The sounds of the forest seemed to ring in Raven's throbbing head, disorienting her senses. Flinching, she felt the touch of gentle hands on her tender left side, the soothing sensation clashing with the sharp ache that pulsed through her body. “Ah, hold still," came a voice, deep and reassuring, attempting to quell her discomfort. Opening her eyes, she offered a tentative smile, but her expression quickly shifted to one of guarded concern as she pulled away, the pain forgotten in her surge of caution. Scrambling to her feet, she sought refuge by a nearby tree, hastily grasping a branch as a makeshift defense.

“Just stay back! Who are you? Don’t think that you can just touch me," she exclaimed, her voice laced with anger and apprehension.

“I already told you, my name is Dante Fireleaf,” his response carried a dry note, the tension between them palpable. Standing nearby, he brushed off leaves and dirt from his pants, his demeanor a mix of exasperation and earnest concern. “Why must you insist on being so difficult? If you follow me, I can direc–”

Raven's scoff cut him off mid-sentence, her gaze fixed on him with a mixture of defiance and uncertainty. He sighed audibly, taking a cautious step toward her, the space between them fraught with unspoken tensions. "I said stop!" she declared, gripping the branch with renewed determination, the fragility of her makeshift weapon evident as its top snapped upon impact. Despite the broken branch, she met his gaze with resolute defiance, an unyielding determination in her stance.

She must be joking. 

He held back the urge to laugh. The branch was now very non-threatening because it was now more the size of a small stick. He smirked because, despite the small weapon and being seated on the ground,  she maintained a seriously fierce look.  After a few moments of silence, he finally laughed aloud and Raven could feel the heat rise to her face. “You think I’m joking but I will hurt you with this, “ she said through clenched teeth. 

“Look,” he said seriously, “I am Dante Fireleaf of the Dark Moon Pack. I just want to get you somewhere safe for now.” Groaning through the sharp pains, Raven used the tree to steady her as she stood. He frowned as he watched her struggle. He wanted to help but he knew she would resist, so he watched with distaste. 

“Don’t look at me like that,” she frowned, “I’m not some weak little girl that you have to help.”  Annoyed, he took what seemed 3 large steps and was face to face with her. Before she could resist, he had his firm but gentle hands around her, helping her to stand. He placed his left hand at the small of her back and rubbed it firmly up her spine, bringing her closer to his body as he helped her to stand straight with little pain. A small gasp escaped her as he took control with his swift movements. He gazed curiously at her, waiting to see if she would jerk away. She blushed and looked away from him. 

“What?” she asked. Her heart seemed to beat louder and she couldn't bring herself to look at him while he was standing so close. It reminded her of their dance at her birthday party. 

“I thought you were going to hurt me with this,” he said lowly. His deep voice seemed to make her heart flutter more. She hadn’t noticed that he was gripping her hand that was holding the broken branch, too distracted by his hand on her back and the closeness of their bodies.

He took the small wood from her and backed away from her. She frowned but decided to ignore his question and wait to hear what he would say to her next. “Listen, I am to take you to a meeting with the council led by the Grand Dire Wolf of my pack.”

“Wolf pack?”  she rolled her eyes and frowned. “I saw what you did with the wolf back there and everything, but you are going to take me to a WOLF PACK? How can you expect me to go with you? You sound insane!”  Expecting a negative response, he pulled a small black handkerchief from his pocket. She watched him curiously. “ What now? Are you going to cry?”  He turned his head sharply. He looked deadly as their eyes locked. He was clearly unamused as he proceeded to carefully unwrap the delicate fabric from the night before. 

“I belong to the Dark Moon Pack, Guardians of the Celestial Prophecy.  Some time ago, we failed to protect your parents. How do you think i got this?” He placed the cloth back in his pocket and revealed the delicate chain necklace, with a small diamond encased inside an amethyst. She gasped as images of her parents flooded her mind. Flashes of her father snatching the diamond from her mothers neck and placing on a mantel  as they argued came to her as she stared at it in his hands. 

“Where did you get that, “ She asked softly. She clenched her eyes shut as more broken memories flashed through her head. “I’ve seen that before.” 

“I know,” he said as he quickly rewrapped the necklace and placed it in his pocket. “We cannot stay here for much longer. Those men will follow us here. I promise to explain everything to you but we must get away from this part of the woods.”

Raven glanced around. She had almost forgotten that she had run deeper into the woods and had fallen. She shuddered at the thought of being eaten by a wolf on her birthday. 

Things were already bad enough.

She thought to herself as she pondered over whether or not she would trust Dante. 

What kind of name is Fireleaf?

She frowned but thought about how he had risked his life a few times for her already, especially facing off with a real live wolf. She closed her eyes and let out a long sigh.

He mentioned my parents. I want to know more about them. 

She opened her eyes with a new look of determination. “Okay,” she said. “I want to know about my parents but after that, I’m going to check on Janice.” she felt sad as she thought about the scene of destruction at her apartment. She could only imagine how devastated her best friend and roommate Janice were over everything. On top of that, she had run off in the middle of the chaos. She knew she was worried sick. 

“Yea, well just let me finish wrapping your side so that we can keep moving,” Dante said, once again moving quickly to her side before she could protest. 

“Okay, but I’m going to stand this time.”

“Okay,” He placed his hands on her waist and carefully slipped them underneath her shirt. 

“What are you doing,” she looked down but resisted the urge to jerk away. 

“I’m tending to you,” he said, ignoring her stiffness, and proceeded to lift her shirt just enough to expose her bruised side. It was now swollen and dark. “ Hold your shirt for me.” She blushed as she held her shirt up for him. 

Why am I so embarrassed? This is medical.

She tried to control her embarrassment but failed as she noticed him lifting his shirt. 

“What are you–!” she exclaimed.

“Shhhhhh!! Are you trying to make something get after us? Be quiet.” His voice was so low and serious that she was too taken aback to say anything else. She frowned and watched as he ripped the bottom of his undershirt into three long strips. She blushed and looked quickly away after noticing a glimpse of his firm stomach and the peak of a V at the corners of his hips. His other shirt fell over his stomach and he gently began to bind her side with the strips of his shirt. “I'm sorry if this hurts you,” he said softly as he tied the binding tightly so that it would not come apart if she had to run. 

She barely noticed the pain because his firm hands were so gentle and soft as he carefully wrapped her.  “ It’s okay. Let’s just get out of this ravine. I'm scared the wolf may come back.” 

He scoffed. “I doubt you have that to fear, but let’s go. Things can get quite scary at night.” She shuddered at the thought of what kinds of creatures come out at night. “Besides, I know you want to know more about your family. I want you to know everything.”

She looked at him as he stood near the lower part of the ravine, tying vines and preparing to help her out of the steep drop. Specks of sunlight flashed through the treetops around them, his dark hair seemed to reflect like glass as she watched him work so quickly. She had decided to trust him and waited for him to guide her. 

At least, I know he will protect me. 

She remained alert, trusting to follow him.