Arise, Aadhira

chapter three

Aadhira opened her eyes, curled up in a ball with her white hair trickling over her shoulders.

She was human again, in human form at least.

She was cold from the morning dew making her skin clammy, the wind not helping in the slightest as she sat there and shivered. The wind whistled around her, leaves brushing against her as she shoved herself up even with her legs screaming for her to sit again.

She stumbled forward a few steps before falling again, wincing from the pain her legs brought to her. As she took each step, she could have sworn she saw a tall, thin and lanky tree move to follow her steps.

She let out a pained gasp as she collapsed by the riverbed she had been walking along. She could hardly take a step more without feeling like walking on a bed of a hundred needles.

Her eyes closed as she drifted off into a deep sleep.

---

When Aadhira awoke, there was food before her. It was a few handfuls of blackberries, most likely grown somewhere near the riverbed.

Aadhira pulled herself up and ate. She gorged herself on the blackberries, and by the time she felt full, she had only eaten a quarter of the amount.

Aadhira perked up when she heard the snapping of twigs and she could feel fear engulf her. She stood, the pain in her legs now a dull throb, and began to sprint as she saw a yellow hoodie and tan jacket.

As she ran, Aadhira could once again feel a tingling sensation she had gotten when she had leaped over the creek. She could feel the itching sensation as she felt the fur sprout out of her back, the burning as her nails and teeth elongated and the prickling as she sprouted a tail. Not to mention the immense pain of her bones cracking and reshaping.

But finally, she was once again herself. She was her canine form, animalistic and young.

She had been halted by a waterfall that was almost deafening and was forced to turn and bare her fangs at the now three people who had been chasing her.

They took a step back, shocked and confused.

They were peculiar looking, to say the least.

One had brown hair that just barely flecked out in tufts from under their hood, orange-tinted goggles covering her view of his orbs as he twitched, his expression also hidden due to a mask he wore over his mouth. On his belt, he carried two hatchets, both noticeably new. He would twitch every now and then, tilting his head to glance at her in confusion.

The man with the tan jacket had a peculiar white mask with painted black feminine features. He had ruffled and somewhat tangled brown hair. With him, he carried a pistol that he had pointed at her, and with a faint click, it was loaded and ready to fire.

The last man she could not see any main features besides a brawny frame. He wore a faint and stained yellow hoodie, a black fabric mask with a stitched red frown. With him, he carried a camera and an old, rusty, blood-stained crowbar.

She bared her fangs slightly, and they took a step backward. "Stay. Still. Or we will shoot you."

The one with the gun took a step forward.

Aadhira stepped back, still growling.

And after moments of them standing there, staring each other down in a circle that almost seemed deadly until the sound of deafening static filled the air and a being who was almost as tall as the trees appeared. They were pale and faceless and had long arms and legs. They outstretched their arms and pulled the three boys backwards, and spoke softly to them.

"Change, young wolf." It spoke after a little while.

Aadhira could only let out a slight whimper, and then the being let out a low static-like growl. It stretched out a hand and lay it on her back. For a few moments as it murmured something she felt warmth, and then it was gone.

"Now, change."

"I can't," Aadhira whined, her ear flicking as a fly buzzed around it.

"You can. You just need to believe that you can." It whispered to her. "Think of a moment that makes you joyous."

Aadhira stopped, surfing through her memories like a teenager would the web. She remembered and thought back, and gave a faint smile.

It was a cold, cloudy autumn day in the tribe. Aadhira, back when she was Alia, was playing with many of the other children. Mostly she was left to care for the youngest ones, as they frolicked and made mud cakes and chased each other with sticks to pretend to be knights saving the little girls who pretended to be princesses in peril.

As Aadhira remembered how simply happy she had been, she never noticed that she had changed back to the white-haired and red-eyed girl. The three boys had simply stared in astonishment at this entire process that had merely happened in a few moments.

The faceless creature gently scooped Aadhira up in one hand and they began a long walk to wherever they would bring her.