furwithout

Fur and Fangs

The tall, green-eyed ex-pilot stretched his well-toned arms towards the ceiling and yawned. He fell back against the bed he�d occupied for the night, his eyes searching the room dully. Nothing had changed since he�d gone to sleep, and it didn�t surprise him. No one had bothered them since they�d stopped fighting. He was just getting used to it, but his attention remained razor sharp. His friends said he was too jumpy, but it was hard to change something you�d known all your life. It had been nearly a year since the war was over; his comrades and he had rejoined in a reunion of sorts and had all chipped in for a small wilderness retreat for a few weeks.
Trowa tossed his long legs over the side of the bed and pulled himself to his feet. Striding down the hall, he could hear another of Duo�s obnoxious jokes filtering from the kitchen. That meant that some one else had to be up listening to him, though it may not have been by their own will. The longhaired pilot had always had a sense of humor that no one else could quite understand; even the bloodshed of many battles could not drive away his love for fun and games. He pushed open the swinging door that separated the kitchen from the rest of the cabin; it waved itself shut behind him.
Sitting across the oak table from the brown-haired American was the ever patient Quatre. He smiled as Duo�s joke came to a close, ��And the moral of the story is, always look both ways before crossing the road.� The pale Arabian let out a small laugh as well as another smile, �That�s a good one Duo.� Duo turned cobalt eyes onto the silencer, �Morning! Do you wanna hear my ne�� He cut himself short, his gaze resting on Trowa�s shoulder. Pilot three completed the few strides it took to reach the fridge and opened it up, �No Duo, I don�t want to hear your joke, I�m not in the mood.�
Nothing in the cooler appeased his rolling stomach so he shut the door. Standing on the other side was Duo. Not hearing his approach, Trowa jumped seeing him there, �Damn it Duo, don�t do that! You know, you�re going to get yourself shot sneaking up on people like that.� He snarled this in Maxwell�s face, his anger suddenly hard to control. Trowa pulled away, surprised at his own outburst, he was not one to lose his temper so easily. Duo didn�t seem to take his threat into heed; he was still staring at the silencer�s bare shoulder, �Trowa, what the hell bit you?� He began to push past him, �Ha ha, funny. I thought I told you I wasn�t in the mood for jokes.� Death of Darkness caught his arm; all the humor had gone out of his voice, �I�m not joking with you. Look!�
He pulled his tall friend into the hall bathroom that they all shared. Flicking on the lights, Trowa realized that it was no joke. A semi-circle of jagged gouges ringed his pectoral muscle, on closer inspection he found each gouge to be a tooth mark. Considering the size the animal would have to be to make such a large bite, he quickly determined that it was to big for any normal creature to make. Nothing that lived in the forests around the tiny cabin could have possibly managed it.
Quatre appeared in the doorframe of the already crowded bathroom, �What is it Trowa?� His eyes grew soft, not waiting for the answer to his first question; �Does it hurt?� Trowa shook his head as he examined his wound, a look of disbelief dominating his face, �No, but I don�t know why.� Duo peered at it curiously, �It looks like a wolf bite, but how did a wolf get in the house?� No one said any thing in reply. The wound had slight amounts of dried blood around it, but not as much as what was expected with such large gouges. As Trowa looked into the mirror, things began to spin slowly and a steady throbbing began in the back of his head. He gripped the counter to keep his balance, but the room was moving to fast. Briefly, he saw Duo say something to him, but the words he couldn�t grasp. The floor rushed suddenly towards him and everything went black.

Duo caught his comrade as he plunged down to the floor; he looked up at Quatre in shock, �What happened to him?� The sandy haired ex-pilot knelt next to the unconscious teenager and placed his hand on the other�s forehead. �He might have picked up something through that bite.� His expression creased itself into deep concern, �He�s warm Duo, lets get him into bed.� The dark pilot nodded, the tail of his lengthy braid twitched with the movement. He readjusted his grip on Trowa�s wide shoulders and helped Quatre carry him back into his room. On the way, they passed a still groggy Heero. He frowned when he saw them coming, �What happened to him?� They moved past him into Trowa�s room, Duo answering his question as he went, �We aren�t quite sure. He woke up with a weird bite this morning and Quatre thinks he caught something �cause of it.� Quatre went on, to explain what Duo left out, �A person can easily retract diseases from animal bites, I�m pretty sure that�s what he got.� After getting the blankets pulled up firmly around the silencer�s still form, the small Arabian shooed pilots one and two out of the room.
Death of Darkness followed Heero back down the hall, pondering all that had happened. �How on earth did something that big get inside of the house unnoticed and bite Trowa without him waking up?� The questions were more to himself than Heero realized when he answered, �It�s possible that there�s an entrance it�s using that we don�t know about, as for not waking Trowa up, he�s the heaviest sleeper out of us all.� He nodded grimly as he took those facts into consideration. It made sense but it wasn�t quite along the lines of Duo�s thoughts. His thoughts were whispering more about men that changed into wolves in the light of the moon and how their legacy thrived through bites and scratches.

