A Series of Unusual Events (Claire’s POV)

(Claire’s POV)

Whilst Dahlia and Yun were away in London, I had the apartment to myself. It was in a nicer area than the apartment I shared with Ed, though admittedly my parents’ mansion was far more lavish – not that I’d ever consider going back. Dahlia had urged me to put more of my stuff in the living room, to make it feel like our place rather than just hers.

Our neighbour opposite, Stanislaw, was away meeting his relatives in Poland and asked if I could look after Tofu, his white Siamese cat. The days aligned with me being off work, so I heartily agreed to cat-sit – though I would have taken a few days’ holiday to hang out with the cute kitty anyway.

Tofu purred on my lap while I watched an anime that Laura’s friend recommended. Ever since Laura learned about skinwalkers, she and I had formed a friendship. That ‘forbidden’ knowledge allowed us to make a connection, as well as having someone to confide with who wasn’t a skinwalker. Though, I had to keep the time Ed wore her a secret.

I texted Laura earlier, inviting her to join me cat-sitting. She declined, replying that she wasn’t a cat person – or so I thought.

I was surprised to see her at the door, but happy nonetheless for the company. I invited her in, warning her about the assortment of cat toys strewn around the place.

Tofu eyed the intruder, arched her back, and hissed at Laura.

“Shh, Tofu, it’s alright. She’s a friend.” My honeyed words did little to persuade the feline otherwise.

“Yep, I’m like the opposite of catnip,” Laura sighed, taking a seat on an armchair.

“Ah, I’m sure she’ll warm up to you, Laura. So, uh, I thought you said you couldn’t make it.”

“I changed my mind. I’m taking a strategic break from my studies. That’s to say, I’m looking for every excuse I can find, even if that means hanging out with a cat.”

Tofu let out a low growl as if she knew Laura was talking about her.

“What are you watching?”

“Oh, just some silly slice of life Sherine recommended, I’ve only watched the first couple of episodes. I can start again if you’re interested?”

“Sure.”

And so we watched television together. Laura and I chatted lightly while Tofu snuggled up against me. Laura offered to teach me how to skateboard as she did for my brother… eh, sister. I still haven’t got used to Ed being Yun, hearing her girlish voice, seeing her shorter stature, with a different ethnicity to boot. She looked much happier too, compared to when I saw Ed come home exhausted after a rough night working at the bar.

“So, are you up for it, Claire? I can ease you in with the basics,” Laura asked, seemingly eager for a new student.

“I think I’ll pass for now. Between police work and looking after this munchkin,” stroking Tofu’s head, “I won’t have the time or energy to skateboard.”

“If only you were a skinwalker like Yun, you could learn everything from wearing me,” Laura teased.

“Uh, I guess,” I replied.

“What? Am I not attractive enough for you?”

I blushed. “It’s not like that, it’d be weird because… we’re friends, you know?”

“Hehe, I’m only teasing, Claire.” Laura laughed, seeing me all flustered.

After a few episodes, the conversation turned to my family. The news of my parents being charged with fraud was brought up by Laura, she was shocked when I revealed that Ed and I were their kin.

“I can’t believe it, I guess Arston isn’t a common last name, but still, I’m sorry your parents got caught up in that,” Laura said, flabbergasted by the revelation.

“Don’t be. They’re guilty, they deserve everything they get.”

“Ouch, I take it that you have a rough relationship with your folks?”

“My father…” I paused, “he demanded obedience from me at every turn, he cared more about his public image than his children’s wellbeing. When my brother challenged him, he threw him out the first opportunity he could. …And when he discovered I was a lesbian, he sought to correct me too.”

“Yikes, I’m sorry you had to go through that… Was your mother any better?”

“She’s, well… I wouldn’t say so. She was so passive throughout, she didn’t care what happened so long as she maintained her life of luxury. It’s not like she’s weak-willed or anything, she was the vice-director of the bank. Ed and I suffered under our dad, and she saw nothing wrong with that,” I exhaled, my hands clenched in a fist.

“As far as I’m concerned, they’re not my family. I’d rather be homeless than crawl back to their mansion,” I finished. It felt good letting all that out.

“I see…” Laura murmured, and silence fell between us, filled by Tofu’s purrs and high-pitched voices from the TV.

Laura left after a few more episodes, saying that she should actually study. I felt I had spoiled the atmosphere between us, it was the first time anyone outside of Ed asked me anything about my parents, and I just couldn’t contain my frustration.

The days passed forward, and my time with the adorable kitty was over. Stan said I was welcome back to visit Tofu whenever, though with police work I wouldn’t be free for a while.

Now that I was reaching the end of my probationary period on the ****, I was given more work outside the station. Though it was mainly traffic stops, I’d take it any day over filing paperwork.

My partner on the road was Allistair. He was more than twice my age and his hair was starting to grey, but we got along well. Some of the younger officers tried to put their moves on me, and despite telling them I was a lesbian, they still persisted saying that ‘I hadn’t found the right man to turn me straight’. Al put a stop to that, and I’ve been thankful ever since.

