After visiting with the dean of the college, Harold decided to take his advice and head to the college library to do some research. After waving to the librarian, he made his way to the basement of the library where all of the books about the town were located. He pulled out a few choice books about the history of the town, found an empty desk, turned on the light, and started reading.
By reading all of those books, he gained an understanding of the weres in Moon Lake and in general. No one could say when weres started existing, or where for that matter. There are hypothesises about the start of their existence. One was that a virus evolved from an animal that got passed on to humans which changed their DNA. Another was some sort of mystical animal spirits that infused willing humans into their forms. Yet others discounted everything, and that it was all some sort of hoax. Harold rubbed his eyes as he thought about that last part. From what's he seen and heard, this was no hoax. If there was one thing for certain, weres have been around since at least the start of recorded history.
The Greeks would have their myths about men who turned into wolves, and gods who would change men into deer. The Romans had their founding myth of Romulus and Remus being raised by wolves, but it turned out that they were actually werewolves. These werewolves were part of the Praetorian Guard, keeping watch over the emperor of Rome, and dispatching him if he went too far and proved to be a danger. This golden age of weres, though, came at an end with the advent of Christianity. As Christians gained more power in the Roman Empire, prominent men in the church denounced weres as devils and demons. There was an entire order dedicated to the destruction and eradication of all weres throughout the world. The Christian order not only sought out to kill all weres in the world, but also to make them disappear from history and to make as if they never existed outside of the stories this order would tell the peasants and the kings. They would have succeeded were it not for Christopher Columbus discovering the New World.
Upon hearing this news, all weres from the Old World immigrated to the New World to Roanoke, Virginia. It was an opportunity for a new life and a new golden age where weres could live freely and be open. But it didn't last very long, as the same Christian Order sought to destroy the colony. With the help of the rulers of the time, they quietly destroyed the colony and most of the weres at the time. There were few remaining survivors, scattered into the woods and into the care of the Native Americans of that time. It wasn't until 1777, when one Corneallus Smith made a deal with George Washington. Corneallus and his pack of werewolves would fight in the Continental Army against the British if Washington could guarantee their safety and secrecy. The general agreed, and the werewolf pack fought in the Revolutionary War. After the war and Washington was made president, he agreed to let the werewolves and other weres head out west and form a community of their own. With the help of the were-mers of that time, they were able to find a place called Moon Lake where weres of all kinds and places could find sanctuary. Since then, the United States government and the weres of Moon Lake had a deal. The government would keep Moon Lake a secret were sanctuary, and the weres would serve the government.
Harold rubbed his eyes and took a glance at his watch. He did a double take as he realized that time really had flown since he started reading on the history, as it was a half past three. Mel should be getting out of school and on her way home. Closing the books, he stretched as he stood up. When he was a student, he had a bad habit of getting so caught up in his studies that he would lose track of time and forget everything. If it weren't for his loving wife, he'd probably starved to death reading something. But he noted, sadly, that she was gone now and he had to do a better job of keeping track of time.
He arrived home at about four o'clock, and he noticed that Melissa wasn't home yet. He hoped his daughter didn't get into any trouble, but he also figured she might be hanging around some new friends. He went to the kitchen and was trying to decide what to cook for dinner when he heard the doorbell ring.
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Phew. Hope ya'll don't mind a bit of lore world building.