Chapter 2: Chapter 2

The days were cold, but the nights were colder. Sat with her back to the rock wall of the only place she could call home, she sighed. The sun was fast descending and taking the measly warmth it provided along with it. She had become used to the chilling atmosphere that the forest brought, but she was still only human and so she felt the cold deep within her. Winter was well on its way and with it came the bone deep chill that got worse every year. She needed more furs, and not only that, but needed to begin to stock pile supplies for the harsh days to come.

With fall coming to its end, the hunting got harder and harder, game was always more difficult to catch amidst the snow. A bow and arrow was no good if your fingers were too numb to aim and fire. The snow made it more difficult to hit her targets, and if she missed it was always near impossible to find and retrieve her arrows. The next couple weeks would have to be spent devoted to catching and killing, skinning and preserving all the meat she could find. The winds had forewarned her that this would be one of the most trying times she would ever endure, and she wanted to be as prepared as possible.

Sitting back and resting her head against the rock face, she closed her eyes to relish in the peace that the quiet gave her. That peace was shattered however, by the single cry of a wolf, a long and low howl that sent shivers down her spine. The howl came from much closer than she was comfortable with, and where one wolf was, a pack was sure to follow.

The wolves posed an even bigger problem with their proximity. Not only did she have to get as much hunting done as possible in the near future, but now she also had to avoid the wolves, and get her game before they could hunt it all down. She knew now why the winds had warned her to prepare herself for a trying time, this winter may just bring the hardest challenge she’s ever had to face.

Humming softly to herself, she held on to the only thing she had left of her mother, the sweet lullaby she had sung every night before bed. She needed to be well rested for tomorrow, for she had no idea what to expect. Lying down with her furs pulled tight around her shoulder, she brought her knees into her chest, sleeping as she had since she was a child – in a tight knit ball to comfort herself from the outside world. Closing her eyes, she let the last few notes of the lullaby echo softly in her head before drifting off into a dreamless sleep.

She never felt quite right without her quiver placed where it belonged on her back. Weaponless was a state she never wanted to be in. Glad to have her bow back in her hand she looked out from the rocks and pushed her way out from behind the branches that covered the enclaves’ opening.

Anything nearby? She sent out to the winds, wanting a warning if the wolves were anywhere close.

With no reply, she knew she would be safe for at least the next little while, trusting in the winds to warn her if anything changed. Setting out away from her home she breathed in deep, letting the cool air fill her lungs and clear her head of the last remnants of sleep. It was time to focus on the task at hand, the hunt. Taking off at a sprint she ran towards her usual hunting grounds, where she knew was a popular watering ground for many of the forest creatures.

Slowing her pace as she neared, she began to take more slow and carefully placed steps, not wanting to allude the animals to her approach. Sending a quick thanks to the winds and the trees for answering her prayers, she allowed herself a small grin at the sight of the two deer before her. She watched as their heads dipped down to the surface of the water, both animals totally at ease and unaware of her presence.

Reaching up and back she pulled a single arrow from the few she had left and nocked it. Lining up her shot she aimed for the head of the larger of the two deer, knowing she could only have one, and the bigger one fit her needs much better. Letting out a low and even breath she let the sting slip from beneath her fingertips, only to flinch at the flash of brown that burst from the treeline.

Watching with utter despair as her arrow missed its intended target, her shoulders hunched. The deer had fled at full speed; however, the chocolate brown blur was now biting deep into its neck, its jaw clenched with unbelievable force. Growling loud and low, she finally realized that what had interfered with her hunt was none other than a wolf.

Stepping out from her hiding place amidst the trees, she could not help but be overrun by the anger coursing through her veins.

“How dare you,” she ground out at the wolf before her.

Nocking another arrow, she pointed it straight between the eyes of the predator that had taken her prey.

“That was my kill, she was not yours to take.”

She barely understood the sound of her own voice, she had not heard it in years and even then, not with this much unrestrained malice. The only times she ever talked were when conversing with the wind or the trees, and that was done in the comfort of her own mind. She brushed off her own surprise when the wolf unhinged its jaw and let the deer drop back down to the forest floor. What she had at first thought was an ordinary wolf was now evidently not. Standing up to its full height she could not help the gasp that left her lips, the wolf was bigger than any natural one she had seen, this was one of the other ones.

It took a step towards her, and for the first time for a long while, she felt a pang of fear hit her heart. Her breath began to come faster and her legs tensed up with an onslaught of adrenaline, readying her to run even though she knew it would do no good against the beast stood before her. She looked at the trees that strained to get closer to her and felt the wind as it picked up and flew around her faster than she had ever seen or heard it. Her protectors were doing their best to provide any sort of barrier between her and the wolf, but she knew it was hopeless, it the wolf wanted her dead, she had no doubt she would be.

“Thank you for everything,” she sent out to the nature that had provided and taken care of her, they had stayed by her side through the best and the worst of her times, pushing her in the right direction every time she needed guidance, “you have been the best of parents to me, and I will forever be grateful.”

She tore herself away from her thoughts and back towards the wolf who had since stopped growling,

“I apologise,” she said lowly, “she is yours.”

She bowed her head slightly, keeping her eyes on those of the wolf as she took a tentative step back, her bow was still clenched tightly in her hands. If she was going to die, she would not let the animal get away unscathed, it would leave with an arrow lodged deep in it somewhere.

Trying to maintain a submissive stance, she stopped her backwards route when the wolf let out a low growl. She did not want to anger it further, but her blood ran cold as it took another step towards her. Watching its slow and steady pace she gripped her bow and pulled the string back once again putting the mass of brown fur in her crosshairs. Taking an instinctive step backwards when it got way too close for comfort, the wolf whined.

It was a high-pitched noise that took her by surprise and cause her to trip and fall backwards, sending her arrow flying just out of reach and allowing the wolf to tower over her. Holding her breath, she closed her eyes as the wolfs muzzle neared her neck, bracing herself for the bite that was sure to come and end her life.

At least it will be quick, she thought to herself, it is better than starving to death in the coming winter months.

Waiting in anticipation of the pain, she jumped a bit in surprise as the wolf’s wet nose placed itself in the crook of her neck, leaving a trail from her collar bone to her ear as it seemingly took in her scent. Frozen in both shook and fear she did not move, allowing the wolf to do as it pleased. Leaving her neck the wolf circled around her slowly, taking her all in before stopping in front of her once again. With one last earth-shaking growl, it turned and took off back into the treeline, leaving the deer in a bloody heap on the ground.

The breath that had been frozen in her lungs finally released and she laid back onto the cold ground, wanting to cry in relief. Her life was not a spectacular one by any means, and yet it was the one she had, and she wanted to keep it for as long as she could. Pushing herself to standing, she walked towards the fallen deer on shaking legs, it was dead that was for sure after the vice like grips of the wolf’s jaw had finished with it. She could not fathom what had just happened.

The wolf had left her alive, after she had yelled at it and threatened it with her bow, and not only that, it had left without its kill, leaving it for her taking. Grateful to still be in the land of the living, she could not help but think that what just happened only served to solidify what she had thought before, there was something off about these wolves.