I turned around quickly. Staring me straight in the face was the girl, curiosity filling her eyes. I opened my mouth and tried to say something, but no words came out. She had found me. I was not careful enough. I closed my mouth again, and let the girl look at me.
“Excuse me…” she said. “Have you been following me this whole time?”
I cleared my throat and tried once again to speak. “Hello. My name is Artemis, and yes. I have been following you.”
She stared at me warily, and stepped back. “Are…are you going to hurt me?” She said, not taking her eyes off of me.
“No!” I said, taken aback. “I would not hurt you. I was just curious.”
She let out a sigh of relief, and brushed her hair away from her face. Wrapping her cloak around her once again, she took a step towards me.
“So…uh…Artemis, was it?” She whispered. “My name is Jade, but you can call me Red.”
She held out her hand, and I paused. Should I take it? I thought. After a moment of hesitation, I decided to take her hand in mine. Compared to my giant, dark, furry paws, her hands were very small and pale…They looked like they would break.
“Um…Artemis?” Red asked shyly, looking away. “Are you…I mean, you aren’t…I mean…Wolf…” She trailed off, and looked at her feet.
I smiled softly and squeezed her hand gently. “Do not be shy. Ask your question…Red…” Her name still felt odd to say.
She looked up at me with her big, green eyes, and tried again. “You aren’t….human. What are you, Artemis?” She asked, looking into my eyes the whole time.
I let her hand drop from mine, and sat down. “You are right, Red. I am not human.” I said, running my hands through my fur. “I am not a wolf either. I am…A werewolf, in simple terms. A lycanthrope.”
She sat down beside me and stared in wonder. “A werewolf…” she whispered.
I nodded. She was kind of cute when she stared with her big, cutesy eyes. I heard a noise behind me, and tuned in to it. I looked into the bushes behind us and narrowed my eyes. I growled under my breath and stood up.
“Red…” I growled. “Come on. We need to leave.”
She stood up, but stepped back. “What’s wrong?” She asked. “Artie?”
I grabbed her arm and pulled her along behind me. I turned my head to look at her. Her hair was tousled and covered her entire face, and her cloak was glued to her skin from sweat.
“Red, you have to go home now.” I said the urgency noticeable in my voice.
I turned around and dashed into the bushes, claws extended. I dug my claws into the flesh belonging to our stalker, and wrestled them to the ground, but they had some fight in them. I felt my side get raked by claws also, and teeth sunk into my neck. I bared my fangs and pushed the assailant to the ground.
“Why are you here?” I growled. “What do you want?”
I looked into the face of our attacker. The silvery fur reflected the light, and I felt myself turn from anger to confusion.
“…Kita?” I asked, looking into the eyes of my former lover. “What are you doing here?”
She got up and brushed herself off. “I’m coming back to you, aren’t you happy?”
