Moonlit Fur Chronicles: Rising Moon
Chapter 1 Nightmares

The nightmares tortured her every night since the attack. It had been about three and a half weeks since her Princess was killed. Peyton was forced to relive the worst event of her entire life. It was well past dark; She let Princess out to do her business in the backyard. This massive wolf came out of nowhere and devoured her little doggie in a single bite. Peyton managed to pull her dad’s gun off the wall and shoot the wolf. The beast turned on her and pounced. She fell to the floor and raised her arm to shield herself. The wolf’s jaws clamped down tight on her arm. She felt her bone snap like a twig. She didn’t know why but the wolf just turned tail and ran away.

“Put it out of your mind, Sweetie,” Sawyer instructed softly. He was very sweet, but Peyton couldn’t just forget about it. That beast haunted every minute of her life, both awake and asleep. She constantly felt like something watched her from the shadows. Peyton used to love the local wildlife, squirrels, birds, even the occasional baby deer. After the attack, every little movement, every little sound and shadow terrified her. No one believed her when she talked about how big this wolf was. People called her crazy, imaginative, and things much worse. Peyton was sick of the fear, she was sick of the way people treated her.

“I’m just so sick of people calling me a ‘lunatic’,” her voice was low and frustrated.“Did you know the word ‘lunatic’ comes from the word ‘luna’ which means ‘moon’? That’s why all the crazy things happen on the full moon,” Sawyer smiled at his little ‘fun fact’. Peyton rolled her eyes. She felt angry because she was constantly mistreated. She felt angry because even her boyfriend thought it was okay to poke fun at her. He was a good guy really, just seriously not as funny as he thought he was. Peyton scowled and shot Sawyer a dirty look. He grinned like an idiot. “Boys are so dumb,” Peyton thought ruefully. They finished their dinner in silence.

Peyton and Sawyer cuddled together in front of the tv and watched a movie. Peyton’s stomach felt weird. Not even thirty minutes passed when she felt intense pain, she doubled over and cried out. Sawyer was confused and panicked. Peyton fell to the floor and writhed in pain. Her screams split the air and broke Sawyer’s heart. Her body twisted and convulsed. Her arm broke at the elbow and snapped backwards. Peyton’s spine arched drastically, her legs shortened. Her soft skin shredded and was replaced by thick rich fur. Sawyer climbed up on the couch as her girlfriend transformed into a wolf. She looked at him with bright yellow eyes. Her wolf brain didn’t understand the special relationship she had with Sawyer; all she knew was she needed to protect him.

Her surroundings confused her wolf brain. She longed for woods and hills. Peyton felt compelled to run away, to seek the safety and solitude of the forest. She battled the wolf within her. Her body twitched as she fought for control. Peyton knew she couldn’t lose control, she didn’t want to think if the damage the beast within her could and would inflict. She remembered how her poor little Princess was savaged by the monster almost a month ago. She refused to let that happen to Sawyer. Peyton forced the wolf down and dropped to the ground. She laid there shivering for hours. Sawyer just sat on the couch dumbfounded.

Peyton awoke on the floor naked and confused. The shreds of the outfit she had worn last night surrounded her. Sawyer snored loudly on the couch. “Sawyer,” she groaned. He didn’t stir. Peyton pulled herself to her feet and stumbled into the shower. She turned the water handle to as hot as it would go. She stood under the cold water, Her breath came in short pants. She was so confused and scared. Her entire life had been upended. The water slowly warmed and soothed her strained muscles. Tears mixed with water and poured down her face. Memories of the vicious attack tormented her.

She looked at her arm, the one that the beast snapped in the attack. It was completely healed. There was some silver scar tissue, but she had full use and range of her arm again. Peyton was shocked, the doctors told her it would take over 10 weeks to properly heal. She was grateful that her arm had miraculously healed and she wondered how it happened. “Peyton? Baby, where are you?” Sawyers’ anxious voice came from the living room. “Shower,” She called in response. She heard him stretch, groan and walk over to the bathroom. She didn’t know how she could hear him from so far away.

Sawyer trudged into the bathroom, “Peyton, your arm? Where’s your cast?” She shrugged her shoulders, “My arm is fine, I guess. It doesn’t hurt and I can use it again.” He stared at her arm, “It isn’t supposed to be okay for another several months?” Peyton nodded. Sawyer got a lustful look in his eye. Peyton noticed, “What?” “Oh, um, yeah. You’re naked and I’m getting excited. You’ve been through enough already. I’m gonna get out of here.” She smiled appreciatively. Sawyer turned and stepped out of the bathroom. She appreciated him and his thoughtfulness.

Peyton finished her shower and got dressed. She decided on old jeans and an oversized t-shirt, if she was going to ruin more clothes she didn’t want to wear anything nice. She went back out to the living room and sat with Sawyer. She wanted to talk to him about this but she had no idea where to start. She felt scared, confused, angry, and hungry all simultaneously. Sawyer put his arm around her shoulder as she rested her head on his chest. “You want to talk about last night,” Sawyer offered; Peyton nodded. Tears rolled down her cheek. “What happened? Do you know?” She swallowed hard, she had an idea but it terrified her. She didn’t want to answer. She didn’t want any of this to be real. Sawyer felt his shirt dampen, it took him a second to figure out that she was crying. He kissed the top of her head.

“We are going to figure this out, Baby. We are going to figure this out together.” Peyton’s tears became sobs. “I turned into it! I turned into it, Sawyer. The monster that bit me.” Sawyer had no idea what to say. He squeezed her shoulders lovingly and kissed her head again. Peyton saw the pile of shreds that used to be her outfit. She buried her face in Sawyer’s chest. “I don’t want to be a monster! I don’t want to rip my clothes to shreds! Sawyer, I can’t do this!” Sawyer held her tight. He hated to see her in pain. His heart broke for her. He didn’t know what to do or how to help her.