THE LAST WOLF

***You know the drill - description time!***

Hello all, this is going to be kind of a long description so please just bear with me. I have fairly recently gotten into watching Once Upon a Time on Netflix and I found that I did actually like it a lot. The characters that I were really intrigued by were Sheriff Graham/The Huntsman, Ruby/Red Riding Hood, and Jefferson/the Mad Hatter. They all ended up not lasting too long in the series which I thought was such a shame, especially in Graham's case. We barely got any more of a backstory out of him about being raised by wolves and what not. I read on the OUaT wiki that he was apparently raised by shape-shifting wolves as well, which again, I thought would have been an interesting thing to further explore on the show.

So, the main reason I'm writing this fic is that I was disappointed/confused by the way werewolves were depicted in the show. The way they were portrayed was just all over the place and never made much sense to me. For example, what was up with that first wolf Emma saw after trying to leave Storybrooke for the first time? Why wasn't Ruby still a werewolf in Storybrooke? Sure magic doesn't exist, but wouldn't being a werewolf be a genetic affliction, not magic? It is semi-implied in season 2 that because she wears red, it keeps her wolf side in check, but it's never officially confirmed. And was she, a shape-shifting wolf, somehow related to the whole Graham backstory? And speaking of whom, what was the deal with that wolf he had seen in Storybrooke and in his flashbacks? None of this is explained, none of this is further explored, and I really thought it was a shame.

For this fanfic, I've created an OC of my own named Kyra Norwood. She is, as you may have already guessed, a werewolf. I based both her werewolf abilities and character's personality as a whole to Hayley Marshall from the Originals, as I liked her character a lot. But keep in mind, though she is based a lot on Hayley, she is NOT Hayley.

Further background on Kyra is that she is from the fairytale world originally, though not as a definite *character* at this point, i.e. Cinderella, Red Riding Hood, Snow White, etc. She's born in a werewolf pack known as the Crescent Wolves who all have a crescent moon shaped birthmark on their right shoulders to signify it (this is where the werewolf concept from the Originals comes in, totally stole the idea from them so gotta give credit where credit's due). This pack is the one that raised Graham (or Huntsman? He's not given a real name in the fairytale world I guess...), and he grows up with Kyra, falling in love with her in the process. However, when he fails to kill Snow White for Regina and she takes out his heart, he still retains feelings for Kyra and the werewolves. As such, Regina orders the extinction of the werewolves, most notably the Crescents, to keep Graham from being distracted.

From there, Kyra soon ends up being the last Crescent wolf left and one of the last werewolves left at all, making her a highly valuable asset of the fairytale world. There ends up being a big reward for the person who finds her and brings her to the Queen, which is where Jefferson comes in as he wants the reward to better his daughter's life. But things take a turn when he and Kyra find themselves attracted to one another, and he ends up helping her get away when the Queen arrives at his home. Not too long later, right before the curse is about to take place, Rumplestiltskin realizes Kyra's value as the last Crescent wolf and doesn't want her killed. With her consent, he sends her to the "Land Without Magic" to restart her life and grow up there with no memories of her "fairytale" life, though she is now in debt to him for doing so.

In the real world, Kyra grows up in Manhattan with no family and no knowledge of her past life, but still retains her werewolf abilities as well as the crescent moon birthmark. Desperate to learn about her past, she is soon lured to Storybrooke by mysterious means not too long after Emma and Mary Margaret's kidnapping by Jefferson...and it is revealed that his desperation to get his hat to work and return to the Enchanted Forest was not only because of his daughter.

Told you guys it would be a long description. Well, onto the story. Hope you guys like it!

***RATED M FOR LANGUAGE, SOME VIOLENCE, AND SEXUAL CONTENT/RAPE***

(SIDE NOTE: The POV's change at times throughout the story, usually indicated by each separating line but not always, as you read on it'll be clear who's POV each part is in)

Prologue

Kyra walked aimlessly through the Enchanted Forest, feeling completely numb with pain. She didn't cry anymore, and she didn't feel anymore. To feel anything was exhausting after all she'd been through. Ever since Graham was taken from her, ever since the Queen ordered the extinction of her people, her life had been an endless cycle of misery. There she was, one of the last werewolves in all of the land, completely alone in the world.

Rumors had been spreading around rapidly lately that the Queen was planning a horrible curse, worse than anything she'd ever done before. Kyra could only imagine what said curse would entail. But what could possibly be worse than what had already been done? She thought. She was almost too afraid to know. She wanted absolutely no part in said curse, but if it was true that the Queen was casting it over the entire land, it seemed there was no getting out if it.

It was then that Kyra stopped dead in her tracks, closing her eyes and exhaling deeply. She realized that there was actually one way to get out of it, and ensure that she wouldn't be an unwilling participant in this curse.

