Alley Cat

“HELENEEEE!”

Raphael’s voice booms down the halls, rocking the apartment complex. The outrage in his tone flips a switch within my mind. My relaxed state swirls into turmoil, and I immediately think of charging towards the window. My nervous fingers fumble with the locks, twitching as I do so. By the time I push the window open, Raphael grabs me by my hoodie and yanks me back inside.

“What were you thinking?” Raphael says through gritted teeth.

While my back is still turned against him, I can hear his frantic breathing. I slowly turn around to face him. His flared nostrils remind me of a minotaur ready to charge. And like the fool I am, I continue to tease him with red.

“What do you mean?”

My cashmere cat smile sends him into a rage. Raphael roughly pulls out the phone from his pocket and scrolls through twitter until he finds the right video. We watch in silence as the video plays.

The video is surveillance camera quality. Static occasionally sputters the film, but it’s clear enough to show a blurry version of me limping around the street towards a car parked outside of a bank. One of my fingers unfurl from my palm, its claw fully extended and needle sharp. There’s a person sitting in the front seat. His gaze is set on the swinging front door as if he’s waiting for someone to come out. A fleeting thought passes through his mind, causing him to constrict the steering wheel with beefy hands.

“I don’t see what’s wrong,” I say and take a seat on Raphael’s bed. My butt sinks into his mattress. The springs screech from under me, crying to be relieved from the pressure of my weight. “I was only going out for a walk…”

Raphael’s visage is frozen in a stoic expression as he flips his phone towards me. The last half-minute of the video shows me stabbing the car’s tire with my extended claw. The puncture causes the tire to explode. A loud pop sounds from the video right as I start running.

“You stopped a bank robbery,” Raphael says this like I had murdered an innocent person in cold blood. Then I remember that I have murdered someone, and I had been trying to forget about it for the last three weeks. The guilt of my crime makes me nauseous, but I conceal it as best as I can.

“Again. I don’t see the problem.”

My ignorance riles Raphael beyond his threshold. A part of myself wants him to charge at me, but I know him too well. The scolding I receive is only to be expected.

“You could have gotten hurt!”

“But I didn’t.”

“You just exposed yourself! Have you already forgotten that you have a whole family of powerful werewolves that would be more than happy to see you dead?”

I take a break before replying back. Raphael’s harsh brown eyes bore into mine. I study the worry lines etched in his face and his stiff posture. He’s scared for me, this I know. The more time I spend with him, the easier it is to come to terms on why he’s so serious all the time. After witnessing enough hatred and violence to pollute lifetimes, he had all the joy and fun sucked out of him. The Raphael sitting next to me is hot-blooded and vexed; he’s only a shadow of the flirtatious and charming man I fell in love with fifty-five years ago. But a part of me is still hopeful. After all, shadows cannot exist without light.

I scoot over on the bed and pat down the empty space next to me, inviting Raphael to sit down. Raphael plops down right next to me. His rage has passed over and cooled to a tepid temper that has us both in a thoughtful mood.

“The Russos are gone.”

The mere mention of the Russos causes Raphael to perk up. I continue my confession. “Right after I popped the bank robber’s tires, I stopped by Russo’s to see if the restaurant was still open. It wasn’t. They’re hiding.”

“Helene…” Raphael winces. He’s pained and frustrated at the same time, torn between scolding me and listening for more. He manages to do both. “Why? I thought you were done with causing trouble around the city. I thought we agreed on staying on the low but instead you’re going around and stopping robberies.”

“Raphael, what did you honestly expect? Maria is always at the hospital. Rafik has two jobs. You’re always in school. And that leaves me––”

“––alone.” Raphael finishes my train of thought, and I nod at his correctness. We share a brief moment of understanding, but it’s brief.

“And the thing is, I don’t mind being alone.” A noisome scoff rattles my throat as if a part of me doesn’t believe myself, but I know that what I say is true. Perhaps I scoff at how depressing it sounds or how the truth is so obvious to the point that it becomes ridiculous. “But I do mind how you’re always disapproving me for something.”

“Hey! I don’t always do that!”

“I always manage to piss you off by being myself.”

“I just want you safe, Helene.” Raphael reaches for my hand. When his fingers lace with mine, they lock securely. He has a brutal grip that’s harsh enough to bruise. I look down at our hands. The dull pain stemming from my fingers brings back a repressed memory that saddens me further.

“How about you go to school with me? Hm?” Raphael says with a hopeful lilt that pressures me to say ‘yes’. “Maria can help enroll you. Just think about it. You’ll get a chance to have a real teenage experience. There’s going to be clubs, competitions, homecoming, and prom…You can get a break from this werewolf mess. I think it’ll be really good for you, Hel.”

