LUNAR BLOOD

The scent of blood hit Aria before she saw it.

Coppery, raw, and far too familiar.

She stood at the edge of the woods behind Hollow Creek High, where the trees whispered secrets to the wind, and the moon loomed overhead like an unblinking eye.

 Something was wrong.

It wasn't just the scent it was the hum in the air. Like static before a storm, except it wasn't thunder she feared. It was herself.

 Aria clutched her denim jacket tighter around her frame and stepped further into the shadows.

Her boots crunched fallen leaves, each step loud in the silence. The hairs on her arms stood erect. Every instinct screamed at her to run, to get out-but something deeper, primal, rooted her there.

 Then she saw it. A deer. Or what had once been a deer. Its body was torn open, ribs cracked like splintered wood.

 Blood soaked the earth beneath it.

Its eyes, wide and glassy, stared at Aria as though asking why.

She staggered backward, bile rising in her throat.

Not a normal animal attack. No mountain lion did this. Not with such precision.

She should scream. She should call the sheriff. Instead, she crouched.

Why did this feel familiar?

A low growl shattered the silence.

She spun, heart hammering, and found nothing but trees and moonlight.

The growl hadn't come from behind her it came from within. Pain split her chest. It was like fire running through her veins, a liquid flame pulsing beneath her skin.

She gasped, clutched her sides, and fell to her knees.

The world tilted. Her vision flickered. Her bones screamed. She didn't know how long she lay there, convulsing, her mind unraveling like thread.

But when she opened her eyes, everything had changed.

The world was sharper. The wind carried scents-pinesap, moss, the lingering musk of fear.

She heard a rabbit's heartbeat in the distance. She felt the moon's gaze. And she wasn't in her skin anymore, She was a wolf.

The transformation lasted seconds or hours-she couldn't tell. The mind of the wolf merged with hers, thoughts primal and raw.

 Hunger, Fear, Territory. But Aria's human mind screamed behind the amber eyes.

This isn't real. She stumbled no, bounded through the trees. Her paws pounded the ground, her body unfamiliar and yet exhilarating. Power coursed through her. Then she saw another, a black wolf, tall as a horse, eyes silver-bright, standing among the trees. He didn't move, Neither did she.

Their eyes locked. Then he growled low and warning and vanished into the forest. Aria's instincts said chase. Her human fear said run. But before she could choose, the pain returned.

 Everything went black,  She woke in her bed. Drenched in sweat, breath ragged, her muscles aching as though she'd run a marathon. Her phone buzzed. 6:02 a.m,   "Just a dream," she whispered.

But the dirt under her nails and the shredded remains of her jacket on the floor told a different story Later that day, Hollow Creek buzzed with news of a new animal attack. Another deer,  Same wounds, Same spot. Aria skipped school.

Instead, she found herself back in the woods, drawn by a pull she couldn't name. She stood where it happened, the memories vivid and terrifying. And she wasn't alone.

"I thought I'd find you here," a voice said.

She turned, startled.