"..."
Scott didn't respond. His body was still trembling, begging him to flee.
"Right..." Jhon murmured, remembering that simply being in Elysra's presence was putting the werewolf in serious trouble.
Giving his sister a pat on the head, he said, "Stop intimidating him, princess."
She huffed again, ceasing to release pressure toward the little teenage wolf.
In an instant.
Scott went from shaking uncontrollably to falling flat on his butt on the floor, sweating and breathing heavily.
As if it were a signal to revert, his body began to change. First was his hair, which had grown across his chest and cheeks. Then his musculature, which decreased slightly. Finally, his claws and eyes, returning to normal.
"W-who are you?!" McCall shouted, terrified and backing away. Without waiting for a response from the two mysterious beings, he passed out.
"..."
And Jhon... Jhon remembered once again that not all teenagers are nerds like him. And that most would shit themselves in fear if they experienced this situation.
"Brother, this is so boring!" Elysra spoke in her cat form, mimicking a yawn with her little paws. If you asked her: "Why did you meow when people talked to you and not respond with words?", she'd say: "You don't get the vibe!"
Suddenly, her eyes lit up, as if she'd found the solution to her boredom. "I know!" she said, hopping off Jhon's lap with a somersault.
"I'll cook your favorite dish!" She nodded vigorously.
"That way you'll be full when you're done! What do you say?" She pressed her index fingers together against her chest and looked at her brother with puppy eyes.
"Hehe..." Jhon just chuckled lightly, swallowing some saliva as he adjusted himself.
Unable to find an excuse, and not wanting to disappoint his beautiful sister, he said: "O-okay, princess. I can't wait to eat it!" The last part came out with a bit of doubt, but Elysra didn't notice.
"Yay!" Elysra raised her arms in victory and dashed toward the shop door. Her figure vanished quite quickly.
One minute later.
Jhon remained there, seated with a few drops of sweat on his forehead. Waiting for Scott to wake up, he mentally ordered the Teen Wolf book to come to his hand. The best thing he could do now was seek more information beyond the series.
With that, a dark and modestly thick book arrived in his hand. Its cover was ancient leather, with symbols and characters that seemed derived from Old Latin.
Jhon opened it curiously. The pages were filled with general information about the supernatural world of Teen Wolf. There were sections on the different species: werewolves, their pack hierarchies and the various types of Alphas; banshees and their prophetic abilities; kanimas and their masters; kitsunes and their different elemental types; wendigos, darachs, berserkers...
It also contained information on supernatural phenomena: the full moon and its effects, wolfsbane and its properties, telluric currents, the Nemeton and its power. It was a general compendium of the world, its rules, its dangers.
Jhon flipped through the pages, absorbing the information. While there weren't many things different from what was shown in the series, there were sections on some races that were... strange.
Things you wouldn't expect from a world that's part of a TV series.
"Interesting..." he murmured, with a smile beneath his mask.
---
Five minutes later, Jhon had stopped reading 30 seconds ago, when Scott began to stir.
His eyelids fluttered. A low groan escaped his throat. Slowly, he opened his eyes.
The first thing he saw was the shop's ceiling—a ceiling that seemed made of fantastical metals and lights that resembled stars. What he didn't notice was that the lights dimmed with his awakening.
"What...?" His voice came out hoarse.
He sat up abruptly, his heart racing hard. He looked around frantically: the endless shelves, the strange objects, the golden light...
And the masked man seated in a noble-looking chair, watching him in silence.
"AHHH!" Scott screamed, trying to stand and run, but his legs gave out. He fell to his knees, breathing rapidly. He was on the verge of panic!
His eyes widened even more when he saw his own torso—he was shirtless, his skin covered in dried sweat and forest dirt.
"Where am I? What did you do to me? Did you rape me? Who—?"
"Calm down." Jhon's voice, deep and resonant, cut through Scott's panic.
However, the vein on Jhon's forehead was unmistakable. This guy passes out and thinks he was raped?
If Scott were fully sane, he'd say: Of course! I show up almost naked in a place, with a guy in front of me—who wouldn't think they were kidnapped and lost their innocence?
But he wasn't 100% okay, so upon hearing the voice, Scott froze, staring at the masked man with eyes full of terror.
