• Chapter 1 ~ First off, Werewolves are Nice •
"You don't have to be afraid of me..." I whisper to the tiny sparrow. "I'm just... gonna help you. There." I lift it into the nest nestled into the branches of the tree. "There you go, little guy. You're safe now."
He cheeps at me and snuggles into the nest, looking very happy. I smile. Werewolves may be known to be cruel and malicious, but my family is anything but.
My name is Raven Nightfang, but you can call me Raven. If I had any friends, they'd call me that. My family calls me that too, and my Ma only calls me my real name when I'm in big trouble.
•••
"Raven Nightfang, come here right now, missy! You're in a world of trouble!"
Ma's on me the instant I walk into our den. Shoulda known better; she always knows when I leave and can scent the forest on me. I've been out too long and too far.
"Raven, you've gotta stop! It's too dangerous to go out so far in the forest; the humans will catch you! You know what they think of us!" she scolds me, but then her face softens. "I'm worried 'bout you babygirl. I don't wanna lose my daughter. Promise you won't go out so far?"
I nod. I'll try to stick to it this time, but it's so hard. The animals of the day-forest pull at me. They're always hurt and need my aid. I can't help it when that happens.
"Get some sleep, honey. Tomorrow's a full moon. We'll need to be extra careful. The humans will be on the hunt for us. They think we can only shift on the full moon."
I nod again. I feel like I nod a lot, but with Ma it's not a good idea to talk while she's ranting or yelling at you. She'll go ballistic.
I take a glance at my bed. It looks so soft, and it has a slight spongy squish that guarantees comfort when I lay in it. We just went out and collected moss yesterday, so it's clean and new. My sister and brother are already in bed and asleep, soI head over and curl up in it, shifting to wolf form with a slight pop.
•••
It's a full moon tonight, so I gotta be quick. It's dangerously close to dusk. Ma thinks I'm out collecting berries, but I'm in the day-forest again. I can't resist it, and I know there's some critter here in need. There always is.
And there she is— a young deer that fell into the ditch near the river. No doubt trying to follow her own Ma, I bet. I shift into a human so the deer won't be as scared of me, and so it's easier for me to lift her out.
"Go on little one, go find your Ma," I say as I gently lift her up and out of the ditch. She's a bit heavy, but nothing I can't handle.
Maybe I should follow her, make sure she gets back home. It can be dangerous in the day-forest for a young critter, and she might need protecting as she goes to her family.
Yes, that's what I'll do. Ma'd be proud, knowing
she raised such a caring daughter. She'll understand, and I'll be careful. The humans will never see me.
I shift into a wolf and set off after the fawn, staying a distance away from her, but close enough to protect her if need be. I don't want her to associate wolves with safety, there are actual wolf wolves out there, and werewolves the stereotypes come from. I mentally shudder thinking about it.
As it turns out, there is need to protect her. Quite a bit of it, actually.
We all know humans love to hunt, and hunt unnecessarily. Some of them hunt purely for sport, bagging down the rarest trophies. Some are actually good and only hunt enough to eat, but they're rare. Most men hunt anything and everything they see. Including baby deer.
I hear a shot ring out and jump back, startled, as the heavy thumps of work boots and shouts fill the air.
"A fawn! And without its Mama too!"
I wrinkle my nose. Humans even call their Ma somethin' different too. But as the reality of what's happening sinks in, a wave of fierce protection washes over me. I stand up and growl at the men as I lunge out of the bush.
The fawn, who'd been standing stock still, went bounding away, leaving me to deal with the hunters.
I bare my teeth and my hackles raise, though out of fear or anger I can't tell. I shoulda listened to Ma, and now I'm practically cornered by humans. They're gonna kill me, especially if I shift back to human form. But I might have to, we were never taught to fight as a wolf. Only as a human, just in case we ever got caught up in the human world. Note to self, I should really bring that up to Ma. After all? Werewolves have claws and teeth.
But it doesn't have to come to that. I see an opening between them closing in on me, between a young boy and a man who's most likely his father. I dart through and run as fast as I can away.
Once I'm far enough away and alone, I shift back into a human. I'm much further away from the den now, and the sun has already set. Ma must be worried sick.
I sit for a minute, recuperating from the terrifying experience. I hope the fawn got far away and found her Ma.
As it turns out, I'm not actually alone. The boy from earlier steps out from behind a tree with an expression that's a mix of shock, anger, and fear.
"You're... a werewolf..."
A/N: This is partially inaccurate, please don't pick up a fawn in the wild! While a doe most likely won't reject them, it could dull their natural survival instinct to avoid humans.
Fangs and Fate, a Wattpad story.
Word count, 980
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