The year is 4012 and the world is very different from the one we know. Different geographically, socially, and technologically. In the last 2000 years, climate change and disease has devastated the human population. The only government that survived intact was Canada.

Over a thousand years ago regions of the world that were once rich in resources, became harsh deserts. Europe and Asia's populations were lost to aggressive and widespread infectious disease. Now, however, the remaining population of Canada has begun to colonize and repopulate the 'New Continent" (once the old world to many North Americans). They travel across the Atlantic, the plan to begin by repopulating Europe.

Their original plans were derailed when they discovered small villages of natives still remain, cut off technologically from the rest of the world. With these villages, rich in old culture and customs, comes stories of werewolves and vampires.

Is history just repeating?

oooooo

John

The sun was setting just beyond the tree line as they walked across campus, heading home from class. The streetlights already beginning to turn on. John was exhausted from the lecture they had just left, he was only half listening to his companion as they followed a pathway between buildings. His mind was on the cold beer waiting for him at home. He had Fridays off, so tonight he would get to relax a bit –

"And that's when I decided to send a holo of my naked chest to everyone in our class..."

" Wait what?!" John halted and looked over at his companion, she paused when she noticed him stop.

"Belinda!?" he asked incredulously. She looked up innocently at him with her big brown eyes.

"Oh so that part you heard, but the part where I ask you if you want to go to the gym tomorrow goes in one ear and out the other." She smirks at him. He laughs a little and rubs the back of his neck, a nervous habit.

"Sorry, Billie, my mind was wandering." They began their trek again.

"Anyways, as I was saying, I could really use your help tomorrow. You've always been great at motivating me and I really need to push myself with the Nipissing Triathlon only a month away." As she spoke he watched her out of the corner of his eye. Her small athletic body easily kept up with his longer strides.

"Yeah shouldn't be a problem, I didn't have anything planned." Which was only partly true, he had a standing date with their mutual roommate, Alex, to play a few hours of holo-games on Friday afternoons. But if he was being perfectly honest with himself, working out at the gym with Billie sounded like a much better day than sitting around the house with Alex.

Not that he minded Alex. In fact, both Alex and Billie had been his best friends since he met them two years ago. It started the summer after secondary school when John's grandmother had died. John 's biological father was a sperm donor and his mother had died in a freak air-bus accident when he was two. His grandparents had raised him for most of his life. But they weren't young when he came into their lives, and despite everything science and technology could do to prolong life, nobody lives forever. John's grandfather had passed away when he was fifteen and it hadn't taken his grandmother long to follow.

In her will, John's grandmother had left him their large house and an even larger inheritance. Her only request was that he use some of the money for post-secondary training. He had already applied and been accepted to the kinesiology program at North Bay University before she passed away, so it just made sense to stick to the plan as a means of dealing with his grief. It turned out to be the best decision he could have made because it led him to meet Billie and Alex.

John had met Billie on the first day of school. They were both taking Health Science 1001 and didn't know anyone. He chose a seat at the back of the lecture hall and was in awe the second the beautiful brunette sat next to him. They hit it off immediately and when she mentioned that herself and her cousin were still looking for an apartment to rent, he quickly offered up two rooms in his too large, too quiet home. Billie and her nerdy, anthropology-major cousin moved in not long after. John couldn't imagine his life without them now.

John was pulled from his musings by the sound of someone running up behind them. When he turned his head to check which side of the path the jogger would need space on, he was met with an unexpected fist to his temple. John didn't even have time to panic before his world went black.

It must not have taken long for him to come to because when he did it was to the sound of a struggle. John snapped his eyes open and unsteadily got to his feet. When his vision cleared it was to the sight of Belinda fighting off a man attempting to drag her around the side of a nearby building, towards a parking lot. John felt pure rage when he noticed Belinda's leg showing early signs of bruising and her arm bloodied with scrapes and scratches from elbow to wrist.

John took a deep breath as he realized her attacker was too distracted to notice anything beyond attempting to keep the upper-hand over the struggling woman. He would be able to use this to his advantage and surprise the man. However, John lost his cool when the man pulled out a gun, pointed it at Belinda and said "Fuck it, she said not to kill you... but you aren't worth this much effort, you dumb bitch. Besides, what harm can a little bullet in the leg do?"

