The scene started to rewind, the party going in reverse until it was nothing more than an empty room with servers waiting to be called upon. Gwady then snapped her fingers and the memories began to play once more. The main doors were pushed open, flooding the place with guests.

Witnessing a masquerade of fake smiles, Wish began to recall all of the guests that arrived and who they were. Until they came across two unfamiliar faces. 

—

“Who are they?” Wish pointed at the guests a few feet from them. The first was a lightly blonde haired lady; complementing her two inch heels, she wore a knee high black dress with a white adornment crossing to her other hip. The second was much less revealing, wearing a long sleeve red and black velvet dress that went down to her ankles.

“Who are you pointing at-” Selia looked in disbelief as she stared at two acquaintances. “Morin? Vardelora? I didn’t know they came to the party.” Looking back, Selia fumbled her words, “I don’t ‘know them’ know them. I’ve just met them… once.” 

Before Wish got a word in to ask more about the strangers at the party, the memory had interrupted them to a very familiar moment.

—

“I know who you are and what you’re doing. I’m not going to let it happen.” The hologram of Wish hissed, sounding like an angered plant with thorns extending from its stem. The memory showed how shocked the archeologist was, leaving her frozen in place, confused and scared to do anything. She watched as the angry secretary walked away with an uncomfortable look on her face, clearly upset. The lively party that was filled with vibrant energy and laughter suddenly felt colorless and cold. Selia felt isolated, lonely, disconnected from everyone in the room. She was better off when she was by herself during her expeditions.

—

A moment of silence as Wish watched herself storm off out of the lounge. “So… What were you talking about?” The real Selia asked politely. 

“Oh- OH! Yeah, I thought you were only at the party to take advantage of my boss at the time.” Wish stuttered, snapping back to reality and fumbled over her own words. 

Shaking her head lightly, she looked to Wish in a bit of shock, “Absolutely not, I have nothing but respect for him. You could say that I have a crush on him. But I’d never take advantage of him!” 

“Yeah, about that…” Wish then shifted her weight uncomfortably. “I hate to be the one to break it to you, but Mr. Surian is married.” She looked away and took in a deep breath, not ready for the archeologist’s reaction. 

Selia took two seconds for the information to sink in and make sense to her. She had to repeat the words in her mind to make sure she wasn’t hearing it wrong. “...Oh. Oh! Oh dear! That’s-....” She chuckled awkwardly and then looked away with sadness. “It’s a little embarrassing. I have all the energy to see the world, but one little party has me standing in the corner… alone.” Selia looked upon her own hologram, seeing the confusion and naivete. “I did invite someone to the party. Someone I knew, but they aren’t here yet.”

Wish’s brows furrowed with discomfort, she didn’t know what to say other than apologize for an action she couldn’t take back. Selia smiled, accepting it. She gave the secretary a light nod as they followed the memory out of the party, and a figure falling behind caught Wish’s eye. “Gwady, are you coming with us?” she asked while raising an eyebrow.

“Break the rules long enough, and the whole system will crash down on you. Where are you under the piles of rubble? Could it be, you’re trapped in a bubble?” Gwady looks at Selia's two acquaintances from top to bottom with a large grin on her face, “I’m coming.” She then proceeds to leave the memory behind.

—

They transitioned smoothly to the next scene outside of the mansion where the party was held. Watched as the secretary got into the car, still clouded with guilt and doubt, wondering if she had done the wrong thing. Believing that removing oneself from the situation was the least she could do to not make matters worse. The engine clicked to life as it started up, and soon enough it drove off.

It took a while before reaching a dark winding road, the rain running down the mountain.

—

Wish’s lips tightened at the memory, knowing what was to come, but unable to look away. 

“I remember this place, I spent so long trying to claw out the mud that I got stuck.” Selia perked up. 

Baffled by the comment, Wish turned and stared at the archeologist. She had questions but held her tongue, wanting to put her focus on the mountain scene for the time being.

