Beauty
With The Beast
By Scarlett Michealson
The heat and humidity was downright oppressive. Even under the shelter and shade of the trees, it was too much to bare. Our field trip had already lasted five hours, and we had all been told that it was coming to an end...slowly. We still had two more miles to walk back to base camp. Around me everyone kept groaning about the heat. We had all, almost emptied our third water bottle. Counting myself, there were 52 of us, and three teachers. The bus driver refused to come, saying it would be too exhausting. They had laughed at her. I didn't think they were laughing now.
Since coming to this school, I hadn't made many friends, so I stuck to the back of the group, and made sure everyone kept up. All my peers thought I was weird because I actually had common sense and acted twice my age.
Walking through the forest was beautiful and pleasant. Walking through the forest when its one-hundred degrees out...not so much. I stayed back a couple paces so I didn't have to listen to everyone else complain, even though my own head wouldn't shut up. Everything was vibrant green and above us the birds sang. I could hear a few crickets as they chirped. This sounded far better than any high school cafeteria.
Suddenly, as we crested the hill, I heard a voice in my ear.
"Don't move, or I'll kill you. Scream, and you're dead too." He said coldly. I froze, blinking, and watched as the group faded in the distance without knowing that I wasn't with them anymore.
"N...now what?" I breathed. There was a faint growl.
"Follow me." He ordered. Turning around slowly, my eyes grew wide as I took in my kidnapper. My normal thought process had me thinking it was a man with a gun in a dark mask.
I wasn't even close.
My kidnapper, instead, was ten feet tall, with broad shoulders and a chest the size of the front end of a semi. His ears stood straight up, and his fur, which covered his body, was thick and darker than night. His eyes glowed a menacing yellow, and his teeth were so sharp they would have scared away a great-white. He wasn't a man. No, he was a monster, a wolf...a beast.
"What are you staring at?!" He growled. "Move!" I nodded, and shaking, I tripped around him, and half ran-half walked in the direction he told me too. We left the trail and moved through the brush until we came to the base of a hill. Boulders now covered the landscape. I had no choice, but to climb across them, and up a steep incline. When I finally reached the top and looked down, he jumped up, next to me and growled at me again. We stood at the top of a cliff.
I followed him into a dark cave, hidden by moss and vines. Inside it was dark, almost too dark to see, except for the fire that was glowing.
"Fix it." He ordered. And that's how this whole ordeal started.
I shook, as I picked up a stick and pushed the logs around. Within a few minutes, the fire was up and hot again. Threatening my life again, he left and disappeared behind the curtain of green.
I wondered how long it would be until they realized I was gone. I wondered how long it would until he killed me, or I died. I wondered how long it would be...
The air grew cold as evening turned to night. At last he returned, still watching every move I made as I kept the fire going. I sat in the opposite corner, facing him, and shivering, until I leaned my head against the cave wall and fell into an uneasy sleep.
At the sound of birds chirping and light coming through the natural curtain, I woke up, groaning, and rubbing my head which was sore. The wolf was nowhere to be found. Leaving the cave, I looked down the side of the cliff, but I couldn't see him. I walked around that area and found some wood, which I used for the fire.
I busied myself with the fire until the mid afternoon when he returned again. I sat down in my corner, away from him, and watched him drop down on the cold floor. He eyed me suspiciously for a moment and then closed his eyes for a while.
When he woke again, he raised his eyes and stared at the fire. Suddenly my stomach growled and he looked at me. I frowned, hugging myself.
"Your hungry. Stay here. I'll be back in a few minutes." He said blankly and he got up and left. I frowned. He was always gone.
He came back a few minutes later with a basket full of berries. I stared at the basket.
"Well are you hungry?" He growled. I nodded. "Then eat!" He commanded and I sat in my corner and ate my fruit until the entire basket was empty and my stomach was full.
"What is your name, girl?" He asked when I had fixed the fire again. I looked at the floor.
"Redetta. But I go by Red." I said quietly. He was silent.
"You're coming with me tomorrow." He told me. I glanced up at him.
"Where are we going?" I mustered. His eyes seemed to burn through me. I held my breath.
