-Jack-
I spent the day roaming the forest, trying to stay away from everyone while still trying to stay inside the territory. There were a lot of people patrolling the lines, so there was no way for me to stay unnoticed. These guys were taking their job seriously, and I couldn't blame them.
I had to be in the furthest parts of the territory, deep inside the forest and far away from the town, when I stopped to smell something in the distance. I wasn't sure what it was, but I didn't like it. It wasn't an animal, that was for sure.
There had to be a patrol close by, so I turned around, sniffing the air for their scent. I wasn't sure if they had spotted the smell already. They seemed to be walking away.
I really didn't want to approach them, but I couldn't go check out the source of smell on my own, so I started jogging after the patrol. A few moments later, I caught up with them. There were four of them, all in their wolf forms, and they gave me curious looks when I walked closer, trying to make myself look small so they wouldn't think I was a threat.
I barked a little and looked back, then at them again. They all turned around immediately and followed me when I started walking back to the place where I found the scent. They caught the smell almost immediately, and three of them went to check it out, while one of them stayed with me.
Maybe I should've continued my way, but I also wanted to see what they would find. I hope it wasn't anything dangerous, since I sure as hell wasn't able to fight. I got nervous as the time passed, though it could've been only a few minutes before one of them came back and changed into his human form.
"There's no one around anymore, but we found a small camp – looks like a troll was passing through," the woman said, turning to look at me with a smile on her face. "Nicely done – we missed it completely."
If their presence hadn't scared the crap out of me, I would've turned into a human to ask more about what they found. Now all I could do was nod and hurry away from the scene. It was still so incredibly hard for me to stay around people I didn't know at all.
But as I was heading back home, I did feel better. I had done something useful, no matter how small my find was. It was odd to feel something positive, especially over something I did. After all this time, after everything Henry had made me do, it was good to know I could still be useful.
When I was close to home, I suddenly didn't feel like staying indoors. I liked being outside in the fresh air, especially now that the weather was getting warmer. I saw the kindergarten up ahead, and several kids playing outside, so I decided to go lay down under the trees to watch them have fun for a moment.
There was something soothing watching the kids play in the snow. I could almost forget there was evil in the world. And keeping an eye on them, even though no one asked, made me feel a bit more useful again.
I needed that. I wasn't sure if I wanted to admit it to myself just yet, but I didn't want to leave this territory. I had no place to go, and if I left, I'd be easy to possess again. I would rather take my own life before letting anyone use me as a weapon ever again. So, I needed to stay here, but I didn't want to be dead weight. I wanted to earn my place in this territory.
I rested my head on the ground and let out a deep breath as I relaxed a little by little. I was almost feeling... content. The war was still there; we all were in great danger, but at that very moment, I just wanted to rest and enjoy being outside. It was nice.
As I stayed there, watching people come and go, I carefully let myself get used to the idea of having a life here. I could find a job in the city with humans and start making changes to my little cabin. Like electricity, maybe a shower. I could ask Rayleigh if it was all right to add another room too. The fence around my yard needed a little fixing too...
"Isn't that him...?"
I pinned my ears back when I heard a woman's voice. Someone I didn't know. I saw her watching me by the gates of the kindergarten, talking to one of the caretakers. I don't think she realized I could hear her.
"Why is he stalking our kids?"
"He's just taking a nap – you don't have to worry about him," the caretaker said. "I think he's just lonely."
"I'm sorry but that's just creepy," the woman said, grabbed her kid and marched away.
The caretaker let out a deep sigh and returned to the other kids. I was glad for her kindness, but my mood was already ruined. I had forgotten not everyone here wanted me around. I'd seen how some people looked at me. Like I was still dangerous or someone no one could trust.
I waited for a moment before getting up. I walked to my cabin, feeling sad and at a loss of energy. I could feel the infestation starting to bubble inside me, so I tried to force the woman out of my head before the maggots could wake up. It wasn't a success.
Not until a faint scent of those damn cookies reached my nose, and I stopped to stare at my front porch. There was a new bag of cookies on the windowsill. I sniffed harder, and I could've sworn I caught that bastard's scent.
Arch's...
