Werewolves have always been written off as a mythical beast in folklore and movies, but what if deep in the woods they do exist? The official term is lycanthropy, which is the transformation of a person to a wolf or other animals. Origins of lycanthropy in tales begin in Greek mythology, Nordic folklore and of course, "Twilight."
The first time I heard about werewolves was when I was eight years old and had just heard of "Twilight." I think we all know about Jacob, the hot werewolf who always has his shirt off. My focus wasn't on his abs, but more on the deeper meaning of his animal-shifting abilities.
As I thought about it more, I picked up my own theory of werewolves and have stood behind it for many years now. The beginning of werewolves started in approximately the sixteenth century in Europe. The first werewolf was created on a full moon when a man and a woman were bitten by a wolf in the dark forest. On the next full moon, they shifted into a wolf for one night but kept it a secret from their village. The couple later had children that all got the wolf gene and were able to shift like their parents. Throughout generations, werewolves have evolved and gained more abilities like super strength, heightened senses and shifting at any time. With these passing generations, werewolves have grown and spread across the world.
As werewolves spread, they create groups called packs that stick together and act as a community. Packs stay in secluded territories and keep away from the public eye. From past events, like the witch hunts, these packs have been very careful not to reveal their true selves. It's been a very important law that all werewolves should protect their identity and stay away from normal humans.
The leader of a pack is called the Alpha. Alpha is a ranking passed down through blood and can't be changed. The second rank is Beta, third is Gamma and the rest are normal pack members. The alpha's partner is Luna. The bottom of the rank is Omega, and they are seen as the weakest. Packs also have warriors to protect their borders and hunters to gather food. All of these different positions are essential to keeping a good pack running.
Another part of the werewolf world that I find intriguing is mates. A mate is a werewolf's partner picked from a higher being that is made perfectly for them. Think of it as soulmates. This person is someone you can't live without or choose. They have a special bond that cannot be broken or else they both die.
Mates can be human, so maybe one of you lucky readers will find your own Jacob Black to have a werewolf baby with.
Werewolves are not seen as real creatures but truthfully, they have just been in hiding from us humans. If you can look past the image that society has created about werewolves, then you can see the possibility that these people exist. Maybe someday in the future, we can all learn to accept one another and live in harmony.
Who knows, there might be a werewolf reading this right now.