"On my patrols." He replied. And so after our "lengthy" conversation, I lay down on the floor of the cave, next to the fire, and fell asleep again.
When morning broke, he woke me and we set out, climbing down the cliff and rocks and we walked through the forest. All day we walked, and I grew tired, but I didn't tell him.
As evening rolled around we came out back at the rocks and climbed back to the top. The day had been uneventful, but it was nice to see a change in scenery.
The next morning he was gone, and I couldn't take it anymore. I hated being alone, having nothing to do, and always being in fear. I grabbed my bag and stood by the edge of the cliff. He was gone. I carefully and quickly climbed down the cliff and rocks and I ran through the forest as fast as I could. I jumped over rocks and avoided the brush as much as possible.
Suddenly, I felt a hand on my shoulder, and when I whirled around to see who it was, I was tripped, and I fell on my back. I groaned and looked up.
Two women stood over me, wearing athletic wear. I frowned.
"Can you help me?" I asked. They looked at each other, and that's when I noticed their bright eyes...and their teeth. I jumped back, and they grabbed me.
"You shouldn't run away, human." Said the blonde one.
"Yeah, we like humans. They taste...amazing." She said, and her eyes seemed to light up. They both creeped me out thoroughly.
"Get away from me!" I shouted. But the two vampires were getting closer and closer, and I was pinned against a tree now. Just as the one lunged for me, they both screamed. Opening my eyes, I watched in horror as they were torn apart by the black wolf.
When they were both dead, he made a loud sound like a roar, that echoed all around us, and scared the birds. I was shaking. He was going to kill me. I knew it. I was dead.
"I thought I told you to stay in the cave." He growled. My whole body shook.
"I...I...I want to go home." I replied. He turned and jumped in front of me. Our faces were inches apart.
"You try that again, and I'll let them kill you." He growled and he took me back to the cave.
As we walked, I watched him carefully, as he walked in front of me. He was limping.
"W...what happened to you?" I asked. He sneered.
"What do you care?" He asked. I frowned.
"You're limping." I replied. He stopped.
"I fought off two vampires and a werewolf. You think that was easy?" He asked. I hadn't known about the werewolf thing.
"No...I...I was just curious." I said. When we reached the creek, I could tell he was getting worse. I frowned.
"Stop." I said. He turned back to face me.
"I give the..." He started to say, but I cut him off again.
"I don't care. You're hurt. Wait." I said. I didn't pay attention to his face as I dug out my old t-shirt from my bag and put it in the creek. When it was soaked, I wringed it out, and walked over to him. He didn't move, but watched as I knelt down and wrapped it around his bad leg, tying it in place.
"Why'd you do that?" He asked, as I stepped back, and picked up my bag. I eyed him like he always eyed me.
"Because you didn't kill me, and you didn't let them kill me. That's why." I replied, walking around him, and I didn't wait to see if he followed me as I climbed back up to the cave.
In the evening I followed my usual routine of stoking the fire. He didn't make a sound as I walked around the fire, fixing it.
"What's your name?" I asked. He picked his head up. It was late.
"Galvator." He replied. His voice didn't sound so cold anymore. I nodded. At least now I had something to call him.
"How's your leg?" I asked. He stretched.
"Sore, but it will be fine." He replied. I nodded.
"You should stay here tomorrow and let it heal." I said. He didn't reply, but the next day he was still there when I woke up.
For a month it stayed like that. Boring and uninteresting, but I didn't leave again until it was well into the summer.
He had left one morning on his usual route and I was sitting in the cave when I thought I heard my name. I rose and left the cave to stand on the cliff.
Down, at the base of the rocks, was a group of three girls, classmates, who had been with that day. I was about to call out to them, when suddenly I watched Galvator jump out from the trees, and tackle all of them at once. The girls screamed out as they hit the ground. I held my jaw.
"Galvator!" I shouted, in my loudest voice. The wolf stared at the girls screaming, and lifted his paw. I stepped forward.
"GALVATOR!" I shouted so loud, it echoed. The wolf stopped and looked up at me.