I snorted loudly and turned to a human before pushing open the gate to my yard. I marched all the way up to the door, meaning to ignore the cookies, but when I was about to step inside, I...
I didn't have the time to stop myself when I turned around and grabbed the bag, bringing it inside with me.
After washing my hands and face with the little water I had left in the canister – I really needed to go get more – I started cooking. I kept glancing at the bag of cookies, feeling annoyed over their existence, but soon I returned to the thoughts I was having before I got rudely interrupted.
My little cabin had enough room for one person, but it would be too small for two or more people. There was loads of space to expand in the back. I could take down the bedroom walls and turn that into a living room, and use the current one as a dining area, and then add the new bedroom where the backdoor was, and if it was possible, a bathroom too. I wasn't sure if toilets were possible around here, but I'd heard people talking about showers, so there had to be some kind of plumbing system going on. And since the kindergarten and the Hunter's Headquarters were close by, I assumed there were pipes under ground too.
I had no experience building with wood, and if I had to do the work alone, heaving the massive logs around would probably be a big, unnecessary task. But I had some knowledge of using bricks, since we had to keep fixing the abandoned factory our pack used to live in. It should be easy, but I needed money to buy enough stuff.
I wasn't sure if Rayleigh expected me to start paying rent or something, but that shouldn't be a big issue if I got a decent job. I'd heard people were moving out of here because of what was going on, so there surely had to be open jobs, right?
Once I finished eating, I grabbed the canister and headed to the closest well. There was no one around, so I took my time filling up the massive canister to the brim. When I started returning home, I was still thinking about the expansion to my house, and when the cabin came into my view, I stopped to measure the yard behind it. I could actually get a pretty decent sized bedroom. Oh, and I really wanted that shower. I didn't care how much work it would be and how much it would cost, but I really wanted it.
After I stepped back inside and put the canister under the sink, I grabbed a cookie and turned around to walk to the bedroom. The walls should be easy to take down since they weren't made of logs like the outer ones, just planks.
Now I just needed to find a job and ask Rayleigh if it was all right to renovate a bit.
I did feel a little silly for thinking about such things while the rest of the town was preparing for the war. I was in no condition to fight – I got out of breath just by hauling the water back to my home – and I knew I'd be the first one to get possessed if the enemy reached us. There wasn't much I could do. Maybe later, but definitely not now, so I was better off keeping myself sane by focusing on mundane things.
I spent the next hour cleaning and reorganizing the house, making plans for the extension and eating the goddamn cookies. They really weren't that bad, which annoyed me even more.
Then I got interrupted when I heard the gate being opened outside, and for a moment, I feared it was that bastard Archer, but thankfully, it was Aurora who approached my porch with a basket in hand.
"Jack?" she called without knocking, or even walking up the stairs.
I went to open the door for her without hesitation, mostly because I had a few questions for her – obviously about the extension.
"Hi," I said after I opened the door, still feeling a bit timid around her, though it wasn't anything personal.
"Hey, how are you doing?" she asked with a smile, standing at the bottom of the stairs.
"Good, I guess," I said, expecting her to step inside, but then I realized she probably thought I didn't want her in my home. "Do you want to come in?"
"Oh! Yes, of course," she smiled even brighter. "I brought you more food and some new clothes."
"I appreciate the food, but you don't have to bother with other things – I already have everything I need."
"Don't worry about it," she smiled and placed the basket on my dining table before taking a good look at me. "You do seem to be doing much better."
I shrugged. "As long as Oliver is keeping the shadows at bay..."
"Soon there won't be any shadows left," she said reassuringly, and looked around the house. "I like what you've done with the place."
"Actually..." I hesitated for a moment since I didn't want to sound rude or ungrateful. "I really like this place, but I was wondering..."
She turned to give me a kind smile, staying silent, so I assumed it was safe to continue.
"I was thinking about building an extension – there's a lot of room at the back so I was wondering if it's all right to add a new room?"
"An extension," she repeated, looking surprised. "That sounds like a great idea," she added, taking another look around.
"Yeah... I mean, this is fine for one person, but..." I trailed off, suddenly realizing what I was implying. "I mean... Just in case I... I need... the room..."
