Black as Night

Blood Red

Winter was enjoying her time in the mountains, learning every part of the snow glazed forest and visiting the Northern Village.

However, she missed her home. She missed sneaking out into the village. She missed her governess. She missed Raul and his jokes.

She missed it all and yet she felt peaceful here.

The winter had cut her off from her Kingdom allowing her time to think.

Did she want to go back or did she want to run away?

It would be wiser to run away. After all, she was a coward and a weakling. Going back would be a death sentence. Her sister had taken the throne from what she heard. In the coming spring she was to ascend to the throne.

Her father had died as well. Mason had delivered the news to her. The King was dead, The Princess is missing and Parliament was in session. 

She had cried that night, the storm raged in as she lets her tears fall. Luca had stayed with her and Mason covered her with a blanket, not sure what to do with her.

When she had woken up, Mason was gone leaving Luca to protect Winter.

It's been weeks since she was found and quite frankly, she was getting sick and tired of sitting around so she decided to go exploring. She didn't go too far of course.

Here she was, sitting on a log watching the mountains. It felt surreal and odd. She was used to seeing the capital and it's busy streets.

Soon the sky turned darker and darker as the wind picked up.

She hugged the cloak closer to her body and got up. The clothes that she was wearing belonged to a lady friends of Mason. When Winter inquired on the topic, Mason had turned red and asked if they fit her.

He had given her a new name: Winry.

He said that it would be easier to go into the Northern Village of she had a different name and covered her hair.

"Luca!" She called out to the estranged she-wolf. There was no answer, only the still mountain air.

Deciding that waiting around in this weather wasn't going to help, she walked back to the tiny log cottage. The trees all looked the same but Winter kept walking, the trees would clear and the cottage would come into view.

Only the thing was that it didn't.

'I could have sworn that I'd walked this far. I'm not lost.'

There was still no sign of Luca anywhere.

The snow crunched beneath her feet as she walked onwards. The sky darkened with each step and Winter could only clutch onto the black cloak.

The temperature dropped as she kept walking. It was as if she was walking in circles. The cold seeped through her gloves and she felt numb.

That memory of the river resurfaced. The fear of being chased and the painfully numbing cold water.

She stopped in her tracts and looked around. The trees were covered with frost and their branches swung menacingly in the wind, as if they were grabbing for her.

"Who goes there?" Someone yelled. Winter thought that it was Mason's voice but eventually realized that it wasn't.

"Have we caught a little winter fox?" Someone else said.

Winter saw the lanterns in a far off distance and hid behind a tree.

"Found anything, Donavon?" It was the first voice which was gruff and deep.