Welcome to Gaia! :: View User's Journal | Gaia Journals

Tasha opened the wooden door of her her cottage. It was tucked away deep in the woods; at least a good hour's walk away from the closest village. Tasha liked to live by herself and fend for herself. She had a nice, varitable garden outback. It was filled with all kinds of fruits and vegetables, from strawberries to grapes, from carrots to potatoes. She tended to it every afternoon after she came back from hunting or fishing.

Tasha tucked her knife in it's sheath at her waist, put on her handmade leather bag, and stepped into the front yard part. She used a bowl to scoop some water from a rain bucket and pour it over her flowers. "You look lovely today my dears." Tasha put the bowl down and headed off into the woods to see if her traps caught anything. "Nice breeze today," she remarked as the wind ruffled her hair. The sun wasn't so blistering today as the clouds were warming up in front of it.

The leaves crunched beneath Tasha's feet as she headed off the path to the hidden location of one of her traps under a pile of leaves. There was a dead rabbit in it. "Dinner." She opened the trap and pulled out the creature, stuffing it into bag. She reset the trap before heading off to the next one.

A black snake slithered in front oh her, making her jump from being startled. "At least it wasn't a poisonous one." Birds singing to one another and the sounds of some deer hopping about could be heard in the distance. About 10 minutes away was the lake where she kept a trap hidden in some brush. "Ooooh duck! Haven't had that in a long time." She took no time at all to get the duck out of the trap and examine it. "Nice and fat. You're going to be delicious." It had green and grey feathers and a pudgy belly.

She reset the trap then faced the lake. The water sparkled in the sunlight that peeked through the clouds. The breeze in the air made the area smell like flowers. Tasha kicked off her boots and set down her knife and bag. She rolled up her pant legs and waded into the water about knee deep. "Aaaahhhhh." Refreshing. She smiled as she twirled about in the water, kicking and splashing with her legs and hands. Tasha giggled as some fish swam through her legs in fear.

Just then a whimper sounded in her ears. Tasha paused and looked around. She saw what looked like a dead dog lying near the lake. Tasha ran through the water, getting some on her clothes, and quickly grabbed her gear and throwing on her boots. She pulled out her knife as she slowly approached the animal. It seemed to be looking right into her eyes as it whimpered. "A wolf..." she whispered.

Once she was close enough to see it she admired his silver coat. Three big bloody clawmarks marked his side. "Oh my god! You poor thing!" The wolf whimpered again as she gently reached out to touch him. "It's okay, I won't hurt you." She gently stroked his back. He's so soft. The wolf closed his eyes, his tongue flopping out as if he was smiling. "I'm going to make you all better. Don't you worry." Maybe he'll stay after and be my hunting wolf. I could use one of them...

Tasha bent down and used all her strength to lift up the wolf and carry him over her shoulder. "I'll take you home, clean and sew up your wound, and give you a nice dinner." She pet him the whole way back to her house. He whimpered once more from the pain but she hugged him gently to make him feel better. "Such a good wolf."

Back at her cottage she gently laid him down in front of the fireplace. She lit the wood in the fireplace then grabbed her needle and thread from the kitchen. She set those down next to the wolf then went back to get a bowl of water and a rag. She sat next to him and dunked the rag in the bowl. She gently washed the blood off his wounds, the wolf wincing. "I'm sorry. Okay...I'm really sorry about this next part." She grabbed the needle and thread to sew up his wound. He only whined a little when she first pierced his skin. She sewed him up quickly but did a good job closing the slashes. "Such a brave wolf," she said petting him some more. "I'm going to make us some dinner."

Tasha pulled out the rabbit and duck from her bag. "Which one do you want?" He sniffed both animals and barked at the rabbit. "Rabbit it is." She stood up and looked down. "Uh oh..." blood from the wolf got on her shirt. She set the animals down and pulled off her shirt, revealing a light tank underneath it. She kicked off her boots and tucked them in the corner. She threw her shirt in the bucket of water that she used for laundry; a soap bar sat at the bottom of it.

