you mean sam "breaking it down sexual style" winchester?? as a werewolf...hmm *insert that one picture of the guy pressed to the window giggling with a shirt that says 'sicko' on it*

of course we have to get the usual out of the way. sam's whole struggle throughout the first (at least) 1-8 seasons is about his inherently monstrousness/uncleanliness. so in a way, werewolf sam is not super different from canon? i know that sounds kind of crazy, but it's true!

instead of a subtle existential threat, this is an un-ignorable, emergent existential threat. it's akin (at least to me) of bringing the subtext to text. like yes this is the major point, but now it's BIG and LOUD and HAS FUR.

dean has already established that he is unwilling/incapable of killing sam when he is an active threat to others ("born under a bad sign"), so i can't imagine sam being a werewolf instead of potentially-demonic would change much.

sammy is a bleeding heart, so i'm sure dean would offer to go out and bring victims to sam personally, to keep sam's hands "clean." i explored dean reacting to sam's "monstrousness" in a vampire!sam fic linked here, if you're interested!

but unlike in a vampire situation, being a werewolf is actually more close to sam's canon struggle. his mind won't be his own anymore. he will become something that he won't remember becoming, because either the shift is so subtle (demon) or erases his memory of the crimes he commits (werewolf).

similar to my werewolf!dean post, i think they would try to start with "bad/morally corrupt" victims, by hunting through a sex offenders registry or domestic abuse hotlines. which like! okay! hell yeah!

they even try to use it to their advantage a lil bit, by having sam try to eat their monster-of-the-week. dean suggests it mostly to lighten the mood (badly) but now sam's scientific mind is intrigued. they find out that he can't take a bite out of ghosts, vampires taste AWFUL (dead flesh), rugarus taste AMAZING (living flesh), and ghouls will send sam into a coma-like state for a few days.

speaking of the job, they have to awkwardly side-shuffle the fact that sam is vulnerable to silver now. when they hunt shifters, dean is the one that has to hold the weapons, and it's sam's job to hold the guy down until dean gets there.

sam doesn't like this (obviously), so he wraps the handle of silver blades in layers and layers of fabric, and his palms are forever a little scarred from it. it burns his skin still, but slower. turning the burner on slowly instead of plunging his hand into a boiling pot.

once when hunters find sam and try to kill him, they put a silver collar on him, and he has a faded, thick line of silvery flesh around his neck to this day. dean hates hates hates hates it (because he failed, couldn't get to sam fast enough), so sam tries to wear high-collared shirts whenever dean is around (which is often). sam's pretty insecure about it, because he thinks it's ugly, but dean can only think how sam gave him a necklace out of love, and dean has given sam a necklace out of failure.

speaking offff--i imagine that at some point they run across a werewolf pack and they're not reallyyyy hurting anyone, since they're able to keep each other in check pretty well. they offer a space to sam, because, hey, your human brother can't protect you like we can. he can't keep you from hurting others like we could. he can't keep you from hurting him.

like this would be a whole episode. because dean would say something insensitive and knee-jerk like "hey man you can't seriously be considering staying here with these freaks" and now sam is defensive because he's one of them. very much a canon disagreement, lol.

sam doesn't end up going with them, but the thought of hurting dean lingers. beacuse right now (if this is happening early seasons before the bunker), they are either winging it with chains in the woods or have retrofitted one of bobby's random safehouses.

it's not clear in the show's lore if werewolves choose to turn or if they turn randomly or if they turn only when the full moon happens. "heart" and "bitten" give us different answers on that. regardless, once they get the bunker as mentioned in my werewolf dean post, they're able to keep him a lot more secure when he turns, and sam takes it a LOT more seriously than he does dean. dean's like "ehh maybe we don't need ankle chains this time what do you think" and sam is like "if you don't chain my NECK to this floor i won't talk to you for a month."

i could ramble about werewolf!sam or werewolf!dean forever but to wrap it up, i leave you with one last fun headcanon: sam can now smell when dean is turned on.

dean has this smell that happens sometimes randomly. sometimes during a hunt, or when they're alone in their motel room, or when out in a bar, and it's not until they're watching an episode of dr. sexy late at night and sam isn't paying attention but the smell happens again, and he looks up and dr. sexy is having, well, dr. sexy times with someone on screen and dean is rapt and sam starts to suspect.

until it happens when sam is coming out of the shower and. well.

sam uses it to his advantage when they get together (teasing dean at maximum strength, of course) by doing random innocuous things and finding out what dean thinks is attractive. one day in the bunker sam is doing the dishes and sam can smell it, and he whips around and dean is blushing in his robe and buries his face in his hands and says "DON'T TALK ABOUT IT. I DON'T KNOW."

anyway.......i'm sorry for talking for four billion years. i hope you enjoyed this!! happy (late) halloween, and i hope the rest of your week is lovely, anon!

It had only been a month since she killed Richie. A month since her eye’s had glowed and she brushed it off as her meds not working. A month since something inside her shifted. In the moment it was easy to brush off, to say it was exhaustion or the comedown after intense trauma. But with each day that passed Sam found it harder and harder to ignore. 

It started small in the beginning. Her stab wound healed in an unnatural amount of time. Then her temper started to get out of control. Then Tara noticed almost every time Sam picked up a glass it would shatter. Sam had an excuse for everything and anything Tara questioned. That was until the nightmares got out of control. 

Every one was the same. A dark beast, a wolf, chasing Sam relentlessly gaining on her heels causing her to wake in a broken sweat. It felt as though each time she had the dream the wolf got closer and closer to attacking. Tara would wake up to find Sam curled up at the foot of her bed whimpering like a dog but as soon as she brought it up to Sam, she acted like it didn’t happen. 

The real final straw was when Tara would say things under her breath and Sam would hear her word for word. 

“Baby girl you have to eat so you can take your meds.” Sam said in a gentle yet firm tone as she walked away, into the kitchen to make herself some food. 

“I don’t even like casserole” Tara muttered under her breath. 

“If you had told me that I wouldn’t have made it” Sam yelled from the kitchen leaving Tara in utter bewilderment. 