“You’re doing it again,” I say half-heartedly. I try to laugh but it catches in my throat instead.

“Doing what?” Raphael’s hopeful expression wilts slightly, but he tries his best to uphold his beaming exuberance.

“You were always trying to convince me to go along with things you thought were best for me.”

Raphael’s mouth falls open to argue back, but a memory invades his mind. Once he processes it, he’s rendered silent. The rose-tinted glasses have shattered, leaving behind the real outlook on our past love. The petals have withered. The pretty lakes have dried up. All that remains is barren soil, cracked with ancient faults that tell the tragic story of what used to be.

“I really appreciate you trying to protect me. Really, I do. But what you want and what I want isn’t the same. I’ve lived through high school before. I already had college out of the way. I’ve worked countless jobs and did a lot of crazy exciting things. I’ve had so much time, Raph.”

“The world is different now.” Raphael and I look out the window from across his room and peer out at the view. Tiny people scurry across the street like ants and the sound of honking cars faintly penetrates the glass as we stare. From a bird’s eye view, Manhattan seems miniscule and irrelevant and Raphael and I are gods watching from a distance. “You haven’t done everything yet, Helene. You still have another chance to live a normal life.”

I get up from the bed to stand right next to the window and press my forehead against the glass. There’s a woman on the street getting her purse snatched. The thief makes a run for it while she stands helplessly in the middle of the crosswalk. Her head swivels around in search for a helpful samaritan, but every bystander walks past her like she’s made of air. The woman’s gaze falls to the cement as drivers curse her to cross the street. Her mouth rounds to project a cry of despair.

“I don’t think I want to live a normal life,” I say, turning from the window.

Raphael reaches for my wrist, stopping me in my tracks. “I think I can change your mind. Next week, there’s going to be a holiday fair in Grand Central. Come with me.”

Raphael’s invitation comes off more like a command, but it’s a tempting one. “There’ll be ice skating, and we can drink overpriced hot cocoa, and we can shop for Christmas presents.”

“I thought you had exams this week.”

“We can go this Sunday. I’ll have all my homework and exams done by then. A whole day of normalcy with just us. No werewolves. No magic. No worries. How does that sound?”

“It sounds too good to be true if I’m being honest.” As cynical as my reply appears, I’m actually really excited.

Raphael sees through my tepid facade and squeezes my hand with a firm pulse. “I promise it’ll be worth it. Trust me.”

“Okay. I’ll trust you.”

The rest of the week passes by fast and painlessly. I’ve healed enough to discard my bandages and walk on two legs with ease. A powerful breeze ambushes me up front, causing me to shiver. Winter in New York is brutal, but it doesn’t stop its people from going out to have fun. Rafik lets me borrow his downy coat; it insulates heat so well that I’m sweating. Every breath I take releases white fog into the crisp air. Todd huddles close to me from underneath my coat. His head is exposed just enough to view our surroundings. A sharp gasp strikes us both when we arrive at the scene.

Long strings of yellow lights swirl around tree trunks, glowing gently in the dark. Flashing red candy canes decorate the entrance and inflatable Santas and reindeer lazily sway in every corner of the park. Neon signs flicker messages wishing ‘Happy Holidays’ and ‘Merry Christmas’ in twenty different languages. A hoard of children run by while munching on caramel apples while their broke parents chase after them. All of a sudden, I realize that I’m trapped in a winter wonderland. I don’t want to leave.

Maria and Rafik whisper among themselves, giggling at my awestruck reaction. Snow flecks their hair and piles on Rafik’s beard. They pull up their hoods and shiver from both excitement and the cold.

“Are you happy now, Helene?” Raphael flaunts a teasing smile that’s meant to annoy me, but I’m so distracted by all the lights and cheerful air that I nearly forget about him.

“I can’t believe this is Central Park. They do this every year?”

“Every year,” Maria sings. Her eyes pop at the sight of a woman hauling a new coffee machine, and she tugs Rafik in the direction of the nearest booth. “Honeyyy! I want a new coffee machine.”

Rafik tries to argue back, saying that they had already bought their last coffee machine three months ago, but it proves futile. Maria drags Rafik, leaving a long winding trail created by Rafik’s heels digging into the snow. The defeated expression on Rafik’s expression makes me laugh, and I wave them farewell.

“I guess it’s just us then.” Raphael looks at me expectantly. He seems less serious now. His body assumes a loose stance to show that he’s relaxed, but there’s a challenging essence in his eyes when he searches me up and down for clues. “What? Aren’t you going to drag me off to a booth and make me buy everything there?”

