Howl - Chapter One

Howl (A Werewolf Story)
Chapter One: The Mark

Face blushing; Devlin couldn’t fight a smile from forming.  One hand clicked the computer off for the night while the other was mindless playing elsewhere, unable to hold back his baser needs from tonight’s “intimate” conversation.  The fantasy him and his online lover, Patricia (A.K.A. LunaBlossom) played always made him feel this way, especially if Patricia was in one of her moods.  She was wild when they played their little role play, and the fact they were so passionate about their characters made them both crave to be together and living the experience for real.

How strange that so much love could be offered fantasying of being werewolves.

Devlin thought of himself as strange, more or less from his fascination with wolves and werewolves.  They were just something that was admirable to him; a race of wild, graceful and beautiful creatures, living out their solitary lifestyle in undisturbed woods and valleys.  It had come to a time in his life that such a life became tempting to desire, dreaming to cast aside his mundane human shell and experience a free and simple life as a wild animal in the wilderness.

A strange dream; indeed.

What was stranger was the fact that not a lot of things throughout his life had inspired this fascination more than his childhood.  As a child he knew right away the difference between dogs and wolves from his trips to the zoos, his early studies in schools, and what he read in books and magazines. But what truly set it off was that one moment when he was really young, while camping with his parents.  

Devlin had wandered off in the middle of the night, unsure why he did in the first place, and had gotten lost in the woods, crying for his parents.  A brilliant black wolf with deep yellow eyes appeared to him and, at first, he was frightened.  It was his first time seeing a wolf, and this up close.  Not knowing anything about this creature Devlin didn’t know how to react except to sob.  To his surprise, the black wolf approached him with caution and, seeing Devlin’s dismay, offered a gentle nuzzle of comfort.  Fear subsided minutes later when the young boy realized the wolf meant no harm and presented company.

Like out of a fantasy story, the black wolf remained with him throughout the night, continuing its protective and affectionate behavior until Devlin found his way back to camp, a terrified mother and father sobbing and shouting from their boy’s disappearance.  Concerning the wolf, Devlin wished for his lupine friend to stay but unfortunately, still too young to form coherent sentences to make his fantastic story understandable his parent’s merely shooed and scared the black wolf away.

Memories of that night remained with him, reminded every time Devlin saw the most unusual scar behind his shoulder.  He didn’t quite remember how it had happened, but he believed Devlin and the black wolf had played during their time together.  Cheering him up from his frightened state, the black wolf must have accidentally bite down at his back.  It was one of the things he understood later between human and animal play and relationships, that sometimes playing for dogs and wolves met being rough and careless.  Regardless, Devlin smiled whenever he looked upon the mark.  At least it was a more memorable, visible scar than the one his hair hid over his head, the mark of an arrogant friend recklessly performing stunts on his bicycle while riding behind him, resulting in them crashing and opening a gash in the back of his head.  The stings from those numbing shots still haunt him.

Ever since that time, Devlin’s enchantment with wolves sparked inside.  He asked his parents, weeks after their camping trip, if he could own a wolf as a pet, which was responded with a empathic NO.  Going into his teen years he began covering his walls with pictures of wolves, young and old, of different breeds and color…but commonly black wolves, like the one from the forest.  His projects for school, when appropriate, were concerning wolves.  There were fractured memories of him actually behaving like one sometimes during full moon nights.  His parents, of course, found his obsession with wolves a little concerning, but after a sudden visit from his Uncle Bart, brother of Devlin’s dad, things seemed to settle down with his folks along with whatever childish antics Devlin had started.

Years later, his fascination with wolves had both matured and become…twisted.  While growing up he had heard of the legendary horror movie monster, the Wolf Man.  Different variations were produced afterwards depicting either a furry fanged man to a more lupine shaped beast.  Learning about werewolves, Devlin became captivated at the wonder of men able to transform into a wolf.

However, where movie and television made them out to be blood thirsty beasts, Devlin could not believe that was their only nature.  Eventually, the world-wide-web became the popular source for knowledge and communication, along with helping to spread different individual beliefs on certain subjects, including werewolves.  It was here that Devlin found some sanctity, that he wasn’t the only one that believed werewolves didn’t have to be purely evil.

