Work Text:
The television was playing the nightly news, a woman in a sharp pantsuit giving her report from in front of a local hospital.
“…are increasing rapidly all across the country, overloading hospitals, doctor’s offices, and walk-in clinics alike. All patients are coming in with the familiar symptoms, all of which are documented on a form that can be found on the CDC’s website, which should be consulted by anyone who thinks they might be infected…”
“Ah, fuck,” Geoff sighed, laughter ringing as the character on his screen fell off the edge of a building tall enough to kill it.
“Come on Geoff, you really should stay behind the safety railing,” Michael said, grinning.
“It’s there for your protection, you know.” Ryan added.
“Fuck you guys.” More laughter followed as Geoff continued to grumble.
“…At six o’clock this morning the CDC released a statement calling for all individuals who believe themselves infected to remain in their homes and contact the emergency numbers set up by their local CDC offices. Although so far no there has been no determination of how this illness is transmitted, the CDC hopes that by limiting exposure to those who are infected, people can lessen their chances of becoming infected themselves…”
“Oh, bullocks,” Gavin sighed, followed by a quick, “Ray, no!” as the other man gunned down his character and darted out of sight. “Ah, X-ray!”
“Every man for himself,” Ray said, earning further laughter from the others. His grin quickly vanished as Ryan’s character appeared, rocket launcher in hand. “Come on man, what happened to the R&R connection?”
“Every man for himself,” Ryan parroted. Jack’s laugh rang out over the others, until Ryan’s character blasted Jack into a kill screen as well.
“…stated earlier, the city wide lockdown is still in effect. All persons in need of assistance, supplies, or with any questions should direct all inquiries to…”
“Boom!” Ray shouted, as rockets came raining down on Geoff and Michael, hidden back to back inside a bush.
“Godammit!” Michael cried, while a laughing Geoff gasped out, “Were you in that bush too, Michael?”
“You guys are fucking stupid,” Ray said, while the others laughed.
“…with any information is, as always, asked to call the police, the CDC hotlines, or our own toll free 800 number at any time of the day or night…”
As the news report wound to a close so did the Let’s Play. After the scores popped, revealing a surprised Gavin both the winner of the round and the entire Let’s Play, general chatter broke out as the men began putting away their equipment. Someone turned down the television, complaining about news reports that failed to give any news, and someone else suggested putting on animal planet instead, as ‘they would get practically the same thing anyway.’ The sentiment was shared by all of the room’s inhabitants.
Two months previously, a pandemic unlike any imaginable had broken out across the North American continent. People had begun inexplicably mutating, seemingly without reason and with little warning. These mutations started as strange, bloody deformations—a shoulder that would suddenly erupt open, exposing a crooked half-limb, or an ear that would practically peel away from a person’s face to reveal a shapeless flap of furry skin underneath. As the mutations continued to spread, moving with an alarming speed from state to state, the deformities had shifted from senseless and grotesque to startlingly familiar.
Now people were regularly spouting animalistic features, growing horns and fangs and wings like it was a common day occurance. It had been referred to by some as like a kind of Pokémon evolution, which had been a both oddly fitting and unnerving comparison. The Center for Disease Control was officially referring to it as “Spontaneous Anthropomorphic -Regenerative Mutations.” The internet, and now most everyone else, just called it ‘Hybridization.’
The spreading illness had an immediate, though varied effect on the populations it struck. At the moment it was spreading mostly in pockets, beginning in a suburb or city block and expanding rapidly outwards from there. Some of these areas took the change surprisingly well, neighbors banding together to support one another as the world changed around them. In others, the Hybridization might as well have been zombification, as people took to the streets looting, fighting, and desperately trying to escape infection.
Austin had taken a response somewhere in the middle as the sickness reached its borders. At first clinics and hospitals all around the city had opened their doors to any and all infected. But as the number of cases rapidly increased they found themselves quickly overwhelmed. In response, the local CDC had called for a kind of quarantine lock down of the city, deciding that it would just be easier to make everyone stay put and bring the medical help to them instead.
The result had been most of Achievement Hunter trapped at their place of work with no signs of heading home any time soon.
“This is what I get for coming in to work on the weekend,” Ray had sighed when they’d discovered they were stuck. “That’s the last time I do anything nice for this company.”
The rest had grumbled their agreement, and for a while they’d huddled in their office, huffing and sighing and being generally annoyed with the whole situation. Eventually Geoff had suggested that instead of driving him nuts with their bitching they could take advantage of the time they now had and get ahead with their workload for the coming week. The incentive of every day’s work they’d completed becoming a day off once they were freed was enough to finally encourage productivity from the sequestered bunch.
“When’s the pizza going to get here?” Gavin asked, standing and stretching. “I’m starved.”
“We all are. Would you move,” Ryan said, elbowing the younger man out of the way so that he could help Jack stash their recording equipment. Gavin doubled over, whining playfully as he toppled purposely in front of the other man.
“He’s just going to step on you, you know,” Michael said, glancing briefly at the pair. Gavin yelped, rolling out of the way as Ryan made to do just that.
“Knock it off, you guys,” Geoff sighed, putting away his own equipment. “Who wants to go see if there’s anything to eat in the kitchen?”
“On it,” Ray said, practically leaping out of his chair. He found himself tangled for a moment in the chaos that was Ryan and Gavin before Michael joined the fray and shoved them both through the pair and out into the hall. Geoff sighed again as the door slammed into the wall, Michael’s “Check if there’s any Redbull, Ray!” trailing the lads down the hall.
“You going with them?” Ryan asked as he stepped around Gavin. A crash echoed from the kitchen, followed by a long moment of silence and then Ray’s laughter.
“Eh,” Gavin said, shrugging against the carpet. He swatted at Ryan as he passed, frowning when he went ignored. “Itchy?” he asked.
“What?” Ryan’s hand fell away from his scalp, where he’d been scratching furiously.
“Your head,” Gavin said, pointing to his own.
“It’s not polite to comment on people’s itches,” Jack said, earning a laugh from Geoff.
"Yeah Gavin, you should really show more manners when talking to your elders."
"Elders," Gavin snorted. "Ryan, you're not an elder. You're...you're more like a dad."
"Which is...not like an elder?" Ryan asked.
"Nah," Gavin offered noncommittally, prompting Jack and Ryan to exchange shrugs. From the kitchen there was the sound of an excited exchange, followed by Ray's,
"Gavin, do I still have that peanut butter on my desk?"
"Uh, sure," Gavin called back, squinting at Ray's desk. He spotted the jar of peanut butter and scooped it up. "Yeah, it's here!"
"Bring it out here, we found bread!"
"Sandwich time, bitches!" Michael bellowed.
"Sandwich time!" Gavin echoed, taking off with the peanut butter.
"Thank Christ," Geoff breathed, shaking his head. "Maybe that'll keep them busy for a while."
"Until they decide to come in here and spill peanut butter everywhere," Ryan said. Jack and Geoff frowned.
"Quick, lock the door before they get back."
"Actually, I was thinking of heading back to my desk," Ryan said. "I figured this is as good a time as any to get ahead on editing."
"Ryan the work guy," Geoff said, although he was nodding approvingly as he pulled up his own video editing software.
