#i say sometimes because the way the hunt manifests for daisy is actually kind of unnerving

[astranauticus]

im not sure if this is a bug or a feature but like when the entities have to manifest like actual concrete powers for their avatars sometimes it just comes out slightly silly like the desolation people are all just. good at arson. peter lukas is just a Guy who can turn invisible sometimes. jon occasionally gets random useless trivia put in his head. hysterical

[sad-trash-writing]

Bite Me, Ch. 7

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Daisy was still shaky as Jemma guided her home. She was in such a daze that she didn't even realize that they had passed through the maze of tunnels, the dorm lobby, and the elevator to get to Jemma’s front door. 

Jemma kept an arm loosely wrapped around Daisy's waist until they were fully inside the apartment. The blackout curtains were still pulled back from the night before, letting the early morning light stream into the living room, where Daisy stood awkwardly. She had no idea where to go from this point. She was exhausted, physically and mentally and her mind still felt like a jumbled pile of words and feelings.

Jemma’s voice drifted into her consciousness, gently asking if she wanted to take a shower. Daisy nodded slightly, not sure if Jemma was actually asking her or if she was imagining it.

Jemma’s hand gently pressing against her shoulder answered that question. In a matter of moments, Daisy was in the spacious bathroom with a fluffy towel and a change of clothes in her arms. Jemma placed a hand on Daisy's shoulder and gave her a comforting smile, muttered something about breakfast and left Daisy alone in the bathroom.

Daisy cranked the hot water up and stripped off her borrowed, baggy clothes. Her hands were coated in a fine layer of dirt up to her elbows. She had bits of grass and mud still caked under her fingernails and a few flecks of dried grass stuck to her skin. On looking down, she noticed her feet were in a similar state. 

Daisy glared at her reflection in the mirror, staring herself down as if any minute her dark brown eyes would shift to a brilliant gold and she was telling them ‘don't you dare.’ She clenched her hands into fists, half expecting that they would be fur and claws instead of skin. 

Everything felt off. Like she was a stranger in her own skin. Or there was someone else in her head with her.

Daisy nearly didn't recognize herself in her mirror. Sure, she looked exactly the same, but somehow her reflection seemed sharper. She glanced around the bathroom and everything her eyes landed on seemed the same. Tiny, nuanced distinctions in the paint on the walls that Daisy would have never noticed before suddenly stood out loudly. Small print on Jemma’s shampoo bottle across the room was suddenly legible.

Daisy frowned. Her vision had never been bad but the way she was seeing now made her feel like she had been blind all her life. 

She tore her eyes from the reflection and stepped into the scalding shower. She spent way longer than normal scrubbing every inch of her skin, trying to get rid of the memory of wind through fur. She squeezed her eyes shut when the memory of Coulson and May filtered through her mind, but she couldn't push it away. 

She finally turned the water off, wrapped herself up in the towel, and stepped out of the shower. 

  Her stomach growled loudly and the smell of bacon drifted into the bathroom through the thick steam from the shower. Everything else could be put on hold. For now she needed food.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

“I talked to Coulson.”

Jemma’s voice finally broke the awkward silence of breakfast. For most of the meal, neither party had wanted to talk, but Jemma finally spoke up. Daisy just hummed an acknowledgement. 

“He's spoken to the pack and found you a transitioner. And he'd like you to meet them this evening,” Jemma finished.

Daisy's stomach dropped. She was hoping to have at least another month before she had to deal with this...werewolf business again. Or at the very least, one night. Apparently the universe had different plans.

“Oh,” was all Daisy could muster.

“He said it didn't have to be until later, so you could get some rest, but he thinks it's important you start immediately,” Jemma muttered. She could definitely tell Daisy didn't want to talk about this. 

Daisy just nodded in acknowledgment. They finished the rest of their breakfast in silence. Afterward, Daisy offered to help clean up, but Jemma shooed her away to go take a nap. Daisy wasn't going to argue with that too intensely, so she shuffled back to Jemma’s bedroom, collapsed into her plush bed, and slipped into sleep in seconds.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ “So, Lincoln? That blonde, guy who wandered into the lab the other day?” Daisy asked.

Jemma nodded tersely. “He's done this before, so Coulson thought he would be he best choice to help you out. And he’s been a werewolf the longest of the group, so he seemed the logical choice.”

Daisy frowned. “Is there something wrong with him?”

“No, why do you ask?”

“Well, you seem to have some issue with him,” Daisy countered. 