I smirk back at him and when a little girl rushes past me holding a pair of ice skates. It gives me an idea. “Actually, I was thinking we could ice skate instead.”

“Ice skating?” Raphael turns up his nose at the thought while I imagine myself doing swirls and figure eights. He laughs. It’s a condescending laugh that ages him from inside out. “We’re not ten.”

I oppose his condescending attitude with a counter of my own. “No. We’re not. We’re old souls trapped in the bodies of teenagers. Now are you going to ice skate with me or not?”

I watch as Raphael’s lips spread out into a thin and forced smile as he marches forth to the rental booth to order us both a pair of skates. By the time he comes back, I’m already sitting at a bench, waiting for his return. The sight of people fearfully grasping onto the ledges is enough to entertain me. They’re awfully awkward on their feet. The metal blades on their skates wobble side to side as they desperately try to maintain their balance on the ice. Meanwhile, there’s a boy who glides over the ice so fast that he closes control and rams into a whole crowd of skaters. Those who are too slow to move away get knocked down by the boy. They fall hard.

Raphael arrives with our skates with a confused look on his face. “You’re a size seven, right?”

I try to smother my impressed reaction, but it seeps through. I play it off as flattery instead. “Aww...you remembered!”

Raphael and I sit down next to each other to lace up our shoes. I end up finishing first and have to help Raphael. Even though I’m focused on lacing, I can feel Todd’s gaze locked on Raphael’s shoes. He’s fascinated with the pattern and how I decide which of the frayed laces connect to which hook. When I notice that Raphael has been quiet for too long, I speak up.

“Why are you nervous? You’re a professional skater.”

“Skateboarder,” Raphael corrects me. “There’s a huge difference between that and ice skating.”

“I’m not going to let you fall if that’s what you’re afraid of.” I finish hooking the last lace and pull it tight. After I tie it twice, I begin doing the other shoe.

“I’m not scared of falling.” There’s a hard edge to his voice. It’s so serious that I chuckle under my breath. “I don’t want to look...dumb.”

“Well, we can’t be our best all the time, Raph. How else are we going to learn?”

I pull Raphael’s laces taught and hear Raphael wince. “Too tight?”

“No,” Raphael shakes his head, but the discomfort is still evident on his face.

“You’re stubborn, Raph. You’re more stubborn than me.” A nostalgic smile creeps onto my face, and I quickly discover that my smile is contagious. “It’s okay to look dumb sometimes. It’s even more okay to laugh at yourself. But,” I connect the laces to the last hook and double knot it. “Because I care about you so much, I’m not going to let you fall. Now get up.”

We both rise to a standing position and waddle our way towards the ice rink. The skates are heavy and clunky on our feet, but I quickly get used to it. As for Raphael, he has a lot more adjusting to do.

We approach the entrance where hundreds of other skaters are already skating on the ice. Raphael holds his breath, and I look at him. “Ready?”

Raphael nods and we both step in. Raphael’s immediate instinct is to grab the ledges. I let him. I figure that it’s better to allow him to get used to his new environment.

“How are you feeling?” I ask as I glide next to him. Whereas Raphael’s knees rock from beneath him in a first attempt to skate, I already feel myself immersed in the ice and snow. I feel lighter than before.

“Shaky.” Raphael’s foot catches against the blade of his other skate, causing him to slip. He would have fallen on the ice if it hadn’t been for my quick grasp. I clutch his wrist and pull him up. Raphael holds onto the ledge for his dear life, huffing with quick pants.

“You’re okay.” I tell him as I hold him up. A subtle blush rises to his face as he brushes me off.

“I’m fine.”

“There’s no need to be embarrassed,” I whisper but Raphael still turns away. A seven year old girl skates past us, leaping off the ice and pulling all her limbs inward to perform a single axel in the air. She gracefully lands on the ice and slides around on one foot backwards. Her expression remains perfectly serene as if the intense spin left her without any ill effects.

“Show off,” Raphael grumbles.

I smack him on the arm, but my attack harmlessly bounces off his thick coat. “Give the girl some credit. If you concentrate, you, too, can get to her level.”

Raphael turns his humiliation towards me. He glances down at the perfect placement of my feet and asks, “How come you’re not tripping and falling like me?”

“Isn’t it obvious?” I momentarily leave Raphael’s side, kicking my skates to glide backwards. With my eyes closed, I manage to glide around crowds of people without running into anybody. I do figure-eights and lift my leg up ninety-degrees to perform camel spins. I can even glide around with long lazy strokes that propel the rest of me with minimal effort. Raphael rolls his eyes, but all it does is send ripples of encouragement to my pride. “I learned how to ice skate a long time ago.”