"We'll come get you when the food arrives," Jack offered.
"Thanks," Ryan said, hand drifting back to his scalp. He realized he was scratching again when Jack gave him a questioning look, and he dropped his hand quickly. "See you guys in a little bit."
"See ya," Geoff said, waving over his shoulder. Jack nodded, and Ryan did his best to ignore the man's thoughtful frowning as he headed down the hall.
"Ryan, do you want a sandwich?" Ray called as he passed the kitchen.
"Uh, no," Ryan said, eyeing the sloppy looking pile of goopy bread Michael was holding. In lue of cleaning the sink-load of plates, the young man had instead stuffed the sandwich into a coffee mug.
"Suit yourself," the Jersey native said, shrugging as he handed the mug to Gavin instead. Shaking his head, Ryan left the trio to their mess as he made his way into the very empty studio that housed his desk. Glad for the the quiet, he figured he would be able to easily focus and get plenty of work done before one of the lads decided he must be lonely and came to 'keep him company' or 'help him work,' something that would only end with Ryan's pens scattered across his desk and a lad pinned beneath him.
For a while, his assumption was correct. Other than the occasional faint sounds of the lads engaging in the most energetic round of peanut butter sandwiching to ever happen, Ryan was left to bask in work inducing silence. However, the silence would have proved to be even more productive if not for the ache that was slowly and steadily growing across the top if Ryan's head.
Even before the Achievement Hunter crew had found themselves in quarantine, Ryan hadn't been feeling well. His head ached on and off, his sinuses felt swollen and blocked, and his entire body radiated with a tiring ache that wouldn't lift no matter how many aspirin he gobbled down. A part of Ryan, the part that had bothered to keep paying attention to the news reports playing nonstop, jumped to an immediate, worrying conclusion. The part that he liked to think was more sane was fairly certain the only thing wrong with him was a developing cold or flu and nothing more.
Scratching at his aching, itchy scalp, Ryan rummaged around his desk for the bottle of pain killers he'd stashed earlier in the week.
"I'm just worn out from working all week, and probably getting sick on top of it," Ryan muttered, frowning as he dumped three aspirin into his hand. He swallowed them dry, making a sound of distaste as the bitter pills scraped along the back of his tongue. "I'm just tired," he repeated. "Nothing more."
He shook his head, doing his best to dispel the distracting thoughts gathered there, and returned to work. The Minecraft Let's Play on his screen was entertaining enough to keep him focused (it had been a particularly unsuccessful game, having quickly devolved into an hour of the group just kind of messing around and accomplishing little to nothing but having a grand time while they tried), and for a while he almost forgot about the pain throbbing through his skull. He continued to scratch, but the feeling of nails digging into flesh actually served to sooth the pain, so Ryan thought little of it for the time being.
After about an hour or so Ryan's attention began to waver again. His vision was beginning to swim--too much time staring at a computer screen, he assumed--so he minimized his work and put his head down. He would just rest his eyes for a minute, he decided, nails burrowing in his scalp as the throbbing increased. Just a minute to rest and regroup, and then he'd be back to work, no problem. No problem...
--
"Thank you, guys."
"Yeah, thanks, cool stuff," Michael said, leaning around Jack as he and Gavin liberated the pizzas from his hands. Jack sighed, shaking his head as the younger men took off down the hall, hollering that sustenance had finally arrived.
"Is there anything else we can do for you guys?" one of the CDC men at the door asked. Unlike his partner, who was standing a good twenty feet from the building in a full hazmat suit, this man was standing with his helmet tucked under his arm, un-bothered by the fact that he was talking openly with a man who was supposed to be under quarantine. Jack appreciated the man's kindness, and manners.
"No, but thank you."
"Alright then. Let us know if you guys have any mutations. We can't stop it or anything, as I'm sure you know, but we can bring you guys some pain killers and other things to make you more comfortable. Otherwise we'll be back in the morning with more supplies."
"Thanks," Jack said, shaking the man's hand and then heading back inside. He could hear the man resealing their door with the yellow "PREMISE UNDER QUARANTINE: DO NOT ENTER" sign that had appeared earlier that day.
"Alright, come on guys, at least pace yourselves or something," Geoff was saying as Jack entered the kitchen. The boxes of pizza, four in total, were all strewn across the table, all open and all already half empty as the lads piled their make-shift plates with slices.
"Jeeze guys," Jack said, taking an offered piece of paper towel from Geoff. "Leave some for the rest of us."
"We're growing boys," Ray managed around a mouthful of pizza, Michael nodding emphatically beside him. They both were holding stacks of pizza six slices high. Gavin, who was holding a slice in each hand, tried to add something else, but could not be understood around the third slice stuffed between his teeth.
"Someone go get Ryan before you locusts eat everything," Jack sighed, sitting down with Geoff to eat like a normal person.
"Got it!" Gavin cried after swallowing. He bolted down the hall, Michael and Ray on his heels.
"I like how being trapped together makes those three more inclined to do things together instead of less," Geoff said. "I can barely handle working a full day with you assholes."
"Ah, the joys of youth," Jack said, grinning as Geoff scowled into his food. The older man smiled despite himself.
"The idiocy of youth."
That idiocy in question was currently throwing itself into the double doors separating them from Ryan.
"Dammit, wrong door!" Ray cried, bouncing off one of the doors as Gavin tossed open the other one.
"Keep up, X-Ray!" Gavin cried as he bolted toward's Ryan's desk. He stumbled to a halt in the middle of the room when he spotted Ryan's desk, which seemed to be vacated. "Where did he go?"
"What do you mean 'where did he go'?" Michael asked, stumbling into Gavin and almost knocking them both over.
"He's here," Ray said, voice lower as he passed the pair and approached Ryan's desk. "I think...I think he's asleep, guys."
"How is he asleep already?" Gavin asked, checking the time on his phone. It wasn't even eight yet.
"Ryan, you okay?" Ray asked, resting a hand on the older man's shoulder. "Ryan?"
"Ryan, don't ignore us, pizza's here," Michael said, moving around to Ryan's other side. The man was slumped over his desk, his head buried in his arms and his fingers tangled in his hair. He shook Ryan's shoulder, flashing Gavin and Ray concerned looks when he didn't get a response. "Ryan, you should probably wake up now."
"Should we get Geoff and Jack?" Gavin asked, shifting his weight uncertainly. Ray offered a helpless shrug in response, while Michael knelt down closer to Ryan, shaking his shoulder more firmly.
"Ryan, wake up," he said loudly, "You're kind of starting to freak us out now."
Gavin, glancing between his phone and the door, was about to use one of them to get the older men in the kitchen when Ryan finally shifted, letting out a soft groan. All three lads exchanged startled but relieved looks and scooted closer.
"M'chael?" Ryan mumbled, his tired, glassy eyed gaze finding the young man huddled close beside him.
"Yeah, Ry-bread. How ya feeling?"
"Mmm," Ryan offered, wincing and closing his eyes. His hand shifted in his hair, moving to scratch and drawing Michael's attention to Ryan's scalp.
"Holy shit dude, stop," Michael snapped, grabbing Ryan's hand. "What the fuck are you doing?" Ryan's fingernails and his hair were both caked in blood, dried and fresh alike. The skin where he'd been itching was bloody and raw, hair falling away from it in sticky clumps. In some places little patches of white peaked through the torn up skin.
