Chapter Text
“Is everyone good for now? Does anyone need another drink?” Motus asked the seven young monsters who were happily munching away on homemade peanut-butter and white chocolate chip cookies and a couple of bowls filled with popcorn; each having their own soft drink. Even Calculester had a little cup of water despite that he couldn’t eat or drink, but Motus knew how much the robot wanted to fit in so she brought him one anyways.
“No thank you Ms. Motus, I think we’re alright for now!” Vicky smiled politely as she sipped on her can of Whisk iced tea
“Alright then! I’m going to check up on the roast, call me if you all need anything!”
“Thank you mom!” Oz called after Motus as she exited the party room
Everyone chimed in with the thank you’s and Motus happily turned back and smiled at them as she left.
“Your mom is so nice Oz!” Scott said with a mouthful of cookie, “She makes cookies that are almost as good as my grandma’s!”
“I’ll say!” Amira commented as she grabbed another cookie, “And your grandma makes some banger cookies!”
Zoe tossed a bit of popcorn into her arm mouth, “She has always been so sweet! I remember when I first met her all those years ago! Me and Oz were but little tater tots back then!”
“Heh yeah,” Oz chuckled remembering when he first met Zoe.
She was still Z’Gord at the time, and due to the Fall of Man earth was slowly beginning to form chaotic tendencies both in nature and humanity. Monsters were beginning to rise and Z’Gord came to when they were old enough to be released by the great Eldritch Gods of Past. It still needed time to absorb energy so it spent a while crawling around as a little purple blob of mouths, tentacles, and eerie green eyes.
Oz, at the time, would’ve been around five in mortal years and he was rather frightened by the blob of organic parts, but then the two began to play and bond with one another and since then a friendship stronger than time came to be. Motus acted as a sort of maternal figure to Z’Gord, taking care of it when it came to play with Oz. Yet as time flew by and more chaos took over, Z’Gord’s hunger for mortal madness began to become hard for it to ignore.
All those years of them going through their own eldritch and celestial lives, Oz missed his buddy ever so much and he and Motus had worried over it for years. But ever since Vicky found the totem Z’Gord was imprisoned in to protect the world from its destructive behaviors and took it to prom, the God of Chaos was now living her best life as Zoe the Eldritch Cutie; and Oz couldn’t be more happier to see his childhood friend and his more current friend be a loving couple together.
Speaking of Vicky, she was now standing up next to a giant white board that she used quiet often for projects, planning, and for solving mysteries! Thank goodness Oz had the ability to use portals and teleportation, because it was a massive board!
“Alright!” Vicky began as she popped of a lid to an orange dry erase marker and drew a little Oz face on the board, “So! Ozzy has a beautiful silver savior who whisked him away from the blazing gymnasium and now we must find her to ensure that Oz gets to meet the possible love of his life!”
Zoe cheered and clapped while Oz’s face went dark with blush and his eyes widened to circles, “J-Just because sh-she saved me doesn’t mean we’re like soul mates or anything!”
“But Ozzy, what if Vicky is right!?” Zoe put her hand and octopus arm on Oz and pulled him in, “This could be your chance to find true love! Ya’ know, the thing we were talking about this morning!?!”
“But I don’t want to be finding her just to smooch her!” Oz furrowed his brows in annoyance, “That would be really weird and creepy!”
“No, it’s not gonna be creepy!” Vicky jutted in, “Besides, we’re not gonna find her for the sole purpose of finding a true love for you, we gotta thank her for saving our buddy; right guys?!”
An assortment of agreements went through the room as Oz sighed, “Well I do agree that I want to thank her... And I want to see if she’s alright after she had to go to the hospital.”
The memory of hearing the wolfen girl’s breathing be replaced with raspy, short coughs still haunted his mind. He had to know if she recovered, and that he wanted to apologize for tripping her in the hallway too.
“Good, now that we’re on the same page; let’s begin to break down who this mystery girl may be! Can you remember anything about her Oz?”
Oz put up a finger on his chin and tapped it, “Well... I didn’t get to see her humanoid form very well, but I can remember what I saw of her wolf form.”
“Great, we’ll start from there!” Vicky then took out a black marker and drew a simplistic yet cute little drawing of a wolf, “How about her fur? You said it was a silvery-gray, yeah?”
“Yeah, and that she was super fluffy, and was pretty tall; she carried me all the way from the hallways to the campus plaza as if I didn’t weigh much!”
