Beautiful Curse

Chapter 12

        Clumps of dirt fly through the air in an endless stream, leaving a long, airborne trail behind splayed paws and flexing limbs. The scents and sounds of wildlife leave an uninterrupted echo throughout the forest as the extraordinary creatures cross the land. A (color) (animal) follows closely behind a larger male (animal); the latter racing between each noticeable landmark, pointing out its importance.

        "See that tree there? It was hit by lightning about a month ago!" the male pants, heading toward a blackened trunk that still reeks of sulfur. My head cocks to the side in curiosity, since never before had I witnessed this type of destruction in nature. As my cousin watches, I carefully sniff out the burnt, jagged edges of the tree, wrinkling my nose at the sharp smell. It reminds me of the crispy areas on grilled, barbecued ribs. On the impulse of this surfaced thought, I stick out a long, pink tongue and take a swipe at the tree bark. Instantly I regret that decision, and I turn away to let out a hack of utter disgust. To the side of me, I can hear an animalistic laughter, and my (animal) ears lower in shame. "Expected the taste of BBQ?" (Cousin) snorts.

        "Actually yes," I mentally reply back, still licking the awful flavor from my chops. "Can we go now? I don't want to see this tree anymore." The other were-creature quietly grunts in agreement and walks away. I give the burnt tree trunk a last humiliated glance before following. But it looks so much like...ugh, so stupid.

        We continue on into the forest. (Cousin) gallops to many different places, explaining to me why they should be known and praised. Most of them are pretty interesting, although a few I could care less about, such as a pond where "There used to be frogs, but not anymore because...I ate them all." I do not care if you made the pond frogs go extinct. Stop making me hungry! With all the running around, probably almost every animal in the forest has hidden in their burrows or are a safe distance away from attack. Huffing, I ignore the ache in my empty stomach. There will be time to eat later at the apartment, but for now, I must pay close attention to my cousin's tour so as not to hurt his feelings. Just as he is quick to excite, he is also quick to sadden.

        The presence of Central City is left far, far behind us as we travel across the countryside. Soon we will be turning around to head back. (Cousin) has finished showing me his favorite places and now we are just enjoying the clear air and the feeling of the tall grasses brushing up against our flanks and chests. Then a drop of rain splashes right on the tip of my nose.

        Well, should have expected that. My nose twitches in distaste. I sigh and lift my glowing (eye color) eyes to the sky, watching as a sprinkle begins to arrive. Staring up, I notice something shining within the leaves of a birch tree. With my sharp eyesight, I can see that the gleam is coming from a large raven's nest balanced between the crook of the trunk and branches. I stop, and, my cousin noticing, he stops as well.

        "I'm going to check out the shiny thing in the bird's nest," I tell (Cousin), before shifting into human form. Before he has time to reply I grapple with the long, thin birch tree and haul myself up, wrapping my legs around the trunk to prevent myself from slipping. I shimmy up the tree quite speedily, using the oncoming branches to bring myself up further. Down below the large (animal) is pacing, either with worry or impatience, I am not sure.

        Near the peak of the tree I reach the nest. All around my head are the sounds of agitated cawing and flapping of wings. The raven must have returned from scavenging, angry and confused at the sight of a human girl reaching for its home. I ignore it since from the silence of the nest there don't seem to be any chicks that may be in danger of abandonment. The last branch, and I pull myself over the wad of sticks and mud to view the innards of the bird's nest.