[ WP ] You are paid a very large sum of money to fill in for the summer at the wolf enclosure at the zoo , as an actual wolf . Once you get dropped in the enclosure , you have a strange feeling they 're not treating you like an employee anymore .

Sonny held his breath. Wind rushed past his face. He braced his body for the fall. The suit of wolf fur that he wore smelt of old musk, and itched horrible. The rough grey furs dug into the his skin. 
 
 The young man landed on all fours, the soft grass and soil softening his fall. He looked over his shoulder. Two of the zoo keepers looked down at him from the back entrance to the wolf enclosure. For some reason they ’ d just tossed him down there, rather than let him use the stairs. Sonny shrugged, it was probably to help him get in character. 
 
 The man-wolf crawled on all fours out of the cave which housed the hidden back entrance. The harsh light of the sun greeted him, temporarily blinding the man-wolf. Sonny raised a paw, and batted at his eyes. The distant sounds of children laughing and parents struggling to survive the day bounced down the walls of the wolf enclosure. Sonny didn ’ t bother to look up as he walked on all fours. The man was starting to wonder what he ’ d gotten himself into. Had this really been worth the money? 
 
 The soft rustle of grass, and a low growl, caught Sonny ’ s attention. The man-wolf, snapped his head to the right. A trio of wolves stalked towards him. Sonny swallowed hard, and turned to face his new pack. Would they figure out he was a wolf and tear him to shreds? Sonny ’ s knees started to shake. He hadn ’ t thought about meeting the other wolves when he ’ d signed up for this. 
 
 The wolves surrounded Sonny. For a while they all stood there, staring at each other. Then, a wolf behind Sonny started to get closer. In fear, Sonny backed away. Then the wolves on either side started to close in. Fear rose inside of Sonny ’ s chest. He kept backing away. The wolves herded Sonny into a thicket of trees within the wolf enclosure. Their growls and yips terrified the man-wolf as he quickened his pace through the woods. Fear racked his mind. 
 
 Soon, Sonny found himself hidden deep within the patch of woods. The sounds of the zoo were a distant memory within the eery silence of the woods. He ’ d lost sight of the wolves a few moments ago. Sonny glanced around him in fear. They could be right around the corner, watching, waiting to tear him apart. Panic rose within Sonny. Where were the zookeepers? 
 
 A deep, guttural laugh bounced around the woods. Sonny jumped in his skin, startled. A large, muscular man walked out from behind a tree. A wolf skin costume much like Sonny ’ s hung over his shoulder. 
 
 “ So they tricked you into doing it too, huh? ” The man asked, his voice a deep growl. 
 
 “ Wha-what?! ” Sonny yelled out, falling to his butt in surprise. 
 
 “ Listen kid, how much did they offer you? Couple thousand for the summer, am I right? Fucking bastards. ” The man said, walking over to Sonny. He plopped down to the ground next to the new man-wolf and let out a sigh. 
 
 Sonny, in desperation, followed the instructions that had been drilled into him for the past two weeks by the zoo keepers. “ Wo-uh, wo-woof. ” Sonny meekly stuttered out. 
 
 “ Oh knock it off man, we all got conned, didn ’ t we guys? ” The man sitting next to Sonny said. 
 
 Several other men and women appeared from behind the trees surrounding Sonny. Each had a smelly wolf costume hanging over their shoulders. Sonny pulled the costume off of his head, and looked around in amazement. He couldn ’ t believe his eyes. 
 
 “ Are all the wolves in here human? ” Sonny asked. 
 
 “ Not just the wolves, all of the animals in the zoo are humans. ” A woman replied. 
 
 By now, Sonny was ringed by a group of ragtag humans. Each one was a bit dirty and bedraggled, having to live as wolves by night, and only come out of their wolf skins at night. Sonny peeled off his disgusting costume in bewilderment. 
 
 “ How long have you guys been stuck here? ” Sonny asked. 
 
 “ Some of us years, others only a few months. ” The man sitting beside Sonny replied. He extended his hand. “ I ’ m Gregg by the way. I was elected the new leader of the group a couple of weeks ago. ” 
 
 Sonny took Gregg ’ s hand in his own. “ Sonny. So why don ’ t you guys go home? ” 
 
 “ They won ’ t let us leave. ” A man standing beside Sonny replied. 
 
 “ What about your families? Wouldn ’ t the police come looking for us?! ” 
 
 “ Well sure. ” Gregg said. “ But so far the police haven ’ t bothered to look inside of the wolf enclosure. Remember how we weren ’ t supposed to tell anybody where we were going? It was in the contract we signed. ” 
 
 “ Oh, yeah. ” Sonny said, his voice deflated. “ But what about escaping? ” 
 
 “ They ’ ve got guards stationed at all times, day and night. Hell, people try to escape, but they never make it far. I ’ m guessing you ’ re supposed to be the replacement for the last guy who tried to escape the wolf enclosure. ” Gregg said, slowly scratching his tummy. 
 
 “ So what do we do then? ” Sonny asked in despair. He was supposed to be leaving for college in a few weeks. 
 
 “ Nothing much. Just pretend to be wolves by day, and eat and drink by night. Don ’ t get me wrong, the zoo keepers aren ’ t evil. They feed us well enough, and usually give us plenty of booze at night. ” Gregg said, a smile growing on his face. 
 
 “ Wh-what? You expect me to be happy with this?! ” Sonny burst out. 
 
 “ Well sure kid, I mean, what ’ re you gon na do. Plus, for some of us, it ’ s almost kind of like a paradise. No shitty office job, you get to be outside all day, you get taken care of, people feed you well and give you plenty to drink. I ’ d say this is freaking Heaven on Earth man, the damn Garden of Eden. ” Gregg said, a smile on his face. 
 
 Sonny stared in disbelief; at a complete loss for words. 
 
 Over the coming days, he would try desperately to escape; he would plan and scheme, but ultimately to no avail. Soon the monotony of the days, and the nightly celebrations, distracted Sonny ’ s mind. He grew accustomed to this new life, and came to even enjoy it. He forgot about the outside world, about his plans and dreams, his aspirations. He merely existed, eventually finding meaning in his life through the entertainment and joy that he brought to the visitors of the zoo. As Sonny aged, he felt affirmed in his life; he ’ d lived happily, and created enjoyable memories for the children and adults that came to watch the zoo enclosure. 
 
 Sonny died many years later, an old man. In his will, he asked to be buried while wearing his wolf costume. The night of his death, several lonely cries were howled up to the moon. 
 
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 Hope you liked it. I've got more stuff over at r/ThadsMind if you're interested at all.
