Full-Moon Night
by Teka Lynn
translated loosely from the Canine

Don't lie so still! Come on and move--
I smell your life. Come howl:
We'll prowl
The forest night with dew-strong smells,
The dank of underbrush, sharp tang of beasts.
Our friends are here! Up--must I nip you?
Reply
Don't lie
So still. That's better now!
I saw your nostrils twitch.
It's not so bad. You hurt? I'll lick you better.
Come run with me. Let's chase
The stoic centaurs, nip a hock
And rock
Their staid star-world.
The grass is wet. Let's run?
Don't shun
My company 'cause I'm a dog.

You're up! Come play with me!
Brother, friend, packmember--alpha!
Wet grass smears along my fur
I show my belly to you, curl my paws.
You tickle. Woof!
Aloof
No more, your tail wags
Lip curls as you scent me.
Roll over, up! My body quivers
As you lick my muzzle
Nuzzle
And say hello.
Don't cry, wolf!
The sad-eyed human I adore
And more
Will never hurt another
Much less me.
He'll rest within you, comforted
And healed, while we
Hunt unicorns!

I smell you, pack!
Plump rat with plushy fur,
Tall stag--I crane my neck,
Hop back a step
Then run under your belly!
That's made you jump!
A spring, kick out with those sharp hooves
And watch me crouch!
Then bunch my hind legs
In a jump
And whump!
Our Moony's out to play,
And lets us know in no uncertain terms
The worms
Won't sleep tonight in their bed of earth.
The full moon calls and stirs the blood--
I want to bark! And next to me
You howl, and next to me the grass bends
As the rat scuds through the leaves
And makes a trail
Of tail,
And next to you the restless deer
Shakes his head.
Prongs brush the ground
Around
Our paws, and with a toss of head
He's off. Let's chase him!

Oh, Moony! Run!
Don't shun
My company. And I tag off behind you,
And the rat slides off into the bushes,
And the deer's white body shines in moonglow,
And you, wolf-packmate, turn and glance
Askance
At the clumsy pup who runs behind you
And along your side, where he belongs.
You lick my face.
Embrace
The change--you're here, I'm here,
We're now!
And how
Can things be better?

And your legs batter the grass
And I crouch low to catch you
And you're so far ahead
And my tongue trails the ground
And our wind ruffles our fur
And our moon lights our path
And our forest calls to us
And our friends dance before us
And our sky wheels above us
And our ground opens before us
And you spin toward me
And your eyes smile at me
And I smell your you-ness
And I roll and roll at your feet
And lick your face and whine
And you nip my muzzle
And I raise my eyes to you
And you don't lash out at me
And our tails wag so hard
And your body presses against me
And we are dog and wolf and wolf and dog
And canine forever

At last
We're past
That distant fear.
Dawn prickles in my nose.
Birds chirp and fidget,
And you yawn.
Long shadows fall from trees
Over long stretches of field,
And we've come so far
From that place of stone and iron
Where you cry
And lie
All trapped within the human soul.
Now whole
For this one night
Don't fight
And hate the two-legged, smooth-skinned one--
I need him too.
For now our long night's done--
Oh, Moony! Smell! The sun!

Written by Teka Lynn
September 28, 2002, 5-5:45 PMish.

All rights to the characters and setting are held by J K Rowling and whoever else holds them, including, but not limited to, Bloomsbury Books, Scholastic Books, and Warner Bros. This fanwork was created solely for fun and has no legal or financial connection to the Harry Potter novels.