Little Red

t w o

Meeting in the woods

"Camellia! Come over here for a second!"

Immediately, she halted her fingers over the ivory keys and ran to her fathers study - anything to get away from contrary motion scales.

Butting her head through the door, her braids fell over her shoulders.

"Yes Papa?"

"I want you to take the basket in the kitchen to your Grandmothers, I caught a duck down by the river, there's some ferret in there too," He muttered not looking up from his leather-bound book.

"May I..." She paused wondering if she dare ask "take the shortcut through the woods?" her voice timid and hoping.

Sighing heavily, he shut his book and moved his brown eyes to the ones that mirrored his own. Clasping his hands in front of him, he rested his chin on them as leaned over his desk.

A pregnant pause rung through the air. Camellia struggled to hold his stare.

Suddenly a broke across his face. The tension eased.

"Of course, my girl," He hit the table in his own excitment. The father reclined back in his seat reminiscing the old days "I was your age when I saw beasts, you know."

He twirled his moustache between his fingers as his daughter nodded eagerly.

"Just remember, my flower never-"

"Never stray from the path! I know, I know!" She cried excitedly as she ran around his desk and threw herself into his embrace. 

"I was going to say tell your Grandmother," He chuckled along with her

"I promise to be good Papa!" Her brown gazed at with a determination he recognised. Patting her head, she ran off to fetch her cloak.

"Wear the red one it's chilly out there!" He called out.

Camellia ran into the kitchen, grabbed the basket and swung her ruby cloak around herself. This was finally it, the moment she had waited for! Skipping towards the path, she whistled a tune to herself.

The path was warn and clear compared to the wild and unfettered forest. She breathed in deeply the smell of the forest as she took her time taking in the view hoping it would stay engraved in her memory. Twirling, she looked up at the sky that was almost covered in the blanks of leaves. She was enraptured.

A whine broke her train of thought. Stopping in her tracks, she waited to hear the noise again before passing it off as her wild imagination. A rustle of leaves, disintegrate the silence once again.

"Hello?"

Another whine responded. In reflex her foot moved forward, stepping over the paths into overgrown grass. Ceasing her actions, she took a moment to decided whether she should do it. Suddenly her curiosity battled with her angst.

"For once, Camellia," Taking a deep breath, both her feet left the path.

Following the sound, she turned her left and right only to meet a pair of glowing golden eyes. The wolf lay on the ground in awkward angle. Its body was marred with open cuts and slashes, blood oozing out and soaking his already obsidian fur.

Gasping she rushed forward, the sudden movement had the wolf growling in panic. Its eys filled with distrust. Calming her movements, she slowly bent down and shuffled herself closer to it.