Shelby rose up on her hind legs, now standing six and a half feet tall, covered in long, golden fur. A low growl erupted from her muzzle, lingering into a snarl as the werewolf advanced now on Michelle, death gleaming in its eyes.
"Shelby...no...it's me, Michelle!" she cried, fighting back the sobs of hysteria she so desperately wanted to let loose. Her words had no effect on the werewolf her friend had become. It continued to come at her, now less than ten feet away. "Sh...Shelby!!!!!"she cried.
Out of nowhere, Tom darted in front of her, placing himself in between Shelby and Michelle. "Michelle, you ought to get out of here," Tom told her,"Shelby's a bit unpredictable in these sorts of situations. Just back away slowly. Get to the car. Don't run until you're out of sight. If you run right now, she's going to chase you. Do you understand?"
"Yes, " Michelle whispered, obeying the instructions, beginning to back away again. The Shelby-beast was now inches away from Tom, still using himself as a human barrier. Michelle gained a newfound respect for Tom just then, as she'd never really thought him able to do something so selfless and chivalrous.
Shelby began to sniff Tom up and down, apparently losing interest in her friend-prey. "Shelby, no. Don't. You don't want her. Take me instead," Tom told her, speaking firmly, making constant eye contact.
"Tom NO!" Michelle screamed reflexively. She didn't want to think of him giving up his life for her, didn't want to have to explain to Mike what had happened, or how it had happened that his brother was dead.
"I know what I'm doing, Michelle, "he replied in the same firm voice. "Now get OUT of here!"
Michelle continued to back away, now roughly thirty feet from the pair. Shelby had turned away from Tom, now dropping to all fours again. At first Michelle thought that she was going to run away, until she smelled the sweet odor of musk carried on the breeze.
Tom's body became wracked with seizures almost immediately. As he fell to the ground, Michelle could hear his clothes tearing as his body transformed at an alarming rate. "Michelle...."he yelled, in a voice already two octaves lower and tinged with a bestial accent,"RUN!..I ..CAN'T CONTROL...IT!!!"
Michelle turned and sprinted away, heading for where she thought the road was, where they'd parked the car, not wanting to see Tom shifting. But she could hear it. It seemed to her that no matter how far away she got, she could still hear his moans and groans as he changed. When those were done, she expected to hear the wolves at her heels, but instead the only noises she heard were noises of the surrounding woods, and the pleasure-tinged howls of two wolves mating.
Out of breath, she stopped, exhausted, somewhat lost in the woods. They hadn't seemed so large in the daytime, she noted. And then it dawned on her: Where was Mike?