"Mommy!" cried the 9-year-old Hauru, charging into Venra's room. "Mommy!" She nudged at Venra's sleeping form until she awoke. Venra was roused from sleep with a long yawn. She finally looked down to see little Hauru with tears in her eyes and sniffling.
"What's wrong, pup? Hauru, tell me what happened". Venra scooped Hauru up and held her close.
"I had a nightmare. I saw this… this castle. And a woman tied up. When the sun hit her… it looked like it hurt a lot. And she had sharp pointy teeth… A man was chained up. I guess they forced him to… She looked just like you. And had the same necklace…"
"Shh Shh. It's okay. It was…" Venra paused. She wondered whether it was time to tell her. No. Not yet. There was still time for her to be a child. Venra rationalized in her mind that it would be cruel to tell her before her first change. "It was just from that book I read you. It was just a nightmare".
"But… it felt so real. I saw it like I was there…"
"Dreams can often feel real, little one. But they're not. I'm right here. Nothing's happened. Maybe the Tragedy of the Crownless King was a little advanced for you". Hauru nodded.
"Can… can I sleep in your bed tonight?"
"Of course, sweetie. Remember. It's just a nightmare from an old story".
Just a nightmare from an old story. Her mother's words so many years ago. She wished it was all a nightmare. There were still nights she would go to sleep and wish she would wake up in her bed back on the Destiny Islands, but that never came. As she stood on Sunset Hill in Twilight town, she started to wonder if the night before really happened the way it did. For one, she remembered everything from before and after the change, which used to be the case only with the aid of her monkshood calming drought. She felt almost cheated. As though gaining control of herself was a little too easy even with Ansem's treatise on her kind. But such was life, sometimes. She grew concerned, for the second time in as many days, that Riku would not show up. That her little show of her true nature frightened him away. She sighed, ready to find somewhere to post up for the rest of the day when she caught the whiff of a familiar scent. The scents of her homeworld. HIS scent. She then spotted him making the ascent to meet her.
"You… you're here," Hauru said, the surprise as clear on her face as could be. She expected the last night to have been a dream, or some sick joke. But no. Here he was. His face, his scent, it was real. He was real.
"Just like you told me to be". Riku seemed calm. Calmer than he should have been after seeing his girlfriend transform into a horrifying wolf-beast. Had he known the whole time? No. That could not be it. Maybe that howl on their first date gave it away. But there was a lot more history that he needed to know. Maybe he thought she was a werewolf. A common enough mistake. Most humans didn't know the difference. Aqua was the only one to know right when Hauru told her.
"I know. I just didn't expect you to show up after seeing me… change".
"Well," Riku said, rubbing the back of his neck nervously. "I knew there was something different about you. I just didn't think you were… well, a werewolf". And there it was. Hauru shot Riku an accusing look and had to fight to stop herself from growling at him.
"Lycan. Not werewolf. Werewolves are savage monsters unable to return to human form ever again. Lycans… we have the luxury of changing back. You better remember that".
"Right," said Riku, "duly noted".
"Sorry. It's just… I have to find my humanity where I can".
"It can't be easy. Going through that every time the moon's full". Hauru actually smiled and held Riku close.
"It used to be worse. Before I learned to control it, I'd have torn you apart and probably eaten you without my calming drought". Riku suddenly went stiff and Hauru could swear all the color left his skin. She laughed and stepped back from him and his color seemingly returned. Perhaps he thought she was joking. She was relieved to see that he wasn't wearing the ring that burned her the night before. He really did care. "So... you probably have questions. I'll answer them as best I can".
"So... how'd you become a... a lycan?"
"I was born one. Mom didn't say much about my dad, so it's fair enough to assume he's a lycan since mom was human. Unless..."
"So, you weren't given the curse by a bite or something?" Hauru shook her head.
"It's not a curse. It's... more like a... well, it's a virus. And a lycan bite is more likely to kill someone than turn them. You have to have a strong constitution to survive infection. You might turn, or die inside of an hour".
"Right. And the ring? Silver allergy also a lycan thing?" Hauru nodded.
"Fatal if it gets inside us, in most cases. But it takes a lot more than people think..." Hauru's expression changed. She was suddenly a bit more fearful. At range, the biggest threat to her was Xigbar. Organization XIII's No. II. The Freeshooter. Silver was a threat to Hauru and other lycans, but only if enough of it is put in or left in long enough. Better to not tell Riku that. If he was ever captured or interrogated, that information could reach Xigbar, whose arrowguns could potentially be modified with the necessary properties to bring Hauru down for good. It was certainly a good thing that Vexen was gone. He would likely have known about the weakness inherent to Hauru's kind. "And that's all I'll say about that".
