The Beast lay in the middle of the forest, waiting for the last remnants of his shift to end, and then he would finally be free. Carefully he got up to his feet, clumsy like a newborn foal, it took him a while to find his balance. He shook out his coat and a hungry howl tore out of his throat.

The forest surrounded him, nature welcomed her new son and caressed his dark fur with the gentle wind. The Beast’s throat was dry after all the painful moaning and grunting. He listened... The forest carried the sound of a little stream right to him. He stumbled a few steps, trying to figure out how his new muscles worked. He felt massive and even walked like it. He liked it. He stumbled to the creek and greedily drank the cold freshwater.

The Beast looked down and stared at his reflection. The light of the moon gave him a silvery tint, but the Beast knew he was ebony black. He looked into his own eyes. Unnatural yellow, cold and full of intelligence and hunger, those were the eyes that stared back at him.

The Beast looked up and watched the moon halfway through its path. Why did he find it interesting that the moon was not full? What difference would it make? The Beast did not care, he jumped gracefully over the stream and ran through his home.

He enjoyed the work of all his muscles, enjoyed the forest floor that caressed his paws. The rustling of leaves, the pounding of his paws, the quiet treading of small voles and shrews in the bushes, the confident steps of a hedgehog, and the murmur of the stream. Oh, how wonderful a song of welcome the forest played. Follow me, boy... The words rushed through his mind. He slowed and looked around curiously. This was not the forest’s song. You have survived, and now you have to pay the price… A dark, dark voice, deep with an undertone of a growl. Follow your Maker, my gift is flowing through your veins… The Beast liked the voice. He listened to it in delight. Run to me, boy, and we’ll go hunting together... But it was more than that. The voice carried a promise of excitement and satisfaction. It promised him hot blood and tasty flesh, it promised the chase of defenseless prey that had no chance of escaping them. It promised power, true power, invincible, unmistakable, sweet power…

The Beast smiled and though he didn't know how it was possible, he knew where the voice was coming from. He took a step forward but then another sound came through the trees. It was the sound of pain, despair, and certain death. Next to the frightened voice were several voices of anger, excitement, and nervousness. A low thud sounded, and the Beast realized that it was the sound of a dull object hitting flesh.

The Beast stopped, he was torn, where should he go? Protect and serve… Someone whispered in the back of the Beast's mind. Though he did not understand the meaning of those words, he rejected the alluring promise of hunting and followed the fear and anger.

The lights of the city soon appeared before him, but he didn't care. Without hesitation, the Beast headed out into the dark alleys, even though he knew that the forest would not be able to defend him out there. The sounds grew louder, he even recognized words and sentences. The Beast, however, found it unnecessary gibberish. He could find out much more from their scent.

Two adult men, their breath reeking of alcohol as they pounded their fists and even a metal rod into a body that lay on the ground, curled and desperately protecting his head and stomach.

Words like faggot, money, and kill crossed his ears. The Beast did not understand them, though something inside him did and they made him angry.

The body lying on the ground still had a pulse, but he had already given up on screaming. There was so much blood, so much tasty-looking blood. The men stood with their backs to the Beast, unable to see him, but the victim - as he opened his eyes - saw his unnaturally yellow gaze. The victim didn't scream, but there was horror in his eyes. The Beast laughed at it which resulted in a thunderous growl coming from deep in his chest. The men heard and turned around sharply.

The Beast bared his sharp white fangs in an eerie smile. The men yelled something and stumbled back. The one with the metal rod in his hand, however, quickly recovered and swung at the huge wolf. The Beast leapt out of the way almost lazily, enjoying the confusion and terror in the man’s eyes as he missed.

He enjoyed how obviously they were left at his mercy. They chose an alley with a dead end so their victim couldn’t escape, they did not know that by doing so they imprisoned themselves as well. The Beast jumped back and bit into the metal rod, he jerked his head back which forced the man to land on all fours right in front of his fangs. The Beast did not wait for an invitation and clenched his jaws around the man's shoulder. He felt his teeth graze the bone and jerked his head excitedly. A piece of flesh remained in his mouth.

The man's screams seemed like the best ballad for a feast of the sweetest meal he'd ever tasted. He swallowed, and his stomach swelled with warmth. Oh, that wasn't enough, far from it… He threw himself at the man's belly, his oh so soft belly…

The other man tried to squeeze by him in terror, but the Beast saw him. He jumped on the man and rolled him to his stomach then bit into the man’s back severing the spinal cord with a single jerk of his head. He managed to bite through the artery as well and it sprayed warm blood all around them. The Beast could feel the fluid sticking to his fur and filling his throat. He swallowed it greedily, like a man lost in the desert mad with thirst.

The first man was still screaming, and it annoyed the Beast. He jumped to the man and hit him with his front paw in the face. He heard a crack of bone, then laughed at a strangely curled head of the now-dead man.

Someone moaned painfully. The Beast turned to the victim, still on the ground, curled up and bloody. The victim seemed on the verge of fainting. Fresh meat. The Beast launched and pinned the victim with his huge paws.

Unconsciously, he let his claws sink into the man’s shoulder then retracted them unexpectedly, and dug them into the flesh again. He didn't know he could do that. The claws glimmered with blood… No! Protect! Innocent! Once again that mysterious voice that was buried deep inside the Beast. He stared at the young man, who was absolutely terrified and balanced on the edge of life and death.

The Beast lowered his head to the man’s bloody face. The man moaned desperately, and the Beast did something he didn't expect of himself. He licked the man's cheek, like a wolf reassuring a pup. As he lifted his head, a deep dark howl forced its way out of his throat, shaking the city. Yes, that would surely get attention.

He looked at the man one last time. Brown hair glued with blood to an almost child-like face and deep blue frightened eyes. Then he ran back to his forest home. He could hear the sounds of sirens behind him. The Beast smiled happily and disappeared into the shadows of the forest…