Hybrid

Butterfly

Maria

A black shadow moved through the trees around me. It moved fast enough that I couldn't make out a definite shape, but slow enough that I knew I wasn't imagining it. Joe pressed his back against a tree like it would save him from the inevitable.

"What's going on?" Joe asked.

I smiled evilly, "A knife can only kill humans, dear."

"Dylan! Come out and let's talk!" Joe called out.

I felt a laugh bubble up through my lungs, "I don't think he's in the mood to chat."

The shadow stopped moving, coming out of the cover of the trees. The wolf was larger than I was easily by a foot. It's ears were lowered against it's head. Teeth snapped at Joe, who cowered away from the beast.

"You're alive," I whispered.

The wolf's red eyes connected with my own and the defensive nature was replaced with a calm one only for a moment. The wolf looked back at Joe and regained it's previous composure. Joe's hands shook like there had been an earthquake.

"He's bleeding out. Let him die slowly," I demanded of the wolf.

The wolf did not move. It was listening to what I'd asked, but it wanted to make sure Joe died. I could hear the fluid in Joe's lungs, and with every breath he took, he was essentially drowning. There was no way to save him now.

I pushed the button on the radio, "Blood is filling his lungs. You won't get here in time even if he managed to tell you where he is."

"Why are you doing this?"

I thought about my response, deciding to deliver it with as much hatred as I could force into my voice.

"I killed them for existing."

Joe gasped for breath, his lungs not getting enough air. His face started turning red, either from panic or from strain. His body grew more tense every second that passed, and soon enough I couldn't hear anything coming from him. I looked at the wolf, who nodded to tell me it was over.

"We have to go."

The wolf watched me stand up carefully, and then leaned it's head down as far as it could. I grabbed onto the fur of its neck and fought to pull myself on it's back. When I finally did, the wolf took off in a sprint.

I had forgotten the feeling of the wind whipping me in the face. It was refreshing to feel it chill my skin. The warmth of the wolf was enough to keep the rest of me warm. I pressed my face into its fur, glad it was okay. 

When I looked behind me, I could see plumes I'd smoke rising higher into the sky. Helicopters circled the area and dropped water on the forest. The fire was too large. The earth would be scarred for years.

The wolf brought us to the place we first met. I slid off its back and sat on the dirt.

"I'm so glad you're alive," I spoke mostly to myself.

The wolf sat down and looked over me, and I continued to speak knowing it couldn't answer.

"I'm sorry I didn't tell you what I was doing. I thought you'd be safer not knowing."

The wolf's red eyes pierced mine, and I knew it was trying to communicate, I just didn't know how.

"Change back so I can talk to you."

The wolf looked at the ground and then back at me.

"You don't know how," I realized.

I spent the next half hour trying to explain how to shift back. The wolf was growing frustrated, often snarling and snapping it's teeth in my direction. Eventually, something clicked and the wolf began changing.