“Who taught you?”

Raphael tries to turn to face me, but his brief release from the ledge earns him an accidental leg split in the process. I stop by to help him up. The harsh brake of my skates scrapes the ice, splashing him with snowy white powder. Raphael stands on his feet with an especially vexed look on his face.

“Let’s make a deal, shall we? I’ll tell you all about my mysterious teacher if you manage to skate without holding onto the ledges. Deal?”

Raphael lets go of my hand and huffs. “Deal.”

I tell Raphael all he needs to know about skating which isn’t much. “Relax. Don’t fight the ice. Don’t push too hard. You’d be surprised how easy it is to move with such little effort.”

Raphael struggles at first. He has a habit of leaning backwards to maintain his balance which earns him a few pointers from me. He grunts and stumbles to his knees at times. But each time he stumbles, he gets back up. Eventually, Raphael weans his reliance on the ledge and gradually makes his way towards the center of the ice rink. I try my best not to hold his hand. A great teacher once taught me that the best way to teach someone is to let them learn for themselves.

Raphael strokes the ice with his blade which pushes him forward. He keeps his arms outstretched to keep his balance. When I see him lean forward, I warn him.

“Straighten up! That’s right! You’re doing it!”

Raphael slowly gains confidence. I keep a good distance away from him, occasionally speeding up to encourage his persistence.

“You’re slowing down!”

Raphael’s visage twists with pain. I see his feet collapsing inward and warn him. “Careful! Straighten your feet!”

“I can’t! My feet hurt!”

Raphael turns around and heads towards the exit. I follow him out. We sit on the bench together as Raphael frantically undoes his laces and yanks his feet free. He massages his ankles and toes, ecstatically moaning from relief.

“Crap...my ankles are bruised.”

I giggle at his wiggling toes. The pungent smell from his shoes is horrendous, torturing my poor nose. “Yeah. It’s normal. Eventually you get used to it.”

Raphael looks up from his feet and holds my gaze. A victorious grin spreads from ear to ear and I know what he’s about to say.

“Alright. I kept my end of the deal. Now tell me, who taught you how to ice skate?”

I lean back against the bench, tilting my head over the back piece. The moon is voluminously full and round. It’s so huge that I can point out each individual crater in its surface. I remember that the moon is a paradox. It is the most inconsistent celestial body, having multiple phases and two different faces and yet...it’s the only thing that’s managed to stay the same during my 800 years as a werecat. The rest of the world has continued to change.

“My late husband taught me.”

Raphael sits up so quickly that it appears as a blur in my peripheral vision. I turn to face him, smiling shyly as I do so. “I only ever married twice. The second one was a total sweetheart.”

“When?”

“During my fourth life. I remembered that I loved him a lot. I even had a daughter with him. It’s such a shame that I can’t remember their names, let alone their faces.” I crane my head to search the empty night sky. Even though I don’t see a single star, I know that there are billions out there. They’re twinkling balls of flaming hot gas hidden by light pollution.

“Are you serious? You really can’t remember him? Not even a name?”

I shake my head. “Everything I know about him is fragmented and scattered beyond salvaging.”

My hair falls in my eyes, and I blow it away. Raphael’s face is so rigid from dismay that I pity him and love him all at the same time.

“Raph? What life are you on?”

“Third.”

“Ah. You’re still young in werecat terms.”

“I know that sound.” Raphael tenses up and eyes me suspiciously. “It’s the sound of bad news. Just come out and say it already.”

“It’s not so bad.”

“Don’t sugar coat it.” Raphael’s gaze is so intense that I feel myself shrinking into my coat. “Just tell me.”

I tear my gaze away and focus on a couple holding hands on the rink; they are two girls. One of them falls flat on her ass and the other girl takes a moment to laugh at her love first before bending down to help her up. They share a brief kiss before skating again. The touching sight makes it easier to speak.

“One day, when you’ve lived as long as I have, you’re going to forget about me. My face will become a blur and my name will dissolve like an old dream.”

Raphael pales in horror, but I go on. “Don’t look at me like that.” My voice breaks into a whisper. “It’s only natural. Ever since I got shot, I had a lot of time to figure things out. Our mortal brains have a limit. If we remember everything, we’ll go insane.”

“But you’re a person!” Raphael stammers. “It’s normal to forget the meals you’ve eaten the day before and the clothes you worn but you...How can I possibly forget about you?”

“Hey! Hey…” I cradle Raphael’s face in my gloved hands and pull them close. I give him a reassuring look as I stare into his frightened eyes. Raphael strokes my hair and runs his hands on my cheeks. His eyes flit all over, trying to memorize every curve and edge of my features so desperately like I’m going to disappear right in front of him. “You won’t forget all of me.”