Before he knew what was happening, the gun had been flung meters away and John was beating the man's head against the stone wall of the building. It took him a moment to realize that Belinda was shouting something at him.

"Stop, John, stop! It's okay, it's okay! Please stop!"

John loosened his grip on the man's neck and turned to see Belinda kneeling on the grass behind him, sobbing. He turned to look back at the man, only to find him slumped against the wall, eyes lifeless, blood seeping from a deep depression in his skull. John let go of the man and flung himself away from the body, scrambling to get as far away as he could. He suddenly felt sick and turned over, facing the grass on all fours, as he emptied the contents of his stomach. He felt Belinda approach him and rub his back. He heard her on her com-unit, calling 911.

John closed his eyes as he heard sirens in the distance. Guess he wouldn't get to have that beer tonight.

oooooo

John opened his eyes as he heard the cell door open. Officer Lee smiled at him as she motioned for him to follow her. As they walked she explained the situation to him.

"Just like I guessed last night, no charges will be laid against you. I'm sorry we had to keep you over-night, it's just procedure in situations of manslaughter – we needed time to do the required investigation. As it turns out, it was more of a clear case of self-defence than we originally thought. The guy has a pretty serious record in human-trafficking. Besides that, we have the entire attack on holos from campus security cameras.

After discussing the case with Crown counsel, it was decided that it would be a waste of resources to file charges against you, as a jury would never convict. And, in my opinion, I think you're a damn hero. Seems your girlfriend does too. She was here first thing this morning with that beanpole guy to get you."

"She's not my girlfriend, we're just roommates." John was fighting a smile.

"Sure okay, whatever you say, dude" Lee said, as she pressed the thumb-scan button to open the last security door leading to the reception area. "You're free to go."

John finally allowed himself to smile when he saw Belinda and Alex. Belinda leapt into his arms and gave him a tight hug. Alex was next with a shorter, manly shoulder squeeze.

"Let's get him out of here, Billie"

oooooo

The ride home was short and quiet. No one talked until they got home. Once John was in the door Belinda gave him another hug. She told him how thankful she was that he was home and explained that she barely slept last night. He reassured her that he was okay and suggested she take a nap. Once she agreed and had headed upstairs, John turned to Alex.

"Beer, pizza and holo-games?" Alex said sheepishly.

They both headed down to the entertainment room in the basement and John laughed, "Yeah, that sounds pretty perfect."

oooooo

It was around dusk when John first felt it. It started like with an ache in his bones that reminded him of the growing pains he felt as kid. Suddenly there was a sharp pain in his gut, like nothing he had felt before. He tumbled off the couch, knocking over beer bottles on the way down.

"You okay, man?" Alex looked at him with concern, pausing the game.

"I don't know. Fuck." John grunted out.

John felt pure pain and terror as his bones began to break and reform at different angles. Alex looked at him with fear and panic as he felt his body transforming.

John managed to growl out one word as he lost his sense to the all consuming pain.

"Run!"

oooooo

John awoke to the glare of sunlight in his face. He opened his eyes to see the basement windows above him. His first thought was that he must have fallen asleep mid holo-game last night. He second thought was to wonder why we wasn't wearing any clothes.

He looked around to see the couch shredded, the holo-display smashed, and his pants in pieces.

Suddenly, it all came back to him.

He grabbed an old quilt that was still in one piece and wrapped it around his bottom half. Then he tore up the stairs to see if Alex and Billie were okay. He could only remember vague snippets of the night and the thought of unintentionally hurting them made him sick with worry.

When he reached the top of the stairs he found the metal door to the main floor shut. It was an unexpected sight as the door was typically left open due to it's lack of a doorknob. He'd never put much thought into its existence before now actually, but recalled with relief that on the opposite side there was a large heavy duty bolt. He knew now that Alex must have made it out of the basement safely and bolted the door behind him.

John knocked lightly on the door, feeling a little ashamed and not knowing what explanation to give his friend. He let out puff of air as he heard the bolt slide open.

When the door opened Alex and Billie stood on the other side.

"Sooo" Alex said casually "How long have you been a werewolf?"

John raised his eyebrows, not knowing what to say.

Belinda saved him by saying "Alex, let's let the man put on some clothes while we make breakfast. John shouldn't have to respond to your nonsense before he's had a coffee."

