Runaway Little Wolf

Chapter three

"Look, theres someone over there", a whispered voice echoed from the woods up a small bank above Carissa. 

The soft rush of water met Carissa's ears as her eyes cracked open. The daggy pants and shirt she wore replacing the dress used for bed the night of her brisk escape was damp and dirty. She rubbed her eyes what felt scratchy and fought down a wave of dizziness. 

"Ow", Carissa muttered as she sat up. Her head hurt like she had a rock thrown at her. Looking down Carissa saw a nasty looking gash oozing blood above her knee.

"Hey, you, what are you doing down here", an angry voice growled out. Looking up Carissa gasped as her haze lined up with a black tipped arrow head notched and ready to fly. At her.

"I.. I fell", Carissa tried to stand but couldnt manage. Her ankle was the size of a honey cake and an angry purple blue. 

"A story most sentries like to say before they cut the rogues down, I can smell you Im not stupid", the person stepped out into the morning light with their hands firmly holding a bow without wavering their hands. 

When the person jumped down on the gravel river bed Carissa in a fright scrambled backwards on her elbows at the sight of the purple tipped arrowhead. Nightshade was a dangerous substance, to Lycans and humans both. The girl had unruly chestnut hair and a rough spun shirt and knee length pants, she was barefoot but didnt seem to mind.

The person tilted their head at the sight of Carissa's state and frowned. 
"Oh.. It seems you have had a bit of a fall", the person hooked the bow around her shoulders and put the arrow back in its quiver thankfully. She looked a little ashamed but her fierce frown stayed in place. 

"Here let me look", the person grabbed Carissa's ankle and gently pressed in various places as it looked to be the immediate problem being the size of an apple. Carissa hissed in pain as the pressure increased but she stayed silent. 

"A sprain, you will live", the person straightened her back and wiped her nose with the sleeve of her shirt, one side had a long sleeve that went over her wrist, there was an archers gloved ratty as the girl looked tightly clasped on her thumb, fore and middle fingers. 

"Apologies, my name is Anemia, that is my brother Archer, our friend up there is Dickson", Anemia pointed to the various directions where two archers had notched arrows on Carissa. If she hadnt been told Carissa felt that she would be dead had she spooked the two men into defending their friend. 

"Just in case you spot them and freak out like a baby deer. Running blindly will get you in worse shape than that", Anemia added nodding to the various wounds, she stood brushing a strand of wild hair back. Looking closer Carissa could see an assortment of bird feathers and beads woven into a thicker strand of Anemia's hair making the girl look more wild than she seemed to appear. 

The two men were both tall, dark and handsome, Anemias brother sported a scowl fit for a king, the other called Dickson was grinning as he came down. Had she simply spooked one she would have an extra two arrows in her body without knowledge of where they came from.

"I meant no offence to issue a threat if I had, Im not good at fighting, or much of anything", Carissa whispered, the trio all wore the same rough spun clothes, they all looked wild and unkempt, were they runaways too? 

"What is your name", Anemia cast a secretive glance at Carissa.

If she told them they might drag her back to the castle for a reward. She would never go back to the castle, not to her dad her mother or the fat lord husband to be. She was going to stay free of their clutches and go to the haven her grandmother told her about. 

"Evelyn", Carissa quickly lied, she hoped she looked convincing, but it might have not have been because the trio gave each other hidden looks.

"What are you", Anemia stepped back hands propped on her hips. The girl with unruly hair crouched before the princess squinting closely. 

"Pardon", Carissa squinted up at the girl. She surely cant know already. Noone knows she is the princess? Noone can no, she wont go back!

"Gramai", Anemia said quietly, Wolf Blood, Carissa went perfectly still. They all shared confused stares. The two boys above Carissa came down from their perches, to stand protectively next to Anemia who had crossed her arms and stood to her full height again. 

Madam Elisa was a Gramai unlike Lady Evangeline .It was Elisa in fact who told Carissa she carried the wolf blood gene. And Elisa who said when you came across a fellow Gramai, you would know. Since the first encounter Carissa knew these three were not human. She didnt know how she would have explained it to someone let alone herself, but she might have for the first time in her life stumbled into the brethren specie she had never met.