Finding a Wolf In the Trees

Chapter 10~

A ten year old boy, with black hair and brown eyes, sat on the porch of a small cottage. The cottage was near the center of the village, and many people stopped by to talk to the house’s inhabitants. A raven haired woman with blue eyes tended to the small herb garden at the side of the house, and a blonde haired man with brown eyes stood behind the young boy on the porch.

“Saxen,” tomanoman called, “Come here and help me with the last of this weeding. If you do a good job I’ll let you have an extra piece of cake for dessert.”

“Okay mommy!” The ten year old Saxen said as he jumped to his feet and ran over the his mother. He bit his lower lip in concentration as he weeded the small garden, and his mother gave a small chuckle at the sight.

“You spoil him Merrill.” The man said as he watched his son fondly. “How do you expect him to grow up to be a strong man when you soften him with sweet foods and even sweeter words?” He man scolded his wife, but his tone was light and full of laughter.

“I am not the only one who spoils him. You do as well Gavin.” She said as she joined her husband on the small porch. “But do not fret, he will grow up to be a fine man. I can sense it.” She said and her husband nodded.

“I’m all done mommy!” Saxen exclaimed as he stood, smiling proudly as he pointed to the work he had completed. “Come look, it’s all done.”

“Your mommy’s a little tired right now Saxen, but I’ll look at your work and see how you did.” His father said walking over to the young boy.

Saxen looked over at his mother and saw her smiling at them, one hand resting on her stomach. Saxen turned to his father who was inspecting the herb garden. He spoke in a soft voice so his mother wouldn’t hear. “Daddy, is mommy going to have a baby?”

His father looked at him and smiled. Then he spoke in an equally soft voice. “Your mommy thinks she will. And if she does you’ll have a little brother or sister.”

“I think that would be the greatest!” Saxen said and his father smiled. Gavin led his son back to the porch and told his wife that he had never seen the garden so perfect.

That night while young Saxen and his family were eating dinner a loud cry echoed through the small village. Gavin jumped up and grabbed his dagger from the table by the door. He opened the door and saw the villagers running from five men on horses. “Bandits!” one villager cried as he ran towards the forest, only to have a blade slice through his back by a man on a horse.

Gavin turned to his wife and child and pulled them both into fierce hugs. “Run swiftly, and do not stop to look behind you.” He kissed Merrill and hugged his son once more. “I love you both, always remember that.” He turned and headed out the door.

Saxen tried to run after his father but his mother held him back. He looked at her wide eyed as tears streamed down her own cheeks. “We must leave now, through the backdoor.” She said in a strangled voice as she pulled Saxen to the back of the house.

Once they were out of the house they ran toward the forest. Saxen’s hand gripped tightly in his mother’s. Suddenly a horse leapt out of the trees in front of them. Saxen’s mother screamed and tried to turn and run in the other direction. There was the rush of a blade passing through the air and then the sick sound of tearing flesh.

Saxen felt something come in contact with the back of his head and he fell to the ground, passing out for a few seconds. When he came to he saw his mother laying a few feet away from him, blood rushing from a wound he could not see. “Mommy?” he cried crawling toward her.

“I’m so sorry baby.” His mother croaked, fighting for breath. “You must listen to me now, you need to remember this prophecy. Promise me you will remember it.” He nodded and she told him the prophecy and made him repeat it until she was satisfied. “I love you baby.” She said in a whispered voice, and then she closed her eyes and her life passed from her body.

“No, mommy don’t leave me, don’t leave me.” The young boy sobbed. He wrapped his arms around his mother’s lifeless body and pressed his ear to her stomach, where there was supposed to be a baby growing. “Mommy.” he cried closing his eyes. He slept that way, shutting out the screaming all around him.

When he awoke the next morning a dew had settled on the ground. The earth was littered with bodies and the houses were burned to the ground. Saxen reluctantly stepped away from his mother’s body and walked to where his home had once stood. He looked around and fresh tears ran down his young cheeks.

It was then that he spotted his father’s body. It was huddled over a small bundle of cloth. Saxen went to his father and cried tears of mourning. The bundle of cloth was a small baby girl wrapped in blankets. It too had passed away sometime during the night.

Suddenly Saxen heard a noise behind him and spun around. A drunken man swaggered across the ground, stepping on the bodies of the villagers as he went. “Well, well. It looks like we missed one last night.” As he stood in front of Saxen the young boy recognized the man. He was the one that had killed his mother “Yo “You’re the only one left boy.” The man grinned, “all your other friends are dead. I thank you and your village for providing entertainment for my group of raiders last night, we had a grand time.” Saxen was shaking with rage as the man spoke. Then he spotted his father’s dagger, by some miracle it was right next to his feet.

As the man laughed Saxen quickly bent down and picked up the dagger. Before the man had a chance to blink Saxen drove the blade into the man’s heart. The man coughed and blood spat from his mouth. Saxen drew the blade away and jumped to the side as the man fell to the ground, his chest did not stir with breath. It was then that Saxen realized what he had done. He had taken a life. He was only ten years old, yet he had killed a man.

