Unlikely Friends

Part 1

Benjamin was scrubbing the wood floor of the living room when he heard his mother call
"BENJAMIN!"
"Yes mother?" He answered.
"Go boil this water. Then finish your chores, then go help your father on the fields." She commanded strictly. Benjamin had to bite his lip to help from finishing her sentence. It was the same everyday. She didn't need to tell him, but she liked to. She liked to torture him by throwing workload upon workload on his shoulders until he fell over or it was time for bed. Whichever came last.

After boiling the water, he finished cleaning the floor, then he milked the cow, cleaned the pens, chopped firewood, carried the firewood to the barn, fed the animals, and a few more things. When he had finished, he gave a sigh of relief.
"Benjamin! You come help me with the fields! Or you'll git a whippin'!" His father said harshly, seeing him take a break. He worked with his father for most of the day. At lunch, he was told to keep working until he finished plowing 3 more rows. Then he could have lunch. It took him 2 hours to finish and when he got inside, there were only the leftovers to be eaten. He sadly nibbled on his piece of bread and stirred his small portion of stew. He had barely finished when he heard his father bellow to him to help him with the fields again. The rest of the day was filled with hard work and little rest. He occasionally got to eat dinner, but tonight wasn't one of those nights. He went to bed exhausted. His mind drifted off sleep and a sweet dream followed.

He was in a house. It was a small house, but it seemed huge to him as he wandered around it. No one was in there and he realized that it was his house. There was a giant turkey roasting over the fire and the smell of a delicious stew in the kitchen. It was amazing. He couldn't hear any commands from his father, or any complaints from his mother, all he could hear were the birds chirping outside and the fire crackling in the fireplace. He walked into the kitchen and saw a plate of food filled to the sides. Bread, meat, Potatoes all filled the plate. An already prepared meal was a thing he never saw in his real life. He was about to take a bite when he was woken by a rooster crow from outside. He reluctantly woke from his slumber. He walked outside of the barn (yes. He slept in the barn) and slowly made his way to the house, trying to take as long as he could to get there. When he got there, he was somewhat awake. The second he came into the door, he was bombarded with a list of commands, none of which involved eating.
It was Sunday so they were getting ready to go to Church. He put on the best clothes he had. And followed his parents out the door and into the cart. His parents rode up front, and Benjamin bounced in the back. They stayed for the service. And after, his father struck up a conversation with their neighbor, Shawn. After the talk, Benjamin's parents invited him over. The family, along with Shawn and his wife came over and they all gathered in the living room. His mother told Benjamin to bring some tea for the guests. He quickly went into the kitchen and made four cups of tea. Two for his parents, two for the guests.
Walking back in to the living room, he gave one to Mrs. Shawn, and was about to give one to Shawn, but his foot caught on the rug and sent all three cups of tea onto Shawn. He yelled in pain as the hot liquid seeped through his clothes. Benjamin's father got up and yanked Benjamin's collar so that his face was staring right into his father's.
"Go to the barn. I'll deal with you later!" He said through gritted teeth.
Benjamin ran out the door and into the barn. He threw himself onto a pile of hay and wept. He knew that his dad would beat him. And knew it would be hard. Probably the hardest he'd ever been beat. He awaited the inevitable. He could hear Shawn's angry shouts at his parents. He and his wife stormed out of the house and slammed the door behind them. Benjamin heard this and knew it was his turn to get yelled at, and worse too. Any minute his father would be coming to inflict the worst punishment Benjamin had ever suffered. Benjamin just wanted to be away. He wanted to be alone, far away from his abusive parents, but he couldn't go anywhere.
Or could he? Benjamin's mind was speeding now. He devised a plan quickly and prayed to God that it would work. He heard his father come out of the house, and Benjamin was right, he was mad! Benjamin stood behind the barn door, and waited. His father pushed the door open and stormed in, searching for his son. Benjamin quietly stepped around the door and out of the barn. Then he ran. He ran into the forest as fast as he could. He didn't stop to rest, and he didn't stop to look back. He was out of the fry pan, and into the fire. If he could just get far enough away before they noticed, he thought he had a chance.
After running for what seemed like eternity, Benjamin slowed to a walk, but didn't stop. He glanced behind him. He could no longer see his house. He had ran so far and now he was on top of a small mountain, overlooking the town. When he finally stopped, he looked down at his feet, and realized that he was a foot deep in snow. He turned around and saw that he had left a trail of footprints that led all the way down to the base of the mountain. Benjamin panicked. He bent down and put his head in his hands. What was he going to do? He looked up and noticed a storm in the sky. At first he was angry because that meant that it would get even colder, but then he realized that the storm would cover his tracks. He turned and kept running. If he could get far enough, the snow would cover his tracks, and they couldn't follow him anymore. When he thought he had a good enough lead, Benjamin looked around for a place to hide. He found a small cave and went in.

Fedor:
Fedor was walking in the snow, scenting the wind. He could smell nothing but a storm coming, and his stomach growled. Fedor actually growled. He had been hunting for at least two days so far, but found nothing. His ears perked up as he heard a shout from down the mountain. Just a stupid human! he thought as he turned to search somewhere else. Fedor was hungry and ready to head back, so he gave one last deep sniff. His eyes widened, and he sniffed again. There was something. Just barely there. Not a scent, but a trace of one. It was so small that he almost missed it, but Fedor's nose was acute. Years of hunting these mountains had transformed his nose to be able to detect scents from miles away. He sniffed around a couple more times and knew the direction that it came from. He quickly but quietly jogged through the snow in the direction he thought it was coming from. The scent got stronger as he trudged along. When he thought he knew about how far it was, he slowed to a low walk. He sniffed deeply again, trying to detect what kind of meal it was. It was small, and furry, maybe a rabbit. His ears perked up and he heard it. Just a small twig crack. It was a wet twig too so the sound it made was small, but he heard it and made his way to a covering where he wouldn't be seen. He also traveled to a place where the wind was blowing in his face. This way, the bunny would have a harder time smelling him. Now he could see it. A little white hare. It wasn't fully grown but it wasn't a baby either. Good enough for a meal, but not too hard to catch. Fedor got closer and closer, being completely silent. Ears flat against his head and body low to the ground. He inched himself forward to where he was only ten or so yards away. He readied himself for an attack. His back legs bent low, ready to pounce. In a matter a seconds, Fedor had jumped from his hiding place and cleared three fourths of the distance between them before the hare noticed. It tried to run, but it only got a few yards before it was lifted off the ground by a strong jaw. Fedor stopped its squirming with one bite on its throat. Satisfied with his catch, he headed back to his small cave at the top of the mountain.