouth. “I’m kidding,” Fanger said, shaking his head. “I’m just going to ‘manage’ my room, as you would put it.” He leapt up the stairs one by one, pausing to stare at himself in the new mirror. It was much larger than the old one, and didn’t have the smudges and scratches that came with being used by young pets. He saw the now familiar brown fur, the massive jaws and fangs and the claws that he trimmed regularly. Gioama no longer flinched at the sight of them, choosing instead to giggle at the blue pants that Fanger wore. Looking closely, his eyes were full green, glowing luminously in the dim light. Fanger smiled. He wasn’t going back to what he had been. But it was always safe to make sure...
The End
Author’s Note: This story was inspired by the aforesaid quote, ‘A sibling is a friend taken for granted’. And also by the new, and in my opinion improved, Halloween Lupe. So if you have any comments etc. please tell me! This was really just a spur of the moment story that I thought would only go for four parts. Well, I’ve been wrong before... ^^
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