It was late when she woke at the scratching of claws in her head, her Wolfblood thrumming for release. She had been caged in this room too long, college had already begun again and the moon had already changed it's shape, but she still hadn't healed, not fully. She raised her arm, trapped under Rhydians, to feel the scars at her neck. It still gave her bad dreams. But tonight, they didn't matter, not with the wolf roaring in her head. It reminded her of the night so long ago, where she ran the beaches and the hillside with Rhydian when she first changed. She would have woken him up to run with her tonight but he was exhausted, she was forcing him to keep going to college but he was still running from here to there everyday. She'd tried to get him to stay there but it had been a useless attempt and really, she hadn't wanted him to leave her (she didn't think her parents did either). So instead, she delicately moved out of his embrace and made it slowly to the window. She could have used the stairs but the Wolf in her wanted out now, and the girl just wanted to be strong again, so tired of being weak in bed. The window was already open, he had opened it so she felt less caged, and the thought made her smile and look back to his lightly snoring figure spread across the bed. Then she jumped, and the land almost made her shout in pain as the vibrations rolled through her body. Then the cool night hit her, a force of wildness that called out to her blood. She looked around, at the rolling earth, cold on her feet now paws, at the line of trees, inviting even in the dark of night, and the wildlife calling around, unafraid of the predator in the shadow of the moon. She ran, straight for that beckoning woods, straight for those looming mountains in the far distance. She ran because every step made her feel stronger, more herself, free. Because a wolf isn't meant to be caged. Because she wasn't meant to be caged.
She had no idea how long she had been running and hunting and chasing, but as she loped through the trees,.she could see the sky lightening. She was covered with dirt and leaves and all the wildness of the wood but the Wolf didn't care, not when it was strong and wild and healed. The girl however, she cared a little. So when she found the hidden rocky pools, she didn"t hesitate to jump in. The cold of the morning didn't bother her skin, she was warm, warm as though she was still wearing the fur she had just shed. She sank into the water, drowning herself in the morning that the woods provided, the mossy rocks, the bright flowers, the soft ground of dirt and leaves, the water pooling from above her, filling the lake and making everything seem magical and vibrant. It reminded her of the Fae culture she had learned of in her Occult Studies class. But when she lifted her head out the water, something else caught her attention, something much more beautiful. He was sat there, laughing down at her, his hair light in the sun.
"Morning," he grinned, a playful grin with happiness flooding his features. She smiled, remembering she'd left him last night. Had he woke up in panic?
"Morning yourself," she started, moving over to the edge of the pool to where he sat swinging his legs. "Look," she grinned, baring her neck to him, "all healed." Before she had chance to register his movement, he was taking her chin in his hand. A sigh of relief leaving his lips.
"You weren"t sneaky, you know. You really are terrible at trying to be." A soft laugh sounded around her as he lifted his hand away. She scowled, thinking about his snoring and how quiet she had been. But she grinned, a wicked thought flashing through her head, and surprise flashed across his face a momemt too late as she grabbed his leg and pulled him into the cold pool. He barked a shout and she laughed furiously as he splashed in but she took hold of him.
'You found me though, didn't you?" She smiled at him.
'Madeline," he laughed, but his face had a seriousness to it, he meant every word he said, "I will always find you." And his smile didn't leave his face and he cupped a strand of her wet hair behind her ear and kissed her.
They didn't return until noon, not till after Rhydian had shown her in every way possible how much he had been holding back these past few weeks. But returning to the house this afternoon was necessary, she was going to meet Alyassa and she was going to make plans to catch the Wolfblood that had done this to her, and Rhydian, he didn't even need to say it, she could feel his need for vengence radiating off him at the mention of the wild Wolfblood. And when they returned, it had seemed everyone else had the same plan because she hear from the treeline the amount of Wolfbloods within the house. And she smiled, touching at her neck and only feeling smooth skin. She was strong again now, and she had been aching for this hunt for weeks.