Moon Fangs

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Through the small window near the fireplace, Mimi could see the sky slowly shifting to dusk. When the sun falls behind the mountain tops, it's always a beautiful sight. The purple, red and orange emerge together like divine warriors in armour. They shine their colour stained armour from a day of battle, then they shelter in their mountain homes until the break of dawn.

Mimi could almost feel the weather outside - deadly cold and icy. Even on the wall around the small window; had a glacial look and had frozen into beautiful snowflake patterns. She takes her eyes off the window. She decides to crouch by the fireplace with her full grown pet wolf, Shu. His white fur embraces her cold body. Even though she's wearing her thickest pants and shirt.

Within Mimi's hand is her favourite book - Mist. By the best book selling author in Hyle, Nikki Mead, that depicts the beauty of supernatural phenomenons within our world. Mimi reaches Chapter 4, a new character is revealed; a werewolf. The book describes the werewolf as a "...charming prince with eyes of emerald, soft fur like silver and a heart of gold." Mimi imagines it but all she thinks about is her handsome wolf, she whispers in Shu's ear, "You're the most handsomest wolf in my eyes." Shu rubs his head against Mimi's forehead and uses his nose to kiss her cheek.

Mimi's parents approach Mimi from behind, Mimi's mother places a blanket on Mimi. It's the one she grew up using. Imprinted with a white and black wolf in the midst of a snowy forest. Both wolves stare into the lustrous full moon. Suddenly Mimi lifts her head to realise both her parents are sitting beside her. "Dad and I are going in town on the outskirts of our forest to buy some food, we'll be back shortly. Will you be alright by yourself at home?" Mimi's mother questions.

"Is that a question?" She cleverly raises one eyebrow. "I have Shu, I'll be fine." Mimi replies and loosens her eyebrow with a smile.

Mimi's parents leave the house after putting on their heavy coats and boots, while telling Mimi, "See ya, don't lock the door. We'll be back shortly!"

Mimi knows she doesn't have to lock the door but she wants to find another book to read, even though this is her favourite book, but she's craving to read a book on horror. So she locks the door. And starts climbing the two flight of long steep stairs and jogs towards her room. As always Shu races her, but as always Shu wins, and leaves Mimi frustrated with red angry cheeks while laughing at her loss.

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Next to her room there is a grand library full of books, just like a library it's categorized into nonfiction and fiction. As well as sectioned into different genres. She drifts past the romance section and finds herself staring at the horror section, she whispers to herself, "My favourite is horror but," she bites down on her lips, "alright let's read.... Wait it's not there, where is '515' By ....?" A big gust of wind slams the door open. Her eyes widen and she feels her heart skip a beat. Her eyes focus to outside the library doors and she sees snowflakes drifting into the house. She kneels down and tightly grips onto Shu. Mimi's face sinks into his fur until only her eyes remain revealing. She holds her breath, while peering to the corner of the stairs. She can briefly see the fire place that remains lit, even though when the grand door of the mansion had slammed against the living room's interior walls. The fire had not extinguished when winter claws inside with its arms of frost.

She curses colourfully into Shu's fur. Abruptly, out of the blue the fire extinguishers. Holding her breath becomes painstakingly hard, as the fading moonlight gives her a slight view of the intruder - the intruder has a human figure but the room is too dull to see his appearance, she shivers sending goosebumps even with the thick blanket wrapped around her. A lightning bolt cracks in the air. It strikes across the enormous window at the top of the stairs. Mimi screams at the top of her lungs and releases Shu in the process.

With great power she lifts up her watery eyelids. Lightning illuminates a long trail of blood on the stairs. Mimi is frozen with terror but Shu is doing some weird movements, he lifts his nose in the air and makes a terrifying growl that Mimi has never heard before. Shu runs like a cheetah and bolts down the stairs, before Mimi could stop him, he has already gone downstairs. There is a minute of complete silence then there are some rustling sounds coming from the kitchen. Something drops. Something metallic.

It's the sound of almost pans and - Knives.

Mimi's legs are heavy. Too petrified to move. She absorbs all of her scattered courage, removing the heavy blanket in the process. Mimi walks to the open library door. In her vision there are the flight of stairs and her living room. They are he emerges into a blood stained battle field.

There are thunderous howls that echo from kitchen. Large amounts of blood squirt out into the living room, almost as if the echoing howls had carried the blood out. Some knives come soaring out of the kitchen. It is dead silent. Mimi doesn't move an inch until a muscular figure is seen prowling up the stairs towards her. It's Shu - with a wolf tail in his mouth. Shu's mouth is drooling mouthfuls of crimson blood, it has left tracks of blood on the stairs. Mimi goes downstairs, avoiding the blood in the process. Putting the snapped tail from Shu's mouth behind the fireplace where it wouldn't catch on fire. She quickly relights the fireplace. Casting her eyes towards the kitchen she sees the trail of crimson liquid, splattered everywhere in the kitchen and trailing towards an open window. She quickly closes the front door, cautious of the blood that's flooded most of the living room, she cleans up all the mess around the house, as well as Shu's slimy red fur. Mimi's curiosity gets the better of her - with no regret Mimi takes Shu and a torch to follow the trail of blood that leads into the darkest part of the forest where Mimi's parents doesn't even dare to go.