I breathe out a shaky breath and tell him, “Like I said, my memories are all scattered fragments. When I ice skate, I remember bits and pieces of him. I remember how he used to laugh each time I fell on my ass and how he spun me in the air. When I eat pound cake, I remember that it’s his favorite dessert. And when I brush against something soft, I remember how fluffy his hair used to be. Even when I can’t remember much, I still know that he existed and that I loved him a lot.”

Raphael looks at me with tears in his eyes. It makes me feel more guilty than I’ve ever felt before. “I’m not trying to scare you. I just want to tell you in advance so you could enjoy the time with the people you love. So that you don’t freak out 300 years in the future when you can’t remember my name. So that you remember to have fun when you can. You don’t have to be so serious all the time.”

I run out of words and wipe a tear falling from Raphael’s eye. It’s a cold wetness that soaks my glove. A genuine smile breaks through Raphael’s sadness, instantly brightening our gloomy mood.

“Well then? I guess that means I should do this since I’m going to forget anyways.”

I want to ask what he meant, but I find out when Raphael pulls my face in for a kiss. His lips are the warmest thing in the night, delicate and butter-soft. I inhale deeply as his tongue licks my bottom lip. He sucks it gently. I quickly forget all about the cold, the snow piling on our heads, and our cruel limited memories. That’s the thing about life. Occasionally, good things come by to make living more bearable. Raphael’s love is one of those good things.

I kiss him back enthusiastically. Each brush of my lips quickens until I’m grabbing onto his neck. I want it to last forever. I like not having to think. I like how Raphael sighs against my mouth and how he shivers when his bare neck is exposed to the cold. I desperately want this feeling to be real.

But like all good things, our intimate moment comes to a short-lived end. We’re interrupted by the sound of people chanting. The snow covered ground quakes from the impact of marching feet. Raphael and I pull apart and turn towards the source of the commotion to find a crowd of protesters, all fully dressed from head to toe in winter wear. Their faces are concealed with bandanas and other kinds of face masks to hide their identities as they march onwards. They wave their painted signs while chanting.

“HANDS UP!”

“DON’T SHOOT!”

“HANDS UP!”

“DON’T SHOOT!”

I turn to Raphael for an explanation. He stares at the protesters, and I can’t read what’s on his mind. There’s longing in his face like he’s actively suppressing the urge to get up and join them. There’s only one thing that’s stopping him.

“C’mon.” Raphael doesn’t wait for me to get up. Her yanks me by my forearm and frantically runs towards the booths where all the shoppers collect in hoards. “We need to find Maria and Rafik and get on out of here!”

“Raphael!” We zig-zag through the crowd in our socks. The ground is freezing cold, but there’s so much commotion that I can’t focus on my numb toes. I nearly run into a man who shouts at me, warning me to watch where I’m going. “Can you please tell me what’s going on?”

Raphael yanks out his phone to call Maria, pressing his device so harshly to his ear that I’m afraid the screen would break. His anxious frown tells me that Maria didn’t pick up. He tries to call Rafik instead. A beep sounds through the phone, stressing Raphael even further.

“Last month, a black man by the name of Royce Floyd was unjustly killed by a police officer and now people are really angry.”

I hear a bottle break from a distance followed by a woman shouting, “FIRE!”

People scream, some from fear and others in exhilarated rage. People begin to push and shove each other to get out of the way. Tables turn over, causing the breakage of countless gift shop items. The vender screams, horrified.

Raphael and I run along with a stampede of people. We give up on finding Maria and Rafik, hoping that they are also running for safety. Police sirens wail around every corner, deafening my ears. Raphael holds onto my hand tightly and leads me to a tree. We climb up the tree, squatting on a high branch to watch the chaos unfold.

“I’m sorry.” Raphael whispers. A whole squad of officers run into the scene, waving their batons. They clash against the protesters, dragging some and spraying others. I’m so shocked that my mouth glues shut. “I knew that there was going to be a protest. I just didn’t think that it would happen here.”

Gunshots fire from down below. I whimper at the explosive sounds and cry as a teenage boy falls to the ground. A rubber bullet has hit him in the head, rendering him unconscious or possibly dead. Todd wiggles out of my coat to jump into my arms, and we hug each other tightly. Raphael squeezes my hand hard enough to crush my fingers.

