Rise Of The Hunters - Chapter 27

Xun sighed. What had he done to make her so upset?

He spied them by the library, sitting under one of the lights on the stairs. Rick had his arm around her, and was talking to her softly. Xun walked up to them, and set their trays of food next to them.

“You shouldn’t waste food,” he said, sitting down a few feet away.

“Thanks,” she sniffed.

“I’ll take the trays back, so you don’t get in trouble,” said Rick.

Xun just nodded, wondering if she was going to mention her reaction or not. It was dark out, but he didn’t feel tired. They took their trays, and began to eat again. Rick was trying to get it down as fast as possible, but Willow just moved the food around.

“It’s your favorite, Willow. You need to eat.” Rick gave her a look and she smiled weakly at him.

“Since when did you become my dad?”

“I’ll be whatever I have to be, to make sure you’re okay.” She laughed at that, and he smiled. Xun just rolled his eyes.

“I guess I’ll be going to bed, it’s late.” Xun stood up.

“Wait!” said Willow. “Don’t be so insensitive! I was going to tell you about it.”

Xun glanced at Rick who shrugged, so he sat back down.

“When I was six, Slavers captured us. They killed my parents, and took me back to a cave, where they shoved us into cages. I managed to escape when two werewolves broke into some of the cages. I don’t remember, but I know I fell into a river. I was half dead when they found me washed up on the shore.”

Rick nodded. “She was terrified for a week. They couldn’t get her to sleep. There was even some talk about, well, you know. But she pulled through.”

Xun could tell there was a lot more to the story, then what she had shared, but it was hers to share. He looked up at the sky as they went quiet again. He was thinking of his own parents.

“My mom died when I was little. I don’t even remember her. My dad took care of me. We traveled a lot. Didn’t stay in any one place too long. He always said it was better, because if you stayed in one place they could find you. I think he always meant the Slavers. A werewolf found us when I was eight. It was old and wounded, so dad noticed it was following us, long before it got to us. He managed to hide me in a pile of rusted metal beams. He was hoping the metal would be able to hold up under the attack, if it tried to get me. I thought he was right behind me as I crawled deep into that cramped crack. It was so tight, I could bȧrėly turn around, and I couldn’t figure out how dad got in. But he wasn’t there.”

Xun’s eyes went out of focus as he saw the opening, bright with daylight, not obscured by his father’s form.

“I couldn’t understand where he was. I wiggled back to the entrance of the little crevasse he had shoved me in, just in time to see him being tossed around like a limp rabbit. There was no life in his face. I watched that scruffy, oversized wolf, catch his body like it was a toy, then it ran off with him.”

“I’m not sure when I finally came out of that hole. My clothes were filthy, I had peed and pooped in my pants at some time, and I was caked in stuff. I don’t remember how I made it to the compound that I found myself at. I don’t even know how much time had passed. The ladies were nice there. They helped me get cleaned up and helped me clean my clothes. Then they wrapped me in a warm fur and put me by a fire. I remember the warmth of that fire on my face. I think I leaned too close to it, because one of the women, an older lady, had sat down next to me and pulled me into her ŀȧp.

“I was too big to fit, my legs stuck out a mile, but she held me and rocked me next to that fire. I remember the soup they gave me was thick, but I don’t remember what all was in it. It filled an ache I had ignored, and then I slept. The next day, Slavers arrived. I had just finished putting on my clean, dry clothes, and my boots, when I heard one of the men outside start yelling. The women tried to convince me to run, but I slipped into the bathroom, and crawled down into the stream that flowed underneath the bathroom. The holes were just big enough to squeeze through. I still don’t know how I didn’t drown.”

Willow hung her head. “I thought my nightmares would drive me crazy, there were several times I wanted to die, just so I could be with mom and dad again.”

Xun nodded. “It’s harder some days then others. I keep telling myself that my dad wanted me to live. He died so I could survive. So, I have to survive, no matter what.”

Willow looked at him and smiled. “I remember the look on my dad’s face when the Slavers were drinking from him. He looked at me and gave me a smile. I thought he had gone crazy, but maybe he was letting me know it would be okay?”

Rick gave her a hug, and she leaned back onto him. “You guys make me feel left out. I mean, my mom died, but from a fish, not anything half as scary as Slavers and werewolves.”

Everyone laughed, and Xun was sure this time, that he had made some friends. He just wondered how long he could enjoy them.