Tara felt a million questions flash in her mind, something was off with her sister and she needed to figure out what. 

A few days had pasted since then and Sam found herself having another sleepless night. She shook awake hearing herself yelp out in her sleep. The cold light from the near full moon illuminated her room. She turned over and grabbed her phone to check the time. 

“4:48. Perfect” She said setting her phone back down. Every night she seemed to be getting less and less sleep. She had only fell asleep two hours ago, it was like her body was restless and needed to move. 

Getting out of bed she headed to the bathroom, she realized that after waking up she was covered in sweat so she might as well clean herself up. 

Once making it into the bathroom Sam stood in front of the sink and took herself in. She noticed the dark circles under her eyes from her lack of sleep and the way her body seemed on edge as if it was looking for a fight. 

She turned the faucet on and ran the water until it turned warm. She splashed her face hoping the warmth of the water would relax her body. Once she was done she dried her face off and looked at her reflection. 

Her eyes flashed a golden yellow causing her to stumble back. She rubbed her eye hard as if it was simply something in her eye. Sam looked up again to see her dark brown iris’s staring back at her. 

She took a deep breath as she griped the sink accidentally letting her mind wander to memories from the past month. 

The way she constantly felt on edge, how she couldn’t control her strength, how everything was always so loud. The mere thought of why sent a chill down her spine.

Sam looked up once more to see her eye glowing again, but this time she didn’t look away. Something in the back of her mind knew the truth but she could never say it. Admitting it out loud would be more insane than just thinking it. Yet she could feel her bones vibrating beneath her skin, the way her teeth ached inside her gums, and how the porcelain sink started to crack under her grip. She wasn’t in control. 

Just then she heard a knock on the bathroom door. 

“Sam?” Tara asked on the other side of the door. 

Sam quickly tried to blink away the glow in her eyes.

“Are you okay? Im here if you want to talk” Tara added

“Go away Tara” Sam snip out harsher then she intended. 

Tara immediately regressed to her childhood self, once again begging for her big sister to let her in. But she wasn’t a kid anymore. She had years to sit with her emotions, and for Tara time didn’t heal all wounds it just turned them into anger. 

“You don’t get to fucking do that Sam” She barked

“You don’t get to leave and come back and treat me like you used to” Tara could feel the tears pooling in her eyes but she didn’t care.

Sam inside the bathroom could feel the panic creeping up her neck. She knew she was in the wrong once again but she couldn’t let her sister in. What if she hurt her?

“So you're not even gonna say anything?” Tara waited a few more seconds to allow her sister time to rebuttal. 

Sam tried hard to find the right words. But her fears were taking over leaving her mouth dry and empty. 

“Somethings wrong, I can feel it… So i’m… I’m coming in” Tara said as she turned the door handle. She was nervous beyond belief at what Sam might do to make her leave again. 

Once opening the door she saw Sam just standing in front of the mirror with her eyes closed. Tara could even see how stiff her body was. Tara mindlessly walked over and slipped her arms around Sam’s waist hugging her from the back. 

“Whatever it is you can talk to me” Tara whispered into her sister.

Sam’s mind was on fire as it burned with all of it’s what ifs. Initially when her sisters arms graced her skin she tensed up but the warmth of the embrace soon washed over her allowing her to relax into the hug. But Taras words rattled in her ears. 

‘Talk to her, just tell her the truth. What even is the truth.’ She thought to herself. The more she tried to find words the more she felt her anxiety rise and her grip on the sink tightened causing cracks to splinter out like a spider web. 

“I don’t know what’s happening to me” Sam finally mutter out through a thick voice, her words sending a shiver down her spin as her emotions begin poor out. 

Tara squeezed Sam tighter as she felt her big sister let out a sob. 

“I know, but we can figure this out together. You just have to talk to me.” Tara reassured her sister holding her ear to her back. She could hear how fast Sam’s heart was beating. 

Sam’s breath hitched in her throat at her sisters words. 

“You know?” Sam said finally looking up and opening her eyes. 

Tara let go and tried to find her sisters eyes in the mirror. 

“I mean I’ve noticed… things” She said not really trying to insinuate anything. 

Sam looked down again realizing that just because she was ignoring it didn’t mean other were. 

Tara swallowed hard before asking the one question that could change everything again. The one thing that meant she could lose her sister again after just getting her back. 

“Are you using again?” Her voice barely above a whisper 

Sam couldn’t believe her ears. She whipped around to look Tara in the eye but her baby sisters head had fallen to stare at the floor. 

“What?” Was all Sam could muster up as she took in how defeated Tara looked. 

“Well I know killing Richie has taken it’s toll on you and well maybe to cope…”

“Im not using. Im not. I swear” Sam cut tara off and pulled her into a hug. 

Tara melted into her big sister’s touch, something she longed for for so many years. She couldn’t help the tears that started to flood over her eyes. 

“Im sorry, you’ve just been so on edge and not to mention the nightmares. It’s just you stoped talking again, it felt like old times.” Tara crocked out through her sobs. 

Sam could feel the guilt eating at her bones. She knew she fucked up in the past but seeing the lasting effects crushed her insides. 

“Fuck Tara, Im so sorry. I didn’t realize…” 

“Did you do that?” Tara cut Sam off noticing the cracked sink behind her sister. She pushes past her and examines the cracks closely. 

Sam eyes follow her sister as she tried to switch topics, but ultimately fails to keep up with Tara. 

Tara reaches out and gabs Sam’s hand and places it back on the sink.

“Squeeze it.” Tara said with curiosity in he voice. 

“What?” Sam responded not understanding what Tara was getting at. 

“Break the sink.” 

“But I…”

“Just try.” 

Sam felt the urge to roll her eyes but instead followed her sisters instructions. She squeezed the sink as hard as she could and to her surprise it crumbled to dust beneath her grip. Barely breaking a sweat. 

“That’s not normal” Tara said pointing to the broken sink. 

Sam looked from the sink to her hand and back again. Her mind trying to make sense of it all. 

