Author's note
Did I word it as 'that time of the month' of purpose to confuse y'all? Heh heh heh... Mayyybe...

Well, I got Savi-senpai and Aqua-senpai... Not sure about anyone else, but from the title, I'm pretty sure yah know who it is now.

Because... What else happens every lunar cycle? Why, Ren's monthly, forced, werewolf transformation, of course! Shown in DAY BY DAY FORM : D!

Btw LOOK ITZZA very old ting-

Headcannons in this chapter
- Here's a biggie!

Ren can transform into his Wolf form at any time, but it's incredibly draining, and takes a lot of energy to control as well. Even so, he's still only just able to recognise enemy from friend... So it's quite dangerous for everyone.

However, every lunar cycle, he's forced to transform against his will... All day. This transformation actually takes around 1-2 full days as well; it's a very delicate, slow and painful process.

Luckily, Iskall has always helped him out with this, and as a result he can always recognise Iskall in his wolf form. It's pretty sweet having a giant wolf on your side too.

- The way animal-transforming/ animal-minded hybrids can recognise others is by their scent by the way. Ren has dedicated a lot of his time memorising all of the hermits scents- it usually helps if he's interacted with them beforehand/ just a lot in general.
- Animal-transforming hybrids includes werewolves, and anyone whom can transform into and successfully utilise both of their hybrid sides. I guess this includes me, as a shape-shifter.
- Animal-minded hybrids describe: hybrids that were brought up to rely more on their animalistic/ monstrous side more (and therefore think like them more. Think... Centaur vibes); animals that show a high degree of human intelligence- they can usually interact with normal humans too (think... Cheshire cat or unicorn vibes).
- Hybrids can't be transformed into a whole new different hybrid. Cus that would be way too OP if you could just... Switch back and forth.
- Tails! Already explained in the second, above image, actually so YAH!
- TWO THAT'RE GONNA NEED TO GO AT THE END OR IT'LL SPOIL STUFF
——————————————————
Day 1: Aches and Pains
When Ren woke up with various appendages absolutely killing him, he already knew what was coming.

THAT time of the month.

And no, not the version that got you covered in your own blood. The version that got you covered in someone else's blood if you weren't careful.

(Author's note: ... Let's be honest, both happen either way if the conditions are right-)

One downside of being a werewolf, he supposed, but he needn't worry at all. Iskall would be there. Iskall, the one who had stayed with him through each and every other forced transformation. Iskall, the one who had spent so much time with him, he could recognise regardless of the situation. Iskall... The one he wouldn't dare forget.

And one of the only people who knew exactly when and how long the events leading up to Ren's transformation would take place. In fact, only three other (aside from himself) people knew the exact dates, and they all had a pretty good reason to: it wasn't something that the werewolf thought about lightly, as he knew how dangerous he could be in that form... He didn't want too many coming too close to him in case...

... But that wouldn't happen. Iskall would keep him company, Doc would drive others away and X would make sure nothing happened that could possibly upset him when he was so unpredictable. It had been this way for a long time, and Ren couldn't be any more grateful for it.

However, none of the three could really help him prior to his transformation; he'd still need to go through all of the events, like everything aching. This was cut the first warning, and day, of the lengthy week-long event though... And every part of it would suck.

... Aside from more time with Iskall...

Now. Just to survive until it's over.

Then what could only be described as a bulldozer rammed into his stomach.
———————————————————
Day 2: EXTRA Speedy Metabolism
"I'm hungry..."

False gave Ren a concerned look, halting in her activities. "... Dude... We... Just ate-"

The wolf hybrid whined and plopped down down, face-planting the ground. Not knowing how to react, False hesitatingly strode over, giving him a poke in the back. They both heard his stomach give a less-than-grateful growl in response.

"... Are... You ok? I mean... I know you have high metabolism, but not this fast..." The blonde hermit checked in her inventory hurriedly, almost freezing in surprise at what she discovered. "... You've... Burned through almost all of my food... I'm... I'm going to need to ask someone else for some help, I'm sorry..."

Ren didn't respond, as he was too busy laying on the ground.

False: Does anyone have food? At all?

TFC: Did you run out?

Iskall: Woah grandad physic powers!

False: I'M fine, but Ren's starving and he's gone through like... All of his and my food within the past few hours...

Iskall: ... Where are you two? I'll come over with several stacks.

False: (COORDS IDK)

Grian: Mood change 360 much.