"Okay... where exactly do lycans come from. Closest thing I've seen is The Beast, and he's more like a werewolf, apparently". Hauru let out a long sigh. The tricky question comes at last. The one Hauru did not know how to properly answer since she had only read about her kind's homeworld. Most descriptions were not exactly kind.
"I've never been there," Hauru said. "My father came from there, and it's the site of a war that's been raging for almost six centuries. A blood-feud between my kind and vampires. At least that's what Aeon said".
"Aeon?" Riku asked. Hauru nodded. "Who's that? Old friend?"
"Older than you know. I met him before I exiled myself to the Unchained Realm. He was the guy from the book store who said I'd have to tell you eventually. He's... not the easiest person to get to know. But he's a good man, all things considered. His order hunted werewolves, so it was always going to be a gamble speaking to him. He knew the difference and told me about the lycans' birthplace. And the war that still rages on there". Hauru froze for a bit, remembering the nightmares she used to have. "It started a long time ago. The few histories I found mention a doomed love affair between a lycan slave and a vampire noble. She was killed and the lycans broke free, only for their newly-acquired castle to be burned down. The lycans were scattered and leaderless as a result, without Lucian. And that was a long time before the Keyblade War tore the world asunder and left the worlds we know now".
"Keyblade War?"
"Xehanort's obsession. You'll likely find out soon enough". Hauru sighed again. Just saying Xehanort's name conjured up all manner of painful memories. Hauru was following his trail, discovered the things he'd done. And when she finally confronted him in Radiant Garden... A tear ran down Hauru's cheek. She didn't want to remember what he'd done to her friends, what she did to him as retribution... Riku saw the look on her face and pulled Hauru in close for a tender embrace.
"It's okay. I'm right here... and I promise you, I won't be going anywhere. It couldn't have been easy, letting me into your world like you did last night, but I'm glad you trusted me. Really. You don't have to suffer alone anymore. But... Why did you decide to tell me?"
"Because... Because I didn't want to risk hurting you if I ever had to run off like I did that one time. I didn't want to lie to you. I needed you to see all of me, not just one side. And I'm glad I did. That you accept me. All of me". Hauru started to cheer up and she pulled away from Riku, leading him away from the hill by the hand to walk together along Sunset Terrace.
"So, can I ask something?" Riku asked. Hauru looked at him and nodded. "What's it like? The change?"
"Are you sure you want to know? It's not pretty. I mean... you saw it, so... Okay. Promise you're not going to leave me over it?"
"I promise."
"Okay. So, when there's a full moon on the way, I feel something... magnetic in the air. It's like being watched and the hairs on the back of your neck stand up. And as the day goes on, that feeling gets more and more intense". Hauru looked to Riku to gauge his reaction. So far, he seemed more intrigued than horrified. Good sign. "Then... it gets to the point in the sky where the change is just... unavoidable and it feels like something is pulling at my blood".
"So, where do you feel it first? In your bones?" Hauru shook her head.
"No. First, I feel it in my joints. They all start popping at once, like how you crack your knuckles. And that's when it starts. It varies from moon to moon, but the pain never goes away. It's gotten less painful only recently. About half-way though, my senses start to pick up even more and that can be a little overwhelming. And when it's over, I look up. And I see the full moon. Bigger and brighter than I ever have. But the transformation is the worst part of it, by far".
"So," said Riku, "what's the best? There has to be something good about it or you'd have lost your mind ages ago".
"Well, there are some... benefits to it. First off, my human form is stronger, faster, and tougher than a normal human or other keyblade wielders. My senses are even more attuned. My sense of smell especially. I know you're around before I even see you most of the time. You smell like home." The comment made Riku blush and Hauru giggled to herself a bit. It was just that cute. "And while I'm changed... running around on all fours is actually pretty exhilarating. I move so much faster and feeling the wind in my fur is just the best. Honestly, the nights I have to spend in that form aren't too bad. Most of the time they're just... kinda lonely".
"Well, maybe next time, I could keep you company the whole night. Or you could spend it with me in the old mansion now that you can control yourself".
"Okay," said Hauru. "Just remember. In that form, I'm not a pet".