“It was already broken. It’s cracked” 

“Sam, people can’t just crush a sink” Tara said matter-o-factly as she stared at Sam.

“Don’t look at me like that.” Sam said as she sat down on the side of the bathtub

“Like what? I was just looking at you” Tara said throwing her hands in the air. 

“Like you're waiting for me to tell you something. Like I know what’s going on…. Like… Like I’m a monster” Sam said with frustration leaking into her tone. 

“What? You are not a monster Sam. I would never think that about you.” Tara said kneeling down to take Sam’s hands. 

Tears started to spill over Sam’s eyes as Tara held her hands. 

“But the sink” Sam managed to say through her silent sobs.

“Okay, I'll admit it’s weird and frankly not normal. But it doesn’t make you a monster” Tara almost chucked at the thought of her sister being anything other than her Sammy. 

Sam takes a deep breath letting the loved soaked words settle in her heart. Even after everything her sister has seen, she’s never wavered in her love. Sam still feels unworthy of that kind of love but she can’t deny how good it feels. 

Tara noticing her sister finally relaxing she pushed herself to swing the conversation. 

“Are you ready to talk about it?” She asked wincing at her own words. 

“Not talking won’t make it go away, so I guess so” Sam rebutted with.

“Okay, cool.” Tara said as awkward tension filled the air. She felt pressure to say the right thing to insure Sam wouldn’t shut down but how does one even start a conversation like this.

“It was right after I killed Richie” Sam’s words startled Tara as she didn’t think Sam would just start talking on her own. 

“What was?” Tara continued lightly squeezing Sam’s hand to offer support 

“It felt like a damn inside of me broke. Like there was this balloon filling with air inside my chest and it finally popped. It sent a wave of energy through my veins. Something changed in me in that moment.” Sam said raise her head to make eye contact with her baby sister. Half of Sam expected fear to be plastered across her face but was pleasantly surprised when she was met with eye’s full of admiration and love. 

“Your eyes” Tara said with a child like wonder as she reached up to tuck fallen hair behind her big sisters ear. 

Sam realized instantly what Tara meant and quickly looked away. She couldn’t help the panic that started to creep back into her chest knowing the glow of her eyes was another thing that was real. 

“No wait, they're beautiful” Tara said pulling her sister face back into view. 

“They’re glowing aren’t they?” Sam asked slowly allowing Tara to turn her face back. 

“This has happened before?” Tara asked still examining her big sisters eyes. 

“Ya, the first time was right after Richie and its been kinda random ever since then. I thought it was my mind playing tricks on me. So I ignored it.” Sam added trying to calm the uneasiness in her stomach. 

Tara got up from kneeling down and started to pace the bathroom. Sam could tell she was thinking as her lips slightly twitched wherever she was debating something inside her head. However, before Sam could realize what she was doing. Tara rushed over to the bathroom mirror opening up the cabinet that was behind it. She reached in and grabbed an eyebrow shaping knife. She turned back to Sam and made a small incision on the palm of her hand and as it started to pool blood she held it out to Sam’s face. 

“Tara what the fuck are you doing?!?!” Sam yelled as she pushed her sisters bloody hand out of her face. She quickly reached for some toilet paper to cover the blood coming out of her baby sisters hand. 

“Well that’s a relief” Tara said with a huff

“WHAT IS?” Sam said completely shell shocked at the events unfolding. 

“That you're not a vampire” Tara rebutted with slight irritation as if that information should have been obvious. 

Sam was speechless at her sisters words and just stared at her dumbfounded. 

“What?… Come on Sam think about it. You’ve had heightened emotion, your unnaturally strong, you can practically hear from a mile away, and last but not least your eye fucking glow.” Tara said waiting a beat before continuing. 

“For fuck sake I was almost expecting you to say this is the skin of a killer Bella” Tara ended in a mocking tone. 

“This isn’t funny Tara” Sam said focusing back on the bleeding hand in front of her. 

“Shit you're right. Twilight was too far.” 

Silence fell over the two and Sam thought on her baby sisters actions. 

“Wait, now I'm not saying I believe any of this but what the hell was your plan if I was. Which I'm not.”

“I’ll be honest I didn’t think that far.” Tara said with a bashful smile, embarrassment flushing her cheeks.

Sam rolled her eyes and tried to bandage up Tara’s hand. It wasn’t deep enough to need stitches but she was glad they still has gauze and medical tape at the ready. 

“Tara you can’t do stuff like this. What if it was worse!” Sam locked eyes with Tara silently communication her disappointment and worry. 

“I know I’m sorry. I just don’t know what to do” Tara admitted dropping her head in defeat. 

“That’s because you're not supposed to. Im the big sister that’s my job” Sam said grabbing tara by the chin and kissing her forehead. 

“But I want to help. I have to help” Tara said almost begging for Sam to need her. 

“And you have. Okay. Trust me baby girl. More than you know” Sam said smiling at her whole world. Tara face flushed at the reassurance her sister was giving. It had been a long time since someone made her feel like she was enough. 

“So what do we do now then?” Tara asked watching Sam get up from the tub to put away the bandage and medical tape. 

“I have no clue” 

Tara’s face crunched with confusion as she continued to watch her sister. 

“But you said that was your job?” 

“Okayyy but I didn’t say I was good at it” Sam quipped back with a shit eating grin 

Tara laughed and threw some wadded up tissue at her but Sam’s reflexes aided her in dodging and catching the paper. 

“Gotta be quicker than that” Sam said tossing it into the trash can near the toilet. Tara viewed her big sister actions and thought of a plan. 

“I got it! Tests! We should run tests on you.” Tara jumped up and down a little with her words as excitement flooded her body. 

Sam was nervous to say the least but seeing how happy Tara was she couldn’t ruin that. 

“Okay. What tests do you have in mind?” Sam asked slightly regretting the question before she even finished it. 

———————————-

“Honestly I think I could keep going” Sam said mid pushup 

“Don’t speak. Must focus on counting… 867…868…869” Tara said while sitting on her sisters back. 

