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Tall grass bowed beneath his power. His massive claws churned the earth with every stride. His breath, thick and moist, broke into the chilly air. He was a silver panther on the hunt. A growl formed deep within his throat and ripped its way out to the night. Sneering, he lowered himself down into the foliage. His golden eyes were seeking his mark; a lone deer.

The helpless animal didn’t suspect a thing. He had his tender neck down, exposed, and was grazing from the same grass his killer resided. The panther advanced cautiously, his gaze never leaving the stag. He crouched down even further to the grass and suddenly lunged forward. His claws were ready and aimed at the neck of his prey. The deer, instead of darting off like most others of his kind would, froze. His vision became cloudy, the pain in his neck searing, and he felt his legs buckle out from under him as a powerful form came down upon him. The buck was no longer of this world, and the shimmering silver panther had his meal for the week.

The old door creaked in protest as he entered his dwelling. The floors were dirty and the walls bear. On the makeshift table in one corner sat dozens of cleaned pelts that waited for a buyer. The man closed his door and walked over to the lone window. He left it open before he left so the room had a chance to remove the foul smell of rotting flesh. After eying the outside world, he promptly closed and locked the privacy-offending window. On the floor underneath the window lay an old wooden chest. In it, last night’s kill that still needed to be salted and dried. He set his newly acquired cloak next to the skins and pushed back the hood of his current one to reveal shimmering, silver hair.

It flowed out of the top of his cloak to rest gently on the back of his strong shoulders. He removed the remainder of the thick cloth and placed it on one of the chairs that could no longer support the weight of a human, or not so human, body. He tore off the soiled cloth that he wore to the towns and felt the sudden urge for a very long cleaning in the stream just off the path to his house. The boots quickly followed and soon he was out the door heading for said brook.

The bluish hue the nearly clear water gave off was almost unearthly. At night, the flowing water would glow brilliantly in the moonlight. However, the silver man hardly ever saw it for all its glory. For when he is exposed to the wondrous moonlight, he changes into a being equally as stunning. Moreover, when he was in such a state, all thoughts of rational died with its coming. Thus, even if he was allowed such a sight, he thought nothing of it whatsoever.

He silently stepped up to the edge of the waters and looked at his topless reflection. The disgusting pants of disguise were still on in case anyone happened to walk by. He undid the copper button and slipped out of them with a superior ease. Still staring at his ruffled reflection, he discovered new scars that formed along his belly. He gritted his teeth and snorted. “Dammed deer.” The antlers of that stupid beast had stabbed him when he seized its neck. He ran cool fingertips over the darkened wound and lowered himself into the even cooler waters.

He took his time washing. Every movement he made was slowed down by a laziness that only he could master. It was nearing dark before he finally finished and climbed out onto the bank. He returned his lower half to the terrible bottoms and started back on his way to his house. The shadows were moving quickly. Much quicker than he had hoped they would. He paused, gazing up into the night sky. The stars were out, clouds, and there! The moon! “Damn!” He cursed. “Not tonight!” He rushed back down the road and reached his hands up to his ears. Too late. His posing human ears had disappeared and all sound ceased. It felt like hot fire, the transformation. But he would be stronger than that. He already had his meal and refused to succumb to the moon. As suddenly as the world went silent, it became loud once more. The ears he now wore were not that of a human, but of a cat. A panther, to be exact. He swore deeply, flung the old door open, and threw himself inside. The moonlight could not reach him if he was inside. Once on the floor, he moved to the door and pushed it until he heard the familiar click of the latch locking in place. The fire on his body was gone quickly only to be replaced by another different burning sensation on his stomach. When he hit the floor, he discovered, he reopened his healing wound. The hot blood flowed freely from the deep gash. He sat up and scooted against the wall, holding his side in a protective manner. Leaning his silver, now cat-eared, head on the wall, he closed his eyes and cursed the world for all his misfortune.



The kimono-bearing figure had been collecting herbs and plants of all kinds for several medicines that he had been developing. As it neared dusk, he had a basket full of spices, herbs, plants, and flora. He walked down a path thought to lead to back to the village, but he was very mistaken. A shout was heard when the moonlight flitted over the land and out of the corner of a bright greens eye, he saw a cat-eared, half naked man run and fall into a house. He hurried over to the shack and quickly tried to pry it open. Somebody was hurt and could get help.



