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"Wildsong" by cosmicfire918
Night in the Haunted Woods falls with swiftness upon its victims. It is not as many stories say—the forest is not rife with yowling spooks and ghoulish spectres at every turn. It is not a scaled-up version of a Neopia Central Neohome’s Halloween decorations, which brashly proclaim frightfulness in the most colourful of fashions. The terror of the Haunted Woods is quieter, more cunning than that. It lies in wait, never fully asleep, a brooding heaviness of barely-heard echoes and strange feelings in the air that taunt the mind until the Woods decides to reveal its darkest secrets. Something is out there – perhaps many somethings – that makes even the bravest and hardiest Neopet return from the Woods forever shaken. Unless they are a Werelupe—and then at one time it was home. Isengrim, the Werelupe King, and a number of his pack stalked through the undergrowth on one of their nightly hunts. It would be many years yet until a fateful meeting would rob them of their keep and cause them to emigrate to Meridell. For now, the Haunted Woods kept them safe from the misunderstanding of the outside world—and provided plenty of resources to keep them fed and comfortable. Night hunts were Isengrim’s favourite. The Haunted Woods was always full of interesting smells, but they always seemed to heighten after sunset. Not to mention his dark fur allowed him to blend in to the shadows far more easily.

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