I paused, listening. There was movement up ahead. Paws crunching softly over the gravelly path that led deeper into the abandoned pack lands. The scent of wolf was thick here, familiar and foreign all at once. It smelled of old battles, of fear and of survival.
I crouched low, taking care to remain hidden. A figure appeared, larger than most, moving with deliberate precision. It was a wolf, fully in its natural form, with a coat that shimmered faintly in the moonlight. My heart rate picked up slightly. I wasn’t alone here.
I froze, letting it pass, observing. The wolf stopped ahead and sniffed the air, ears twitching. It didn’t notice me immediately. I could feel it sizing me up, and though it was cautious, it wasn’t aggressive.
The forest remained quiet, the only sound was my own breat