With haunted eyes Saxen wiped the blood from the dagger on the man’s shirt and tucked the weapon into his own belt. He took one last look at the bodies littering the ground and offered a prayer to the higher powers to lay their souls to rest. Then he turned and ran from the place he had one called home.

~~~

A twelve year old boy shivered from the cold as he tried to herd the cattle back to the barn. The cattle were being stubborn, however, and refused to move despite the freezing temperatures. This village had taken him in and raised him for the past two years, in return for his help with the cattle. The two other cattle herders shook their heads. “Saxen! These stupid beasts are not moving go find something to persuade them with.”

Saxen nodded and turned. Then a scream filled the air and he froze. Not again, please not again. But it wasn’t bandits that met his haunted gaze, it was a hungry pack of wolves. They usually stayed away from humans but the snow must have caused their regular prey to die. Now they were after the cattle.

It was clear why the cattle had not been moving now. They had sensed the wolves and tried to be so still that the wolves would think them dead and leave them alone. Obviously it had not worked and the wolves quickly closed in. The two other young men with him ran as fast as their legs would carry them and shouted for him to do the same.

But Saxen stayed still. Something told him that he could stop the wolves from harming the cattle. Acting on instinct Saxen jumped in front of the charging wolves and bared his teeth. “Stop!” he cried and his eyes flashed from brown to gold. The wolves stopped in their tracks and gazed at him, their heads cocked to the side. Then they turned and walked back into the forest, leaving as quickly as they had come.

One old man shouted with joy and rushed toward the boy. “I don’t know what you did boy but you saved our cattle. I thank you for that.” He went to pull Saxen into a hug but a shrill voice cut through he air, bringing the man to a halt.

“Do not touch him!” An old woman wrapped in a shawl cried, walking toward him. “Look at his eyes! They were brown not a moment ago but now they are as golden as the sun. He did not stop the wolves he called them here to make it look like he is some type of hero! He is the child of evil! He must leave!”

Saxen’s hand flew up to his eyes wondering how this could be true. His eyes were brown, they would always be brown, like his father’s. “I saw the change in him as well!” another villager cried, “He must be sent away!” There was a rally of cries at this and some of the villagers struck him. As soon as there was a break in the line of angry villagers Saxen shot up and ran into the woods.


The cold bit into him as he ran, until he fell to the forest floor, exhausted. There was a movement to his left and then Saxen felt a warm furry body curl up at his side. Soon two more curled up next to him and when Saxen opened his eyes he found himself staring into the golden gaze of a large wolf. He knew he should be frightened but he only felt peace at their presence.

As he closed his eyes he heard whispering voices in the back of his head. I have never heard of a human that can speak our language. How strange that we should find him today, how strange that he is like a human wolf. The prophecy his mother had intrusted to him came back in a rush at these whispered words. “And she will find safety in hands of the wolf.” He whispered before dropping off to sleep.
~*~*~*~*~

Saxen awoke with a shout. Sweat dripped from his forehead and he panted for breath. He had not had those dreams for a long time. He had thought he had buried those memories in a far corner of his mind. It must have been the lack of food that had brought them back to surface. He had been traveling with Nydia for almost three weeks. He had not eaten in the last three days so he could make sure she would not go hungry.

The blood was pounding so loudly in his ears that he did not hear Nydia approach him, and he jumped slightly when he felt her hand on his shoulder. Concern shown in her eyes and she slowly reached out a hand and brushed a strand of his hair away from his face. He had been distant during the weeks they had been traveling together, though he had made an effort to be kind to her. Kindness did not come naturally to him.

He didn’t realize that he was shaking until Nydia wrapped her arms around him and slowly rocked back and forth. Uncertainty was prominent in her scent, as if she was afraid of being pushed away. “Sh, it’s all right.” She whispered softly into his hair.

Saxen’s head rested on her breast as she rocked back and forth. And, strangely he felt the heavy weight of sorrow, that usually accompanied those dreams, lift off his shoulders. He lifted a hand and patted her arm softly, feeling awkward for he wasn’t sure what he was supposed to do. Nydia curled up next to him, and he lay back down. She held him to her as they lay there, his head still resting lightly on her chest.

After a few moments Saxen heard her breathing even out. She had fallen asleep. The steady beat of her heart slowly lulled Saxen to sleep as well. Just before he drifted off he spotted his dagger laying next to the traveling sack a few feet away. The dagger that had once belonged to his father. As Saxen fell asleep once more he was not plagued with dreams of death. He dreamt of the first time he had run with his wild brothers and sisters, eleven years ago.

AN: I know this chapter took me longer to post than the other ones did but I couldn\'t help it. This chapter was longer than any of the other\'s I have writen int the past and Saxen\'s memories were rather hard to write. I don\'t know if I\'m very good at writing about death and gore but tell me what you think. It\'ll make me feel better :-) I expected to get two or three reviews like I normally do but for chapter nine I got five! *does a little dance* Thanks a lot.


Reviews:

lowla- here you go... chapter ten baby!

fallen- thanks for your review, and you wanted to know what happened next and TADA!

zelix- yeah I know... you just can\'t wait for me to update... you probably sit at your computerringring at the screen for hours to see if I\'ve updated yet. I hit the nail right on the head didn\'t I, come on admit it. heehee.

Hello Betty- Yeah Guthrie turned out just how I wanted him to which was kinda surprising. And about Guthrie sensing Nydia\'s power... it\'s just another plot twist that makes this story just a little harder to follow. I hope you like.

luvit- yeah I agree, chapter nine was kinda creepy but hey who doen\'t love a crazy stalker-like guy?