John gave her a smile before heading up to his room. As he ascended the staircase he heard Alex stage-whispering to Billie. "It's not nonsense, there have been documented werewolf sightings throughout history! And you said yourself that you heard growling last night!"

As he pulled out a pair of sweats from his dresser, John mulled over the events of the last 48 hours. If he was honest with himself, he found it easy to understand where Billie was coming from. Even after what he had gone through, he found it hard to accept that all those stories his grandfather had told him were true. He started to feel guilty after all those years of laughing off the old man's warnings. As old feelings of grief over the loss of his grandparents began to resurface, John remembered the family journals.

ooooo

Billie jumped a little over by the stove when John dropped the pile of journals onto the kitchen table. He smiled apologetically at her as he helped Alex prevent the stack from sliding to the floor.

"What's all that?" She asked as she worked on their breakfast.

"My family journals. I figured we could all the answers we need from these. Plus I should have shown them to Alex ages ago cause they are right up his alley. I had forgotten all about them after I put a lot of my grandparent's stuff in the attic."

He ignored the looks of sympathy he could sense were being directed his way as he sorted through the journals. John didn't look up until he found the one he was looking for.

"This one is the oldest, the dates on it are about 300 years old. It should probably be in a museum, they should probably all be in an archive somewhere, but the old man loved them. He used to read them to me like they were bedtime stories. Stories about our ancestors turning into wolves on the full moon."

"Werewolves, I told you, Billie!"

"Yeah, yeah, eat your breakfast."

John thanked her as she brought over their food and sat down next to him. She smiled at him and pulled her long tresses into a ponytail.

"I guess it's hard to deny what I heard last night. There was definitely an animal behind that door. And then when Alex and I went down there, after you went upstairs ... the destruction. I mean, I've heard the legends like everyone else. I just found it hard to believe. Next thing you're going to tell me vampires are real too."

"Actually, there is some evidence they might, or at least that they used to exist." Alex said, in that know-it-all tone he tended to get when he spoke about anything tied to his major, "But info is limited compared to what we have collected about werewolves. And there hasn't been any documented sightings in the last 1500 years or so. Werewolves, however, there's been sightings over on the New Continent as recently as the year 3943.

"What I'm interested to know though is, why now? We've lived with you for two years now and I'm pretty sure this is the first full moon that you've turned into a wolf. Are the theories true that a werewolf bite creates a new werewolf?"

John laughed, "No that's a myth according to my grandfather. It's genetic. It's a curse, passed down in my family through my grandfather's side."

"So you've always been a werewolf?"

"No, I've just always had it in me to be one, I guess the old man did too... maybe my mother as well. There's a trigger to the curse. To become a werewolf, we have to first take a human life. And I guess that happened the other night."

The colour drained from Billie's face. "This is all my fault." She moaned, her forehead hit the table.

"Definitely not!" John said savagely. His eyes were blazing "That man would have attacked any woman walking that path last night. You are in no way at fault for what happened! I can't even think about what would have happened if I hadn't been there to stop him."

Alex and Billie looked startled at his sudden emotional outburst. John calmed down and looked a little sheepish. "Besides" he said, "I guess I'm joining a long list of Whitmore werewolves. I suspect that metal door to the basement isn't a coincidence. This house has been in my family for generations."

"I suspect I will grow to be thankful for that door in time" John sighed, "I will have to go through that transformation every month for the rest of my life."

Billie smiled reassuringly at him, "Yeah, okay, werewolf, but that's not all the time. I mean, three days out of the month, I'm not much fun to be around either." John smiled back, relieved to have someone in his life who would be understanding.

"Hmmm" Alex had been uncharacteristically quiet for a while, so his voice cut through the duos' moment. "There might actually be a cure for that."

"What?" Billie blushed, "For my period? Yeah it's called pregnancy, or menopause... and of course there are pills. As the only female in this group, I'm pretty sure I'm the expert in th-"

"No, no." Alex cut in, not really paying attention. "A cure for werewolve-ism... werewolve-itice... the curse."

"What makes you think there is a cure?" Asked John. "I feel like if there was one, the old man would have known about it."

