Snowmelt

XV

I stalk through the dimly lit woods, feeling the breeze in my face, my tail hanging behind me and the leaves silent beneath my paws. My eyes are locked on my prey. The two rabbits graze, one occasionally raising its head and twitching its nose, sniffing the air. I wait until it goes back to grazing, then leap from my hiding spot, killing the rabbits as I land. I pick up my prey, then move back under the bushes I had hidden beneath before. 

After finishing my meal, I head back to my den, sniffing the area nearby to check if any other creatures, wolves or otherwise, had been there. Nothing. Good. I check outside once again, then go into my den. It's nearly dawn. I can see the sky starting to lighten already. I release almost all hold on my power. I nearly explode into a ball of nothing but pure shifting energy. Instead, I shift every second. A red fox. A bluebird. A field mouse. A golden eagle. 

Every animal in existence, I became. Every color, I took on. Except for one. The color of the night. The color of the deepest lakes. Black. The deepest, darkest shade of grey? No problem. But midnight black? Coal black? Never. I have too many nightmares of midnight birds, too many visions of inky wolves, too many sights of sooty bears following me. I am far too haunted by the color of the night.

"I hope I'm never forced to take that vile color to my pelt. Nothing could drive me to willingly look like him. Halka would understand... I know he would!" I mutter to myself, having returned to my now normal form. My hackles are raised, my mind unnerved by even the thought of him.

I step out of my den, into the dim morning light. I shake out my pelt and get a drink of water, and I feel my hackles flatten ever so slightly.

"Don't worry, Aika. He can't find you here. He wouldn't even know to suspect you. None of them would." I try to reassure myself, but it's ineffective. I turn from the stream, facing the woods, and start to walk, then speed up to a trot, then break into a full on sprint. My paws pound the ground with every stride and my ears are laid back, flattened against my head. I leap over the occasional fallen tree, feeling my tail flying behind me as I fly through the air. 

As I run, my mind starts to go completely blank. I'm no longer running from my den. I'm running from my own mind. I only stop when I can run no more. I run until I can barely walk; I run until my legs feel like bundles of grass, then start to walk in the direction of my den.

When I finally reach my den and enter it, my legs nearly collapse beneath me. I bury my muzzle under my paws, falling asleep almost instantly.