Like vampires, werewolves are nocturnal organisms. As such, the earliest known changes augment their ability to see, hear and smell in low-light conditions.
Besides appearing irritated and bloodshot, the first thing to happen to the eyes is the formation of tapetum lucidum tissue behind the retina, causing eyeshine and improved night vision. Afterwards, as the inflamed sclera darkens to a more brownish or black tone, loss of pigment in the iris brightens its hue to either a pale icy blue or an intense yellow/amber coloration. Finally, the iris and cornea will slowly expand to take up more of the eyeball's surface, making the pupils appear smaller.
For an early werewolf, hearing range quickly triples to that of a vampire, while smell becomes as three times more keen than that of a human. As these senses further sharpen, cartilage production causes the nose and ears to swell and enlarge, with the former becoming wider and flatter and the latter more pointed and raised. Eventually olfaction becomes 100 times keener than that of a human, while hearing ends up quadrupled.
The first thing the victim will experience in their first transformation is an increase in body and facial hair, much like those who suffer from hypertrichosis. As it becomes coarser and thicker over the following minutes, the hands, feet and face become bruised and swollen as if they had been severely beaten. Soon this swelling and bruising spreads across the rest of the body as the victim experiences new bone growth. Like bears and other large mammals, an increase in melanin turns the skin either a very light or very dark grey, depending on the victim's ethnicity. However, the eyelids, nose, lips, soles and palms always become dark and thick, while the breasts and genitals remain somewhat lighter in color. The hair on the scalp is gradually shed as a sort of frizzy mane grows from the head, neck, back and chest. Unlike wolves, werewolves do not have whiskers.
As the victim grows more body hair, they lose most of their ability to sweat everywhere except their palms and soles. Like wolves and other mammals, werewolves cool off mainly by breathing and panting, as fluid evaporation cools the blood vessels of the lungs and tongue. Sweating also occurs around the nose, though moisture is usually the result of fluid from the nasal mucosa. Although these areas are usually dry, additional excess heat is released through the ears, face, shoulders and inner thighs thanks to the sparser hair and thinner skin. Apocrine glands also release sweat into the hair follicles, but these are mostly just used to deliver pheromones.
As the hands and feet swell and bruise, the nails on the serum-glazed fingers and toes come loose and soon fall out as the distal phalanx bones grow into hooked claws, which slowly erupt from the former nail beds as hard keratin forms around the new quicks. Starting off short and small, these claws can grow to over six inches long, with tangible girth and thickness. Eventually a werewolf's hands become more like bear paws, limiting the use of their thumbs while making it easier to dig and move on all fours. Elongation and thickening of the forearms, feet and spinal column occur soon after for this purpose. However, bipedal movement remains just as feasible, thanks to the plantigrade feet and enlargement of the pelvic and shoulder girdle.
As with fingernails and toenails, a werewolf's human teeth will come loose and fall out over the course of the 5 minute transformation period, as larger and sharper replacements grow in their place, all while the skull and jawbones become larger and more elongated. While humans have a total of about 32 teeth (4 canines, 8 incisors, 8 premolars and 12 molars), werewolves can have up to 42 (4 canines, 12 incisors, 16 premolars and 10 molars) like wolves and bears.
the growls, barks and howls of a werewolf sound almost identical to that of a normal wolf, only louder and deeper due to their larger body size. They're also more judicious in their use of sounds than wolves, though it's still their main form of communication, along with head and arm gestures.
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Beast Of The Whomping Willow
Fanfiction"My kind don't usually breed. It will be like me, I am convinced of it - how can I forgive myself, when I knowingly risked passing on my own condition to an innocent child? And if, by some miracle, it is not like me, then it will be better off, a hu...