"Jesus Christ," Ray whispered, pulling Ryan's other hand aside to reveal a second, similarly ravaged area. "Why did you do that?"
"Hurts," Ryan mumbled, trying to bury his face back in his arms.
"No shit it hurts," Michael said, "Did you think clawing your head open would feel nice?" Ryan groaned, trying to turn away from the lads. "No, come on," Michael said, shaking Ryan's shoulder again. "Let's at least go lay you down on the couch or something."
"Fine," Ryan mumbled, making no move to help himself up. Michael and Ray exchanged looks, the later frowning.
"Do you think...?"
"Yeah, probably," Michael said, eyeing the spots of exposed bone on top of Ryan's head. With Ryan's hands out of the way, Michael could actually see the way the bone had begun to change shape, raising up in two bumps that seemed to be ripping their way out of Ryan's head. The skin around them was pealing back like a picked scab. It was a bizarre, stomach turning sight.
"Is he alright?"
"Uh, kind of?" Ray said, stepping back to allow Geoff and Jack room to join them.
"Oh shit," Geoff mumbled when Michael pointed to Ryan's head. "Come on, let's move him into the office."
Together Michael and Jack half carried, half dragged Ryan back to the Achievement Hunter's office. Ryan groaned, arching his back as they laid him down, and when Michael turned him into his side it was to notice that the man's spin seemed unusually prominent, particularly towards his tailbone.
"So, this is happening," Ray said, perched on the edge of Gavin's chair.
"What should we do now?" Michael asked, glancing between Geoff, who was standing a few feet away looking worried, and Jack, who was knelt beside Ryan, hand on the man's shoulder as he spoke to him quietly.
"We don't know for sure this is...that," Geoff said, although he didn't look like he believed himself. Michael, moving over to his computer, said,
"Well, we can always check." Gavin, Geoff, and Ray gathered behind him as Michael navigated to the CDC website, heading for the 'S.A.R.M. Symptoms List.' He skimmed it, eyes trained on his screen as he asked, "Has Ryan said anything about 'flu-like symptoms' lately?"
"Not that I know of," Geoff said. "Although, there was that bug going around...the...office...dammit." The men exchanged looks, suddenly seeing what had seemed like a common workplace illness in a whole new light. Michael sighed, finger trailing the screen.
"What about...headaches? Isn't that covered under flu symptoms?"
"I know he was having trouble with them yesterday," Jack offered. "He borrowed some pain killers from me."
"Fucking, they list growing extra limbs as a symptom," Michael muttered, rolling his eyes. "Oh gross, there're pictures." He cringed away as he scrolled through the different images, finding one that was captioned with 'The beginning stage of horns erupting on an infected young woman.' "That looks familiar."
"Okay. Well then. Ryan's turning into a...a cow or something, apparently," Gavin said, frowning as he looked away from the image. "What now?"
"Does it say anything on there about what we should do if someone's infected?" Geoff asked, leaning over Michael's shoulder.
"Uh...not a lot," Michael said with a shrug. "Apparently once someone infected there's not a lot you can do. Just make the person comfortable. It says to give them pain killers if you can, and to let them sleep a lot. That's...about it."
"That's not overly helpful."
"Unfortunately that's all we've--"
"God dammit!"
Everyone jumped, everyone's attention jumping to Ryan as the man clutched at his head, shouting another curse as he curled in on himself.
"Fucking...fuck," Ryan ground out.
"It's okay, it's okay," Jack said, rubbing Ryan's arm as the other man dug his fingers into his hair. Jack continued to rub Ryan's arm, murmuring a constant stream of reassurances as Ryan shouted and writhed.
By the time Ryan settled again every face in the room was pale. Jack and Geoff exchanged wide eyed looks, while Ray quietly excused himself into the hall. Gavin had already disappeared.
"So...now what?" Michael finally asked, running a shaky hand through his hair.
"I think we just have to wait this out," Jack said softly. His expression said it wasn't a waiting period he was much looking forward to.
Taking a deep breath, Geoff muttered a quick, "I'm going to go check on Ray and Gavin," and followed the two younger men into the hall.
Once he was gone Michael and Jack exchanged long, quiet looks. They would let the others get some space. For now Ryan needed to know he wasn't alone through whatever was happening to him now. Jack settled himself on the floor by the couch, gently taking one of Ryan's shaking, sweaty hands in his own. Sighing, Michael slid down beside him, and they settled in for their vigil.
--
Geoff found Gavin sitting in the kitchen, poking at an uneaten slice of pizza. The younger man sighed as Geoff slid into the chair beside him, dropping his head into his arms.
"How's Ryan?" he mumbled.
"As well as can be expected, I guess," Geoff said quietly. "According to the stuff online he'll start to feel better in a few hours."
"That's good."
"Yeah." Geoff eyed his sullen looking friend, and the pizza before him. "Hungry?"
"Not really," Gavin said, nudging the slice away with a hand that was shaking ever so slightly. Geoff turned to look more fully at the young man. Gavin wasn't someone who usually bothered with being unhappy or upset--it just wasn't in the man's nature.
He certainly looked upset now. His fingers kept curling into fists while his usually bouncing leg remained still. He seemed to be staring at the tabletop, but his gaze was unfocused.
When Geoff placed his hand on Gavin's shoulder the younger man jumped.
"Sorry," Gavin muttered quickly.
"It's okay," Geoff said, offering a dismissive shrug. He frowned, tilting his head to catch Gavin's eye. "Are you okay?"
"I...yeah, sure," Gavin said. Geoff raised an eyebrow. Gavin sighed.
"I don't know. I mean...I'm not being very good to Ryan, am I? Sitting out here with a bunch of pizza and all, while he's in there dealing with...with that?"
"What are you talking about?" Geoff asked. "You haven't had anything to eat since lunch. Why would you getting some food be unkind towards Ryan?"
"It's not the food," Gavin whispered. "Ryan's in there bloody...bloody growing horns or something, and I--" Gavin shook his head, going pale. "I couldn't even stay in there with him."
"Is that why you came out here?" Geoff asked. "Because what was happening to Ryan was upsetting you?" Gavin shrugged.
"When you put it like that..."
"Whatever I put it like, it doesn't matter," Geoff said. "Don't feel bad because you had to step away, dude. It sucks when people you care about are hurting, and it can be really tough to be around. It doesn't mean you don't care about them. If anything, it means you care that much more."
"If that was me in there, Ryan wouldn't--"
"If that was you in there," Geoff said quickly, "would you hold it against Ryan if he couldn't stay while you're in pain that he could do nothing to fix?"
"No," Gavin said, looking at Geoff like he's asked him if the sky was orange.
"Well then, if you wouldn't hold it against Ryan, then why would Ryan hold it against you? After all, he's a much nicer guy than you are. You're an asshole," Geoff added, causing Gavin to sigh loudly.
"Yeah, I'd already gathered that was what you were getting at," he snapped, but despite his frown Gavin seemed less tense than he had moments before, a small smile pulling at the corner of his mouth.
"Never hurts to be reminded," Geoff said. "Now come on, let's eat some of this pizza before it all goes cold. No point in wasting good food, after all."
