ONE

Chapter 23 Continue On

   "I don't like this at all. SkyFire just handing me over to you. It seems odd." Tigerfang growled, glancing around her.
     "Okay. But let's wait until we're far away from the direction she headed in to discuss it. If she hears us things could get a lot more complicated."
     Athena was struggling to keep up with the wolf, who was easily loping through the grass. Meanwhile, her woolen cloak was getting tangled up in brambles and scratchy reeds.
     They stopped in a shaded clearing. "It's going to be dark soon." Tigerfang noted, looking up at the sky.
     "Nice observation." Athena answered jokingly. Tigerfang shook her head with a smile on her wolf-lips.
     "What's happened since I've been gone?" Tigerfang asked, not really focusing, staring at a bird zooming around in the trees.
     "Well, Zoe is fighting with her group. In the riots and small battles." Athena started. "I met a cool little wolf named Flurry." She went silent.
     "Tons of death and violence, right?" Tigerfang shivered wearily. The girl nodded, sending her curly golden hair into a cascading wave.
     "Well. There's not much we can do. Besides, I can withstand a little brainwashing." Tigerfang said confidently, stretching her legs in the light snow.
     "Whatever you say." Athena said with a sigh.
     "So we know for sure that Zoe is safe and you're trusted by both sides of this war." Athena nodded. "Not to sound blunt, but you're going to be a very useful asset." Tigerfang said awkwardly.
     "Of course. I bought you some time." She said gently.
     "Umm... Maybe not." Tigerfang said guiltily. "SkyFire does have the TimeTurner on her side." "You mean that crazy psycho who gave you the RedMark?" Tigerfang nodded and looked down at her furry chest, where the mark used to be.
     "Yeah. She could speed up time if she wanted to." Athena murmured nervously.
     "I freaking hate this war." Tigerfang howled. She plopped down into the snow and rolled onto her back. "Hate it hate it hate it."
     She lifted her head suddenly. "How's it with you and Dread?" She asked.
     "Not too great. He is mated to EveningSunset." Athena said the she-wolf's name with a bite to her voice, like she was trying to eat a lemon.
     "Evening isn't the worst Fort wolf there is." Tigerfang reminded her warningly. "But I see why you would dislike her." She said comfortingly.
     "They had a pup together a couple days ago." Athena growled angrily.
      "That doesn't necessarily mean they like each other. Sky could've forced them." The gray wolf shrugged and closed her eyes.
     "Redeye lost his memory and momentarily forgot about me entirely. But I can't imagine Sky could make me stop loving him." Athena made a gross face.
     "No, I'm serious! Love is powerful! And so is hate. Those two can drive a wolf to do anything within the realms of her ability." She barked sagely.
     "Look at Sky. Something must've happened to her to drive her to hate this world so much that she was determined to change it to her liking. Evil is never born, it's made. You of all people should know that."
     There was a pause in the still and darkening forest. "That's very correct." Athena said after the pause.
     They spent the night in the cover of a gnarled tree that's roots curved around each other to form a little nest.
     Tigerfang dug the snow from it and packed it with pine needles and feathers from a dead osprey she found by the river. Athena was desperately rubbing two sticks together over a pile of tinder and twigs, occasionally striking a rock against it.
     "Athena, just use your magic." Tigerfang growled as she slunk over from finishing the "nest."
     "No! I'm imagining I'm stranded in the wilderness with my little dog-" She patted the wolf's scarred face. "And I've lost my magic. How would we fare then?" Tigerfang rolled her eyes. "I don't know. But I've got fur anyway so it doesn't matter to me." She walked back to the makeshift bed.
     Athena eventually submitted and lit it with a dizzying twist of her hands and a mumbled spell.
      "You could've asked me." Tigerfang said, half awake from the bed. "You didn't offer!" Athena said defensively.
     They let the fire burn out, the heat keeping Athena warm and the sparks and drifting, papery-bark from the logs waft into Tigerfang's face.
     Athena eventually sighed and forced Tigerfang aside so she could have a space in the mass of warm feathers and sweet-smelling pine needles.
     "You're a bed hog. I now understand why Dread left you." Tigerfang growled, her voice muffled in the feathers.
     Athena laughed loudly and then hit the wolf's snout with the palm of her hand.
     "You washed these feathers, right?" Athena asked nervously after a few minutes.
     "No. They're crawling with insects." Tigerfang said flatly.
     Athena quickly got up and moved to the other side of the clearing.
     "Ahh." Tigerfang sighed, and curled farther into the feathers. Get nest to self: mission accomplished.