The Others

(Setting: Edge of a thick forest or jungle, with cameras behind British explorers as they approach. Monsters of legend begin stepping out slowly, walking on their hind limbs like humans, but sharing few other obvious human-like qualities.)

"That was the scene in a mountainous area of northern Mozambique in southern Africa five years ago--our historic first view of the species later dubbed the Loup-Garou. They'd remained hidden away across the globe for millennia, inspiring myths and legends while they attempted to hide. But they'd been found, and after they were first discovered, more appeared, totaling thousands, some from the farthest places of the Earth--and some from our own backyards. And in the last five years, the Loup-Garou have become the latest addition to the population of cities around the world..."

That quote was shamelessly adapted from the opening lines of the old television show Alien Nation, because that's the "angle" with this species. They aren't supernatural; they don't change forms; they don't go crazy once a month. They're completely biological in nature, as "natural" a species as any other.

The conceit is also a riff on that old show--what would it be like to be seen by a true outsider? To be examined, both our triumphs as well as our shortcomings? To that end, to examine humanity, the Loup-Garou are a nice story vehicle. The in-story set-up is that they knew they could no longer hide. There are just too few places on Earth that humans don't/can't/rarely go anymore, so the decision was made to make the first official contact on their terms, not humanity's. Since then, they've been adopted into countries around the world, though naturally there are numerous and varied legal and political--issues.

The set-up for a story could be anything. Maybe a Loup-Garou was paired with a human by some political machination or another (or maybe the reverse). Any reason for a Loup-Garou to accompany a human or vice-versa would really work, though the setting would be best essentially modern-day, with all the normal things we see outside our windows every day. Beyond that, I really don't have anything "planned out", as I find it works best when there's plenty of room for ideas to flow naturally, and for the story to grow organically.

What follows is mentioned and linked primarily because turning werewolves into bloodthirsty killers with a "curse" is far less interesting to me than using them as a lens through which humanity can be viewed. Further, it helps inform a potential partner what sort of approach I'd be taking.

Loup-Garou operate in pack-structures similar to wolves. There are no "alphas" in a wolf or Loup-Garou pack. They're closer to families, with a breeding pair that's usually (but not always) the parents of the other members. There's a wealth of wolf-related information to be found on the forums of excellent and fact-based game Wolf Quest. Here's one example:

The only power the breeding pair holds is purely parent-offspring respect, and that is very limited. The only time the breeding pair ever really uses its dominance is when food is scarce and there are pups to be fed; in that case the parent wolves may limit the food available to the subordinates and save it for the pups instead. Under most situations, however, the pack is a corporative [sic] group and its daily activities are not necessarily determined by the breeding pair. Below the breeding pair, there is practically no structure at all. Older offspring may assume more responsibly [sic], (aka hunting more) but they are not necessarily more dominant than yearlings.

A more pop-culture link can be found here, from IO9, which offers many viable links. Wolf.org is, naturally, also a very good resource, with a very good FAQ about wolves here.