"Might as well," Gavin agreed, scooting a few of the slices towards him. Geoff rolled his eyes, but he joined Gavin in digging in.
Just down the hall, tucked away inside the tech office, Ray listened to the snatches of conversation he could catch from the kitchen. He shared a lot of Gavin's feelings and it felt good to hear them being validated, even if the validation was directed to someone other than himself. But his discomfort didn't come only from worry about Ryan. After all, the older man hadn't been the only one feeling flu-ish lately.
Ray figured he should probably tell the others about the way his back was aching, or the dull throb that seemed to pass back and forth between his ears and across his scalp. As his fingers dug into his scalp he could only assume this was how Ryan's own trouble had started, and that if he didn't take some kind of control of it soon it was only going to get worse.
But, as he listened to Ryan groan and whimper across the hall, all he could think was that the last thing he should do is distract the guys from taking care of his clearly much worse off coworker.
Sighing, Ray let his hands fall into his lap. Bloodied fingers stared back at him and he bit back a groan.
He wasn't in nearly as rough a shape as Ryan he reasoned as he curled up at the back of the small office. He could wait to say something, at least for now.
--
As night fell, sleep evaded the men of Achievement Hunter. Geoff and Jack hovered in their small office, watching over the friend they couldn't help as he suffered the transformation from man to hybrid.
The bony bumps on his head had finally erupted into full blown horns. By three in the morning they were four inches long, and sharp enough to gouge numerous holes in the side of the couch as Ryan butted his head against the armrest, trying futilely to relieve the pain in his skull. One of his ears had already pealed off, the other working its way loose as floppy cow-like ears began to make an appearance. And judging by the way the man's tailbone was protruding, it wouldn't be long before Ryan was sporting a tail as well.
Ryan had alternated between screaming and thrashing, forcing the other men to pin him down to keep him from tearing at his own skin, and lying unnaturally still, fingers white-knuckled as he whimpered into the material of the couch.
Michael had remained with Jack as long as possible before the sight of his friend's pain finally had him joining Gavin in the kitchen. They'd talked quietly for a while, doing their best to ignore the way Michael was squinting against a growing headache or the insistent itch in Gavin's shoulder-blades, until Ryan's cries had Gavin retreating upstairs.
Ray, still sequestered away in the tech office, wanted nothing more than to join his friends, to soak in their comforting presences as his scalp continued to rip itself apart. Fear of detracting from Ryan kept him hidden away, however, and he did his best to suffer in silence as his skin flaked apart under his touch.
It was as the sun was coming up that Ryan's transformation finally began to wind to its end. Geoff and Jack were draped across their computer chairs, watching through eyes smudged purple with lack of sleep as Ryan rested quietly for the first time in hours.
"What time is it?" Geoff whispered. Jack stifled a yawn as he glanced at his watch.
"Quarter after seven. You should probably go get some rest."
"You too, dude," Geoff mumbled, frowning at his friend.
"Someone's got to stay here with Ryan," Jack pointed out.
"I can stay with him if you want."
The older men looked up to see Ray hovering in the door way. He looked as terrible as they felt, pale with dark bags under his eyes. He had his jacket hood pulled up and his hands stuffed deep in his pockets.
"Go get some food or something, I'll stay here."
"You sure?" Geoff asked, narrowing his eyes at the lad. Ray looked like he needed a rest more than he or Jack combined. Ray waved off the man's concern with a shrug.
"Yeah, go for it. You guys have been up all night, you need the brake."
"You look like you've been up all night too," Jack said as he stood and stretched. His back responded with a series of satisfying pops and he sighed.
"Nah, I got some sleep," Ray said, offering them a half smile.
"Well, if you're sure," Geoff said, also climbing stiffly to his feet. He paused by Ray, placing a hand on the younger man's shoulder. Ray looked even worse up close. His eyes were bloodshot, and Geoff could feel a small tremor in the man's shoulder. "You come get us if you need anything, okay?"
"Of course," Ray said softly. Geoff gave the lad's shoulder a squeeze and then followed Jack out into the hall.
Once they were gone Ray groaned, bending over and grabbing his head in his hands. The pain there had only continued to grow during the night, along with an uncomfortable pressure in his lower back. It was almost overwhelming, enough that Ray had seriously contemplated just locking himself in the tech office and never coming out. But he'd heard the others stiring, and he knew that the older men desperately needed a break. And despite the fact that he wasn't really in any kind of shape to look after Ryan, Ray had still really wanted to see the other man and make sure for himself that he was going to be okay.
The thought of Ryan pulled Ray's attention back to the man lying on the couch. He was curled on his side, a thin blanket tangled at his feet. For the first time in hours he was lying quietly, his hands lax and forehead clear of creases. The frown had vanished from his lips and he was breathing softly. The only signs that he'd had such a terrible night were the new animalistic additions to his person--mainly the curving, ivory horns, almost a foot in length, protruding from his scalp. They were kind of impressive looking, actually, although even as he looked right at them Ray had a hard time convincing himself they were, in fact, real, and not some costume prop on a headband. One of the horns was caught in a rip in the couch so Ray leaned over to try and gently unhook it.
Ryan groaned at the touch, one of his new ears flicking. Blue eyes fluttered open and shifted slugglshly towards Ray. A small smile pulled at Ryan's lips when he spotted the young man.
"Hey," he mumbled.
"Hey," Ray whispered. He knelt down, wincing when the motion send a jolt of pain up and down his spine. "How are you feeling?"
"Like shit. You look terrible," Ryan added, frowning as he took in Ray's tired eyes.
"I feel kind of terrible," Ray admitted. He hesitated a moment, then pulled back his hoodie and whispered, "I think we're about to have a lot more in common."
"Shit," Ryan hissed.
Whatever furry additions Ray was on the way to growing were already poking out of the top of his head, exposed black fur sticky with blood. One of his ears was already missing, the space it had left already beginning to scab over, and the other was looking unsteady at best. When Ryan asked after the missing ear Ray revealed a tissue wrapped bundle in his pocket.
Ryan shoo'd away Ray's worried fumbling as he pushed himself into a sitting position. He took the wadded tissues from Ray with one hand, using the other to guide the young man onto the couch beside him.
"Ryan, you need to rest," Ray mumbled, his concern turning into a pained hiss half way through.
"So do you." Ryan chucked the tissues into a nearby bin before tucking the smaller man against his side. "Why didn't you tell anyone?"
"They needed to take care of you," Ray whispered. He tensed for a moment, feeling uncertain of himself as the other Achievement Hunter wrapped an arm around him. A sudden burst of pain across the top of his head derailed any discomfort he had, however. Ryan wrapped both arms around him as he groaned, fisting both hands in the man's shirt.
"How long ago did this start?" Ryan asked gently.
"Don't know, a few hours ago," Ray mumbled into Ryan's shoulder. "Fucking hurts."
"I know it does," Ryan said, frowning his sympathy. Ray pressed closer to him, his shoulder's shaking, and Ryan tightened his grip. "I can't believe you didn't tell us."
"Sorry."
"Don't be. I'm sorry none of us noticed sooner. We should have," Ryan added when he could tell Ray was going to protest. "No one should have to go through this alone."