“Oh my!” Zoe swooned jokingly, “Being whisked away by a strong and beautiful maiden? Hot.”
Oz playfully gave Zoe a nudge as they both laughed a bit as Vicky was adding some stuff to her wolf drawing. Now it had large muscles and looked as fluffy as a pomeranian,
“Good, good we got some more details! Okay so in both forms werewolves have features that you can point out! Like you Scott!”
Scott then looked up with his mouth full of cookies, “Mpph-huh?!”
“You have brown hair, and when you turn into a wolf you have brown fur!”
Scott swallowed his food and his tail began to wag, “Yeah I do! My tail also stays the same color pretty much! I think my eyes kinda stay the same too?”
“Well they get all shiny and yellow when you’re under a full moon,” Amira thought out loud, “And how do we know if this girl is the same size as when she is in her wolf form? Scott usually gains a few good inches when he shifts
“Heh, do you also say that about his c-“
Amira threw a piece of popcorn at Zoe before she could finish her sentence, “SHUT!”
“Hm, yeah you do have a point,” Vicky tapped the marker against her free hand and she began to write more notes down, “Okay so maybe there are some key features that are more appropriate. Going back to the fur and hair color, Scott said werewolves usually have the same color of fur as their head and their eye color can stay the same but there may be slight differences here and there...”
“Um okay let me remember... Her voice! I kinda remember how her voice sounded like!” Oz exclaimed
“Atta boy Ozzy!” Vicky beamed as she added a note on that, “Okay, so how did she sound like?”
In the back of Oz’s mind there was the blurry memory of the girl telling him to get up after she tripped over him in the hallway. It was faint but he remembered some features, “I couldn’t see her very well, and her voice was drowned out by the alarms and the screaming, but it sounded very light and sweet. Kinda like Miranda but without the underlying murderous tendencies.”
Vicky quickly wrote that down, “Okay, okay; good! Did it sound the same as her wolf voice?”
“I don’t know, all I remember is her coughing...” Oz remembered out loud somberly, “She sounded like she was struggling a lot to breathe...”
“Maybe she’s asthmatic?” Brian asked curiously
“But there was smoke, she inhaled so much I remember the cough started when she was rushing down the halls with me!”
“While you are correct, Friend Oz,” Cal came in, “asthmatics can be even more sensitive to smoke inhalation. If you two weren’t in there for very long and she was running, perhaps her lungs were having trouble getting the proper air her organic lungs needed.”
“Hm true. Her breathing sounded like there was a rattle in there and she seemed like she was gasping even after we got out...”
Remembering it all brought Oz back to it, his chest tightened again seeing her collapse and the inner self-esteem issues began to rise up, and he was just about to exclaim how it was his fault she collapsed; Calculestor beeped,
“I can make this even easier for us all! If you can us more details while Friend Vicky keeps taking notes, I can put all this information into my data base that is connected to the internet and I can find which students at Spooky Academy match closely to it! Boyfriend Brian even helped me to install a new printer if I can pull up pictures!”
Oz’s eyebrows went up, “You can do that?! Since when?”
“Since Boyfriend Brian needed my help to find someone!” Cal said casually with a proud “: )” on his screen
“Someone owed me a few bucks,” Brian shrugged
“What for?” Amira asked
“Weed.”
“Ah. Gotcha” the djinn nodded back to the zombie
“Okay so let’s make a list of what we know,” Vicky went back to the white board and made a bulletin list of details
“She uses she/her pronouns, has a light and sweet voice. Was it more feminine, Oz?”
“Uh her voice was pretty femme, yes,” the fear monster nodded
“Cool!”
“You tryin’ to assume someone’s gender, babe?” Zoe snickered, “I thought I knew you~”
“Pfft,” Vicky snickered as she shot her girlfriend a playful look and waved her hand at Zoe while she laughed, “Anyways, so we know she is a werewolf of sorts. In her wolf form she is taller and has silvery-grey fur, has a sweet, light voice, and that she is pretty strong and tall and possibly has asthma.”
Vicky looked at the bullets with the features, “That doesn’t say much...”
“I can start narrowing down the students by pronouns and species first!” Cal pointed a finger up
“Yes, do that Cal!” Vicky pointed the marker at the robot
“Affirmative!” Cal smiled with a “: D” and then his screen went into a loading bar, “NOW SEARCHING SPOOKY ACADEMY STUDENT DATA BASE!”
After a quick minuet, another beep was heard, “I now have access to the entire student data base at Spooky Academy! We should narrow down what we know to make this search more efficient!”
