• As a child, my mother always allowed me to play in the woods. We would gather berries from the bushes and water from the stream that led to a river. To me, it truly was home. The forest was always a new adventure every day. My mother was not very fond of big animals. She would panic if she saw a bear or a wolf and take me inside, then tell me stories about how dangerous they are. Then she would begin to cry sometimes as she prepared some tea with honey to calm herself down. At the age of 11, I asked her why she would shed tears every time we saw those creatures. She then told me the tale of my father, how he gave his life for us when we were getting to safety but then lost his life to those very monsters in the forest. Summer drew near and the howls of the foul things filled the night. My mother forbid me from stepping outside as it seemed the packs were growing. When I was 14, the night was silent. With joy, I slipped out of the wooden cabin to climb a tree and let the wind blow through my hair. I saw something in the woods that I have never seen before from above. Blue flames surrounding a tree, dancing in unison. My eyes widen from the glowing balls of fire. I dove down the branches, anxious to discover the floating lights. Once I arrived, I hid behind a bush as I saw a small hunched over person walk in front of the tree. She raised her arms and broke off a few branches, tossing them into a pile. Holding a wooden stick that curled at each end, she spun it in the air. The flames began to spin as well, getting closer to her, their size growing, as if to engulf her. Out of fear, I jumped out and yelled for her to get away. Everything stopped, as if my voice had stopped time. She hit the ground with her stick and pointed at me, the flames quickly disappearing and reappearing beside me. They began to surround me in a ring, my heart racing as they chained together. I closed my eyes in fear, my teeth clenching. I felt a soft touch but it did not burn. They raised me up and brought me to the cloaked figure. The person took down their hood and stood firm. It was a woman with beautiful eyes and smooth skin that glew like the moon. I gazed at her starlight hair in awe. Then I realized the anger in her face.


    “For interupting a ritual of great importance, in the book of magic law page 43 rule 17, you are to be punished. Prepare yourself young one, for there is no mercy when it comes to magic.” She began chanting in a language that wasnt familiar to me and I began to breathe heavily. Trying to escape the fire blazed in a tight grasp, beginning to burn my torso. She placed her palm gently on my forehead horizontaly before turning it vertical and gave it a slight push. My body began to tense and it felt it was burning like the morning sun. Closing my eyes tightly, screaming in pain, the wisps disappeared, letting me fall onto the ground. The woman put her hood back on, walking away from my enflamed body. When the pain ceased and I open my eyes, it was already morning.


    “Mother must be worried...” I stood up, sore and dizzy as I got up from the ground. Walking slowly back home, I saw my mother tending the garden in a pace quicker than she usually does. I accidently stepped on a twig, rushing over to her in relief, wanting to hold her and tell her about last night. She smiled and looked up for a moment.


    “Akimi?!” For a second, she was relieved. The next, terrified. She began to scream and I tensed up, looking around to see what was making her act so afraid. She yelled at me to stay away and ran into the cabin. I was confused, I was her daughter. I took a step and she took out the family shotgun and pointed at me, tears running down her face. In fear, I retreated my foot and began to take steps back. She began to shoot. I was no longer wanted here. In distraut, I began to run away from the place I once called home. My vision became blury as it began to fill with the salt water that only comes in sadness. I looked back at mother, and she was on the ground, crying loudly. I didnt know why. She held the shotgun to her heart. My eyes widened in shock. I love you.


    That is how I lost my dear mother.

    And became a werewolf. Akimi Tsukino