Even though I’m terrified, I look over my shoulder to check how Raphael is doing. My stomach lurches as I take in the haunted look clouding his eyes. Raphael has retreated somewhere deep in his mind, his own personal hell. I remember that this is how Raphael died the first time. Explosive gunshots sweep in all directions. People scream and sob for mercy. Officers hover over any person they deem an opponent, unaware that both protesters and those caught in the middle appear to be all the same. Signs lay scattered all over the ground with wet snow smearing their painted words.

Justice.

Black.

Rights.

Freedom.

They’re smeared beyond recognition as protesters in cuffs are haphazardly thrown in the back of police cars.

“Raphael…” My voice cracks. I shake him by the shoulders, begging him to return to me. “Raphael…I need you.”

He slowly blinks, clearing the horror from his eyes. I keep talking to pull him back. “I’m going to get you out of here, okay? I’m not going to let anything happen to you. I promise. Look at me.”

Raphael’s gaze meets mine and I summon all my confidence, real and fake, to encourage him. “Let’s go home.”

We leap from tree to tree, careful to avoid being seen by the police and protesters. It’s not hard. They’re so absorbed in their rage that they don’t bother to look up. We continue to tree hop until we approach a street. Every intersection is blocked off by police cars and traffic cones. We resort to scaling the buildings to find our way home.

Broken glass shimmer on the ground. Several shops have been pillaged and set ablaze. They burn quickly. Every commodity has been looted, leaving for a hollow frame to haze.

Raphael takes a step back to leap over the rooftop but hesitates when he sees me standing motionless. There’s an uneasy feeling in my chest that tells me to stay. I look up at the sky. The moon seems so much bigger when I’m standing ten stories up. Its bright milky white washes out my skin, engulfing me whole. I’m entranced.

“Helene! We have to keep moving!” Raphael shouts at me from the ledge. His voice barely hits my ears.

“There’s a full moon…”

“Yeah! I see that! Now let’s go!”

When I don’t budge, Raphael stomps towards me. My dazed demeanor manages to cut through his fridgidness. It’s only when he looks up at the moon as well he understands my trail of thoughts.

“This is bad.”

“How many pharmacies do you think they burned down?” I remove my gaze from the moon. Its celestial luminescence makes my vision fuzzy. I blink twice to clear the fog, and a small buzz sounds from Raphael’s pocket. Raphael takes his phone out to read the message, pressing his lips together in a firm line.

“All of them.”

Raphael and I head towards the nearest Walgreens to find it burned as well. Bottles of medication roll across the street as fire sets the entire pharmacy ablaze. There’s a woman crawling on the ground, searching the area with feverish movements. She scrutinizes each bottle she picks up with hunger in her eyes and throws the bottles into the fire in frustration.

“Where? Where?” She sobs.

Her gasps are equivalent to a dying fish. She appears to be in a great load of pain. I approach the woman slowly with my hand raised. “M’am?”

The woman flips over a large panel which used to be part of a door. Her eyes widen when she sees a crushed bottle underneath. She dives for the bottle, reading the label with a hope lit face. Her face darkens just as fast, and she tosses the bottle in the fire.

“Where? Where?”

“Excuse me?” I approach closer. Raphael cautiously watches the both of us from afar. The crackling fire is deafening and the smoke chokes my lungs.

The woman turns to me in a jerky motion. She’s startled, having just realized my presence. “Stay away!”

“I’m not going to hurt you.” I keep my tone steady and lowered. “I want to help.”

“I–I need my medication.” The woman licks her dry lips, and I take a step closer. Dark purple circles surround her sunken eyes. There’s an animalistic look to her with the way her hands droop downward like paws. She wants to run, but she can’t. Her joints are severely swollen. She seems pale under moonlight.

“I know. Or else you’re going to hurt someone.”

The woman whimpers. She looks from me to the moon and back at me. The woman speaking to me is a ticking time bomb. There’s only so much time…

“I’m scared.” Her voice wobbles. She’s one breath away from sobbing. “I need help.”

“And I can help you. You need to come with me.”

A grateful smile sprawls across the woman’s lips, limiting itself to her mouth area. The rest of her remains dreadfully sad. I lead her back to Central Park where Raphael and I had tried so hard to escape, but this time we take her to a deeply wooded area instead. Each step is painful for the woman, so much so that Raphael takes it upon himself to carry her. Just as we approach the woods, the woman is flailing in Raphael’s arms. Her hysterical movements make it impossible for Raphael to hold her. We each realize that the transformation is taking place.

Raphael drops her, and we make a run for it. Both of us hide behind a thick tree trunk and observe.

