Ablaze Without Flames

Chapter 3, Part 1 - Felix

Felix started his rounds with a stomp in his step, his hands clenched around the strap of his satchel. He waved off the advances of anyone that tried to strike conversation, even Stella the pretty girl with auburn hair who was far too old for him and far prettier than he could hope for. But no fluttering in his stomach could urge him to talk to her today.

But as he shoved letters into mailboxes and collected others to send over to different clans the next day, his progress slowed. Pups wandered between rows of crops to pull up any shoot of green that could be a weed. They were so rare now that they whooped to each other whenever they found one. The younger pups were losing fur on their tails, leaving them stringy and matted and pathetic. Seeing the younger ones carried by their parents, too weak to cry, made Felix's hand wander to his side. His ribs stuck out stark against his palm through his shirt.

Further along his route, he spotted the Guard on their way back from the ravine. There was no stretcher carrying a body. Most of them had fallen out of formation.

Otherwise, nothing was different. The harvest was still not ready. The market was still open and alive with activity, even with the food being rationed. His own father sat outside of his market stall repairing a coat that looked like it belonged to one of the guards. It was like the clan had no idea that Blaise was gone.

Felix's fingers tightened on his strap and his knuckles ached.

A whinny cut through the idle noises of the clan and Felix pricked his ears. Up the hilly moorland where the horses roamed was Shia, walking from the barn and towing a mare behind him. Her shining black coat covered sleek muscles that strained against Shia's insistent tugging. Her feathered hooves dug into the grass, glossy wings clamped to her sides, and her tufted tail whipped about in wild arcs. She tossed her head and snatched at the rope.

Eyes widening, Felix threw off his satchel and raced up the hill. His boots caught in the overgrown grass and slowed him down, but Shia heard him coming. He narrowed his eyes and yanked on the rope. Felix lunged for it.

'You can't!'

'Can't what?' Shia sneered, snatching the rope back.

Felix clung on. 'You can't get rid of her. Firefoot's not even yours, she's Blaise's.' Shia's head fell back as he sighed, but made no move to release the lead rope. 'Please, you can't take her away from him!'

'Blaise is dead,' Shia growled back.

Felix's palms burned as the rope tore at his skin. He dug his heels into the soft ground and bared his teeth. Firefoot's tail whipped from side to side and she snapped at his hands. He was more concerned with Shia's claws when they appeared and prepared to duck in case the other attempted a swipe at him. The aching in his own hands intensified. 'The Guard didn't bring back a body from the ravine. He's gone, like I told you!'

Shia wrenched the rope away from Felix, attempted to drag him off his feet, but Felix refused to let go of the rope. He ducked under lashing claws. 'Maybe the okami got to him first.' Shia swiped again. Felix tensed, but the strike was for the rope. It snapped in half and Felix was left holding the dead end. He threw it down and grabbed for the head collar. Firefoot shrieked and kicked, narrowly missing Shia's knees.

Felix opened his mouth but no words came out as he was dragged back by the collar. He coughed and scrabbled at his neck. In front of him the stable master, Geoffrey, slapped Shia's hands away from the rope. His glaring eyes flitted between them. 'If you want to fight, fight like men,' he scolded. 'Do not fight over an animal so primitively. The mare does not belong to you, Shia, even if Blaise is dead. And you,' he snarled at Felix, 'need to stay out of the business of others.'