His Oblivious Mate

Chapter 4 : The Commune

Cathy was angry. Not the small kind of anger from being inconvenienced, it was a full blown anger. She felt like she could punch something or someone. But she prided herself on being a level headed individual. So she dressed herself warmly. She had made herself a solemn promise to go back into the woods and find every single trap and snare that that old rat of an old man Johnson might have left behind. It was probably not extremely productive to do it in winter, with snow covering everything. But her conscience would forever haunt her if any other poor, innocent creature got caught in any traps.

During her visit at the commune with Cass and Duncan the previous day, she learnt that her land used to belong to a hunter. And not just any hunter. Oh no, he was trophy hunter. She herself ate meat, but she could not approve of someone that hunted for sport. It is something entirely different if someone eats what they kill, but killing bears and mountain lions and then stuffing the carcasses to display, went beyond that.

She pulled open the door, then stared in dismay at the fresh snow that fell during the night. She almost closed the door again, but then she saw the picture of Girl caught in the trap in her mind, so she squared her shoulders, pulled her backpack on tight and stepped outside. Closing the door behind her, she set off into the woods. She packed enough coffee and some lunch. Armed with a real South African knobkierie (a stick with a knob at one end, used as a weapon), she felt ready for her self imposed task.

Her mind went over the pleasant visit with the siblings the previous day. They lived in a huge 4 storey mansion, in the middle of nowhere. There were other people there as well, but she didn't get to speak to anyone except Cass and Duncan. She was sure the mansion must be a commune. With so many people living in it, it made sense. There was even a market and some shops in a small village. They drove past it when Cass brought her back to her cabin. Cass explained that they are self sufficient, growing their own produce. There was even a clinic. She was impressed by it all, marvelling at how little the people needed from the outside world.

She used the knobkierie to prod the ground in front of, and around her. She was so absorbed in what she was doing, she did not notice the huge owl high in the tree, watching her. "Cass won the bet. She is in the woods, busy looking for traps. She did not listen to your advice, Duncan" Owen reported to the Beta through the mindlink. "I hoped she would leave looking for the traps till spring, but she seemed determined enough that I expected her not to. Just keep an eye on her, and if there is any danger, let me know" Duncan replied. Owen adjusted his wings, folding them tighter around himself, shielding his body from the cold. He was fascinated by the human girl. He saw strength of character within her that he admired. He found himself rooting for her, to find the traps. Or whatever goal she set for herself.

On the ground, Cathy jolted when the knobkierie jerked in her hand, the end caught in a snare. "I found one! Whoohoo" she sang in her mind. She squatted and pulled the snare loose from the frozen ground. She took off her backpack and got out the canvas bag she packed. She placed the snare in it, took a sip of coffee from the thermos, and then continued with her mission.

By the time she reached the mini waterfall, she had disabled two more snares, and another bear trap. She realized that the bear traps would be too heavy to carry around with her. She made sure it wasn't going to cause injuries to anyone, then dragged it to where she thought the path was. She will collect it at a later stage. When she had figured out how to dispose of all the traps and snares.

She sat down on a rock, facing the mini waterfall, and took out her lunch. She bit into a sandwich, and then froze. Above the waterfall, from between two trees, a gigantic brown bear was looking at her. She felt her body grow cold. She racked her brains, trying to remember anything about what to do in circumstances like these. But her mind remained blank. The bear looked at her for what was a few seconds, but it felt like hours. It then shook its huge head, and walked away.

Cathy blinked. It walked away. "Why didn't it attack?" she wondered, placing the sandwich back in the lunch tin, her appetite gone. Her mind pondered the question for a while. Then she decided that the bear probably recognised that she isn't a threat. She placed the lunch tin back into the backpack.

Heaving it back onto her shoulders, she picked up the canvas bag and her knobkierie. She suddenly had an intense desire to be home, safe in her cabin, in front of the fireplace. Heading back in the direction of her cabin, she wondered what other species of animals lived in the woods. She had never given any thought to the possibility of predators being in her woods. Even Girl surprised her. But then again, it is woods. In the middle of nowhere. She shouldn't be surprised by finding animals in it. It is where animals lived, after all.

Owen saw the whole interaction between the human girl and the bear. "Nice going Bert, you scared her off" he linked the bear. "I didn't mean to. I just wanted to see what she was doing. I didn't plan for her to see me" Bert defended himself. "You can't hide in plain sight in bear form, you big oaf. You stand out like a sore thumb against the snow" Owen continued. "Well excuse me mister wise ass, not all of has wings to watch from the tree tops" Bert retorted.

"Where is she now Owen?" Duncan interrupted their argument. "She is heading to her cabin. She managed to find some snares and a trap" Owen reported to the Beta. "We should really stop underestimating her" he chuckled. "Follow her and make sure she gets back to the cabin safely" he ordered. "Of course" Owen replied, closing the mind link.

He flew high above the woods, circling overhead, and when Cathy went into the cabin, he landed on the tree branch outside her bedroom window and camouflaged himself between the smaller branches. He decided to take a nap just there, before heading back to the pack house. He heard Cathy at the fireplace downstairs, so he knew she would not leave again for the day. He dozed off.

Cathy lit a fire, then made herself a large cup of hot chocolate. She was freezing. She wasn't sure if it was due to weather outside, or residual shock. She got a comforter from the guest room, then wrapped it around herself. She settled down comfortably on the couch, kicking off her boots, and putting her feet up on the couch. Finishing her hot chocolate, she laid down on her back, stretched herself out, then turned on her side and watched the flames dance in the fireplace. She felt calm again, the anger from yesterday gone. Maybe she was still slightly rattled from meeting a brown bear, but she was grateful that she did not end up injured or dead. At least she managed to remove some traps. Her eyes drifted closed, and she fell into a deep sleep.