The Girl Who Cried Wolf

Six

06 | s i x

Her ears were practically bleeding from Nana's yelling the next day.

"You left the house at midnight into the woods where you could get killed?! Have you lost your mind, Red?"

"Nana," she groaned.

"Don't you dare Nana me!" Grandma Baker pointed her cooking spoon threateningly at her. "How many times do I have to tell you that the woods is a dangerous place? You shouldn't go there."

"I saw the wolf again." She heard her grandmother groan probably thinking she was lying. "It's true I did. It was there. We talked."

"Really? A shape-shifting wolf, also known as a hunter, talked to you? What did you discuss? Let me guess, it asked you, hey, I was just wondering what kind of method would you prefer to be cooked? Boiled or grilled?" her grandmother suggested sarcastically.

"Nana, I'm serious here. It said it didn't want to kill me. It wasn't like the rest of the hunters," she tried to explain but her Nana wasn't having any of it.

"Hunters are deceitful creatures. It is lying to you and you're too blind to see it!" The words came out harsh from her grandmother's mouth. She bit her lower lip to stop herself from crying.

"I'm sorry, my child," her grandmother apologized coming to sit by her side. "It's just that ever since your parents died at the hands of those beasts, I've gotten so scared. I don't want the same fate for you. You're all I have left, Red."

Red understood, she did. It was neither of their fault. Her going to the woods scared her grandmother of losing her. She hugged her Nana close. "You won't lose me, Nana. I'm not going anywhere," she assured her.

"I know, I know. I just don't like you going there." Grandma Baker sniffled.

"I'm not a little girl anymore, Nana. I'm twenty-two, a full-fleshed adult. I can take care of myself. All I need is for you to trust that I'll be fine. Can you do that?" She smiled at her grandmother.

Grandma Baker nodded. "Even when you're old and grey you'll always be my little girl, Red."

"Right now this girl needs a bath." She withdrew from her grandmother and grabbed her bathing materials. "I'll be in the river," she announced and left the house.

*:*:*

The warm river water felt good on her skin and she allowed herself to be basked in its warmth. The river was a safe distance from the village. No one went there, just her and her grandmother.

"Care if I join you?" someone asked. An intruder. She sunk deeper into the cold water to avoid being seen.

"You can come out, Red. It's Lycus." Lycus? The prince? What was he doing near the river? What was he even doing in the village?

She resurfaced. Just her head for she was stark naked. "It isn't gentlemanly for a prince to watch a lady take her bath. What are you doing here, Lycus? Does Mr. Linton know you're here?" Her cheeks burned as realization dawned on her. She was naked before the prince! Well, literally.

The prince was dressed casually in a plain shirt and jeans. He had a cap over his head to hide his face. It wasn't doing a very good job though.

"No, I left before Linton could spot me. You can stop trying to hide from me, you know? It's not like I can see anything. Which I have to admit is quite a bummer." His midnight blue eyes danced with amusement. "I wanted to see you again," he confessed, sounding more serious now.

"And you couldn't wait till I was done with my bath?" she asked him, cocking her head to the side.

He moved closer to the water crouching down to dip his fingers in it. "What can I say? I'm pretty whipped." He winked at her.

She wasn't sure if it was the way he said it or what he said that got her insides all jumbled up.

"You're really beautiful, Red. You have no idea how much I'm trying to stop myself from jumping into this river to hold you." His eyes told her that he wasn't joking.

"We just met Prince Lycus. I'm an ordinary girl," she professed shyly. He didn't say anything for a while. He just stared at her.

"I want to take you somewhere but you have to agree to come first," he warned.

She nodded even though she was unsure. "Where?"

"The woods."

*:*:*

Twenty minutes later, she was dressed in her signature red cloak and a pair of slightly ripped jeans, not for fashion but because it had worn out.

The prince had told her to meet him by the entrance of the woods and she had to lie to her grandmother that she was going for a long walk to clear her head. She hated lying to her Nana but she couldn't pass up an opportunity to spend time with the prince. It wasn't a complete lie. She was going for a walk just not where her Nana thought.

Instead of following the cobblestone path she had been taught, Red strayed into the woods.

"Do you own any other colour?" Lycus asked her from where he was leaning on the bark of a tree.

"Actually, yes. But red is my favourite."

"Figures." He stood upright, stretching out his hand for her to take. She gladly accepted it, placing her hand in his. His hand was large, cold and firm against her feeble, warm one. Where he held her tingled. "Come on." They walked farther into the woods away from the village.

"Why did you bring me here?" she asked, craning her neck to look into his handsome face. He had ditched his cap which gave her a perfect view of his face.

"Why do you hide your eyes?" he asked instead of a reply.

She looked away nervously. "They're quite unusual."

"Can I see them?" he requested.

She wasn't sure. What if he called her a freak because of them?

"Please?" he added, his eyes crinkled at the sides when he smiled.

"Okay," she finally agreed and they stopped walking. He dipped his hands in his pockets and watched her as she slowly unveiled her hood to him. "Are you sure?" she had to ask again.

"One hundred and one percent," he affirmed.

She held up her hood with her hands and gestured for him to raise her bangs with his hands. He took a cautious step closer and raised her bangs slowly. Consciously brushing her face with his fingers.

"They're beautiful, Red." He was truly awed by them like they were two perfect rubies. "Why would you hide something so beautiful?"

"I thought people would call me a freak. I didn't want to be called a freak," she told him, honestly.

"Speaking of freaks," he said suddenly becoming rigid. Her back stiffened. "Don't freak out," he tried to calm her.

She knew. There had to be. Shutting her eyes, she asked. "There's a wolf behind me, isn't there?"

"Yes," he confirmed. She turned around quickly and they both retreated backwards slowly.

"What do we do, Lycus?" she whispered.

This wolf was nothing like the white wolf. It was black and terrifying with sharp teeth stained with a dark red liquid. Blood. It was going to kill them both.

"I don't want to get eaten by a hunter," she panicked.

"Stay behind me." He didn't need to say it twice. She was behind him clutching his waist to protect herself. "He's not the only wolf around," he said in a dangerously low voice.

What? She didn't see a second one anywhere. Was he playing pranks on her while they were on the verge of dying? No, he wasn't. Because, in that same moment, the prince transformed into the same creature she had met the previous day.

Prince Lycus was the white wolf.