I Am A Real Werewolf
To keep group activity up, I have decided to talk about the little things that aren't talked about that much, for any interested or just coming across this place. I especially think newbies to this concept should read this, as it might help put everything they're going through in perspective.
Firstly, you are still human, despite what you can do. Don't go around acting as if you're better than other people, or that being this way means that you're not going to be held to human standards. You are, and despite what you shift into, on some level, you are still human, and live in a human society. That includes species-you're still part of the human species, homo sapiens. You can come down with human illnesses and sicknesses (as well as animal, assuming the illness can cross the species barrier) and you, like everyone else, are prone to human biases and flaws. You cannot breed with wolves, or any other animal, nor should you try (addressing this, because I've seen this claim around before) and you cannot reproduce with them. Along these lines, that means that you're not going to have a "litter" of pups, or children born in wolf form. They'll be human, as you are, and as your parents have been before you.
Be careful when checking out otherkin and therianthropy communities. While they can be a valuable source of information at times, their labels and personal experiences should be taken with a grain of salt, especially if you're a shapeshifter or werewolf of some sort applying it to your own experiences. Some aspects of otherkin belief (such as mental shifting, polytherianthopy/polykin, etc) are better left to otherkin.
I'd personally recommend avoiding a lot of online packs (often termed "cyberpacks") out there too. Many cyberpacks do deal with physical shifting, but a lot of them also have bad reputations for being cliquish, drama filled, or just not representative of actual pack dynamics and structures, as well as being purely online (and thus, while a good source of friendship and support, not truly a "pack"). There are good healthy packs, of course, but you have to sort the wheat from the chaff in order to find them.
There are other species and kinds of shapeshifters out there besides werewolves, by the way. A werewolf is a very specific kind of shapeshifter, but there are others, and others of other species, too. People who shift into bears, lions, reptiles, etc, and those who have more than one form, or other special things that make them a shifter of a paticular breed.
If you haven't shifted yet, and think you're being hunted, you're probably just being paranoid. Trust me, unless you pose some kind of immense unstoppable threat to everyone around you just by existing, you're not being tracked or stalked, especially if you cannot shift, and remain in a human form. There is no AWTOK, no secret hunter organization that takes down children (or else you'd have been taken a long time ago, wouldn't you?), and the government is not after you, because again, you'd have been taken a long time ago if they were. What you're dealing with is probably mundane odd occurrences, coupled with the occasional creep or weirdo (remember, criminals and other unscrupulous people do weird things too) encounter, and nothing that is after you simply because you know you're a shifter or a werewolf.
The moon will not change you physically from a human into a wolf, and back again, no matter how much you believe it will. The moon has no effect on shifting, nor does belief. Shifting does not work based on how much you believe it exists-it's biological, and much like other biological events, belief is irrelevant to it's existence. If you're a shifter, eventually in some way you should shift, and if not, no amount of spells, staring at the moon, prayer, or belief-based acts will make it happen.
Similarly, biting does not work. This is not because, as some claim, the saliva will kill you, but simply because there is no virus to infect anyone with in the first place. Additionally, trying to get anyone, human or animal, to bite you is a big risk. Wolves for example do not usually bite people, and when they do, it's not usually one gentle, tender bite, but a big messy bite or series of bites, which are likely to get infected and/or need stiches. Similarly, a human biting you would also bring a risk of infection, and probably have no effects other than a placebo from thinking you've become a shifter.
Which, by the way, it shouldn't need to be said, but DON'T go around trying to meet people found online in real life just because they claim they can turn you into a werewolf or shapeshifter. Trust me, nothing good comes of those kind of meetings.
Additionally, why would you want to be a werewolf or shapeshifter? Understandably, for some species dysphoria and the urge to be themselves again plays a factor, but being a werewolf or shapeshifter is not all sunshine and rainbows. It's not like you become a wolf, or are born a werewolf, and then all your problems go away, and life becomes awesome. Werewolves still deal with all too human problems, and still cannot escape life's challenges. Transforming can be painful, strenuous, and time consuming, and then, it's nothing too special, since you don't really gain superpowers or anything else out of the ordinary with it. You're not immortal or anything like that, you're just a human who can change their form. It's fine if you like being in other forms, but besides that it's nothing like what you've seen on TV, nor is it any better than being human.
Speaking of which, if you cannot shift physically, you are not a werewolf or shapeshifter. Mental shifting, phantom shifting, etc. can be done by any human with enough time on their hands, but physical shifting is only done by weres and shifters, and is the distinguishing factor between shifters/weres, and otherkin/therians. There is a difference between the two, and knowing them reduces confusion.
