Once upon a time, there was a Godly valley with mountains that could touch the sky and trees that cast long shadows. The people who live in the small mountain town are hardworking and happy, so long as they never stray into the forest where the wolves lurk in the darkness. Adults brave the trees in groups to hunt the vicious pack as they have for decades, the conflict is deep with no sign of victory for either side. But wolves are not the only threat, nor the village's only secret - and the link connecting them is a simple cloak of Red ...

Every night, from the highest peak of the uninhabited mountains, a single Wolf howls to the good folk of the valley – as a warning, as a message, and as a reminder of what they did:
"Beware, beware, the Path where the Witch once stood. Beware, beware, of the Wolf in the Wood."

Cover art: thequalityrunaway DOT tumblr DOT COMpany/ post/138570607597/for-confessions-of-the-red-cloak-au-once-upon-a

Gentle mist hovered over the ground, obscuring the crunch of leaves as prey and predators moved through the morning forest. However, the quiet was soon broken with a soft scuffle of leaves frantically flying and a startled yelp of a fox.

Cloud looked up with the dead animal in his teeth, the wolf waiting for his mate to catch up with him. Squall, many paces behind, carrying armfuls of wood, smiled as Cloud told him: "Foxes have good meat, and this one is fat. I'll find another one before we get to your-"

"Cloud, really, I'll be fine," Squall awkwardly reached out his hand as he balanced the wood he'd gathered to rub Cloud's wolf ears, the velvety softness at the bases too irresistible to touch. Cloud's ears went back in concern when Squall finished his talented ear-massage.

"But you won't be hunting for over three months! How will you have enough to eat? Now you have a pelt you can trade too … ugh, I don't like the thought of hunting a gift for your Hunter's village." His tail whipped the leaves and he turned on the spot with an irritable air about him. "I really don't like this, what if you get sick? What if you get too cold? There's more to worry about than just food if we cut you out of your daily routine."

Squall shook his head "Actually this is normal for this time of year. When the snow gets too deep to sneak through when all the animals hibernate, I stop hunting anyway. Even Genesis stops. He will call one last mass hunt, and then that's it until the spring thaws the ground." Long winters were best spent in their homes, or near their village where the community could spread the tasks and share resources. "It's just impractical to push through all the snow and frozen ground, you can't sneak up on anything and there's scarcely an animal about in the cold. As I'm sure you know. Plus, I'd rather be warm by my fire pit."

He raised an eyebrow at Cloud, upon speaking aloud it was odd that Cloud hadn't realised this sooner, that hunts came to an end and the winter haul in the village began. "You must have known that. Everyone stops hunting when the snow gets here."

Cloud bashfully lowered his head "I forgot … cold hunting doesn't bother us wolves very much." He perked up, a bit happier now that Squall reminded him that this challenge would barely be pushing limits in terms of cutting off livelihood. Squall was glad for it. "Though you've gone into the woods before in winter, but only a day or two out of the whole snowy season."

"That's when it's been a bad harvest year, and the entire village's food rations are low, and the road to the city was blocked with snow." He frowned on memories of those hunts, how cold he'd gotten and how sick he'd gotten for such a small meal. "Desperate times call for desperate measures. If we ran too low on food we'd go buy or trade for some in the city." Squall recalled his first time in the city, it was so big and confusing, but he'd warmed to it rapidly when he was served his first warm meal in days. Edea had recounted the story with a smile every time they had a similar broth on a winter day, she was fond of that story. "Sometimes, when the snow is too thick and we can't get through, we start to kill sheep and go on winter hunts. That's only happened twice in my memory."

Cloud perked up a little "The city isn't in the woods! You could go there for winter."

Squall raised an eyebrow and smirked, patting Cloud on the nose "And cheat? Who do you take me for?"

The wolf laughed "Angeal never said you couldn't~"

Squall kicked leaves at him, Cloud ran circles and laughed some more.

"Trust me, this challenge won't be a walk in the woods, but winter never is in a remote place like this! It'll be just like any other bad harvest year. I've lived through a few." Squall was determined to do this correctly for as long as he could to prove himself, and he was sure he could speak with Angeal about the terms of failsafe's such as retreating to a city for more food, just like he'd asked about visits to Edea.