“Okay! Let’s start by seeing who matches our description the best! Go for it Cal!” Vicky pointed at Calculester
“Certainly!” a loading bar appeared again and then a long pause followed by a beep, “I have no records of a student with those qualities who attend Spooky Academy.”
“Wh- Where did she come from then?!” Vicky placed her hands on her head and threatened to pull on her poofy locks
“Maybe she’s a Scary Academy student,” Brian pointed out, “Today was that big announcement of the merge. She might’ve been on the other side of the gym.”
“Oh yeah! Where would we be without you Brian?” Vicky pointed to him with a big grin
“Probably not having a good time,” Brian chuckled
“Do you know anything about Scary Academy’s students Cal?” Zoe asked the robot
“I can see what I can find. I used Spooky Academy’s yearbook records to search for students on our campus, maybe I can access Scary Academy’s yearbook online. NOW SEARCHING.”
A much longer seeming minuet passed and a happy beep came up, “I have seemed to have found a possible candidate for our mystery student!”
“Awesome!” Vicky pumped the air with her fist
“NOW PRINTING!”
A panel of metal on Cal’s thigh opened up and a printer was revealed and a small photo was printed out.
“PRINTING COMPLETE!”
Brian took the small photo and squinted his eyes, “Hm. Not exactly the clearest picture I’ve seen.”
“Lemme see,” Vicky rushed over and took the photo. It was a black and white yearbook photo that was so blurry that only the outline of the person could be seen and their facial features were well below barely visible
“Aw Cal! You should’ve told me you ran out of ink!”
Cal made a “: (“ face at Vicky, “I apologize Friend Vicky. I don’t use my printer very much. I am as you living organisms say “self conscious” about it. It’s not as good as Chanon in the library.”
“Hey, you’re far better than that bulky printer babe,” Brian smiled and held Cal’s hand to help him feel better
“You are very kind, Boyfriend Brian,” Cal beeped with a “<3” on his screen, “I thank you.”
“Yeah don’t worry Cal, you have done more than I could ask for! Sorry if I came off as mean,” Vicky fiddled with her hands feeling the guilt rise in her chest
“You are in no worries Friend Vicky,” Cal responded with a “: )” on his screen, “I understand you are looking out for my well being.”
“Guess we have to find another way to look for this chick,” Amira sighed as she rubbed her temple
“Ooh! Ooh! Maybe I can help!” Scott raised his hand excitedly as if he were in class
“Let’s hear it!” Vicky pointed at Scott with the picture still in her hand
“Maybe I can sniff out all the werewolf students tomorrow! I can even get my cousins to help!”
“That’s... not a bad idea! Way to go Scott!” Vicky swung her arm in a chummy way
Scott’s tail began to wag so hard it threatened to knock over the table as his tounge lolled out of his mouth, “I’m being such a good boy!!!”
“Yes you are my puppy dog,” Amira sweetly cooed at her beloved as she scratched under his bearded chin and behind one of his ears as he made a happy doggy noise and leaned into his partner’s loving.
“Okay so we have a sort of plan now!” Vicky clapped her hands together before she went about drawing out the plans so far on the white board
“Still, what if she has to be in the hospital for a while? Or she has to stay home? Or she died!” Oz began to panic as his hands reached for his hair to pull on it
“No, don’t go there,” Vicky lightly scolded her buddy, “We don’t know if she’s severely hurt or dead! She may be recovering right now and she’ll be back at school in no time!”
Oz looked away as he nervously picked at his shirt hems, “I hope you’re right...”
“Kids!”
Everyone looked to the door way where Motus was standing in, “Dinner’s ready!”
“Aw sweet, I was starving over here!” Brian smiled as he got up
“Woo! Roast time!” Scott yipped as he got up in a flash
As everyone exited the room Motus pulled Oz aside, “How did it go? Have you guys managed to figure out how to find her?”
“We have sort of a plan now, yeah. I still can’t remember much about her to help much...”
Motus patted her son’s head gently, “Whatever you can remember is enough help already dear. Don’t underestimate yourself, okay?”
“Okay mom, I’ll try,” Oz nuzzled into his mom’s hand
“Good. Now c’mon, we don’t want dinner to get cold!”
Night stretched over the horizon as the sun was allowing the moon to take over for the evening. The stars accompanied the celestial body as it glowed a calming silvery-white over the land.
Oz walked through the forest, feeling as if he had seen this place somewhere but yet he had never been here. The tall evergreen pines gently swayed along with the wind as it created a curtain of comfort and uncertainty.