This should be everything so far. It's a list of basics people should know and again, I hope it helps any newbies out there who are just getting into the community, and need guidance on what can and can't happen.
Firstly, you are still human, despite what you can do. Don't go around acting as if you're better than other people, or that being this way means that you're not going to be held to human standards. You are, and despite what you shift into, on some level, you are still human, and live in a human society. That includes species-you're still part of the human species, homo sapiens. You can come down with human illnesses and sicknesses (as well as animal, assuming the illness can cross the species barrier) and you, like everyone else, are prone to human biases and flaws. You cannot breed with wolves, or any other animal, nor should you try (addressing this, because I've seen this claim around before) and you cannot reproduce with them. Along these lines, that means that you're not going to have a "litter" of pups, or children born in wolf form. They'll be human, as you are, and as your parents have been before you.
Be careful when checking out otherkin and therianthropy communities. While they can be a valuable source of information at times, their labels and personal experiences should be taken with a grain of salt, especially if you're a shapeshifter or werewolf of some sort applying it to your own experiences. Some aspects of otherkin belief (such as mental shifting, polytherianthopy/polykin, etc) are better left to otherkin.
I'd personally recommend avoiding a lot of online packs (often termed "cyberpacks") out there too. Many cyberpacks do deal with physical shifting, but a lot of them also have bad reputations for being cliquish, drama filled, or just not representative of actual pack dynamics and structures, as well as being purely online (and thus, while a good source of friendship and support, not truly a "pack"). There are good healthy packs, of course, but you have to sort the wheat from the chaff in order to find them.
There are other species and kinds of shapeshifters out there besides werewolves, by the way. A werewolf is a very specific kind of shapeshifter, but there are others, and others of other species, too. People who shift into bears, lions, reptiles, etc, and those who have more than one form, or other special things that make them a shifter of a paticular breed.
If you haven't shifted yet, and think you're being hunted, you're probably just being paranoid. Trust me, unless you pose some kind of immense unstoppable threat to everyone around you just by existing, you're not being tracked or stalked, especially if you cannot shift, and remain in a human form. There is no AWTOK, no secret hunter organization that takes down children (or else you'd have been taken a long time ago, wouldn't you?), and the government is not after you, because again, you'd have been taken a long time ago if they were. What you're dealing with is probably mundane odd occurrences, coupled with the occasional creep or weirdo (remember, criminals and other unscrupulous people do weird things too) encounter, and nothing that is after you simply because you know you're a shifter or a werewolf.
The moon will not change you physically from a human into a wolf, and back again, no matter how much you believe it will. The moon has no effect on shifting, nor does belief. Shifting does not work based on how much you believe it exists-it's biological, and much like other biological events, belief is irrelevant to it's existence. If you're a shifter, eventually in some way you should shift, and if not, no amount of spells, staring at the moon, prayer, or belief-based acts will make it happen.
Similarly, biting does not work. This is not because, as some claim, the saliva will kill you, but simply because there is no virus to infect anyone with in the first place. Additionally, trying to get anyone, human or animal, to bite you is a big risk. Wolves for example do not usually bite people, and when they do, it's not usually one gentle, tender bite, but a big messy bite or series of bites, which are likely to get infected and/or need stiches. Similarly, a human biting you would also bring a risk of infection, and probably have no effects other than a placebo from thinking you've become a shifter.
Which, by the way, it shouldn't need to be said, but DON'T go around trying to meet people found online in real life just because they claim they can turn you into a werewolf or shapeshifter. Trust me, nothing good comes of those kind of meetings.
Additionally, why would you want to be a werewolf or shapeshifter? Understandably, for some species dysphoria and the urge to be themselves again plays a factor, but being a werewolf or shapeshifter is not all sunshine and rainbows. It's not like you become a wolf, or are born a werewolf, and then all your problems go away, and life becomes awesome. Werewolves still deal with all too human problems, and still cannot escape life's challenges. Transforming can be painful, strenuous, and time consuming, and then, it's nothing too special, since you don't really gain superpowers or anything else out of the ordinary with it. You're not immortal or anything like that, you're just a human who can change their form. It's fine if you like being in other forms, but besides that it's nothing like what you've seen on TV, nor is it any better than being human.
Speaking of which, if you cannot shift physically, you are not a werewolf or shapeshifter. Mental shifting, phantom shifting, etc. can be done by any human with enough time on their hands, but physical shifting is only done by weres and shifters, and is the distinguishing factor between shifters/weres, and otherkin/therians. There is a difference between the two, and knowing them reduces confusion.
This should be everything so far. It's a list of basics people should know and again, I hope it helps any newbies out there who are just getting into the community, and need guidance on what can and can't happen.
