DIVINATIONS 
MAGAZINE

Moonlight flares in through the long glass window in the hall. The dance floor looks like a battlefield. Limbs scatter the corners; internal organs pile up; the empty faces of my classmates stare into nothing, their mouths opened wide in their last moments of life. Every inch of the place is stained with the blood of everyone who fell victim to my friend. At least, the monster who was my friend.

     There are three of us left now, hiding underneath a table covered with a thin cloth. Aaron, the small brown-haired boy sporting a black tuxedo, wheezes in one breath after another. Tammy, a blonde stout girl in a dirtied pink dress and long messy hair, sits curled up in a ball. I peer at my white buttoned shirt and beige trousers. The glitter on my yellow nails twinkles into my sight, as I examine myself for injuries. Earlier in the night, Briana painted them for me at my house. I sniff, holding back a choked sob.

     Turning back, I see that the monster named Briana stands several feet away. Underneath the disco ball that glitters starlight, Briana gnaws and slurps at the body of the tallest, strongest rugby player at our school. His name is—was—David and he had stepped up to challenge the beast. Briana’s canine fangs tear into his flesh as if it were paper. He was always cocky.

     She raises her enlarged head. I gaze in awe at the sheer size of her. She has grown at least four feet taller and her body swells with veiny muscles. Black hair sprawls over her back, legs, arms, and the rest of her naked body. Her blue dress ripped off when she transformed. Her green eyes shine like marbles under the disco lights. Blood drips from the torn skin hanging from her jaw. The sight makes me welcome the tears blurring my vision.

     Behind her, the double doors into the hall are sealed shut, The metal pole, once used to open the blinds, is twisted around the handles.

     What happened, Briana? Why did you turn into that … that thing?

     “What are we going to do?” Aaron asks in his quietest voice.

     I shrug and answer, “I don’t know.”

     Aaron’s brow lowers, full of accusation. “It’s your fault anyway, bringing her along.”

     I give him my own disapproving look. “Briana is my friend. Er—was my friend. And I wanted her here.”

     Tammy snorts. We look at her as she lets out a frightened laugh.

     “Whatever,” Tammy whispers harshly. “You just felt bad for what you said about her. You didn’t even give her anything to wear. I had to provide that.”

     I want to tell Tammy that she’s wrong, but her words flood my mind with memories.

     Briana had missed school for several days. No one knew what was happening with her, not even her parents. I tried to text her, call her, video chat her, everything. No response. My worry turned to anger at being ignored. I started to talk behind her back. I told everyone at school how clingy Briana was, how overly sensitive she was, how much of a spastic she was.

     That last one is the one Briana overheard.

     I run my fingers through my hair, my jaw tensing up. Weeks had gone by before Briana would speak to me again. When she did, I apologised several times, all of which she just silently nodded to. The anger in her eyes screamed out at me. In the end, I offered to take her to the school disco. She accepted. When my mum dropped us off, everything seemed to be going well. Briana even danced with me on the floor, a Vimto in her hand, and she was smiling so much that I started to smile too.

     Then the popular girl, Helen, started talking shit. She laughed at Briana, threw snacks at Briana, and told Briana to go home because no one wanted her there.

     I watched Briana move away from the dance floor up to the long window. The moonlight flowed over her, seeming to embrace her. She screamed. Everyone watched her distort violently, her bones snapping and reshaping; she grew larger, tearing out of her dress. Her fangs grew long and horrific, closer to those of a wolf than a person.

     And now here she is, morphed into this unearthly monster.

     Crawling to the other side of the table, I catch a glimpse of a stairway leading to the balcony at the far end of the hall. I had taken it several times when I was helping to pull up the disco ball and tie it to the ceiling. It wasn’t hardwired, just a cheap ball hanging by a cheap rope.

     An idea hits me.

     I turn to Aaron and Tammy and tell them my plan. They take it all in and give slow, nervous nods.

     We spring into action. The other two rush from under the table, making a dash for the stairway. I stay behind, looking right at Briana. Part of my plan is to distract her long enough for them to reach the balcony. I’m not sure if this will work at all, but I have hope. At best, I will bring my friend back to who she was. But at worst, it means putting her down.

     Briana sits on all fours, waiting patiently for me, I suppose. She resembles a giant scruffy dog waiting for its treat.