Jhon tilted his head. "Don't you remember how you got here?"
Scott blinked. Trying to recall. The last thing... the party. Allison. Feeling sick. Driving home. The transformation. The pain. Running through the woods. And then...
Nothing.
"I... no..." Scott shook his head, confused. "I don't remember. I was at home, and then... everything's blurry."
"Mmm." Jhon nodded slowly. 'Lack of control over your wolf form. Expected on your first full moon.'
He gestured with his hand. Out of nowhere, a steaming cup of coffee materialized in the air, floating gently toward Scott. At the same time, an elegant but comfortable chair appeared in front of his own.
"Sit," Jhon said, his voice softer now. "We need to talk."
Scott looked at the chair, then the floating cup, then back at Jhon. Everything in him screamed that this was impossible. That none of this was real.
But the cup smelled like real coffee. The chair looked solid.
And the fear he felt was very, very real.
Slowly, still trembling, Scott stood and approached the chair. He sat on the edge, tense, ready to bolt at any moment.
The cup floated into his hands. Instinctively, he grabbed it. It was hot. Perfectly hot.
He brought it to his lips and drank. The flavor exploded in his mouth—rich, complex, exactly how he liked his coffee, though he'd never told anyone.
"Better?" Jhon asked, his posture now more relaxed, almost... friendly.
Scott nodded weakly.
Jhon leaned back, crossing one leg over the other. The whole friendly and approachable vibe seemed... to wane. It was like there was another person there now.
"Scott McCall," Jhon began, and the name sounded important coming from him. "I let you into my shop for a reason."
Scott swallowed hard, clinging to the cup like a lifeline. "What... what is this place?"
"This," Jhon spread his arms, encompassing the entire shop, "is The Wish Shop. And I am its owner. You can call me... Jhon Desire. Or simply call me merchant."
"Jhon Desire?" Scott frowned. "Merchant... of what?"
"Of wishes." Jhon tilted his head. "I grant what people desire most. For a price, of course."
Scott stared at him. Then, despite the fear, despite the surreal situation, he let out a nervous laugh.
"Wishes? Seriously?" He shook his head. "Look, I don't know what this is. I don't know if I'm drugged or dreaming or... or if I've finally lost my mind, but—"
"But?" Jhon interrupted gently.
"But I don't believe in... magic genies or whatever," Scott finished, though his voice lacked conviction.
After all, an hour ago he didn't believe in werewolves either.
Jhon didn't respond immediately. He just looked at him. The two dark voids in his mask where eyes should be seemed to pierce straight into Scott's soul.
And then, those voids began to glow with a red hue.
Scott dropped the cup. It shattered on the floor, coffee spilling, but he didn't even notice. He was frozen, staring at those impossible red eyes.
"N-no..." he whispered. "Please, don't hurt me. I didn't—"
"It doesn't matter if you don't believe," Jhon said, his voice now reverberating with power. The red eyes intensified. "I just need you to answer one thing, Scott."
The red glow faded as quickly as it appeared, returning to the normal darkness of the mask's eye holes.
"What is... what do you desire most?
Scott opened his mouth. Closed it. His mind was chaos. What did he desire? To wake up from this nightmare? To go back to normal? For none of this to have happened?
"I... I don't know," he stammered finally.
Jhon leaned forward, resting his elbows on his knees. "No? Let me help you then."
"Aren't you worried about Allison?"
Scott's heart stopped.
"About controlling your power?"
His hands trembled.
"About no longer being a werewolf?"
A knot formed in his throat.
"About learning more about this world you live in?"
And then, like lightning, it all came back to him.
Allison!
"ALLISON!" Scott shouted, jumping from the chair so fast it fell backward. "She's in danger! Derek has her, I—"
His eyes began to glow yellow. His muscles tensed. He could feel the wolf awakening again, responding to his fear, his rage—
CLAP.
Jhon clapped once.
The sound was like thunder. An invisible wave of force hit Scott, and suddenly, the wolf retreated. The glow in his eyes faded. His breathing calmed, though his heart still pounded frantically.
