#it's more like a genetic/hereditary curse you have to decide to get rid of

[maggotwithanf]

as someone raised Roman catholic who very much is fucking not any more, the idea that anyone would ever convert is fucking hog wild insane to me. sorry bruh

[enniewritesathing]

Wait, I'm confused... so is this story you're doing now the one where John becomes a werewolf? Why are the people in scrubs torturing him? And why are they so insanely evil? Like, is it for money or science or something? Is it for like, a purpose? Or are they just werewolf racists or something?

Also what happened to The Werewolf, your old story from like 2018 where John becomes a werewolf in the bathroom? Is that a different thing from what John is remembering happened to him now?

Also are werewolves like, a genetic thing in this world? Or they're a trauma thing? Do the people in scrubs know or suspect John is a werewolf? Are they like... evil werewolf scientists or something? I don't understand what's going on at all and I've been following this story for years.

hey anon -- I'm glad you've asked a bunch of questions about this story and it's whole deal because I suspect that it's a lot to try and figure this out

I will preface it with I thought I was gonna be kind of a one and done with this arc in general but boy howdy it got out of hand. I know there's some plot holes and retcons. Bear (🐻) with me.

Why are the people in scrubs torturing him? And why are they so insanely evil? Like, is it for money or science or something? Is it for like, a purpose? Or are they just werewolf racists or something?

So! I made this well before the pack was announced and I was brainstorming this idea that John's a werewolf -- werewolves in my world are very rare in the modern age. They were plenty of them in the old days, but some events happened over centuries dwindled their numbers down to basically nothing (I haven't figured that out and/or if I'm gonna explore that). I've had it in my head that being a werewolf is either caused by a curse/bite from one that's capable of doing that) or it is genetic.

In John's (and Jacob's) case, it turned out to be both (but hereditary's more dominant). However! It's not always apparent -- it can be latent (in his mom's case) and it's still unclear what causes the trigger to be active. It's mentioned that the trigger seems to be varied and not always caused by a full moon -- it can be from an extreme negative emotion as well.

When John was 11, his werewolf side was awakened a little after his father died (and earlier, his brother) almost back to back. Noelle (his mom), didn't know what was happening to him when he came down with a serious/deadly fever. That was when it was discovered that he was a werewolf.

This is brought up in Part 8 in The Werewolf story (back in 2018) and the start of Part 2 in the same story.

As I said, werewolves are rare and the scientists were like 'hey, we don't have much data on that' (most of it outdated by a lot of years)' and so it was decided that John was going to be studied. However! When John -- keep in mind he was 11 at the time and he's just fucking. traumatized from the sudden deaths of his father and brother and he's scared -- was told that he was a werewolf, he was frightened at the potential of him being a monster, that he'll go mad one day and kill people. He's been though a lot.

Charles had an idea that while John was going to be studied, he disguised it with helping him finding ways to control The Werewolf... or maybe getting rid of him. Naturally, that is something you try and find out about when a thing is super rare. You wanna know how it ticks. Why it is, such and such.

He preyed on John's (and to a lesser extent, Noelle's) desire to be normal. That want of normalcy breeds desperation. And

As John gotten older, the techniques were becoming ineffective and they were starting to strain his body... and that's when the experiments started. For what it's worth, the torture stuff didn't start until John was 19-20ish.

Charles is a mad (prideful?) scientist on a serious power trip. He wants to fuck around (and he most certainly did); there's absolutely no morals involved (as we'll see). There may be something up with him and why the hell he's like that. Everyone else is more or less in it for the money in the sense that hey, we have a young, live werewolf, publish the findings and such, ???, profit. Just what kind of limits does a werewolf like John has?

The beginning of The Werewolf story, the one that starts in the bathroom, is when John was a teenager -- I just started out in a flashback before starting the story proper; that brief slip of control.

As for the trauma thing?

Well.

:)

I'll say this -- we're gonna hear The Werewolf's/Vin's side of it in a bit because he has Words for John.

