A/N: Written for the One Word Challenge by avatarluv97, in which we are given one word that will be the only bit of dialogue in the story. It was quite difficult but I really enjoyed it and I hope you will too! Review, please? :)
The Moon
The hunger is unbearable. The hunger and the rage. I am angry at everyone and everything. Every creature which lives and breathes under this moon. This disgustingly bright full moon... I am so angry I could kill them. Yes... Rip their throats, taste their blood as they scream in agony! I need blood to satisfy my hunger, blood to satiate my anger and this hatred, oh, this hatred that consumes what remains of my soul! And so begins the hunt.
The moon dictates my actions like a patient teacher, motioning me towards the forest; but what is in there worth killing? A fierce howl rips through my lungs. I need to kiil. I need to mutilate. I need to feast. The need is stronger than anything I have ever felt before. My nostrils flare when the passing breeze carries a familiar scent in my direction. The scent is salty and sweet at the same time. It speaks to my heart. I can't help but follow it; I start running. I have to find the source, I have to find and kill it. Be it an animal or a person, this night will be its last.
I run and run and still the breeze teases me with the smell which makes my mouth water. Perhaps when I've had a taste, this burning in my chest will cease, perhaps I will be less of a beast and with this thought, I pick up my pace because I don't want to be a beast anymore. The trees are a blur as I shoot past them. I can hear it now, a steady heartbeat. I'm closer and I must be grinning because I feel like I am. And I wonder if that tasty-smelling creature will be more shocked by my grin or the knowledge that it will soon be dead.
One leap and I'm standing in front of it, panting. It's a boy. I'm seeing red as my jaw snaps before his face but he avoids my attack, points a stick at me and shouts a word I don't recognize. Something hits me in the face; a bright light, brighter than the moon and I feel dizzy. I shake my head. The boy stands further away and I don't understand why he isn't running. They usually run away. They scream and they run. I don't like this change, it's unsettling. I growl at him but he doesn't seem to mind. His grey eyes show me that he's scared and yet he stands his ground, shouting words at me, words that don't mean anything. The hunger makes everything else seem insignificant.
The moon keeps telling me that I want to kill him. I carefully move forward because he's still holding the stick and the stick hurts. He averts his eyes for a second and I jump. I can feel him struggle under my paws and the hatred fills me again. Torture, maim, kill, feast! I growl again and he shouts my name... What do names mean anyway? Why should I care about names? But he insists and I'm suddenly curious to hear what he has to say, in spite of the moon's orders to bite and claw my way through his body. I squint my eyes and take a closer look at his face. It's strangely familiar, just like his scent. He says words, more words but I don't understand them. There's my name again and then, his name and I'm about to lose interest. I bare my teeth...
"Friend!" Sirius screams with all his might.
The word echoes in my head and it hurts like hell, worse than the stick in his hand. He says it again and I back off. I don't want to hear it again. Because I understand what it means, finally. I look into his eyes one last time and I can see that he knows I understand. He says it again, without screaming, calmly, kindly even and the hunger doesn't matter anymore. I have no hatred inside me for anyone but myself. Turning my back to him, I begin to run away, away from the word and the boy and the things I was about to do to him. And I don't want to be a beast but what choice do I have? As the distance grows between me and my friend, I try to ignore the moon's commands. I will not go back. I will not hurt him. I refuse to hurt him! Why won't the moon leave me alone?