Wolf Weekly

Chapter 4: Sorting and Hunting and Fighting

A/N: Hey thanks to anyone who is still here with me reading : ) is there anything that I can do to improve my writing? I'm grateful for any advice you can give. Thank you and please enjoy this week's edition.

-S.D Hatton

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When I awoke, the sound of whistling lofted through the air, along with the fresh scent of natural herbs boiling over a fire. When I looked over I saw Wolf stirring over a large pot (probably salvaged from the wreckage) and steam emerging out of the pot. I sat up- perhaps to quickly because black spots tickled my vision. Flustered I laid back down and pinched the bridge of my nose hoping for my splitting headache to retreat. From my peripheral vision, I saw Wolf give me a concerned look which soon faded to a smirk.

"Easy there, have some tea" She thrust a stolen teacup at my face encouraging me to drink the questionable mixture in her hands. Hesitantly I accepted the cup and stared down at the thick murky liquid. Taking a whiff I got a scent off the most anorexic scent known to man. I could see chunks which meant that it hadn't been properly blended.

"What is this?" I asked crinkling my nose.

"Only the most delicious tea in all of the land!" I responded with an eye roll.

"I doubt that what's in here?"

"Poison"

"Really?"

"No drink it stupid"

Reluctantly took a sip. It was strangely tasteless, sure it had the tinge of bitterness and a tad of herb-earthy taste but its strongest taste was nothingness. I didn't like it. She could tell that I was about to spit it because she clamped a sweaty hand over my mouth.

"Finish it" she commanded a moment later removed her hand.

"You done?" I responded with a disgusting swallow. She relaxed and leaned back to tending the fire. "You're going to need it for your strength." There was a long moment of quiet- only disturbed by the faint silence of her stirring and the caves echos.

"Where are you from?" She sighed and stared off into the dark end of the cave clicking her tongue.

"You know kid, I ran away from the insane asylum"

"Really?!" I read books in school about the people in insane asylums, my face lit up with awe and questions filled my head.

"No" 

"I never got your name" Right as I opened my mouth to tell her she returned mine with her next chain of words. "I'm gonna call you Cricket because you're small and chirpy."

"That's dumb"

"Your dumb"

"My name's Arlo" She rolled her eyes almost a little disappointed.

"What kinda name is Arlo?!" 

"I don't think you should mock my name, Wolf" She threw up her arms in mock hurt.

"At least I didn't go to some stupid boarding school." The memory and remembrance of the pest day's events hit me in the head like a ton of bricks, she must've seen that because her face softened.

"I'm sorry I didn't mean it like that" I rolled over so she didn't have to see me cry. There was a long uninterrupted moment of silence before she spoke again, this time her words were softer, gentler. 

"From now on I'll call you Arlo" I wiped a hot tear from my check and rolled over, to show her a smile. 

When I rolled over I noticed that she had a large pile of suitcases salvaged from the train laying scattered across the floor.

"What's all that?"

"Finish your tea and I'll show you."

Fifteen minutes and an awful cup of tea later I was kneeling beside her on the ground rifling through the suitcases with Wolf. So far we had a 'me' pile, a 'Wolf' pile a 'Material' pile and a 'miscellaneous' pile. Wolf explained that it would be important to use the luggage to survive after my protests of being disrespectful. After a good hour, I had managed to fight for a pile of books against her ideas of using it to burn.

"Whatever keep your stupid books!" it was then that I realized that she couldn't read.

"What do you mean? Your illiterate?" She sighed in an annoyed tone.

"Why does that matter? How can that help me out here?"

"What about when we get out?" She turned and gave me a dangerous look, a surprised look.

"Get out?!" She raised her eyebrows.

"Yeah when we escape, you know to leave this place... get out." She shook her head disagreeing.

"We're not going to get out there's no way we can make it."

"Not with that attitude," I said mocking the attitude that I see the teachers at my school promote.

"Are you kidding there is no getting out! Were in the middle of the wilderness thousands of miles from the nearest traces of civilization and if we waste our time thinking like that we'll die! you hear me die!

"Don't talk that way!" She stood up and glared at me angrily.

"Don't tell me how to talk! I'm telling the truth we're stuck here!" Stubbornly I plugged my ears to drown it out I had to be able to go home, to see my family again.

"It's just the truth"

"Shut up!"

"fine whatever, I'm going hunting" She retrieved a bow and arrow and exited the cave leaving me alone to fight off the haunting truth. I don't know what I expected, her to come back five minutes later with a kill? Or maybe she was just leaving me... she wouldn't do that with all the valuable stuff in here. After what felt like hours I worked up the bravery to exit the cave and saw her hunting at the center of the field. I slowly made my way down the field to join her, I saw that she had caught several animals effortlessly. I looked around and let the beauty of the day sink in... and it did, that is before I saw the mudslide's result- hunting newly formed cliff from the rocks. It was impossible to climb and it surely buried the train car and the tracks. My way out was gone.