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Lich Awakening
Chapter 09: The Girl Who Cried Werewolf Act II

Chapter 09: The Girl Who Cried Werewolf Act II

The monsoon has brought rainfall to Lawton, casting dark clouds and a gloomy mist over the town. The remaining days of August and the first days of September have been mostly spent inside with layers of warm blankets and cups of hot chocolate or strong coffee. The finals of the exams for the quarter are due next week, and everyone is in complete study mode for the weekend. Whoever thought that studying in groups was a great idea was sorely mistaken. Half a day has gone by, and they still practically haven't gone far on anything.

"Is it just me, or does it feel really weird seeing them here?" Matt said, preparing another to heat water. The kitchen was unusually clean today, but that is only because the help came yesterday to clean up. It should be back to its usual messy look later, as soon as Doc gets home and he starts 'cooking' again.

"I think you're not just used to having people around in the manor." Morgan opened the oven, releasing an enticing aroma of cooked pizza.

"They show up on my doorsteps, and she just starts ordering me around like this is her house. Get more blankets! I want tea! Here's a great bag of tea leaves, imported from Africa. Prepare it for us. What do you mean you don't have snacks here? It's ridiculous!"

"I didn't see you complain when she handed you a bunch of books about magic. At least I found these frozen pizzas at the back of your fridge," Morgan said. He put the two whole pizzas back on the boxes to make it easier to bring them into the living room area, where their uninvited guests are "studying".

"Did you check the dates on the box? 'Can't even remember having bought those." Matt leaned against the sink as he waited for the water to boil.

"Nope. I'm afraid to look, but they do smell nice."

"You're just happy Kira's here," Matt teased, playfully nudging at Morgan's elbows.

Morgan tried to muster a smile, but he could not. He is delighted to have Kira around, even Janina and Cedric, since there are more people to have fun with, but something has been troubling him the past few days, and the only person he knows he could freely talk about it with is Matt. Even Matt knew right away that it was what he was thinking about.

The whistling of the kettle pulled Morgan's mind back to where they were as Matt prepared another set of teacups that looked like they hadn't been used in years. "Let me just clean this up first. No one in this house even drinks tea anymore."

"Not since Lola Consuelo died." Morgan is pretty much aware that Lola Consuelo's collection of teacups has been left unoutched since she passed away.

"Have you tried the meditation videos I sent you?"

Morgan nodded. “It didn’t work. The sleepy voice over was just annoying.” Morgan has been hearing a voice. No, it is not the voice of the werewolf that talked to him that night when they were attacked at school, but he started hearing this other voice after that night. It was faint at first, but it grew louder and louder as the days went by.

It is intrusive. Morgan could not understand anything it was saying, as it was coming at him like low mumblings or growling words. It was now distracting from his daily life. Teachers had called him out for spacing out during class and once during basketball practice. What was worse was that this voice seemed to be a trigger for him, and a rude customer got it bad after Morgan snapped at him.

Matt prepared everything on the tray, setting the teapot and three teacups beside two mugs of hot chocolate. "Well, I read that werewolves draw power from the flames of hell." Matt picked up the tray, gesturing for Morgan to pick up the pizza so they could head back to the living room. "If that is where your powers are coming from, I would think rage would be a staple emotion for you."

Matt has become somewhat of a walking encyclopedia on magic after spending the past few weeks learning everything he could about his magic. This is his new obsession, which has no possibility of ending anytime soon. It is all good until he slips into his insufferable, know-it-all fact-spitting mode, and it is annoying. The problem was that, because of this intrusive voice, the slightest annoyance could set Morgan off the same way he bit off the head of that rude customer. He caught himself before he did the same to Matt.

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“Quick poll. Aside from me, what else has been annoying you lately?”

Denying it would have been the long and wrong way out, with the unending questions that will come right after, so answering with the truth was the best choice.

“Well, I’m still taking half of Greyson’s shifts. He’s milking this broken guitar for all it’s worth. I’ll give him that. And then there’s this weird, annoying, and quirky old lady that’s been frequenting Crimson, glammed up with funky purple shades and a pink feather boa. She always asks for extra ice. We’re in the mountains in Tagaytay, and it’s been raining for weeks. How much colder do you wanna get?”