It was nearly dark when Trowa began to stir. Quatre replaced the cold washcloth on his head to help keep his fever down. Much to his concern, it had remained high and never managed to break. The silencer moaned and rolled onto his stomach, his face contorting with pain. Pilot four noticed this and sat down on the bed next to him, �Trowa?� He curled up tighter around himself; the pain of his organs shifting position came close to unbearable. A light fur began to spread down his back, but this was hidden under the heavy wool blanket that covered him. Quatre reached over and grasped his friend�s trembling shoulder to roll him onto his back, �Trowa, it will be�� Sharp pain in his shoulder stopped his from saying more. The animal that ground its teeth into the ex-pilot was no longer the tall green-eyed teenager he�d been but moments before. Quatre winced and stroked the beast�s head softly, �Let me go Trowa, it hurts.� The beast�s jade green eyes narrowed as he bit down harder, losing himself in the younger man�s blood. The noble of the desert choked back a cry of pain as he continued to stroke the wolf�s soft fur; �It�s all right Trowa, just let go. Please.�

Duo nearly ran into Quatre as he turned into the main hallway, a fresh set of teeth marks immediately caught his eye and pulled it to the blonde�s shoulder. His mouth dropped open as he gaped at it, �What happened? Please tell me you know!� Pilot four hesitated momentarily before answering; �I went for a walk outside and got attacked by a large dog. I�m about to take care of it.� Death of Darkness bared his teeth in anger, disappearing briefly into the room he�d claimed as his own. He reappeared holding a shotgun, �I�m not taking any more of this, I�m going to go find that thing and shoot it down.� Quatre�s eyes widened briefly, �I don�t know if you�ll be able to find it, it took off after it bit me.� He didn�t notice the slight display of fear as he loaded the powerful gun and slipped the extra shells in his pocket, �I don�t care, but I�m not going to give up without trying. Go clean that thing out, you don�t want to catch something like Trowa did.� He shook his head as he watched Shinigami take off into the fading light outside, his words a mere whisper, �No, I don�t.�

The path pilot two walked upon was pitched into shadows as the sun dipped underneath the horizon. He paused momentarily to allow his eyes to adjust to the coming darkness and get his bearings among the trees and rocks. His shotgun felt comforting in his grip; the bites that had been showing up randomly had begun to etch fear into his heart. This new found fear caused him to jump at every sound in the woods around him. Duo sank back on his many years as a warrior for comfort; a simple wolf was nothing compared to the bases he�d tackled on his own. Then again, it was not man he was afraid of; he knew what to expect during a battle against mobile dolls and their masters. As a shadow darted in and out of his sight, Duo longed for his Gundam and the power it contained. �Man, if it was you and me Deathscythe, we just stomp on this thing and be done with it.� A low menacing growl caused the longhaired American to whip around quickly, his itchy trigger finger prepared to fire into the forest at moments notice. He backed away from the line of trees swiftly, his amethyst eyes searching for the animal in vain. No other sign came that the creature was there and Duo�s racing heart began to slow itself, �Come out come out wherever you are.� He commanded his voice to remain steady, although he knew that the beast would easily smell his terror. The growl repeated from directly behind him, it was the growl of an unearthly animal, the sound of a tortured soul from the pits of hell and far beyond. Duo turned slowly, the beast came nearly to his chest even though it was resting on four paws. The eyes were deep pools of liquid sapphire, but there was a fire burning behind the calm blue, a burning that couldn�t be placed as any emotion. Duo was struck with a vague familiarity as he moved away from the unnaturally large wolf. The animal followed his movements with those eyes and moved to counter them, its claw tipped paws making no sound against the dried leaves that littered the ground.
Another growl rose out of its throat as he stalked pilot two. Sleek muscles rippled under the beast�s light brown fur, Duo knew it wouldn�t take much for it to rip him to shreds. For now he remained the creature�s toy and when it was through playing cat and mouse, he would be dinner. Death of Darkness shivered as he imagined the rows jagged teeth hiding within the long muzzle. Remembering his shotgun, Duo raised it to his shoulder and took aim, �I�m sending you back to the bowels of hell from which you came.� In saying this, he let loose the ferocity of the gun on the beast before him. The wolf yowled in pain as the bullets tore into his broad chest and shoulder. It looked up at Duo briefly, the pools of sapphire filled with a deep pain; it was a look of betrayal. The animal dashed off into the trees before he could reload for another shot. Dropping the shotgun shells back in his pants pocket, Duo listened to the fading sounds of the running beast. He tried to make connections between all the facts that lay before him. The things he thought up were too farfetched to even take into consideration. He raised his eyes to the night sky only to see the full moon drifting lazily overhead.