The wolf nudged his leg, "I understand that food might not be very high on your concerns but … I hate to think of you depending on that village. What if they turn you out?"

The thought had crossed Squall's mind already. Should the village decide not to help him, not to pay him, or not to give him work or charity … "Then I can either go to work in the city for a few weeks or it'll be a very hard winter," he admitted. The thought of rationing, stealing, even heading to the neighbouring town for the winter had crossed his mind. But he knew the risks with each, one could make him sick, next would get him punished, and the final would likely break the unsaid rule of 'sticking it out in a place you hate' that Angeal's challenge relied upon. Although he was confident that Angeal would not ask him to put his health at risk for this, he clearly wanted Squall to succeed. And to succeed with the maximum amount of respect possible.

The wolf whined.

"Cloud-"

"I'll hunt for you every day so you have enough to get by, I'll get deer and birds, I can give you some of the salt my people have, I won't be using it-" the wolf paced as he thought, the empathic link between them showing his thoughts clearly when Cloud was in wolf form- already he had forgotten how normal this would be. But Squall understood his concerns, he had worries too about Cloud's challenge.

He didn't know if the mating bond would hurt Cloud, who was the deeper spiritual person, the wolf and the one who gave Squall the bond in the first place. He didn't know the outside world, it's dangers. Would Cloud be able to hunt enough food on the move? Would he be safe? What if he needed to turn human, what would he do or say, would he have clothes? What if they encountered other hunters or other wolves? His worries were a long list of unknowns Squall was constantly adding to.

His solace was that Cloud was strong and the pack Alpha would be with him. Cloud, Squall knew, wasn't as fortunate. He had few solaces for Squall's situation. His siblings would help, but they too had to survive, the village was an unknown and the winter itself could turn bad and …

Squall heard Cloud's emotions agree: it was another long list of unknowns and few solaces.

"I wish we were staying together," Cloud admitted at the end of his long rant. Squall ran his hand over his ears again. Cloud knew that he was willing to take this leap of faith, he had already made up his mind.

"I will be fine," he murmured, waiting for Cloud to look at him and acknowledge the silent promise: I will survive and come back to you.

Hefting a heavy sigh, Cloud accepted and spoke no more. He leant against Squall's side as they continued their walk. "Do you need anything else?" Cloud wondered.

"Firewood, lots of it." Squall admitted. "I've got an axe and the space … probably need to fix up the walls as well … but that can wait. I'll make that up as I go along." He ignored Cloud's displeasure with that answer and paused by the edge of the woods.

He frowned. The village was like a nest of bees with all the shouting and people running to and fro. Worry built up, had something happened?

Cloud sniffed the air and tilted his head to listen, "Is this normal for your village?"

The answer came quickly, but Squall hesitated as he spoke, "No …" there hadn't been this much activity since a person had gone missing in the woods. Holidays were sombre affairs until the Mass church bells had rung, funerals and weddings even more so.

Not even the angry wolf Hunts were organised this chaotically. "Something must have happened."

"I can't smell much from here, and everyone's speaking at once," Cloud acknowledged, the tip of his tail whipping the grass as he growled. "But something smells rotten."

Squall tilted his head "Literally?"

"Yes." Cloud looked between the buildings but shrugged "It's only faint. It can't be what your people are worried about. It's not where all the noise is coming from."

Thinking of possibilities, Squall's mind conjured up barfights, village damage, an unexpected death or a dog gone rabid and biting. But he kept his opinions to himself. He glanced at Cloud, "Do you want to wait here?"

"Probably for the best," Cloud somehow managed to give him a patronising look despite his wolf features. "A village full of hunters may not be the best place for me to show my critter-face." He dodged the stick Squall kicked at him and put the fox down by his feet instead, laughing over their link. "I'll go find some more firewood, meet me here soon."

"Bye," Squall agreed, picking up the dead fox and stepping into the village light.

The closer he brought his approach the more manic the village seemed to be. They barely noticed or paid attention to his arrival, a rarity in itself, albite a relief. The crowd of active people was streaming back and forth from the Church, Squall noted as he put his supplies down. He hesitated, knowing he should head back to Cloud as soon as possible, but he was curious. Not to mention disturbed by the agitation in the community.

