A Fairy Tale With Two

Chapter 5

     Rowan ducked beneath a low hanging tree branch in the darkness, peering through the black woods in front of her. She held her satchel tightly down on her hip so it wouldn't snag on the branches surrounding her that scratched at her face and caught on her clothing.

     She froze as she heard a faint growl from the nearby bushes, her head shooting up as she looked around wearily. Her fingers curled around the cold hilt of the dagger she had secured to her belt, preparing to draw it if she needed to.

     The wind creaked the branches above her, and she let out a small sigh of relief as she supposed it had only been the wind. She wondered if she should've asked Kaden to come with her. He probably would've told her off, but even still, she would've felt better if she could laugh at his fear instead of worrying about her own.

      The growl came again, and she moved out into the open with much hesitation. She took a deep breath, swallowing hard. She debated climbing a tree, but didn't want to turn her back away from whatever was clearly watching her. She could feel her heart pounding in her chest as she scanned the dark bushes in front of her.

      A bone chilling howl rose up into the silent night, and she could feel her heartbeat speed up as she turned to face a tree. If there were wolves, she needed to climb. But it was too late for that.

     With a sharp bark, a large wolf sprang from the undergrowth, claws swiping at her. Rowan gasped, barely tumbling out of the way. She rolled quickly to her feet, holding her dagger firmly in both hands. It only took a second look at the huge, black beast to realize the knife was going to do her no good.

     So she ran, not watching where she was going as she tore through the forest, pushing through branches and running faster than she'd thought she even could. She could hear the pounding of the wolf's paws behind her, expecting to feel teeth sink into her heels at any second.

     The cold night air hurt her throat as she gasped for a breath, weaving around trees to make it harder for the wolf to catch her. She wasn't going to be able to keep this up for much longer.

     The sound of falling water in front of her made her renew her pace, praying for something that might separate her and the wolf. Then she skidded to the edge of what seemed to be an enormous gorge. Her eyes widened in horror as she saw the long drop towards an icy, roaring river that raged easily fifty feet below.

     Rowan spun around to face the wolf, who had slowed into a prowl as it stalked towards her, its lip curled back to reveal white fangs. Rowan swallowed hard to moisten her dry throat. She weighed her odds. Wolf was certain death. Falling might let her live.

       She backed closer towards the edge, and the wolf stepped closer. Then a loud cracking sound broke through the air, making them both freeze. Rowan eyed the ground right behind the wolf, spotting a huge crack spreading through the soft, crumbly dirt. She realized that this ledge wasn't meant to hold much weight.

     The wolf yelped, scrambling back, but the sudden movement made the crack spread, and the cliff piece shuddered violently.

      "Stop!!" Rowan shouted, and the wolf, to her surprise, froze in its tracks. It eyed the crack wearily with yellow eyes, looking to Rowan almost expectantly. Now was not the time to worry about why it seemed to understand her, "If you move too fast," she said slowly, "This whole thing's going down, and us with it. Understand?"

      The wolf made no response, but it didn't move either.

       "I'm going to take a step forward, and you step back," Rowan told it in a voice hoarse with fright, "Okay? We need to keep the balance."