Many beliefs were bogus or extremely bizarre…considering it was about werewolves.  Devlin stayed away from the occult groups that cherished the evil or vicious side of them.  Sites or pages depicting a more positive side of werewolves were scares.  There were only a few blogs or posted stories of those who believed in these creatures as being neutral or free spirited as their true lupine cousins; stories and poems that sung about such a curse being a gift; of a werewolf’s return to nature and freeing its wild soul in peace.  Then he came across certain sites that held many posts of pictures and artwork of werewolves, both in its vicious and beautiful poses.  Immediately, Devlin was hooked.

Devlin had been blessed with productive hands, ones where it was possible for him to actually do a decent and, at times, artistic job with cooking and constructing, even with scores with a piano.  But his real passion with his hands was with drawing.  At a young age, Devlin loved to draw.  Though his own works were still of a childish quality, his parents were astounded at how well he could draw images from books and games and his own surroundings without tracing.  His perspective drawings and Fanarts helped improved his skills as an artist.  Of course, most of his art still needed lots of refinements, but Devlin was never satisfied with any finished works to begin with and always found room for improvement.

When it came to werewolves and wolves alike his sketch pads and single sheets were flooded with them.  Only about a few years ago did he feel comfortable and satisfied enough to post his own works online for others to see and judge.  To his surprise, many viewed his work as phenomenal.

It was his artwork of wolves and werewolves that brought him and Patricia together.  Patricia had grown to favor many of his works, especially of ones with werewolves or “Anthro” wolves spending a tender and romantic moment together.  She had summon the courage to talk to him over the online chatting programs one day and discovered that Devlin and her had similar interests and characteristics…including them both being shy, though Devlin would later find out how much of that can change.  The two of them quickly became friends…and once they learned more about their fantasies and interest in wolves their relationship grew much stronger.

Devlin and Patricia chatted as much as possible, talking about their evenings and weeks, discussing the pros and cons of their current school and work life, new events worth mentioning, and, of course, their continued love with wolves, werewolves, and each other.

It was Patricia who suggested one day the idea of role playing after Devlin spilled his story about the black wolf.  She seemed very interested in the story, sometimes growing silent, absorbed in Devlin’s tale about the wolf.  She shakes it off after each telling with an awkward positive gesture, blaming random distractions on her behavior.

Patricia had become interested in seeing how far the two could take their love of wolves.  She wanted to start a role play of their wolfen characters, chatting about their day as normal, but adding expressions and actions as they typed that were wolf-like, such as nuzzling playfully when they wanted to be affectionate; wagging their tails and barking when they were happy; snarling when something upset or angered them; howling when they wanted to sing proudly of their elation together as wolves.

As the role play progressed, and as their relationship grew, so did the maturity of their conversations.  Occasionally Devlin and Patricia’s normal friendly chat began to take on a form of flirting, most of it slipped into how they expressed their feral counterparts.  The two of them both realized they were unconsciously doing it.  When it started with Devlin he was unaware he had typed something about sniffing down Patricia’s…well, a sentence he normally wouldn’t blurt out.  He felt embarrassed, and the first reply back showed the same embarrassed blushing icon on Patricia’s end.  Surprisingly, the next reply from Patricia was, “LunaB begins to moan from Creamywolf’s (His Pin Name on the IM) curious interest in her nether regions.”  After that shocking moment their time together on the IM became more intense...and hotter.

Much like tonight’s segment the conversation had turned steamy.  Evening was slowly turning into night when their itchy typing fingers started to write out alluring actions or sensual expressions, both romantic in human standards and wild in wolf standards.  It had gotten to the point where Patricia’s character had gotten so aroused that she offered Devlin to take her.  But before he could attempt in accepting such a luscious offer, something came up on Patricia’s end.

“Oh…um….I’m sorry Devlin.  I g2g,” Patricia’s words wrote.

“Oh…,” Devlin typed, suddenly feeling extremely shameful.  “I’m sorry Patricia.  I was coming on to fast was I?  But…you seem to really like….”

“Oh no!  I do, I really like these moments .  It’s just…something has come up tonight…really need to take care of it…completely forgot.  But…if possible, I want to leave you with a dare.”

“A dare?”

“Regarding the anniversary of the night you met your wolf friend.”

The black wolf from the camping trip.

Patricia had become a little bit obsessed with Devlin telling that story.  Yet it never bothered him.  He always loves talking about that beautiful wolf…and equally enjoyed Patricia loving to hear about it.  Sometimes hearing the heartwarming moment gets her wild up into her wolf persona.  Strangely enough, her werewolf persona was in fact that of a black wolf.  Maybe it was why she loved hearing about it,

“Sure,” Devlin replied, adding some text expressing happy animalistic panting.

