Summer nights weren't usually cold, but this one was a cold and still night.
The only sound to be heard for miles of the deep dark woods was the slow calm wind rippling through the leaves on the trees, moving the dead blades that had fallen to the earth.
Not even the birds and beasts of the night cried out as they would often do. It seemed even they knew that a far superior being dwelled amidst them that night.
The moon was high and bright in the sky, and although the thickness of the forest of trees made it difficult for its great light to penetrate the darkness of the woods, some leaves had gaps, and through those gaps, the light from the moon could extend.
In a corner of the dark woods, was a small lake. A place where the moon could stretch its precious light marvelously throughout the length of the body of water. For the tall trees could not hide the lake from the eyes of the moon, and their hands could not extend over the lake to cast their endless shadows of darkness upon it.
Thus, the small lake shimmered underneath the beauty of the moonlight, for it was the only place in the forest where the moon could brilliantly rest without any form of hindrance. Even the pebbles under the water basked in the brilliance of the moonlight, dazzling in their various shapes and colors.
It was a beautiful lake.
However, something marred the beauty of the lake.
Long white hair swirling in the water, face pressed upon a rock that had half been buried into the lake, she lay there.
Lifeless.
For life had been stolen from her.
Or so she thought.
"Heh!!" Her lashes flew open, violet eyes dilating as her lungs vehemently pulled in air for they had long been without it.
She willed to move but her body rejected her will. Other than her blinking eyelids and her quivering lips, not a single muscle could move in the manner she wanted. Her whole body was numb.
Her eyes being one of the only parts of her body that functioned at will, moved around as hot shaky breaths escaped her quivering lips.
Again, she tried to move but her body would not budge. She wanted to move… Or rather, she needed to move.
So she tried again, but it was the same result.
'Twas at that moment, her eyes caught the wavy reflection of the moon upon the lake and curiosity made her lift her eyes to see the moon itself.
It had never looked bigger, nor had it ever seemed more enchanting. So enchanting that she could almost hear it whispering to her.
It was a full bright moon that was not shielded by any cloud, and as she stared longer, like the feeling a woman got from finally taking off her corset after a long day, the instant her eyes met the big bright moon, it was as though a huge boulder was lifted from within her body.
Her body which had gone numb, began to move. Her neck, her hands, and her legs. They all moved according to her will this time.
With water dripping from every part of her body, her left hand pressed upon the left side of her stomach, and when she felt no pain there, her right hand also pressed upon the same spot, frantically tearing at the corset around her waist.
And when she tore it off, she blinked back a drop of water that fell from her white lashes into her eyes. She lifted the hem of her garment. With heavy and shaky breath, both her hands ran over her flat stomach over and over again searching, trying to find what she was certain was supposed to be there, but rather than the dent caused by an two edged-sword, all that she saw on her stomach were the lines created by her now loosened corset, and the mud from her fingers.
Her lashes fluttered, violet eyes dilating, "I-It can not be." She stuttered. "H-how—Ahhhh!" A forceful scream tore out of her lips as she felt a sudden excruciating pain right at the center of her back. From the tip of her spine down to the bottom.
Instantly, her hands reached for her back, but before she could touch herself, another sharp pain coursed through her body, causing her to scream yet again, forcing her to rise to her knees.
"Garghhhh!" She groaned in pain. She was in no position to think but it felt as though her back was elongating. "Garghhhh!!" Her screams grew even louder as her hands moved out of the water in search of solid ground to hold onto. And when she found solid earth, her fingers dug into the sand trying to grip it, as if to pass her pain to the ground.
"Arghhhhh!!" Hot tears burst out of her eyes.
From the clothes that covered her body to the sandals on her feet, everything ripped off her body, leaving her naked and screaming.
Her muscles stretched and tripled in size. Her bones were being rearranged inside her. Her scream of pain was quickly mixed with screams of horror and fear as she watched the tiny hairs on her flesh multiply until she could see no more skin. All she saw now was white fur.
Her nails darkened and their length and size tripled and thickened. "Grghhhhh!!" Even her voice had changed. She coughed and coughed, her hands reaching for her neck, clawing at her throat as though it would cause her voice to return, but it remained the same.
She could hear herself growling like a beast.
Just as the excruciating pain had come without warning, it had also stopped suddenly. Her breathing was heavy and her mind was in disbelief as she stared at her now furry hands.
"No." She growled the word and shook her head vehemently. Her eyes caught a glimpse of the moon upon the lake and she crawled towards the lake. "No." She repeated, trying to give herself some hope before looking at her reflection in the water.
With her hands tightly clenching the ground, she moved her head closer and her reflection appeared upon the surface of the water.
Her mouth was elongated, her ears were like that of a beast… She could not recognize the reflection. In and out she breathed, louder and louder her breathing became the longer she stared at the face of the water until she could no longer hold it in.
"GrAhhhhhh!!!" She screamed.
For Lydia, the witch had now become Lydia the beast…
The werewolf.
And he made her this way. "Curse you! Curse you, Cassius!! Garghhhh!!"