The story starts pretty slow but it gets more interesting as the chapters go on- I promise xx
I trudged through the thick forest. The heavy rain abusing me every second. Pelting down onto my moving body and announcing it's presence by soaking me to the bone. My clothes felt heavy from the amount of water that saturated them and the cold wind whipped at my form. I pulled my jacket closer to my body, wrapping my arms around my waist in a futile attempt to conserve some form of warmth. My wolf remained curled up in the corner of my mind, also agitated by the cold.
My boots squished with every step, as my feet submerged in the small puddles that had gathered inside them. The freezing temperature of the water caused my toes to curl.
I raised my hand infront of my face in an attempt to shield my eyes from the pelting rain. My gaze darted across my dark and blurry surroundings, trying to find any form of shelter; a cave or even a hollowed tree trunk would work. I would take anything at this point.
It was nearly impossible to see through the heavy rain, 't help. It made me feel exposed and un prepared. But there were some positives, if I couldn't hear or smell anything, then nothing could hear or smell me.
I grumbled in annoyance as the rain seemed to get heavier yet again. Still scanning my surroundings, I nearly yelped in shock when the shape of what appeared to be a building materialized. The building could be better described as a small shack and was heavily sheltered by a large oak tree.
The sight of it made my heart rate increase as anxiety welled up within me.
Shelter meant civilisation. And civilisation meant wolves. But there was also the small chance it could be empty, as it was overgrown in shrubs, with no visible light source coming from it. Hence why I nearly missed it entirely.
I considered my options. Avoid the shack and stay exposed to the storm, or investigate and risk the chance of an interaction.
My teeth clattered as I stood on the spot trying to decide. I supposed getting out of this terrible weather would be ideal. My wolf yelped in my mind, pushing me into the direction of the shelter.
I decided to take my chances and investigate the building. Ploughing through the mug and closer to the shack I could see it why it appeared to be abandoned. The front windows were smashed while the rest of the building was heavily covered in vegetation; vines grew up the sides and the oak tree looked as though it was growing into the house.
The abandoned look gave me a boost of confidence, I doubt anyone would stay here voluntarily. But there was still the chance someone was inside.
I quickly sniffed the air, trying in vain to catch any scents. But the smell of rain was still to strong as it was impermeable to any other scents. I would need to physically investigate to make sure it was truly clear.
Sending a prayer to the Moon Goddess above I silently crawled in through a smashed window. I landed softly in what appeared to be the main living room, however it was hard to distinguish which room it was as the house had been stripped of all furniture and decoration.
I paused in my landing, straining my ears for any form of noise; breathing, moving, talking or a heartbeat. Hearing none of the above over the pounding rain I began to move to the closet door.
The floor was dry, with no appearance of recent tracks, and the only footsteps found were the ones I was leaving behind. I continued through the door frame, which lead into what I assumed what a kitchen, as there was a rusted sink and an old looking fridge.
I continued through the next two rooms, ending in what appeared to be was the bedroom. All rooms were clear. The knowledge has my shoulders sag in relief as the tension I had been holding dissipated.
I had gotten lucky tonight. Being able to find a house, an abandoned one at that. It almost seemed too good to be true.
Removing the hood that concealed my face I patted down my frizzy and now soaked hair as I took off my back pack and dumped it on the floor. I would stay here for the night.
It was safe and dry.
It seemed I had made the right choice when the rain again became heavier as wind caused the walls to shake from strain. The storm started to seem like more of a hurricane and I wondered how long I would be stuck in this house for before it cleared.
I sighed before moving to shut the door. Grabbing two metal drink bottles and a shoelace I tied both drink bottles to the door handle. That way if someone entered the drink bottles would make noise and I would awaken easily.
An idea that made more sense when my environment was quite. It may be heard to hear the knocking drink bottles over the loud thunder claps and sound of lightening outside.
Returning to my bag I pulled out my spare t-shirt and a small blanket. I stripped of my soaked jacket and undershirt, laying them on the floor with false hope that perhaps they would dry a little.
I dressed in the shirt before propping my bag up in the corner. I placed my small blanket on the cold floor to use as a mattress. Using my arm as a pillow I felt my cold aching body being pulled into the darkness.
