Mysterious Stranger

Lyra continued looking at the man, who didn't seem to have noticed her because of her height. She then turned to her parents to check if they had seen what she was seeing. She looked back out, only to see the strange man become a werewolf.

Lyra's eyes bulged out, her mouth slightly agape. "That's not real," she thought, remembering what her mother had said they don't exist. The wolf ran into the woods while Lyra stood there, speechless in shock.

Lyra's heart was racing, her eyes fixed on the spot where the stranger had stood. She couldn't believe what she had just seen. The man had transformed into a werewolf! Right before her eyes. She felt a chill run down her spine as she turned back to the kitchen.

Lyra's mind was reeling. She wanted to tell her father and mother what she had just seen, but the words got stuck in her throat. She felt like she was in shock, like her body had frozen in place.

The man's transformation into a werewolf had been so sudden, so fluid, that it seemed almost... natural. She had always thought of werewolves as monsters, creatures of myth and legend. But the being she had just seen seemed almost human.

Her parents didn't seem to notice anything was wrong. They were too caught up in their own emotions. Lyra's thoughts were interrupted by the sound of her parents' voices, coming from the kitchen.

Lyra's mother finally composed herself and started cooking dinner, while her father went to clean and polish his tools.

Lyra decided to hide her emotions and went to look for her new pet bunny. After picking up her bunny, she went to her room.

"Cuddles, do you know what I just saw today?" she asked, her voice barely above a whisper. "It was a wolf man, something like a... Yes, it was a werewolf! That's weird because Mommy and Daddy said they weren't real. So, who was that then?"

"Lyra, come for dinner, dear!" her mother called.

Lyra stood up from her bed and ran out of her bedroom door. Dinner was weird. Sarah and John were quiet and didn't smile. Lyra didn't feel like eating her favorite mac and cheese. She kept thinking about the man in the woods.

She didn't tell Mom and Dad about him yet, and she didn't know why. They kept looking at her and asking if she was okay. Lyra just nodded.

Finally, her mom decided to tell her what was decided. "Lyra, dear, you're not allowed to play in the woods anymore,"

Lyra looked at her parents, shocked. "But why, Mommy?"

Her father looked at her with a serious expression. "Because it's dangerous, Lyra. Your mother and I have decided this because of the weird occurrences in the woods. It's not just today, but it's been happening for a while. There are wild animals in there."

Lyra thought about the werewolf she saw. She had thought of looking for that man in the woods, but now, how would she do that if she wasn't allowed to go back there? "But, Daddy, that's not fair," she pouted in anger.

Her father, who now wore a frown on his face, replied, "It's dangerous, dear. We don't want you getting hurt, okay."

Dinner continued in silent tension until Lyra's father stood up to take the dishes to the sink. As he washed the dishes, Lyra's mother carried her away to her room. "Let's get you to bed, dear," her mother said, smiling weakly at Lyra. Lyra nodded.

As her mother tucked her into bed, she kissed her forehead like she always did. "Your dad loves you, baby. That's why he's doing all this to protect you, okay." Lyra nodded as she yawned. Sarah left her to sleep and closed the door behind her. She sighed as she entered the kitchen. John kissed her and led her to bed, seeing how tired his wife was.

Meanwhile, Lyra finally felt like she was back in the real world. But even as she lay in bed, trying to drift off to sleep, Lyra couldn't shake the feeling that something was off. That something was watching her from beyond the woods.