Astrid ran as fast as she could. Blood poured from her wounded side where a chunk of flesh had been bitten off. It was pitch black inside the Malmalam Thicket, the thick trees obscuring the moon's light. Despite that, Astrid could see just fine. Her vision --- it had grown sharper, so much so that she could see in the dark. Her ears had also become quite sensitive, and she could no longer hear the large, snarling beast behind her. Her clothes had ripped apart and been replaced by thick, black fur. There was almost nothing human about her anymore.

She finally slowed to a stop, panting. She looked back, scanning the area for danger. She couldn't see or hear anything. She then looked down at her wound, her clawed hand coated in blood. Astrid was quick to examine her new form, panic overtaking her mind.

"The legend...it's true..." she muttered to herself. "I'm a lycan..."

Cursing her own stupidity, the she-wolf dragged herself back to the entrance of the thicket. She growled at herself, clueless as to what to do. She couldn't go back to HQ looking like that, not to mention she broke the rules about going into the thicket. Her ears perked up, and she suddenly realized there was someone nearby. Turning her head, she met the gaze of an elderly woman. The Witch of the Woods... she thought. To her surprise, the woman gave her a kind and inviting smile. Astrid weakly smiled back, and just from that simple gesture, she knew she wasn't alone.

~~~~~

"So let me get this straight..." Prompto said, swatting away small insects that flew around his face. "A hunter went missing trying to find some legendary monster called a lycan?"

Gladio sighed. "Yep. Dave said that she disobeyed orders and came here to the Malmalam Thicket to fight it. She's been gone about a week now, and whenever hunters come to search the area, they say an unidentified animal attacks them, chasing them away."

"What is a lycan anyway?" Noctis asked.

Ignis hummed, pushing his glasses up the bridge of his nose. "It's an old, obscure legend. A lycan is said to be a humanoid wolf beast. It's supposedly a nocturnal creature that boasts high strength and is capable of creating others in its likeness."

Prompto grinned. "Oooh, so it's basically a werewolf! Like in the movies!"

The prince rolled his eyes. "Pssh, those things don't exist. This 'legend' was probably made up by some fairytale enthusiast. Let's just find this missing hunter, or her tag, and get the hell outta these woods."

The four males followed the winding path toward the Malmalam Thicket. But what they didn't know was that they were being watched. Astrid was in the trees above, quietly waiting, her teeth bared in a silent growl. She didn't trust anyone around the woods. She'd already dealt with trespassing hunters, those four didn't look much different. It was when they got too close to Kimya's home that she decided to intervene. Leaping from the branches, she dove straight down toward the black-haired one that led the others.

"Noct!" Ignis yelled as a warning.

Noctis just barely summoned his sword in time, blocking the beast's claws. He knocked her away, but she landed on her feet, snarling and snapping. Her solid black fur made her stand out in the light of day. Her blue eyes were focused on them. With her ears pinned back, she stalked toward them on all fours. Her feminine physique gave away her gender. Her large size was intimidating nonetheless.

"Lycan!" Prompto cried, pointing his gun at the creature.

She caught them all off guard by charging, knocking them all away with her strength. She then tackled Noctis, pinning him down on his back. The prince tried hard to push her off, but she easily overpowered him. She leaned down, opening her jaws wide, ready to bite down and rip his face off.

"Astrid!"

The she-wolf snapped her head around, seeing Kimya approaching. Astrid was quick to whine in response, all hostility fading. The boys watched as the beast hung her head down submissively and backed off of the prince. Noctis was quick to stand, dusting himself off while his friends quickly went to his side.

"Forgive her, you must," the elderly woman spoke, recognizing the four young men who'd visited her before. She was quick to set her gaze on the wolf crouched at her feet. "Harm others, you must not, Astrid. Become the beast you loathe, you will. Apologize, you should."

Astrid looked up at the males apologetically. "I'm...sorry."

She skulked behind Kimya like a whipped dog. The boys were shocked to have heard a voice from the beast. "B-but isn't that a lycan?" the prince questioned. "What's going on?"

Kimya chuckled. "A beast in appearance, she may be, but a lycan, she is not. A result of the lycan's bite, this is."

Prompto gulped. "S-so...lycans are real?"

"Of course they're real," Astrid interrupted. "Or at least one is. What else do you think did this to me?"

Kimya gestured for them to follow. "Discuss this at my hut, we can."

Astrid stood up on her hind legs to walk beside the elderly woman. The boys were surprised by how tall she was when standing. She was around Gladio's height with long, slender limbs. Noctis moved to her side, gazing up at her as they walked. "Hey, back there...were you really gonna bite me?"

She playfully smirked, showing her teeth. "Maybe...if you endangered Kimya. The hunters don't like her, so..." Her ears drooped down sadly. "Even so...I'm sorry if I scared you."

Noctis gave a faint smile. "Don't sweat it. I've faced worse. The name's Noctis, by the way."

"Astrid."

The blond gunman suddenly skipped over to them with a cheerful grin. "I'm Prompto."

The tattooed man butted in, "You can call me Gladiolus, Gladio for short."

Prompto gestured toward the the advisor. "The bespectacled gentleman over there is Ignis."

Ignis gave a small smile and a friendly nod. "A pleasure. Dave reported a missing hunter. By any chance, are you her?"

Astrid stopped, having arrived at the hut. Her eyes were wide with shock, but she was quick to hang her head down. "Yes... That's me."

"Why would you come out here on your own chasing down a silly legend?" the prince inquired.

The she-wolf growled at herself. "No one believed in the lycan's existence...no one but me. I wanted to find it, and bring back its head, then everyone would see that I was right. I was stupid to chase after that thing. And now look at me --- I'm a monster. I can't go back to HQ. Kimya was kind enough to let me stay here."

The old woman smiled. "Shun what they don't understand, the hunters do. Cast out too, I was."

"Guess that changes things," Gladio stated. "We came here to bring you back to HQ. But if you're stuck like this..."

Astrid sighed in frustration. "There's no going back unless I can reverse this. But even the Witch of the Woods can't cure me. I fear I might be stuck like this."

Prompto smiled brightly. "That's not so bad! You're cool like this!"

He reached his hand up to pat her head, but froze when she snarled, towering over him. "Pet me, and you're gonna lose your hand." He gulped, retracting his hand.

"What if we were to kill the lycan?" Ignis suggested. "It turned you into one of its own, so what if we were to destroy the source?"

"I can't ask you to take that risk!" Astrid interrupted. "A single bite from the lycan, and you'll become one too."

"We'll be careful then," Noctis boldly replied. "We were gonna check out the area anyway."

Astrid stared at them, stunned. "You're all crazy. There's no way I'd go back there again."

"But go back, you should," Kimya urged. "Lead them, you can. The only hope for you, this could be."

"B-but..." Astrid argued. "I can't face the lycan again. Not with my...condition."

The old woman chuckled. "A hunter's heart, you have. But a beast's form, you take. Fear it, you must not. The power, you must embrace. Trust in the aid of others, you must."

Astrid gave an agitated sigh. "Yes, ma'am." She looked at the boys. "Follow me. I'll take you in."