Sam just laughed and continued doing push ups in the back yard. It was getting close to sun set so she didn’t mind taking the rest of Tara’s tests outside. 

So far they had tested her healing ability, speed, strength and now endurance, while taking plenty of time in between to talk about all the things missed in the last five years. 

“900… okay I don’t wanna count anymore. Im exhausted” Tara said climbing off of Sam’s back causing the older Carpenter to chuckle. 

“Hey, Im the one that just did almost a 1,000 push up WITH you on my back” Sam said as she took a drink of water. 

“No need to brag. We’re trying to get to the bottom of this. Remember?” Tara shot back looking over her notes that she had been taking throughout the day. 

“Ya, ya, ya. So whats the verdict doctor?” Sam asked walking back towards her sister.

“I mean it’s hard to say. Most supernatural beings or even just people with powers tend to have the ability to heal, speed, and strength. We need to get more specific. Cut out the basics like the blood test from before. That ruled out vampires.” Tara tapped her pencil on her head as if it would pop an idea into her mind. 

Sam on the other hand swallowed her anxiety. Frankly everything Tara was saying scared the every living shit out of her and it sounded like they had lost their minds. Actually considering she could be anything more than a human was crazy. But this whole day weirdly felt like a day out of their childhood. Tara coming up with crazy ideas and games for Sam to just follow along with. Their banter, teasing, and laughter made it seem like Ghostface never came to town and that Sam never left. 

“Okay so you could try screaming like a banshie, singing like a siren, or we can check a calendar…  ” Tara blurred out snapping Sam out of her head.

“Lets just call it a day” Sam said cutting Tara off. 

“Its officially dark outside, so why don’t we go in make some dinner and you can show me another movie. Anything you want.” Sam finished with a smile and pulled Tara into a side hug. 

“But we didn’t figure it out.” Tara said disappointment lacing her tone. 

“Hey there’s always tomorrow. Besides even if we don’t figure it out tomorrow either we have every day after that. Im not going anywhere and you better not either I’m gonna need your professional opinion.” Tara felt the hot tears sting the back of her eyes. She’d been waiting years to hear those words come out of her sisters mouth. I need you. That all she wanted and she finally got it. Today was shaping up to be the best day of Tara’s life. 

“Hey what’s wrong?” Sam said seeing the wetness of Tara’s eyes

“Nothing. Honestly for the first time noth…” 

“AHHHHHH”

Before Tara could finish her thought Sam was on the ground screaming in pain. 

“Sam? Whats happening?” Tara screams as she bends down next to her sister who’s gripping the ground so hard she’s pulling up clumps of grass and dirt. 

“FUCKKKK.” Sam screams again as a loud snap echoes though the dark of the backyard. 

The sound triggers something in Tara’s brain causing her to pull out her phone and check the calendar. 

“Oh fuck” Tara mutters out

“What?” Sam hisses out as she tries to lift her head up off the ground. But Sam could feel her bones rubbing against each other every time she moved. She could feel her teeth ache with every word spoke. But she still managed to look at her sister searching for answers. Sadly she got one. One she never wanted. 

“Its a full moon” Was all Tara could say before Sam started to shift. Her bone snapping one by one while the sounds of her flesh ripping traveled though the air. It made Tara nauseous. She didn’t know what to do. She wanted to help but how? She rested a hand on what seemed to be Sam’s shoulder.

Sam felt her little sisters touch and fear traveled to every fiber of her being. A simple touch and she could feel her bodies trigger unlatch. The deep dark pit inside her stomach instantly filled and bubbled over. The next thing she saw was going to die and she wasn’t going to be able to stop. So she did what she does best. 

She ran. 

“Sam!” Tara called after her but was alone before she could even blink. 

“How could I be so stupid!” Tara huffed as she kicked at the air. She should have known. All the signs were there and she missed them. She wasn’t smart enough to figure it out. To do something about it. To stop it so her sister wouldn’t run away. It was like she was 13 again waking up to an empty room. 

But she’s not 13 and Sam isn’t gone forever. She said she wouldn’t. So when she comes back Tara will be ready. 

Ready for what, she doesn’t know but she knows who to call. 

“Sup little Carpenter” Mindy said on the other side of the phone. 

“Hey I’m older than you” Tara rebuttled as she rolled her eyes. 

“Ya. Ya. Ya so whats up?” Mind asked 

“Well me and Sam were arguing about werewolf lore and she said the only way for someone to turn is to get bit and I didn’t think that was true so I called you because who else would know this stuff better than you.” Tara said while pacing around the backyard. She couldn’t bring herself inside in case Sam were to come back. 

“Odd topic for the two of you. But you're right. I am the one to call and obviously Sam’s wrong. There are multiple ways one can become a werewolf. Yes the bite is the most common. But you can also turn if you get infected by werewolf blood or if both of your parents are werewolves then you're just born with it. But they tend to be the most tame because they turn from the young age. Oh and then you get into the cursed aspect.” 

Tara felt herself perk up at the mention os a curse. 

“What do you mean the cursed aspect?” She asked 

“Well a curse is a curse and it can come from almost anything. It can be triggered by anything also. For example lets say your blood line is cursed so on your 18th birthday you turn for the first time and that happens to everyone in your family. Oh another common one is you don’t turn unless you’ve taken a life.” 

“Taken a life?” The hair on the back of her neck stood straight up at Mindy’s words. 

“Ya like taking a life tiggers your curse. In some old werewolf lore there were certain blood lines predestined for death and destruction so as a punishment for taking a life they would be cursed to turn into the best they truly were every month. So ya lots of ways to get turned. Sam’s way wrong” Mindy finished in a condescending way 

“Thanks, Min. I’ll tell her.” Tara said and hung up. Her mouth was dry and she could feel the burn in her chest getting stronger. She quickly rushed inside the house and grabbed her inhaler taking two big hits. The medication floods her system and she sits down on the couch. How the hell is she gonna tell all of this to Sam without her completely shutting down? 