Cleo: Wouldn't 360 be the exact same? So... You mean 'mood change 180'?

Aaaand now would be a good time to close the chat... Though False could still see the flood of future notifications even now.

"Iskall's coming over. With, hopefully, all the food you need. How's that?" The fighter asked, glancing over in her friend's direction. He gave only a low growl to show that he wasn't... Dead, before he actually spoke.

"... M'sorry, Falsey..."

She turned around at the sound of her name, going rigid when she saw Ren so still. "What're you sorry for? You don't seem well, and that's not your fault."

Yet in his mind, Ren couldn't help thinking it was.
———————————————————
Day 3: Start of Transformation
(Author's note: GET READY cus from this point onwards... Honey, we going down)

Stress: Has anyone seen Iskall? He said he was going out for a while and he hasn't returned yet...

Jevin: ... With Ren?

False: Kinda. He came, took Ren away, and haven't seen either of em since. Wonder what they're up to...

Doc: Do we really NEED to know?

Mumbo: He always does this around about this time -disappearing off with Ren, I mean. They both always return safe a few days later...

Wels: I do! What could they possibly be up to together?

Python: I swear if anyone says something dumb I will fight them.

Doc: And I'll join you.

Tango: Oof. Cold...

Iskall ignored as the musings of the server carried on. It wasn't important now.

Slumped against wall, he felt Ren whimper in his lap, burying himself closer into the swede's chest. With nothing else to do, Iskall let his arms drop over the weak werewolf's head protectively, feeling him instantly relax.

A clock on the wall told him about three and a half hours had past since Ren had collapsed in front of False... And he'd taken him to a secret room underneath the lab, specifically made for this purpose.

Scraps of fabric littered the floor- a trail lead from the centre of the room to the wall the two men were pressed up against.

Wooden planks littered the floor, some still whole, some reduced to nothing but sharp, jagged splinters.

Around the walls, claw marks were gouged into the soft wood, both old and fairly recent. The most recent marks would be the ones Ren was currently carving out above Iskall's head.

This was already enough to show how much danger Iskall was in by being so close to a werewolf, during lunar transformation no less.

Yet he'd been hearing Ren's choked sobs since the start of this, and...

"... I-It huh... Hurt... S..."

"... I know... But I'm here for you, ok? I'm not leaving your side."

... And he couldn't just leave Ren. He wouldn't ever.

"I'll... Hurt... Y-You-"

"No, you won't. And if you do, then it's not your fault, it's mine for not listening. Now stop talking, I know it's hard to speak with a mouth full of developing canines."

So they carried on embracing in silence.

Whenever a new burst of wolf grew on Ren and he'd whimper, Iskall would hug him again and tell him he was doing great. And the pain would lessen... Just a little.
———————————————————
Day 4: Partial-Transformation
Xisuma was the first to see Iskall above ground, since he'd 'disappeared' again with Ren.

It wasn't a coincidence.

As the admin approached him, it was clear both knew about what was happening. Iskall smiled in greeting, though his tired eyes and uneasy expression spoke of a different emotion.

"How is he? Day four, isn't it?" Xisuma asked, passing Iskall a new shulker box of supplies from his inventory. The latter thanked him briefly, rubbing the sheen of sleep from his eyes.

"Safe as usual... I hope he's alright now... Can't believe I forgot to get extra supplies." He muttered, rolling his eyes in annoyance. Xisuma patted his shoulder reassuringly.

"Hey. It's ok, Iskall. It just so happened to start a bit earlier this month anyway, don't beat yourself up about it. Doc will come over to check on you both really soon. Get some rest."

"... I will when he stops blaming himself..." Iskall said, flying off before X could say anything else.

(-FLIGHT SKIP NYOOOM-)

Entering the room always brought a shiver down his spine... It was well lit and spacious, with only wooden planks dotted around the place, but its use left the room with a bitter feel that Iskall never could shake off.

His exhaustion was able to numb a bit of the fear though.

But that... Wasn't always a good thing...

Before he could stop it, the shulker box slipped from his grasp, banging onto the ground loudly. Iskall heard a startled yelp and a sound similar to smashing wood, before knife-like pieces of the said material flew at him.

His exhaustion numbed out his instinct to dodge it.

"ARGH!"

"IZKAH-L-!"
———————————————————
Day 5: Mid-Transformation
"Hey guys, I- What happened?"

