A whole new world

Chapter 4 : of wolves and Men

Feng stood before the pile of rubble that used to be a house thinking about the strange events. Was his daughter's savior really alive and well? Did he not need to feel guilty? Or was it false hope and was he really lying underneath all those remnants, digested by the fire? He stood there for an hour, while the evening fell. Under a nice breeze in the pleasant summer's night he walked home. He did not notice a strange figure following him carefully.

Feng saw his house, standing alone, surrounded by his large workshop and the forest on the other side. A small trail lead towards it. Inside was a warm, inviting light. He couldn't help but smile knowing his daughter and his wife were in there, waiting for him. However, before he could get closer, he was hit by a small stone against his shoulder. He turned to his right, towards the darkness of the forest.

"Psst." A voice said.

"Who are you?" Feng said, trying to mask the fact that he was a bit nervous. He couldn't see anything in the dark bushes before him. His hand slid towards the knife on his belt.

"Relax, I just want to talk with you, in private. I mean you no harm." It was not a dangerous or threatening voice, just carefully kept neutral. Feng relaxed only a little.

"Well, why don't you come out of those bushes then?" he asked, slightly growling.

"I may look... different. Please don't shout or attack me because of it, okay?" The voice sounded a bit hesitant.

"I won't attack anyone unless you give me reason to. Now come out if you want to continue this, I want to see who I'm talking with!"

The bushes rustled and a tall figure stepped out of it. At least as tall as Feng, if not taller.
"Are you the father of Xia?" the figure asked. He stood a bit away and more than his cloaked posture was difficult to see.

"Yes. Why?" Feng asked with a surprised voice. Could this figure be...

"My name is Alexander or Alex. She may have mentioned me to you." With this 'Alex' stepped forward into the light and revealed his face.

Feng gasped. "You're the one that saved my daughter!" he exclaimed loudly. He looked at the face before him. This Alex was indeed unlike anyone he had ever seen. Tall and straight posture but leaner than most, bipedal, hands like a monkey, little or no fur, a bit of a flat face with a long straight nose. His dark clothes were unfamiliar to him, with tight, long pants, a shirt, some vest over it and a hood to hide his head.

"Yes, I am. And it was very close for both my and her life. How is she?"

"She is fine. Has some bruises and her fur is a little singed here and there, but she'll be up and running around in no time."

"That's good to hear." Alex sighed, seemingly relieved.

"And it's good to see you alright as well! For most of the day, I and others feared you had lost your life by selflessly saving others!" Feng said happily. "But here you are, and not even a scratch on you! You truly are a lucky guy, whatever you are to get out of that inferno without any damage!"

"Not completely unharmed. My left arm bled quite a bit..." Alex muttered.

"Of course, the blood, I had forgotten! Please follow me inside, then you can sit down and we can talk further comfortably. It's the very least I should do!" and before Alex could sputter something Feng lead him further and inside.

It was a rather nice home, Alexander remarked himself. Sturdy, warm, mostly made out of wood. With a nice, spacy common room and kitchen, a fireplace with cozy chairs and small table next to it. Some bedrooms on the first floor. A place that simple breathed 'home'.