———————

Sam felt the morning sun kiss her face. It was warm and soft like a fresh towel out of a dryer. She blinked the sleep from her eyes and shot up from where she lay. She looked around to find nothing but trees. But upon looking down she almost yelped in fear. She was naked and covered in blood. She franticly tried to figure out where she was or a way to get home. Then like the whole world went silent a single voice broke through to call her home.

Sam got up and started to run towards the sound. She didn’t think twice about it, she just took off as fast as she could and at this point in time was pretty damn fast. She made it to the backyard tree line with in seconds of when she started to run. Peering in she could see Tara sitting curled into a ball on the back patio. The sounds of her crying was pulling Sam like a dog on a leash to make her presence known. 

“Tara” Sam whisper yelled from behind a tree. 

Tara wiped her face and looked up towards the direction she heard Sam’s voice. 

“Sam?” She called out.

“Im behind the tree. Could you maybe go get me some clothes?” She asked popping her head out to let Tara see her. 

Tara ran inside and grabbed the first thing she saw and rushed back to Sam. Once reaching the tree she held out the blanket she pulled from the couch. 

Sam grabbed it and wrapped up.

“Really?” Sam said look down at her younger sister. 

“What? It was the first thing I saw” Tara shot back with a smile 

“Whatever” Sam said as she began to walk inside. Before she got very far she felt a small body collide with her own. Upon looking down she saw Tara bear hugging her. 

“Hey Hey its okay. Whats wrong?” Sam said hugging tara back noticing the sobs coming from her. 

“I was so scared” 

Sam instantly stiffest at her words. Scared. Tara was scared of her. Sam pulled back trying to get a look at Taras face. Once making eye contact Tara continued.

“I didn’t think you were gonna come back” She finished through staggered breaths. 

Guilt shot up Sam’s spine realizing that Tara wasn’t afraid of her but of losing her. 

“Hey I’m here. Okay I said I wasn’t going anywhere remember” Sam cooed 

A few moments passed before either sister spoke again. 

“You should probably go shower. You smell like death” Tara said pulling out of the embrace. 

“Defiantly gonna have to throw out this blanket.” Sam added as they walked inside. 

Sam took lead as she headed upstairs towards the bathroom. If she was being honest she knows she shut it off inside. Nothing from the past night had really settled in. Yet as if speaking to soon Tara stoped her before she could venture further into the house. 

“So are we gonna talk about it?” Tara asked instantly regretting it as she saw Sam wince at the words. 

“Not right now…. Please” Sam said cautiously hoping her words were soft enough that they wouldn’t leave her younger sister spiraling while she cleaned up. 

“Ya no worries.” Tara said biting back the rejection she couldn’t help but feel. 

Sam made her way up the stairs and into the bathroom. As she turned on the shower to let the water get warm she noticed the broken sink out of the corner of her eye. She knows better than to think about that let alone go over to it. Yet like the rebellious teen she was, Sam walked over to the sink and tracked the broken porcelain with her finger accidentally nicking herself in the process. 

“Shit” She huffed out pulling her finer away. She watched fresh blood poor over dried yet as fast as her skin split it healed. Being so caught up in the sink and her finger Sam lazily caught a glimpse of herself In the mirror sending a jolt of disgust and panic to every fiber of her being. 

Her hair was matted with blood. She had dirt all over her face and dried blood on the corner of her mouth and chin. The blood ran down her body covering most of her especially her hands. Though she only looked for a second the image of herself was already burned into her memory. She quickly got in the shower and began to wash off. 

Once she was done cleaning off, Sam got out of the shower and got dressed to meet back with Tara down stairs. 

“Took you long enough” Tara said as she paused the movie she was watching. 

“Ya well you try…” Sam stoped before she dug a whole she couldn’t climb out of. 

There was a new awkward tension that filled the air. So much was yet to be said and neither sister knew where to start. 

“Im sorry”

“I called Mindy” 

Both sisters said at the same time. 

“You what?” Sam’s body tensed at Tara’s words. Surly she wouldn’t have immediately ran off to tell Mindy what happened. 

“Not like that. I just called her and asked about some stuff but I made sure to ask in such a way that well, you know” Tara clarified shooting Sam a smile to calm her down. 

“Well?” Sam asked 

Tara took a deep breath using the time to find the wright words. 

“So I think you might be cursed” Tara let out into the already tension filled air. 

“What do you mean cursed?” Sam asked folding her arms into herself. She didn’t realize how vulnerable getting answers would make her feel. 

“Okay so Mindy said there are a lot of way to become a werewolf, from getting bit, to it running in your family, to blood infections, and finally curses. So I thought all the other ones didn’t make sense but when Mindy started talking about the different kinds of curses well, let’s just say there’s a blood line cure that sounds the most accurate” Tara saw the way Sam was taking in her words. She was shutting down faster than originally expected and she knew what comes after shutting down. 

Denial 

“Im not… that” Sam was now staring at the floor walking slowly toward the couch. Arms and hands still perfectly tucked away from view. 

“Sam” Tara said following her

“No Tara this is insane. This is all insane this can’t be real” Sam spoke franticly waving her hands in the air as she felt her reality settle into her bones. 

“You can’t be serious. How the hell do you explain last night then?” Tara felt herself starting to rile up. They can’t afford to dance around this. 

“I don’t know what you're talking about” Sam let out like a bratty teenager being accused of cheating on a test. 

“Don’t do that”

“Do what?”

“Don’t act like this isn’t real.” Tara said waiting a beat for her sister to snap out of her denial. 

“Fuck Sam, we can’t afford you to act like this isn’t real.” She waited again but Sam just sat still on the couch. Tara couldn’t help but feel the anger bubble up inside of her.

“Fine if this is how you want this to go then by all mean ignore it, pretend it isn’t real. Just like you did with Billy” Tara knows she touched a nerve at the way Sam twitches. 

“That’s not fair.” Sam says standing up and walking out of the room. 

“Wow running away again” Tara said clearly losing her cool

“Are you fucking serious!” Sam abruptly turns on her heals glaring down her younger sister. 

“Yes I’m fucking serious. You can’t run away from this. Do you remember how that went last time” Tara lifted her shirt to point at her still bandaged stab wounds. 