Patricia went silent for a few seconds.  Devlin was worried, until the screen showed she was typing.

“…Howl for me tonight.”

“AWWWoooooooooo!” Devlin typed, adding a LOL at the end.

“…hehe, I’m…actually serious.”

Devlin wiped away the grin on his face and listened…well, watched for more text.

“Tonight…I’m going to be a wolf.”

There was a long pause, Devlin slightly baffled by her response, though could understand what she meant.

“o.o….I mean PRETEND, of course LOL.  When I’m done with my…obligations…I want to feel what it’s like to be that animal; to act and behavior like a wolf.  I want to walk on my hands and knees like I was on all fours.  I want to be unrestricted by clothing and material and feel the breeze of the cool night air against my body, racing and roaming easily and freely without feeling any fabric’s pull and constraint.  I want to bark and growl…and howl like a real wolf, and see if any of this feels right.  I know it will, but I need to know myself.  If I feel way too uncomfortable then maybe its time to give up this fantasy and start acting more like a normal person.  Of course…I kinda wish you were with me doing this.  I’d feel comfortable with a fellow wolf ”

Devlin began to feel his cheeks blush, imagining being by Patricia’s side as they act out their inner wolves. They have both shown their real pictures, despite the embarrassment of showing her his frail human side, an ok built if not with some meaty parts.  But seeing her photo, and the aftermath of hearing her say, “You’re so cute in that pose,” and no other wise cracks made it all the greatest.  He can almost imagine standing next to her, being witness to her slender build; her sea blues gazing lovingly back at him, her long black hair welcomed to his touch.  It was weird thinking about it at first, but he started to adore the idea of them pretending to be wolves, playfully nipping and tackling on rural green fields, nuzzling each others necks and faces in affection, howling together in song to a full moon.


“It will be easier for me since I live near some parks and woods, so I won’t bother anyone.  I know it will be hard for you to join me in this act from where you are.  But, if you can, even if I can’t hear it…I want you to howl with me.  I want to know if I truly found someone who appreciates me for what I…we are.  I need to know that you howled with me.  If you don’t, please tell me.  If you do, please tell me how it felt.  Nothing about our friendship will change on that, but…”

Another long silence…and Devlin was becoming nervous now.

“Anyways,” Patricia continued, “I’ll talk with you tomorrow.  Sorry if I’m wigging you out ”

“No,” Devlin started to type. “I will keep that promise.  In fact this is the best night to make it.”

Looking to his bedroom door he relished in the thought of being alone tonight, no family member to disturb him or walk in on his act, his parents enjoying a two week cruise.  The house was to himself tonight.  Looking out the window he could see the brilliant orb hovering above him.  The calendar says that the moon would be at its fullest in two nights, but he was in awe at how full it was already.  Looking down at the rooftops and windows of his neighborhood the only thing he had to worry about was the possibility of his neighbors being annoyed with all the loud noises he might make.

“.  I…I love you Devlin, you know that, right?”

His cheeks got redder from her reply. “I love you too.  Goodnight my mate.”

Patricia’s last reply was text expressing more playful panting along with a emoticon blowing a kiss.

That was when they both logged off, Devlin sighing as idle hands went to take care of important business.

* * * * * *

It was nearly ten o’ clock, an hour after Patricia and Devlin signed off.  Devlin was in the bathroom near his bedroom, taking care of last minute hygienic duties.  The taste of the fluoride in his mouth was always too strong for him when he brushed his teeth, but there was no helping that.  Finishing, Devlin took a handful of cool water, rinsed, and spit out the rest of the toothpaste.

A rush of heat ran down his back and spine as he thought about what Patricia said she be doing after she took care of her “obligations.”  Devlin wondered what these obligations were, seeing how she brings it up often, whether during their intimate moments or general conversations, and half the time they were right around the same time of the month.  An odd coincidence suddenly sprung into mind as he looked out the bathroom window, catching the gleaming beams of the moon hitting the sill.  Patricia seems to be preoccupied during the week of the full moon.  Perhaps…she was indeed a werewolf!

Devlin chuckled at the thought…and then began to wish that was true.  Devlin thought about what Patricia would look like if she were a werewolf; a tall beautiful creature with shimmering black fur and a lean yet slender alluring figure.  Her tail would whip about whenever she was happy, thinking about her sea blue eyes mixed with fiery ember yellow gazing upon him.  The image of her as a werewolf sent shivers of delight throughout his body, suddenly unaware that he was panting happily.

