Through The Moonlit Night

Down a road I walked; you couldn't even call it a road. A thin stretch of flattened grass winding its way through the trees. The distant, lonely sound of a train's horn - a railway track passed through not too far from where I stood.

Silence.

The absence of human life was overwhelming, yet comfortingly enticing.

I stopped, sat down against one of the large trees amongst the soft, tall grass. The winter breeze sent chills down my spine and raised the hairs on my arm, yet I welcomed the cold. There was a soft rustle behind me and a young wolf cub rolled out; another leaped out on top of it. They tussled and bumped into my legs, suddenly stopping and staring at me with eyes as round as the moon.

I put out a hand for them to sniff. The larger one, grey as ash, backed away. The littler one crept forward, its snow white fur glowing in the moonlight. It raised its muzzle to my palm and gave it a nip, but I did not withdraw. It looked at me once more, then pressed its head against my hand. The smoky one let out a sneeze and approached me. At that moment, a gentle snowfall begun. The cubs shivered and crawled closer to me.  I put a hand over each of them, letting the warmth flow through to them. A distant howl sounded, perhaps the pups' mother.

Silence once more.

I lay my head back against the rough bark of the tree, looking up at the night sky - the moon was a beautiful orb hanging in the sky amidst the wispy clouds, it's light bright and strong, protecting from the darkness. The snowflakes landed in my hair, on my eyelashes. I felt safe there in the grass with the cubs cuddled against me. Their rhythmic breathing lulled me into a trance like state, tempting me into sleep. I felt a nuzzle against my cheek and lazily opened an eye to see a majestic white bitch, much like her smaller cub, her blue eyes boring into mine. I saw no hatred in them, only kindness, she lay her head upon my lap while the cubs, smelling her milk, moved closer to her.

And just like that, with the smell of milk and the comfort of wolves, I fell asleep in the woods.

Whispers In The Night

The moon shone down, full and bright. It was the only source of light in the midst of the dense forest. The sky was not a clear one. Clouds flitted past, trying to blot out the moonlight, but it was determined not to be hidden. It shone even brighter. Not a single star could be seen.

Everything in the forest was asleep. The gentle sounds of rustling of feathers as birds settled into their nests, of rabbits and moles squeaking as they hurried into their burrows, of owls hooting to show they were awake, all were muffled because of the closeness of the trees. Their canopy was so thick, branches intertwined so they became one, that the light of the moon could barely reach the ground. It cast shadows of leaves on the forest floor, giving the impression of creatures crawling.

A lone girl walked along an invisible path, one that only she knew. She had no fear of what the shadows could hide. A wolf howled its sorrow. The girl went on. She pondered on how miserable her life had been so far.

People who pretended to be her friends but left her helpless and alone when she most needed the warmth of a close one, a family who could not understand her, abused her. The darkness of the forest was the place she could seek refuge. She felt at peace there.

She stopped and looked at her arm. It was bleeding, as it had been for over twenty minutes. She had cut herself too deep. The howl of the wolf was closer, and there was more than one. They had smelled her blood from a long way off. She stood under a tree. A thick cloud passed over the moon. It accepted defeat. The forest grew darker than ever. The girl could not see her hands. A bush behind her quivered. She could not move for fear of tripping. Footsteps sounded all around her. Snarling from every direction. The distant sound of her father calling out to her. Or was that an illusion? A wolf leapt at her from behind. Pinned her down. She looked into it's eyes, they were darker than the forest around. She saw her death in them.

Let this go painlessly, she thought. The wolf bit into her neck. She felt the life seeping out of her quickly. There was a gunshot. The wolves yelped and ran away, frightened. Her father bent over her, taking her head in his hands. She smiled feebly as she took her last breath.

Someone had loved her enough to find her.