Jemma flushed slightly. Daisy chalked it up to Jemma being out in the sun. “No, there’s nothing wrong with him. In fact, he’s brilliant at what he does. He just… I don’t know. He doesn’t like to follow people’s directions very well.”

Daisy quirked an eyebrow. “That’s why you’re annoyed with him? Why are you not constantly annoyed with me, then?”

Jemma rolled her eyes. “Believe me, I frequently am,” she replied, but with a slight smirk. “I was annoyed with him because I advised both Coulson and him that it wouldn’t be a good idea to have you meet the pack when we still weren’t sure of your status. I told him I would be bringing you to the lab and asked him to stay out of it for that afternoon, so we wouldn’t overwhelm you. Apparently, he decided that coming down to meet you anyway was a good idea.”

“Oh.” Daisy muttered. She appreciated Jemma’s concern, but she wasn’t too traumatized by the brief meeting with Lincoln, just a little startled by the suddenness of it. It seemed like there was something else that Jemma wasn’t saying, but at that moment, Daisy saw Lincoln leaning up against a light pole by the coffee shop they were headed towards. 

He perked up when he saw them approaching and strode over to meet them. “Hey, Daisy. We’re so excited to have you join the pack,” Lincoln said when he caught up to them. 

Daisy cringed. “Well, sorry. I’m still not in the excited phase of this whole thing.”

“Oh, yeah, of course. Perfectly understandable. There’s so much that you’re dealing with right now. But, that’s why I’m here. To make it a little easier for you,” Lincoln explained.

Jemma had disappeared for a moment, but reappeared by Daisy’s elbow with something crumpled up in her hands. 

“What is that?” Daisy asked. 

Jemma scowled. “Another Watchdogs flyer I saw hanging up.”

Lincoln mirrored her scowl. 

“Um, Watchdogs?” Daisy glanced between the two. 

“They’re a hate group that’s been trying to recruit on campus lately. They’re strictly against any non-humans 'tainting' their cities,” Lincoln explained with disgust. 

“But I thought you guys— we— were a secret.”

Lincoln shrugged. “Sometimes the secret gets out somehow and people don’t react very well. Most people who don’t know about us just think the Watchdogs are delusional. Don’t worry too much about them, though. The campus is safe as houses.”

Lincoln placed a hand on Daisy’s shoulder in a comforting gesture.

“Well, I didn’t take enough of my potion today, so the sun is getting a bit much for me. I’ll leave you two to it,” Jemma blurted. Daisy noticed her eyes dart between herself and Lincoln, before she turned on her heel and marched off. Jemma threw the crumpled flyer at a trash can so hard, Daisy thought she saw a dent poke out the other side. 

“So, shall we get started?” Lincoln asked.

“Sure. Get started with what exactly?”

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

They ended up in the woods surrounding most of the campus. Only the Erebus school students were allowed in the woods (though, apparently, the only regulars were the werewolves on full moons and a few witches), so they knew they were have privacy while they talked. Lincoln led the way, strolling through nearly invisible paths in the foliage. Luckily, Lincoln did most of the talking, so Daisy could just listen and ask questions. 

“No one is really sure where we came from,” Lincoln explained. “The prevailing theory is that thousands of years ago, when humans first moved into cities, they tried to repress and get rid of their more 'wild' urges with magic. Somehow, it went wrong and they ended up splitting themselves into human and wolf.”

“How the heck did they manage that?”

Lincoln shrugged. “We’re not really sure. It might have been around the time  they were domesticating wolves and tried to transfer part of themselves onto the wolves. It might have that the spell turned that part of the person into a wolf and that’s why they changed. No one really knows, because no one wanted to write it down. All we know is that sometime after that point, werewolf images started spreading around all sorts of cultures, so we’re probably all the descendants of those few people.”

“Great,” Daisy muttered sarcastically. “So, we’re genetically cursed because someone turned their bad thoughts into a wolf.”

“Not bad,” Lincoln clarified. “Just wild.”

“Yeah, like the urge to kill things. Which is bad,” Daisy countered. 

“It’s not just to kill things. It’s a hunting instinct for survival. The more violent urges come from pushing all those instincts down and repressing them,” Lincoln said. 

“So, what. Turning into a werewolf is all because we repress our feelings?”

Lincoln cringed. “Yes and no?”

“Very clear.”