"Enough! Get up here now!" I shouted at him, angrily. He blinked at me. Until now he hadn't known me to be loud and demanding. He stepped back and ran away from them, flying up the rocks. I stepped away from the edge before the girls could see who had called him.
When they finally got up, they didn't ask, but I watched as they ran back into the forest and disappeared. When he reached the top, he looked at me.
"Those weren't vampires and you knew that! Why would you hurt them?!" I cried at him. He just stared at me, dumbfounded and lowering his head he walked into the cave and left me alone on the cliff.
I sat out on the ledge for a while and watched the sun go down. No one came back. I knew they wouldn't. He had scared them all away.
When I finally entered the cave again, he lay in my corner, crying quietly. I froze. He was...crying.
"Galvator?" I asked. He opened his eyes and looked at me, and for the first time, I noticed something different in his eyes. He looked away.
"Galvator. What's wrong?" I asked. fixing the fire. He was silent for another moment.
"When...when I looked up...and then...those girls...their eyes...I...I'm such a monster. A horrible...horrible, monster." He whispered and he was silent the rest of the night.
Morning came and went, and so did the afternoon and evening the following day. He never came, so I slept alone in the cave and when he still hadn't come back the following day, I took my bag again and left the cave.
I ran through the forest again, trying to be as quiet as possible. The trees were a blur as I ran past them, and my world just seemed to be green. The heat was horrible and my thirst was unbearable, but I had to keep going... I had to... But eventually my green world turned black.
The first thing I felt was the cold, solid, rock I was lying on. I groaned as I felt how sore my back was from lying on it. My head was throbbing and I could smell blood.
"Don't move." A familiar voice commanded. I sighed, and opened my eyes. But they met an unfamiliar face. I screamed, and jumped up.
"Who are you?! Get away from me!" I cried, trying to run, but the stranger jumped forward, and grabbed my arm.
"Red!" He shouted. I froze, sliding to a halt, and looked back at him.
"It's me. It's me!" He breathed. I was shaking from all the adrenaline. My head no longer hurt.
"Who are you?" I burst, shaking my head. He held my arm firmly and drug me closer to him.
"Look at me. Red, look." He whispered. I stopped and looked at his face, and his hair, and his eyes...
He had bright, yellow eyes. Just like the vampires. I jumped back a little before it finally occurred to me.
"Galvator?" I asked. He nodded.
"Yeah." He breathed. "It's me." I looked him up and down.
He wasn't so tall anymore. Now he was more like six feet, with black hair and tanned skin. He wore tattered clothes and his muscles would have made any girl drool. I blinked at him.
"What happened to you...and to me?" I asked. He laughed.
"You ran off again, and fainted from the heat. I saved you, again from another vampire. And I had to carry you here, so I had to be a human again." He breathed. I sighed, tired and tripped forward, landing against his chest.
"Whoops!" He smiled, helping me steady myself again.
"I think you lost a little blood." He replied. I frowned.
"Oops." I said, shrugging. He chuckled.
"I thought I told you not to leave." He said, teasingly. I looked at the ground.
"I'm sorry." He said though, before I could say anything. I looked up, and his eyes had changed. Now they were a normal, but bright, blue. I frowned.
"For what?" I asked.
"Leaving." He breathed. He helped me up to the cave from the creek and we sat down by the fire. He helped now, getting more logs together.
When evening came, I was cold, so he sat next to me.
"My first name is Peter." He whispered to me as I gave up and put my head on his shoulder. I repeated it quietly to myself.
"Wait..." I breathed, lifting my head and looking at him, and suddenly I did recognize him.
"You...you're that guy...the rockstar who fell off a cliff a few years ago!" I exclaimed. He nodded.
"How are you not dead?!" I cried. He chuckled.
"When I fell, another werewolf found me, and saved me by turning me into one. I couldn't just reappear in public like this, so I've been out here on my own ever since." He replied. I shook my head.
"But why..." I started. He cut me off.
"I got lonely." He barely whispered. My heart sunk.
That was it. The whole reason why he had brought me out here. He was lonely. I looked at him, and I felt pity.
"Why didn't you just say that from the beginning?" I asked, putting my head back on his shoulder. He sighed.