When he returned home, all was quiet inside the tiny cabin. Duo slipped into his room and reloaded his shotgun. Leaning it against his beside table, he stripped down to his boxers and slid into bed. Needless to say, sleep never came to him.

In the morning, as the sun peeked over the mountain range in the east, Duo went in search of coffee. After riding on the edge of fear all night, he needed a few cups. He had just started his third as Heero entered the dully-decorated kitchen. As usual, it appeared as though he had already been up for several hours. The perfect soldier gave Maxwell little more than a glance, �Good morning Duo.� Sarcasm lay thick on his voice as he replied; �I don�t see what�s so god damned good about it.� He pulled himself up on the counter and swung his legs over the side, downing half a cup of the black liquid once he was up. This response pulled Heero�s eyes back to his friend, �God Duo, you look like you didn�t get any sleep.� He went over to stand in front of his comrade and laid a hand on his slim shoulder, �What�s going on? Are you worried about that animal that keeps getting in?� Duo shook his head, unable to make eye contact with him. Thin cotton T-shirt covered Heero�s typically bare chest, he began to wonder if it was hiding an unusual bullet wound, or perhaps the bite marks of a large wolf. He pulled away from his friend�s grasp and slid off the counter, �Heero, I went after that thing last night and what I found was no wolf.� Duo looked into pilot one�s deep blue eyes, searching for a sign of guilt, �What I found was an animal that couldn�t possibly exist.� Heero frowned, �Maybe the shadows were playing with your head. After all, you took off after dark.� He shook his head, �No, I know what I saw. The full moon gave me plenty of light.� The perfect soldier�s mood lightened considerably at this comment, �Are you trying to say that you saw a werewolf out there? Duo, that�s ludicrous!� Shenigami glanced over his shoulder as he left the kitchen, �Is it?� His gaze became a glare, �Or was what I saw just a wolf the size of a horse?�
He stalked down the hall angrily, disappointed but not surprised that Heero refused to believe him. Heero has always been one to go strictly by the book, werewolves couldn�t be found on any of those pages. Duo paused as he passed Quatre�s room; the thought of a hospital hadn�t crossed his mind until now. As he was opening the door, Heero came from the direction of the kitchen, �Don�t be pissy Duo, it�s just hard for me to believe that�s all.� He shrugged, �Forget it.�
Quatre was sitting at the window looking out at nothing when Duo entered, �Quatre? I�m going to take you and Trowa to the hospital, I don�t think these bites should go untreated.� The noble of the desert didn�t turn to face him but continued to stare into oblivion, �I�ve already tried Duo, they�ve put this whole valley into quarantine, us included.� Death of Darkness stuttered for a moment, searching desperately for another alternative, �They won�t help us at all? Send out a chopper or something? That�s it, game over?!� He started to say more, but Heero doubled over onto the threadbare carpet clutching his stomach. Duo turned to him in surprise, �Heero?!� He went to his friend�s side and pulled pilot one�s arm over his shoulder to help him up. Heero ground his teeth together and clutched his gut tighter. His eyes became wide, �Duo move, I�m going to be sick!� The warning came too late. Pilot one�s regurgitated breakfast covered them both in a spray of acidic juices, Duo grimaced in disgust, �Oh man, couldn�t you have waited?�
