Autumn's World

Chapter 21

Her mother, her father, her best friend, her two silly companions, her bear mother, her whole family, all dead.

Autumn's whole life was crumbling. What more did she have to live for? She might as well just died there and then. But she had Fall. Fall was now her only family.

Blood stained her fur as she laid down beside Grizelda's cold body, just like she had done with her parents as a kit when they died. Scarlet had struck again. That wolf ruined her. Autumn's spirit was gone. As she closed her eyes, she felt her heart shrink and turn black. Sadness, grief, coldness and hatred washed over and her dreams became dark and grim.

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Instead of her dream being in the clearing, Autumn was sitting on the edge of the river, looking fiercely into it. The sky had a strange blood red tint to it, and instead of water flowing in the river, think blood replaced it. Bones laid at her paws and her fur was stained where she had laid down next to Grizelda in the waking world. Scarlet was across the river.

"You killed my family," Autumn snarled, her sweet voice no longer around.

Scarlet snorted. "You deserve it after what the rest of your kind did to my family!"

Autumn crinkled her forehead. What did she mean? Scarlet obviously noticed that Autumn was confused.

"Your species killed MY family!! Now I can kill yours!!"

Autumn remembered Scratch, her father, telling her about a battle with wolves he fought in. Maybe Scarlet meant that. But Autumn wasn't even born when that happened. Why would the wolves want to kill her?

Autumn curled her lips back and bared her teeth, which seemed to now be sharpened to points in the dream.

Autumn leaped across and scratched at Scarlet, drawing blood from multiple places. She didn't stop until the wolf went limp, then Autumn spat on her. Autumn was turning into something dark.

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Autumn opened her eyes. The rain chilled her spine and her fur was sodden with water and blood. She stood up and saw Grizelda and Toko's bodies still by the den entrance. She licked each one on the muzzle, then flew off through the forest, her wings soaked.

It was too bad the dream wasn't real. Autumn wanted the wolves out of her life. She couldn't take it anymore. She wished she could go back in time and change her past. But she couldn't. Everything was done.

Autumn found herself flying over the city and towards the abandoned building where Fall lived. She flew through the doorway and down the stairs, landing next to the nest. She shook out the water and folded her wings.

Fall wasn't around, so she started to give herself a bath, cleaning off the blood, which had a surprisingly good taste. Was Autumn suddenly becoming bloodthirsty? No. She couldn't.

Fall flew in moments later with something dangling from his jaws.

"Autumn!" he said dropping what was in his mouth. "What happened?! You're covered in-"

"Shut up, fox dung!" Autumn snapped more harshly than she intended.

Fall's eyes widened in shock, and Autumn's heart started to grow back again at the sight of him, guilt filling her now.

"I'm sorry," she whispered. "I didn't mean-"

Fall moved towards her and brushed his tail over her muzzle, silencing Autumn. "It's alright."

Autumn's heart started to beat normally again and she knew she couldn't be dark and cold for the rest of her life. She needed Fall, and Fall needed her.

Autumn sighed. "The wolves-they killed my family."

"I'm so sorry," Fall said gently and nuzzled against her. Then he picked up the strange thing he had flown in with and held it up. "I found this for you," he said placing it around Autumn's neck. "The humans call it jewelry. A necklace. I got it from a closed jewelry store."

Autumn looked at the necklace, a long black weaves string of some sort with a, what Fall called, glass green leaf pendant.

"It's a glass pendant on a black chain. I thought you'd like it."

Autumn purred. "I love it!" She then nuzzled against him and they licked each other's muzzles.

"How about we go eat something? Mouse?" Fall said, gesturing to the rainy outdoors.

Autumn nodded. "Alright."

Together they flew out into the rain and back to the forest. It only took a few paw steps towards the river when Fall heard a mouse scuttling towards a small burrow. It stopped to look at a nearby acorn, but Fall pounced and killed it.

Autumn managed to catch a thrush, but her legs seemed to ache strangely and she suddenly felt exhausted despite all the sleep she had gotten. She shook it off and flew back to the building with Fall.

They settled down in the nest and started to eat their kill. Autumn couldn't stop looking at the necklace. It was so beautiful, and thoughtful of Fall.

"Fall? I-I-"

Autumn couldn't get the words out. She swallowed the rest of her thrush before she stammered again.

"I lo-"

But she felt sick to her stomach. What was suddenly wrong with her? She felt as if she would vomit and Fall could sense something was wrong.

"Are you okay?" Fall asked, putting his tail on her flank.

Autumn suddenly opened her mouth as bile seemed to spill out. She rolled out of the nest and onto the floor, sputtering and shaking. She felt so achey. Fall leaped over to her. The last thing Autumn saw was his face as she suddenly felt dizzy and blacked out.