Howling

Chapter One - Bite

Werewolf: A male that transforms into a blood hungry wolf at every full moon. Hunted by many for a long time, ever since the myth came to rise. Feared by many, as new and more frightening tales appeared. One howl at the moon would make one shiver. Regarded as a superstition by lots of people.
And the man in question? Seen as a dangerous man, who should be hunted down and killed.
How would a young werewolf survive? How would he manage to live his life, free from prejudice?
The answer?
He can't.


I was foolish. Too young to understand how serious their warnings were. I entered the forest, a carefree child, wanting to have some fun and returned as a monster, not worthy of living.

I can remember every moment of it. Every scream that came out of my mouth rings in my mind. I’m lay on my bed, staring out at the moon through my window. A full moon had just been past. No one ever knew what happened when I entered the forest next to my house every month.
I rolled over, sighing. I looked at the shabby floorboards of my bedroom, staring at the yellow-y piece of parchment that lay there, slightly crumpled from the amount of times I’d read over its contents.
I picked it up, and unfolded it.

Dear Mr. Lupin, We are pleased to inform you…

I stopped reading. Going to Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry was my dream, but I never really considered what going there would mean. What if someone found out my secret? Could I risk going there?

Of course I could. I had wanted to go to this school since my father told me about it when I was five. I was eleven now and I knew that after 6 years of dreaming about it, I really couldn’t give up the chance to go to Hogwarts.

If this had never happened, it would all be so much easier.
I thought about it for the ten-thousandth time that night. I thought about every mistake I made and what I should’ve and could’ve done.
I thought about how afraid I was. I thought about how I used to be. Before it happened. Never in my wildest dreams would I have thought that I would become what I am today. I could never have imagined that I would be a monster, something that people run away from in fear. But here I am…

The little boy ran, twigs snapping and stones crumbling on the forest floor as his feet thumped lightly on the dirty ground. He laughed, his high pitched voice tinkling across the wind, an echo carrying through the long branches of the many orange, yellow, red and brown trees that surrounded him.
There was a howl. It pierced the night and swum around the boy, making him shiver slightly. The boy sped up, determined to have a little more fun before being forced to leave the gloomy forest.
Another howl. There were sounds of soft feet patting heavily on the floor. The boy giggled again.
“I bet I can outrun the wolf.” The boy muttered, smiling mischievously.
The boy sped up even more, leaving a trail of yellow dust behind him.
He ran, his small legs beginning to ache. For an eight year old, the boy was sneaky.
Although his parents had told him time and time over about how terrifying the forest was, the tales had only made him more curious.
He laughed to himself.
He was thoroughly enjoying himself, running as fast as possible when BANG! A sudden pain ran through his right foot and then it moved up to his head as he landed on the hard floor with a thump.
His head spun continuously and his vision was blurred. The sounds of feet running were getting closer and the howling was getting louder.
He rolled over onto his back, his foot and head aching terribly as he did so. It was all he could do to stop himself from screaming with pain. Then something large came into view. He squinted, his vision becoming slightly clearer. He heard a loud smile and shrieked with fright, the pain getting worse.
There was another snarl and the large creature –he guessed that it was the wolf- bent down and, in a matter of seconds; a new and more terrible pain came into play. The boy screamed loudly, as sharp points pierced his skin. Hot tears ran down his cheeks, from both fear and pain. He felt his own wet, sticky blood pour out of his leg and he continued to scream.
The wolf quickly retreated.
Suddenly, as if to make matters worse, the small boy saw the moonlight come up. Usually, this would not have affected him in any way, but that night, something was different. Pain was still rushing through his body, coming from all places, when the moon rose from behind the trees. It felt…hot on the boy’s skin. It burned him. Hen there was the transformation. First, it felt as if needles were being pricked out, from his insides. He screamed again, his voice growing hoarse.
Then, another pain came, from his face. Something was happening and he really didn’t like it. He wanted it to go away, to be finished.
Then, something else happened. It was like his feelings were being drained away. All that was left was the raw, hot pain. All his feelings were gone and suddenly, he was desperate for something. He needed food. He was hungry for human flesh.
He heard himself snarl. He didn’t know much, his brain was just about frozen. Most of his thoughts were completely gone. He just knew that he needed to kill. He was a wolf and he needed to kill, so that he may be able to stop the insatiable hunger that was growing steadily inside him.
The wolf started to run, his feet pressing softly against the cold ground. He ran, warm saliva dripping out of his mouth, then, just as he gained as much speed as possible, he skidded to a halt and let out a long, loud howl.


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