Chapter Text
Reggie stared dumbfoundedly at the monster in front of him. He blinked several times, hoping that the light from the blast hadn’t been amplified sunlight and seriously damaged his vision. It couldn’t have been — Vinnie would’ve been seriously hurt if that was the case. But something was wrong with Vinnie. That was Vinnie, right?
Drowning in his racing thoughts, Reggie failed to notice the dark stranger raising their head to look at him.
“R…Reg? Is that you?”
“Vinnie?!”
Reggie couldn’t believe what he was seeing. Every part of Vinnie’s skin was covered in dark fur almost as pitch black as his hair, and a stark contrast to his usual tamed look. Sharp claws on each hand were cutting groves into the stone floor where he’d collapsed. Most striking were his eyes: They had always been dark, but something about them now felt more piercing than ever. A chill rolled down Reggie’s spine.
Vinnie raised a hand, turning it carefully as if it might fall off. “No way, this can’t be fuckin’ real.”
Reggie caught a glimpse of his own hand then, and his thoughts came to a halt. Where there was a paw before there was now a pallid, skinny hand. It was naked with barely any fur, and his claws had morphed into short, stubby nails. He looked up his arm and saw brown freckles dot his skin underneath fine, red hairs. Gods…he could see his veins — deep blue and stagnant — dead. Air. Next thing he noticed was his lungs. Despite his growing panic, he hadn’t begun hyperventilating like he usually would. Air. He needed air.
He gasped loudly which visibly startled Vinnie. He felt the air fill his lungs, and then…nothing. No prickling in his skin or racing heart from the sudden inhale. No natural urge to exhale. Perfect stillness. He placed two shaking fingers to his jugular.
He felt—no, he was dead.
He inhaled a second time, more controlled this time. Everything was so muted, like when his allergies wiped his sense of smell every spring, but Vinnie’s presence penetrated his senses — animalic and alive.
Vinnie had been staring at him, but looked away when Reggie caught his eyes. Like he was too horrifying to look at directly.
Reggie’s gaze fell to the floor between them and the smoldering remains of the magic circle, sigils quickly burning to ash.
“It actually worked.”
Vinnie’s eyes snapped to the circling smoke.
“No way. No fuckin’ way,” Vinnie repeated to no one in particular.
“Alright, we have to stay calm. There’s got to be a rational explanation for this.” Reggie tried.
“Rational?!” Vinnie flinched at his own outburst as if the yelling hurt him. “Ain’t nothin’ rational about this.” He gestured wildly to himself, pulling at his leather jacket. “I’m hairy all over!”
“What else am I supposed to say?”
“I dunno, Reg. Maybe freak out a little?”
“Vinnie, you’re a werewolf.”
“Yeah? And youse a vampire.”
Reggie felt a little bit stupid for stating the obvious, but it was comforting to have his own form confirmed by someone else, even if the reassurance was temporary. He tried to ground himself. He had just been presented with a problem — Now he just needed to put together a hypothesis and work on a solution. But first: peer review.
“We have to find Mr. Schneider.”
“Oh no, I’m not lettin’ anyone see me like this!” Vinnie protested.
“We have no choice! We need to tell an adult about this. What if this isn’t the only effect and something serious happens?”
Vinnie didn’t say anything. He was staring at the pile of ash in the middle of the floor.
“Do you have another suggestion?”
A beat. “Fine.”
Reggie remembered to grab the book as the two of them exited the crypt together and ran for their classroom. He was eternally grateful that everyone had vacated the premises after last bell. He couldn’t imagine running into a classmate, or worse: a bully with time to spare.
Luckily they found Mr. Schneider still at his desk, still grading essays handed in earlier that day. Warm, brown eyes peeked over horn-rimmed glasses as the two boys entered. He sat up straight to greet them.
“Well, hello there! Don’t think I’ve seen you two around. Let me guess…Tutner’s class?” He gave them a human smile, close-mouthed and without showing teeth. “How can I help you fellows.”
“Mr. Schneider, S-Sir. It’s—it’s us.”