She turned her heel and began heading in the direction she'd been avoiding like the plague for years - the Queen's castle. It was the only way out. She prayed that once there, she would be given a clean death, something quick and not prolonged. But even so, whatever pain the Queen or her little minions would inflict on her couldn't possibly be worse than the heartache she's endured for so long. There was nothing left to live for, Kyra knew that now. Saddened as it made her, she couldn't stop herself from facing the horrible truth any longer. Death was her only release.

"I wouldn't go that way if I were you, deary!" A high-pitched voice spoke suddenly, rooting Kyra in place. She turned in the direction of where she heard it, and saw him.

Rumplestiltskin.

She'd never actually seen him in person before, only seeing him in pictures and hearing of him in stories. Her throat tightened as her eyes regarded him, sitting on a large stone with one leg crossed over the other, smiling widely at her. She thought for a moment of how to respond, but she ultimately decided to play dumb.

"Who are you?" She asked.

"Oh, come now," The creature before her quickly responded, almost cutting her off. "You know who I am...and I know who you are. Kyra." Kyra's eyes widened. He really was all-knowing. It didn't sit well with her, and she suddenly found herself wanting to dart off in the other direction to get away from him. But for some reason, she remained right where she stood.

"Now..." Rumplestiltskin said, hopping off the stone and slowly making his way toward her. "Why are you, Kyra Norwood, the last of your kind, running for your life for the past several years...walking in the direction of the Queen's castle?" He put his hands on his hips, leaning downward slightly as he looked at her. Kyra pursed her lips.

"You tell me," She replied, looking him dead in the eye. He laughed then, but Kyra kept her eyes locked on him, staring him down. Startled as she was by his sudden appearance, and despite all she knew about him, she was not afraid of this man.

"Smart girl," Rumplestiltskin said. "Shame you're so quick to march to your death." Kyra didn't reply. She just kept staring him down, her golden brown eyes full of mistrust. He laughed once more like a madman before speaking.

"Tell me," He said suddenly, taking a few steps forward, closer to where she stood. "After all of that fighting to stay alive, after all of that running, after ALL that you've been through as of late...why are you putting it all to waste now?" Feeling tears begin to well in her eyes, Kyra slowly began to shake her head at him.

"I have nothing left to live for," Kyra told him, a slight shake in her voice. "Everyone I've ever loved, any person I've ever cared about has been taken by her. Whatever curse she has planned, I want no part in it. I have to surrender myself to her before she puts the curse in place. Death is my only way out of this...out of all of it." The Dark One wasn't smiling anymore. He now had a very serious expression on his face that a few moments ago Kyra didn't think he was capable of. After looking at her intently for another moment or so, he then took a few more steps forward, leaning in close to her face.

"You're the last Crescent wolf," He said to her quietly. "You can't die." Once more, Kyra shook her head at him, his words having very little effect on her. She had told herself those exact words while she ran, while she hopped around from city to city hiding from the Queen and her guards. You're the last wolf, Kyra. Those words had previously given her the strength and ambition she needed to survive. But now, they meant almost nothing.

"I want to," She told Rumplestiltskin. He stepped back for a minute giving her a look and shaking his finger at her.

"No you don't," He said. Kyra's brow furrowed in response to him saying this.

"Yes, I do," She insisted. He shook his head slightly, a smile forming back onto on his face once more as he looked at her.

"No," He replied, leaning back into her face. "No, no, no. I know what you really want. To forget. To start over. You want a new life, in a new place...far away from this one." Kyra's eyes flickered downward after a moment, thinking deeply about this. He was right. That is what she really wanted. She would much rather have that than death, but she just didn't see that as a possibility.

"Even if I did want such a thing, it doesn't matter," She said to Rumplestiltskin. "No matter where I go, this curse will be sure to follow."

"Oh, but there is one place..." He said, beginning to walk around her as he spoke, like a predator stalking it's prey. "A place that would be perfect for you to start a new life. A place where curses and magic are nonexistent." Kyra's head shot back to look at him upon hearing those words.

"A place...without magic?" She inquired. She had never thought such a place could exist.

"Yes," Rumplestiltskin said, making his way back to the front of where she stood, smiling mischievously. "Somewhere like that would be perfect for someone in your situation, wouldn't you agree?" She looked down, deep in thought once more. This man was mad in a way, yes...but he was smart. He knew what he was talking about. As she thought for a moment longer on it, she soon shot her head back up, looking at the Dark One intently.

"Tell me," Kyra spoke to him. "Where is this place?" He shook his head at her once more, making a tsk-ing sound.

"It's not a place that you can travel to of your own accord, little wolf," He informed her. "You'll need help to get there. MY help to be exact!" Kyra let out a heavy sigh. So that's what was going on here. She cursed herself for allowing this man to coerce her into wanting his help...or at least almost allowing him to. If the stories she had heard about him were any indication, then making any type of deal with him would come with a great cost. A cost Kyra surely couldn't afford.

