FSE

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After he was sure that Gary wouldn't be coming back, Steven whistled for Crystal to come inside. She carried their fishing gear, along with the fish they caught, and went into the cabin. Setting the stuff down at the door entrance, she shivered and shook snow off her fur. Her coat glistened, wet from snow that had melted. It was warm in the cabin. The fire had been burning steady for a while, and the flames lapped at the chimney, as if trying to escape. Tiny cracks and pops could be heard from the burning logs. The sound was soothing. Filling the air where the abundance of silence would otherwise be.

Crystal sat in front of the fire place and began warming her hands. She didn't know what was going on, but she knew that her companion wasn't himself. He was just standing around, staring out the window and watching the snow fall. It wasn't like him to be quiet. The wolfess didn't understand why. He was usually so happy and full of life. The odd man had made her laugh. She liked that a lot. She couldn't remember anything when he found her in the woods. She didn't feel.. natural, though. She wasn't always like this. She was sure of it. She was different. Maybe she was more like the man, Steven. Or maybe she was more like the feral, four legged ones that looked like her in the woods. She couldn't be sure.

All she knew for certain was that she woke up in the woods, scared and alone. She found Steven, and he treated her as a friend - even if he was scared of her at first. She had felt so guilty about that, but she didn't have any way of saying so. She'd give anything to be able to talk to him.

Crystal stared into the fire a bit longer until her fur was warm. She then got up and gently approached Steven. What do I do? He thought. Sweat was beading on his crinkled forehead. He was giving himself a headache. A soft hand touched his shoulder, and it startled him. Crystal turned him to face her, and hugged him. It surprised Steven, and for a second he just stood there as she embraced him, with his arms hanging at his side. She rested her head against his shoulder, tightening her hold. He sighed. Wrapping his arms around her, they just stood there for a long while. The fire continued to crackle and pop, the snow continued to fall gently, and they just stood there. There was a big communication barrier. Steven often did the talking for the both of them, pretending to know what was going on in the mind of the beautiful, for lack of a better term, creature that he was taking care of. He wasn't ever really sure what she was thinking. But at that moment, in each other's arms, he knew they cared for each other. They wanted to be together.

Steven could feel his face getting hot. In fact, his glasses were starting to fog a bit. He'd never been so close with a woman before. Sure, he'd had sex. He'd had a steady girlfriend once or twice. They never understood him, though. When he was with them, he didn't feel what he felt around Crystal. Happiness. Simplicity. He felt accepted.

Eventually the hug ended, and Steven found himself tearing up a bit. A lone tear found it's chance for escape, and slid slowly down his face. Crystal wiped his cheek with her hand, and smiled at him tenderly.

"If you tell anyone about that tear, I'll have to kill you," he joked. She giggled a bit, and he smiled as well. He removed his glasses and rubbed his eyes, snorting a bit. With the glasses placed back on his face, he felt normal again. He didn't have to figure out what to do. He was already doing it. Staying here with Crystal. That's all he had to do.

"No, really, I mean it. I'll have to put you down, dig a hole, get rid of evidence. The whole shebang. It would be a huge hassle, mind you. I don't much enjoy cleaning, and it would take my weak arms quite a while to dig a proper hole. So, I'd really prefer you didn't tell. It's too much effort on my part. I know how you like to go on and on. You never shut up, really. You know that? You probably don't, since you've never stopped talking to take the time to think about it."

He grinned at her, and she smiled back. Crystal put the fishing gear back into the closet, and Steven stared to gut the fishes they had caught on the table. He never liked this part much, and tried to avoid thinking about it as his experienced fingers worked diligently. He started to hum a tune that his father used to hum when he was a child. They used to go fishing together. Steven remembered learning how to properly bait a hook, and being taught how to hold a catfish so it wouldn't sting him. Steven smiled. His father had been dead for a few years, and he missed him. He was lucky to have a good dad, and he knew that. He wasn't upset when he thought of father. No, the grown man didn't grieve anymore. Steven had come to terms with it, and now just focused on the good memories. That's what kept his father alive - the memories, and the way he used the lessons he had been taught.

Steven's father had been the only person that ever encouraged his use of imagination. He told young Steven that he could be anything he wanted. Steven got his first start as an author because his father suggested it. He said that it would be good for the active minded kid, at the time, to put his ideas to paper. Soon Steven had published his first fantasy book. He smiled.

It wasn't long before the fish were gutted, filleted, and in a frying pan. Soon they were cooked and set on plates placed on the table. The smell filled the small abode. It was comforting and a nice distraction from all that had been going on.

"Crystal, it's time to eat," he called. She was lounging on the bed, her eyes half closed as she day-dreamed, on the verge of sleep. Steven wondered what the anthromorphic wolf was thinking about. She sat down and shot him a wide smile.