"Feeling better?" Matt asked with a wide, childlike smile.

Morgan took a deep breath, and after thinking for a few seconds, he nodded his head. Venting out the things that were troubling him did make him feel better about himself, even just a little bit.

"That lady with the pink feather boa is one sassy grandma."

"Tea's ready!" Matt announced as they entered the living room. All the antique chairs and sofas were pushed to the side while pillows and blankets were thrown onto the carpet. A tall lamp light is dragged in the middle, holding up the makeshift fort they have created. It was a warm and cozy spot to enjoy hot tea and chocolate while the rain continued to rumble outside. Cedric had no qualms, spreading out his arms and legs, eyes closed, and feeling right at home. Janina peered over a magazine while still busy applying nail polish to her fingernails. Kira seemed to be the only one studying, although she appeared to be staring at the book more than she was reading it.

"What took you guys so long?" Janina asked, peering over a magazine while busy applying nail polish to her fingernails. She then raised her hand and waved it, making sure to be careful not to ruin her nails. An old, empty cup suddenly appeared on the tray Matt was carrying, while the new, warm cup appeared on a side table near Janina. Matt groaned out of jealousy. "You know we can clearly hear you from here."

"You know there's only been about two to three people at max in this house at all times for a long while that I never had the need to eavesdrop. Thank you for letting me know our walls are thin." Matt scooted over and grabbed a book and a blanket to cozy up in a corner.

"From what I know, what you're hearing is your inner wolf," Janina said, taking a sip of tea, her fingers daintily touching the cup.

Morgan was immediately terrified at the thought of having a wild animal speak at the back of his head, but it was no surprise to see Matt spring up with gleeful interest now that magic is the topic of conversation. Even Kira gave Janina a look, as if asking why she would even open this conversation when they should be studying.

"Isn't studying the werewolf tribe part of the whole Blood Moon ritual thing?" Janina sat up straight, fixing herself. As if her new topic will move away from magic. Matt's interest did not falter. "I saw Sara studying about them when she was supposed to be the maiden."

"Yeah, right!" Kira exclaimed, looking relieved. "It is part of the ritual."

"I thought the Blood Moon festival was about the formation of the Tala O'Ra Coven," Matt said, setting aside the math book he was holding. "Why would werewolves be involved?"

"As you may already know, werewolves also draw their power from the moon," Janina said, blowing on her nails. "A Blood Moon is a more potent source of power for them. It is said that during a Blood Moon, a real one, the earth's atmosphere is flooded by a sea of blood, which is old people speak to say that the light of the moon turns red. Now they say that some werewolves who look upon the red moon see it as a gateway that lets them peer into hell, their true home. It makes them lose control and become feral, attacking anyone and everyone in sight, almost always ending killing the people that they love." She stopped for a dramatic pause. "Or so I heard."

"She's just making stuff up," groaned Cedric, who sat up straight and rubbed his eyes, only to lie on his back again.

"No, I am not!" Janina said with a wink. "I mean, it's true. Right, Kira?"

"Who knows?" Kira shrugged.

"Okay, so what does that have to do with the witches of the coven?" Matt rested on his stomach, putting his arms under his chin, like a preschooler listening carefully to an interesting folktale.

"Well, they say that one of the witches of the town had a special connection with the Blood Moon like the werewolves did," Kira continued. "The witch also got to peer into the Blood Moon, and instead of seeing hell, he met a maiden that granted him power. And with that power, he was able to subdue all of the feral beasts that threatened Lawton." Kira watched as Matt's interest grew before saying, "Or so I heard."

"She's just making stuff up too!" Cedric groaned as he turned to his side, yawning.

They all started to laugh, dismissing the story as a fun folktale. They all turned silent, this time focusing on the nearest book on any subject they could grab, reminding Morgan that the important exams were quickly approaching. It was just one of the many things worrying Morgan, and adding to that list was Janina's seemingly harmless story, now lingering in Morgan's mind. What if he was one of those werewolves? Would he lose control and hurt everyone?