Ghastly Woods but baby don't let winter come

What came next from the blue-eyed girl had taken him by surprise. That was why she was not fond of the darkness like he was. A frown creased his maw as he allowed silence to fall over them once more. The demons that the girl spoke of had not been what he was expecting, and neither was the honesty. Strangers always had loose lips when they felt vulnerable or alone. Unfortunately for Greer, he seemed to frequently find himself in the company of wolves who were keen on sharing. Or suffered from word vomit. However, unfortunately for them, Greer did not care about anything they had to say. Unless it was something that would affect either him or his family, he was not interested.

“Lose them here. Good place.” His voice cut through the silence like a blade, his silver gaze focused on the tawny stranger as he affirmed his words with a quick nod. These woods not ideal for those in search of something; the exact opposite, in fact. It was much easier to lose something among these trees than it was to find something — or someone.

Once she accepted his help, the shadow started off in the direction he had pointed in. North, he would take her north, away from Willow Ridge. Loners did not fair so well against the peculiar group of wolves, not unless they had similar qualities. The tight-knit group wasn’t often fond of strangers and were reluctant to open up their ranks to others. Trespassers, or loners lingering too close to their borders? They were lucky to leave with only a scolding.

He was a quiet soul… that much she’d noticed and not just from his broken English, but because of the way he held himself, the way he reacted, observed. He spoke when he deemed it necessary, and it was something that Lilya could find herself respecting, something that she understood once upon a time. He suggested that this place was a good place to lose demons and she gave a shy smile in response. “M’fraid that my demons like darkness like this… more places to hide, more places to watch.” It was a nice thing for him to say, but unrealistic in her eyes… and yet he still guided her.

He headed off in a direction, assuming a direction to safety, north. She’d wondered briefly what lingered farther south, but the man had his reasons for guiding her otherwise and seeing as he seemed, keeping her oceanic eyes focused carefully on his jet black form as to not lose him in the shadows that surrounded them both, though she kept a respectable distance from him, figuring a quiet soul like himself preferred his personal space, and Lilya herself had an affinity for keeping her distance, having very much a “bubble” around her that she could stick to.

It seemed these demons were much nastier than Greer had initially thought. If he was capable of holding any sort of empathy, the shadow would feel sorry for Lilya and the excessive weight she carried on her shoulders. But, as long as it did not affect him, he did not care. It was also part of the reason why he was taking her north — if these demons of hers were to find her, Greer did not want them anywhere near his home. Although he knew that the willow wolves were not fond of strangers lurking too close to their borders, the boy did not want to risk it. Remove the threat before it became one.

“Then Lil out. No woods.” He nodded sharply to affirm his words, his mercury gaze fixated on the blue-eyed girl before he focused on the path before him. If she was not fond of the darkness or the looming trees Greer would remove her. Mostly so he could return without her anxious presence disturbing his thoughts. Snaking through the trees with an effortless grace Greer frequently glanced over his shoulder to ensure that the girl was not too far behind. She followed at a respectful distance behind him, which had both taken him by surprise and pleased him. The tawny loner was unlike most of the wolves Greer had encountered and, for that, he was thankful. While she was not completely comfortable with the silence he frequently engulfed himself in, but she did not shy away from it. Perhaps, in time, she would learn to embrace it — or at least be a little less afraid of it.

The boy was hard to read, something that Lilya had noted and chose to ignore. He was helping her find the way out, pointing her in a direction, and for that she was grateful. She found that she cared a great deal about other wolves, unless they gave her a specific reason not to like hurting those she actively cared about or attempted to harm her, something along those lines. Her mother had once called her a bleeding heart, though it was more of a taunt and a scold for not “taking her training seriously” than it was a compliment. She had taken it as a compliment though – better a bleeding heart than a black and emotionless soul in her mind.

He nodded with his words, a soft and thankful smile on her face as she kept her respectful distance, a nod when he glanced back at her, the darkness still haunting her with time as her icy blue eyes took in her surroundings, trying to remember the way out should she ever get lost in this forest again – not that she intended to come back, at least not soon. She was quite serious when she said she thought they were after her, because it was the nature of those demons that had driven Lilya to leave her home, and the ferocity and willingness to hunt others to the ends of the earth that had kept her on the run after all this time.

Arguably, everyone had demons, even if they didn’t realize it, even if they weren’t afraid of them… but Lilya was terrified of hers. She saw the figurative light at the end of the tunnel, the end of the road and the exit to the forest with a smile as she looked at him, soft spoken words. “Thank you so much, Greer. Ah won’t forget this.” She offered with a dip of her head before she carefully worked her way out of the forest and into the sunlight, embracing it as the tawny girl broke into a run, knowing that the more distance she put between herself and that forest, the better.

-fade-