Leaning over the sink Devlin gazed into the reflection of the mirror, looking at the pasty average human standing on the other end, a horrid form to ever stand beside his werewolf lover.  He shut his eyes then, imagining the next time he opened them a tall muscular brown furred werewolf would replace him, imagining being able to feel the coarse fur over his body, the deadly set of fangs and claws replacing his frail teeth and nails, the tail wagging behind.  But when he opened them, there his human self remained.

Devlin sighed, lowering his head in dismay.  A soft growl trembled from his lips in minor frustration, yet it only made he feel worse that his growling didn’t sound authentic.  He was hesitant to try and howl now; afraid it would come out weak and obscured.  How would that impress Patricia?

How did it come to this though?  Devlin had pondered this question time and time again; why was the fascination of being a werewolf so wonderful to him?  It was true that the fact of being something completely different than his old self increased the exotic yearning of it, the excitement of loosing himself and being reborn as something non-human.  But why werewolves?

The obvious answer should come from all the horror movies he has seen, the fantastic and gorgeous artwork and stories he had read about the positive and beautiful aspects of the werewolf.  The fact that he had become interested in wolves in a young age, befriending a wild wolf in that forest would increase such a fascination.  Still, how could becoming furry, taking a more lupine shape, having animal desires to hunt, roam, mate, and giving up some human commodities and reasoning be so glamorous?

Every time he faces that question he recalls the black wolf, its kindness and affection showing that not all wolves are dangerous and ugly beasts like some had made them out to be.  And then he thinks of Patricia, how her own love for wolves strengthen his resolve, her allure for these creatures, and her willingness and wishing to become one.  Something about being a wolf, being one with her, would make his life practically complete and content, the cares and stresses of the world as a human gone just to be her true mate.

Trying again Devlin shut his eyes, concentrated on his inner beast and his desires, yet still the reflection of his human form was present in the mirror.  Devlin’s brow raised in suspicion as for one brief moment he thought his eyes had become ember yellow like the black wolf.  Upon closer inspection it seemed that his hazel eyes were starting to take a yellowish tint.  The light must be playing tricks with him, closing his eyes for a while and then reopening to this type of light must be distorting his vision.  Whatever it was, Devlin grinned, finding it cool.

Devlin stumbled, his grip on the sink tightening, his toes clenching to the floor as he lifted himself onto the tips, bending his knees to keep himself steady.  Devlin found himself suddenly lightheaded, as if the room had begun to spin. His body temperature had increased, almost as if he had caught a fever.  Devlin shook it off, grinning in the mirror as he pushed this feeling aside as straining from concentration.  His toothy grin quickly changed to bared teeth, his voice slowly growing deeper and deeper to produce the most authentic animal snarls and growls he could make.  The bridge of his nose became ridged, his nostrils flared.

Devlin suddenly froze, shaking his head in confusion.  Something felt…off, or different at least.  He realized he hadn’t planned on acting that wild, and his growls sounded very real.  His body had jerked a moment later before he stopped himself, fighting to fall to the floor onto all fours.  This was an abnormal feeling, an uncontrollable behavior he had never felt before.  It was scary…and yet, it was also thrilling.

Was real animal instinct beginning to take over, instincts that begged and barked at him to start acting out like the wolf he and Patricia wished to be?  His body was still shuddering, his knees trembling and growing weak; his body was telling him to drop to the floor and stand like a wolf.  His mind began to race with wild ideas.  Without warning Devlin found himself fleeing his house and heading towards the towns park, where it connected to the woods outside the city.  He raced through the woods, feeling alive.  Hunger was setting in and the thought of hunting game was tantalizing.  And of Patricia; the lustful yearnings from before on the chat now begged to be fulfilled.  He looked up the sky, caught the moon in his gaze, inhaling as he was about to cry out…to release his howl into the wild.

And then it stopped.

His eyes widened towards the mirror.  He half expected to see a wolf in the reflection, considering the extraordinary daydream he just had.  All that time his world had spun and he thought he had truly escaped his home, racing through the woods and at one point tackling down a deer for food.  But it was just in his head, none of that happened.

Sweat was pouring all over his skin; his black cotton shorts and white tee he wore had become drenched in it and became muggy and uncomfortable.  Pulling at the waist Devlin became irritable at how horrible his shorts felt against his skin, hastily removing them and his boxers.  Instant relief came as a gentle breeze from outside the hallway wafted into the bathroom and soothed Devlin’s burning, sweaty legs.

