Hey y'all, I hope you're all staying safe and healthy during these times. Thank you to the ones who take the time to read my book...Sometimes it feels like no one is interested...so I'm going to ask if anyone has any suggestions for future chapters. I already have up to chapter 14 written, but I can add things if anyone wants to see anything specific(no smut as usual). Otherwise the suggestions can go to the next chapters I have yet to write because I've been fairly lazy. Same goes to my mini one shot book I'm very...very slowly writing.

In the morning Asra stayed behind with Julian and they got some sleep. I went out to get Muriel. He came with no words and had to lean on me more than he did before. He's getting weaker, if this keeps happening it could kill him. I try to put that in the back of my mind, but it keeps coming back. It could kill him. I get him in and lay him back down like before. Tears in my eyes, I lay beside him and fall into a restless sleep.

I am woken by Muriel gripping me and shaking. It looks like the sun is going to set in a couple hours. I get up and shake him. "Hey, hey. What's wrong?"

He shoots up, sweat covering his forehead. "Mc!" He holds me and tries to calm his tremors. "I had a horrid nightmare...I turned into this thing a-and I couldn't protect you from myself..." With the commotion Asra and Julian wake up. Muriels eyes dart over to them. "Why are they here?"

Asra speaks up first. "We came to help."

Muriel looks over at me. "I wasn't that sick was I?" He realizes we're all looking at him, unsure how to explain what happened. "What?"

"Muriel, I have to talk to you." Asra and Julian take that as their cue to leave. "Those nightmares..." I sigh and get up, searching for the words. "They weren't...just nightmares."

"What do you mean?"

"Muri...At night you have been turning into something."

He shakes his head and gets up fully from bed. "This is a joke...Why am I naked?" He quickly gets pants on. "This has to be a joke."

"I-its not. Muri, I wouldn't joke about this."

He starts shaking. "There's no way..."

"Muriel..." I start to come over, but he puts his hand out.

"You're not joking are you?"

I sadly shake my head. "No...but We will figure this out." He runs his hands through his hair. "I promise..."

"I-Im not safe to be around..."

"Muri-"

"N-no. We promised to protect each other...H-how can I protect you from something I can't control?"

"Muriel." I step forward and put my hand on his face, caressing his cheek. "If we can't cure this for now...we'll figure out a way for you to control it."

"...what do I become?" He turns his head towards me, tears in his eyes.

"We don't kn-"

"What do I look like?"

I sigh and pull my hand away. "Big...Hairy, animalistic."

He nods. "Like that thing that attacked me."

"I think so...That bite, it must have caused this." I take his arm and trace the scar. "We need to figure out what it was. Whether or not it's magical..."

"I need to...y-you have to leave."

I take his hand. "I'm not leaving you. I didn't leave before, I'm not leaving now."

"I'm dangerous. I'm a monster."

"I don't care. You're my Muri."

He growls a bit under his breathe. "You're not going to listen are you?" He heaves a sigh. "You didn't then, you won't now..."

"Exactly." I try to give him a smile. "I love you. I don't leave someone I love when they need help. Besides, you're still too cute to forget." This time my smile is genuine.

"I love you too. That's why I don't want you here..." He looks away.

I take his head in both my hands and make him look at me. "We defeated the Devil. We can do this." I pull his head down and kiss his forehead. "We're a team."

He doesn't say anything for a long moment. Eventually he mutters, "Fine...but if I turn, you aren't allowed to put yourself in harm's way."

"Deal." I Hug onto him for a couple minutes before he finally hugs me back. We sit there for a long moment; him processing the new information, me enjoying a small sense of normality.

The moment is broken by the door to the hut slamming open. "Mc, Muriel! It's almost night." Julian almost runs into the hut.

Asra walks in afterwards. "Julian, I told you. Mc knows the signs...They've been here longer and they can handle it."

Muriel and I look at each other. Waiting. The sun goes down...nothing happens.

Asra and I look at each other and then outside in pure confusion. "It's happened every night...why isn't it happening tonight?"

Moon monster. "Asra, Faust called him a 'moon monster' could it have to do with the lunar cycles?"

Asra pauses. "How many times did he change?"

"Three..."

Julian chuckles, shaking his head. "Moon monster. This sounds like a story Mazelinka used to tell Portia and me when we were little."

"Julian is this really the time for stories?"

Asra tilts his head. "Wait, mc." He turns to Julian. "What were these stories?"

"She would tell us about creatures that would only come out during full moons. That could be the 'moon monsters'..."

We all look at him for a minute. I break the silence, "You're just now bringing this up?"

"Well, it was an old legend to scare kids. Just some folklore she'd use to keep us in at night. I didn't think..."

Asra shakes his head in slight frustration. "So...it probably does have to do with lunar cycles...Do you remember what they were called?"

Julian shakes his head. "No...It was when we were little. Portia was barely walking."

"So...Mazelinka is our best bet right now..."

"Yes. I just wish we could contact her right now. She's not due back from her trip for about another month."

"We...we can do another month. If this is correct, everything should be normal until then." I sit down on the edge of the bed. "Or at least as normal as it can be."

Muriel sits next to me and I lean against him. "I still can't..." he pauses, searching out the words. "Wrap my head around it." He sighs, closing his eyes and leans back against me. "Those 'nightmares' they terrified me. Part of me is still hoping, wishing, this was a joke." He opens his eyes back up and looks around the hut at all of us. "I know it isn't. If it was Julian would have cracked by now..."

"Hey!"

"Julian, you know you can't keep secrets." He blushes and looks away, knowing he can't argue.

Asra stands up. "Since...obviously Muriel is okay, I'm going to go back to the shop. I need to see if there is anything in my books about this." He starts heading out of the hut, but stops. "If I can't, I'll ask my parents. Maybe they know this story...Do you know what area?"

"Area?" Julian asks.

"Every culture has their own set of folklore. Do you know where it was?"

"No...She was a pirate. It could have been from anywhere."

Asra nods. "Okay. I'll ask my parents." He leaves the hut.

Julian starts to head out. "I need to get back to the palace and see if Portia was able to convince Nadia." He follows Asra out.

"Convince Nadia of what?" Muriel looks over at me quizzical.

I can't believe I forgot. "People have been complaining about a creature...howling and disturbing the general public."

"I got that close to Vesuvia?"

"No, this was before you even got bit."

"The one that bit me then?"

"We don't know. She..." I can't help but tear up. "Hired hunters...to capture and kill the creature."