We were patrolling in a police cruiser down a quiet suburban neighbourhood. There was a lot of downtime between flashes of action, giving plenty of time for idle chit-chat. He had a wife he felt lucky to have, and a daughter who was in her first year of high school he fretted over.

He was also interested in nature and loved talking about snakes and reptiles and all sorts of exotic wildlife. I, on the other hand, spoke about comic book characters and video games. Although he wasn’t interested himself, he appreciated it, since it gave him knowledge to bond with his daughter.

“I was watching this fascinating nature doc the other day,” Al started, our car parked on the side of the street. “There’s this tiny worm that burrows itself inside a snail, and lays dormant growing inside, and then takes control of the snail’s body.”

“It forces the snail to slither into an open area to be easy prey for birds, then it lays its eggs and spreads through the bird’s droppings for other snails to find, repeating the cycle.”

“Sounds creepy, nature is wild,” I said, grossed out by the imagery.

“Yeah, lucky we don’t have anything like that for humans. Parasitic creatures taking control of friends and family, could you imagine it?”

Imagine it? My brother is living it!

I nodded, not quite trusting myself to say anything.

“I guess for those parasites; it’s just business. But I’m sure it must be thrilling for them to manipulate their hosts like that. All without anyone knowing,” Al concluded, watching for my reaction.

“Ehm, yeah,” I stuttered out, “sort of like zombies, I guess.”

“If I was in that position, I’d revel in it. I’d take over hosts for the fun of it, and enjoy their lives to the fullest,” Al grinned, seemingly aloof to the horrifying subject.

“You, um, wouldn’t feel guilty about the life you were taking over?” I inquired, thinking about Ed’s situation.

“Well, if it’s between me and them, it’s survival of the fittest, right? And at that point, why not enjoy my prey,” Al shrugged.

“Al, can we move past this? I don’t want to think about parasitic worms,” I said, partially disgusted and partially thinking about skinwalkers.

“Ah, sorry, Claire, didn’t mean to frighten yer,” the smile vanished from his face as he said that. “Let’s see, have you read any new comics?”

We went back to the usual topics, though, in the back of my mind, I found it coincidentally eerie that Al would bring that up. It was like for that brief moment, he was a different person.

Still, as the days passed, I didn’t think too much of it. Coincidences did happen from time to time. Had I followed my instincts though… perhaps I would have been safe from what was to come.

It was during the night when it happened. I was lazing in bed, in my pyjamas, scrolling on my phone through pictures that Dahlia sent me of Yun’s photoshoot. My brother has totally immersed himself in his new form. Ed is gone, I thought, wistful of our childhood together.

A knock on the door interrupted my reverie. I wasn’t expecting visitors this late at night, so I was cautious and peeped through the spyhole and saw the distorted faces of Laura and Al – an unlikely duo to say the least. I opened the door to the unexpected company.

“Laura, Al, what brings you here at this hour?” I asked, confused by their appearance.

“We’re here to see you, Claire,” Laura said, in an almost flirty tone.

“Do you know each other?” I asked, even more confused.

“You could say that,” Al smirked.

“Eh, you guys are kinda creeping me out here. What’s going on?” I asked, hoping for some clarity. It was the way the two of them watched me with hunger in their eyes. Even in my half-asleep mind I knew something was off.

“Next time we do this, Aga, I’m having first pick. I’m not getting stuck as a balding middle-aged man while you get all the fun,” Al said dismissively towards Laura, ignoring my question completely.

“Hush, Minh, be a good boy and keep watch outside. I need some alone time with Claire.”

“Alright, have fun~” Al - or Minh apparently - chirped, closing the door behind him, leaving me alone with Laura.

My mind flashed to those strange moments with Laura and Al. How differently they behaved from their usual selves, and now with the names they called each other. It was clear what they were.

“Y-You’re skinwalkers, right? Minh and Aga… you’re wearing Laura’s body.” I uttered, the realisation hitting me.

“Took you long enough, we’ve been scouting you out for a while, Claire,” Aga said, bemused.

My heart rate skyrocketed, I let a monster into my home, and they were going to skin me and wear me like a suit. I backed away, fearful of whatever was wearing Laura. Aga was enjoying herself, glancing at her reflection from the window behind me.

“Mhm, this body feels so young and virile, I can see why Edward decided to wear her,” Aga moaned out, caressing her curves with her pale fingers.

“You… know about Ed?”

“Sweetheart, Ed is the reason I'm here. He’s been causing some trouble, I just need to make sure he knows his place.”

She spoke with a sweet venom that was immensely out of place for Laura. She was trying to scare me, and it was working.

“That’s, uh, between you and Ed then… I’ve got nothing to do with it.” I said, in a pitiful last-ditch attempt to avoid the inevitable.

“I’ve always resisted wearing you, Claire, though I can’t say I haven’t been tempted,” she paused. “But… seeing as you no longer consider me family,” a spine shot out of Laura’s finger. “I’ll have no reservations about doing this.”

She closed the distance between us and punctured my chest with her sharp spine. The coldness I felt ushered a moment of lucidity.

“M-Mother…?” I gasped out, as my vision of Laura’s sadistic smirk faded, my consciousness was no more.

“Good night, sweetheart~”