**************
The sun rays penetrated through the windows, assaulting my pupils and turning the inside of my eyelids red. Groggily I sat up and looked around the small room I was laying in. The walls that looked dark last night now were a light wood colour.
With the scent of rain no longer blocking any smell, my nose hairs were singed but the stench of blood and urine and I wrinkled my nose in distaste. But it had provided cover from the storm last night, and in my situation I was glad to have slept in such a room.
I picked the sleeping crust out from the corner of my eyeball while yawning quietly. My body ached and begged for more rest, but I had to keep moving. I had been here longer than I should.
The storm had ended last night and I wasn't sure when. It could've been hours since it stopped. Which meant hours of opportunity for someone to pick up my scent.
I slowly rose upwards, thoroughly stretching my limbs which were sore after sleeping on such a hard surface for the night. I leant backwards, smiling to myself as my back made a satisfying crack. Immediately making me feel better.
I pulled my wavy brunette hair into a pony tail using one of the few elastics I had found in my travels.
I reached down to food my blankets before placing them in my backpack. Scooping up the now semi dry shirt and jacket from last night I tucked them into the front pocket of my pack. Grabbing the shoelace and two drink bottles on my way out I tucked them into the side.
This old backpack held everything I owned. Some underwear, two sets of long pants, shirts, my leather jacket, a knife, a blanket and bottles of water which I refilled at every chance I got.
Food I caught or picked up when moving. Mostly in my wolf form. It was too hard to carry without spoiling and would give a scent to pack warriors and rouges alike. It was risky to take food. And I couldn't afford the luxury of risks.
With the thought of food fresh in my mind my stomach grumbled loudly, letting me know it had been a few days since I had eaten. I would need to hunt today.
I jumped through the same broken window I had entered through last night. I sighed in content as the warm sun rays caressed my face. That storm had lasted the better part of two days so sunshine was a welcome return.
I walked away from the house for over an hour. Trying to find an area with enough cover that I could shift into my wolf without being too exposed.
After finding an area that offered such cover I quickly stripped out of my clothing, shoving it all into my backpack and hiding it beneath a nearby shrub.
I felt giddy as I readied for the shift, my wolf prowled in my brain, waiting for her opportunity to come out.
I inhaled deeply before letting the feeling of the shift overrun my senses. My back cracking and reshaping, my tail sprouting from my spine. My shins breaking only to reform stronger and reinforced. My nose elongating into a snout as my ears stretched out. The shift was completed in seconds and my wolf jumped around excitedly. She was glad to be out.
The ranking of a wolf within a pack could generally be distinguished by their biological forms. High ranking wolves had dark coats. With Alpha's having the darkest; black. They were also very large wolves. Normally around 5"8 to the largest I've seen being 6"0 when in wolf form. While their muscle mass ranges from bulk to terrifyingly bulk.
Beta's normally have a dark grey, but they were highlighted lighter, also very large. Then the Warrior's, a grey pelt, who weren't large in size, but were always incredibly bulky. Every other wolf had lighter coloured pelts, with a smaller size.
The same pattern followed in females. However female wolves were smaller and leaner then they're male counter parts.
But just because a wolf had the biological make of a Beta didn't mean they were one, they could just come from a line of Beta's. Or an Alpha sized wolf could be born from an Alpha, but be the second born and thus not an Alpha in truth.
It could sometimes become confusing but I guess the rules no longer really applied as packs didn't seem to exist anymore. It was now every wolf for themselves.
Shaking my head from the thoughts, I focused back onto the task of hunting.
My wolf stretched languidly, I hadn't shifted in just under a week as I travelled. Being in wolf form gave off my scent more as fur held more sweat glands than skin, but the storm had slowed my travel down remarkably. Therefore I needed to make a quick kill so that I could keep moving.
I lowered my snout to the ground and began sniffing. Constantly scenting the area for possible prey. I latched onto a small scent that faintly crossed my nose. A few more deep sniffs of the trail and I knew what lay ahead.
A rabbit.
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Chapter one is up and here!