Down by the river

When you left the forest and returned to the town in the afternoon, you wasted no time and returned to the hotel, so that you could find and cure Fran as soon as possible. You went back in the room but she wasn't there, so you gave her a call on her cellphone immediately.

"Ah... Hello, James... Ha... Ha... Miss me already?" It was Fran's voice, but it sounded like she was gasping. What was she doing?

"Fran, where are you?" You asked urgently.

"I'm... resting by the river... Come find me, James... Ah... Ah!" Her gasps turned into moans before she hung up the phone. You had a bad feeling about this.

You headed to the river to the north-east of the town and drove along it. It was a scenic view as you could see the forest and mountains across the river. The breeze brushing over your face refreshed you, and it made you remember Fran talking about her dream of walking along it with you last night. It was a great idea, except it wasn't happening today.

You parked the car when the road was turning back into town, and continued to search along the river on foot. The sound of the current gurgling over smooth stones drowned out most other noises, but you still caught a series of faint, shaky moans from behind a tree further downstream.

You hurried over, and found Fran leaning against the tree trunk, with her pants off and her fingers rubbing her clit. Several drops of her juice were already leaking out and dripping down onto the grass. You were too shocked to act for a few seconds, while Fran cracked a smile of relief the moment she spotted you.

"James... You're here! I feel so horny... I can't stop... Mm..." She kept moving faster and even decided to drill a finger into the hole.

You swallowed hard as your eyes locked on her flushed, trembling face. Her cheeks were stained pink. Sweat was beading at her hairline and trickling down her neck, and her chest was heaving with every ragged breath she took. Your rational mind immediately realized that the lycanthropy had already taken hold in Fran's body. She was overwhelmed by the urge to fuck and to feast, just like you had been.

And she's so... sexy... Lewd thoughts flooded your mind and you couldn't even look away. Or maybe you didn't want to after all.

"Ah... I tried to help myself but... it's not enough, James..." Fran let out a low, needy moan as her finger pumped in and out of her cunt slowly. "I need you... Please... Come here and help me..." She looked at you with her eyes glistening with a lustful light.

You were salivating. The closer you got, the stronger the scent of her sex that made your mind go wild. You weren't listening to what she was saying, actually, as you were staring at her parted lips. They were pink and moist, and you couldn't wait to have a bite.

Yet you resisted. Or at least you were trying. You gritted your teeth and trembled slightly. You tried so hard to fight the urge to take her that you couldn't even spare the will to do anything else. And from Fran's perspective, she thought you wanted to watch for a little longer, so she continued.

She spread her soft thighs wider and worked on her dripping hole more vigorously, allowing you to get a good view of her juicy flesh that was already throbbing for your touch. Her other hand slid up to unbutton her skirt and squeeze her breast. A low moan escaped from her open mouth as she pinched the hardened nipple between her fingers.

"Look, James... I'm all soaking wet for you... Mm... You don't have to hold back, I know you want me just as badly..." Fran whispered. Your cock was straining hard against your pants, and the sound of her needy begging was only making it worse. You reached out your hand as you were about to lose control.

"Ah... I'm gonna... God... Ah!" Fran moved faster and faster down there, until her body convulsed and she let out a loud moan with a small stream bursting between her thighs and flowing over the grass. And she didn't stop after that. "I'm still... hungry... Don't keep me waiting, James..." Her eyes were fogged over with lust as she released her breast and reached out towards you, trembling with need.

You really wanted to satisfy her desire by claiming her right here, by devouring her, but deep down you knew it was wrong. While Fran was not thinking clearly right now, you still were, and you didn't want to take advantage of her like this. You felt ashamed of what you had done to her last night, and you knew what was the right thing to do now.

With one more push in your mind you took back control. You grabbed Fran's arm and, before she even realized it, pierced her skin with the needle and injected the monkshood solution into her vein.

Fran gasped in pain and withdrew her arm. She clutched her throat and struggled for a few seconds before she collapsed and lost consciousness. Her breathing slowly calmed down in a few minutes. That was a good sign. It meant that she had been cured of lycanthropy.

You carefully wiped her clean, helped her put on her pants for her and sat by the trunk beside her, letting her rest on your shoulder. You stared at the flowing water and sighed.

Fran got cured this time, but what if you weren't so lucky next time? What if you couldn't control yourself and got her infected again? First the vampirism, now the lycanthropy... It seemed that you had only brought horror and misery to your love. Maybe you should leave her to keep her safe...

A few minutes later, you felt the movement on your shoulder. Fran just woke up.

"James?" She sounded confused as she looked up at you. Immediately she remembered what had just happened and checked her pants. She sighed a breath of relief when she found herself dressed up. "I... I can't believe I did that... Why would I..." She blushed with embarrassment.

"It's okay. Actually it's all my fault." You raised your arm from behind and gently held her shoulder with an apologetic smile.

"What are you talking about?"

"I went to the cabin in the forest to meet Dr. Jones' friend, Valerie, this morning. I know my condition now."

You told her everything you knew about the werewolf and lycanthropy, about you being infected and unable to be cured unless you found a voluntary pure werewolf to give you the pheromone necessary to complete the cure, about you being a carrier that unconsciously infected her the last night.

Fran just listened, but you could feel her slightly shaking in your arms. When you were finally finished, she lowered her head and bit her lips as she couldn't find the right words to express her feelings right away. You just sat there and remained silent. The situation was dire, and you hadn't really thought of your next moves yet.

But first of all... You released her and looked her in the eyes.

"Fran, I don't want to get you hurt. You should-"

"I'm not going anywhere." Fran just knew what you were going to say and looked at you with resolve, "I'm not leaving you alone. I'm always with you, remember?"

You really hoped that she would understand that keeping your distance was the only right thing to do, that any risk to her wasn't worth taking. But you should have known better; the Francesca you had known since your childhood times would never back down, not after everything you had gone through together. You let out a long, shaky breath.

"I know. I just… I can't stand the thought of something happening to you because of me. I can't risk infecting you again!"

Fran leaned her head on your shoulder again. You felt her soft blonde hair brushing over your cheek. You cherished her company, and that just made you want to protect her even more.

"Nothing's going to happen that we don't face together. We've already figured out what the problem is, right? Now we just need to find that werewolf. That's our next step, isn't it?"

You nodded quietly. You heard her sobbing softly in your arms, and you couldn't help but follow. For the next 20 minutes or so you just sat there and stared at the river quietly together. The road ahead would be difficult. You didn't know how this would come out, but at least you and Fran were willing to try.

The End of Act 1