Redd and the Wolf

Redd was on her way to her grandmother’s. She visited her grandmother every weekend to bring her apples so that she could bake pies that the family would sell. When Redd was younger, the huntsman and his son would accompany her. She always took the same path because of stories of wolves attacking anyone that went off of the trail. Now with Redd being in her teenage years was sure that it was just an old tale that had been passed down. She knew that the huntsman and his family did their best to keep the wolves in check, and she had never heard of anyone getting attacked in the woods.

She did miss the huntsman’s son, Shadow. Back when they were about ten, she had dared him to go off of the trail. After that, he was never seen again. The huntsman himself had went looking for the boy since he didn’t show back up before dark. The huntsman came back and told her family that the only thing he had found was the boy’s dagger and nothing else. They all just assumed that the boy had been dragged off by a predator of the woods.

Today, Redd was missing Shadow more than usual. She wished they had at least found a body so that they could have buried him; she felt that she would have given her more closure. Redd still had a hope that he might always be alive out there somewhere. Maybe someone had found him and took him in, perhaps he had been captured, but she wanted to believe that he was still alive. She knew that his father had given up hope after about a year because, as he had stated, there was no way Shadow could have survived in the woods this long.

She fingered the necklace around her neck as she was thinking of him. The chain was a simple black cord with a silver cross on it. She had made it, but she had made two, one for herself and one for Shadow when they were younger. She had given it to him on the same day that she dared him to go off of the trail. He told her that he would always wear the necklace as a sign of their friendship and so that no matter what, they would still be able to find each other.

Redd was dressed in a simple off-white shirt with a tan skirt, along with tan boots. She had a red jacket on as well as sometimes it was cold in the woods. Redd had her dark red hair in a loose ponytail as her emerald eyes scanned the trail ahead. She had her basket full of apples for her grandmother in her left arm. She had asked the huntsman a while back when they had determined that she was old enough to take the path alone for a hand-ax to protect herself, just in case. He had given it to her that year as a birthday present, and she always carried it on her afterward.

It was about midway through the day, and she knew that she would reach her grandmother’s before nightfall and just in time for dinner. She would stay with her grandmother for a week to help with baking the pies, and then she would take the pies home and hopefully sell them.

She heard a noise further down the trail as she was in midthought. She quickly drew her hand-ax, becoming alert. She scanned, looking for whatever made the noise as she didn’t want to get caught off-guard. She noticed one of the bushes on the side of the trail was moving, “Come out, and I won’t hurt you!” She shouted, hoping that the person or being would come out peacefully.

“Please don’t attack me, I was just looking for food.” A male voice replied as a person came out of the bush. He had black hair, looked to be a bit on the skinny side, and his clothes looked a bit torn. She noticed that his eyes were a piercing grey color and seemed to be looking into her soul even though he seemed so timid.

“I won’t attack you so long as you do the same.” She told him as she walked closer to him to get a better look at the male. He seemed to be around her age and like he could use a bath as well as he didn’t look the cleanest. As she got closer, she noticed a piece of silver around his neck, and as she stopped in front of him, she noticed that the part of silver was across, and it was eerily similar to hers.

“I don’t plan on it as I have no weapon on me, ma’am.” The male stated to her, regarding her, it seemed.

“Where did you get that necklace?” She asked him, wondering if he somehow had found it, and if that was the case, maybe he knew what happened to the owner.

“A friend of mine gave it to me a long time ago.” He told her, trying to move away from her, it seemed.

“Shadow?” She questioned, not genuinely believing that it could genuinely be her old friend.

“How do you know my name?” He asked as he closed the distance between them at what seemed like an inhuman like speed.

“It’s me, Redd. Don’t you remember me?” She questioned, giving him a look of hopeful questioning. She genuinely wanted him to remember her now that she knew it was him.

“Redd...You have grown so much since then…” He trailed off, seeming to be in shock that he was seeing her for real. She hugged him as it was the only thing she knew to do after finding out that he was still alive. He let her hold onto him, and they both cried for a short while. After they both finished crying tears of joy, they let go of each other and wiped the tears from their faces.

“Your father will be so happy to know that you are alive, Shadow.” She told him as it would be true as far as she knew.

“Redd, you can’t tell anyone that I’m still alive. I will explain later, but I must go now as I can hear people coming.” Shadow told her before running back into the woods, leaving her alone on the trail.

Redd wanted to run after him; she had so many questions for him and even more after he told her not to tell anyone that he was still alive. She would do as he told her, but she was determined that she would be able to convince him otherwise. She continued down the trail to her grandmother’s house.