Ray wasn't sure what to say, so he just pressed his face against Ryan's chest. Whatever was growing out of his head had started to jerk and twitch with sporadic muscle spasms, and it was all he could do to grit his teeth and keep from screaming at the pain.
"It's okay, you're going to be okay," Ryan whispered, rubbing a hand up and down Ray's back in comforting circles. Ray focused everything on the simple, soothing gesture, hoping it, along with Ryan's presence, would be enough to help him weather whatever was to come.
--
Geoff had been less than pleased, to say the least, when he'd come to check on Ryan and found Ray sporting a half grown pair of what were beginning to look like long floppy ears. He and Ryan had a rushed, whispered argument, in which Geoff berated himself for not noticing Ray's transformation sooner and Ryan told him that they had enough to deal with as it was and to fuck off with the self deprecating shit, and then Geoff shuffled back out to where the others had sprawled all over the stairs to share the news.
"What are we doing out here?" Michael had snapped, leaping up in an attempt charge the Achievement Hunter office. Geoff had caught his arm before he could get very far and spun him back onto the stairs.
"Ryan's got it handled," Geoff said, his words sailing out on a sigh. "The best thing we can do for them right now is let them have their space. Ryan's probably the best for this job right now, anyway. He knows better than any of us what Ray's going through."
Michael mumbled something less than polite under his breath, but he allowed himself to be pulled back down onto one of the steps by Gavin. The Brit swatted at Michael's hand when it reached up to scratch at his curls and Michael sighed, batting at his friend but also resisting the urge to scratch.
"So, are we going to talk about the uh, elephant in the room?" Jack asked, frowning from Michael to Geoff.
"Technically he's a cow, or a steer or whatever," Geoff said, perching next to Jack.
"You know what I mean."
"I know what you mean." Geoff sighed, scrubbing a hand over his face. "I can't believe this is fucking happening. This is fucking ridiculous."
"If Ray's got...it, then does that mean that we...?" Michael motioned between the four of them.
"Judging by all the scratching you keep doing, and my bullshit headache, probably," Geoff said. "Anyone else feeling transform-y?"
"Not particularly," Gavin said slowly, shifting his arms as he spoke.
"Would you stop doing that?" Michael snapped, frowning at him.
"Leave me alone, my arms are stiff," Gavin said, scowling at Michael. The Jersey native shoved him, Gavin pouncing on the boy in response. As they tumbled down the stairs, Geoff turned to Jack and asked,
"So, what about you?"
"The beard's a little itchy," Jack said, giving his chin a scratch to underscore his point. "But other than that, I feel fine."
"Of course you do," Geoff said. he sprawled back against the steps, eyes rolling up to the ceiling. "So, now what?"
"Now we just keep doing what we're doing, I guess," Jack offered.
'What we're doing' for the lads was apparently a lot of wrestling around on the kitchen floor and being shoo'd out of the Achievement Hunter office by a newly horned Ryan as they tried to check on their friend. Jack and Geoff were quick to turn 'what we're doing' into naps as they rummaged up whatever bedding type supplies they could find and built what was little more than a nest upstairs.
As the morning progressed the pair of CDC guys returned, carrying breakfast burritos and, when informed of the new hybrids inside, some pain killers with impressively long names and a handful of pamphlets that the guy told them were useless but that he had to hand out anyway. 'The New You!' they were titled, the cover plastered with a brightly smiling family of hybrids. Gavin was forced to duck away to hide a snort of laughter at the things. The man just nodded his agreement with the sentiment, reminding the guys to call if they needed anything before donning his hazmat helmet and sealing the men back inside.
Michael took the burritos and the pain killers into the office for Ryan and Ray, taking advantage of the delivery to check in on his friends.
"How's he feeling?" he whispered as he stepped inside.
"Better, I think," Ryan offered, glancing down at the younger man. At some point he'd shifted Ray so that he was lying on the couch, his head pillowed in the older man's lap. Ryan had his legs propped up on someone's computer chair, which Michael skirted around to get a better look at his dark haired friend.
"What do you think he's going to be?" Michael asked as he handed Ryan one of the burritos. Ray's other ear had worked its way off a little while ago, leaving him with only the two flaps of furry skin that had begun to unravel.
"My guess? A rabbit," Ryan said. He shoo'd away Michael's hand when he noticed it hovering near Ray's head. "Don't, they're pretty sensitive still. I think maybe all the stuff in Ray's ears is like, migrating to these new ones or something. They've been hurting him more than I think mine ever did, and I don't think he could hear me last time he was awake."
"That's...kind of intense," Michael whispered. He hooked Jack's chair with his ankle so that he could sit down in front of the couch.
"So is growing new animal parts," Ryan said, a smile tugging at the corner of his lips.
"That's true." Michael's gaze darted to Ryan's new horns, and the scabby patches ringing his scalp where they'd emerged. His new ears, floppy and blonde, had emerged where his old ears--what a weird thought, his old ears--had been, which must have meant less transition. Michael hadn't even thought about what would have to happen internally for someone to grow new ears on a different part of their body.
His scalp, growing ever itchier as the hours passed, twinged with the thought.
"Hey, Ryan," he mumbled, gaze now on his egg-and-sausage stuffed burrito.
"Yeah?"
"Did...did you know that you were going to change. Like, before it started happening?"
"You mean did I have any symptoms?"
"Kind of?" Michael shrugged.
"Or do you mean did I just...know?"
"Maybe that."
"I think I did," Ryan said. His expression turned thoughtful as he leaned back against the couch. "I mean, I'd had the symptoms and everything, so I'd started to connect the dots. But I think it was more than that. My whole personality felt a little different, if that makes sense?"
"It does," Michael said, nodding quickly. "Like, I've felt more tired lately, but also more hyper and kind of, I don't know, bouncy I guess? Like my energy comes and goes a lot more intensely all of a sudden."
"I felt kind of like the opposite. Very mellow all the time, and, even though I'd never been bothered about living alone before, I suddenly cared that I was by myself. It felt strange and, not scary, per say, but not exactly safe. It made me anxious, like I needed to be around others."
"That sounds like how a cow would think," Michael offered, a smirk pulling his lips. "Maybe you were turning into a cow mentally before you became one physically."
"So what does that mean you're becoming?" Ryan asked. "A very excitable baby animal?'
Michael pulled a face at the older man, put there was relief under the sour expression. It was weird to have someone finally admit what was likely happening to him, but at the same time it was kind of reassuring. Especially coming from someone it had already happened to, it made it feel like what was probably happening to him was less of a terrible, frightening disease and almost...normal, instead.
Settling into Jack's chair, Michael returned to his burrito, feeling more at ease than he had since this whole ridiculous pandemic had started. So what if he was about to be part something-furry he thought. Catching Ryan's eye, and the warm smile the man offered him, Michael figured that growing some ears and a tail might not be so bad after all.
--
"God dammit, fuck this," Michael hissed, dropping his head into his hands. His fingers hovered over his hair, twitching with the need to claw at the itchy, painful patches on his scalp.
"Wouldn't want to be you right now," Gavin said, not entirely unsympathetically as he grimaced at his friend.