He lifted his axe and moved with the focused people to try and catch on to what had happened.

Luckily, a friend caught his attention. "Leon! Over here, where have you been?"

Zell stood with Seifer, both looking exhausted as they leant against a newly repaired fence. The work looked rushed, Squall noted, the nails bend and the wood a few inches too long for the stretch of the fence they were closing off. He waved uncertainly as he darted to their sides, more people carrying more items rushing past him.

"What's going on?"

Looking twice as pissed as normal, Seifer answered, "Father Hojo's been ordering us about all day, we've been asked to fix up the entire village in exchange for some grain rations early," with a dark scowl, Seifer spat in the Church's direction, "Sounded good to start with, but it's gone downhill fast; he's lost his mind."

"And his temper," Zell added, rubbing at the splinters in his skin, "The longer the day goes on the angrier he gets. The Sheppards have caught and released their sheep three times already, and the Tavern's been open and shut constantly too. He just threw out all the Church décor and now he's making the helpers put it all back again. It's as if he can't make up his mind."

Squall blinked. It did sound like the village leader had lost his sanity.

The three young men were forced to move when another ground of individuals marched through with what looked like extra firewood, and Squall couldn't help but be concerned for Cloud. He hoped that his mate would have enough wits about him to keep out of their way.

He helped his brothers when Zell struggled to hammer the nail through in another repair log for a long empty field. Squall nailed the blunt iron through to the stake with some difficulty, the wood was clearly unsuitable and would likely crack when it finally seasoned properly. "Any reason why Father Hojo's causing chaos?"

Zell shrugged, Seifer muttered something about senile old men, but answered the query: "According to him, we were expecting some distinguished guests around noon, but they haven't arrived." He gave Squall a cold look. "If you have been around you would have heard his delightful speech about these Holy men coming to purge the village and save us all-"

The middle brother waved an anxious hand in Seifer's direction, "I'm sure Leon had his reasons, right?"

"Right …" Squall refused to elaborate. "Is he chocking this up to the village bad luck why they're late?"

"Yeah," Zell sighed. "It can't be helped, maybe they just travelling slow and enjoying the view?" he cracked his overworked fingers and worked out a new splinter. Ever optimistic, he attempted to show the light at the end of the tunnel, "We'll all feel better when they finally turn up. I'm definitely interested in meeting them, whoever they are. Until then we just must get on with what the Good Father tells us to do, Genesis sure isn't objecting so they must be important enough to deserve all this prep."

That was more than odd. It made the hair on the back of his neck stand up, "Genesis is going along with this?"

Seifer smirked, looking pleased that he had asked, "Mostly. For now, he's shadowing Hojo and scowling." Loyalty and trust were in his eyes and ringing throughout his voice, Squall knew he admired Genesis and wasn't surprised with his opinion, but there was that frustration that he refused to step in. Squall too had respect for Genesis, knowing that the man had once saved his life and had protected the community for years, though it was a mixed respect that came with a lot of fear and little trust.

Seifer turned to Squall and nodded, "If Hojo crosses a line, Genesis will stop him."

Keeping his opinions to himself, Squall stood and shifted his grip on his axe, "I hope you're right. We can't afford to waste resources like this …"

"How's hunting?" Zell asked, putting a new nail into the stake.

For a moment, Squall wondered if he should lie, but decided against it and told them a fraction of the truth. He blew a long bang out of his eyes, "Animals are getting scarce, but the ones that are still here are fat and ready for winter," he thought about the fox that Cloud had caught. A predator so close to the village should have been rare, and he hadn't heard guns going off for weeks, what about the oncoming winter?

"Shouldn't a hunt be starting soon?"

Seifer scoffed "With Hojo's panicking? Please," he kicked a log to break it into manageable pieces. "He said he'd curse whoever disobeyed him. No one leaves this village without his permission, even Genesis isn't risking more bad luck …"

The crack of wood under his boot. The fractioned edges matching the state of Seifer's temper. Squall took a step back. "Genesis should ignore that warning, winter will be hard unless-"

"You think we're not aware of this?" Seifer growled. "All the rotten luck landing in our laps just before the snow falls? If you want to be useful go pick up your gun instead of your axe and get something for the stores! You're the only one who won't care about the Father's bloody ranting."