He was thankful to toss them into the empty bathtub in the bathroom for now.  Being naked from the waist down felt soothing, a feeling of primal energy washed over him from it.   The most important parts of an animal are bore from the waist to feet; no fabric to hide or constrict your tail; nothing to press against your loins, allowing your legs to move with maximum flexibility without clothes constricting any type of movement.  The feeling of being freed down there was enough to start letting the animal in anyone surface.

A soft whine escaped his lips as Devlin leaned back against the wall, caressing his own bare skin around his thighs.  The open air made his hairy skin slick, a joy to feel.  But he craved to feel the thick pelt of wolf fur tonight, to cover this frail human body of its flaws.  Devlin thought of Patricia, watching him starting to act out his wolfen side, and the adoring smile she would have.  A similar pleasure arose in him, imagining watching Patricia do the same.

Over the excitement Devlin realized it was getting hotter, despite his shorts being relieved.  He tugged at the collar of his shirt, removing it fast and tossing it aside.  His body was now completely rid of clothing and the primal side of him was getting stronger, but not as much as what caused the strange daydream.

His body jerked, stumbling away from the sink and rolling over to his chest against the wall.  A low groan escaped his lips, and then a soft growl.  It was happening again, the moment of uncontrollable animal behavior like before.  This should be something Devlin would fight against, the unfamiliarity of having something else dominate his actions.  But the more he struggled to regain control, the more he found himself fighting off his own attempt.  The wolf, his animal persona he had formed and adopted all these years, was actually starting to take over.

Why, his own thoughts replied.  I wanted to know what it was like to be a wolf, a werewolf at best.  These thoughts, these animal instincts I’m feeling…I know what the wolf wants and I’m not afraid.  Why should I fight…its what…I always wanted.  It’s what…Patricia and I wanted.

Devlin jerked his head to his side, baring his teeth once more and snarling as he looked back into the reflection of the mirror as best as hw could.  His eyes widened in astonishment; his eyes were now completely ember yellow like a wolf.  Looking over his shoulder he also noticed something new from the bite mark the black wolf had left all those years ago.  The skin around it throbbed and pulsated, pain erupting from the wound.

What…what’s going on?

As his body continued to grow hot, his limbs shaking violently, he vacated the bathroom and returned to his room, finally loosing balance near his own bed.  He propped himself onto hands and knees while Devlin continued to moan and growl from the sudden wave of pain filling his being.

What could be causing this?  Why was his body becoming riddled in pain?  Did it have something to do with his thoughts being tempted by animal desires?  Was it…

As if his eyes hadn’t widened enough now his eyes felt like tearing from its socket from the revelation that came to him.  The pain and heat from his body consuming him, the animal instincts and thoughts persuading him, a beautiful nearly full moon, and an old bite mark from a wild wolf; it had never crossed his mind before until now, since nothing of extraordinary events had ever occurred after being bit as a child.  However, the fact his love for the wolf had increased to this point, enough to pretend to be one with Patricia willingly could be why it was happening now of all times.

I can’t…believe it!  Is it really…happening?  I’m I turning into a…a…

A chill of anticipation crept over his skin, his attention towards the window.  Disbelief overcame him as his ears picked up the faint sound of howling.  It was familiar, something natural to understand and to detect for wolves.  But it couldn’t be what he thought.

With ears erect and focused he could hear the second one.  But it wasn’t coming from outside, the world beyond this house was silent and asleep.  And yet the howl rang in his ears, and he understood its call.  His heart, which had already been pounding skipped a few more beats, tongue lolling out of his mouth and panting, recognizing that beautiful feral song.

“Howl with me tonight, Devlin.”  Patricia’s angelic voice echoed in his head as a third howl sounded in his mind.

Though what part of his human reasoning remain defensive about allowing the wolf to devour him, Devlin smiled as he growled something incoherent, trying to return her call.  Releasing the ache that choked in his throat, the call building up inside, Devlin stood on top of his bed, hands on the mattress while his legs reminded on the floor.  He closed his eyes and proudly howled triumphantly, returning his mate’s call.

It felt wonderful to howl without fear, to feel truly free to act out his beastly nature, his animal side.  The ache and pain returned, adding a strange euphoria that eased the discomfort.  Part of him became aware that his body was becoming hairier, that his nails seemed longer and his limbs feet limber and shifted, that his face began to grow heavy and long, and that something began wagging excitedly behind him.  But in that moment Devlin was more overzealous about accepting his lupine instincts and hoped that his mate heard his proud howl.  He took another deep breath and howled once more, just to make sure she heard it.