SEVEN | THE HUNT

I decide to burn off steam by hunting rather than trying to find another place to live. I *have* to make this work. I can't just run from this problem like I ran from the Reiniers. Like I'm still running. My cover's not even blown, not really. So what if I've gotten a new ability? So what if it means this illusion of a life I'm living might get blown to smithereens in the blink of an eye? What's new? I've been living like this for nearly seven years now. One new thing in my life isn't going to make that much of a difference. *I just need to get a grip. I can do this. I'm not a pup anymore*.

It's been a while since I've had the space to hunt properly. The last town I lived in was more like a city that this more rural place. It calls to the more feral part of me, like in the small wooded area behind the school, I can sense the life hiding there. Normally, Wolven can shift in and out of their werewolf forms like a second skin, but I've never been entirely comfortable as a wolf so every time I change forms, my human clothes get shredded. It's more annoying than painful to shift now, which is why I don't do it that often. Well, it's *one* reason.

But I need this. I need to feel calm if I'm going to plow on with this plan of mine to live in Kiwina. I may as well get used to the territory lines and terrain. I strip down, hiding fresh clothes in the little greenhouse for when I come back. Though I don't have any neighbors to speak of, it would be just my luck that a cop car or something drives by right when I'm ducking out of the woods - naked. Last thing I need is to draw attention to myself.

As soon as the sun sinks below the tree line behind the property, I'm in my wolf form, dashing into the woods. The coming darkness turns to midday, smells sharpen, sounds dance off the trees. Birds fly into their nests, getting ready for sleep, some nocturnal creatures shuffle in their burrows in preparation for their own hunting.

My heart's racing, easily keeping up with my body and the demand for blood my muscles are calling for. It feels so great to be hunting, running through the forest with the calming scents of the outdoors spurring on my instincts. There's a heaviness in the air too, like an incoming storm with the promise of rain. The quickly falling temperature doesn't bother me, even when a light mist begin to fall. Scents become more muddled the longer the water falls, so I have to rely on my sight and hearing for Tracking.

But, suddenly, I catch the unmistakable smell of the prey that will be my dinner. Lean and well-fed, the spotted deer is separated from it's herd, unaware of any danger it's in. I slow as I draw near, letting my inhumane stealth and training from working closing with Trackers take over. Only another Wolven would hear me now, and only a Wolven who knew how to track as well as Ryker would be able to pick out the carefully placed rhythm of my steps.

*Th-thump. Th-thump*. It's heart sings the song of life, the gentle sound making my mouth water in anticipation. Peaking around the side of a particularly large tree, I see it. A beautiful specimen grazing peacefully in the near-night. I admire the beast from afar, the way a chef admires a perfectly made *filet mignon*. My inner predator dying to get it's claws on the morsel before me.

And then I hear it. Almost imperceptible, dry leaves shifting on the other side of the clearing.

The deer raises it's head, glancing to the opposite side of the clearing to the spot where I just heard the rustling. The faintest hint of Wolven waft across my nostrils when I take an experimental sniff. A low growl shudders through my chest. *No, it's mine*. Barring my teeth, I sprint from my hiding spot and dive for the creature's throat.

*Mine*. Is the only, and all-encompassing thought as my teeth sink into the deer's flesh, cutting off the supply of blood to it's brain. The animal doesn't even have time to cry out, my movements are so fast and direct. And again, we're one, me and the wolf. One in the same, me and the beast that is me. There's no break in desire. No defining moral line. No misunderstandings. We dine on our prey, feast and revel in the accomplishment of bringing down our own meal.

We ignore the circling Wolven in the tree line. Ignore the nearly Pack-like perfection they use as they leave us to our dinner. There's only this unity.

And when the *we* has blended into *I*, I find that everything is as it should be. I'm calm and the predatory nature inside me has brought out a confidence I haven't felt in months. Licking my lips and claws clean, I relax beside the carcass of my prey, daring the Wolven to come closer as the scents of death continue to waft from it. I wait for a long while, long enough that the rain has stopped and I've gotten most of the blood from my paws. Not that it would make me look anymore presentable.

My fur is already a silvery-red mix that makes me look like I'm always flecked in blood spatter. Time hasn't changed that. Luckily, in this form, my scars are hard to see so I don't mind being seen by other Wolven. One by one, reflective eyes flash back into my line of sight. The other hunters are curious, and when it's apparent I'm not going to stop them, they filter out from the tree line.

There are five Wolven total, all have the same grayish-brown coloring in their fur, and varying shades of grey in their eyes. *Azures*. I feel my ears twitch as they get even closer, my instincts fighting against my human nature of bolting. The unity I'd felt slowly fraying into the messy discord from before. *They're getting too close for comfort*. The largest, though clearly the leader, doesn't try to chase me off or scare me. Something about him is familiar, the silvery-grey shading of the eyes confirm my suspicions. It's Zane. Behind him is an almost equally large wolf, a mischievous flash in his coal-dark eyes. Yuri.

