*The night after the events of the previous chapter*

*11/12/79*

A blanket of clouds surrounded the uncovered moon as it casted a shadow over a ten-year-old boy named Hunter. He yawned and rubbed his tired eyes. “I hate doing farm work. I can't wait until I can become a Huntsman like mom and dad. Then I can go on adventures whenever I want.”

He looked up at the moon and thought of it as one of nature's most beautiful sights. It is a shame that the threat of werewolves brought fear and dread to such nights.

Hunter’s eyes widened when a strange, high-pitched noise echoed out of the woods across from him. He glanced at the trees cloaked in darkness. “W-What was that...?”

He stood there and waited for what felt like minutes. He jumped slightly when the strange noise sounded again. He backed away from the forest before he ran back toward his house.

~o0o~

Hunter burst through the front door and startled his thirteen-year-old sister Rose, who was sharpening her red-bladed bearded axe next to the fireplace.

“Rose! There is something wrong!” Hunter panted.

Rose's brows creased. “What is it?”

“I heard a strange noise in the woods! What if it’s a werewolf or a Shadow Mutt? Please, go check it out.”

“Hunter, we live near the forest. There are going to be strange noises coming from the trees every now and then. There is nothing to worry about. It is probably just your imagination playing tricks on you.”

“But what if it’s a Shadow Creature or a werewolf?”

Rose frowned and scratched the back of her head. “Wow. Yeah, that is actually a good argument. If there is one, there is bound to be more not far off. This could be serious.”

She stood up with her axe in hand and gave Hunter a confident smile. “Ready to see your big sister in action?”

~o0o~

Ten minutes have passed, and Rose was sitting on the ground, legs crossed. Her chin sat in her galm as she gazed at the trees. She looked up at Hunter with an irritated glair. “When will I hear this ‘strange noise,’ Hunter? It's been like forever.”

“You'll hear it! Just wait a little longer.”

Another few minutes passed, and Rose picked up her axe and stood up with a frown. “I should have known that you weren't hearing anything. And I was dumb enough to think it wasn't your imagination playing tricks on you. You still have twenty minutes till it's your bedtime, so do whatever you want. Just please keep me out of it.”

Hunter stomped his foot. ”'But I did hear something! I didn't imagine it!”

”Yeah, right. Thanks for the waste of time.”

“But what if whatever comes back?”

Rose said nothing in return.

Hunter sat his bitt down and faced the trees. “I know I heard something. I'll show her.”

Another five minutes pass without incident.

Then, another five minutes.

And another.

And another.

“Maybe Rose was right. Maybe it was just my imagination playing tricks on me.” He started walking away, defeated. But then, he stopped, eyes wide, when the strange noise was heard again.

Hunter happily brightly. He had to tell Rose that he heard the strange noise again. He was right. He started to run back home, but not three seconds later, he slowed to a jog, his smile gone. “No. Rose will never believe me. She thinks that I am just hearing things.”

He looked back at the forest while the strange noise sounded again. “But I can't just go to bed with that thing out there.”

He thought hard for a moment. “No. I am going to be a Huntsman when I grow up. I can't be afraid. Not when my village is in danger.”

~o0o~

Unauthorized usage: this narrative is on Amazon without the author's consent. Report any sightings.

Hunter snuck into his room and looked over at his sleeping three-year-old sister Coraline in her bed opposite his. He reached under his bed and pulled out a large hunting knife given to him by his father for his last birthday.

“Hunter...? What are you doing?” Hunter spun around and hid the knife behind his back. Coraline was awake, or as awake half asleep can be, as she rubbed her eyes.

He stuffed his knife in the back of his pants. “Why are you up? Rose will tell on you if she sees you.”

“I heard you walking around.”

Hunter tucked Coraline back under the covers. “I'm just going to the outhouse.”

“Okay....” She snuggled closer into her blankets.

~o0o~

“I am brave. I can do this because I am fearless,” Hunter tried to keep this in mind as he walked through the grass. His legs trembled as the knife felt heavy in his hand despite its small size.

His wide, blue eyes reflected the full moon above him, and his lips trembled as he approached the tree line.

"H-Hey," he called, hating how high-pitched his voice sounded. "Whatever you are, go away! You aren't welcome in Castell Henllys."

He tilted his head and waited for a reply. When he heard nothing, he allowed a satisfied smirk to come to his face. He started to walk toward the house with a spring in his step.

Then, he heard the sound again. It was a cry, somewhere between a bark and a scream. Having heard it now, without Rose to protect him, made his very marrow grow cold.

For a few seconds, he was unable to move. He couldn't even bring himself to call for help. He just stood there, his hand clenched around his knife, which suddenly felt very useless.

He lost count of how many heartbeats pounded in his chest before the sound pierced the night again. He shuddered but realized the darkness of the trees. The sound hadn't moved. He waited a few heartbeats more before it sounded again.

He heard an undertone of pain, like an injured dog's whine. Hunter swallowed loudly. If a werewolf was in trouble, it could summon its entire monstrous pack to its location. Then what would happen to Castell Henllys?

It would have been smart to find a Huntsman to handle this, but Hunter saw an opportunity to prove himself finally. What if he became a hero? What if he managed to kill a werewolf and complete his clan's rite of passage at ten years old? All in one night! His father would let him start training early!

Heartened by that thought, Hunter took a deep breath and walked into the trees.

Hunter chewed on his lower lip as sweat raced down his young face. His wide blue eyes glanced at whatever tree branch or bush rustled against a gust of wind.

