FSE

Furry search engine

formerly SoFurry search engine

Sylvan usually felt safe under the moonlight.

They had fond memories of walking under the vigilant full moon and being happy about it, and probably some of those feelings had to do with them being a Sylveon, but it was something they'd always enjoyed. Whether it was for a short walk or a good old all-night reconnaissance, they were not scared of the night as long as the big pale sphere was there to show them the way.

At least, that's how it had been until then.

Sylvan had a bad feeling tonight. They couldn't place their finger on what it was exactly, but they've been feeling uneasy for a while now. At first, they'd thought there was somebody following them, but that made no sense. The Sylveon was stealthy enough that nobody could trace them. They've been doing it for ages now.

Perhaps it was the general vibe of the month. Perhaps there was something else. Sylvan couldn't know, and they didn't like not knowing. They turned several times in their walk, trying to make sure nobody was behind him. At some point, the leaves of a particularly large bush seemed to rustle, but Sylvan blamed it on the gentle wind. The only thing that didn't seem to match that theory was the fact that there was no wind, gentle or not, blowing that night.

Maybe it'd be safer to return home. Just this once.

They turned around and began walking a bit faster towards the edge of the forest, where their home was. As they walked past the bush, their body tensed for a few seconds, waiting for whatever that was hidden there to reveal itself. It didn't happen, so Sylvan kept walking.

Just when they were beginning to think their mind had been playing tricks with them, right when they were already smiling with embarrassment at the thought of having been scared by some kind of stray animal, Sylvan heard some noises behind them. They tried to turn around, but it was too late by then - an immense pressure was applied on their back and they fell to the ground, as the thing that had pounced on them kept them pinned to the ground.

"W-what...!" was all the Sylveon could say, squirming. Powerful paws were keeping them from moving too much and the weight on top of his body was unbearable. It must have been something really big and strong, Sylvan thought, in order to keep them down so easily.

After struggling for a few seconds, the Sylveon managed to turn his head and glance at their captor.

He was a wolf. But not any kind of wolf. His long black fur and feral expression showed he was not fully on control of himself and he was definitely bigger than any other wolf Sylvan had come across. The moonlight gave them the right answer - right, that wasn't a normal wolf, but a werewolf. However, the realization didn't bring Sylvan any closer to escape.

"Let me go!" he shouted in vain.

The werewolf growled and then let out a long, piercing howl. Sylvan noticed then that his big yellow eyes were glowing in the dark. How could they not have seen them glowing from behind that bush when they were so striking? The Sylveon squirmed, but this time with a bit less strength.

They were beginning to feel... weird. And the feeling only grew stronger the more he stared into those glowing eyes. There was a mischievous grin on the wolf's face, as if he knew exactly what he was doing. The Sylveon wondered if that was true. As far as they knew, werewolves tended to be guided by their most basic impulses, such as hunting.

Sylvan tried to complain again. If there was some intelligence behind that gaze, perhaps he could convince him of letting them go. But then again, why would the wolf do that? That was what hunting was about.

And Sylvan was prey.

The thought hit his mind so hard that it almost managed to black out every other single idea in his head. Even the panic seemed to recede momentarily. Another glance at those big yellow eyes and the thought came again, echoing like a drum in an empty room.

Prey.

Sylvan stopped squirming. There was no reason to. There was nothing they could do. Prey were at the mercy of their hunters. Prey like them could only wait and see what their hunters would do. The big werewolf licked one of his fangs and Sylvan shivered.

It was going to be a long night until dawn.