Chapter 3

"Ready for failure, loser?"

Yuna slammed her locker shut and turned to find Megan Wright standing behind her, arms crossed, a smug smile on her face. Her friends flanked her on either side, all wearing matching expressions of superiority.

The girls' locker room smelled like cheap perfume and sweat. Most of the team had already changed and left for warm ups, but Megan had clearly waited for this moment.

Yuna took a deep breath, trying to keep her cool. "I'm not doing this with you, Megan."

"Oh, you don't have a choice," Megan said, stepping closer. "Everyone's talking about how you're going to cost us another tournament. Coach should've kicked you off the team months ago."

"Then maybe you should focus on your own game instead of worrying about mine," Yuna shot back.

Megan's smile vanished. "What did you just say to me?"

Yuna tried to walk past her, but Megan grabbed her wrist hard. The movement was sudden and violent, and Yuna felt something snap.

Her bracelet.

The delicate chain broke, scattering beads across the tile floor. They bounced and rolled in every direction, the sound echoing through the empty locker room.

Yuna's heart stopped. The bracelet her father had given her. The one he had made her promise never to take off. The one he said would keep her safe.

She stared at the broken pieces, and something inside her cracked open.

Heat flooded her veins. Anger, pure and blinding, surged through her body like a wave. It was overwhelming, consuming, nothing like anything she had ever felt before.

Her fist flew before she even realized what she was doing.

The punch connected with Megan's nose with a sickening crunch. Megan screamed and stumbled backward, blood gushing from her nostrils. Her friends shrieked in shock.

"Yuna, what the hell was that?" one of them shouted.

Yuna stared at her hand, trembling. "I'm sorry. I didn't know what came over me."

Megan was crying now, her hands covering her face. "You're going to pay for this! You're psychotic!"

Panic seized Yuna's chest. She had done it again. Lost control. Hurt someone. What was wrong with her?

She ran.

She left the broken bracelet on the floor, left Megan crying, left everything behind as she sprinted out of the locker room and toward the court. The tournament was starting. She had to pull herself together.

But the anger was still there, simmering just beneath her skin.

The gymnasium was packed. Students filled the bleachers, cheering and waving banners. The opposing team was already warming up on the other side of the court, their movements smooth and coordinated.

Yuna joined her team, avoiding Megan's glare. Camille gave her a worried look.

"Are you okay?" Camille whispered. "Megan's telling everyone you attacked her."

"I know," Yuna muttered. "I'll deal with it later."

The referee blew the whistle, and both teams took their positions.

Yuna's hands were still shaking. Her skin felt too tight, like something inside her was trying to break free. She could hear everything. The squeak of shoes on the polished floor. The rustle of clothing. Heartbeats. So many heartbeats, all pounding in different rhythms.

The whistle blew again, and the game began.

The ball came to Yuna within the first thirty seconds. Instinct took over. She moved without thinking, her body responding to commands she didn't consciously give. She dribbled past the first defender with ease, her movements fluid and precise.

The crowd gasped.

Yuna didn't pass. She couldn't. Something was driving her forward, pushing her to move faster, harder. She spun around another defender, her feet barely touching the ground, and took the shot.

Swish.

The ball sailed through the net perfectly.

Her team erupted in cheers, but Yuna barely heard them. Her chest was heaving, her vision sharpening to an impossible degree. She could see every detail. The grain of the basketball. The individual fibers in the net. The sweat on her opponents' faces.

The game continued, and Yuna dominated. Every time the ball came to her, she scored. She moved like a professional, like someone who had been playing for years instead of struggling just weeks ago.

By the final quarter, they were winning by twenty points.

When the buzzer sounded, the gymnasium exploded. Her teammates swarmed her, screaming and hugging her. Camille was crying happy tears.

"Yuna, that was incredible! Where did that come from?"

But Yuna couldn't answer. She was breathing too hard, her chest burning like it was about to explode. The voices around her were too loud, echoing and overlapping until they became a wall of sound.

She could hear heartbeats. Dozens of them. Hundreds. All pounding in her ears.

"Yuna, are you okay?" Camille's voice sounded distant.

Yuna covered her ears, but it didn't help. The sounds were inside her head, getting louder and louder.

"I need to use the restroom," she gasped, pushing through the crowd.

She ran. Sprinted across the court, through the hallway, and burst into the girls' restroom. The door slammed behind her, and she collapsed against the sink.

"Stop. Please stop," she whimpered, pressing her hands over her ears.

The sounds didn't stop. If anything, they got worse. And then she felt it.

A prickling sensation across her skin. She looked down and screamed.

White fur was sprouting from her arms.

"No. No, no, no. What's happening?"

The fur spread, covering her hands, her arms, creeping up her neck. Her bones began to shift, cracking and reforming. Pain shot through her body, sharp and relentless.

Yuna fell to her knees, gasping for air. Her spine arched, and she felt something pushing out of her lower back. She twisted to look and saw tails. Multiple tails, white and bushy, emerging one by one.

The transformation was agony. Her face elongated, her teeth sharpened. Her hands became paws. Her screams turned into howls.

And then it was done.

Yuna looked at her reflection in the mirror and saw a creature she didn't recognize. White fur. Nine tails. Eyes that glowed an eerie silver.

Not a werewolf.

A kitsune.

The bathroom door rattled. Someone was trying to get in.

Panic seized her. She couldn't let anyone see her like this. She turned and ran, crashing through the window with strength she didn't know she had.

Glass shattered. The alarm blared.

And the white kitsune disappeared into the chaos.