Zell punched his shoulder, "Don't take it out on Leon!"

Their elder brother grumbled and turned his back to nurse his sore arm while Zell spoke, "It would help us a lot if you could. But no worries if you can't, we still have time to help ourselves and I think that Hojo will be sending us out to gather food soon anyway: We've got guests to provide for."

Smiling quietly at Zell's logic, Squall let some of the tension in his shoulders ease. Zell was right, after this day of panic things would be back on track and the people would be taking care of. "I'll be back soon."

"Be here for evening Mass," Zell called after him "It's compulsory and we must all go, Father Hojo's orders. And Genesis asked for you to be there by name, don't forget!"

Squall was surprised, I'm never wanted in town meetings, who could possibly be coming that would change the leader's opinion that I'm better off in the sidelines? With a nod, he promised, "I'll remember."

But as he spoke those two words, there was doubt in his mind that he'd follow through, or that he'd be welcome. The entire village was on edge, and he didn't want to set them off. Maybe I can just wait at the back? He shuddered at the thought of sitting through an entire meeting stuck in the tiny church, everyone pressed up against each other, the walls closing in and his breathing cutting off-

He leant against a tree, unsure when exactly he entered the woods or how long he'd been there for. His legs shook and his chest felt tight. Breathe … just breathe … he thought to himself. He gasped and focused on the scents of the forest, hoping to calm himself.

He collapsed into Cloud's arms, again uncertain when he had appeared or from which direction. His fingers buried themselves into Cloud's shirt and he felt the choking sensation gradually subside in time with Cloud's soothing ministrations. The blond's nails lightly scratched and tickled the back of his head and his voice rose and fell in gentle murmuring comforts.

Soon, Squall found his voice and enough self-control to sit up on his own, Cloud's hands linked with his own. "I'm okay now …"

"Are you sure?" Cloud ran his fingers through Squall's hair, smiling fondly and with worry when he leant into the touch. "What happened?"

Feeling silly, Squall admitted "Remember when I told you I get … like this when trapped in small spaces?"

Cloud nodded when he paused, Squall knew Cloud had never forgotten. That was why he was always the one by the entrance of their dens, it was why Cloud made larger than normal sleeping spaces for Squall's comfort, and why there was almost always access to the sky or trees just in case something triggered his anxiety. He gulped as he explained; "There's going to be a town meeting in the Church later, I was asked to attend and … overthought it, I guess. All the p-people and the walls. The space."

He screwed his eyes shut tight, feeling tense all over again. "Sorry, I sound so stupid …"

Cloud's brows pinched together, "Squall, stop belittling yourself. It's not something to be ashamed of, and it is not stupid." He cradled Squall's face in his palms and made him look eye to eye with endless blue. "You shouldn't punish yourself like that, calling yourself stupid, thinking less of yourself for having a rational fear, forcing yourself to go through things that make you uncomfortable. You're treating yourself like your village treats you. Please, stop."

Squall closed his eyes to the gentle kisses Cloud pressed to his forehead, nose, and eyelids. Feeling a vague tranquillity at Cloud's reassurances, and slight sadness that he had let his neglectful neighbours influence him to such an extent.

"Do you have to go?" Cloud murmured.

Squall swallowed, "Yes. Zell said that Genesis asked for me by name …" Genesis will know if I'm not there. Why does he want me there?

"Don't force yourself to go through something you hate. If you must go, stay by the entrance, stay with someone who'll understand you. Your brothers? Your sisters? Edea?" Cloud's comfort helped. Squall sighed and wondered if he could stand with Edea …

"Yeah … I'll do that."

His mate sighed, "Squall …"

"I'll be okay," the hunter in red promised. "I can't skip this meeting, the leaders will know and the village is frantic because we've got important guests staying for a while. If I step out of line I don't think I'll be getting off lightly."

Growling, emotions contradicting his sound advice, Cloud said: "You'd better stay in their good graces. But, please, take care of yourself?"

Thanks for your comments, please leave another.

Going back on Hiatus until April, One last push to finish the Uni year, then I'll have time to be creative. My last update of this story for a while. But I'll be posting something for Valentine's day! So don't be too upset.