And then it was Reggie’s turn to break down into a nervous mess. As he explained their situation, Schneider’s expressions changed from mild puzzlement, to confusion, and finally to genuine bewilderment. He brought his hands together and pressed tips of his fingers to his lips, deep in thought.
“Okay, we’re not going to panic. Let’s focus on what we know. If Reggie’s theory is correct, then the ritual you described should be reversible. I suggest you get a hold of your friend as soon as possible, maybe see if her sister knows something we don’t — but first.” He stood up. “How are you boys doing?”
Reggie didn’t know how he felt. He didn’t know how he should feel. He was nothing — a moving corpse. It was like he was a spectre floating between two very real, alive people. He realized that the thumping he was hearing was from the two beating hearts beside him. Something unpleasant stirred within him and disappeared before he could dwell on it.
“I feel like crap,” Vinnie said, snapping Reggie out of his thoughts.
“That is…understandable, given the circumstances,” Schneider replied. “What about you, Reggie?”
Reggie wrapped his furless arms around himself. “I’m a bit cold, Mr. Schneider, Sir.”
Schneider sighed. “Alright, let’s put down some ground rules while we figure the situation out. You two are not to be alone if you begin to feel unwell, and if anything escalates, you tell me immediately.” He pointed to the tome Reggie was holding. “And no more experimenting without supervision. I don’t want any of you to do something reckless and get hurt.”
“May I at least study it, Sir? While we wait? Maybe I can decode the symbols.”
“I think it’s best if I hold onto it while we work on a solution.” He held out his hand, and Reggie handed the book over, albeit reluctantly.
“Also,” Schneider continued. “If…this changes your behavior around other students, we may need to take you out of class temporarily. I should call your parents and inform them of what’s going on.”
“No!” Vinnie suddenly barked, startling the other two. His fur bristled: “You can’t tell my old man. Don’t you dare.”
“Vinnie,” Reggie tried. “I can’t go home like this. They’ve got to know.”
“Keep him out of this,” he growled.
Schneider raised his hands. “Vinnie, I understand that tensions are high right now, but I’m only trying to help.”
“No,” Vinnie repeated. “You have no idea how he is when anythin’ happens. He can’t see me like this.” He looked frantically at the windows like he wanted to leap from them. Instead, he turned around to leave. Reggie reached out, but Vinnie pulled his arm out of reach just before they could touch.
“Just…don’t,” he glared with an intensity that made Reggie’s stomach drop.
And then he was gone, slamming the door so hard his claws left marks in the wood.
Reggie’s thought went wild. He wanted to run after Vinnie. Grab him and shake him until he came back to his senses. A warm hand rested on his shoulder and brought him down to earth.
“Let him go, Reggie. He probably needs some space right now. You can reach out to him later when he’s had a chance to settle a bit.”
Mr. Schneider’s right, Reggie thought. For all he knew, Vinnie hated him more than anyone else right now. The air in the room felt stagnant.
“Are you okay, Reggie? Do you need a ride home?”
Reggie looked out the window. The sun was still up.
“That may be a good idea.”
The evening was one fraught with anxiety. Reggie’s mother and father did not initially recognize the fledgling vampire on their doorstep, hiding from the early evening sun under his teacher’s blazer, but his red hair and scent confirmed him to be a true Moonshroud. His mother hugged him close, and her voice wavered in a way he hadn’t heard in years. The sound of her heart calmed him down. He hated that he noticed it at all. The rhythm was impossible to ignore now: warm and steady beneath her skin. He told them everything — about the ritual, about the argument with Vinnie. His father, ever pragmatic, began listing their options, but Reggie was too tired to commit to anything. All he wanted was to eat, go to bed, and work on a solution tomorrow.
He ate dinner, and it was bland.
Sleep was different. It felt like descending into the bottom of the ocean and back up again. Upon waking he noticed he hadn’t moved an inch from his initial sleeping position, having slept ramrod straight the whole night. He had gone to bed earlier than usual, all things considered, but felt his exhaustion had only marginally improved. He stretched and felt a tightness give way over his shoulders and upper back. He massaged his stiff neck muscles with a hand and noticed the skin was much softer there, almost like well-conditioned leather. A press to the back of his arm revealed thin bones beneath.