Hot shame and guilt burned every fiber of Sam’s being at the implication of her sisters words.  She could feel her bones start to shift with the overwhelming emotional surge blossoming in her chest. Sam knew everything that happened was her fault and her sister thought it too. If she didn’t leave, if she wasn’t who she was, nobody would have gotten hurt. 

As if Tara could read minds she knew exactly how Sam took her words. 

“Shit I didn’t mean it like that.” 

“But didn’t you?” Sam spoke barely above a whisper as tears pooled in her eyes. She gripped the side of the kitchen table to steady herself leaving cracks beneath her fingers. Taking a deep breath to try and calm down. She could feel she was starting to lose control. 

Tara closed the gap between them. Reaching out to the older carpenter. But Sam pulled away  afraid of what she might do and backed into the corner of the kitchen. Tara ran her hands through her hair trying to calm the the storm raging inside of her. 

“No Sam, I didn’t mean it like that. It’s just I know this time around. You didn’t come to me with Billy and I get it. Okay I do. I get why you did what you did. But it’s different this time because I know. I can be here. Really here. But at the same time, if you don’t deal with it. In a month this could be a very different conversation.” 

A defining silence fell over the room. Tara didn’t dare move for the fear of spooking Sam even more. While Sam tried with all her might to control her body. She knew Tara was right. She had to let the right thing in just enough to admit the truth. 

“Admitting it makes it real” Sam broke the silence through gritted teeth. Her gums were on fire with ever word. 

“Not admitting it, doesn’t make it not real” Tara followed up. 

Fear was creeping up Sam’s spine. The balloon was back and filling inside her chest, if she kept this up she was surly going to explode and so with a deep breath and a sigh Sam finally let out the truth. 

“Fine. Im a fucking Werewolf. Happy” Sam breathed out and with her words her body relaxed.

“Ya the fuck you are! Finally. How was it? Was it cool? Did everything look different? Was your fur itchy?” Tara couldn’t help but feel a little excited. It’s not everyday you can ask these types of questions. 

Sam winced at the sudden mood shift in her sister. She wished more than anything she felt the same. 

“I don’t remember. I just remember waking up and then feeling like something was pulling me home and then I was here” Sam admitted. 

“I feel like that’s probably normal.” Tara said thinking on all the werewolf media she’s consumed. 

“It hurt” Sam let out in a shaky breath

“It hurt?” Tara asked

“That’s all I remember. How much it hurt” Sam added 

“Oh. Im sorry you had to go through that.” Tara used this opportunity to try and close the gap once again. 

But this time Sam reached out and pulled her into a hug letting the warmth of their body mix in a comforting embrace. Sam shudders at the instant release of tension she had. 

“What the fuck am I gonna do?” Sam muttered into her baby sisters hair. 

“We. We are gonna figure it out. We have a month right?” Tara said hopefully 

“And then every month after that” Sam rolled her eyes at her own statement. 

“Maybe not. Not if it’s a curse.” Tara said pulling out of the embrace instantly regretting it seeing the disappointed look on Sam’s face. 

“Think about it. Your blood line was cursed so what if we break it?” 

“Wait exactly how is my blood line cursed?” Sam asked confused as to what Tara was saying. 

“Oh shit we never got there. Ya so in some werewolf lore certain blood lines were cursed because, well, um.” 

“Because they what?”

“They were predestined for death and destruction so as a punishment they were cursed to turn into the beast they truly were every full moon.”  Tara said like she was ripping a bandaid off. 

“What are you saying?” Sam asked hesitantly 

“I think killing Richie triggered your curse.” Tara shifted her weight at the way her sister’s face dropped. 

“So it was inevitable.” Sam accidentally let slip 

“Wait what?” Tara asked unsure where her sister was in her thought process. 

“Its like you said I was born with death and destruction. It was only a matter of time before I…” Sam choked on her words. Tears started to fall down her cheeks as she thought. She was always destined to take a life and deep down she had known that. There was no running from the Loomis legacy. Then another thought took over. 

“Wait if that’s true then. If Im? Then Billy?” Sam started to think out loud while pacing the kitchen floor. 

“Ya im pretty sure your grandma too” Tara added making Sam stop in her tracks. 

“Oh my god” Sam said

“Ya” Tara shook her head as she watched her sister unravel. 

“Fuck” 

“Ya” 

“Okay then how do you break a curse?” Sam finally asked 

“Not a clue. BUT it doesn’t mean we can’t try.” Tara said 

“Then we better get to work. We have 30 days” Sam said as she walked over to a calendar that was attached to the fridge. 

The next four weeks were a dream for Tara. Sam was present and attentive. Anything Tara asked Sam would answer to her best capability. They would talk for hours on end and when there was nothing else to say Tara would show Sam her favorite movies until they fell asleep entangled in one and other. Tara wanted this to last forever. But nothing good ever last long for a Carpenter. 

Sam woke to a car door being slammed shut. She whipped her head towards the clock on the living room wall it read 2:17am. She then looked down to see Tara still fast asleep on her lap. 

But then she heard it. 

Footsteps

Undeniable to who’s they were. 

“Fuck” Sam muttered trying to ease out from under Taras head effectively waking her up. 

“Sam?” Tara said as she rubbed the sleep from her eyes. 

“Hey, why don’t you go…” Before Sam could even finish the front door swung open. 

“Mom?” Tara said viewing Christina stumbling through the front door. 

In hind sight Sam should have known better. From the first twitch in her bones to the way her skin started to crawl. She knows how these things go. She knows how her mother is. She just didn’t know how Tara would be. 

When Sam finally snapped to reality her mother had her cornered and was yelling the same old shit she’s heard since she was 13. 

“It was only a matter of time before you finished off destroying this family. You get out of my house this instant and don’t even THINK about coming back. I NEVER want to see you again!” Christina spat out. 

“You don’t get to say that.” Tara moved in between Sam and their mother. 

“Excuse ME?” Christina yelled at her youngest. 