The demon-man was startled as he heard frantic knocking at his door. The handle jittered up and down and threatened to fall off. Had he been unwounded, he could have roared at the intruding person to scare them off. However, with the hysterical beating of the door and anxious cries of “Are you injured?” and “Do you need help?” he thought better of it and answered the worried person.
“
I-" He stopped. The words would not form in his mouth. What was happening? He thought. He tried again. “…..” Nothing this time.

The silence from the other side of the door became too much to tolerate. The highly upset boy at the door lifted a foot to the door and kicked with all of his strength. The door swung open, missing the sitting man’s extended, bare foot by inches. The brown haired, green-eyed boy, still holding his basket of herbs, looked down as the man made a small whimper. “Oh….” He brought a slender, unscathed hand to his mouth and gasped at the sight before his eyes. “Umm… my name is… no. Wait. Umm…. you are…. err…uhh.”

The cat-eared man looked up. He had been following this man just that afternoon. He recognized him immediately. The brown hair was still in a short, loose ponytail and he still wore that incredibly bland kimono. “I will be alright. Just let this bleed out.” He told the man, motioning to his side. He cringed at the movement. “You were going to say your name…?” He continued.

“…Oh, yes. I am Sashimi Yuki. Umm… what is your name, One with ears?”

“Wha-?” He reached a hand up to caress the furry ears of his near-transformation. His eyes grew wide when he realized this man has seen him like this. Yet, he could not act suspicious. The townsfolk would have him killed even before he could blink twice. “Tsukiyo.” He said quietly, looking away from the other man’s piercing gaze.

“Well then, umm… Tsukiyo-san. You need to let me patch that up for you. You will surely bleed to death otherwise.” He said, now calm. He reached into the basket, which sat on the floor, and dug around before grabbing a roll of fresh cloth. He unraveled a strip and slowly, cautiously, pressed it to Tsukiyo’s stomach. He reached around his back and doubled the cloth over. Once, twice, three times. Before the cloth ran out completely, he tied it to itself and leaned back on the floor to inspect his work. “There you are.” He smiled at the wounded man, but soon his grin disappeared and then a frown replaced it. “So, how did that come to be?” The he added. “…Tsukiyo-san.”

“I was stabbed.”

“By what?” Yuki looked at the wrappings again. “It looked very deep from what I saw…”

“A deer.” Why was he telling the truth? Could he not lie to this man? He growled at himself, which cased the other to back away slightly, eyes wide. “Oh, forgive me. I am angry at myself, not you.” What? What was he saying? Of course he was angry with this man! He intruded in on his life. How dare he do such a rude thing! “Ne, Yuki-kun…”

“Hmmm?”

“Might you be a healer?”

“Uh, yes, well… almost.” He stumbled over his words at the sudden question.

“Almost?” He pushed. He needed information on this person. If had had any connections with the higher-ups, he had to go missing, and soon.

“I am in training. I’ve been collecting things to make new medicines. My grandmother is teaching me.” He smiled at the mention of her.

“Who is your grandmother, Yuki-kun?” Good, more information.

“You don’t know?” He asked in disbelief. “Do you not leave this place often?”

“Not really…” Another truth. He really should get rid of that habit.

“She is the Elder, of course!” He beamed. “Oh! You!” He said abruptly. “Are you the man who carried my grandmother’s things to her quarters for her? You’ve got to be! You look precisely as she described! Oh how fortunate am I!” He was grinning widely, displaying white teeth.

Tsukiyo’s ears went down and he growled very deeply in his throat, creating a low, ominous sound. It rumbled from his chest like thunder and struck Yuki. He stopped his useless ramblings instantly and backed away from the large man. Tsukiyo attempted to stand, pressing all of his weight on the wall. At halfway up, his legs gave out from under him and he started to topple over. His head was light from blood loss and he blacked out.

Tsukiyo saw the already intense green color of Yuki’s eyes grow brighter. He smiled widely and ran out into the clearing, arms spread. A gust of wind whispered passed the two in a swirling heap of air and leaves. Tsukiyo called after him. “Ne, Yuki-kun?”

Yuki spun around on his heels. “Yes?” He walked closer to the other man, trying to look into his eyes, but was not able to. “Tsukiyo-san…?” He questioned at the silence of the other.

“Might you know the time? The sun looks low in the sky. How long was I asleep?”