Wings, he realized.
His mother prepared him breakfast as usual. Something mild on his digestion, as his stomach seemed to have become sensitive overnight. She hastily retreated into the hallway to grab his backpack after he’d finished eating. They’d all realized they had no way to protect Reggie from the sun. Umbrellas were too unsafe when UV rays could bounce off of every surface, and they had no sunscreen in the house on account of not needing it. A quick call with his superior explaining his son’s sudden medical emergency enabled Reggie’s father to drive his son to school before work. The tinted windshields helped a bit, but Reggie felt more comfortable bringing a hoodie to shield his head when needed. His father were more careful than usual when navigating the road, even taking the less scenic road to avoid any unnecessary light. Was Vinnie outside right now? Experiencing the sun for the first time without worry?
“Say, son, is it the intensity or duration that affects you? Has Vinnie ever shared this with you?”
His father knew him well. Any excuse to ruminate on anything scientific could bring Reggie out of any bad mood he could be in. “Duration seems to be the main factor, although I’m hesitant to explore this hypothesis.”
“Perfectly understandable,” his father replied. They’d arrived at campus. “Please be careful today, Reginald. Your mother and I love you.”
He dug his hands deeper into his hoodie’s pockets. “Thanks dad. I will.”
He’d been dropped off earlier than usual to avoid any unnecessary bump-ins in the halls on the way to class, although he suspected that no one would recognize him, and at worst assume he was a new transfer. Those happened all the time since Gravedale was the only high school admitting monsters in the whole state. He breathed a sigh of relief at not running into anyone he knew. In his classroom, Mr. Schneider was unpacking his leather briefcase with one hand while holding his phone in the other.
“Yes—yes, Mrs. Moonshroud. I will do anything in my power to have your son back to normal. Yes, of course he’s safe in my class, but if his condition worsens I’ll send him home immediately, you can trust me on that.” His eyes met Reggie’s when he walked in. “There he is now. I’ll be in touch. Thank you for your understanding. You too.”
He hung up and turned to Reggie. “Reggie—I didn’t realize you were here already.”
“I assume you were speaking with my mother.”
“Yes,” Schneider pulled on his collar. “She’s, understandably, quite worried, but I assured her that everything’s going to be all right.” He turned his complete attention to Reggie, ignoring his briefcase. “But more importantly, how are you feeling today?”
Reggie pulled himself together. “I’m alright; just a bit tired.”
Schneider looked skeptical. “You don’t look alright to me. You’ve got dark circles under your eyes.”
Funny, Reggie hadn’t had a chance to get a good look at himself since the change, not that he really wanted to.
“This is clearly affecting you.” He hesitated for a moment, like he was preparing to broach a difficult subject. “Have you and Vinnie talked at all since yesterday?”
Reggie clenched his too-cold hands, his nails too blunt in their current state to sorry about puncturing the skin. “We…we had and argument. Before everything happened, Sir. I don’t think he wants to speak with me.”
Schneider’s expression softened, although the crease between his eyebrows didn’t ease. “Arguments happen, Reggie. That doesn’t mean he’s unreachable.”
“With all due respect, Sir, but this was not a regular dispute among friends.” He had no idea what to say to Schneider, if he wanted him to know about them. “He wasn’t himself.”
Or too much himself, he thought.
“And you?” Schneider said. “Are you yourself?”
The question caught Reggie off guard. He opened his mouth to answer but realized he had no answer to give. The light from outside was too bright for his comfort, and his teacher’s heartbeat thumbed loudly in his ears. He swallowed and clenched around the knot in his stomach.
“I’m managing.”
“I need you to be honest with me, Reggie. Pushing through the day won’t help anyone, least of all you.”
Reggie swallowed, hard. “I can stay, Sir. I won’t cause any trouble.”
Schneider hesitated for a moment, but ultimately let it go. “If you say so, Reggie, but promise me you’ll tell me if you feel worse, okay?”
“I will.”