The Tragedy of Being

Six is the absence of something

Blood Upon The Snow-Hozier

Cass felt hollow. Like she was stuffed with cotton, or dreaming.

She was helping Lucy to her feet, after she landed on a group of small stone animals.

Lucy's pale face was horrified, and Mr and Mrs Beaver started walking towards the trees.

Cass followed behind them dumbly.

The snow crunched underneath her boots. She had to lift the hem of her dress so that she could walk. The hood of her cloak protected her from the slowly falling snow.

They came to a stop in front of a table of animals, set in stone.

They all had equally terrified expressions on their faces.

"He was my best mate..." Mr Beaver muttered brokenly, reaching to touch the stone badger's face.

"What happened here?" Peter demanded.

Cass was surprised by the anger and authority in his voice.

"This is what happens to those that cross the White Witch." A voice spoke.

Cass' head snapped towards the voice, only to see it coming from a fox.

"Get back traitor! Or I'll chew you to splinters myself!" Mr Beaver threatened, stepping angrily towards the fox, who was standing on a snow covered stone. Mrs Beaver grabbed her husband's arm to hold him back.

"Relax." The fox drawled. "I'm one of the good guys."

Mr Beaver was wary, but less angry now. "Yeah? Well you look an awful lot like one of the bad ones."

"We can argue breeding later." The fox said, jumping over Mr Beaver to land behind him. "Right now we need to move."

"What did you have in mind?" Peter asked, ignoring any protest from Mr Beaver.

The fox smiled.

"Climb into the tree. I'll lead them off your trail." The fox explained.

Cass glanced at the tree. She'd struggle to climb it in this dress.

Peter moved to give Susan a boost, letting her clamber into the tree, before helping Lucy into the tree.

The Beavers scampered up the tree, and Peter turned to Cass.

"I can manage-" Cass began, but Peter hoisted her up.

"Don't argue with me. We don't have the time."

Susan helped pull her into the tree, and Peter clambered in by himself in the nick of time, as the wolves came racing a few moments later.

"Greetings, gents. Lost something, have we?" The fox asked in a mocking tone.

"Don't patronise me. We're looking for some humans." A wolf spoke.

Cass was watching the scene at the edge of the branch, next to Lucy.

"That's a valuable bit of information there, isn't it?" The fox asked.

Another wolf locked it's jaws onto the fox from behind, lifting its feet off of the ground, causing the fox to yelp.

"Your reward is your life." The wolf sneered. "It's not much but..."

Peter had his hand over Lucy's mouth, to conceal any sounds she could make at the sight of the fox being injured.

For a second, Cass thought the fox would give them away.

"North. They ran north." The fixed sighed defeatedly.