[yellowmagicalgirl]

8 or 13, Krexie

I decided to go with 13. This fic takes place about five and a half years after the events of Wizards; spoilers are only if you squint. Warning for descriptions of illness, and good luck to everyone taking the GRE soon.

13. “No, baby, you’re sick.”

One of the many reasons why Douxie loves Krel is that Krel knows better than to try to wake Douxie up early when he doesn’t need to wake up early. They’ve only lived together for a year and a half, and Krel had figured out not to wake up Douxie early months ago. It’s really nice, especially opposed to a certain familiar and various wizards he’s lived with, all of whom never seemed to understand that Douxie likes to be allowed to sleep in at least once a week.

This is why Douxie knows that if he’s being woken up so early on his day off, something’s wrong. Especially considering that he’s being shaken awake by a pair of hands, so it can’t be Archie. Besides, Archie is supposed to be off visiting his dad right now. There is the chance that one of the Blanks has decided to wake him up, but it seems unlikely. Whoever is disturbing Douxie’s sleep is staying quiet.

Reluctantly, Douxie peels open his eyes.

“Oh, good, finally,” Krel says. His voice sounds off. His nose is a little more cyan than it normally is in his human form. “Something’s wrong with me. I think I’m cursed. We did face off against that wizard who kept throwing potions a week ago, maybe that’s finally taking effect?”

“What makes you say that?” Douxie asks, pushing himself into a sitting position.

Krel sniffles loudly. “I’m leaking some strange fluid from my nose, and my throat hurts, and my head feels stuffed, and -”

Douxie is able to set up a shield quickly enough to keep his boyfriend from coughing and sneezing all over him.

“And that,” Krel says, wiping his nose with his wrist. “Obviously, I’m cursed.”

“No, baby, you’re sick,” Douxie says in as comforting a voice he can manage. Krel raises an eyebrow. “Okay, won’t use that pet name again. But seriously, we all got checked out, and those potions couldn’t have caused disease. If they had, the symptoms would’ve started earlier. So, no, it’s just an infection. Probably the common cold.”

“But, I can’t get sick. No Akiridion has gotten an infection in hundreds of keltons, at least, not that I know of. All diseases are, well, they’d be called genetic here on Earth, both hereditary and just birth defects.”

“No Akiridion has spent as much time as you have in human form, either.” Douxie cups Krel’s cheek, and with his other hand he brushes his fingers against his own cheek. Krel leans into Douxie’s touch. Krel seems like a normal temperature for a human, but it’s not like either of them have a normal human baseline. Still, Douxie is pretty sure that Krel isn’t that bad, but rather just extremely miserable because he hasn’t been sick before.

“Maybe if I change forms this will go away.”

“Remember what happened last time you got really hurt in your human form and tried to speed up the healing process by using your transduction?”

Krel groans. “How do I get rid of this... ‘common cold?’”

“Fluids, temperature, rest. I can double check with Jim’s mom and the computers to make sure common over the counter meds won’t mess you up.”

"Ugh, I hope I can get rid of this soon. I’m supposed to meet up with Seamus and Eli to study for the GRE this afternoon.”

“Generally it takes longer than that to get better. But hey, I’m sure you’ll do fine on the GRE. You’re a genius, especially when it comes to physics.” Really, grad school is more of a formality than anything else for Krel, but Douxie understands how important it is to be acknowledged as accomplished as a master.

Krel's nose twitches like he’s about to sneeze. “It’s not the physics GRE I’m worried about, and that’s not the one we’re doing together. Eli’s an engineering major, and Seamus is a math major. They wouldn’t take the physics GRE anyways. We’re studying for the general one.”

“Ah. Can you study via video call or something?”

“I guess. This is kleb-tastic.”

“You want me to find practice questions online and quiz you?”

“No, you can go back to sleep.” Krel sneezes again.

“I’m too awake. Also, try to sneeze away from me next time.”

♡Romance/Comfort Prompts♡