"It was in an article published in Social Anthropology Monthly. I have a subscription. Although, I have to say I think I will be doing my graduate work in physical anthropology, but I digress." Alex paused, possibly for effect, but mostly likely to make sure he had their full attention, "It's this legend of the sun and the moon curse. There's not much known about it, but supposedly it's the key to knowing how to break the curse and free those afflicted from it's restrictions – free werewolves from the moon.

"Maybe if we track down the author of the article, we could get more information and find a way to break the curse."

oooooo

John wiped some sweat off his forehead after they stepped into the bar, out of the Philadelphia heat. The bar was a relieve after travelling on foot in that arid climate. They had travelled to the ancient United State city, now no more than a research colony, in the hopes of finding their contact. Ms. Falcon, the author of the article, had not returned any of their calls or PMs. After contacting the editors of Social Anthropology Monthly, the three friends had been able to get a residential address.

Once arriving in Philly they had checked into the only hotel and then wasted no time in going to the address. Unfortunately no one was home. Billie, not willing to give up so easily, suggested they find some place to relax for a bit and then try again later.

After settling into a booth and ordering three glasses of water, John tried to think of some way to thank his friends for travelling all this way to help him. It hadn't been easy and had taken a few months planning and coordination with the full moon cycle. He was about to tell them what was on his mind when he notice Alex staring at the bar. John followed Alex's line of sight to see a beautiful blonde nursing a rum and Pepsi.

"You know Alex, this is a bit of a spring break." John said, smirking at Alex. "You could try to get lucky." He shared a smile with Billie.

Alex blushed. "No that's not it, I think I recognize her. I did a little research and it took a lot of digging, but I found one picture of Falcon. I had thought it was an old picture, but it must have been recent because it looks just like her."

John looked over at her again. "Well that's a good place to start. 'Hi my name's Alex, I'm a really big fan'. Next thing you know, you're working on a thesis together, if you know what I mean". Billie rolled her eyes.

Alex took a deep breath and then got up. John was a little surprised but then, smiled in encouragement. He didn't know Alex had it in him.

They watch Alex walk over to her, she was angled a little away from them, but she was close enough they should be able to hear everything. Alex looked nervous but determined.

"Hi, are you Rose Falcon? Rose Brie Falcon?"

"What do you want kid?"

"Were you the one that wrote that article about the sun and the moon curse? I've been trying to do some research on it and - "

"Piss off. I haven't the patience to listen to another one of you academics and your juvenile theories." With that she got up from the bar and disappeared down a hall towards the washrooms.

Alex slowly came back to their booth his face beat red. John felt his blood pressure rising. They had come all this way, and that stuck up bitch thought she could just stomp all over his friend. John got up from the booth and stomped towards the washrooms, vaguely hearing Billie call out to him.

As he made his way down the hallway he saw her coming out of the women's washroom.

"Listen lady, you have no right to be so rude. Look at you, you barely look 18. What makes you think you can talk down to people like that?!"

Before John knew what was happening she had him by the throat, pushed up against the wall. He felt his feet dangling and found himself amazed at her strength.

"Listen wolf-boy, you need to be careful who you speak to like that. I don't know where you came from, but I would show a little more respect to strangers. You never know who you'll run into. Plus there's no full moon to save you tonight. " As she spoke, fangs descended from her upper jaw and dark veins appeared around her eyes. John had never felt more frightened in his life.

Before he could say anything Alex and Billie came around the corner and into the hallway. John tried to tell them to run, but couldn't get the words out. The woman noticed she no longer had his attention and turned towards the newcomers.

As she did, her fangs disappeared and she lowered John to the floor.

John sat coughing and Billie ran towards him, past the woman. He tried to shove her away and tell her to run, but she only placed herself between him and the woman.

"Get away from him." Billie looked terrified, but determined.

The woman looked calmly down at them, her face practically expressionless. But there was a hint of something, something John could only describe as wistfulness.

"Are you two with him?" The woman asked, pointing at Alex.

"Yes", John said regaining his voice. "Are you Rose Falcon?"

"Actually, my name is Caroline Forbes. Rose Brie Falcon is my pseudonym." She smiled and John was reminded that he had first found her beautiful. And then she said something he had been hoping to hear.

"I think I can help you."

ooooooo

Gold star to anyone who picked up on the Buffy quote!