“I must be near Camp Spooky then...” Oz thought out loud to himself
He couldn’t seem to look down at his attire so see if he was wearing his monster scout uniform but he could see his hands. They were blurry though... and seemed like he couldn’t feel them. Odd.
He looked around again, the grass was green and crisp and under the cover of night it had an almost dark blue hue over it. There were small white flowers that hid in-between the blades of fresh grass and there was a lightly beaten path in front of him.
Usually Oz knew better than to follow an unmarked area in the woods, but something compelled him to follow.
As he let the path lead him further into the forest, more of the white flowers began to line the path until they seemed to replace the grass entirely. The moon seemed to allow its light to be reflected off the delicate petals as if they were stars themselves.
The silvery-white light of the moon then began to grow in intensity as Oz saw the flowers collect together in an open grove. The wind gently moved them as if they were dancing a gentle waltz and every now and again a petal would come loose and join the path the wind created.
It was tranquil. Quiet. Relaxing. Unlike what Oz felt on a day to day basis.
He felt his legs give in and he sat in the grove, feeling the soft flower petals under and in-between his fingers. He picked one up and examined it. It had a small purplish center that faded into the white in a slight gradient.
The wind kicked up again and Oz let the flower go, yet it was now accompanied by small particles of silvery-white light as it was carried away.
Oz realized he was now surrounded by these little floating specks of light and he looked around to see where the source was. Soon enough he caught a glimpse of something amongst the trees. It was a glowing form, radiating the same color of light as the particles and the moon.
It appeared to be a wild animal of sorts as it didn’t move for a bit to examine Oz. Figuring out whether or not it was safe to approach him.
Oz’s nerves were telling him to bolt and run, but the uncanny feeling of serenity anchored him to the ground.
The form seemed to float into the grove as its appearance became clearer as it carefully walked towards him.
It was a giant, glowing wolf that was the source of the magical particles that floated into the wind.
As they walked closer, the flowers seemed to flourish and more of them appeared as their paws made contact with the ground. They paused for a moment to look at Oz curiously with their brilliant green eyes that looked like they were dipped into the same green the forest gave.
They walked a little closer, and closer, and closer, until they were looming over Oz; their fur illuminated by the shining particles of light that streamed through each little strand of fluff like a wind rolling across a grassy plain.
He looked up at the creature who was now tenderly looking at them. His fingers ached and itched to let them pet the wolf’s fur but Oz wasn’t sure if he was allowed to do that and kept his hands to himself.
The wind rushed in his ears and a hushed voice was carried by it, almost like a far away whisper. It was faint but he could hear it,
“Is it you?”
Oz’s eyes seemed to sparkle as she said that. It was her! The voice! It sounded just like her’s!
Before he could respond, the glowing wolf began to heave and then let out a hoarse cough. Glowing particles rushed out of her mouth as she went into an uncontrollable coughing fit that followed with labored, rattling breaths.
Oz tried to reach for the wolf but the wind was now blowing even harder and there was a new scent in the air.
Smoke.
Oz looked around as the calming silvery-white light was replaced with flames of angry red and orange. The fire licked at the trees and set them ablaze as dark plumes of smoke fumed the air. The fearling looked back to the wolf but she was gone as the fire continued to burn the forest.
The grove became a wall of fire as Oz was trapped within. He wanted to curl up and hide, but that would be foolish of him. He couldn’t escape, he was ensnared by the untamed flames; and they were hungry.
The fire then seemed to swirl around Oz and before the blazing light could consume his flesh, he found himself gasping and sitting up in his bed.
The fearling held his chest and looked around. He was safe in his room on his bed and the only sound that could be heard was the faint rhythm of lo-fi that he used to fall asleep to.
Oz looked over to his bedside clock and it read 3:35am.
“It was all a dream... Just a weird dream, that’s all...”
Yet... the glowing wolf, was she real? Her presence seemed like there was an alluring power to it. Not as strong as a celestial’s but it was enough to let her speak to him. It was her... he was sure of it! But what if it was just his mind recalling everything that happened today?
He sat there, in the quiet of his room with only the soft hum of the vent to accompany the lo-fi and looked idly at the heavy curtains that surrounded his bed frame; incase he needed a darker space to rest in.
He looked down at his hands and flexed them a bit as the words the wolf said echoed in his mind. He mindlessly began to rub the creases of his blanket together,
“Was it really you?”