20 Let's talk about werewolves

As Leo walked into the village, he was glad Natalie had brought him clothes. Apparently he was once again the center of attention. As they walked into the village all the people were looking at him, some in awe, some in sympathy, but mostly fear. Before anyone said anything Natalie said,

"This way, elder grandma wanted to talk to you when we got back." Leo nodded to say he understood. She led him along with Iris and Jack to a path up the cliff above the village. After walking up the path for several minutes they came to a hut on the cliffs. Leo had never seen where elder grandma lived, he just knew she showed up almost every night at Iris's house for dinner. As they approached, the door open and Austin was the one to greet them.

"Hey, Lucy and I came to talk as well. Hope you don't mind, but the three of us are already waiting." And so the seven of them crammed into the small hut. Lucy was preparing breakfast for those who hadn't eaten yet. As the plates were handed to them, Leo thought to himself that after what happened after he woke up he wouldn't have an appetite. But as the smell entered his nose, his stomach let out a declaration of war. Seeing Leo devoured his food so quickly Natalie smiled and said teasingly,

"With the state we saw that horned bear in, I thought you wouldn't be very hungry." Leo flinched noticeably at her words. Now that he had food in his system again the thought of what he ate last nearly made him lose it again.

"Please don't mention that. I already felt horrible enough as it is, I don't need to recall that. " seeing her words had nearly made him sick, Natalie was quickly quiet. After they had finished breakfast, elder grandma then said,

"I know you probably don't want to recall what happened, but I need to know before deciding on wether or not to let you stay. Can you be considered a threat to the village?" Leo paled at her words. But before answering, he thought about everything he knew about werewolves from earth. The problem was sorting through actual myths and movies. Even then he didn't know what to look for for. So after thinking for a few minutes while everyone waited patiently, he finally said,

" I don't honestly know. Based on how things have been for the last month, I would say the only threatening time would be the full moon. This never happened to me before." Elder grandma couldn't see any lies in what he said. If there was only a threat during the full moon, then they could work around it and take precautions. She nodded and said,

"So tell us everything you know about your circumstances then." After that Leo launched into an explanation about werewolves. But he could only tell them about movies he had watched, due to the fact that weren't even werewolves on earth to use for examples. According to him, werewolves would have increased senses and physical capabilities. Some might be able to change at will, but will be forced to change at the full moon. And when they did they would turn into mindless beasts that would slaughter anyone to satisfy their bloodlust. Then he got to the part about a bite transferring the curse.

"YOU MEAN YOU COULD MAKE MORE?!" Jack had shouted out when Leo got to that part. Leo however shook his head.

"Most stories say that it only takes a bite to make another werewolf. But I don't want to risk trying it on someone anytime soon. But it could be that even if I wanted to I couldn't make anymore werewolves, everything I said was only based off of stories. Maybe someday I'll be able to control it, and test it. The only other ways I've heard of is related to bloodlines. By infecting another with my blood, or my children let's say, they might also become werewolves." After hearing Leo's explanation, elder grandma then spoke up,

"If that's the case, then it means you should stay even more. There are many people out there that might want to have powerful slaves, and people that could transfer strength with only a single bite would be ideal for them. And during the full moon they could be used to attack any enemies as well. That prospect would be terrifying." When Leo heard elder grandmas words, he then realized several things.

"There's slavery in this world?!" Everyone looked at Leo in surprise. Elder grandma nodded and said,

"It's one of the reasons I built the village. Mutants that manage to live, are usually enslaved. Some who have beneficial mutations like Jack and Natalie are used for labor, while ones who have mutated looks like Iris or Austin are sometimes used for housekeeping. In cases of mutants with good looks like iris, they might even be in brothels or sent to serve in the bedrooms." After hearing the details about slavery, and that if enslaved what might've happened to Iris; Leo was gripping his hands so hard, blood started dripping to floor. After calming himself, he went back to the original topic.

"So what if then, the day before the full moon I took off. Spent the night in the forests away from the village and you keep everyone here for the night until sunup the next day? Then after waking and getting my bearings, I'll make my way back the next morning?" Everyone nodded at Leo's proposal. There were no neighboring villages he could threaten, and as long as there was game in the forest then he should leave the village alone. After deciding on a plan, everyone was about to leave when elder grandma called out to Leo one last time,

"Leo, you may think the monster inside you is a curse; but in my opinion it's a gift. Remember, the worst monsters in the world are sometime people themselves, and most often it takes another monster to fight back." Leo thought about elder grandma words deeply as he made his way back down to the village.