Clara Mainn wasn't expecting a man with red eyes, black claws, and teeth as sharp as razors to attack in the night.
Suddenly thrown into a world of supernatural creatures, Clara is finding it hard not to question her own mental sanity. A chance enc...
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THE WIND HOWLED AND SANG as tree branches shook with vigor from the brewing snow storm. Winter nights were always cold and damp, but this one was different. The sun set too quickly for Clara's taste.
She shivered in her furs as she rested the palm of her hand on the small dagger she kept sheathed at her right side. She was always careful to keep her belongings close to her as she walked. Who knew what types of miscreants or thieves may be out late searching for someone to take advantage of.
Walking home through the forest had become a regular ritual for Clara since she had taken a job in town as a sitter. The Lionus family always kept her working late nights caring for their three obnoxiously energetic daughters.
Small flakes of snow started to fall from the moonlit sky and Clara smiled. Slowing her steps to glance up and catch a flake on her tongue. At least there was a pinch of hope on a night like this. If hope is what you would call it.
Clara smiled on the outside, but was sad and pained on the inside. If a measly piece of snow was a momentary distraction from her feelings of depression, she would take it, grip on to it with all of her might, and never let go of that distraction. At least she didn't want to let go.
Clara did not know why she felt depressed today, or any day really. The feelings that she bottled up day after day never slipped out. Not even a little bit.
In truth, she did know why she felt this way. Why she couldn't help wear a frown, and why she avoided human interaction with those she felt didn't understand. Everyone. Every single one couldn't understand her.
Clara felt trapped in her routines because they were just that, routines. She felt trapped in her habits because they were again, just habits. Was it wrong of her to want more from life than what she had? More than just a simple life?
Perhaps it was foolish of her to want more than what she had. She had food in her stomach, clothes on her back, and a mother and younger sister that loved her.
Clara turned a blind eye to her feelings of unhappiness. She always did.
~~~
The night turned even colder as Clara neared her family's cottage. She could hear tree branches crashing against the small leaded glass windows as she approached, a few of the panes already shattered. Clear shards of glass scattered on the snow covered ground.
A hint of worry grew in the pit of Clara's stomach as she searched the house with her eyes for any sight of light from the fireplace or candles. She inwardly hoped that her mother and sister had gone to a friends house in town for a late supper.