"Yeah, me either," Ray offered dryly, earning a small, quick smirk from Michael. After another few hours Ray's new ears had finished sorting themselves out, along with a decidedly adorable tuft of a tail. His long, rabbit-like ears were tucked down under his hood. Ray claimed it was more comfortable for them to be pinned down rather than left to flap in the breeze. Ryan, who'd already caught his horns on two different door frames, understood completely.
"Fucking hell," Michael spat, letting his forehead drop to the table with a dull thud. The group had gathered around the kitchen table, looking for a scenery change from their cramped office. Ryan had suggested that Michael take the couch for a while, since his own hybridization seemed imminent, but Michael was feeling antsy and confined, and didn't think he could handle being trapped in any room smaller than this one.
"So, what do you think you're going to be?" Ray asked.
"I think you'd make a great bear, my boi," Gavin said. Michael scowled at him and Gavin grinned in response.
"What's a very angry animal?" Ryan asked.
"Chihuahua's are pretty yappy," Ray said.
"Or an angry parrot," Gavin suggested.
"Or those birds that attacked me outside my apartment the other day."
"Fuck you guys," Michael mumbled into the table.
The laughter of his companions carried upstairs to where Jack and Geoff were lying sprawled across the floor. Sighing heavily, Geoff rolled over and pulled the beanbag chair he'd found over his head.
"Ah, youth," Jack joked. Geoff groaned, so the younger man prodded him in the side. "Don't be so grumpy," he teased. Geoff's voice drifted out from under the beanbag as he mumbled,
"I'm not grumpy."
"Of course you're not," Jack said, poking the man again. "Seriously Geoff, what's wrong?"
"Headache," Geoff mumbled.
"That's not good."
"Not that kind of headache."
"How can you be sure?" Jack asked. Geoff shrugged.
"Because I don't want it to be."
"Who would? Sounds like Michael's on his way to growing something," Jack added.
"Oh good," Geoff said. "At this rate we're going to have to change the name of our company to Achievement Zoo."
Jack laughed, scooting around until he was comfortably wedged among the haphazard bedding they'd collected.
"We'd have to start calling it 'AZWU' instead."
The beanbag simply groaned in response.
--
The jokes about Michael's potential for something both furry and mean continued through-out the day once his companions noticed that they served the dual purpose of distracting Michael from his imminent change and frustrating the hell out of him. Pain had begun to shoot across his scalp in waves, and he could practically hear the vertebra in his tailbone growing and shifting around. Around lunch time a faint ringing had started in his ears, which Ray identified as the same thing that had happened to him when his new, rabbit additions had started to emerge.
"This is so much bullshit," Michael hissed, grinding his fingernails into his scalp.
"I know it hurts, but it'll pass," Ryan said softly, pulling Michael's hands back down. They were hidden out by Ryan's desk, where Michael had retreated a little while ago once his need-to-be-in-open-spaces phase shifted into a small-places-are-good one. He'd tucked himself as far under Ryan's desk as he could, and had only managed to get himself found because Ryan had come out to try and distract himself with a bit of work.
"It needs to pass sooner," Michael whispered. He screwed his eyes shut, groaning as pain flared through him.
"Is it your head?"
"My back. Feels like my spine is cracking open or something."
"That's sounds terrible," Ryan whispered. "Here, scoot over and let me take a look."
"Isn't that what happened to you and Ray when you grew tails?" Michael asked, wincing as he struggled to roll onto his side.
"A little bit, but it sounds like you're hurting more than we ever did. I think most of Ray's pain was in his ears, and mine was definitely the horns."
"Well, I don't think I'm growing an horns--ow, fuck, careful!"
"I'm sorry," Ryan whispered, offering Michael's arm a comforting squeeze. "I just need to move your jacket to get a better look, okay?"
"Yeah, sure," Michael said. "Just...be quick about it, okay?"
"I will."
Michael continued to groan softly as Ryan rolled him over and tugged up his jacket and shirt. He couldn't help the face he pulled as he looked at Michael's spine. It was like it was trying to push out of Michael's skin, protruding awkwardly from the middle of Michael's back down to his tailbone, where the main source of the boy's pain became startlingly apparent.
"Jesus," Ryan whispered.
"That bad?" Michael asked.
"Well, you're certainly growing a tail," Ryan said softly. The skin where Michael's tailbone usually would have ended had ruptured open, and the end of his spine was jutting out almost four inches from his body. What looked like muscle was wrapped around most of the new appendage, although the bony tip was still visible. A few wispy patches of ginger hair had sprung up around the base of the Michael's new tail.
"What does it look like--augh, that's gross," Michael said, looking quickly away. "Is that what yours looked like?"
"Don't know," Ryan said. "I don't really remember much about my tail growing in. Maybe whatever you're becoming uses their tail a lot, so your transformation is more intense because of it?"
"Fuck me. Why couldn't I be a..a bobcat or something? Or a God damned bunny like Ray."
"Because you're not as cute and cuddly as Ray is?"
"Shut the fuck up."
Ryan grinned, although his expression feel as Michael cried out, twisting out of his grip.
"Fuck, I just want it to stop hurting," Michael gasped, pushing himself further under Ryan's desk.
"I know you do. And it will, I promise."
"Fuck," Michael breathed, rolling onto his side. He pressed his face against the ground, hands tangled in his blood matted hair.
"Do you...want to be alone for a bit?" Ryan asked as Michael curled in on himself.
"Yes. No. I don't know," Michael moaned.
"Okay." Ryan gave the young man's arm a comforting squeeze and then clambered back to his feet, taking a seat at his desk. Michael's pained whimpers quieted somewhat once he realized Ryan wasn't going to leave him completely alone. He inched his way closer to the gent, pressing himself around Ryan's feet and clutching at the man's pant leg, while Ryan settled in with his editing.
In the main office, the rest of Achievement Hunter was facing a similar predicament. At some point Gavin, without anyone's noticing, had slipped into the upstairs recording studio and locked the door. The sound of muffled crying hadn't taken long to reach Jack and Geoff, still bundled up on the floor, and now Geoff was standing at the door trying to get a clearly distressed Gavin to let him inside.
"Gavin, please just open the fucking door," Geoff said, his forehead pressed against the door-frame. "I know all of this upsetting, but if you come out then we can talk about it."
"Leave me alone," Gavin practically wailed. "Please, just go away."
"I'm not doing that, Gavin. You have to tell me what's wrong."
"N-nothing's wrong," Gavin said, too quickly fro Geoff's liking.
"Then there's no reason to keep me out, now is there?"
"Go away, Geoff."
Geoff sighed, running his hand through his hair as Jack and Ray appeared at the top of the stairs.
"Any luck?"
"None," Jack said, while Ray shrugged. "Burnie or someone must have the key on them. I texted him about it, but he hasn't responded yet."
"Of course he hasn't," Geoff said. "So now what do we do?"
"We could break the door down," Jack suggested as he scratched at his beard.
"Don't you dare!" Gavin shouted, followed by a pained squawk and a string of curses.
"Let us in, asshole," Ray shouted back, kicking the door. When silence answered him he crouched down to where Gavin's voice seemed to be coming from. "What are you even trying to hide from us?"
"It's not really your business if I'm hiding it, now is it?"