“You don’t get to say that… Where were you? HuH? I was attacked and it took you almost two months to finally come back home and drunk no less. So you don’t get to come in here and blame her for you own faults. Because she was here. Sam actually saved my life not that you would listen long enough to understand that. And if we really wanna throw blame around maybe you should look in the mirror and realize that WE have to deal with the fact that YOU let yourself get knocked up by a fucking serial killer.” 

Silence filled the air as Tara caught her breath after finishing. She watched the realization flood her mothers mind as all of her rage settled from one child and rose for the other. 

“HOW DARE YOU SPEAK TO YOUR MOTHER THAT WAY” Christina hissed. She turned from Sam towards her youngest and with the raise of her right hand Christina sealed her fait. 

‘SMACK’ 

Before the echoes of palm against cheek could dissipate in the air. Sam was standing over her mother. Blood dripped from her hands as the metallic smell filled her nostrils. Her body buzzing with delight as she watched the light drift from her mothers eyes. 

“S..Sam?” Tara timidly asked as she held the side of her face that was turning bright read. The view of her sister snapped Sam back to reality. 

Panic and terror grip Sam by the throat as she looked down. Her mother lay lifeless before her. Sam’s raised her hands up, her claws glistened crimson in the light of the entryway. 

She fell to her knees, feeling the balloon expand in her chest as realization set in. She had killed their mother. Without even a second thought. She tore her mother's throat out and relished in the way her life drained from her body. 

She stared at her blood soaked hands as if any moment they would be clean and it was all just some trick of the light. But the blood stayed and her mother remained dead. 

“Sam please” Tara tried to reach for her sister. Shock locked her joints making her movements clunky causing Sam to back away. 

“Get away from me” Sam cried shoving her hands to her side and scooting across the floor as tears fell down her face. 

“Hey, hey, you need to calm down” Tara said trying to slowly inch forward towards her sister. She thought it would have been harder to see. Her only mother laying dead on the floor. But Tara couldn’t help but feel a sense of relief wash over her. Sam had vowed to protect her and she had kept that promise. Christina couldn’t hurt her anymore and god did that feel good. 

“No no please… I … I can’t.. control it” Sam shook as she felt the pull inside her chest. The balloon was filling faster than she could deflate it. 

“Sam we have until tonight. You have to trust me. Its gonna be okay” 

Sam looked up at her baby sister. The image of their mother mixing with the one infant of her. A simple flash of Tara laying dead throat torn out popped into Sam’s head. They were out of time. 

“Tara you have to go. NOW” Sam said eyes glowing wild as she tried to hold herself together. Tensing every muscle in her body like they could hold her bones in place. 

Tara saw the glow of her sisters eyes and realized they were in fact out of time. She rushed to the front room closet and grabbed a duffle bag and made her way to the back yard. 

“Sam come on!” She yelled back at her sister. 

“We prepared for this” She added before heading to the shed in the back yard. 

Sam used what little energy she had left to push herself up. She knew if she wanted to keep her sister safe she had to make it to the shed. 

Upon walking outside Sam made a beeline for the shed. Only taking a moment to look up at pale glow of the moon. In an instant she felt her muscles expand drinking in the light as if they were sponges soaking up water. 

Sam fell to her knees as her ankle gave out. The sound of bone snapping rippled through the air. 

Tara heard the commotion and ran out of the shed to her sisters side and helped her up. 

“Tara no. You… SHIT” Sam yelped as more of her body shifted inside. 

“Just shut up and let me help you” Tara said pulling her sister up and walking her towards the shed. 

Once inside Tara helped Sam down to the floor and started to chain her wrists and ankles. 

“What.. if this.. doesn’t work?” Sam asked though exacerbated breaths. 

“It will. We tested it over and over again. You can’t break out of the chains.” Tara said locking everything into place. Over the past month they had tested different ways to ensure Sam was locked away on a full moon. Eventually they found a pair of chains that Sam couldn’t break out of. Sadly it cost them an arm and a leg but it settled most of Sam’s nerves. 

Once tara was done she pulled out a lawn chair and set it up by the door and sat down. 

“Tara what are you doing?” Sam franticly asked. 

“Im staying with you” 

“No… you have… to go” Sam could barely speak through the pain. It took all of her energy to focus on not shifting. 

“Im not leaving you.” Tara said stomping her foot on the ground

“Tara please… I don’t… want.. to.. hurt you” Sam’s said in a low growl 

“There’s nothing you can do that would make me leave” Tara held eye contact with her sister. Never breaking away. Even after everything that just happened her faith in Sam never wavered and Sam felt that. As if their gaze said a million words she knew Tara trusted her with her life. Even if Sam didn’t. 

So Sam let go. The world around her started to darken as she succumbed to the sharp pain exploding in her body. 

Tara on the other hand watched as her sisters body twisted and shifted. She watched as her spine elongated and her teeth sharpened. She kept telling herself she should be afraid that she should be disgusted but she couldn’t. She had never felt so connected, grounded, and important until now. Maybe if she wasn’t so enthralled by what she was witnessing before her she might have noticed the chains starting to pull apart. 

By the time Sam was a wolf it was too late. Even though the they had tested Sam’s strength on the chains 100 times over they never took into account how strong she would be fully transformed. 

So now Tara sat a simple 5 feet away from a freed 8 foot werewolf. Eyes golden like the sun and fur as black as night with its teeth bare for all to see. 

“Whoa there. It’s me. Sam it’s me” Tara said slowly rising from her chair, holding her hands in the air. 

A low growl escaped from Sam as she kept her eyes locked on Tara. 

“Im not a threat. It’s me. It’s tara. Im not gonna hurt you.” Tara kept walking slowly towards the door. Only for Sam the lung forward cutting Tara off from the only exit in the shed. 

Tara stopped moved. She felt a twinge of fear prick the back of her neck. It was one thing to believe in her sister when she looked like herself. It was another to see a giant wolf baring its fangs at her. Tara couldn’t help the tears at welled in her eyes. She had to stay strong for Sam. She put herself in this situation. Sam would never forgive herself if anything were to happen. 

