Peter Hatmaker grew up in the mountains of North Carolina. His father was an Uratha, a werewolf. His mother was wolf-blooded. Because his father would have to leave for long periods of time, Peter’s mother raised him and his siblings, attempting to teach them about the People, and what they might become. The short periods when his father was home, he would subject the children to ad hoc training, attempting to toughen them up through wrestling, hikes in the wilderness, and whatever novel method of “instruction” struck his fancy.
As Peter and his siblings grew up, their father began to change. He grew more tempermental, his training became crueler, and he began to be obsessed with full moons, particularly in relation to his children and their First Change. Peter’s mother began to keep a revolver with silver bullets in the house.
Peter underwent his First Change in college. He was fortunate in that he was raised to know what the signs were, both from his mother’s teachings, and from his older brother, who had undergone his First Change years before. When the First Change occurred, Peter was in a national park, alone in the wilderness, rather than on campus or in town, where he could get himself or others hurt. As the crescent moon shone overhead, the spirit world came alive in front of his eyes. Beings of the forest, of the elements, of the night, swirled through the land around him. He saw the two worlds, separate but connected. When he awoke the next morning, he found his tent and called home. When he told them he changed, his family, watching the lunar calendar religiously, knew as he did. Peter was an Ithaeur, a spirit master of the werewolves. Now a werewolf, he began trying to master his power, and adjust to his new life. Returning to campus, he continued his studies, although he now saw the world with his eyes open.
One night, while home on summer break, Peter’s father showed up, driving a car that wasn’t his, with dried blood on his clothes. His speech was disjointed, but a few things came through. Other families. Ghost children. The need to create his own pack, made of children who changed under the full moon. What happened to the children who weren’t. And then, the question. What auspices were his children? At that point, it became obvious what had to be done. Peter and his brother fought against their father. The fight was difficult, and only ended when Peter’s mother shot her husband with a silver bullet. Luckily, as Peter’s father had been a drifter his entire life, no one came looking when he disappeared.
Trying to carry on with his life, Peter graduated from college and went into business for himself, working on the reclamation of abandoned properties. He quickly proved himself able to successfully turn around properties through keen planning (and the ability to drive away negative spirits). Establishing himself in Chicago, he was able to earn enough of a name for himself to be appointed to the Chicago Metropolitan Agency for Planning. Peter heads the Task Force for Neighborhood Rejuvenation, which he surreptitiously uses to improve the spiritual energy of Chicago.
