A Howl In The Night ✔ » l.s

14

With fluttering eyelashes, Harry looked around the room he'd found himself in. He was in a small square room with brick walls and a single small window looking out into the woods. Other than the bed he was on and a matching wooden table and chair, the room was vacant. A tall, metal door could be seen opposite from his side of the room.

He could feel sweat trickling down his forehead and neck, every part of him tingling and burning. His throat felt dry and him limbs were achy and heavy. It hurt to think, hurt to move, hurt to do anything at all that he just wanted to cry in desperation.

Weakly, Harry raised his hand to wipe away his sweat, but then there was the sound of metal clanking against metal. He tried again and soon realized that his hands were both cuffed to the side of the bed. Panic immediately kicked in, causing him to writhe and flail on the bed, pulling as hard as he could with the hopes of freeing himself. His heart was pounding, heart racing, and a new set of tears were now trickling down his reddish cheeks.

"Let me go!" Harry cried hysterically, the room spinning around him as he moved his entire body and shook the bed. "Please!"

He couldn't remember how he'd gotten here, much less why he was cuffed up in what looked like a cell room. All he knew was that he was feeling the worst he'd ever felt in his entire life. He felt like he was being cooked from the inside out, body frail but filled with so much energy at the same time. He couldn't even recall where he'd last been, either.

"Hey, calm down Haz. I'm here."

The familiar voice echoed through the room, causing him to immediately calm down. He frantically looked around the room, tears starting to well up again when he couldn't find the source of the voice.

"Louis! Where are y-you?" Harry cried, feeling absolutely petrified.

"I'm here, I'm watching you. I'm sorry I can't go inside..." His voice sounded like it was coming out of a speaker.

"Why? You have to uncuff me, what is this?" Harry said, lower lip wobbling.

"Haz, listen to me. You're undergoing a certain change. You're presenting. Just remember all we've been taught about presenting, and you'll be fine. You have to be calm and-"

"Why can't you be here? Come inside!" Harry cut him off, pulling harshly at his cuffed hands. "I want to see you! I'm scared-please,"

There was a pause, and then, "It's not advisable for an Alpha to be in the same room as one that's presenting. Our wolves wouldn't...appreciate it. Especially yours."

"Please!" Harry wasn't seeing reason anymore, sobbing as the cuffs cut deeper into his skin after every harsh pull, "Louis!"

Outside his cell in a separate room, Louis was holding back tears. He was watching Harry on the monitor, chest tightening as he listened to his pleas and watched him suffer. He had to remind himself that he had to be stronger than this because Harry needed him. He couldn't afford being weak even for a moment.

"What do we do? He's panicking." Zayn said worriedly beside him, eyes trained on the same screen.

"He needs a bogus," Liam said, "it's what every Alpha uses. His wolf won't realize the difference between a dummy and a real opponent."

"Yeah, we're working on that. Niall's going to bring one in." Louis said, eyes still glued to Harry's figure.

Harry continued screaming and moving around, shaking the entire bed. He was still begging and pleading for someone to be let in. Louis' heart felt heavier and heavier after each sob and whimper coming from the boy.

"He'll manage," Liam said comfortingly, giving his shoulder a squeeze. "We all went through the same thing. Once he gets to release his anger on that dummy, he'll be fine."