Hearthway Hollow

Nestor

Male Monster Main Character (cis) x Female Human (cis)

Hearthway Hollow is a threat, or at least that's how my boss is treating it. Our pack is smaller, but it's one of the oldest in the country. My boss, Aubin, takes offense to Hearthway Hollow and its pack of docile, fat dogs. How they are a threat, I'm not certain.

Most of my life has been spent with this pack, and we've been all over the country. We've seen lots of packs trying to adopt Hearthway Hollow's way of life. Sure, it seems nice at first. Everyone seems so comfortable, at peace with their surroundings. But Aubin says that's not how life should be for werewolves. Our lives are in the forest, in the shadow of the moon. Werewolves were created from the wrongs of centuries past, and as such, we should keep that spirit within us. Never still, never peaceful.

I was selected to go into Hearthway Hollow. Aubin wants me to infiltrate the pack, discover their secrets and weaknesses, and report back to him. I've been given money, along with a fake ID, and the mission of finding work with the Alpha of the town, a man named Adam.

Adam owns and operates a butcher shop, which is nice. I've always had to hunt for my food, and having it right there seems like a treat. Adam doesn't seem like any sort of threat either, but I knew werewolves aren't always like their human guise. Adam offers me a job trimming meat in the back. I have to go through a lot of training, which seems weird. Meat is meat. I'm taught about the different cuts, what they're good for, how they're different. It's kind of fun learning. I've never been to school, aside from my folks teaching me some things like reading and stuff.

Aubin says a good pack member was a stupid one and that's why he likes me so much. I just needed to learn how to stop asking questions.

I'm living in a tent in the woods, which is great. Usually, we just sleep outside around the fire, but being under a roof is nice. I take baths in the river, and sometimes I use the money from my job to get food in town, rather than hunt. I've come to really like coffee, so I stop by the cafe a few times a day.

One day I'm going into the cafe for my usual coffee and donut. I guess I'm so excited that I'm not paying attention, and right as I walk in, I slam into what I assumed is a child. Tiny, maybe a runt who hadn't died or something. Only thing is, they're holding a coffee, and when I bump into them, their coffee cup bursts open on my front.

"I'm so sorry!" the person blurts instantly. "Are you hurt?" She jumps back and starts using her scarf to try and mop up the spilled coffee.

I take off my shirt right there in the middle of the cafe. "It hurts a little, but I think I'm okay."

"Don't just..." She looks around nervously, because people are starting to stare, then takes me back outside and sits me down. "You shouldn't just take off your clothes in the middle of the place!" She looks at my stomach and sighs. "It's pretty red. Are you sure it doesn't hurt?"

I wring out my shirt. "I've had worse. What about your coffee?"

"Never mind that!" She seems pretty upset. "That was scalding-hot coffee, I've probably given you burns!"

The more I look at her the more I realize she isn't a kid. Maybe a runt, but still. She's pretty cute for being so little. She has long brown hair tied up into a bun, and she smells really good. Not like flowers or anything - something else. It's a different sort of smell. "Let me take you to the hospital, just in case," she says urgently.

I tilt my head to the side. "What for? I've never been before, and I got hit by a car once."

She stares at me in disbelief, as if expecting me to say something really funny. "Please don't joke. I am very frazzled and very tired."