"I haven't exactly spoken to someone in a few years. I kind of forgot how to." He said, shrugging a little. "Plus being a wolf all day makes you wild, and you become more animal, more monster, than man." He told me. I sighed, and fell asleep.
When morning came, I was lying on the cave floor, and he was lying next to me. The fire was almost dead and he was awake.
"Did you sleep?" I asked. He shook his head.
"I can't. Werewolves don't sleep. We rest, but we don't sleep." He said, turning his head and looking at me. I leaned on my elbow.
"Do you trust me?" He asked. I thought for a moment, and then nodded.
"I have to. You keep saving my sorry butt." I said and we both laughed. He sat up and stretched.
"Red?" He asked. I nodded, looking at him.
"You...you can go now. I won't keep you here anymore. You're free." He said. I sighed.
"I don't want to though." I said. He gave me an odd look. "Everyone thinks I'm dead. How do I explain where I've been? How do I pretend nothing happened when I know you exist?" I asked. He sighed.
"You make up a story and go home to your family." He said. I shrugged.
"Like what? Like, what?" I asked. We stared at each other for a long pause.
"Tell them, you fainted from heat exhaustion, and were in a coma and when you woke, some old guy in a cabin helped you." He said. I thought about it and then frowned.
"And you? I'm just supposed to leave you here?" I asked. He nodded.
"Yeah. I'm better left alone. You saw what I'm like. I'm wild." He replied. I shook my head.
"I won't. I won't leave you." I shook my head. He grabbed my arm again.
"You take that bag, you walk out of this cave and you leave me. It's not that hard. Just leave!" He said harshly, jolting me. I stared at him.
"You're sure?" I asked. He nodded. I frowned, but walked over and picked up my old, worn bag, and just before I left the cave, he grabbed my arm again, swung me around, and kissed me.
"Go home. And forget about me." He whispered after he pulled away. I looked deep into his eyes and watched them turn from blue to yellow.
"Now go!" He said, but it was more a growl than a word. I turned and climbed down the cliff and I ran through the forest. This time nothing happened to me and I made it to the trail my field trip had been on, but just as I did, I heard a howl, so loud and so powerful that it shook the ground and the trees and it echoed for miles all around. I ran as fast as I could, but I couldn't help the tears that ran down my cheeks.
I left the wildlife park and started down the highway. I hitch-hiked my way back and made it to the border of my town. Walking the rest of the way, I stopped on the doorstep of my house. How was this supposed to just...happen?
I mustered up the courage and knocked on the door. My mother answered, and when our eyes met, she didn't even say anything, but just hugged me tight, and our tears soaked the other's shoulder.
The following days were crazy, with news channels, and media at my house, interviewing me and bombarding me with questions. I lied and gave them the story he told me to tell. Even the police didn't question it.
And within a few weeks, life was back to normal and I was forgotten about. A year went by, and every day I thought about him, and I thought about everything that had happened. I never told a soul, but I missed him. I couldn't forget him, no matter how hard a tried.
After having my license for two months, I took a day trip. It was towards the end of summer, during the day. Everyone was at work, my brother had a job, and I was alone at home with nothing better to do.
The park was open as always and I took a water bottle with me and started down the trail. I was older now, and the memories seemed more like a dream. Nothing seemed real.
"Hey!" A voice called. Looking over my shoulder, a park ranger rode up on her horse.
"You're that girl. What are you doing here?" She asked. I smiled.
"Getting over my fears." I replied. She nodded.
"Be careful. Weird stuff happens that way. You know that." She said. I nodded, and watched her ride off again.
When the trail curved, I went straight, walking through the brush. Everything was the same, as if I had been here yesterday. When at last, I reached the creek I stopped and refilled my water bottle.
"You should be more careful. People might come and kidnap you." A very deep voice whispered in my ear. I stood up, and turned around.
"Hey stranger." I smiled at the black wolf standing there. He blinked at me, and I hugged him. He chuckled.
"You know, normal people would run away, screaming." He said. I smiled.
"I guess I'm just a little wild." I whispered in his ear.
The End