“Fuck Sam i’m so sorry.” Tara started to cry as she continued.

“I should have known better. I shouldn’t have pushed you, I was being selfish. I just want you to let me in. I went 10 years of my life being completely shut out by you. I just thought if I allowed it for a second you’d never let me back in agin and you probably have no idea what im saying” 

Tara slid down the wall of the shed and covered her face with her hands. If she was going to die she wouldn’t have the last thing she sees be a lie. She known who Sam is. Curse or no curse she knows Sam would never hurt her. It’s not her fault she’s not in control. 

She can hear the heavy footsteps growing closer. She can feel the hot breath agent her face. Tara instinctively puts her hands up in defense. But is shocked to feel the cool wetness of a nose nuzzle into the palm of her hand. Upon opening her eyes she see’s Sam’s golden eyes studying her. 

Even though Sam’s eyes were a different color they were still her big sisters eyes and Tara could tell she was just behind them. 

“Sammy?” Tara said, it had been over 8 years since she uttered that name. A name saved for the one person that meant more than anything to her and after all this time she finally saw her again. 

“I know you’re in there. Come on Sammy. You know me” Tara continues hand extended. 

Just then Sam’s eyes filled with life. There was a fire burning bright inside of them. It was her Sammys fire. 

Sam waged her tail and started to endlessly lick Taras face causing her to break out into laughter. 

“Okay. Okay. Okay ya I get it. Im happy to see you too. Maybe let’s stop with the licking.” Tara pushed Sam’s head back away from her and wiped the saliva from her face. 

Tara got up and grabbed the blanket Sam had used a month ago out of the duffle bag and laid it on the ground. She sat down and motioned for Sam to join her. Without hesitation Sam walked over and curled around Tara laying her head down. Tara leaned back agent her sister and closed her eyes. 

“Goodnight Sammy. I love you” Tara said as she relaxed back into sleep. 

Tara woke up to what sounded like someone tapping their foot on the group. Only it was someone doing that. Sam was sitting in the lawn chair hair pulled up in a messy bun in an old t-shirt and basketball shorts tapping away. 

“Morning” Tara mumbled as she pushed her self off the ground. She noticed the way Sam was stiff and fidgety. 

“How could you do that?” Sam let out eyes darting every which way but her sister. 

“Do what?” Tara asked confused as to why Sam seems so upset yet the thought reminded Tara of what really happened the night before. 

“Wait Sam.” 

“I could have killed you” Sam voice broke with her words. She thought over and over of how badly last night could have ended for her and it flooded her body with anxiety. 

“I don’t believe that” 

Tara’s words snapped Sam to attention. She looked her sister in her eye and saw just how unwavering she was again. She knew she couldn’t win this.

“Stop doing that” Sam muttered breaking the unspoken staring contest.

“Doing what?” 

“Treating me like Im not dangerous.” Sam let out dropping her head in defeat. 

“Who said I was doing that?” Tara bit back.

“What you did last night was stupid.” 

“I know and i’m sorry” Tara admitted 

“I just didn’t…” Tara started but was cut off by Sam.

“Want me to shut you out again” Sam finished 

“You heard it” Tara lit up.

“It was like a dream. I could feel that you were scared but I couldn’t see anything and then all of a sudden it felt like your hand pulled me out of this dark pit and you were just sitting their on the ground. And then I heard you say my name.” 

“Sammy” Tara breathlessly muttered the name again. 

“I don’t think i’ve ever really felt that happy before.” Sam admitted 

“I don’t think i’ve ever seen you happy before” Tara added as she watched her Sam’s body relax 

They sat in the silence for a moment before dealing with the elephant in the room. 

“I really don’t wanna be the one to end this little moment but what about, mom” Tara watched her sister wince at her words as if she was just slapped herself. 

“Fuck Tara i’m so sorry. Before I even knew what was going on… I … I.. I killed her” Sam dropped her head into her hands and shivered with dread. 

“Im not mad” Tara said staring down Sam.

“What? I took your mother away from you. How could you not be mad?” Sam met her sisters eyes again. Something about them made Sam unable to speak. 

“Don’t you dare give her the privilege of being called my mother. She was never my mother. She couldn’t stay around long enough after you left to care about me. Fucking christ, from the time I was 8 and dad left she never once thought of me as her daughter. I provided one thing and one thing alone. I would listen to her vent then she would toss me aside when she felt better.” 

“But” Sam tried to interject but couldn’t. Tara only moved closer and took her hands. 

“No buts. You said you’d protect me and you did. Without even a second thought you made sure that women could never hurt me again.” Tara stared into her big sisters eyes. Tears welling inside of her but not because of sadness. No because of unadulterated love. 

“I wasn’t scared, I wasn’t mad, I had never felt so loved in that moment.” Tara cupped Sam’s face with her hands wiping a few stray tears off her sisters face. 

“You are and will always be my protector. Im pretty sure were boned for life.” 

Sam sifted to the floor and grabbed her sister to pull them into a hug. Sam kissed Taras forehead and they just stayed like that for as long as each needed it. 

“You know Id do anything for you right?” Even though Sam phrased it like a question she knew it was a promise. 

Tara buzzed in delight with her sisters words. Nothing in this world sounded better than the bond she and Sam share. 

“I know” Tara finally let out. Nuzzling further into Sam. She thought on her sisters promise and felt deep in her gut that Sam might not have a choice when it comes to Tara. As if she held the leash to Sam’s collar. But it wasn’t the time or place to talk about that. Maybe it would never be the right time and Tara didn’t care. Sam was her’s just as much as she was Sam’s. 

“So what are we gonna do about mom?” Sam asked as if she was waiting for instructions. 

“Ya know I heard the Smith’s dog down the street got attacked by a mountain lion last week.” Tara said with a devilish grin. 

They were gonna be okay. As long as they had each other. No monster could hurt them.

“Do you think next month we could play fetch?” Tara asked

“Tara!” Sam laughed a she shoved her sister. 

“What? It could be fun!” Tara exclaimed as they walked back towards the house. 

-----------------------------------------