--Wolf--

The wolf, wary of the daily façade, kicks off his sheep’s costume. Bewildered, and oddly plagued by emotion, he howls his love song to the full moon.

Cocking his head back he takes in a breath, and the wolf roared in a howl which manifested from his very emotions; a taunt of triumph to the creatures of the night, “She loves me! Never have I felt so happy! For her love, I will gladly starve to death. I would never harm her nor her kin. I am more then I was just yesterday. For her, I live. For her, I do willingly die.”

Warm tears caress the cool night’s breeze as this love stricken wolf dives further into his heart. Heaving a sigh of happiness he speaks once more to himself, “She loves me. Thank you lord for your sunlight. I have been forgiven for my past deceit. Thank you lord for my joy. She told me she loves me! I give myself to her completely. I am grateful. Lord do you hear me?” His nostrils fill with the now, bitter cold air and fills his lungs to their capacity. He howls with all his might, the words, ‘I am grateful!’ –though he spoke no such words—could be heart through this particular howl. Smiling inside as he starts off the cliff's edge. He joyously whispers shaking his head in wonderment, “She said she loves me. “

The wold proceeded slowly, taking in the magnitude of this night’s beauty. At times he would stare into the star’s light, and every time he did a voice would seem to speak to him…The wolf produced a grave expression as sadness filled his eyes with each word this unseen entity spoke.

“It’s not you she loves…She doesn’t know you, and never will…you are a damned soul, a fallen angel, worthless, you…my friend…are nothing more than a disease,” uttered the unseen voice.

The wolf would seem to be in a quarrel with himself, his conscious beating the love stricken wolf’s self esteem with each word. Gathering his thoughts he tries to fight back, though this would be in vain, “Yes, but can’t true love over come—“

“Yes, but your love is not truthful,” As the voice so rudely interrupted.

“Yes, but she knows my heart—“

Taking command of the conversation once more, raping the wolf’s thoughts, the voice retorts, “She could never believe you now…living a lie, you don’t exist in her mind, you are a sheep, and nothing more.” Just at that moment the wolf thinks of the façade, his heart filled with pain, the wolf nearly puts it on once more. “You see? You are weak, you are nothing…”

The wolf’s head hung low, he whispers with a voice consumed in agony, “I would never harm her…”

“You already have, her heart sings for a deception…Again, your words are in vain. Stop wasting your time, the cliff is so close, take a walk...will you?"

“My love is pure, I am devoted,” Stated the wolf, his voice reeked with pride.

“Your love was, and still is, tainted with devious intentions. You are her plague….”

A single tear falls down the wolf’s face. He refuses to embrace this unseen foe’s lies. Am I not worthy of forgiveness for love’s sake?”

“No, you were predestined to be ill fated.”

“I don’t care! I love her!” The wolf’s voice hinted at his desperation. A mere few minutes ago his mind was gathered, now broken and unstable. This rape of his mind was caused by a single thing, a single foe, a single voice…ironically enough the voice was his very conscious.

“Then you would have her embrace the damned?”

“I will sacrifice my love and leave this place, I do not want harm to come to her.”

As the wolf’s conscious spoke its voice changed, now seemingly demonic, “No matter, with that, she will mourn true love and suffer with deadly anguish. She will succumb and die…”

The wolf stops in his tracks, stunned and aching at the thought of his love’s untimely demise. Looking up to the vast sea of stays he desperately fills his lungs with the bittersweet air and raucously howls, “Why hast thou forsaken me? You despise me so? Even my love brings suffering to the innocent?” This frantic plea to the gods may, or may not, have been heard. Again he cries, “She is pure! Spare her from despair!” The wolf quickly changes directions, now heading towards the foothills. As he ran with great haste he spoke to his conscious once again in a final taunt, “I will not let this stand, I will run to her and confess. I will beg for her forgiveness.”

In the distance past the foothill, a farmer hears the howling of a wolf. Angered he grabs his shotgun. Loading it and taking aim at the running wolf, he fires. Those legendary slugs piercing through the wolf’s rib cage, smearing the grassland with his blood. The conscious of the wolf laughs, now able to move to a new entity, most likely the very sheep the wolf loved.