"She's in danger," Scott gasped, looking at Jhon desperately. "I have to—wait." He stopped. "How do you know her name? I never told you—"
"I know many things, Scott McCall." Jhon stood, walking toward him with measured steps. "And I know Allison Argent is perfectly safe."
"What? No, you don't understand, Derek—"
"Derek Hale only used her to lure you out," Jhon interrupted. "He took her home after you left the party. He took one of her blouses so you could smell it and think he had her captive."
Scott's mouth hung open. "How...?"
"Has Derek ever hurt you or anyone close to you?" Jhon asked.
"He was the one who bit me!" Scott shouted.
Jhon tilted his head. "Are you sure?"
Scott opened his mouth to respond, but the words didn't come.
Was he sure?
He closed his eyes, forcing himself to remember. That night in the woods. The attack. The wolf was... big. Massive. With eyes that glowed...
Red.
Blood red.
But Derek's eyes were blue. He'd seen them glow.
"I..." Scott slumped back into the chair, which Jhon had righted with a gesture. "I don't... know."
He covered his face with his hands. "I don't know anything. I don't know what's happening to me. I don't know who did this to me. I don't know how to stop it."
Jhon let the silence settle for a moment. Then, he returned to his chair and sat.
"I ask you again, Scott," he said softly. "What do you desire most?"
Scott lowered his hands. He looked at Jhon, and for the first time, really looked at him. This being—whatever it was—was offering him something. Help. Power. He just had to... desire it.
But nothing was free. Jhon had said so.
"Why?" Scott asked, his voice breaking. "Why are you giving me this? I'm nobody. Just a... a loser who had asthma and barely made the lacrosse team."
'For my entertainment, idiot,' Jhon thought.
But what he said was: "Because I've seen how your life has been, Scott. And you deserve a second chance."
The words hit Scott harder than any punch. He felt a lump in his throat.
"What... what do you get out of this?" he asked cautiously.
Jhon fell silent.
The silence stretched. Five seconds. Ten. Twenty.
Scott started sweating. 'I screwed up. I asked too much. Now he's going to—'
"You see, Scott," Jhon said finally. "Sometimes it's better not to know everything. And just take advantage of the situation."
That's what he told him, but internally he didn't even want to make up an excuse for it—he'd just leave it hanging. Though he knows that in the future he needs to create rules, something like equivalent exchange, so people can't think he grants wishes freely without demanding something.
For now, he'd act like the arrogant type who doesn't say shit.
Unaware of Jhon's thoughts, Scott cursed internally. 'If he's got me trapped here, unable to leave, wouldn't it be better to be honest about it? Damn it! But...'
He didn't want to anger the being in front of him.
"Oh... okay," he murmured.
Jhon nodded. "So, what do you desire? To go back to normal? To be with Allison forever? For your family to be whole again? Revenge on whoever bit you? To control your abilities? To learn about your world?"
Scott opened his mouth—
"Before you answer," Jhon interrupted, "I'll tell you something: in your world, there's a stupid variety of supernatural beings. Banshees. Wendigos. Kanimas. Darachs. Werejaguars. Kitsunes. And that's just the beginning."
He leaned forward.
"So being human wouldn't be the best option. Once you're in this world, there's no going back."
Scott froze completely.
He'd been about to ask to go back to normal. To his boring, safe life. But now...
"I... I didn't ask for this," he whispered, scared. In the end, he was just a young guy at the start of his life. He'd never imagined becoming the center of the supernatural in the future.
Jhon's voice softened. "I know. Sometimes things happen in life that you can't stop. But how you respond to them... that you can control."
Scott remained silent for a long moment. He could hear his own heart beating. He could smell the spilled coffee on the floor.
And he made a decision.
"I-I want to control my wolf form," he said finally, his voice trembling but firm. "I want to control it without losing control."
Jhon looked at him in silence. "Just that?"
Scott nodded. "Yes. It's the best. If my world is as dangerous as you say... I don't want to leave my mom and my best friend alone in this."
Jhon chuckled softly, faintly remembering the future Scott, the so-called "True Alpha."
"Did I say something wrong?" Scott stammered, nervous.
Jhon shook his head. "No. You said exactly the right thing."
And then, without warning, he raised his arm.
Scott tensed, expecting pain. Closing his eyes.
SNAP.