"I'd be happy too, if such a handsome devil cooked me something as rare as genuine harpooned whale. It's been a while since I've had this. It's a delicacy back home, ya know. Not many people ever get to have a meal so good; it's worthy only of true warriors." Crystal giggled a bit as her companion took a seat across from her.

Smiling at her, he began to explain to her what Gary had told him. He explained that the man was from the military, and that he said she had escaped from there. Steven told the woman that the military was looking for her and considered her to be dangerous. Her face obtained a serious look, and she seemed to be thinking about what she heard. She wasn't making eye contact anymore.

"Do you know about this?" She slowly shook her head. No. "Do you remember any of this, at all? Anything?" Crystal raised her head, looking him square in the eye, and shook her head again. It looked as if she was getting uncomfortable and bothered. Steven attempted to console her.

"Well, don't worry about it. Eh? It will come back to you. I'm sure of it. You're here now, and you're safe. That's all that matters. But we'll have to be careful. I don't want anything to happen to you. You're not dangerous. You're beautiful." Crystal blushed at the compliment, but it couldn't be seen. She smiled again and started eating excitedly. Steven knew she trusted him, and he trusted her in return. They had a bond that could be felt. It was almost tangible. The air around them was even different when they were with one another.

It was around midnight and the two were sleeping when Crystal heard something. Her ear perked, and her eyes opened suddenly. It was quiet, but she still could hear it; snow crunched under the weight of a foot. Then she heard a car door slam closed. She shook Steven anxiously, waking him. He sat up, spooked from being woken so suddenly.

"What, what's wrong?" He reached over to the stand next to the bed and put on his glasses. Crystal's ear lay flat as she pointed to the window. The blinds were closed, so he got out of bed and peeked through. There were men in his yard, with flashlights.

"Shit. Um, okay. Well. Don't panic. We'll figure something out. You should probably hide. Yeah, you need to hide. Okay.. but where?" He scanned the room. It was small, and there weren't many places to hide someone. He spotted the closet where they kept the fishing gear. It would be cramped, but it would do.

"Quickly, get into the closet. I'll try to figure out what's going on. Maybe I can get them to leave." Steven threw on a thick winter coat, and hurriedly strapped on his boots. What if they took her? What could he possibly do then? How would he feel?

He opened his door, and immediately had a light flashed in his face. Squinting he thought he could make out four figures. Standing in his door frame, he called out to them.

"Good evening gentlemen. Is there something I can do for you?"

"We're looking for a dangerous creature that has been known to harm people in the area. We've had reports that it could be out here. Have you seen anything?" The voice belonged to a woman. He couldn't tell which figure it was though, a hand up trying to shield his eyes from the light.

"Afraid I can't say that I have. I've been up here for a while now. I often go walking and fishing. I haven't seen anything but squirrels and rabbits for a long time now. Oh, I did see a deer not too long ago. But that's about it." The figures murmured to each other. "I'd appreciate it if you'd stop shining the light in my eyes."

The light lowered, and one of the figures approached him. They stepped into the small circle of light that radiated from his open door, and he saw that it was the woman that responded earlier. She was shorter than him, and dark haired. A deep scar ran down one side of her face. It looked fairly new.

"Good evening, sir. My name is Private Dawson. The others and I are just looking around to see if we can find a trail or anything to go by."

Steven scratched his chin, noticing he hadn't shaved in a few days. He was trying to hide his nervousness. "A bit late, isn't it?"

"Yes, sir. But the creature is nocturnal, so our chances of finding it are higher during the night." She looked at him unblinkingly. He didn't like the way her eyes seemed to look through him, as though she didn't even care he was there.

"Well, I'm trying to sleep and you're making a bunch of noise. This is private property. My cabin and five square acres around it. So I would appreciate it if you left." Dawson set her jaw. She didn't like being told what to do.

"Sir, there is a potentially dangerous creature out here. We're just trying to keep people, like you, safe."

"Well, I've never seen it. And you haven't even told me what it is."

"I'm not at liberty to discuss that."

"Well, then you can feel free to just leave. Now." He tried to stare at her as intimidatingly as he could. She couldn't know that Crystal was here.

"We're trying to keep people safe. Why are you being uncooperative?" Her eyes locked with his own, studying him. Steven could feel drops of sweating beading on his forehead. He didn't say anything. Their breath hung in the air

"If I have to, I'll get a warrant." She had a smug smile on her face. He didn't like it.

"Then I recommend that's what you do. Until then, please feel free to piss off!" With that, he walked in and shut the door. He leaned against it. His heart was pounding. He heard the vehicles drive off. He sighed, falling to the floor. He smiled briefly before a lone tear fell down his face. He was scared. But he knew he did the right thing.