Lincoln chuckled. “The wolf part is a manifestation of our natural, basal instincts. The need to run and hunt and just be around nature. The stories of violent werewolves destroying and killing is the result of people being too pent up and enclosed in urban spaces. Also, mostly exaggerated negative propaganda. When we’re given this kind of space to move around—” he gestured to the trees around them— “we’re actually quite tame and in control.”

“If all we need is space, then why did the dean put me in a fence for the first time I turned?” Daisy asked, trying to keep the bitterness out of her voice. 

Lincoln flinched. “Honestly, the way they handled your transition was not great. They haven’t had someone go through the change on their campus before, so they weren’t really sure how to go about it. All they knew is that newly turned werewolves tend to be really confused and unpredictable, so they figured the best way to handle that was to keep you contained.”

“Which actually made it one thousand percent worse,” Daisy finished for him.

“Pretty much.” Lincoln cringed. “I suggested the pack could be on standby to help out, but they were still convinced you weren’t going to change, so they shot me down.”

Daisy’s eyes narrowed. “What do you mean? Did you know I was going to change?”

Lincoln looked abashed. “We can sort of tell who is and isn’t a werewolf. You know that there’s a genetic component to lycanthropy, right?”

“If lycanthropy is 'being a werewolf, then yes.”

Lincoln nodded. “Even before a potential werewolf changes, there’s something that we can sense in each other. It’s not really a scent, just a feeling. Sometimes werewolves will seek out unchanged werewolves and try to change them, because of this.”

“Like whoever bit me,” Daisy said. A shudder ran up her spine from the memory. 

“Exactly.”

“Have you figured out who it was yet? The one who attacked me,” Daisy asked.

  “Unfortunately, not.” Lincoln frowned. “The whole pack was accounted for that night and nowhere near where you were attacked, so we’re trying to figure out how another werewolf got on campus without anyone knowing.”

“Are you sure?” Daisy prodded. 

“Yes. We’re a very small pack and everyone was together that night,” Lincoln defended. “And I know my pack and none of them would change someone without their permission. They know what it’s like to be forced into it.” 

Lincoln suggested they head back towards campus, so Daisy had to file away further questions for another day.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

The next day, Lincoln signed himself and Daisy up for a private yoga session. Apparently it was to 'refamiliarize Daisy with her own body and mind' while also giving her a chance to stretch out her abused muscles. 

Thankfully, they didn’t start at the crack of dawn, because Lincoln and the pack shifted and went for another run last night, which Daisy didn’t even realize they could do.

“The whole process of shifting involves energy. It takes a ton of energy to shift form like we do, so we pull it from the full moon. That’s not warrior pose, Daisy.” Daisy huffed and tried to twist her torso into the position the video instructor was demonstrating. She spun her arms trying to keep her balance while her legs shook trying to support her body weight.

Lincoln continued his teaching, oblivious to Daisy’s struggling. “When the moon is at its peak, that’s when it’s easiest for us to shift and it’s nearly impossible to resist shifting. The days before and after, it’s still possible to shift with practice, but takes a lot more energy. Some months we just like to have the extra days together. I figured you would still be exhausted from your first shift and probably not want to join us this time.” 

He wasn’t wrong. The residual memories of the last time made Daisy want to go as long as possible without shifting again. She couldn’t imagine wanting to do it more than she had to. 

“So, other than running around all day, how do you control the wolf-brain?” Daisy asked. 

“Well, you have to acknowledge that the wolf brain is your brain, first. The only biological difference werewolves have to normal humans is in our brain stem, which controls instinctive action. Actually, my dissertation is on the variation of neurobiology among non-human persons, and I’d like to have another werewolf in the sample if you—” Lincoln cut himself off when he noticed Daisy’s blank stare.

“—Nevermind, not the time. Anyway, the wolf part of your brain is basically the same as your normal brain, but since it’s new, it feels unfamiliar. Once you familiarize yourself with it and everything it wants, you can assimilate it into your normal stream of consciousness and you’ll be more in control. When you try to fight or push away the wolf part of your brain, that’s when you start to lose control of yourself.”

The video instructor twisted herself into some impossible position and Daisy lost her balance and fell on her ass.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

A few days later, it was decided that Daisy should move into the werewolves’ floor of the complex, since she officially was one. Jemma spent her weekend helping Daisy pack up her stuff and move it down to the fifth floor. Most of Daisy’s stuff was still in boxes from the last move, so it was just a matter of making multiple trips up and down the elevator and shoving the boxes into her new apartment. 

