Race Against Dawn

• Rebecca Daly, Grade 10
• Short Story
• 2010

I snarled at the thickset man. He crept closer, brandishing a gleaming, razor-edged knife. Others surrounded us, closing in to make the lethal strike. I bent lower, my fur standing on end. They wouldn’t catch me. They couldn’t. But they’d try.
I deepened my growl, baring sharp canines that could break a neck with a single snap.
I could smell their fear. None of them had hunted my kind in this form. I couldn’t let them succeed. We were rare. The humans couldn’t gain any confidence over us.
The man took a single step and I leapt, propelling him toward the ground before taking off with incredible speed. The hunters followed, crashing over the ground I covered softly, pushing each other out of the way, jostling for prime position. I pushed harder, determined to lose them before dawn.
My paws left no tracks as the cold air burned my lungs. Humans began to fall behind, unable to see my dark form in the shadows. I led them on a winding course, jumping small pieces of brush, running through ice cold streams, trudging through mud, doing anything and everything I could to lose them. But I underestimated their stamina.
The night sky slowly lightened and desperation set in. If I didn’t lose them soon, I would be as good as dead. Anxiety and carelessness took over my mind and I headed for a clear trail. One that I could run faster along. One that made it easier for the humans to keep up.
I quickly veered from the path and tripped over an exposed root. I tumbled down into a depression, rolling until I collided with a rock. I stood and was shaking myself off when I was tackled by the tall, young man who had been leading the chase. We struggled, leaving each other with a number of battle scars as his knife pierced my pelt and my teeth pierced his skin. I managed to overpower him, my legs holding him down as I snarled in his face. I positioned my jaws over his throat, preparing for the lethal bite. At the last minute, I pulled back, deciding to show mercy where they had not.
I stepped off the man and howled into the darkness, calling my kin for help. They came and guarded the exit I took to my clearing.
As I lay down in the centre, the sounds of a fight broke out. My kin were following their instructions: give the humans reason not to hunt my kind again.
All thoughts fled my mind as I began to change forms. The process was painful. Bones snapped, cracked and reshaped themselves as fur retreated and my human form was revealed. Soon, I was lying naked on the soft grass. I crept to a nearby bush and slipped on my dirty, old nightgown. I stood and hurried back to the castle, hoping Nanny had not awoken yet and making plans for tomorrow’s escape.
Life as a werewolf was complicated.