In the dead of night, you slowly stirred from a rather cozy dream. However, that peaceful lull back to consciousness was quickly shed and left on your bed where you once lay.

Howling.

The sound is not so unfamiliar, not anymore. You were in a hurry with your body already up and at 'em despite the time and grogginess written from the way your shoulders sagged and hooded eyelids felt so heavy. Really, less of your hair would be gray if it weren't for that wolf.

Tonight had to be the night you put a stop to its rampage and tyranny. It wasn't a surprise since you heard of the destruction it caused to survive at the expense of everyone else. The neighboring village got the worst of it; families torn and missing children, naught but bone returned to their doorsteps. Some weren't as lucky, with nothing to bury aside from keepsakes. Those always hurt the most.

They came to you as a last resort when others failed to rend the flesh from the monster. By now, the casualties were too high to entrust the job to some newbie or a cocky fool.

The responsibility draped over your already slumped shoulders like a cape as you dressed yourself, grabbing your trusty shotgun with a few extra shells in hand. With unwavering resolve, you embraced the night, hopefully enough to settle things once and for all.

Nights like these always felt much colder than they were. An unspoken understanding between you and the wolf despite rarely seeing one another, yet wholly aware of each other. They didn't try to hide it either. Many times, they left bones and tattered pieces of clothing and personal belongings at your door to remind you of each defeat.

As your mind runs wild with a whirlwind of emotions, a sudden shuffle breaks through and erupts into a yelp and ends in an anguished scream. This had to be it.

You were overcome with a newfound clarity and bolted to the source, where you found...

A man.

A wolf-man. He's grasping and prying at the bear trap you had set out wildly, leg clamped onto fiercely by the metal jaws.

Good.