Wolf Path

Chapter One: Little Girl

I first met him the winter of my sixth year.

I was always a mischievous child, always running off and getting myself into trouble. That day was no different from any other. I had wandered off again, into the Forbidden Forest. For as long as I can remember, the children of my village have been told horror stories about the place. It was a forest, dominated by evil, vile creatures. Creatures that would devour little girls whole, if the wolves didn't rip her apart first. Only one path cut through the dark, foreboding woods. The Wolf Path it was called, for the many wolf packs that called the Forbidden Forest home had learned to use it for their hunting, picking off any foolish traveler who dared enter their home, and following it back to the village, where they could eat their fill of small children, drunk men and weak women. It was because of this dreadful Wolf Path that a curse hung over the village. A night rarely passed without someone being taken by the wolves. Every day, the village church's bell would chime it's mournful song, as another body, a child, a wife, a father, was lowered down into their grave.

Rumor had it, that at the end of the Wolf Path, deep in the heart of the forest, lied a castle. Within this castle, it was said, that a handsome lord lay sleeping, unable to wake, neither dead nor living. I was fascinated by this part of the tale and often tried to brave the Wolf Path to find this undead prince.

It was on that winter day, so long ago, that I set out on just such an adventure. While my father was busy at market, I wandered to the outskirts of the village and began my journey down the long, lonely, Wolf Path. I hummed silly songs of youth, as I skipped merrily away from the safety of my home. All the while, I was unaware of the many bright eyes watching me from the darkness of the forest.

It soon grew dark, the late afternoon giving way to twilight. Tired and hungry, I stopped and took out the piece of bread I had stashed in my apron pocket during lunch, sat down on the dusty ground, and began to nibble away.

Suddenly, there was a growl. I whirled my head around and saw a large grey wolf approaching me. I yelped and jumped to my feet, my whole body trembling, my heart racing in fear. My heartbeat further increased as more and more wolves appeared, baring their sharp teeth at me.

I turned to run, but before I could make it more than a foot, one of the wolves grabbed a hold of my leg, digging it's canines into my ankle. I screamed and cried at the terrible pain as the wolf shook my tiny body savagely, trying to tear the limb away.

The other wolves drew in around me, enticed by the smell of blood. Just when I thought I was going to be killed, a lyrical howl sounded over the forest. The howl was a smooth, effortless sound. All the wolves seemed to stop to listen. Even the one biting my leg, stopped his assault. When the howl finally died, the one that had attacked me released his grip on my leg and turned his blood stained face towards the west like his kin.

My eyes followed theirs. Further up the path, a black wolf descended, golden eyes burning out of his skull, like the flames of lanterns. The other wolves backed away from him, as he drew closer. They eyed him with evident fear, their ears flattening against their heads and tails tucked between their legs. He stopped at my body, looked at me, then snapped at the others.

"How dare you disobey me!" A man's disembodied voice growled. "Get away from her! This girl is mine!"

Yelping in fear, the pack darted back into the forest, leaving the black wolf and I alone. I fidgeted, crying. The pain in my leg was excruciating.

The wolf drew closer and nuzzled his nose against my cheek, as if trying to soothe me.

"There there, little girl. I will not harm you. You have nothing to fear from me. I am not like those others." Said the disembodied voice. It was smooth and deep, so beautiful for a man's voice. He moved his head to where the jagged wound was. "I'm going to make you feel better." Said the voice and I felt a wet warmth on the wound. Startled, I looked towards him and saw that he was lapping at the wound, drinking the blood that poured from it and cleaning the jagged edges of it with his tongue. The pain began to ebb away. I stared in wonder as the gash slowly began to close before my eyes, until finally it disappeared completely.

When the wound was healed he lifted his mighty head and looked me in the eyes. I felt a chill run through me. His eyes were unearthly…unnaturally bright. "Stand now. There shouldn't be any pain." The voice reassured me.

My legs quivering beneath my weight, I stood up. I stared down at them in amazement. It was true. There was no more pain.

The wolf walked over to my side and looked back at me over his shoulder. "Get onto my back, little girl. I'll take you back to the village." The beautiful man's voice again reassured me.

Perhaps I was a stupid child…or maybe I just didn't know any better. Reckless as always, I climbed onto the black wolf's back and clutched tufts of his fur in my chubby hands.

With that, he took off, racing down the Wolf Path, back the way I had come and farther away from the magical prince I had sought to find. The wolf moved quickly, his feet seeming to fly over the ground. I can still remember the wind blowing my white gold curls back from my face, stinging my eyes.

It had taken me hours to get where I was on the path, but he got me back home in just a few moments. At the point where the village clearing gave way to the thick forest, he stopped. "You may get off now. You are home." Said the voice.

