The Climb

The cool night air was a refreshing change from the humid climate that the people of Toronto had been experiencing the past several weeks. Since it was the middle of the night, not even a soul was prowling around. The only sounds were the crickets, chirping to their own tune.
A lone wolf followed a narrow path through the dense wood, lit by a single ray of silver light by the new moon. Slinking along, nothing more than a shadow, the wolf made it to his destination, a quick running stream at the end of the path. He lowered his head and hurriedly lapped up the cold rushing water.

He was still drinking when a twig snapped near him, cracking like a gunshot in the quiet of the night. Abandoning the stream, the wolf snapped his head in the direction of the sound.
It was a small child. He was cowering by a berry bush. One hand wrapped around the paw of a stuffed teddy. A thumb of the other jammed into his mouth.
The wolf was taken aback by the sudden appearance of the boy. He was so sure he had been alone. As he stood rooted to the spot, the child edged closer to the wolf until they were just inches apart. Taking his thumb from this mouth, he reached his hand out to the wolfs snout.
At first the child’s touch was uncertain and cautious but swelling with courage, his touch became more certain and direct. Whimpering, he grabbed hold of the wolfs neck, embracing him in a hug.
“I want my mommy.” the child whispered, tears soaking the neck of the wolfs sleek coat.
The wolf snapped out of his reverie at these words.
Alex couldn’t remember quite how long it had been since he had actually been in the vicinity of humans. Nor how long it had been since he had made contact with them.
The truth was Alex wasn’t an ordinary wolf. He was in fact a werewolf. He had been attacked five years ago on his morning jog through these very woods by a blood thirsty werewolf. The first time he had changed, he decided it would be best for his family if he continued his life as a wolf.
And now a child needed his help. Normally Alex strayed away from humans, like a mouse would from a cat.
With the child’s arms still clinging to his throat, he scanned the area, his sharpened senses picking up everything no normal wolf nor human could sense.
About a hundred yards ahead, he sensed a car crash just at the edge of the wood.
Unable to offer kind words in wolf form, Alex snatched the child’s hoodie by his massive jaws, like he would a cub and flew through the woods like a bullet, to where he sensed the crashed car.
In no time Alex reached the edge of the wood, where a scarlet car had crashed into a rather huge oak. Alex could see a woman behind the wheel of the car. Although her face was hidden behind the air bag and her face obscured under her thick head of golden curls, he smelled blood. Alex figured the child must have somehow escaped the wreck and ran into the woods, scared and alone he probably thought he might find someone to help.

“Is mommy going to be okay?” The child cried out
Alex knew the woman was dead before even seeing her. Feeling a surge of emotion he could only best describe as the need to protect the child as his own, he readjusted his grip on the child’s hoodie and took off across the street, and down the road.
Every fiber in his body was telling him to stay out of it. That this wasn’t a good idea. But he ignored it and kept on racing towards the nearest hospital.
Even though the child was unharmed, save for a scratch above his eyebrow, Alex knew the child would be in more than good hands at a hospital. The child was old enough to sputter out what had happened. The car would eventually be found, the woman identified along with the child. It would be alright.
The child bounced lightly with Alex’s bounding movements. To the werewolf, the boy felt like a feather. To his surprise, despite being in the grasp of a large wolf, and running faster than any vehicle, the child remained silent and rather calm. The only sound he made was his heavy breathing and random sniffles.

Soon enough they were in sight of the local hospital.
Breathing a sigh of relief, which came out as a snort, Alex bounded to the emergency entrance. The entrance appeared to be oddly deserted, but he knew inside doctors and nurses would be busy at work. There would be people who would take care of the child.
Alex set the child lightly on his two feet and nudged him into the doors. The wolf slunk back into the shadows of a nearby bush. The child, upon being nudged, had stumbled backward, activating the doors to be open.
Surprised, the child turned and began walking cautiously into the hospital, his teddy clung tightly to his chest. No sooner did he take another step that a nurse came bustling out scooping the child into her arms, glancing around the empty parking lot for his mother. Shaking her head she turned, muttering about irresponsible parents.

Alex sighed in relief and turned around to head back to the wood. But someone was standing, or rather floating, in his way. It was the ghost of the mother of the child, the woman who had killed herself, crashing into the tree.

“I saw what you did for Tanner.” the ghostly presence said, “Thank you.”
For the second time that night, Alex was rooted to the spot in utter shock. Although he might not have been as surprised to see a ghost, as he was a legendary being himself, he couldn’t help but gawk at the woman. Recognition flooded through Alex as he realized he knew who the woman was.

“I’ve missed you so much Alex.” The woman said, tears welling in her transparent eyes “I want you to know I now understand why you left us all those years ago. Everyone thought you were up and left.”
Alex couldn’t believe his darling wife was standing before him, the injuries of the car accident no longer present on her beautiful face.
“They said I was able to do something for you in return. Because of this curse that was bestowed upon you and because you saved your son, even though you didn’t recognize him. I have been given the power to lift your curse. You will be taken back to the day when you were attacked. You will have the foresight to know what is coming and dodge the beast who cursed you.” Mary said. “Thank you my darling.”
With that the ghost of Mary, Alex’s wife and mother of their child, faded into nothing.

Still a bit shocked at the scene which just occurred, Alex sat on the grass still gazing at the nothingness in which his wife stood just moments ago.

But there's a voice inside my head sayin' you'll never reach it.

More than anything he wanted to be with the family he was so rudely aborted from. He wanted to hold his wife the way he used to. He wanted to have seen his little boy grow up and be the dad he had once dreamed of being. Before he could start debating whether or not what he had just witnessed was a delusion or reality, the world went black and started to spin.

Alex’s sneakers pounded the well worn path as he ran through the woods towards an all familiar stream. However, before he even came into sight of the stream, red flags popped up in his head, screaming for him to turn back. Always having been one to follow his gut instincts, Alex turned around and headed back to his house without another thought. Glancing at his watch he decided it was just as well. Mary’s pancakes would be ready by now.
Mary was expecting a baby boy. She would be due within the month. Words could not describe how excited Alex was to become a father. The child would be named Tanner, after Mary’s own father. They had so many plans for their future. So many hopes and dreams. Alex has his entire life ahead of him with his family. He couldn’t wait for what the future would bring.