Rouge Tree

A forest is quiet, living on the outskirts of the town called Shadow Wood. The forest is dark, quaint, and undisturbed by the annoying polluting humans living in the small town. I on the other hand, prefer the quietness of the forest, rather than the blazing horns of the human's way of transportation. What ever happened to good old walking? Me, I have no need for technology- no need for a cell phone; who will I call? No TV; why would I want bad influences? No Internet; what ever happened to books?

Life in the old days were more pure- I wish I was born in that era.

~Sasha~

"Alpha Sasha," I hear my name being called, jerking me from my wolf's day dream, and his annoying rant about how we need to man up and look for our mate. The annoying bastard... but then again, that's like calling myself an annoying bastard. "Are you listening?" Johnathan, my beta, asks me concern filling his voice.

"Oh yeah. Sorry Beta Johnathan." I tell him, running a hand through my shaggy hair. I really should get a hair cut; summer is getting closer. I don't need to keep my fur long- it's a nuisance in the summer.

"Anyways, we believe there's a rouge in the forest. Living there." A rouge? Living in my forest? It was unheard of.

"Should we attack?" Zach, Johnathan's twin brother, asked.

"We shouldn't. There's no threat Alpha Sasha." Josh told me, leaning in his seat. "The rouge stays in it's tree, and only goes into town to get something to eat. Never shifts or anything."

"I still think we should attack." Jediha says, everyone's head turning toward him."I mean, there's every possibility that this rouge is a threat. The rouge could be sending off information on how we're not doing anything to him or her yet- they could be plotting something, and using an inside source will help us in the end."

I would never say it to his face, but Zach did have a point. We had to show the rouges we weren't going to allow them onto our land, not after what happened last time.We took off the front steps, shifting mid jump, and dashing into the Shadow Wood Forest, the wind blowing through our shags of fur. Yes, we all needed a hair cut. Slowing our speeds, an unfamiliar scent filled our noses.

Lemons and roses. A beautiful, perfect combination. Our strides matched, and with each step the scent got stronger and stronger, until I saw a flaming head of dark, blood red hair.

Two words described the girl sitting on the tree branch-

Mine and Mate. 

~ Ryder ~

The air shifted dramatically- you could slice the tension that now filled the forest with a knife. I stopped breathing, freezing in place and looking up from my tatter copy of How To Kill A Mockingbird, dog tagging the page I was on.

No, not humans. Humans wouldn't be so silent, so stealthy. They would have shouted at me, asking me what I was doing up here. That, and the fact that I could smell them. Four, powerful scents. Musky, minty, aftershave, It was all mixed up, hard to define which was which. My head throbbed from the need to shift, but I pushed it down, letting the breath I had been holding out.

Their large paws slapped against the hard forest ground, getting closer, their hearts beating at an abnormal pace. There weren't many ways of escape, not like I wanted them to think I was guilty of something. I wasn't. I was an innocent girl.

First of all, I wouldn't get my two feet on the ground before I was attacked.

Second, if I traveled by tree, they could easily knock it over, making me fall out and injuring my small, fragile human form.

Shifting wasn't an option. No, I wouldn't shift.

I didn't know what to do. Run, or try to explain my stay in this land. It was owned by a pack, but was so quiet and quaint I didn't want to notice. Growls erupted, and I noticed that one was at my east, another at my west, and two others covering my south and north. Any hopes of escape vanished, and I sighed, looking around me.

That is, until two big, abnormally warm hands, clammed down on my bare shoulders.