He stepped on practically every twig in his path and caused the brambles to rustle loudly. He winced inwardly at the noise he made but reasoned that the unknown creature already knew where he was. Besides, it was helpless to attack him if his theory of it being trapped in some manner was correct.

The sound echoed through the trees again. Hunter shivered before he rounded a tree. He froze in place, his mouth hung open in horror.

Crouched low to the ground as green eyes glowed in the shadows was the hunched form of a werewolf. Its canine face was turned in Hunter's direction. Its hand-like five-fingered front paws were dug into the ground. Its tail was tucked between its hind legs, one of which was sticking out at an odd angle.

It took a moment for Hunter to realize that the ankle of that leg was tightly wrapped in a thorny branch.

He had to act quickly! He took a step forward and brandished his knife. The beast growled sharply and lunged at him. He jumped back with a yelp. The knife flew from his hand as he crashed into the bracken and shielded his face. He scrunched his eyes shut, cursing his foolishness. Now, he'd die or be turned, which was basically the same thing to humans.

He started to feel a hot breath on his cheeks but nothing else. He opened his eyes and saw that the creature couldn't come any closer. The thorn branch has too tight a hold around its ankle. As a result, human and monster were practically nose-to-nose but unable to attack each other.

Hunter started to sit up, only for the beast to give another warning snarl. He quickly lay back and swallowed loudly. Over time, he felt the resignation that came with being in a helpless situation set in. With that feeling, the fear ebbed away. Eventually, he spoke.

"So, what now?" he asked, more to break the silence than anything.

The werewolf's ears perked up, and it tilted its head at him. Up close, he could see that its eyes were several shades of green. The main color was a bright emerald mixed with grassy green and a few flecks of pine around the edges. They would have been beautiful on a human.

"I mean, neither of us can move. Your pack is probably too far away to hear you, or it would have come here by now."

At this, the beast made a mournful keening noise that sounded surprisingly human.

Hunter frowned. "Wait, can you understand me?"

It huffed quietly and nodded its head.

After digesting this new information, Hunter wet his lips nervously. "Um, how about we make a deal?"

The creature tilted its head, perking its ears toward him again.

"Yeah," he continued eagerly. "We'll make a deal! If I cut the branch and let you go, do you promise to leave and never bring your pack to my village?"

The beast's bushy tail started to wag back and forth in the face of this offer. The werewolf stepped backward, panting eagerly. It bobbed its head in what was obviously a nod.

"Okay. I'm standing up now.”Slowly, he got to his feet. The werewolf stayed put. He kept half an eye on it as he picked up his knife.

Holding it tightly, he walked over to the beast's bound ankle. He couldn't help but wince when he saw it up close. A shaft of moonlight showed a mass of chestnut fur matted with blood. The thorn branch had wrapped itself around the ankle several times.

At that moment, he should have slit the beast's throat. It was helpless, and its guard was down. Killing it now would be easy. The thought caused an uncomfortable feeling to rise in Hunter's stomach. The creature could have easily killed him when he got up. If it was as much a savage as werewolves were supposed to be, it would have, but for some reason, it was holding perfectly still.

Also, something felt wrong about breaking his promise, even if it was a promise to an unholy beast. His father told him Huntsmen were supposed to be honorable, after all. With that in mind, Hunter turned his mind resolutely away from the monster's exposed throat and to its bound leg.

Carefully, he grabbed the branch and started sawing it. Every time he tugged too hard, the wolf let out a whimper. He apologized without knowing why and tried to be gentler. He eventually managed to cut through. Carefully, he took the branch and started unwrapping it. When he finally pulled it off, blood flowed freely from the wound. He jumped back. He couldn't risk mingling the werewolf's blood with his own. That would turn him as surely as any bite.

The werewolf moved away from him. While doing that, it crawled into the moonlight, which illuminated the rest of its chestnut fur with a streak of silver running down its spine. It bent its head downward and started licking its bleeding ankle.

Hunter watched the beast with a small degree of fascination. He had been raised on stories of how werewolves were evil monsters. But this creature was acting every bit as harmless as an injured pup.

"You are just a pup, aren't you?" He realized. If the beast were to stand on its hind legs, it would be just a little taller than him.

The chestnut wolf paused in its licking to look up at him. Its ears flattened, and a very human-like grimace crossed its muzzle for a split second.

Hunter let out a small laugh when he saw the expression. "I guess we're both breaking the rules tonight, huh?"

Before he realized what he was doing, he tore a thick strip from his blue sleep shirt and held out the cloth. "Here. Bind your ankle with that."

The werewolf's eyes widened. It stood perfectly still, looking as unsure as Hunter felt. Then, slowly, it limped over and reached out, taking the strip of cloth from him. For an instant, its furry paw brushed against Hunter's fingers. They both shivered and backed away from each other.

Hunter watched while the creature used its surprisingly nimble hands to wrap its ankle. He looked up at the sky to discern the time. "I need to go now. Remember your promise, okay?"

The chestnut wolf released a soft bark and nodded before it turned and ran into the trees. Hunter waited for the sound of its paw steps to fade before leaving the forest.

It wasn't until he was in bed that the full magnitude of what he had done struck him. ''I saw a werewolf, one of the most feared beasts in the world, up close!”

A look of guilt appeared on Hunter's face before his stomach twisted with shame. “And I let it go.”

He vowed that no one would ever learn of what he had done.