The blood stops at the big eucalyptus tree that Mimi sees every day from the window of her parents' bedroom. A werewolf like figure is crouching at the tree, it is tailless, Mimi casts her eyes to the sky - a full moon. She quickly scatters behind a tall stump of the gum tree, Shu follows. The lustrous light of the moon glares down upon the werewolf, he straightens up from its crouch, and a tail magically begins growing from where his tail had been bitten off by Shu. It doesn't differ from the one hiding behind the fireplace at home right now. The beast uses his emerald eyes and glares towards Mimi, she freezes in fear, the werewolf sprints with great speed and knocks Shu out while strangling Mimi by the throat, she was raised 2 meters high and even over the head of the huge, monstrous werewolf. Mimi slowly begins squinting her eyes, she suddenly falls and lands in two soft furry arms, her eyes shut close with only seeing her last vision. Blood.

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Mimi's vision is blurry, there's a faint sound that's whispering in her ear, she gently rubs her eyes and hears the similar yet mysterious voices. "Mimi wake up, Mimi, Awhooo."

Her eyes shot wide open and stares into the eyes of her parents, and questions them frantically, "What happened to me. Mum, Dad how did you find me?" She breaths a few heavy breaths and continues her questioning, "I thought I was in the forest..." Mimi's voice dies out to realise she shouldn't tell them what happened when they were gone. Mimi's dad flings the curtains of the window open. Mimi squints her eyes with a great angry growl.... It's already morning

Mimi's father speaks in an booming voice, "Tell us what happened with the small patches of blood marks scattered throughout the house and the ripped tail behind the fireplace."

Mimi replies softly, "There was an intruder," she begins to calm down, but with a deep breath of hesitation, at the word - "A werewolf. That came into our house and left a trail of blood that I cleaned up, and Shu ..." she hesitates for longer this time, "ripped the tail off the werewolf, I decided to follow the werewolf."

Mimi's mother sighs in relief to proclaim, "It's time we told you why we live alone in our forest." She gasps and continues, "I am a werewolf and your father is a human; well more specifically I'm the daughter of the werewolf tribe elder that lived here around 30 years ago. When I was little my village that used to be here was completely abolished by hunters. And I had grown up as a wolf in the forest, with a pack of wolves that had survived the attack. Even so I was unable to even turn back into a human, much less deem my true form, a werewolf form, which in the first place... I didn't know how to. Since nobody told me or I was too young to recall anything from my past life; except for what the wolves had told me. But after I turned 18 I could alternate between my human and werewolf form fully. And then I met your father" she sighs giving Mimi's father a longing love-filled gaze. And continues her story.

"To prevent you from randomly transforming into a wolf. We made the decision to live in the forest." Mimi's mother gives her direct eye contact and softens her features in more relief, "...which strangely hasn't occurred with you yet..."

Mimi's father continues telling Mimi everything"And I've worked out that's because you're probably half human but we don't know for sure if you're going to be a werewolf or human. And your mother doesn't know if this has ever been solved or recorded - a half human half werewolf."

Mimi's mother continues, "I didn't even know much about myself as a full werewolf. When you turn 18 then hopefully will you 'settle' to either a human or werewolf."

Mimi freezes in complete shock, leaving her mouth wide open - speechless. Her eyes stare into her parents, her worried and confused glare alternates from her two parents. "Wait! Then what exactly happened last night after I passed out?"

Her mum replies, "I tracked the blood's scent and followed it to the 'werewolf' tree. He was looking for me, the elder's daughter, but he said he couldn't find me and his tail was ripped off by a wolf. Luckily it was a full moon so he could heal himself or else it might've been fatal. He had mistaken you for a human child that was lost in the middle of the forest, and would spread rumours about the existence of supernatural beings. Don't worry he's long gone now. Also Mimi never leave the house again, it's dangerous." Mimi nods with great relief that she was alive.

Mimi cheerfully chants, "Mum, Dad. I am glad you're back home, I will never leave the house and hide a tail behind a fire place again." They all giggle, laugh and grin at each other with explosions of happiness - happiness is contagious so are warm hugs.

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*That night after revealing to Mimi about their secrets*

"You heard what that werewolf had said, 'It deemed Mimi unclean and a half.' We need to take her away right now before that werewolf comes back? That was my first time seeing a real werewolf other than myself in these parts of the forest." Exclaims Mimi mum to her lover.

"That's our best option. " Mimi's father replies

"We should start a new life. Lets call it Inpa Village." Mimi's mother beams her moon white teeth.

Mimi's father widens his eyes slightly at the name - the name of her dead father. Reading her mind through her beautiful eyes, he knew what she was planning and he loved her for always having the idea - co-existence of werewolves and humans.

As the two different creatures gaze into each other's eyes, they fall asleep for the night. So the following day they can set sail to a new village and to gather humans and werewolves that can live in peace and harmony.