He helped his companion stagger into the bathroom, where he proceeded to vomit again. Death of Darkness slipped into the shower while Heero emptied his stomach of the remainder of what he�d eaten. He peeled off his shirt and pants while the warm water rinsed him clean. A cold jolt shot through his chest, he reached down and pulled his silver cross off him and stared at it blankly for a moment. As he allowed the water to warm it, an idea came to him; his cross was of the finest silver. It would be a shame to melt it down, but�He let his thought slid away with the water. His boxers hadn�t gotten anything on them, so he left them be. After a few minutes, he stepped out of the shower stall, toweling his hair dry. Heero lay on the cold tiles groaning softly, Duo knelt next to him and began to pull off his filthy shirt, �What kinda bug did you pick up? Seems like everyone is getting sick.� He nearly recoiled in shock when he uncovered a large semicircle of jagged wounds cutting across his friend�s abdomen. �Fuck Heero, you got it too?� Duo left the question open, not expecting an answer. As he removed the remainder of his shirt, another bite came into view. This one ran across his arm and shoulder. Four diagonal slashes also ran down his chest, it would scar his unblemished, smooth skin. Duo winced, �Shit, you got totally mauled. Did you know about these Heero?� The perfect soldier refused to answer; his Persian blue eyes stared past the longhaired American rather than at him. The water that ran off Duo�s jagged bangs dripped on Heero�s feverish skin, bringing him out of his thoughts, �I knew it was only a matter of time before it happened, I locked my door and window but somehow it still got in� I was thinking about what you�d said of all this. I�ve checked the house from floor to roof, there is no way for a wolf to get in unnoticed, unless it could pick locks. That led me to several conclusions. There is only one person left in this house without a scratch on them, how ironic is it that they are also well known for their ability to break in!�
Heero�s accusations hit pilot two hard, he�d never been blamed by any of his friends for something like this. Then again, nothing like this had ever happened before. He moved away from the perfect soldier as he sat up, �I�I didn�t�It wasn�t me!� Heero glared at him, �I researched this area, there has never been a record of a wolf sighting in its entire history. Where were you last night Duo? You weren�t in the house, but wait, maybe you were. As something else!� Duo backed away from him, shaking his head; �I went after that thing! I found it and shot it, but it got away! Don�t blame me for this Heero!� Pilot one opened his mouth to continue, but all that came out was a groan of pain. Squeezing his eyes shut, Heero leaned over gripping his stomach once again. Duo reached out in sympathy; �You may be an asshole sometimes Heero, but I�m not going to leave you like this.�
After depositing pilot one in his room to sleep, Duo wandered off to find something else to do. He was just settling for a four-day-old newspaper when Wufei walked in the front door. Duo blinked a few times before registering that he was there, �Where have you been?� He already knew the answer; Wufei had left several days earlier to go meditate. It wasn�t often that he got an opportunity to do so. The Chinese warrior glanced at him without any expression, �I told you where I was going when I left, did you forget already?� Duo shook his head, �No, I remember� Heero, Trowa and Quatre are all getting sick, I wouldn�t suggest going around them.� Wufei shrugged, �Not a way to spend vacation� I�m going to return to work tomorrow.� Pilot two dropped his paper, which crinkled as it fell. �Take me with you! Please, please!� The solitary dragon glanced at him questioningly, �You still have nearly a week left before you have to return, why do you wish to leave so early?� Duo sank back onto the couch to re-gather himself, �No reason really, I�m just anxious to get out of here. I�ve had enough fresh air for a while.� Wufei shrugged it off, �If you wish it, though I don�t understand why.�

Duo went to bed with more ease that night than he had in quite a while, his shotgun lay by his side loaded with silver bullets made from his cross and the idea of home fresh in his head. Only a few hours into the night, a very slight noise jarred Duo from his shallow sleep. Without rolling onto his back, he pulled his shotgun into hand. In a single swift move, he knocked the intruder away with the butt of the shogun and trained the barrel where he heard it fall. Searching blindly with his free hand, Duo found the lamp switch. The room was flooded with warm light, revealing a young, blond teenager cringing on the floor. He curled up tighter, clutching his head where Duo had struck him, �Oh god, please don�t shoot me!� Pilot two laid his gun aside and reached down for him, �Jesus Quatre you scared the shit out of me. You know I�ve been on edge all week, what the hell are you doing sneaking around my room?!� There were tears in Quatre�s eyes as Duo pulled him up, �I wanted to talk to you for that very reason, but I didn�t think you would already be in bed. I�m sorry.� Shenigami sighed deeply and took his gun back into hand, �It�s all right, I guess I�ve been a tad to nervous.� Pilot four slid the gun from his grasp and examined it, his expression became one of sadness, �This is what it has come to? You can�t even sleep deeply without every sound waking you?� He tossed the gun against the far wall, out of Duo�s reach, �I�m sorry I had to make you my scapegoat Duo, but I had no other choice. You see, if anyone suspected me I wouldn�t be able to finish my work.� Pilot two began to edge away from Quatre, fear constricting his throat, �So, you were the one all along, the one that�� He couldn�t force out any more. A loud thud drew their attention to the door; large cracks ran down the center. Whatever had made them backed up for another charge.
The small Arabian�s face extended out into a muzzle; his ears made their way up the sides of his head and grew into sharp points. He turned his eyes back to Duo as the fire kindled behind their blue, �Just hold still, it will make things easier.� The last of his words melted into growls as he lost his ability to speak. Duo ran out of bed space to crawl across and fell with a heavy �thunk� onto the floor. He popped back up and dashed for where his shotgun lay. The same four-legged beast that had faced him in the forest intercepted his charge. The gun was only a few feet from him, but completely unreachable, blocked by a hulking piece of flesh armed with teeth and claws. The creature�s fur was not light brown, as Duo first interpreted, but closer to platinum blonde. The same color as Quatre�s hair.
The loud thud came again and the door splintered into several dozen pieces, standing in the wreckage was a wolf nearly twice the size of Quatre�s own form. The snarl that issued from its mouth made the hair on the back of Duo�s neck stand on end. He moved away from the new arrival, backing himself into the corner of the room. The creature�s emerald eyes shone with the same fire the burned inside of Quatre, he held Duo with them for only a moment before turning them onto the very creature that had made him. Trowa�s sleek brown fur bulged with the underlying muscle as he paced around what had been pilot four. A growl that could pass more for a lion than a wolf rolled from his throat just seconds before he launched himself at Quatre. They tore around the room, nothing more than flying fur and fangs. They crashed into the bedside table, knocking the lamp to the floor. The light was instantly extinguished, but was replaced by fire spreading quickly across the carpet.
Duo bolted from the room in a mad dash, to his surprise, neither followed. He darted down the hall to Heero�s room and pounded violently, �Heero! Heero we got to get out of here! Heero! Open the door!� The blue eyed Japanese opened the door looking quite irritated about being disturbed, �What?� The American grabbed onto his pajama front and dragged him down the hall, �We�ve got to get out of here, this place is going to burn to the ground.� As if to justify his words, the inferno ate its way through the inner wall and raced to the ceiling. Duo slammed his fist against Chang Wufei�s door, �Wufei, wake up! We gotta get out of here!� His groan was barely audible over the raging fire and the two wolfs fighting in it, �Go away! I don�t feel well.� Pilot two sucked in his breath to begin yelling again, but a firm hand on his shoulder stopped him, �Leave him be Duo, I would worry more about you.� Death of Darkness whirled on his heel to tell Heero off but found himself staring down a muzzle, strait into the azure pools of fire that had been Heero�s Persian blue only a short while before. Duo swallowed down the bile that had risen into his mouth, �Shit��
Ripping himself from Heero�s grasp, Duo tore open Wufei�s door and slammed it shut behind him. There was a satisfying thud as Heero threw himself against it unsuccessfully. He turned quickly and jogged to the side of pilot five�s bed, �Come on Wufei, we�ve got to get out of this house before we both get killed.� Pulling the covers off, Duo was just in time to see jet black fur spread down Wufei�s back. A small cry of fear escaped his lips as the solitary dragon shivered into his new pelt. Not waiting or wanting to see him complete, Duo ran to the room�s only window and threw it open. Wufei had chosen the room that the ground swept down into a steep hill only a few feet from the window. It gave for an excellent view, but not an easy escape. His desperation overpowering his logic, Duo flung himself into the cool night.
Landing was no pleasurable experience, small sticks and brambles tangled themselves in Duo�s flesh and hair as he rolled down the hill. At the bottom, he sat up trembling. Picking out a few of the larger pieces, pilot two turned to watch the burning cabin. At this point, the fire had nearly engulfed the tiny house and its inhabitants. After pulling a tangle of brambles from around his arm, the longhaired ex-pilot stood and brushed himself off. Tears threatened to coarse down his cheeks as his mind wandered to the sudden loss of his friends and comrades. �The damn fire ate them all, both inside and out.�
A horrifying sound caused Duo to cry out and sink to his knees, clutching his head in an attempt to block it out. It came from behind him, though the burning house was at his front. It was the sound of an unearthly animal, of a tortured soul from the very pits of the damned and condemned. It was a sound meant to freeze the blood in the veins of its prey, to tear at the heart with pure terror; it was the growl of a werewolf.

Back to Fanfictions