     Taking a long, quivering breath, I step forward. I keep my chin pressed against my chest, eyes on the floor. My mum, who works at a veterinarian, told me that bowing my head and avoiding eye contact with a wild animal is a sign of respect. I don’t want to think of Briana as a wild animal, but it is difficult not to.

     As I draw nearer, I begin to wonder if my plan would actually work. There’s no guarantee that Tammy and Aaron would make it to the balcony and there is less chance of Briana staying in place if she thought something was up. She could pounce at any moment. I pull my eyes up ever so slightly, seeing the blood, gore and chaos around me. In one move, Briana turned an amazing night into a day in hell.

     Why aren’t you looking at me?

     I stop, confused.

     Look at me!

     I snap my head up. Briana is still sitting patiently, but with a snarling face, her large mouth shining with rows of sharp teeth. The disco ball above her reflects the sinister moon, glimmering like joyful fairy lights against the gruesome scene.

     “Did you speak?” I ask.

     The beast, no longer snarling, nods her head. This is the way I talk, if I want to.

     I nod, not daring to ask how this is possible or why. This is a good sign anyway. It means Briana is still there. I can hold onto hope a little longer.

     “Briana,” I say, “what is this about? How are you able to, well—” I gesture at her presence. “—turn into that?”

The beast blinks. It’s a family curse. Always had it.

     I hear a squeaking sound. Aaron is up at the balcony, gripping hold of the rope. I am still hoping to finish this conversation.

     “You transformed and killed everyone. Killed people, Briana.”

     So what? They were all monsters anyway.

     “But that doesn’t mean—”

     And you’re a monster too. Briana snarls again. You said stuff about me, isolated me, made me feel like an outsider. How are you any different?

     “If that’s true,” I say, “why did you let me live? Why did you leave Aaron and Tammy alive too?”

     The beast looks at the floor, and for a moment, the Briana I know comes back—the shy, kind, insecure friend. 

     Because you three were nice to me. And I want to believe you guys like me. I want you to know how I feel.

     This answer stumps me for a moment, wondering what she means by us being nice to her. Then it hits me. Tammy had provided Briana with a dress, of course, but there was also Aaron. He had given Briana some money for lunch when she had forgotten her own; it may have been that he pitied her after seeing her meltdown outside our English classroom, but he did that.

     As for me, Briana slept over at my house once. We talked about things that hurt us the most. She felt like an outsider because she was not a party person like everyone else. She also said she felt pain so much of the time, and that on the worst nights, that pain became intense, that fear of not belonging became overwhelming, and she just can’t hold it in anymore. I held her close that night, stroking her hair and telling her it was all okay. I didn’t mind. She was—is—my friend and I care for her deeply.

     On the sparkling dance floor, Briana and I face each other. Her snarls soften and eyes widen. She lifts herself up, and seeing this wolf-like creature standing tall as a human would is so strange.I smile, glad she’s coming round.

     Then the disco ball falls fast from the ceiling. The ball smashes on top of Briana. Pieces splinter and fly from her head and her back, spreading across the floor. Briana grunts before collapsing to the ground with a great thwomp.

     I blink, murmuring one word over and over again: “No, no, no, no.”

     Aaron and Tammy rush to my side. Tammy looks at Briana and throws her hand to her mouth. Aaron puts his hands on his hips, pleased with this result. I continue to mutter ‘no’ over and over. We make our way to Briana. She is so still, I could swear we have killed her. But she is still breathing; she sounds like a snorting pig as she lets out deep huffs of air.

     Kneeling down, I reach out to see if she is truly knocked out.

     Briana’s teeth snap open and plunge into my arm. I scream. The fangs pierce through my skin, stabbing into my nerves.

     I pull away and scramble far from Briana, screaming from the pain. I hurl downward by the window where the moonlight beams in, where Briana stood just before she transformed.

     Before I know it, my bones are twisting, my skin bloats and my legs stretch. Hair spikes out of me like a million needles. My nails grow as long and sharp as knives. Hot tears fill my eyes and my screams turn into animalistic growls. My fangs grow long and vicious, barely fitting into my mouth. Briana stands tall, looking pitiful. Tammy and Aaron watch in horror.

     Briana’s tone is almost sorrowful. Now you know what it feels like.

     The monster inside me roars.