2

I took a deep breath and then let it out very slowly. I could feel the power of the moon shifting towards me. Then I opened my eyes and looked straight up at him.

"Let's go, my friend! What do you have for me?" Even though it wasn't possible, I knew he was smiling at me. An image of a 16-year-old girl slowly appeared in my mind's eye. It became clearer and clearer over time until I could clearly see her freckles and her thick eyelashes.

Then new images crystallized. I saw the black-haired girl sitting quietly in her class, doing her homework. All were correct. She adjusted her glasses and sat very still in her seat. The memory blurred and was replaced by a new one.

The girl stood in a circle of teenagers. All werewolves. They pushed her around and laughed at her. Although I couldn't hear them, I had a pretty good idea of what it was about.

The picture changed again. It showed a grassy landscape full of tall grasses and moonflowers. In the middle lay a small black wolf, playfully frolicking in the field. It was the girl in her wolf form. She seemed happy to be so alone. Then the image faded. I stared up at the star-studded sky and thought.

"Shy, creative, smart, hidden. Hm. I have a plan. Last week we had this guy. 18 years old, blond, self-confident. The one who was actually so alone." I sighed.

"Waxing moon. Such a stupid thing, you almost never get to see anything. You know, Who do I mean?" An image of the boy I had in mind appeared in my mind. I smiled. "Exactly him. That's the right one." I closed my eyes and held both hands outstretched in front of me.

A warm, tingly feeling spread through my hands. I then placed my palms together, weaving the bonds between these two werewolves. I opened my eyes and the bright light from my hands flew straight to the starry sky. There it flashed once and stayed as a star. I smiled. Hopefully these two souls would find each other.

They would complement each other perfectly. I didn't know if the two already knew each other or perhaps lived on completely different continents. But the boy, who had seemed to be waiting for his missing half for a long time would now have all the more urge to find her.

And I thought he seemed like someone who would travel to the ends of the world for his soulmate. I could only hope. For the werewolves. Otherwise, the immortal beings would really eventually die out. ||| Last night there weren't any other soul mates I could connect.

And while I was happy because it meant I could just relax in the moonlight longer; I knew what it meant. The fewer companions I could connect, the fewer children would be born. Werewolves would eventually become extinct.

For although these strong beings were immortal, they were not invulnerable. And people made more and more advances in their technology and research. I sat on my balcony and thoughtfully watched the moon set and the sun slowly appear in the east. I had spent the entire evening here and then eventually nodded off.

Now all I had left was those few minutes in the moonlight before I had to get ready for school. I knew that I would fall asleep again, after all I suffered from constant sleep deprivation from staying up at night. However, that didn't bother me. Normal subjects such as math and English were also taught in this school, but the main focus was on the history of werewolves.

From soul mates to hunting behavior. From the most diverse packs to the different pack members. Of course, that was mostly interesting to outsiders, but for someone who'd spent their whole life with werewolves, those hours were just a place to sleep. And the fact that I upset the teachers with that didn't interest me either. Now, of course, the obvious question was why I went to school at all. After all, I was older than most and knew a hundred times as much as they did.

In fact, I had once tried to live in the forest. Far from humans and wolves. After 4 years, however, it got pretty boring and seeing the same animals over and over again, bringing me food or just keeping me company, became exhausting in the long run. So school.

When I thought about it like that, I could really worry about going to school voluntarily. I got up and looked at my watch in the living room. 7:30 a.m. I would be late again.

****

With music in my ears, I walked up the path to the school entrance. I wasn't surprised that there were no more students outside, after all I was over an hour late. I could probably forget the excuse my alarm clock didn't ring.

I was just opening the door when a girl came towards me. And given how rushed and slightly scared she ran out the door, I was sure she was human. Before she could walk past me, I grabbed her arm and held her firmly.

Then I looked into her brown eyes and asked, "What's the matter?" She waved her arms at the gym. "Information event about this pack. And Niklas doesn't have his jacket. He's cold." Only then did I notice the windbreaker she was holding. I sighed and pressed two fingers to the bridge of my nose. "Niklas isn't cold. He's a werewolf. Werewolves don't get cold." I tightened my lips as I watched her digest the information.

I knew Nicholas. He was an idiot and felt like the boss of this school. Unfortunately, nobody came up with the idea of defying him. Everyone was afraid of him. Even his peers. Niklas was tall and strongly built. He also had a good mind and loved to annoy people. The girl looked up at me with wide eyes. "Wha-what am I going to do now?" I took the jacket from her hand.

"What do you think if I deliver the jacket to Niklas and you go back to your friends in the hall?" I looked at her encouragingly.

She hesitantly began to nod. Without another word she ran away. I took a deep breath and then made my way to the gym. The boy could experience something.