The woman writhes on the snow covered ground, wailing in agony. She shreds her clothes to pieces. It leaves her bare white skin exposed, but the biting cold is the least of her worries. Black fur infests each bare area of her skin until it conquers her entire body. Her face is now unrecognizable as her skeletal frame shifts and bends to recreate a new form. A four legged beast takes her place. Perky black ears point towards the sky, and a long bushy tail curls over her back. Raphael and I watch in horror as the beast slowly rises on its back two feet. Standing straight up, the beast is as tall as the trees caging it. She tilts her head back to release a piercing howl which penetrates the air.

Raphael and I are so afraid that we forget to breathe.

The wolf’s button nose quivers as she sniffs the air. Her ears perk up. Our scent is strong and she smells us. A red tongue washes over her canine lips, conveying her hunger. Raphael’s next command comes out as a cowardly whisper.

“Run.”

It’s what we’re best at. We split up and head deeper into the woods. The wolf decides to chase Raphael, and I switch directions to follow it. To my not so shocking surprise, Todd admonishes me for it.

What are you doing? Todd’s claws dig into my coat as I run. I hop over bushes and duck under tree branches, running towards the wolf’s heavy footsteps. The goal is to get away from the wolf! Not go towards it!

“I’m NOT leaving without Raph!” I say in between pants. I decide to climb an especially tall tree and scour the area for an enormous wolf. I spot a canine silhouette running between the trees and follow it. When I’m close enough, the rustling from my movements makes the wolf stop in its tracks. It sniffs the air, smelling me out.

I freeze. Raphael spots me in the trees from down below. His expression shifts from bafflement to terror. He silently mouths for me to leave, but I mouth him ‘no’ back.

I face the wolf and extend my hands out. It’s hard to focus when my heart is beating so fast. My hands tremble in the cold winter air. I exhale a shaky breath to steady myself.

What are you doing? Todd asks.

“I’m trying to summon a ring of fire,” I say in a harsh whisper. “What does it look like I’m doing?”

It looks like you’re about to do something stupid. That’s what it looks like!

Offended, I glare at Todd, oblivious of the werewolf with murder on its mind. “Well alright, Genius. If my plan is so stupid, how about you tell me what to do?”

Well I don’t know! Todd says frustratingly. I never came across a manual that taught me how to kill werewolves. I’m also illiterate, so I can’t even tell you even if I came across one! Didn’t you say you killed one before?

“Shirisha and I tried to, once. It didn’t end well. Then who killed the werewolf, then?

“A shaman and a bunch of angry villagers.”

That means we need magic and fire and a whole lot of manpower.

Our thinking session is cut off by Raphael’s scream. “AHHHH!”

The werewolf has caught Raphael in her mouth, one crunch away from snapping him in half.

“NO!”

The trees surrounding us simultaneously burst into flame. The initial shock of it makes the wolf drop Raphael. He falls into a thick pile of snow, cushioning his landing. The wolf growls in anger, swatting at the flames. Her monstrous hand uproots an entire tree with one swat, knocking it to the ground. I’ve never encountered a wolf so strong.

I think I’m going to pass out.

Todd paws at my face, stimulating my sense of touch to keep me conscious. Calm down Helene. We can still figure this out. Breathe. Breathe.

I point a quivering finger at the wolf stomping around, knocking down blazing trees with ease. “D-D-Did you see that? She knocked it down like it was made of legos!”

New plan! How else can you kill a werewolf?

“Silver bullets!” Raphael shouts from below.

“Don’t have those!”

“Wolfsbane!”

“Don’t have that either!”

Raphael takes a moment to think. When an idea infiltrates his mind, he goes to the nearest tree that’s not burning and chops it with a single sweep of his hand. The tree falls to the ground, and Raphael quickly breaks it off into sections. “I say we stab it!”

A nagging feeling makes me hesitate, but we’re running out of options. I leap down from the tree and brace myself for the landing. My feet firmly meet the ground, and I pick up a stake. It’s long enough to be a javelin.

“Do you really expect us to skewer her like she’s some idle piece of meat?”

As if the werewolf understood what I said, she charges towards me at full speed. I jump high, avoiding the wolf’s stampede. The wolf produces a frustrating bark which roughly translates to, Stay still so I can eat you!

No thanks.

I draw the stake over my shoulder and throw. Hard. The stake cuts through the air, grazing the werewolf’s hide. It draws blood but not enough to kill. The wolf growls and charges at me again. This time it’s so fast that I can’t jump. I run straight ahead.

“HELENE!” Raphael shouts.

I run as fast as I can, but the wolf is faster when it’s angry. It lunges after me, tackling me to the ground. My head hits the ground from the impact, causing me to see stars. I’m pinned down under the werewolf’s weight. It crushes me so I can’t breathe. Helpless and trapped, I’m face to face with the werewolf’s bared teeth. They’re a good four inches in length, long enough to bite off my neck in one chomp.

