#sry for the inconclusive ending i just wanted to get something out lol

[dandunn]

If your still taking prompts, how about werewolf Jigen or Zenigata or merman Lupin

Tw: small animal death, blood

The worst part of being a monster isn't the pain and terror of transformation. It isn't the claws and teeth and itchy flea-bitten fur.

It isn't even the constant hunger gnawing like a rat scraping its long teeth against the stomach lining.

It's loneliness.

It's losing what little friends you had.

It's the cold, the rain, the bitter ruffle of cold wind through shaggy black fur. It's the lack of a safe shelter for the night. It's being stuck between here and there, without even the option of a friendly chat with a stranger.

Anyone who glances at you is either fixed in place with terror, or they run. In (thankfully) rare cases they become violent and try to fight you. 

Jigen thought that becoming a wolf meant the usual; changing from man to beast under the full moon every month like clockwork. That once he transformed he would eventually change back into his human skin.

But then he didn't shift back. Either it was permanent or he could change back at will and just didn't know how.

Sometimes he wonders which is worse. At least if it's permanent it means that he'll have to get used to the idea one way or another. But the faint hope that he could be human again…

It's enough to drive an old dog completely insane.

Jigen noses the lid off of a trash can and tips it over, snapping up scraps of whatever looks half-edible. It's putrid, but he's desperate -  can feel his ribs poking through his skin and ragged pelt. And it's the only way he can survive without resorting to killing. 

Even though the hunger never stops and he knows only something the size of a human would be enough to leave him fully sated. Frequently the thought passes through his mind of pulling down one of the sorry SOBs that kick him, scream at him and call the cops (or animal control) on him. If they attacked first he wouldn't even have to feel bad about it. But he can't. After all he was human too, not long ago. Eating a human would be crossing a line he wouldn't be able to come back from. 

Something small moves through the litter and detritus, tiny claws scraping against asphalt.

One movement of Jigen's head and the rat is in his jaws, squeaking a death knell as his teeth bite down on its spine.

Bones crunch and crack. Warm blood and juices drip down Jigen's gums and a purring growl of pleasure hums a vibrato through his chest. It's the best thing he's tasted in days, hot and fresh food…

And it's a fucking dirty rodent.

He spits out the sharp claws and tail, the taste of blood only stirring his hunger further.

How long?

How long is it going to be before it gets too much? Before I give in to it and kill someone? It's not like there's any deer loping by.

The best he can hope for is maybe booking it and making a beeline for the country where there's wild game, and probably meeting his end at the end of a hunter's gun as some kind of trophy. 

That would be a hell of an end, stuffed and mounted on some redneck's wall.

These past few nights though, misery and fear of being seen have kept him hunkered unmoving in the shadows of alleyways and underpasses. That and hunger. It's easier to preserve energy if you don't move.

His belly full of garbage and fresh rat, Jigen turns in a circle and hunkers down in a corner, hoping no curious eyes will look past the trash cans to see the enormous beast curled up there.

…

Then he awakens, ears and nose furiously working together as he senses someone approaching. He can smell cigarettes and cheap alcohol, instant noodles and wet fur. An odd combination of smells. He starts to growl, the sound of an animal who doesn't want to bite but will, given half the chance.

Another wolf stands at the mouth of the alleyway, brown fur and a long bushy tail standing up in the air.

There's… more like me?

Jigen stops growling and the other wolf regards him with a long-lashed golden brown eye. "Come with me." He gruffs, half turning away when he stops again. Jigen isn't exactly raring to follow the stranger.

The other wolf's eyes glance towards the pile of rat entrails on the ground. "There will be better things to eat, I promise."

Whining, Jigen uncurls his cold, battered body and limps off after the other wolf.

(To be continued?)