“Umm, right. It is probably four or five, and you slept for a while. You are injured, so I don’t blame you.” He smiled and turned back to stare at the looming evergreen in awe. It was much taller than the other trees of the forest. From where it stood proud, it seemed to be the leader of the other plants in the great forest.

“Okay,” Tsukiyo said, his voice shaky. “We should get going, don’t you agree?” He took a step backwards and shifted his warily gaze back at the sky. The ball of bright flames seemed to speed up with every second. It dove behind a mass of clouds and disappeared under the horizon. “Damn it!” He cursed, running over to Yuki as fast as his heavily wounded side would allow. He slammed into the frail man with much force, knocking them both to the ground and partly under the evergreen’s shadow.

Once on the ground, Tsukiyo looked up into the sky. The moon was determined to change him tonight. It had overpowered the sun so easily just then. It took only mere minutes, rather than the hour or so as it usually does. The tip of the shining object peaked over the hills, the silver light hitting the back and tops of the trees. Then, the pain hit him. A deep internal twisting that held no mercy for feeling. He grabbed roughly at his chest and fell from his position on his knees to the hard, unforgiving ground.

Yuki crawled over to the silver haired man. His hair perfectly mimicked the color of the glistening moonlight and it shined like the moon itself. “Tsu-Tsu...” He froze. Tsukiyo was writhing in one heap on the ground and cried out in such horrid pain. Yuki was too stunned to move. He watched his newfound friend scream and twitch on the grassy earth, and knew he could do nothing to prevent his torment. Yuki inched closer and reached out to touch him on the shoulder. His clothed skin was searing to the touch. As Yuki started to retreat his arm, boiling fingers wrapped roughly around his slender wrist.

Tsukiyo gasped and held his head up to look over at Yuki with obvious difficulty. “N-no. Move me…” He clenched his teeth and shut his eyes tightly as another fresh wave of pain ran throughout his being. “…in the shadows…. Hurry!” He let free a shout of anguish and allowed his head to hit the ground once more.

Yuki stood up and to a firm hold of the man’s arms. He lifted him up as best he could and took a step towards the shadow of the great tree. Tsukiyo’s feet dug into the ground and across the dirt creating little ruts in the previously smooth hills. Just as Yuki reached the start of the shadow, the silver man’s knees buckled and he fell to the ground. “Tsukiyo!” Yuki yelled. He grasped the man’s arms again and pulled him back up carefully, wary of his still-open injury. The burning skin’s heat went straight through the shirt he was wearing and seeped into Yuki exposed chest. Just a few more feet, Yuki thought. He pulled on Tsukiyo one last time and gently sat both of them on ground.

Yuki positioned himself over the other man’s hips and ripped open his shirt. He placed one hand on Tsukiyo’s chest and another under his nose. His breathing was irregular and unsteady. “Damn it!” Yuki made to get up and see if he could find an herb or some sort of plant to use to help but was held still by a pair of strong arms.

“Calm down.” Tsukiyo said in a horse whisper. Yuki snapped his head back to the man’s face. He still looked as if he was in pain, but the smile on his lips stored all of Yuki’s worries to the back of his head for later use. “I’m alright, thanks to you…” He turned and looked at the grass around his head. “That is twice now, isn’t it?” Yuki bit his bottom lip and nodded. Tsukiyo noticed the nervous habit out of the corner of his eye and looked to Yuki “…hmm… what’s wrong with you? You look like you are about to cry…”

“You… what happened to you?” Yuki sobbed. He was indeed crying. All of the different emotions he was getting from the other man confused his already disheveled ones. Hot tears spilled from green eyes onto his face only to drip off his chin and land on Tsukiyo’s stomach.

Tsukiyo furrowed his brow, his cat ears went flat against his head, and he sat up. “Something is different.” He said suddenly. Yuki clung to him because he did not get a chance to get up before the unexpected movement.

“Tsukiyo-san?” Yuki questioned.

“Get off. I need to check something.” Yuki complied and sat in the ground a little ways from where Tsukiyo was. The disgruntled man was facing Yuki and sitting up on his knees, but then he turned to look over his shoulder. “s**t.” He sat back down on the ground and curled up in a ball. He had his knees tucked in, and his face buried in his hands. Yuki worriedly looked up. Something else silver, besides Tsukiyo’s hair and ears, caught his eye.

“You have a tail?”