I slipped off his back and toddled a few steps towards the cottages of the village. I looked back at him and smiled. "Thank you." I said in my light, soprano voice.

The wolf nodded his head. "You are welcome, but please, little girl, don't go back up the path again. Promise me you won't." Pleaded the voice.

"I won't." I promised, my smile widening. I ran back to him and threw my arms around his neck. I buried my face in his thick fur as I hugged him. "Thank you for saving my life." I repeated. "You're a good dog."

"Dog?" The voice chuckled. "You are a strange child. You either have no sense or you have no fear. Calling any self respecting wolf a dog is a death wish you know. You are lucky I am not a wolf."

I pulled away from him and looked at him questioningly. "You're not a wolf?" I asked.

"Wolves do not speak man, silly girl. I am something else entirely." He laughed, his wolf lips pealing away from his teeth. Apparently the voice I had been hearing this whole time had been his.

"What are you then?" I asked innocently.

Before he could answer, men from the village came running towards us. Bastian, the village wolf hunter, aimed his musket at him. "Get, wolf!" He and the other men screamed. He fired a few rounds at the ground at the wolf's feet. The wolf 's eyes met mine once more, then he darted back into the forest, disappearing into shadow.

Ten years passed. I grew up, went on with my life. I have to say that I never lost that mischievous side. However, I honored my promise of never entering the Wolf Path again. It wasn't that I didn't want to, though. Regardless of the attack, I still wanted to see if there really was a castle…if there really was a beautiful prince trapped inside. I wanted to be like the heroes in the fairy tales. I wanted to brave the wilderness and find him. I wanted to kiss him, to break the spell he must be under. Like any other girl, I wanted to live happily ever after.

One thing kept me from tempting my fate once more. The wolf guarded me. He was rarely seen by others, but he couldn't go unnoticed by me. I knew where to look. H liked to stick to the darkest areas of the forest, where his coat blended into the background. Whatever I was doing, If I looked towards the forest, I would see him there, walking along the edge, his golden eyes flashing brilliantly at me. Sometimes I would speak to him, but he never spoke back again. It made me worry. Maybe I had outgrown that wonderful magic.

In the winter of my sixteenth year, things changed. I was walking home from my friend Zita's funeral. She was the latest victim of the wolves. A snow storm was blowing through. The wind hurled snow into my face, freezing the flesh of my cheeks. My blue eyes shifted towards the forest. No yellow eyes looked back. I saw no moving shadow. The wolf wasn't there. "That's odd." I huffed, my breath escaping my lips in a puff of white. I shrugged my shoulders. "It's probably the storm. I don't blame him for wanting to stay home." Still I felt a bit disappointed. Though he'd never spoken to me since that day we first met, he'd become a constant companion. A friend.

I hurried inside my humble house and strained to shut the door against the onslaught of wind and snow. With some effort, I was finally able to latch it and turned towards the fire, eager to warm my hands.

I was surprised to see Bastian standing by it, speaking with my father. Bastian was an older man, tall and built like a stone wall. He was burly and rugged, not at all handsome. A thick, grey streaked beard obscured most of his face, blending in seamlessly with his messy and equally graying hair.

"Ah! Here you are, dear!" my father cooed, urging me to come closer. "We were just talking about you."

I blinked out of my stupor and walked hesitantly towards him. I didn't particularly care for Bastian. He had never harmed me or anything, and I didn't really mind his lacking beauty. However, I had noticed that he was beginning to look at me differently. His eyes, which were once protective were now possessive. It made me uneasy.

"Have you?" I inquired, fidgeting with the hood of my red cloak, nervously. I pulled it down from my head. I watched Bastian's eyes shift to study my every move. He admired my hair, which I now wore up, appreciatively.

Father smiled, his face lighting up. "Bastian has just asked for your hand in marriage!"

My eyes widened and I stared at father, aghast. I heard Bastian add in, "I'll be a good husband to you, Ada."

"Papa, may I have a word with you?" I asked, quickly taking him by the hand and leading him into my bedroom, before he could resist. "Have you lost your senses?" I demanded, as soon as I shut the door behind me.

"Bastian is a good man. He'll take care of you, provide for you." He tried to explain.

"He's three times my age!" I wailed. "Do you want your daughter to be widowed young?"

"He may be older, but…"

"He's only five years younger than you!" I reminded him.

The short old man, smiled at me and touched my cheek with a calloused hand. "He is a hard worker and a skilled hunter. I know he can protect you better than anyone else. I know that he's older than you would like, but he seems to care about you. Would being married to him really be that bad?"

I turned my face away from him stubbornly. "I don't need protecting."

"Yes, I know you're very brave and strong." He chuckled. "You're just like your mother. God rest her soul. But that wolf of yours. He still follows you, doesn't he? It frightens me."

"That wolf will never harm me." I assured him, adamant in my belief. He could have killed me a thousand times over already, but he hadn't.