Doc sighed, fidgeting with the cloth in his hands before deciding to ignore them and carry on with what he was doing. Xisuma saved him the job of turning around, grinning with a half-hearted attempt at calmness.

"... Um... Well... Iskall... Got... A bit injured, AC, and... We're just... Patching him up..." The latter explained, gesturing vaguely at Doc.

The said creeper-cyborg was changing Iskall's bandages: a large one covered the slightly jagged slash on the left of his midriff, while another covered the two (relatively deep, also slightly jagged) holes in his left leg. AC winced in concern.

"... Yeeeah, that looks pretty worrying... But... Here's a million-dollar question, how did Iskall get injured?" She asked, staring at Xisuma, who promptly froze.

"... Um... Erm... Well, he-"

"Why does it matter to you? Can't you just accept that he injured himself?" Doc snapped, turning to face the girl accusingly. She merely raised a sarcastic eyebrow at him.

"... The small, bruised indents around his wounds imply claws. Strong ones. Iskall doesn't have claws."

"Ok, he was attacked by some wild animal then, are you happy?"

Still, AC seemed unimpressed by Doc's antics, crossing her arms in displeasure.

"Because those indents haven't started bleeding, it shows that the smallest amount of force had been applied, and the positioning they're in show that 'this animal' had been trying to cover Iskall's wounds. Which meant they were trying to stop the bleeding." AC quipped, pretending to ignore Doc's objecting noise. "This isn't some wild animal, it's one with a mind that obviously cared about Iskall's safety and I want to know what happened to it."

Xisuma shook his head in disbelief at what had just transpired. Yet it had, and... There was no point hiding it anymore... Sighing, X walked between the two, breaking their little glaring contest.

"Ok, you're right. It..." Xisuma paused, looking at Doc. When his disgruntled partner gave a quick nod, he continued. "It was Ren... He's going through his monthly transformation at the moment, and he's really unstable. We don't know how well he can control himself- Iskall was the one that usually kept him company... And we don't know where Ren's gone..."

"I went into the room we made specifically for Ren's transformation, and Ren just bolted out. I would've stopped him, if I didn't see Iskall, bleeding out on the floor. You can guess the rest, if you're such a sleuth." Doc finished, uncomfortable with sharing this information.

AC gave a nod of understanding, her brow furrowing in thought. "Mmm... That makes sense. Ren would be pretty sensitive at this time, maybe he-"

"Oh, quit acting like you already knew this stuff-"

"I did! I can shapeshift, and if you think I haven't experienced pretty much every single thing that comes with being a certain hybrid, then you're wrong. I'm just trying to help-"

"We don't -REN doesn't need your help! We're perfectly fine as it is, now go back to bothering Cub or something!"

Flinching at his tone, AC held up her hands in surrender, walking away at once. When she was gone, Xisuma fixed Doc with a look that read 'what-did-you-do-that-for?'.

"... She was getting on my nerves..."

"That's no way to talk to someone!"

"... I just... Didn't like her talking about Ren like that... And yes, I know there isn't really any other way to put it, but-"

"But nothing. It's day six tomorrow, Ren's somewhere out there in the server and Iskall isn't awake to help him... I'm... Going to search around, you look after Iskall, ok?"

Doc lowered his gaze, slowly giving a nod. He carried on tending to Iskall's injuries and Xisuma scoured the server, both hoping for better news.
——————————————————
Day 6: Full (day-long) Transformation
Their attempts at locating Ren proved fruitless. And they'd run out of time: it was the day of his full transformation, and they didn't know what could happen if he caught another hermit off guard.

Seeing no alternative, Xisuma and Doc decided to tell the others, in hopes that they'd be more prepared.

The reactions they got were a variety of concern for Ren and Iskall, annoyance that they weren't told sooner and intrigue at how this worked. However, all agreed to be wary and to tell them immediately if they saw a larger than normal, chocolate brown wolf on the prowl.

And it came up faster than expected...

Doc was still with Iskall, who had now woken up, when the chat started spamming. Annoyed, he took his C.P.S.T out, face draining of colour as he read on.

"What's going-"

"Stay here, I'm going out."

"DOC WAIT-" But the creeper had already left, ditching his C.P.S.T on Iskall's bed. With a huff, the Swedish man picked it up and started reading the chat himself.

Zed: GUYS THERS A GUANT WLF AYTACJING TAKGO

Xisuma: Where are you?!

Zed: MEDIAVL DUSTRYCT

Xisuma: I'm coming over, hold on.

