Elpin's blood pounded within his ears as his entire body wracked with painful spasms, the newly formed beast within clawing its way out forcefully under the full moon's gaze. The faint cackling of a woman was in the distance as he fell to his knees, bones popping and reforming, his teeth elongating into terrifying fangs, and fur sprouting along his new form. Elpin's body was tense as the transformation slowly took its toll, his mind seared away until only the wolf remained in control.

His large head reared back as a bone-chilling howl escaped his maw, his breath visible in the night sky. The faint scent of prey caught the wolf's attention as an unnatural wind wafted towards him, his piercing grey eyes looking in the direction of the village. There was no hesitation as his new form bounded through the trees, somewhat shaking the ground beneath him as his clawed hands pounded at the dirt. His large, hulking body burst through the brush looking every bit as a nightmare that men told around the fires before a battle.

A bloodshed unlike any other fell upon the village the moment he stepped foot in it, his claws ripping through the villagers and livestock's flesh as natural as taking a breath. Blood, guts and other viscera littered the grassy ground as fires had been ignited to try and chase him off to no avail, only to be turned against them as bodies flew into various buildings, the thatch roofs catching alight with ease.

A dense smoke covered the sky above as he tore into a faceless villager's neck until a familiar voice pulled him from his most recent kill, a tune that always quelled the man now trapped within the beast. He turned his blood-soaked head in the direction of the voice and beneath the metallic and smoke scented air was one he knew achingly well, Derelai.

Elpin, trapped within his own mind cried out for her to run to no avail as his body moved on its own, the wolf only seeing another possible prey as it barreled towards her. Derelai stood frozen as she looked into the beast's eyes, a horrific understanding filler her as she realized just who was truly beneath the beast. "Elpin...?"

Before she could say or do anything more, Elpin's clawed hand dug into her soft belly, blood immediately pouring out from the fatal would as he lifted her up to his monstrous height. His lips were pulled back in a vicious snarl and saliva tinged with blood dripped from his fangs.

Time slowed to an excruciating crawl as Derelai weakly held onto Elpin's furred arm, her eyes searching his for the man she came to know and love. Beneath the anger and hunger in the beast's eyes, there was the faintest trace of remorse and agony, giving her all she needed to know.

As the light began to leave her eyes she muttered soft ancient words under her breath, the faintest of light appearing under her hands as his own dug deeper into her stomach cavity. Blood soaked her cloth dress, dripping onto the ground under them. The fur and flesh beneath her touch began to still eerily before a stone-like texture began to spread. The beast recoiled in shock, dropping her to the bloodied ground with a sickening thud as it tried to claw the growing stone patch on its arm.

The beast snarled as it looked down at the dying woman, falling onto all fours as it crawled towards her, the stone quickly spreading across his body. He kneeled above her, the spell stopping his movement now as he looked down at her. The beast, fearing the ancient magic receded into his mind, allowing the man hidden away to surface for just a few moments to hear his love utter- "My love... w-we will... meet once more..." Her voice faded away as the rest of his body was coated in stone, a single tear running down his muzzle to land on Derelai's now cooling face.

Many centuries would pass as Elpin stood still, most regarding him as a statue of some sort of ancient legend, moving him from place to place until he ended up in some castle that was later also forgotten to time as he was. Although he couldn't see he was able to hear the world around him, allowing him to learn Gaelic and eventually English.

It was another mostly silent day however, only the soft tweeting of a bird and the soft pitter patter of rain could be heard in the ruins he was in. There hadn't been any tourists for months. He was almost praying to whatever deity could be listening for someone, anyone to visit him just to hear another voice...

Not a few moments later footsteps were heard in the distance, moving towards his direction. If his heart was beating he's sure that it would have quickened at the sound. He sent a small thanks up to whoever may have heard his plea as he strained to hear if the individual would talk. He had gotten good at discerning various dialects over the years as many tourists came to see 'The Statue of the Pictish Beast'.

As he waited for the person to speak he heard them approach, the soft thuds of their shoes stepping onto overgrown grass and pieces of rubble. He could hear their breathing, never happier to hear such a sound before, but everything changed as he began to focus more on the person, something about them seeming achingly familiar much to his confusion. It was only when he felt warmth on his clawed hand... wait, warmth...? In all his years as a statue he hadn't felt anything before... and then deep within his chest there was a soft beat.

**Thud...*

**Thud Thud...*

His heart... was it beating...? Impossible, but it wasn't as it slowly beat harder and then louder as he felt his blood sludging through his vein before quickening soon. His darkened vision began to flicker back in even though it was very blurry. The stone that had covered his body began to recede from where the person touched his hand, soon leaving him as he was the day Derelai casted that magic on him. He heard the person's heartrate increase as he blinked away the blurriness to try and focus on the woman in front him.

A weak growl rumbled in his chest as he tried to move but every one of his joints felt as if they were still made of stone due to disuse. "D...Derelai...?" His voice was very quiet and hoarse as he began to lean forward, her scent now hitting him like a sword through his mind, bringing back painful memories as his eyes now fully focused on the woman in front him, the woman who eerily resembled his long lost lover...