"I get it," she smiled. "This is quite small for one person too. But does this mean you like staying with us?"
"I... yeah..." I mumbled, and her smile grew even bigger.
"That's good," she said softly, staring at me long enough to make me feel uncomfortable.
I turned my back on her to catch a breath. "I was also wondering... I need money for the extension and stuff, so is there an easy way to find a job with the humans?"
"With the humans? I'm sure you don't have to go that far – we have jobs here as well," she said.
"Really?"
"Uh-huh. I can ask around if anyone needs an extra pair of hands. I'm sure we can find one now since the new members of the alliance are building their own houses and shops," she spoke.
"Yeah... except people around here don't seem to like me that much..." I muttered before I could hold my tongue.
Aurora sighed, and I peered at her again. "I know," she finally said. "But those people are in the minority – most of them know what you've been through, and that nothing that happened was your fault."
"Yeah, I know," I said, thinking about the patrol and the caretaker. "I suppose it's not easy to trust someone who used to be your enemy."
"In that case all they need to do is open their eyes to see the truth," she said.
"Thanks, but I don't really care. I know I need to earn it, and that takes time," I said.
She smiled and gave me a tender look. "Look at you. You've grown so much stronger in a few days."
I just shrugged since I didn't know what to say.
"I'll ask around about the job, and I'll be happy to help with whatever you need for the new room," she said.
"Thank you. I guess all I need right now is money so I can buy the stuff I need for it. And maybe a book on how to build a proper extension."
"Oh, don't worry about it. We built this town with our bare hands. One room is not a problem for us," she said. "Just let us know what you want, and we'll do it."
"I can't ask for that – you already gave me this house," I tried to object, but she wasn't listening.
"You are one of us, and we take care of our own," she said. "Besides, it'll take only a day or two."
"You can build a whole room in a day?" I asked in awe.
"We can build whole houses in two," she smiled, looking proud.
I decided to keep my mouth shut about the shower. I really didn't want to bother these people about it. The new room was too much to ask as it was, and the shower would take so much more effort than a simple bedroom.
"Thank you," I said, knowing she wouldn't listen to my objections.
"You deserve it," she smiled, and then stepped towards the backdoor. "Actually... We could build a bathroom too while we're at it."
Goddammit.
*****
No matter how much stronger I had become, and even after such a good day as this one was, sleeping was still horrible. Especially those few hours I tried to fall asleep.
This time, when I lay down on my bed, I could distract myself by planning the renovation, so the fear and other negative thoughts and memories were easier to avoid, but when I finally started drifting to sleep, the nightmares were there, waiting for me.
The nice images of my future home turned into bloodied walls and tortured bodies on the floor. Henry kept laughing inside my head, whispering about the horrible things he wanted to make me do to those I loved.
To Arch.
I couldn't escape the dreams. I begged and pleaded for mercy. I begged him to leave us alone. I begged him to just kill me. I could feel the hundreds of shadows swarming under my skin, eating holes into my soul. I was strengthless once again. He made me do all those things he once promised to make me do when he was still possessing me.
Suddenly, I was standing outside in the snow. I saw mountains in the distance, and a hint of forest below them. Otherwise there was only snow. In seconds, the snow had turned red from all the things I had done in my nightmares, and Henry continued laughing.
I held a knife in my hand, and when I blinked, I saw a figure at my feet, crying and pleading for me to let him go.
Him.
Arch.
"Let's see how easily that knife penetrates him, shall we?" Henry laughed inside my head.
I wanted to vomit when my body moved on its own, kneeling down next to my mate, grabbing him by his hair and pulling his head back. Hate was all I saw in Arch's eyes when he looked at me. Hate and fear.
I didn't have time to move when I suddenly heard a wolf growling in front of me. A big gray wolf with yellow eyes. He was staring at me, but he wasn't looking at me. He was looking at Henry.
The wolf growled again, and suddenly I was all alone. Henry was gone, and so was Arch. The snow under me was pure white again.
I looked up at the wolf, who had stopped growling. There was something familiar about him... I couldn't put my finger on it. Then he blinked and turned his back on me, fading in thin air.
And I slept the rest of the night at peace.