I changed out of my pajamas and wore a simple off-white, ankle-length, full-sleeved dress.

It was cold outside so I put on a light shawl. Werewolves usually stay warm, and I'm used to the cold, but the temperature was low, even for me.

I mentally prepared myself for the looks I was going to get from the packmates, but I really had to stand up for myself. I knew what happened wasn't my fault, and Valente's support made me feel a little more confident to step out of the house.

I combed my dark hair, which was now just touching my shoulders, and put some clear lip gloss and nothing else.

I could feel a lot of stiffness in my movement still, my chest still sore from the pain. I made sure I didn't move too fast as I was afraid of what could trigger it.

"You doing okay Ima?" I asked her.

"It's not good Rayne. I'm okay for now, but I can feel it rotting me on the inside bit by bit," she said.

Her words worried me a little, but I tried to stay calm. Hopefully I'll come back home tonight without incident.

I walked downstairs to find Valente and Gramma talking. They looked at me as I came down, covering myself up with the shawl.

"You're beautiful butterfly," Valente said in my mind. I smiled at him in return.

Gramma handed me a small gift box.

"For Frida?" I asked her.

Gramma nodded.

"What's in it?" I asked.

"The same thing I gave her sister on her first shift," she replied. "Take a look."

I opened the box as Valente came to stand beside me. He was curious too.

Inside was a silver amulet with a wolf sitting atop a red dagger, along with a silver chain.

"Gramma where do you find these things?" I asked her. This truly was such a beautiful piece.

"eBay," she said and turned around to face the door.

Valente just laughed and started walking in the same direction. I just stood there standing at them both.

"She's not serious. Is she?" I asked Valente.

"I don't know! C'mon now we're going to be late Rayne," he said.

I moved to lift the pendant, to see it outside the box in better light.

Ouch!

I took my hand back, the tiniest mark of a burn starting to heal on my finger.

"What happened?" Valente asked me.

"Gramma this is real silver. I don't understand," I asked her.

Why would she gift Frida something she can't wear?

"Frida can wear it honey. Let's go now," she said, stepping out.

Valente took my hand in his, lifting my burnt finger to his lips, and leaving a kiss there, softly.

"You're such an adorable dumbass Rayne," he said, pulling me to the door by the hand before I could say anything else.

I heard Ima's slight chuckle in my mind. "Well we sure can agree on that."

...

As the whole pack started to gather around Frida, I realized I was already getting looks that I didn't like. The fact that Valente stood beside me, my hand in his, didn't help.

"I think you should go stand with your aunt Valente," I said to him through the link, motioning my head towards Sylvia who looked absolutely livid.

"Which one of us do you think she'll kill first?" he asked, the sound of amusement evident in his voice.

"Valente! Go!" I said, my eyes widened for emphasis.

He seemed genuinely disappointed to go stand with Sylvia, surely he'd have to hear about our situation regardless of the setting.

He gave my hand a tight squeeze before he left Gramma and me to stand on the side of the circle opposite to where Sylvia stood.

Kristján and his sister Eidis stood there as well. I saw Valente give Kristján a hug and completely ignore Eidis who seemed all too eager to see him.

She was holding onto her brother's arm just to stand and I was surprised at how quickly she'd healed. I still felt sorry for her, so I didn't mind the death glare she sent my way when Valente didn't acknowledge her at all.

The idle chatter around us soon came down to a hush as Frida stood, he pale white dress flowing lightly in the wind. She looked up at the sky to find the full moon now almost nearly overhead.

I'd witnessed first shifts before, but each time it gave me goosebumps.

I could make out the songs of encouragement already making their way through the crowd, as more and more people joined in.

When the words reached us with more clarity, we too started to sing, voices soft. We didn't need to be loud, nobody did. It was just the sounds of our voices for Frida, and as long as she could hear them, it was enough.

Everyone had joined to sing for Frida, our voices becoming one symphony of beautiful sounds, as the first scream resounded in the air.

Frida's scream caused a sharp pain through my chest.

Not now. Please not now.

The fact that I left the vial of Belladonna at home didn't bring me any comfort either.

Please don't scream. Please don't-

Another scream rang through the crowd, rattling me to my bones.

I watched as Frida hunched over, her body twisting and turning, as tears ran down her face through unfamiliar eyes.

Crack!

Her wolf was surfacing, her bones were breaking, and I saw the first bits of fur sprout from her skin, and finally understood what Gramma meant.

As Frida's human body became more wolf-like, her dress ripping and falling to the ground to be replaced by shiny copper fur, I knew Frida's wolf was just like her sister, Freyja.

A silvertooth.

The beautiful pelt covered her so no more skin was visible, but her body continued to morph, and so did her screams.

Each sound leaving her lips, from her screams to her agonizing growls, made me even more restless, the pain in my chest almost tangible.

If only I could reach for it and pull it out of me.

I looked up at Valente and saw him looking back at me with concern on his face. He knew I was in pain.

"Talk to me," he said.

Gramma held my hand. I knew she too could tell that the poison had been triggered, and it wouldn't be long before the pain crossed its threshold.

"I have to go," I told him, another scream from Frida causing me to shudder. My fingers now slowly beginning to shake.

"Go home Rayne, take the Belladonna," Gramma said quietly. "I'll come to you soon."

I nodded my head and started backing away, only to see Valente taking a step in my direction, and Sylvia holding his arm to stop him.

"Stay here, I'll be fine. I'm going home," I told him.

I did my best to leave the crowd without falling down, given how bad my hands were shaking again, the violent movement slowly reaching my legs.

"Run," Ima said in my mind.

I started to run towards my home, but my legs didn't stop at the door when I reached it.

Instead I kept running, going through the woods behind my house, my surroundings giving me a sense of security, but the pain had just begun.

"Run," Ima said again.

"The Belladonna Ima, it's at home," I said, slowly panicking at how I couldn't bring my tired feet to a stop.

"Run," her voice was deeper, a lot more hoarse, sounding more like a growl than anything else.

Just like yesterday, when she had taken control, and there was nothing I could do to stop her.

The panic of losing control settled in and a sharp pain racked my body causing me to fall on the ground, face first.

"Run," came the instruction again, not that I could defy her word, I was on my feet again, running.

I reached the cottage near the running water, and my legs stopped once I was inside.

It was bare and empty, just like last time, but it was much darker than before.

"Ima?" I asked for her, my breaths heavy, but there was no response.

And that's when the pain started anew, more violent than it had been the last few times.

I couldn't help but scream, although it seemed the walls were echoing my agony, and no one else could hear it.

My mind was blocked by an invisible barrier, and I couldn't reach out to Valente or Gramma.

The pain felt like my very insides were on fire, and my skin on the outside was being stabbed by burning knives.

I could feel nothing, but at the same time, I could feel everything. And it was way too much for me.

It lasted forever, or so it seemed, and not for a second did I get used to it. The pain got worse by the second, and I could tell this poison was going to kill me in this abandoned cottage in the woods.

My screams were ringing through my ears, but they sounded foreign, as if coming from a little distance. They were the loudest sounds in that tiny space, before I heard something that drowned out even my piercing cries.

Crack!