The wolf opens its mouth, forcing me to shut my eyes. I prepare myself for the worst. I expect to see nothing but darkness.

The werewolf drops down to bite, and I hear a loud crunch. Warm liquid splashes all over my face, which I mistake to be my own. I wait for pain to arrive and for my heart to cease beating, but it doesn’t. Whatever the werewolf had bitten, she had swallowed. I hear a disgustingly muted gulp when the werewolf finishes her meal. Her breathing slows as well. She’s partially satiated.

The werewolf crawls off of me, freeing me to sit up. I open my eyes to see the werewolf staring back at me with a casual contemplated glance as if she’s wondering if she should eat me next. Before she could decide, her eyes widen and glaze over. All the life residing in them vanishes, and the werewolf falls to the ground, revealing a large stake sticking out from her back. Raphael stands behind her. He’s so tense that veins strain against the thin skin of his neck as he huffs and puffs from his kill.

“Raphael! You did it!” My voice swells from celebratorious victory. Raphael looks at me with pity written all over his face, and my smile wipes away. “What’s wrong?”

“I’m so sorry, Hel.”

“Sorry?” I scoff. I look all around, searching for our third member of the party. When he doesn’t show up, I ask. “Where’s Todd?”

Raphael remains disturbingly quiet. My fingers brush against my cheek and it comes away with blood. Crimson stains my skin and the scent of it is startlingly familiar. It doesn’t take me long to figure out how I survived.

I drop to my knees and gasp. “No. No…”

My knees melt the snow, charring the hibernating grass underneath. Snow melts all around my circumference. Raphael rushes in, wincing at the heat radiating from my body. I burn off the tails of his eyebrows.

“Helene. I know you’re feeling awful right now, but you have to calm down. You’re going to burn the whole woods.”

“Todd’s dead.” I look down at my blood stained hands, stupefied as to how it could happen. “I–I don’t understand. He was on the tree. He was supposed to be safe!”

Raphael winces. He’s unsure of how much he should reveal to me, terrified of possibly agitating me further. “He leaped onto the werewolf’s back and held on. And when the werewolf tried to bite you––”

“––he threw himself in.” I rise to my feet, screaming and crying at the same time. I punch a nearby tree; it combusts into flames. “God! Why did he have to be such a martyr!” And when the punching fails to satisfy me, I kick at the lifeless wolf corpse lying limp on the snowy ground. “Why did you have to eat my fucking cat! He was MY cat!”

A wolf’s howl sounds in the distance, threatening us both. Raphael grabs my hand and pulls me away. “We need to go, Hel. Hel!”

“What? We’re just going to leave the corpse there for everyone to see?”

“There’s no time!”

Raphael drags me away, but I fight back. A nagging feeling tells me to stay. The feeling tells me to come back.

“WAIT!”

I yank my hand free and run back to the wolf corpse. Raphael chases after me. He’s exhausted and stressed beyond his limits. His jaw locks as he yells at me.

“WHAT ARE YOU DOING? WE NEED TO GO! NOW! TODD’S DEAD SO UNLESS YOU WANNA JOIN HIM––”

I hold a finger up to hush him. It’s barely noticeable at first, but I can feel the ground quake beneath my feet. It starts as a small vibration and quickly grows in turbulance. The shaking takes us both off balance, so we squat close to the ground.

“WWWhhhattt’s g-g-going o-on?” Raphael looks to me for an answer, but I don’t have one.

The ground splits in front of us, opening wide enough to let something through. In this case, it’s someone. A muddy hand grabs at the ledge to pull the rest of its body up. Raphael and I scream. We crawl away as a naked boy wiggles out of the fault. He frees the rest of his lower body by pushing off the ground and steadies himself on his feet.

As terrified as I am, I’m fascinated by the creature standing before me. He appears to be a scrawny asian boy. He has unevenly cropped hair which reveals scars on his scalp and his beige skin is speckled with mud. It’s only when he turns to me with his blue-gray eyes that I recognize him.

I shake my head, struggling to swallow the truth of it all. The boy grins at both me and Raphael, stretching his arms and wiggling his toes. He checks out the rest of his body. When he looks down at his flat stomach, a frown crosses his face, but he gets over his disappointment fast.

“Hel. Raphael.” He greets us both. He laughs at our startled looks and wisely chooses to remain where he is. Raphael responds first.

“Who the hell are you?”

The boy grins at us. Despite being human, he’s still very much feline. “Sorry. How rude of me. My name is Xia Hui Liu. But my friends call me Todd.”