"You may think that, but I don't have nearly as much faith in the beast. I'm so afraid that I'm going to loose you to the wolves, as I lost Maria." Tears welled up in his eyes. "If you are with Bastian, then I know you will be safe. Please, Ada, put your old man's mind at ease."

I could not refuse him after that. Tears had formed in my own eyes at the mention of my mother. I still had nightmares about the day she died and I remembered how devastated my father had been. My mother was his world. They were childhood sweethearts. They were inseparable, totally and completely in love. After she was killed, he just sat in his chair in front of a dead fire for weeks, staring blankly at nothing, only eating when he was forced to. I never wanted him to go through that heart break again. No matter what came of me.

I agreed to the marriage.

Like I usually do when I'm nervous, I started cooking up a storm while father and Bastian discussed my dowry. Since my father was not a particularly great merchant and had little fortune, it was decided that my bride price would be a meager one. I was sold for the small price of a few silver coins and two goats. I felt like a cow sent to market.

I was surprised that Bastian agreed to such a small amount of payment. He was usually so…frugal when it came to money. I'm sure he wanted more, but didn't wish to disrespect my father.

"Dinner is ready." I called to them, wiping my hands on my apron. I wanted to get them eating as soon as possible. I couldn't take much more of this wedding talk. The sooner they were stuffing their faces, the better.

We all sat down at the table and promptly began to eat. I nibbled at my bread, self-consciously, feeling Bastian's eyes trailing over my skin.

"This is delicious." Said father, shoveling a spoon full of stew into his mouth. "This one will fatten you up, I promise you that." He chuckled, elbowing Bastian in the side.

Bastian looked at me and I think he smiled, it was hard to tell because of the beard. "I'm sure she will." He said, with some amusement in his rugged voice. "Where did you get the rabbits for the stew?" He asked, slurping up another spoon full. "I haven't been able to hunt much, with this storm about."

"Her wolf friend brought them to her." Father blurted, laughing.

"Father!" I scolded.

"Her wolf friend?" Bastian asked, his thick eyebrows lifting in surprise.

"You remember the black wolf that followed her home from the Wolf Path when she was six?"

Bastian nodded. "Yes, damned thing sticks too close to the village. Ten years, and I still haven't been able to kill it. It avoids all my best traps. I've shot it…a few times, but it has yet to die."

I felt sick when he said this. I folded my hands in front of me and shut my eyes, willing myself not to wretch.

"It has a fondness for Ada, I think. It brings her presents. Chickens, small birds, rabbits, even a deer once or twice."

Bastian's eyes narrowed at me. "That is…strange. I've never heard of a wolf doing something like that. It sounds less like a wolf and more like a tame dog."

"He saved my life that day I went on the Wolf Path. I would have been eaten by the other wolves, if not for him. He's looked out for me ever since then. He makes sure that I am safe and that we don't go without. I know it's hard to believe, but he is a good wolf. We have nothing to fear from him. I would appreciate it if you did not hurt him." I said.

"Ada, I understand your trust in this beast, but we cannot forget that he's wild. If he thinks that you are vulnerable in any way, he'll turn on you in an instant."

"That's not true." I said, tightening my jaw. "He's been nothing but a guardian angel to me."

Bastian stroked his fingers through his beard, his expression very serious. "Have you forgotten about your friend Zita? Or your mother? Alisa? My sons?" He asked.

"Of course not." I answered, feeling a wave of pity crash over me for the hunter. He'd lost his previous wife and his twin sons to the wolves. His entire family…gone in a single, terrible night.

"I cannot assume that your wolf will be as kind to others as he has been to you. He's still a wolf and wolves need to feed. I've seen too much death in my years. This village has lost too many to the evil spawn of the Forbidden Forest. Guardian angel or no, if I feel that that wolf posses a threat to this village, I will kill it." He paused, watching me intently.

I felt my throat tighten, attempting to hold back the emotions rising in me. I wrung my fingers in my lap and down cast my eyes. "I…understand." I lied.

"I'm sorry, Ada, but that's just the way it has to be." He said, then went back to his stew.

There was a rap of knuckles on the door and we all turned our heads to gawk at it. "Are you expecting more company?" I asked father. He shook his head.

I rose from my chair and went and opened the door. There was a man in a black fur cloak there. His dark, shoulder length hair whipped around his head with the ferocity of the storm. I gawked at him, never having seen a more beautiful man in my entire life. He was tall and built with the lithe muscle of a young soldier. He had high cheek bones and a noble nose. His lips were somewhat thin and seemed to keep a smile in their corners. Most remarkable of all, was his eyes, which shone a amber gold. His lips stretched, flashing me a bright smile. "Hello, Little Girl." He greeted, a odd spark in his eyes.