Tasha went straight to work preparing the dinner. She skinned the rabbit and cut up the meat into pieces, dropping them into a pot. She smiled at the wolf as he rested in front of the fireplace, looking up at her, panting. She went into her backyard to gather some carrots, celery, potatoes, and onion to add to the rabbit stew. The wolf gazed around the room while she gathered the vegetables. When she came back in he barked softly at her. "Aww!"

Tasha chopped up all the vegetables and dumped them in the pot too. "You're going to love this." It was then that she realized she needed a name for the wolf. "I'm Tasha. You need a name...something valient and brave sounding," she pondered as she filled the pot with water and hung it over the fire. She returned to the garden real quick to gather up some herbs to add into the stew.

The wolf was panting and following her with his eyes as she moved about the cottage. She came back with a cloth and wrapped it around the wolf. "There you go. Help keep it from getting infected." She patted his head, he nuzzled her hand. "Awwww! You're so cute!" She rubbed down his face and neck. "Yes you are! You are so cute and soft!" He barked happily at her. Tasha giggled.

She stood back up and went to wash her feet outside. They were covered with mud from being out in the garden. She was sure to water and weed her plants after picking some for dinner. That meant that she had to wash the floors now too to rid them of her muddy footprints.

~~~~

"There we go...Clean floors." The wolf barked at her in response. Tasha wiped the sweat off her forehead and off her lower back. "I'll think of a name for you, don't worry. It has to be perfect." She set her homemade mop aside and went over to stir the stew. "Smells good. Still going to be a few hours until it's ready...The house is clean and my garden doesn't need anymore tending...I think it's best we rest." She stirred the pot once more and bent down to pet the wolf once more.

"Come on boy," she called as she stood up and walked into her bedroom. He wobbled a bit as he stood up and followed her to her bedroom. She helped him up onto the bed and climbed in the other side. "Such a good wolf. I'll take good care of you and feed you well and play with you," she said as she pet him. The bed they layed on was nice and comfy. It was stuffed with feathers and furs. There was a blue handsewn blanket along with a big deerskin fur on top. There was some drawings and paintings that she made hanging on the walls, sunlight coming in from the window. A wooden chair and chest sat in the corner of the room. Tasha got underneath the fir and continued to pet the wolf until they both drifted to sleep.

~~~~

Two hours later Tasha began to wake up. She reached over to cuddle the wolf. Her arm rested on him and found his fur missing. Instead there was smooth skin. She moved her hand up and down and found some bumps on his stomach and a broad chest. Tasha opened her eyes slowly but then they widened in amazment. She saw the back of a half naked man lying in her bed.
"AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA!" she shreiked, falling out of the bed. The man woke up and turned around looking at her. They both just stared at each other for a moment before she jumped out and grabbed for a knife on the wall.

"Who are you?! Why are you in my bed?! Where'd the wolf go!?" she yelled, posed in defense position, ready to strike at any moment. The guy got out of of bed and approached her slowly. He was at least 6 feet tall, messy short brown hair, crystal blue eyes, a six pack of abs, defined arm, chest, and leg muscles, and he was wearing tattered shorts.
"Put that down, I'm going to harm you."
Tasha swung at him, he sucked in his stomach, bouncing on his toes to dodge her knife. "Tasha put that away!"
"How do you know my name?!" her heart was pounding hard in her chest.
"I'm the wolf!"
"No you're not! You're a human! Some stranger who broke into my home and got in my bed!!! What did you do to me?!" Tasha was trying not to panic. She had to keep some cool in case she had to take on this man.
"I didn't do anything to you! I swear!" She swung at him again and he got cut a little. "I am who I say I am! Look!" He pulled down the bandage and revealed the three claw marks she sewed earlier.
Tasha's jaw dropped. "Th--That's not possible....They only exist in fairytales..." She took a step back as he took one forward.
"I thought so too but that was until I was turned into one." He took another step forward.
"It's not possible..." she whispered and fainted right into his arms, the knife clanging as it hit the floor.