The Hardest Hello, The Easiest Goodbye

2 )) Kat

     I ran, feet thumping on the dirt and moss covered ground. I was hunting with my pack. Wolves surrounded an ox, vicious snarls filling my ears. Within the next moments the ox was dead, it's blood staining the fur around it's neck. I dragged the carcass, trying my best to keep up with the alphas. Their chattering was always amusing, who knew wolves could laugh?
     My overgrown and tangled hair covered my wolf ears, making it difficult to hear things farther away. When we got back to our den. The entrance was guarded by two large light grey and black furred wolves who appeared very menacing. I turned back into my wolf form, making my senses heighten.

     "Hey Mom! Dad!" I barked, dropping the ox and running over to them, tail wagging. Kano was the wolf that found me in the woods when I was small, Tahlisa convinced him to take me back with them. Since they couldn't have pups of their own, they made me part of the pack.

     I rubbed my auburn fur on Kano and Tahlisa, embracing them and receiving a loving lick on the ear from mom, Tahlisa. My dad, Kano, laughed and went over to help drag the ox inside the den. Mom and I walked into the den, immediately I was bombarded with the ten other wolves I grew up with. They barked on and on, asking me how my hunt was or if we had run into any hunters.

     "Tano! Tano!" I never knew my real name so I was renamed to Tano, a mixture of Tahlisa and Kano.

     "Tano! Were there any hunters?"

     "Hey Tano! Was it scary on your hunt?"

     I decided to answer some of their endless questions with a simple answer.

     "Nope!" I said, walking away from them and running off to go on my own hunt. Being both wolf and human took a downside sometimes, I needed to get food other than raw meat. I snuck out of the den with a tunnel I dug months prior. I changed back into a human and started jogging up the hill, towards human settlements. The air felt chilly on my body since I wore a top and shorts made out of animal pelts, leaving my legs, arms and stomach area exposed. My back was covered my long auburn hair.

     I ran down the hill, being careful not to step on my tail or any traps. There was usually a fruit vendor in town nearby that I took from. Silently, I made my way around the structures and people, avoiding them the best I could, trying not to be bothered by their staring eyes. I hid my tail in my hair, trying to look like a 'normal' person. The stall where the fruit was in a large place, full of many people. The thrills of the risk excited me but also scared the soul out of me.

     The man who sold the fruit was young and seemed to always have the same expression of suspicion on his stubble ridden face. He looked as if he learned to look out for thieves like me. When he turned away, I dashed over and grabbed as many apples as possible, even holding some with my tail. I tried to run away but he grabbed my arm, an angry and victorious look on his face. A devilish smile crawled upon his lips as I struggled in his strong grip.

    "Caught you, Thief! This was your last crime!" He exclaimed,his hand was tightening on my arm. My instincts got the better of me and I bit him with my sharp teeth. The bitter metallic taste of blood filled my mouth as he let go. I ran off, spitting the red saliva onto the rocky pathway. I could hear him calling for the guards, which only made me go even faster. I laughed, chomping into an apple and throwing the rest of the apples into my makeshift bag that hung off my shorts.

     I could hear the chain mail armor way behind me. Before I knew it, I had lost them. To my despair, I had lost where I was and it didn't smell like my pack's territory. An all to familiar anxiety flooded over me. It was the feeling I had before Kano and Tahlisa had found me. Fear. I hadn't even said goodbye to my pack.

     I howled, hoping for an answer at least. None came. I wrapped my arms around myself and continued down the dirt path in front of me, swaying back and forth with each step.

--

     Eventually I came across a beautiful building. It was gigantic and had an array of coloured glass above the big wooden doors. The stone walls around it were a pristine white colour. Curiosity took the better of me and I pushed one of the doors. It led into a big, beautifully decorated courtyard with a water contraption in the middle. I looked around and my eyes landed on the crowd of people to my right.

     There stood many armored men and non armored people, gathered around a hole in the ground. They were facing towards the west, watching six males dressed in black carrying a body sized box. Blue roses were set upon it in a bouquet. They set it into the hole gently and stepped away. A man with blond hair and grey facial hair had a grim look on his face, a golden crown on his head. The hole was filled in within a few moments.

     Everyone left a different colour rose on the filled in space. Some were sobbing loudly and others shared the same grim look as on the crowned man's head. I sensed a presence behind me. A soft and gentle voice began to speak.

     "It's a shame. A sickly queen sent to her demise because a simple illness became lethal. At least she will be joining her daughter, Princess Katherine aswell as her former husband. Queen Illya will be missed." I turned around, an old woman in a similar outfit to other women and men stood in front of me. I looked at her, wanting an explanation of what happened to the princess. It was as if she read my mind because she began to speak again.

    "The queen and princess weren't always royal, you know. After Illya's first husband died the king needed another wife to keep his place on the throne. He searched all of the land for a woman to court. His heart set itself on Illya, although he knew she had a child whom was missing. They sent out search parties for weeks at a time but still the princess was never found." She said. I took the moment of silence to ask my question.

     "How do they know that the princess is dead?" I gained a thought filled look from the old woman.

     "Well.. Its been a decade since her disappearance and there were criminals near where she, her mother and father used to live at the time. It has been a long and tough thirteen years for everyone." She explained.

     "What did Princess Katherine and Queen Illya look like?" I inquired, honestly curious.

     "Well I don't know what the princess looked like, but I know the queen said she saw herself in her daughter. Queen Illya had deep brown eyes and long wavy red hair, the colors almost exactly the same as your own." She said before turning around and heading towards the group of people.

Word Count: 1257

~written by ImaweirdKat~