Biffa: Me too, I'll meet you there.

Tangotek was slain by Renthedog

Wels: I'm coming!

Biffa: NO YOU ARE NOT, GO BACK, NOW!

Cleo: Me and Stress are going to check if Tango's ok!

Joe: Wait, if Ren attacked him, does that mean he'll turn into werewolf as well?

Xisuma: No, because he's already a demon, but if he attacks anyone who isn't already a hybrid, they WILL become one.

Wels: You guys need as much help as possible!

Doc: And that's why I'm going, instead of you. Stay back, you can help Iskall if you really want to.

He would have been able to help Iskall, if Iskall hadn't decided to start limping out to find Ren himself.

(-TIME AND LOCATION SKOOP-)

In the medieval district, things were going down.

No, seriously, things were doing down.

With a ferocious growl, a huge wolf charged at Xisuma, knocking him off his feet. Biffa and Doc covered him at once, holding shields up to block the incoming slash.

"Ren, calm DOWN!" Biffa gasped, slamming his shield into the wolf's muzzle.

Whining, it took a step back, before new anger erupted in its eyes. It charged again and when Biffa out his shield up, it faked going left, instead barreling into the boy from the right. Biffa fell to a kneel, gripping his side in pain.

"Ren, stop it! This isn't you!" A German voice called. The wolf's focus flashed upon Doc, and a single shy thought crawled up from his mind: wasn't that one of his best friends?

No, he was an enemy.

Did they not have strong friendship between them?

He attacked him.

Weren't they friends?

He was bad.

Friends?

Doc took this chance to ram into the wolf's side as it was distracted, hoping to topple it. That seemed to do the opposite, causing it to plant its paws deeper into the ground and breaking it from its brief stupor. A snap of its jaws was enough to get Doc to leap back; Biffa shot him a careful glance that he shrugged off quickly.

Evidently, this was going to be harder than they initially thought... Much like the wolf, the creeper was torn between defending Ren and defending his friends... And of course, his-

Out of nowhere, a long, loud howl rung out, clear amidst the confusion.

Doc, Biffa and the wolf's eyes went to the source of the sound, where a young girl was standing. Wolf ears and a tail had appeared on her, and she held -with care- something small in her hands.

Aside from that, she had nothing.

And the wolf...

Did nothing.

AC started walking towards it, silent and with purpose, until she was directly beneath its jaws. Smiling, she gestured for it to lower itself head... And it sat down, letting her place whatever she was holding on its head.

Ren's sunglasses.

And just like that, its anger evaporated. AC let it give her ears a sniff, before she hooked herself onto his neck, giving Ren an excited hug.

"You're so CUTE! And fluffy! Aren't you, yes you are, yes you ARE!" She giggled, giving him all sorts of pets and rubs and soft scratches. Ren only emitted happy yips and barks, much to the utter confusion of the two other men present.

"Awww, aren't you sweet! I know why Iskall just adores you now, heh heh! I wonder if-"

"How... Did you... D-Do that-"

AC and Doc gasped simultaneously, fixing Iskall with a questioning glare. The still wounded swede gave a sheepish shrug, nodding in Ren's direction.

As soon as the wolf saw him, he gave an enthusiastic bark, knocking over and promptly licking Iskall's face. After a short spell of confusion, he simply laughed, going along with it.

"... Wha-"

"I'll tell you about what... Ahem, 'sleuthing' I got done tomorrow, Doc. C'mon, we gotta get X and Biffa patched up, darling!" AC said, helping Biffa stand and implying he pick X up. Secretly flustered, Doc didn't respond, silently complying without a retort.

He wouldn't say so, but he was very relieved.
———————————————————
Day 7: Painless De-transformation
By the next day, Ren was back to normal, after a deep sleep. As soon as he had realised what had happened, it took a few minutes of reassuring him that it wasn't his fault for him to finally start listening.

Listening to what? Well, what had happened during his most recent 'escapade'. Most of his reactions were to be expected, like being upset at injuring three people (and killing one) and flustered at licking Iskall... And a mixture of surprised and curious at how AC had calmed him.

Clearly, he wasn't the only one wondering how she'd done so either, so she decided to explain it.

"Oh, it was just something I'm sure you guys already know: hybrids are usually at peace or find no reason to hate whatever creature they are. I just... Y'know. Ren could smell I was... Or, was currently a werewolf/ wolf myself, so yeah."

