Vyrek

art to FalconRex121
“Don`t stay out too long!”
Vyrek gave a small smile. His parents were so overprotective sometimes. He had gone into the woods about a thousand times now, and nothing bad ever happened. “Okay,” he replied. As he grabbed his trusty nature journal and headed out the door, he heard his father call “Oh, and remember to be back before moonrise!” This was a rule his parents had made a long time ago, and since they were powerful magicians, he figured it was an important one.
The sun was barely touching the edge of the horizon when he closed the door behind him. The rays warmed him to the bone. As he approached the entrance to the woods, he heard rustling in the undergrowth. Vyrek froze in fear, but barked a laugh when a chipmunk popped out of a bush. “You scared me, little fella!” he said, chuckling as he happily stepped into the trees.
The golden sun poked through the dense leaves in some places, creating spots on the soft grass. The young dragon stopped at places that looked interesting, sketching an oddly shaped patch of lichen or making a note about a hole in the ground.
Soon, Vyrek got tired. He loved the forest, but he had made a lot of observations today, and that could take a lot out of a dragon. He saw a patch of sunlight with a large rock that had been warmed by the sun. “That looks perfect for a quick nap,” he murmured sleepily. He curled up and quickly fell asleep.
Vyrek was in a field. He was all alone. Suddenly everything went dark, and he felt a searing pain on his left forearm.
He cried out and jumped up. “Oh, thank the Arcanist, just a dream.” He looked up through the trees and saw the sun dipping below the horizon and a large white sphere slowly climbing through the sky.
The moon.
Vyrek had never stayed outside when the moon was rising. It fascinated him, but with a gripping dread he remembered his parents` rule. He ran as fast as he could through the trees, dodging logs and rabbit warrens. As he raced to his house, the sun`s light was fading, and being replaced by a whitish-blue glow. He slammed his door shut and collapsed on the floor, panting. His mother Avalanche saw him and rushed over. “Baby, are you okay?” Vyrek looked up at her with a guilty expression and said between breaths “Took nap *pant* in forest *pant* moonrise *pant*…”
Avalanche sighed with relief. “Well, at least you got out of the forest before the moon fully came out,” she said. “Go get into bed, now, okay?” Vyrek nodded and dragged himself down the hall to his bedroom.
Vyrek flopped onto his bed and exhaled. Today had been fun, even though he`d almost broken his parents` most important rule. He`d seen so many things, and sketched all of them in his…
He bolted out of bed. He`d left his journal in the woods.
Vyrek loved that journal more than anything. His parents had a lot more books he could use, but they had given him that journal for a birthday gift years ago. It meant too much to him to leave in the woods, where an animal might chew it up or destroy it. But he feared what would happen if he went into the woods with the moon up.
He paced his room, trying to reach a decision. This was probably the hardest choice he would ever make. Finally, he decided. A short trip into the woods wouldn`t be so bad. He knew them well, and easily recalled the place he took his nap. He could run in, grab the journal, and run out.
Vyrek stuffed some pillows under his blankets to make it look like he was asleep, and crept to the door. After easing it open and quietly shutting it, he bolted like heck into the woods and retraced his steps to the large rock. He skidded to a halt when he saw it. There was the journal, resting on its surface, now bathed in a pale blue glow. “Now I can just take it and run back home,” he whispered to himself. As he stretched his claw to grab it, a sound made him freeze. He turned to his side and saw it.
A monstrous creature with blood splatter all around its snout. It stood on two hind legs but looked like a wolf. Vyrek probably would have sketched it if it didn`t flex its sharp claws with a gleam in its eye.
Vyrek snatched the journal and ran. He could barely hear its snarls over his pounding heart. He was almost home; he could see his house through the trees-
A root caught his leg and he tripped. Clutching his journal, he turned on his back and saw the creature slow down. Vyrek was too scared to move. The creature, now on all fours, crept toward him. He tried to scramble away, but it was too fast. It leapt forward, its silhouette blocking the pale moon, and clamped its maw over his left forearm.
Vyrek yelled for help, but none came. This is it, I`m dead, he thought. But as the creature slowly released him, it didn`t attack again. It simply gave him a fierce look and plodded away.
Vyrek gasped in relief and sprinted home. He rushed to his room to examine the bite. It wasn`t deep, to his surprise. If he bandaged it, it could probably heal in a day or so.
The next morning, when his parents saw the bloody bandage on his leg, he explained that in his rush to get home before moonrise, he tripped and scratched himself on a rock. His parents believed him, which he hated. Lying to his parents felt wrong on so many levels.
One month later, everything was normal. Vyrek had been spending less time in the woods because of the creature attack. He had recorded everything that he could remember about it in his journal.
But that night, a pain overtook all his senses. He writhed on the ground, trying not to wake his parents. When the light came back, he saw himself in the mirror. His coat of fur was darker, and he had longer teeth. He was a beast. He feared telling his parents for what they would do to him, and he didn`t want to break their trust. So to this day, he hides his beast form from anyone.
Bio to kirishimaa