Chapter 15

"How did you get in here?" She asked, using her hands to cover herself.

"Your window was open." Michael's eyes were fixed on her body.

She became uneasy with the way he stared at her. Her cheeks began to burn. "Turn around." She ordered quickly.

"Wh... what?" He stuttered, darting his eyes.

"I said, turn around." She spoke more quietly than she did at first.

Michael grinned, understanding what Emily meant. Slowly, he backed her. He gazed out the window as he waited for her to get dressed. 

"Why are you here?" Michael looked back when he heard the words. He saw that Emily was already dressed, so he turned around and faced her. She pressed her towel against her hair, draining the water out of it.

"I don't know." He shrugged, and Emily frowned. "When you had me in your arms, I suddenly felt better, comforted, can I stay here a little longer?" He gazed at her with those dreamy brown eyes.

"Certainly." She nodded with a smile and got on her bed. 

Michael stood by the window, relaxing on the wall. There was no sofa in her room for him to lie on, and how cruel would it be for her to let the young man stand and watch her while she slept soundly on her bed?

She made space for him on her bed and patted it, looking up at him. He smiled and walked closer. He hesitantly lay on the bed and watched her intently. She closed her eyes and whispered "Good night." to him.

.

.

.

It was a beautiful morning. Emily opened her eyes, feeling warm as the sun strode into her room. She got up with a yawn. 

She looked at her bed and noticed Michael had gone. Stretching her muscles, she made her way to the bathroom.

Moments later, she was done preparing herself. She came downstairs and greeted her mother and father. Her shift was not until afternoon, so she headed out to Giselle's house. She had to be aware of what was happening to Jacob tonight.

She biked to Giselle's house, and few minutes later, she stood at Giselle's door and knocked on it.

"Good morning, Mrs. Victoria." Emily greeted Jacob's mother with a bright smile when she opened the door.

"Why are you here?" She greeted Emily's smile with a frown. She glanced at her room to check if anyone was there before she stepped out and closed the door behind her.

"I came to..." Emily tried to speak.

"I don't care," Victoria cut Emily. "Your mother told me you already know what you are, but you have no right to tell Jacob." Victoria stretched her hands to the back and opened the door.

Emily hurried to the door, "He's in..." She tried to speak again.

"Leave now!" She slammed the door on Emily's face.

Taking a deep breath, she turned around and saw Giselle halfway down the stairs.

"Who was that?" Giselle asked.

"No one important. Let's go prepare breakfast. " Victoria smiled at Giselle.

She hesitantly walked down, her gaze fixed on the door. When she descended the stairs, she walked to the kitchen with Victoria.

Emily walked to Giselle's window. The window was locked, so she didn't bother to scream her name because she'd just be throwing away the little strength she had left. 

She sucked at climbing, so it wasn't an option. She needed to do something to make Giselle know that she was at her window. An idea struck her mind. She grabbed a stone and wanted to throw it at Giselle's window, but she didn't want to bust her window.

Her eyes searched the ground for something less hard, and she found an empty soda can. She took it and aimed it at Giselle's window. She threw the empty can and it hit the window, splashing the little remains on the glass. She walked up to where it fell, picked it up, and walked back to her previous position. She threw it again, and the can banged against the glass and fell again but Giselle didn't come to her window to check what it was.

She threw the can a thousand times over, and she got so exhausted that she couldn't raise her hand to throw any longer.

"This is the part where you come out, hybrid wings." She looked behind her shoulders and scoffed.

She rubbed her hands on her thighs and felt her phone in her pocket. She sighed frustratedly; she had gone through all that when she could have just made a phone call.

She dipped her hands in her pocket and brought out her phone, but it was switched off; she had forgotten to charge it.

With a sigh, she sluggishly took her bike and walked away.

A few minutes after Emily left, Giselle walked into her room and noticed the splash of liquid trailing down her window. She searched for a rag to wipe it off her window.

When she found one, she opened her window and gazed outside, before cleaning the liquid off her window. She walked to her bed and rested on it, leaving the window open for air

.  

. 

. 

When Elsa resumed work, Michael didn't waste time before he asked her if she found the spell to turn Chris's good side back on.

"I can't perform the spell." Elsa replied. 

"Why?!" Michael hollered, a frown settling on his forehead.

"It's dark magic, and I could get killed for using it. I'm sorry. "

"It is okay." Michael nodded with a faint smile.

"You're not mad?" Elsa was surprised; she had expected more outbursts from him.

"Why should I be? It'll be selfish of me to urge you to do what'll get you killed." Michael rested his hands on her shoulders,"We'll find another way." 

Elsa nodded and walked away. Michael rested his hands on the table beside him and ran his other hand through his hair with a sigh. He headed towards the door, running into Emily on his way out.

"Where are you headed?" Emily asked, grabbing his arm as he attempted to leave.

"For a walk." He responded quickly and began to walk away.

.

.

.

In no time, the night began to fall. Emily spent all day worrying and calling Giselle's phone after she had charged hers. She sent text messages but Giselle didn't reply to the messages nor return the calls.

Pacing back and forth, she thought of how to get to Giselle and tell her what would happen.

"Are you okay?" Michael asked.

An idea struck her mind on hearing Michael's voice. "I need your help." Walking up to Michael, she clutched his shoulders.