I relax a little if the two of them are out here with more of their family I know it can't be for nefarious purposes. *Still*... And then Zane gets even closer. Less than a foot away. But I don't want him to go away. I want him *closer*. His grey-and-silvery eyes hold mine for what feels like an eternity and I know what he's trying to do. Like Wolven I've met in the past, there's the all too familiar attempt at a Pack-link. Mental communication. I don't reach out for the offered thread I feel in my mind though. The link works both ways. It's too intimate.

He narrows his eyes when I reject it. Surprise shocks through me. *He shouldn't be able to feel it.* Then I remember the incident from earlier. The vision. We're true mates...so how much *does* he feel from me? I narrow my eyes back at him. I don't sense anything from him, but maybe that's just because I don't want to. I don't like the thought of anyone invading my privacy.

He plops down in front of me, eyes still trained on mine. For a second I wonder what he's up to, but I don't have to wait for long. The fur on his skin recedes and the wolf becomes a man. Zane's impassive face is level with mine, calm and relaxed, though his eyes are still narrowed. He's dressed in a plain black t-shirt and dark blue basketball shorts - despite the coolness of the evening, he doesn't even look fazed.

"We need to talk." He says firmly. I roll my eyes and shake my head at him. "C'mon, Red." It's not a plea, but more of an order. I flash my teeth at him, annoyed at his persistence, but I kind of like the nickname, if I'm being honest. It's really starting to grow on me.

"I don't think she's in a talking mood, Z." Yuri shifts almost as seamlessly as his cousin, but keeps a good ten feet away from us. So do the other Wolven. I eye them warily. They're smaller than Zane and Yuri were in their wolf forms, but larger than the average grey wolf. They must be teens like us, but younger. Freshman to sophomores if I had to guess. "Mind if we help you finish off dinner, Scarlett?" Yuri asks, tilting his head towards the deer beside me.

I hesitate, glancing over the remaining meat on the carcass before nodding once at him. Yuri passes me a wolfish grin before shifting back and grunting at the others. The three younger Wolven keep their eyes down as they pass Zane and trade cautious looks at me as they get closer. I make no move to get up, but my muscles tense automatically as they draw near. It's instinctual. I can't help the automatic mistrust around other wolves. It brings back too many memories.

"We're gonna have to talk about what happened sooner or later." Zane mutters to me as the wolves begin tearing into what's left of the deer. I look at him coolly, feeling a little defiant streak spark through me. He sighs, crossing his legs and glancing at the other Azures. A few emotions flicker through his eyes while he watches them. Disgust. Adoration. Annoyance. If I could smile right now, I would.

Instead, I lay my head down on my paws, keeping my eyes on him all the while. A sense of calm has come over me the way it has when we were alone in the library. *True mates*. The words floats back to the conscious part of my brain, coating the peace in nausea. I close my eyes tightly, trying to chase the accompanying emotions away. It's too much. A collision of fear and annoyance and pain and hope. Too much hope. An emotion I know hurts like a bitch when it gets squashed.

Warmth blooms over the spot between my ears. My eyes flick open to see Zane's outstretched hand covering the spot. I trace the strong lines of his forearm back up to his shoulder, then his face.

"Never seen fur like yours. It's an interesting color." He tells me, his gaze warm like his touch, gentle, and curious. "But then, I guess I've never really seen hair like yours either, Red." He flashes me that smile of his, that thousand watt grin that's sweet, but tinged with mischief too. For once, I'm thrilled that wolves can't make expressions - or blush.

His fingers thread into my coat, burrowing deep and raising goosebumps. I can't look away from his face. My heart's doing that funny summersault thing again and I'm finding it hard to control my breathing. He traces the line of my head, over an ear, pausing to caress the portion under my jaw, up and over my closer mouth to the tip of my nose. Lightly over the bridge of my muzzle and back over to the spot between my ears. His smile is gentler now, eyes lost. Almost unfocused. The he blinks and clears his throat.

"You could call me Blue if you want. I wouldn't mind." He blurts suddenly, removing his hand from my coat and looking back at his cousins. It's dark out here, but my eyes can see enough to catch the slightly darkened shade in his cheeks. My heart skips a beat. "It would only be fair, you know. Since I've been calling you Red." He adds after a second and clears his throat again. *Is he embarrassed?* I want to smile. I want to be in human form beside him and talk this all out. *God, I wish I were normal*.

*Blue. The nickname suits him in more ways than one*. *More than just his last name*. It's like we're opposites.* I'm fire and he's ice. I'm disorder and he's peace*. I study his face as it goes impassive again, but his eyes continue to read like a book. *If I'm Red, he's Blue*.

"Wish I knew what you were thinking." He interrupts my thoughts and looks back down at me. "Or see your face. You have a shit poker face, Red." He grins and I growl at him. "Maybe I'll teach you." He smirks and gets to his feet. "But only after we talk."

"We'll see you tomorrow, Scarlett." Yuri shifts back to human form to grasp his cousin by the shoulders and begin pushing him towards the eastern portion of the tree line. I nod my head at the them before they shift back into wolves and take off towards where I assume their Pack's territory is.

Glancing back at the now completely stripped clean body of the deer, I think about what Zane said.