"Why'd you need to put my sunglasses on me then?" Ren asked, sitting up a bit higher in interest. With a sneaky peek at Doc, AC smiled softly.

"... That... Is a bit harder to explain. I'll try my best to though. You know how you guys kept telling him that his wolf side wasn't who he really was? That's... A bit unfair. To tell the blunt truth, that is still Ren, wolfish or not. It's still him, and saying it isn't will just make him hate that side of himself. That's why you try and suppress it... Right?"

Ren's expression remained interested, though the nod he gave was a tad hesitant. AC rubbed his ear to try and calm him.

"Hey, don't be upset. Even though controlling yourself in that form is hard, it's possible. The first step is believing that you can control yourself; that you can be around the people you care about and recognise that they're friends. You can do that- we all saw it today! Me and Iskall could even help you with it if you're still a bit scared... How does that sound?" She cooed, soon encouraged by Iskall nodding with a smile.

"You'd... Really do that for me?" Ren probed. The suggestion did sound nice in his mind, and... More control over his wolf side... That could mean that eventually, he wouldn't even need to have so many precautions every lunar cycle anymore.

When AC and Iskall nodded again, his response was to hug them both in gratefulness.
———————————————————
BONUS... Wait what-
"S-So... Wolf hybrids... Like being petted and stroked, right...?"

"Yeah! Different people will have different wolfy preferences too! Like... Ears... Back a... Sheep, which is kinda... High? No, jus... But don't... Tails unless..."

Iskall wished he had listened a bit more clearly, instead of daydreaming about-

ANYWHO! AC... Said... Something about stroking... Tails?

That sounded... Right? Maybe? Well, no going back now. Ren was chatting about something and Iskall had been to busy staring at the said tail for... Too long.

So he ran his fingers along it.

The werewolf in front of him yelped in shock, falling to the floor in a blushing mess. "I-ISK-ISKALL!"

"OH MY GOSH- I-I'M SO SORRY-" Iskall lost his next words as soon as Ren turned around, face flushed and eyes wide.

"... T-This is... Going to.. Sound r-really weird but... C-Could you... P-Pet me...?" Ren whispered, biting his lip.

Iskall didn't hesitate to fulfil his request, becoming almost awe-struck at how soft his fur was.

Ren, on the other hand, was quite awe-struck that Iskall -Iskall- was actually doing it.

"... Am I interrupting something~?"

Iskall and Ren leapt apart at once, both of their faces turning even more red. Cub smirked, holding up a photo of the two just before on his C.P.S.T before bolting. Once they processed what had happened, Iskall pulled out his sword, chasing after him with Ren in tow.

... But they'd missed something.

AC climbed down from the building she'd hid on top of, giggling at what Cub had sent her before he'd started running. She... Should probably get rid of her lizard-hybrid parts first though...

Once she did so, the photo was definitely worth it.

"Heh heh... Aqua senpai will love to add this to her collection! Oh... And... Savi senpai? I think you lost the bet... Sorry...!" She said, giving a rueful grin. "... I'm gonna- wait no, Bird'll kill me for breaking the fourth wall again... I should probably go make sure Dad doesn't... Die now..."

Cubfan135 was slain by Iskall85

"... Welp... OK, so new plan-"
———————————————————
Author's note
Those two headcannons that had to go here:

- You know how 'it usually helps (Ren) if he's been with them beforehand/ just a lot in general'? Yeah, for this chapter, that describes me and Iskall (and partly Doc) respectively.

- Ren never attacks other wolves unless they attack him first. This is the same with the other hybrids (eg. Cleo doesn't find the need to attack undead mobs, unless they decide on being RUDE)... HOLD ON...

(Random no0b): ... Y'know they can kill you, right?

Cleo: (-chilling with a very obviously hungry zombie-) We know.

Doc: (-scaring people with a creeper that keeps almost exploding-) We're just trying to speed up the process.

Ren: (-playing with a very small tamed dog, nodding-)

I tried making it serious. But IMMA SUCKER FOR LOVELY ENDINGS AND FLUFF BECAUSE THEY'RE EASIER TO COMMENT ON! Also because I still can't write angst
(-sigh-).

Every senpai seems to be in an angst writing mood too ;-;.

Ok, more of an important note, no one questioned the age list. SO THAT'S NOW THE LIST FOR MY NEXT BIG ARC, WHEN I GET TO IT.

So, hit the B with a tea stain, and I'll see you very soon for the next chapter!

Take care, ba-bye!