—

Both of them watch as the trees go by in the blur of the headlights; Wish felt her mind drift once more, thinking about what she said to Selia and ruining the night for her. The muffled screech of the wheels echoed through the forest as she took a tight turn. In less than a second, the blonde in the car caught sight of some large animal. Startled, she screamed and turned her steering wheel, forcing the vehicle to make a sharp turn. The car veers off the cliff side of the winding road, plummeting straight into the treetops. Impaling the vehicle and the driver inside.

—

“I’m sorry, Wish. I am so so so sorry.” Selia curled up, her hands lifted to cover up her face. “I didn’t mean for it to happen.” 

Wish looked back and forth at the scene and the archeologist in disbelief, her limbs felt cold as the truth settled into her thoughts. “You? That was- That was you?!” She snatched Selia’s shoulders, her tone a shuttered cry.

“I- I didn’t know. I didn’t know what was happening!” Lifting her face, a muzzle and fur grew thick. Changing within moments, she was huddled on the floor, clutching her knees. 

“W- ” Wish released Selia and took a step back, finally getting a good look at the beast before her. She knew other worlds that had this type of living being, but not in her world. “Why didn’t you tell me?! Why did you jump into the road?!” Wish lectured in a frustrated tone.

“Because I was scared!” Heavy tears filled her eyes as she looked up and whimpered to Wish. “I was so scared at the party, because I thought you knew about THIS. So I ran away, trying to seclude myself… only to trip over the mud and tumble into the road. In front of your car.”

Wish sat down beside her. There was nothing she could really say at this point. What’s done is done. While the memory continued on, Wish looked up at the night sky projected above. Together they sat there, surrounded by the sounds of the night; bugs chirping, wind howling, and in the distance, the party went on like nothing happened. 

“It’s not your fault.” The blonde said, manifesting an already lit cigarette to smoke. “It’s just unfortunate. I don’t hold any grudges against you.” 

Selia lifted her head up a little, “...You don’t?” She whimpered. 

“It’s not like I can achieve anything by holding onto grudges anyways.” Wish replied, taking a slow inhale of the cigarette, and shrugged as she explained her thoughts. “I was more curious about the why and how than wanting revenge.”

They sat there quietly for a few minutes before Wish spoke up once more. “So, your um… werewolf form.” Wish then asked, cautious of her words, not wanting to offend the woman. “How-... Were you born with it?”

“Oh, no no no, not born with it.” Selia quickly explained. “It was… more of a curse.” She said at first but quickly corrected herself, “Actually, more like an unforeseen gift. I’ve always wanted to study these folklore creatures.” She struggled to describe it. “I got a call from Morrisville that spoke of some ancient creature that lurked in the forests of Mount Satia.” 

When the archeologist spoke, and the scene whooshed back in time and place to match. It showed Selia in her office, busy with paperwork after an expedition when a phone call came in. 

“The caller was a child,” She continued to speak of it when the phone was picked up. “Said they were worried sick about their mother leaving for days on end and not returning. And scared that a local folklore beast got to her late at night.” 

“Shouldn’t they be calling the police for missing persons? Or even animal control?” Wish interrupted while the memories continue to play in front of them.

“That’s what I said to them at first.” Selia replied.  The office view slowly lost its shape, leaving only simple shapes behind, like bubbles randomly bobbing in the air before they morphed and shifted into the next scene she was thinking about. “They didn’t have anything to pay for my services, but I was curious myself, so I accepted the job.” The memory showed the archeologist speaking to the children. An older brother and a younger sister, giving her a photo of their mother. 

“Evidence of folklore bring a reality are hard to come by, it's especially precious if it comes from where the stories originated. Strange teeth marks, tracks, and disappearances all on this one mountain with a small close knit community. So when they mentioned it, I had to just jump at the opportunity. ” As she explained, holograms of tooth samples came into being, floating in front of them and lined up neatly in the order that Selia remembered them. “I even had some samples of teeth from some of the locals.”