Posts by JadaThornfang

Maya Anderson had been missing for three days. One of the nights was “fully gone”, as they said, with not even Maya able to account for her whereabouts. During the rest of the time, she had been in some forest near her house. She’d left home Saturday night, after her parents had flown out of town for a business trip, to go hiking with some friends. Her friends had went home when it started getting dark, but, with nothing else to do, Maya had stayed. She woke up on Sunday, around noon. She’d apparently spent the night in the park and she woke up under a thick cluster of bushes.

When she tried to leave the bushes, the sun had felt hotter than it usually did. So hot it seemed to burn. She had quickly retreated back into her shelter and had not attempted to leave again until night fall. Sunday night was also blurry, but at least she remembered it. She’d followed someone who had been out on a night hike. Although she wasn’t entirely sure why she’d done it, she had killed the person. Had leaped out of the bushes and pushed them to the ground before biting into their neck with teeth that were sharper than she remembered them being. Once she had drank most of the person’s blood she had returned the bushes, which were becoming her makeshift camp.

Now it was Tuesday night. Maya had barely left her camp since she’d killed the other hiker, but she was hungry again. As soon as it was dark out, she crawled out of her camp and started walking around.

Cassandra woke in a place that was definitely not her beach. It was darker and colder and whatever was underneath her feet felt more like wood than sand. As her eyes adjusted to the dark, Cassandra looked around. She was in what seemed to be a store room, with boxes piled around her. She tried to stand up, but when she did she found she couldn't walk. Her ankles had been chained together.

Cassandra sat back down, panic building inside her. She backed up against a wall and tried to think, tried to figure out how she could get out of there. But she couldn't focus. The only thing she could think of was the fact that she had been locked away somewhere unfamiliar.

And then the room moved.

Cassandra stiffened as she heard footsteps approach. She was determined not to show her fear, so she didn't take her eyes off Carrie as she came closer.

"Who are you?" she asked, deciding to ignore the seemingly mocking question and hoping her defiance made her seem braver.

The scent of other wolves, one scent in particular, got stronger. Melanie stepped out from behind a bush, her curiosity overwhelming her. In front of her stood another wolf, this one with a tan pelt and a scent that matched the wolf scent coming from closer to the river.

"Hello," she said tentatively, unsure whether or not the wolf was friendly.

This was not welcome news. As the daughter of two wealthy and politically important people, Cassandra should have been used to having people she didn't know know her. And technically, she was used to it. It happened all the time, especially at those fancy parties. She just didn't like it.

"I see," was all she said.

Why? was what Cassadra wanted to ask. Or maybe, how long is a while? Or just cry. But she did none of these things. Instead, she just went along with it. "Fine," she said, but it was anything but fine. She was certain that nothing good could come of this situation.

Clicked

Cassandra nodded. The mention of food made her realize that she was hungry. There was no way she was going to ask be fed, though. She may have been sitting on the floor in chains, but she still had some dignity.

Melanie noticed the startled look in the other wolf's eyes as he backed away from her. She drew back slightly as well, trying to make herself seem like less of a threat.

"Sorry if I scared you," she said. She tried to think of something else to say. Despite having been born into a family of shifters, she'd never had much interaction with wolves. Since her parents died she hadn't even seen a wolf while in her wolf form. Finally settled for asking what was probably a stupid question. "Am I intruding on your territory?"

Clicked

I prefer more medieval type settings, but I'm ok with pretty much any setting.

Clicked

Melanie relaxed. This wolf clearly wasn't a threat to her.

"Nice to meet you," she said politely. "I'm Melanie, but you can call me Annie."

Cassandra waited until Carrie was out of the room before reaching over and picking up the crackers. The crackers were dry and much less food than Cassandra was used to, but at least they didn't taste stale. When Cassandra was done eating, she pulled her knees up to her chest and wrapped her arms around her legs.

She smiled and almost laughed at a somewhat random thought that came into her head. She hadn't vomited once. Her brothers, who considered themselves such manly men, couldn't even go out for a few minutes on a sailboat without getting seasick. But here she was, delicate Cassandra, the baby of the family, who had never been on a boat before. Here she was on an actual ship that had probably been moving for hours. And, other than being hungry and scared a bit uncomfortable, she was fine. The absence of seasickness gave her hope that, if the pirates’ plan wasn't to kill her, she could survive.

"Honestly, I didn't even know you were here," Melanie admitted. "I was out for a run." She looked around the area they were standing in. It was unfamiliar. "I guess I went a little farther than usually do."

Clicked

Maya set off jogging down a trail going in the opposite direction as the one had taken before. Her mind was a bit hazy, some of her memory was missing, and she acted way more impulsively than she used to. But she still had her common sense. If the hiker’s body had been found, there would likely be someone watching that part of the park.

Around dawn Maya was still looking for something to eat. She hadn't found any humans, so when a squirrel walked across the trail, she pounced at it. The rodent was small and didn't have much blood. Maya sank her teeth into it again after she drained it and bit off some of the flesh. It wasn't ideal; she knew that. Her old self was screaming that raw meat was unhealthy and her new self was screaming that blood was preferable. But it satisfied her hunger and she felt much better after eating.

It was almost daylight, but Maya decided take a chance. Instead of going back to her camp, she continued to wander the forest. She had more energy since eating and felt no need to leave the park. It was the second fact that led her to stay out. If she was going to stay in the park she needed know more about it.

Melanie shrugged as well. "I'm not sure why either. It's probably because I've gotten so good at blending in with the humans. Or it could be because I rarely leave the part of the forest I'm most familiar with, which seems to be outside of your territory."

"No, I don't," Melanie said. "In fact, I haven't met other shapeshifters in years."

Cassandra rolled over onto her side. She was starting to get bored. Sometimes, when she was at home, she would trace her finger along the floor when she was bored, pretending to draw pictures. She tried that now, starting with a simple spiral. The small sting of a splinter reminded her that the floor here was not smooth. And there's no reason it should be, she thought, frustrated by her own stupidity. This is a storeroom, not a living space.