FATE
Chapter One: Fight
The snow drifted down in thick, white sheets. Slush clumped under trees, and the gray darkened with each passing second. In the distance, barks were heard, and wolves prowled the sides of the paths, waiting for potential food. A sleigh led by eight coal black dogs rushed past a large oak, spraying powdery snow everywhere. A woman stood in the sleigh, her black hair blowing in the biting wind. In front of her, a small figure was hunched out of the frosty wind, shivering, bundled in a frayed cloth.
"How long have we to go?" asked the woman. She lifted up a gloved hand, and brushed her snow white face against the cruel frost.
"W-w-we will reach the forest b-border soon." Stuttered the figure. A small head popped out of the rags, and two silky brown ears followed. The rabbit sat up, and twitched its nose.
"I wish you could shift into something useful!" stated the young woman, dark eyes flashing in humor. "You look ridiculous." The rabbit crouched back down.
"I wish you were not so bossy. And besides, this is the only shape that keeps me warm when I am in the sleigh." She said.
"A snow leopard would be more useful." The young woman shielded her eyes as they ran through low hanging branches. A high pitched howl pierced the silence.
"Wolves!" she gasped. She pulled a hood over her long hair, and pulled it tight. A small gray figure lunged through the trees, landing in the middle of the running dogs.
"No!" she yelled. She cut the ropes holding the dogs to the sleigh, and leapt out, landing on her feet. The dogs separated themselves from each other, and tore the ropes off them with their sharp teeth.
A low growl cut through the eerie silence, and, the dogs turned, the woman realized they were surrounded. A small shuffle at her feet made her look down. A disgruntled rabbit sat at her feet, ears dragging on the ground.
"Thank you." She muttered bitterly, licking her paw. The woman turned and shrugged, ready for a fight. One of the wolves stepped forward, and the largest black dog lunged, seizing the startled wolf by the throat. A brief, stunned second passed, and then the fight began. For every black dog there were three wolves, and the rest were left to the woman.
"Okay, lets go." She turned to the rabbit, instead looking at a white leopard.
"Finally!" she said, smiling at her companion. They both turned toward the fighting, and immediately spotted the lone wolves. They made their way through the battlefield, and slowly picked off the wolves, one by one, either finishing them off or frightening them.
As the last wolf disappeared, and the injured dogs licked their wounds, the sky slowly turned black, and snow ceased to fall.
"The eye of the storm!" she exclaimed to the leopard beside her.
"We must leave! Hurry, before it starts!" said the leopard. They ran to the sleigh, and straightened it out. The woman whistled, a high pitched call, and the black dogs bounded out from the bushes. She tied them up from the remains of the rope, and leapt on, followed by a small rabbit.
"Oh, the wimpy rabbit!" she exclaimed. But she had no chance to reply as they made their way towards the distant mountains, towards home.