TAKEN,AGAIN!

I snapped my head back; the migraine was coming on strong. I wiped sleep from my eyes and brushed off the snowflake that had fallen all over me. I swear there were black circles under my eyes.

Why won't I ? I had been hiding from the obstinate bastard, Astrid, for more than two hours while I lay there.

My body is so stiff from sitting on the hard tree branch for so long that a sharp pain is shooting through my tailbone. I scowl as I kick my leg out of the way and sit up even higher to start the descent. Anything out here is better than that cell, no matter how ceased up or sore I am.

I slide down the tree's trunk, my claws scraping against the bark. As soon as my feet touch the ground and gravity starts to set in, I let out a deep moan. Huge snowflakes drift down around me, getting stuck in my hair and on my clothes when I stretch. The sky has turned a gloomy grey, and the atmosphere has grown darker.

Well, perhaps he gave up after all?

I pondered in my mind.

It takes me no more than five seconds to hear the loud crack of a stick breaking in the direction I was facing.

Wonderful, aww. If he gave up so easily, his father would be furious.

He won't leave me alone. Even though Astrid is a conceited ass, he never gives up.

My options start to become apparent to me. I have two options: I leave or I stay and end up back in that hellhole. I have to start walking right now and never turn around again if I want to get away.

Still, nowhere is worth going. I do not know anything about the world outside of Visari. Although I am aware that there are other tribal packs, I am unaware of their traditions. Their people, their land, and their way of life are unknown to me. Beyond this point, everything is alien.

There is another sound now, closer, like a body pushing through the undergrowth. The tingling in my limbs compels them to act as panic begins to set in.

He is drawing nearer. Fast, unquestionably, and horrifyingly nearer.

I take off. I have no damn idea where I am going, so I run for everything my miserable, wasted life has to offer. All I do is run.

My bare feet hurt and get cold on the frozen ground as twigs snap at my ankles. However, I will not give up. If I spill blood everywhere I go, it does not matter to me.

Because four legs are infinitely faster than two, it annoys me that I am unable to move. But moving now would be like setting off a warning sign for him to find me. A werewolf has the ability to sense when another one shifts in the vicinity for unknown reasons. That is an odd sensation, similar to feeling someone watching you from behind, but the shifting wolf is the source of the presence.

The next thing I know, a massive, furry mass is slamming into my shoulder as it approaches me from behind. I can feel the bloody wounds filling with dirt and snow, the skin being scraped off my elbow and arm.

In the process, my jaw catches. Tears well up in my eyes as my teeth clench shut on my tongue.

I am not even aware of the pain. Rather, my focus shifts to the object hovering over me, pressing my back against the floor. It is also not the light grey wolf that Astrid knows.

It is that enormous, terrifying creature I saw just before my pack was enslaved. The one who, with a paradox of gentle dogs at my back, drug me into the woods. I saw only a few glimpses through bleary, barely conscious eyes, never getting a good look at it then.

I can finally get a good look at it, staring up at it with burning eyes.

Terrified, I can not even move as I stare. He brings his muzzle up against my cheek, and I jerk. Using his cold nose, he first smells it before gently nudging the straggling hairs.

A drop of blood runs down my cheek, into my jaw, where it leaves a warm, gooey trail. A sensation of numbness, akin to a claw piercing my cheek, dawns on me. I must have done it in the fall and gone completely unnoticed.

He begins to lick the wound, the analgesic effect of his soft canine tongue. The burn begins to fade and the blood disappears.

After he is satisfied, he begins to sniff around, possibly looking for my wounds. When his nose stops slightly above my collarbone, he lets out a low growl.

Straight above the two red spots that looked like Astrid's broken fingers.

He rushes off just as quickly as he could have knocked me to the ground. I think I see a flash of red in his eyes for a few seconds. However, it has vanished when I look again.

Taking advantage of his turning away from me, I get to my feet.

His wolf is an intimidating sight. Supernatural wolves are naturally very big, but this one seems to be about something deeper that I am not sure how to explain. He still casts a shadow over me even when I am standing.

He turns back to face me, and as he does, I notice a faint flash of light in his irises and a low rumbling in his chest. Then, with a menacing look in his eyes, he jerks his head toward the village. He seems to be making accusations against me.

He is upset with me. But why?

Then it dawns on me. Technically, he now owns this pack. And now he is seen me trying to hide from it.

I nervously wring my hands together in front of my stomach. He cannot possibly be unaware of how loudly my heart is beating. This time though, it is out of fear rather than the adrenaline of the pursuit.

How is he going to treat me?

Everything suddenly comes to mind, including the cries of caution, the madness, and everyone's fear of this wolf. How is he going to proceed? The possibilities seem limitless based on the stories that I have read.

I take a shy step back.

As soon as I do, a horrifyingly angry snarl rips from his lips.

He radiates such strength and aggression that it is almost impossible for me to control myself.

My gut tells me to cower for the first time in my life. All I want to do is lay down, put my hands over my head, and cross my fingers.

However, I don't. Refusing to close my eyes, I stand there looking at the ground in front of me. I get even tense when he approaches me, his massive paws crunching the leaves beneath them.

He walks around me in circles until I feel him behind me. Then his nose pokes me hard between the blades of my shoulder, pushing me forward.

He flings me into his back and I see that the path He's walking on is the one that leads to the village.

Just the place I was running from.

Why the hell is he dragging me back there?