His Oblivious Mate

Chapter 6 : Curious Creatures

Walking in the woods, Cathy was again looking for traps to disable. She wanted to work on the statue, but concern over animals being caught in the traps in the cold won out. So she found herself prodding the snow with the knobkierie again. She hasn't been outside long. It looked like it might snow more later, and she did not want to be caught in the woods in a blizzard. She decided to stay on the cabin's side of the mini waterfall today. Just in case of a snow storm, or bears. The wind caressed her cheeks with icy cold fingers, and she shivered, pulling the jacket tighter around herself. She loved winter, but she found herself wishing it was spring already. It would make finding traps a lot easier.

A pair of green eyes were following her. They belonged to Athena. She is a tiger shifter. She was tasked with guarding Cathy during the day. And Owen insisted that he would not rest if any other shifter except herself watched the human girl. She agreed out of curiosity. She has known Owen a long time, and he has never shown any interest in the safety of anyone before. This girl has to be something special if Owen is adamant that she be kept safe. Athena made sure to stay deep in the shadows of the undergrowth. She heard about the Bert incident, and a repeat with a tiger would be horrendous. And Owen would skin her alive with those sharp talons of his.

She used her sharp hearing to listen for sounds that shouldn't be there, but all she could hear was Cathy humming softly to herself.

Cathy found another bear trap. She did a little happy dance before dragging it to where the other two were beside the path. She brough a bright red ribbon along today, and tied it around a branch in the nearest tree, knotting it securely. "Now it can snow for weeks, I will still find you" she spoke out loud to the traps. She went back to her trap hunting. Athena chuckled quietly to herself. "She is an eccentric girl, this one. Speaking to inanimate objects" she thought to herself. She made herself comfortable. It seemed like they would be here in the woods for a while. She let her mind wander while she kept an eye on Cathy. She wondered what her mate, David, was up to. He left with Alpha Caleb as he was one of the Alpha's guards. His appointment by Caleb caused quite a stir in the werewolf community, as it was not common for any other shifter species to form part of Alpha guard squads. He was a strong warrior and an excellent fighter. Shifter tigers were larger than their wolf counterparts, and his feline reflexes made him a deadly opponent in a fight. She was so proud of him, even if it meant he had to leave her for weeks on end when the Alpha had business to attend to.

She heard heavy footsteps in the snow, just beyond the waterfall. She glanced at Cathy, but she was oblivious to whomever was approaching. Athena stalked the newcomer through the undergrowth. She was within pouncing distance when she recognized the dark brown fur. "Dammit Bert, what are you doing here?" she yelled at the bear through the mind link. He looked at her and at least had the decency to look guilty. "I just wanted to see what she is doing Athena" he answered. "I promise to not let her see me again" he added. "You are the most curious creature I know" she said, rolling her eyes at him. "Hide with me in the undergrowth. And stay still" she instructed, crawling back to where she was watching Cathy from. When she glanced back, she couldn't help laughing, her tiger body shaking. Bert was imitating her crawl. Using his big front paws with his head and torso almost on the ground, and his big bear bottom pointing up at the sky. He grinned back at her, winking. "You are a big goofy bear" she said through her laughter, shaking her head. They took their places, watching Cathy.

By midday, she had found a few more snares, doing a silly little victory dance when she uncovered each one. This amused the tiger and bear tremendously. She had placed the snares in the canvas bag. She looked up at the sky through the canopy of the trees when little flakes started falling to the ground, some getting stuck in her hair. "Time to go" she told herself. She followed the path back to the cabin.

Closing the door on the winter landscape outside, she put the canvas bag and knobkierie away. Pulling of her gloves, she quickly lit a fire. Eyeing the shrinking pile of logs beside the fireplace, she made a mental note to get more wood the next day. When the fire heated the cabin a bit, she pulled off her jacket and beanie.

She cooked some beef stew and rice, and switched on some music. She sat down at the kitchen table, facing the window. She looked outside while eating. It was snowing hard outside. She made herself a cup of coffee, and after she finished drinking it, she cleaned the kitchen.

Going into her studio, she switched on the light. The studio only had a small window that didn't illuminate it enough for her to work without the light. Pulling the sheet off the statue, she sang with the song playing in the background. Gathering her tools, she started chipping away. She was so lost in her work, she did not notice the bear face peering in the window, with a tiger perched on his shoulders. They watched her working intently. "Is that me?" Bert asked Athena. "It does look like she is sculpting a bear Bert. You really made an impression on her" she teased him. They continued watching her work till it was time for Owen to take over. They made sure that he did not catch them looking through the window like peeping Tom's. Bert left Athena, knowing that Owen was still a little annoyed with him.

Owen landed on the log beside Athena. "How did it go?" he asked. "She is safely inside the cabin. I can see why she fascinates you" Athena answered. He didn't reply, taking off to his usual spot. "Thanks for the long conversation Owen. And you are very welcome" she snarked sarcastically. Still silence from the owl. She sighed. Then she stretched her body, and ran back to pack territory.