The finger snap echoed in the shop.
Scott blinked. He felt nothing. No pain. No change.
"Did it... fail?" he murmured, confused.
But Jhon did feel something. His eyes, behind the mask, shifted from their usual hazel to a deep blue for a moment.
"No," Jhon said, savoring his own internal change. "Transform now."
Scott frowned. "But I don't feel—"
"Don't say anything," Jhon interrupted. "Just do it."
Scott, thinking he'd angered him, simply tried to "call" his wolf form. He expected to fail. He expected pain.
Instead...
His eyes turned yellow instantly. His body began to change—but this time, he was aware of every moment. He could feel the muscles expanding. He could feel the fangs growing. He could feel the claws extending.
And most importantly: he could control it.
He stood, staring at his transformed hands in amazement. He opened and closed his fists. Flexed his arms, feeling the strength.
And he could think. His mind was clear. No blind rage. No uncontrolled instinct.
It was him. Scott. But also the wolf.
Together. In harmony.
"I... I can..." The words came out choppy, but they were his words. "It works! I can control it!"
He looked at Jhon with glowing eyes—literally—full of gratitude. "Thank you! Thank you, I—"
"There's an Alpha you need to watch out for," Jhon said, cutting off his excitement.
Scott blinked, using all his intelligence to guess who. "The one who bit me?"
"Yes." Jhon nodded. "Now that the Alpha has no control over you, he'll hunt you."
"WHAT?" Scott shouted.
Jhon laughed, a rich and amused sound. "Now that you've got your wish..."
He raised his hand again.
"Goodbye."
SNAP.
"Wait, no—!"
Scott vanished in a flash of golden light, his shout cutting off abruptly.
The shop fell silent.
"Man, messing with teenagers is... pretty fun," Jhon said aloud, removing his mask and wiping a tear from his eye from laughing.
Acting like an authoritative type was... certainly addictive.
However, in the end, he kicked him out of the shop because he couldn't hold back the excitement anymore.
He wanted to transform!
"I didn't expect this..." he murmured, snapping his fingers. His clothes vanished with that action, leaving him in boxers.
Good thing Elysra wasn't there.
As always, the essence eliminated the weaknesses—but he didn't expect there to be so many!
'The best way to know the changes is to try it directly,' he thought mentally.
As if it were a command, his body began to change.
CRACK.
"Urggh."
His bones cracked with every second, growing and becoming stronger. His body slowly increased in size.
Jhon gritted his teeth, enduring the pain. He'd never fully get used to it.
In the end, there's always something that hurts more than anything else you've done.
His spine arched violently. His height increased from his usual 1.92 to reaching 2.30 meters.
The skin on his torso began to darken. Black hair emerged, thick and coarse, covering his chest in patterns that seemed almost carved. The fur grew in thick layers, longer in some areas, creating a wild texture.
"Shit..." he gasped, falling to his knees.
His arms thickened massively. Muscles swelled beneath the dark fur that now covered them. His hands elongated, fingers extending until curved, sharp claws emerged from the tips.
CRACK. CRACK. CRACK.
His face began to change. The jaw projected forward, elongating into an angular, predatory lupine snout. The teeth filling his mouth were like daggers. Made to slaughter whatever appeared in one bite.
Dark hair, almost black with gray tones, burst from his head and neck, falling in wild, spiked strands backward like a fierce mane. Some strands had a lighter, silvery tone.
His ears elongated and pointed, moving to the top of his skull.
And his eyes...
Jhon opened his eyes with difficulty.
They glowed with an intense blue.
"Hah... hah..." His breathing was heavy, coming out as steam from his snout.
He stood slowly.
His body was now massive. Over two meters of pure muscle covered in fur.
His legs had transformed, powerful and built for speed. Black claws protruded from his feet.
He raised a hand in front of his face, observing the claws. Flexed his fingers.
"This... what the hell happened?" His voice came out guttural, much deeper than in his human form.
He didn't understand—his wolf form had changed a lot compared to his counterparts in Teen Wolf.
It was at that moment that information arrived in his mind.
-----
End of chapter
Answer the question:
What do you think happened to John's transformation?
Why is it so different from that of his peers in Teen Wolf?
Thanks for reading.