Hidden Hallows

I snort in cold water and quickly pull my head up! Water drips from my mouth, nose, and now my soaked fur. "Eris!" Kian runs over and quickly pulls out a cloth. He starts wiping my face off as he says "This s.h.i.+fter thing seems a lot harder..."

I cry internally as he continues to dry me off. This sadly, has nothing to do with the s.h.i.+fter part of me but I"ll never admit to that. Once I was all dried off, we continued our way into the woods, and only after a few minutes, I smell something that has my mouth watering.

This!! This. Is. FOOD!! I immediately take off running in the direction of the scent. I can hear Kian quickly following after me but I was quickly losing him. He was no match for my speed and agility in this form.

I silently leap over fallen branches and jump clean over smaller bushes so that I don"t make a single sound. I"m starving... this is my prey and mine alone. As I get closer, I jump into a tree, using my claws to scale the thing in a few powerful thrusts.

My long tail easily keeps me balanced as I quickly but silently stalk my prey from above. A large group of vultures are circling a wounded fox, completely focused on cornering the young fox. I look at the wounded fox and completely dismiss it.

The vultures were huge... They would make a good meal... that and I still kinda feel bad for the small fox. Just the thought of attacking the little thing has my hunger shriveling up. The largest vulture pecks at the small fox, grabbing it"s wounded leg and slightly dragging it.

The little fox cries out in pain as I leap from the tree. I land straight on top of the vulture, scaring it and the others as pure chaos breaks out. The young fox takes advantage of all the chaos to quickly limp away as I sink my sharp teeth into the neck of the vulture.

It tries to use its sharp talons to fight back but when I bite down, I snap it"s neck, nearly severing it from its body. It goes limp as its companions fly away with cries of fear and danger. The taste of blood in my mouth pleases me, Instantly surprising me.

I hear footsteps growing closer and within just a few seconds, Kian runs out of the bushes with his bow to see me dropping the dead vulture from my mouth. Blood soaks into my snow-white fur, all around my mouth and down my chest but when he looks down at the vulture, he looks up to me with pride and joy.

"You did it, Eris! You really did it!" He says running over to me with excitement. He kneels down and hugs me, covered in blood and all, and says "I"m so proud of you. I knew you could do it." When he leans back, his smile of pride is still there.

I"m honestly a little shocked... I never expected him to be so supportive and so... this. Whatever this is... He looks down at the large vulture and says "This thing is nearly the same size as you. Here, let me clean it up and cook it. We just won"t tell the Queen about this part, okay?"

I give him my best cat smile as I lean forward and b.u.mp my head against him as I way to say "Thanks" After he cleans the thing and makes a fire, the sun has already set. He cooks the large bird and sprinkles on some seasoning, making my mouth water as he asks "How does it feel to make your first kill?"

I want to roll my eyes at him. It"s not my first kill, even in this form. When I was working a case three years ago, I had a s.h.i.+fter bear attack me and nearly kill me until I s.h.i.+fted too. I ended up killing the bear and collecting my pay but this is the first time I"ve "hunted" like a wild animal.

To be honest... I like the feeling. It"s a rush and I"ve only chased squirrels before but I"ve never actually killed them. Knowing that I was hunting for the kill... it was exciting! As if reading my thoughts, his smile grows as he says "I"m glad you enjoyed it. I wouldn"t mind joining you for other hunts as well. I like hunting with you."

He pulls the bird off the fire and says "It"s ready" I immediately bite into a leg and rip it off, not caring that the thing was still piping hot. My mouth waters as I bite into the meat, bone, and all. After eating half the bird, I lick my paws clean and clean my face.

Kian puts the fire out and says "We"ll have to stay here the night. Get some rest, I"ll keep watch." I watch him walk to a large tree and stretch out my muscles. After a few minutes, I walk over to the large tree to see him sitting next to the tree, watching our surroundings.

I walk over to him and plop down next to him. He watches me with a small smile as I lay down and make myself comfy. With the fire out, the temperatures have really dropped. I can withstand negative forty degrees with my thick fur but him? I"m not so sure.

I allow him to pet me, it also felt good, as I wrap my long tail behind him like a warm blanket. No matter what, I"m grateful he came with me and encouraged me. To be honest, the guy isn"t all that bad and I"m really starting to think that I should complete the bonding.

I don"t want him to turn into a demon...