Better Off Dead

**********

The woods.

The woods had always been my friend but yet my biggest enemy at the same time. It was my protection and my death trap. My home and yet even a hell. I couldn’t go anywhere else. I would surely be killed.

I was not human.

Well, for half of the time.

I am a werewolf. The wolf man if you will. I am only half human while the other half is a raging animal. A wolf is what I become. A supernatural wolf I should say. I had my own special skills that made me different from my native wolves that were near me.

I was like them, just on steroids.

I am now alpha male in my new pack. It wasn’t easy. We had constant battles for who could be dominate enough to be able to protect the remaining people in my pack. We had been hunted lately because our hunting got out of hand and people of the town considered us real wolves.

Yes, we may look like them but we are different.

We have a few new packs starting. It was easier to branch off so if some of us got killed the rest of us would be safe. Now normally there would be an alpha female by my side but none of the females in my pack were worth it or taken.

It’s not like they hadn’t tried but I wasn’t interested.

I would wait till I needed to breed or if eventually found one.

There was a rush but I didn’t care. I could beat any of the other males with ease to keep my spot. They wouldn’t dare challenge me now. Not with it changing seasons soon. It would be pathetic. I knew the best places to stay.

What caves kept the warm and dryness through the winter.

We had little civilizations were we kept what we needed as humans. We didn’t mind living in our caves. It held our blankets and food storage. Even simple trinkets we have found on our journey.

We even had clothes if we really wanted to be civilized.

Not that we ever really were civilized. We stayed in our wolf form for the most of it. It was easier to bathe but ticks and fleas killed us. We had a mini out break and we had to stay human for about a week.

It wasn’t fun.

Otherwise, we stay away from the towns. They meant only trouble for us. It was even banned to be near a human. That’s how it’s been for years.

Now I had sent my pack to hunt. I was on the path of a deer. She was about two years old and about to be my meal. Her little bouncing tall was just about thirty yards in front of me. I started after her.

My padded paws jumped off of the fallen moss coved tree and towards her. She sensed me and took off. I was ready to pounce when she took a sharp left and continued to move as I slammed into a tree to push off of it.

I continued for about five hundred feet till we hit a road. She gracefully bounded across the street and I followed. I didn’t even really hear the car coming at me. I saw the car lights and I stopped suddenly. There it was coming at me. I watched it swerved and followed the deer down the road tumbling and rolling.

My ears laid flat against my head as I heard the metal crinkle and crash into a tree. I walked slowly to the end of the road and watched the car come to a stop. I jumped down the new trail to the car.

I watch cautiously as a female tried to pull herself out of the car. With struggle she did. She was sobbing and bleeding. I sniffed scene and moved closer. I made sure the area was safe before I moved to her. She looked at me in the eyes and my ears perked forward.

She looked at me with red puffy eyes and a cut on her head causing blood to run to one of her eyes. She was beautiful even with all the damage. She looked like she was in serious pain. I watch her eyes close but her body still shook slightly.

I lowered my head and slowly made my way to her. I smelled her hair and her hands. Her dirty blond hair was now mixed with blood and dirt. Her face was bruised and cut. Her clothing was in near scraps now. I could smell a faint aroma of some foreign scent.

I heard the car make a noise. I sniffed the air and could smell another creature’s blood. I jumped over her and near the car. I bowed my head to look in. I could see a young male. He was dead. There was no way he could have survived nor was getting out of here.

I turned back to the female and looked around. I couldn’t leave her around here. There is no way someone would find them and there was a storm coming. I looked up at the sky and could see the clouds moving in faster.

I needed to get her out of here.

I quickly turned into my naked human form and looked at her again. She had severe wounds and at least broken her leg. I managed to make simple bandages from her ripped clothes. I tried to keep her feminine body covered. I touched her right leg. Nearly halfway between her knee and ankle there was a definite break. I found two strong pieces of wood and some nice thick leafy vines. I secured the sticks on each side and tied her leg to it. I knew I had to keep it as straight as I could.

She was still unconscious when I picked her up. Her freezing body started to cool of my skin. I felt my face flush. I hadn’t been this close to a female before. And let alone a female that I actually attracted to.

I know I was about to break every rule I knew but I couldn’t leave her here. The real wolves would get to her.

I made my way back to the road being careful not to damage the female any more. I crossed the road quickly and ventured back home. I took the quickest way home as my stomach rumbled. I knew I was still hungry.

I made it back to our set of caves. Mine was separate because I had the right to privacy. When I returned to it there was already a fire started and a deer lying at the entrance. Someone was trying to be nice. I walked in and placed the female on a pile of animal fur. I had skinned a bear for his coat. I needed it for the harsh winter up here. It was surprising how cold it got up here.

I found a wool blanket a while back and was now using it to cover her. I rummaged around my own clothes and returned to her. I made sure most of her bleeding had stopped and made new bandages if I needed to. I checked her broken leg and left it still.

I brushed the hair out of her face and leaned closer to her. I was about an inch away. I took a good long look at her. She was young. Not too young but young. She held such an angelic look for being so bruised.

I walked over to my little storage of water and returned to her. I grabbed a skinned fox tail and dabbed the tip in the water. I ran it over her face gently to remove the crusted blood coating her face.

She was even more angelic now.

I got up and rummaged through the things I have collected. I had found a dead hiker’s things once. It held a medical kit. I searched for it and found it quickly. There were real bandages here. I smiled at them and returned to her.

I placed the kit down and picked out a wound cleaner. I moved the blanket and I pulled off the cloth I had just used. I took care and cleaned all her cuts. I managed to get what I needed covered and protected. I looked down at the scraped clothes and stroked her stomach lightly.

I pulled my hand away. I didn’t know why I had such an attraction all of a sudden. Maybe it was the fact she was a real human and not half animal like me. I knew she couldn’t have been releasing pheromones. Her body was too busy recovering. Yet mine was going insane.

I covered her quickly and put everything away so I didn’t have to think of anything. I changed back into my wolf form and trotted over to the dead deer at my door. I dragged it by the neck out of the way and into a small corner with a bush. I bit into the deer and started my feast.

As a wolf I could eat raw meat. It was natural. It was expected. But as human I preferred to cook it. It tasted better when I cooked it when I was human. I finished what I could and left it there. Any little pups running around would find it.

I walked back in and it started to rain. I had a feeling it was going to be a rough night. I looked back at the female. I knew I was going to get an earful when my pack found out. I didn’t care at the moment. I did a little shake with my fur and laid down near the fire. I watched it flicker and occasionally I would look at the female. I figured if she did wake she would rather see a creature rather then a human.

If she would wake.

I didn’t even know if she would make it. But I could hope. I contemplated moving over to her to keep her warm but I didn’t know if that would scare her. I whined a little and closed my eyes. I was so restless but tired as well.

Maybe some sleep would help.

With that thought I moved slightly closer to the female by crawling. I laid back down and curled my tail around me. I needed sleep even though the thunder would keep me up.

*********