deer hunter, how i became a skinwalker in a world of animal people.

day cycle

Crabtree was a town that had lost its shine a long time ago. Once, it might have been quaint—a place where folks knew each other by name and waved when they passed on the street. But now, it felt like a waiting room for something better, something just out of reach.

It was tucked away from the world, a place that felt like it existed in its own time—somewhere between yesterday and a distant, forgotten stolen tomorrow that they missed getting too. The air was crisp, almost cold, and there was a stillness that seemed to hang over everything, like a held breath.

Lily stepped out onto the porch of her family's small cottage, her red fur catching the early light. She pulled her jacket tighter around her shoulders. The jacket was a little too big, a hand-me-down from her older brother, but it was warm, and that was all that mattered this morning. Her breath formed little clouds in front of her as she stepped down onto the path, her hooves crunching on the frost-kissed ground. She was running a bit late, which wasn't like her, but she hadn't slept well the night before. Nightmares had kept her tossing and turning until the gray light of dawn.

walking through the misty streets, trying not to let the heaviness of it all settle too deep into her bones. The houses around her were silent, dark windows peering out like watchful eyes. Most of the villagers would still be inside, finishing their breakfast or preparing for the day, but us youth had to get up early to study all day for nothing; it just felt like a waste of time. There wasn't any opportunity here, and she didn't think there was any left for a deer in the rest of the world. There was nothing we could do that another animal could do better. So that's why most of the towns population stayed at a lower-middle-class job for their entire lives, like her mom before she lost her job.

Main Street was mostly quiet at this hour, save for the older folks who always seemed to rise with the sun. The shop windows were tired, just like the faces of the people who still worked here. The old pharmacy had a 'For Lease' sign that had been up so long it had started to fade. Next door, the grocery store had gone under months ago, its windows dark and covered with brown paper. There was a thrift shop that seemed to hang on, but only barely, with the same musty clothes and outdated knick-knacks lining the shelves.

She passed the hardware store, its owner—a gruff-looking goat with a long, gray beard—standing outside, sweeping the pavement with slow, deliberate strokes. He nodded to her as she went by, and she gave a half-hearted wave in return. It wasn't that she disliked him, but there wasn't much to say. No one really wanted to be here, not even the ones who stayed.

Now, there was talk of moving people to a new development the governor had been pushing—some fancy community up north, away from all this mess.

But she didn't want to go, even though her mom had told her it was a good idea. She didn't like the terms of that private neighborhood. It had so weird laws and the people running it, people her brother didn't talk nicely about, and she trusted him, so she stayed suspicious of them.

The town was more diverse than most places, with all sorts of ungulates trying to make a living. The antelope, cows, sheep, and goats had their own little enclaves, but there was tension. The deer were cautious around them, always on edge. The farm animals didn't like the deer or the antelope much, either. It felt like everyone was just one bad day away from snapping.

and she felt that maybe some people were waiting for it to happen with alot more enthusiasm than worry.

Lily pulled her jacket tighter around her shoulders, feeling a slight chill with the weather. She glanced at the mall in the distance—the only place that still felt halfway alive in this dying town. The mall had a music store that sold the latest CDs, a movie theater with sticky floors and squeaky seats, and a food court with a new burger joint that all the kids said was "pretty good." But even the mall had lost some of its charm lately. Too many shops were closing down, and the ones that stayed open seemed to have less to offer every day.