"Gavin, if you're growing new ears it's not like we haven't seen it already. I can even help you with it if you want, you just have to open the fucking door."
A long silence followed Ray's words, Geoff and Jack exchanging strained looks as they waited for Gavin's response. When he finally did answer, it wasn't with what they were expecting.
"It's...it's not ears," Gavin said quietly.
"But you are growing something?" Jack asked.
"I'm not sure. Maybe? I think I'm becoming a...a spider or something."
"Can you become a spider?" Ray asked, glancing at the gents behind him. They both shrugged. Turning back to the door, he continued, "Gavin, just let me in. We can figure this out together, okay? I'm not going to judge you or anything. I mean, I'm a fucking bunny rabbit for Christ's sake. A spider's going to be a lot more badass then that."
There were some sniffles, and a few more whimpers, from the other side of the door.
"...Okay, fine," Gavin whispered. Geoff and Jack released audible sounds of relief, and Ray jumped quickly to his feet. There was a bit of shuffling behind the door, and then the faint click of the door being unlocked. "Just Ray," Gavin reminded them.
"Just me," Ray agreed. He opened the door slowly, and just enough to slip himself inside. Once the door was closed he found himself in semi-darkness, the only light in the room coming from the sound-booth itself.
"Hey, X-Ray," Gavin mumbled, drawing Ray's attention to where he was huddled in the corner. His shirt was missing, tossed aside nearby.
"Hey man." Ray moved slowly, lowering himself down into a cross-legged position across from his friend. "So, a spider huh?"
"I think so," Gavin said. "Look." He leaned forward, twisting to one side to reveal where the skin on his shoulder blade had ripped open. Ray swallowed hard, frowning as he forced himself to examine the cluster of long, thin bones protruding from the wound. "It's like that on the other shoulder, too."
"Gross."
"Thanks." Gavin leaned back, leaving a smear of blood on the wall. Ray raised an eyebrow as he said,
"I can't imagine the guys are going to like cleaning that up."
Gavin shrugged, tucking his legs up in front of himself. He dropped his forehead onto his knees, muttering a soft, "It hurts a hell of a lot."
"I bet it does," Ray said. "But you know what, Gavin? I don't think you're becoming a spider."
"You don't?" Gavin asked.
"I don't. I think it's more likely that you're becoming like, a bird or something. I think you're growing wings."
"Really?" Gavin's head poped up, eyes wide. "That would be top."
"Better than a spider?" Ray asked, grinning. Gavin returned the smile.
"Oh hell yeah, loads better."
--
"Maybe not better," Gavin groaned, his complaint muffled by the carpet he was currently lying face down on. He'd finally allowed the rest of Achievement Hunter to join him once he'd been assured he wasn't becoming something disgusting or terrifying, and they now sat huddled around the small room with him.
Michael, who was groaning his way through his own tail growth, was sprawled out beside his friend.
"Still hurts?" he asked.
"Hell yeah it hurts," Gavin whined. After a few hours of growth, the new additions on his back revealed themselves to indeed be wings. Their coming in had been an excruciatingly long ordeal, and had looked just as painful as it had felt. Unlike the ears, which seemed mostly formed before they emerged from a person's scalp, the wings came in one piece-by-piece, bones and then muscle and then skin on layer at a time. Only now where Gavin's fleshy new limbs gaining their feathers, and it was taking every ounce of the young man's self control to not scratch and pluck at the emerging fuzzy quills.
"You look like a baby bird," Ray offered helpfully, earning laughter from Ryan and Geoff and a groan from the beleaguered Brit.
"Geoff's not allowed to laugh," Gavin grumbled, frowning at his employer.
"Why can't I laugh, asshole?" Geoff asked around a grin.
"Because you never had to look like some goofy animal thing. It's not fair if you laugh."
"So I don't get to make fun of you guys just because I don't have a furry butt?" Geoff swatted at Ray's new tail for emphasis, the younger man yelping and rolling out of reach.
"Hands off the fluff!"
"Exactly," Gavin said as Ray scooted closer to Ryan. Geoff sighed, leaning back on his hands as he said,
"I can't believe there are only a few normal people left in Achievement Hunter. How did me and Jack get so outnumbered so quickly?"
"I might just be you soon if Jack's headache doesn't go away," Ryan said, and Geoff didn't miss the man's shit-eating grin as he motioned to the pair of legs sprawled just outside.
"Oi, Jack, you an animal yet!" Gavin shouted.
"M'fine," Jack mumbled back, waving one of his feet at them as if that proved what he was saying to be true.
"How's your head?" Geoff asked as he leaned out the door. Jack glanced up, pausing his vigorous chin scratching to offer a quick,
"Pounding. And my neck hurts now too."
"No fucking wonder," Geoff said, pulling a face at the sight of the red, raw skin circling under Jack's beard from ear to ear. "You've got one serious case of beard rash going on there, buddy."
"Haha, beard herpes," Michael mumbled behind him, the lad giggling while Ryan sighed.
"Where the hell would I have gotten a rash from?" Jack frowned, trying to look at his own neck with little success.
"It's a symptom!" Ray cried. "You're becoming one of us!"
"With a rash? None of you guys had rashes!"
"None of us have giant beards, either," Gavin offered.
"As much as I enjoy picking on Jack's beard, I don't think that's why he's got a mystery rash," Geoff said.
He crawled over to Jack, swatting the man's itching fingers away as he peered down at the red skin. It certainly looked itchy, bright red and clustered with dry, flaking patches. The skin was covered in little bumps, which Geoff would have written off as being part of a rash if he hadn't noticed the curly auburn hairs poking out of some of them.
"Uh, Jack, I think this is something to do with the animal thing. It looks like you're growing a bunch more hair on your neck."
"What the hell--what am I doing, growing fur? None of you assholes got furry!"
Michael's laughter burst out of the other room, punctuated by a gasped, "Jack's turning into a beard!"
Jack frowned as the other joined in the laughter, arm dropping over his eyes.
"You've got to be fucking kidding me," he sighed.
--
As it turned out, Jack would have the last laugh. As night fell the men of Achievement Hunter found themselves huddled back in their office, gathered around their computers as they tried to come up with work to do. The distinct sound of Michael's disgruntled grumbles echoed in the small space, followed by barely muffled laughter from Geoff and plenty of satisfied beard rubbing by Jack.
"Is something wrong, Michael?" Ryan asked, tone all innocence. Gavin glanced over at the gent, only to look away quickly when the amused light in the older man's eyes had him stifling a laugh of his own.
"Are you fucking kidding me?" Michael shouted, whirling around and gesturing wildly at Jack. "Why does he get to be a fucking Lion!? We're all God damn prey animals, and then this fucker is the king of the God damn jungle!"
"You're not a prey animal, Michael," Gavin pointed out, causing Michael to release an indistinct sound of frustration.
"No, I'm a fucking house cat! We're a bunch of fucking pets! God dammit!" Michael spun back to his desk, fists slamming down as he returned to editing his video.
"You know, Michael does have a point," Ray said, glancing up from his own video. There aren't a lot of cool animals in this office right now other than Jack. I mean, I guess a cow--"
"Steer."
"--is kind of cool, but team lads is kind of, like..."