Daisy was thankful that the rest of the werewolves seemed to be busy, so they weren’t around the floor while Daisy moved. Once all her boxes were situated, Jemma, who had been unusually quiet all day, offered to help her unpack. 

“I think I can manage. I just need to figure out where to put everything. Thanks, though,” Daisy responded. 

Jemma just nodded. “I’ll get out of your way then. If you need me, you know where to find me.” She gestured to the ceiling. 

“Got it,” Daisy said, with a mock salute. “And…thanks. For everything this past month.”

Jemma smiled. “You’re very welcome.”

With that, she left and Daisy was alone in her new place. 

It was set up similarly to Jemma’s apartment, but was significantly more bare. Obviously, Jemma had plenty of time to decorate her place with all her accumulated things from 400 years of life. Daisy had a lot of catching up to do in that department. 

Daisy rolled up her sleeves and dove into the first box she could reach. 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

“So, are you like the alpha of the pack or something?” Daisy murmured. 

The coffee shop where Lincoln decided to meet was on the side of campus favored by the Erebus students, but they still had to be cautious. Still, he offered to meet Daisy again to answer some more of her questions and orient her a bit more, since the next full moon was coming up. 

Lincoln wrinkled his nose at the comment. “No, definitely not. I think Elena would kick my ass if I even suggested that.”

“Is Elena the alpha then?”

Lincoln chuckled. “She’d probably like that. The thing is we don’t really have alphas and omegas or whatever humans like to attribute to normal wolves. Even normal wolves don’t really follow that model in most circumstances. The pack is more of a…team, I guess. We keep an eye out for each other, work together, support each other, et cetera. If we had to hunt to survive, we’d do that together, too.”

“Huh.” Daisy took a sip of her coffee. 

“So, don’t worry. There’s really no hard and fast rules with the pack. We usually head out for runs together, but after awhile everyone sort of does their own thing. Honestly, sometimes it’s just really nice to take a nap in the woods,” Lincoln said with a chuckle. 

Daisy had to laugh at that. Part of her brain seemed to relish the idea of curling up under a tree and just relaxing. The other part of her brain thought that was crazy since her new memory foam mattress was so insanely comfortable. 

“Hello, Daisy.” A familiar voice pulled Daisy’s attention from Lincoln. 

Jemma stood beside the table where Daisy and Lincoln were sitting. She had her coffee (or, knowing Jemma, tea) in her hand already and a pair of dark sunglasses perched on her head, despite the overcast sky.

“Jemma! It’s been awhile. Grab a chair,” Daisy greeted, brightly. 

“Oh, I wouldn’t want to interrupt anything,” Jemma replied, her eyes darting between Daisy and Lincoln. 

“You aren’t. We’re just talking about wolf stuff. Right, Lincoln?” Daisy prodded. Lincoln nodded in agreement. 

“Really, it’s fine. I—I’m meeting Fitz in the lab in a bit. I just wanted to say hi,” Jemma said.

Before Daisy could say anything else, Jemma had turned and headed for the door, flipping her sunglasses over her eyes as she went. 

Daisy frowned. “That seemed weird,” she muttered.

“I get the feeling that Jemma doesn’t like me very much,” Lincoln said, sheepishly.

“Why do you think that?”

Lincoln shrugged. “Well, usually when we’re working in the lab together it’s fine. We even collaborate on our research sometimes. Lately, though, anytime I bring up you or werewolf stuff in conversation, she gets really quiet.”

“How often do you bring me up?” Daisy teased.

“Not that often. I just figured she’d want to know how your were doing with everything. You guys seem close,” Lincoln said. 

Daisy frowned again. She glanced at the door Jemma had just retreated from, wondering what that was all about. She knew Jemma was occasionally frustrated with Lincoln, but that should all be in the past now, right?

Eventually, they finished up their coffee and headed to their separate classes. 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

This time, Daisy was alone in her own apartment when the date circled in red crept up. At least she knew what to expect this time around. There was no question on whether or not the full moon would affect her this month. 

Even though the sun had set completely, it was only early evening, since winter was approaching, and Daisy was trying to finish up some homework. A knock on her door pulled Daisy away from her coding. 

When she opened it, Lincoln stood there, with a woman and a man Daisy hadn’t met behind him. He waved slightly in greeting. 

“Ready to go?” he asked. 

Daisy gulped but nodded. She grabbed a small bag with a few things she needed and followed Lincoln and these two new people (her pack mates) into the woods.