"With what?" Michael asked, frowning at her.

She released her grip on Michael's shoulders and held his wrist, pulling him out of Nich's eatery.

"Where are you taking me?" Michael asked as he staggered behind her. She didn't respond; she just kept walking. Michael remained silent and allowed Emily to pull him away.

*

"Why won't you just use the front door?" Michael asked, standing in front of Giselle's window. Emily had taken him all the way to Giselle's house and told him to climb up the window and deliver the message to her. This time, the window was open.

"As I told you, I can't. Now will you please help me? " Emily asked.

With a sigh, Michael readied himself, with a foot backward, and his knees were slightly bent. He ran forward and hurled himself high in the air, diving into the open window with a backflip. Emily was stunned. She had never seen anyone do a thing like that; he climbed up Giselle's window with ease.

Minutes later, Giselle and Jacob walked out of the house and approached Emily.

"Michael said you wanted to see us?" Jacob asked.

"Oh, yes," she swallowed. She couldn't believe Michael left her to do this alone.

"Where's Michael?" Emily asked, gazing up at the window. Just immediately, Michael jumped from the window and landed on his feet with a little stagger.

"So?" Giselle raised her brows.

"Um, Jacob...About the wings: you are a raven." Emily gulped. Jacob's facial expression remained the same; he didn't look surprised. It was like he already knew what they were going to tell him.

"And werewolf bites are toxic to avians, which means..." Michael paused. He didn't know exactly how to tell Jacob that he was going to die without freaking him out.

"You might die." He was sure that Jacob was going to die, but he had to put it that way to prevent Jacob from losing it.

"What?" Giselle screamed. Jacob had mixed feelings at the moment. He chuckled amidst shock and anxiety, he turned around and started walking away.

"Where are you going?" Michael inquired, rushing over to Jacob.

"You expect me to stay here and listen to all this bullshit?" Jacob scoffed.

"Jacob, the venom will spread by the full moon." Michael stated.

"What venom? Look," Jacob folded the hand of his shirt, revealing his bitten shoulders to Michael. "I'm fine." 

Michael took a few steps backward. The wound had healed without a scare. It didn't look like there were poisons in it.

Michael stood there and watched Jacob slowly walk away. Then he stopped in his tracks and groaned lowly. "Jacob, are you okay?" Michael asked, slowly advancing towards him.

Jacob didn't respond. He stood there for a while, then he tried to take another step, but he felt excruciating pains crashing through his bones. He fell to the ground with a loud groan.

"Jacob?" Giselle ran to him, and Michael and Emily also rushed to him.

He groaned loudly. His bones were visibly fracturing, halfway tearing the cloth he had on. "He's transforming." Michael hollered.

"To what?" Emily crouched to Jacob's level.

"A wolf." Michael frowned, he was perplexed.

"How?" Emily inquired.

"I'm not sure. Let's get him out of here first." Michael looked round, he found a middle-aged man who stood beside his car and had just finished making a phone call. He hurried to the man. "Excuse me, sir." He came to a halt in front of the man.

"Sir, my friend's in danger." Michael pointed in Jacob's direction. "Can you lend me your car?" This was lame! Why is he even doing this? No one will lend their car to a total stranger.

The man glared at Michael and opened his car, attempting to get in, but Michael grabbed him by the arm and riveted his already glowing green eyes on the man's normal black eyes.

"Give me the keys," Michael commanded. The man dipped his hands in his pocket and brought out his keys, handing them over to Michael. "You lost your car and now you're going to board a taxi that'll take you home." Michael hypnotized the man, and the man nodded and walked away.

He ran to Jacob, who was still lying on the ground, winding in pain. He supported him to the car, and Giselle and Emily also got into the car, and Michael drove to his house.

Thankfully, there was no traffic, so they arrived at Michael's house ten minutes later.

Michael helped Jacob to the basement. There were several cellars; they were cobwebby and ancient, with roasted steel bars.

He put Jacob in one of the cellars and chained his neck, hands and legs to a huge ring-shaped iron that was cemented to the four corners of the floor and locked the door. 

They stood outside the cellar, watching Jacob's bones continue to break and twist. Jacob's groans and crashing sounds from his bones filled the air.

Jacob yelled as his coal-black wings popped out, larger than before. Claws protruded from his fingers, which he used to tightly cover his mouth as he closed his eyes; fangs grew longer.

Giselle and Emily moved backwards, but Michael stood close to the cellar. Emily looked at him and stretched to tap him.

"Why are your bones still intact? Isn't it supposed to be fracturing? " Emily asked Michael, who was focusing intently on Jacob.

"Controlling the shifts is sort of my thing, it can be difficult, though. " Michael looked at Emily. "But as long as my emotions are not heightened, I'm fine." He turned his gaze back to Jacob.

Jacob's yelling and fracturing bones became extravagant, then abruptly stopped. Only growls and barks could be heard and the sound of him trying to break free from the chains.

They were all dazed by Jacob's transformation. He had transformed into a wolf, with big raven wings attached to his back.

"Wh... what... is that?" Giselle stuttered, pointing at the winged wolf.

"The bite didn't kill him, it turned him into a pterolycus." Michael said, wide-eyed.

"What is a pterolycus?" Emily asked.

"A winged wolf." Michael stated.