"Cute and fluffy?" Geoff offered. He was struggling so hard to contain his grin that it looked like he was risking a stroke.
"Yeah, that. Geoff, you need to become something really cute, like a mouse or something, to balance this out."
"Fuck that, dude. If I have to be an animal I'm going to be something fucking badass. Like a...a shark or something."
"Can you even be a shark?" Ryan asked, followed by another angry sound from Michael.
"If you're a shark I'm going to fucking kill myself."
--
In an odd twist of fate, their transformations ended like they started--with a pair of horns.
As night fell the men had wandered around for a bit trying to put together somewhere to sleep. They'd eventually expanded on Jack and Geoff's earlier nest, lumping together like a heap of tired puppies to sleep. It must have been something to do with their new animal traits, Jack figured, that had them so inclined to press together. They hadn't been lying down for five minutes before Michael was stretched out behind him, pressing his back against Jack's. He could feel a faint rumbling coming off the younger man, but thought it best to wait until later to inform the man that he might very well be capable of purring.
Gavin was lying on his other side, on his stomach to protect his still aching wings. They'd finished growing in their feathers for the most part, only a few prickly patches left, and Gavin left them spread out so that one of the feathered appendages was in danger of pushing right up into Jack's face. Frowning, Jack moved it gently, draping the end of the wing over himself and Michael.
Ryan and Ray were similarly curled up under Gavin's other wing, the younger man curled at an awkward angle into Ryan's side. The whole of it echoed with relaxed comfort, save for the lone figure lying at the edge of the group.
Frowning, Jack peered over Gavin's wild hair to see Geoff lying flat on his back, eyes open as the older man scowled up at the ceiling. The furrow of his brow gave away the pain he'd been trying to hide from the others for the past two days. Despite refusing the mention his headache to the others, Jack had gotten enough out of his boss to know that Geoff was feeling tired and sore, and that the pain throbbing behind his eyes had only continued to grow over the past few days.
Seeing the discomfort in the other man's eyes made Jack uncomfortable himself. His own body still echoed with the pain of his transformation, which only doubled the sympathy he felt for his friend. He wanted to go over and talk to Geoff, try and offer him at least a little comfort, but he didn't want to disturb those sleeping all around him, all still as half-healed and desperate for some sleep as he was.
Sighing internally, Jack settled into the blankets, comforting himself with the thought that if Geoff seemed to get any worse in the night that he would absolutely take care of him.
It turned out that time wasn't long in coming.
He awoke suddenly to a darkness permeated by the soft breathing of the bodies gathered around him. A gentle rumbling at his back had him grinning and Jack rolled his face back into his pillow, prepared to chase down sleep once more when he heard it--
"Geoff?" he whispered. A beat of silence, and then another muffled whimper reached him. Thoughts of sleep now gone from his mind, Jack carefully shuffled out of the cocoon of blankets and bodies. Michael shifted at the sudden loss of warmth, smacking his lips a few times before rolling into the warm spot Jack had left behind. Gavin mumbled something, his wing moving over Michael. Satisfied they wouldn't wake, Jack's gaze darted to where he'd last seen Geoff.
The edge of their makeshift bed was abandoned.
Frowning, Jack scanned the room, eyes adjusting surprisingly quickly to the darkness. A perk of now being half-cat, he assumed. He spotted the man sitting across the room, huddled against the wall with his head in his hands.
"Geoff, are you okay?" Jack whispered, crouching down in front of the other man.
"No," Geoff said without looking up. He groaned, fingers digging into his hair as he hissed a pained, "Looks like it's my turn."
"I've got my fingers crossed for a shark," Jack said. Geoff laughed, although it quickly became a whimper. "Come on, let's get you downstairs."
"Yeah," Geoff mumbled. It took about ten minutes before Jack could actually get Geoff on his feet, and even longer for them to navigate the stairs. By the time they reached the Achievement Hunter office it was all Jack could do to get Geoff on the couch without dropping him.
"What hurts?" Jack asked as he found a blanket to drape over the older man.
"Everything," Geoff grumbled, pressing his face into the couch. "Fucking head hurts like dicks, dude."
"Let me see."
It was a bit like trying to check on a five year old, but eventually Jack managed to get past Geoff's batting hands and whining complaints to see what had become of the man's aching scalp. As odd a thought as it was, Jack found the bloody, torn skin and protruding lumps of bone to be familiar. He sighed softly, pushing Geoff's hands away when the man moved to scratch.
"Look's like Ryan's not going to be our only barn animal."
"The fuck does that m--oh," Geoff said. "Horns?"
"Yep."
"Sweet. I'll be able to headbutt the fuck out of you guys. Ah, fucking--" Geoff cut off with a groan, fingers digging into on the rips in the couch and tearing it further as he cursed through a wave off pain.
"Just what we need," Jack said, offering Geoff's shoulder a comforting squeeze. "Two bull-headed assholes in the office."
He remained with Geoff throughout the night, watching as nubs of bone grew longer and curlier. Despite cringing right along side his boss as the man suffered through the pain of his change, Jack couldn't wait until Geoff was well enough to realize he'd become something decidedly grumpy, stubborn, and woolly.
Morning had come on their third day of lock-down when Jack felt like Geoff was okay enough for him to step into the hall for a few minutes and get some fresh air. To his surprise, it wasn't an empty lobby that greeted him.
"Morning Jack," Ryan mumbled from where he was perched awkwardly across on of the lobby's armchairs.
"Uh, hey Ryan. How long have you been out here?"
"Few hours?" Ryan shrugged. He motioned to the office with a tilt of his head. "How is he?"
"As well as can be expected, I guess." Jack sighed, dropping into the chair next to Ryan. "Looks like you'll have a companion in Achievement Hunter." At Ryan's quizzical look Jack pointed to his own head and added, "I think he's some kind of ram."
"That...makes a lot of sense, actually."
Jack laughed.
"I'm sure he'll be pleased to be told that."
--
While it wasn't a shark, Geoff had to admit that his pair of impressive horns were an acceptable animal part to end up with, and he spent the day attempting to headbutt anyone who did or didn't say otherwise.
It was two more days before the quarantine was lifted and the men were free to return to their homes, and in that time they worked furiously to crank out as much content (and wrack up as many days off) as possible. The nest-bed became the common sleeping arrangement, the guys working themselves to exhaustion and then crumpling asleep in a warm heap around one another. Despite being ready for some new surroundings, the group was surprisingly not yet tired of one another's company, and when the day finally came for them to return to their respective homes a kind of weird discomfort fell over the group. They cleaned up the messes they'd made and gathered their belongings in silence before trudging out to a parking lot where they hovered uncertainly.
It was Gavin who finally broke the awkward silence with his tentative,
"So...do you guys want to come over to my place for a bit or something?"
"My place," Geoff reminded the Brit, although he didn't rescind the offer. Instead he added, "You know, just since we're all like, newly animals and such. Maybe we shouldn't be alone or...something."
No one bothered to mention that they'd been not-alone for almost a week now, just as no one said no.
"That sounds like a good idea," Ryan said, a small smile tugging at his lips. Ray nodded beside him.
"So, uh, we'll just follow you then?" Michael asked.
Geoff grinned.
"See you assholes at my house."