"Absolutely not," She snapped at him. "I know what happens to people who make deals with you, and I think I for one have been through enough. I'll find a way to get to this land without magic myself, and if I can't before this curse takes hold, then...I'll just have to surrender myself to the Queen." She turned around to begin walking away from Rumplestiltskin, only to find him standing right there behind her.

"You are an ignorant one, aren't you?" He said to her in an accusing tone. "So quick to go off on your own, so quick to refuse any help that is offered to you..."

"First of all," Kyra began. "Only a fool would accept any 'help' of yours. Second of all, I am fully capable of doing things on my own. I've been doing it for a long time." Turning the other way to walk away once more, she jumped slightly to once more see the Dark One standing right before her, though much closer this time.

"And how has 'doing things on your own' been working out for you?" He inquired. "If you ask me, it hasn't been working out very well at all." She glared at him in anger as he leaned forward right into her face, speaking quietly. "Let me let you in on a little secret, deary. Though the land I speak of doesn't have magic, the only way to get there is with just that. And believe me, you won't get there without my help."

"I don't want your help," Kyra said to him through gritted teeth.

"But I want to help you," He quickly replied, smiling back at her.

"Why?" She demanded. "Why could you possibly want to help me?"

"Because you're the last of your kind!" He exclaimed. Out of nowhere, he suddenly reached over and grabbed her right shoulder.

"Hey!" Kyra exclaimed in response to him doing so. He turned her shoulder slightly to face him, pulling down her sleeve gently to reveal the crescent moon shaped birthmark on the back of her shoulder, the symbol of her pack.

"The Crescent Wolf Pack," He said, touching the birthmark. "The most powerful wolf pack of all." Kyra yanked herself away from him, tears beginning to well up in her eyes once more.

"It was," Kyra said, feeling a tear fall down her one cheek. "Now it's gone."

"Not entirely!" Rumplestiltskin pointed out, smiling once more. "You're still here, aren't you?"

At that moment, Kyra found herself suddenly unsure of what to do. If she refused Rumplestiltskin's offer, it was highly unlikely that she'd be able to get to this land without magic on her own. With that, she would have no choice but to surrender to the evil woman who held such loathing for her and her kind. On the other hand, if she did take Rumplestiltskin's offer...her escape to this land without magic would be a guarantee, and she would be free from the Queen and any of her curses. The only catch was that she would be in debt to the Dark One, and she could only imagine how great of a debt that would be. But then again, in a place with no magic - something that gave the Dark One all of his power - perhaps her debt wouldn't be as costly. He would have to travel there to collect it after all, and with that, he would be almost powerless.

Kyra made her decision then, looking at Rumplestiltskin and slowly giving him a nod.

"You're right," She told him. "I am still here. I am the last wolf...and I don't want to die." Rumplestiltskin smiled widely at her in encouragement, waiting on faded breath for her to give him the word. She looked down at first, sighing heavily before looking back up at him and speaking the very words that would set her fate.

"Send me to this land without magic."

The Dark One laughed giddily, making Kyra slightly uncomfortable and almost question her decision. But she shrugged it off when she remembered he wouldn't be nearly as powerful if and when he ever came to collect his debt from her. Without magic, he would have very little power over her, if any at all. He walked right up to her and took her hands in his.

"I knew you would make the right choice, deary!" He said to her, smiling widely. After a moment, he then reached into his pocket and pulled out a small glimmering seed-like object. He walked slightly forward and carefully set the object on the ground, burying it in the dirt. Kyra stared at him as he did so, wondering what he could possibly be doing.

It soon came to fruition when Rumplestiltskin stood back next to Kyra, and the ground where he planted the seed opened up. A large swirling portal formed on the ground before them, swirling so fast that Kyra's long chestnut brown hair began to blow around with it.

"I was saving it for the right time," Rumplestiltskin told her, surely referring to the seed. He turned to look at her as he continued. "And this, little wolf...is the right time." Kyra turned and looked at him, giving a small smile.

"I would thank you..." She replied. "But I'm aware that I'll owe you a great deal for this someday."

"That you will, miss Kyra," He said, beginning to walk behind her as she looked down at the portal. "That...you will!" In no less than a second after he spoke his final words to her, he gave her a slight push from behind, watching as she fell into the portal with an oh-so-wicked smile on his face. He then tossed a small piece of parchment down into the portal with her just before it closed up. The last thing Kyra saw was the parchment following her down as the Dark One smiled at her before she felt herself fade away. She then fell into a large body, twisting the events of space and time as she was sent to this new world.

Not even a moment later did a newborn baby appear out of nowhere on the sidewalk of a suburban Manhattan street. The infant bore a crescent moon shaped birthmark on her right shoulder, as well as a piece of parchment beside her that read one single word:

Kyra.