by Justin Wayne
***
A slim figure walked into the open and stood waiting; watching him expectantly. He paused and watched it for a while and feared it was the demon coming for him. Then it pulled back its hood and his heart nearly stopped.
Saleane stood across the field from him, a smile on her face and tears on her cheeks. He took an involuntary step forward and reached out for her. She smiled then looked over her shoulder. He saw something flash across her face and she ran down the trail. She glanced back at him, terrified, and he breathlessly followed; unable to make sense of this.
His heart and mind buzzed with excitement, alarm, and worry. He chased after her through the brush and between trees; winding paths and rough terrain slowing his pace considerably. She began to outpace him and he forced himself faster to the point he was sprinting recklessly. He wasn't sure she was really there, but he had to know.
He reached out for her and nearly gripped her shoulder when he tripped over a root and sprawled out in the snow. She passed around a tree as soon as he looked up and never came around it. He froze and waited for her to emerge from behind it. Nothing.
With a hammering heart and wide eyes he made his way to it and found no sign of her; not even a mark in the snow. He looked back the way he had come and found only one set of prints. With a heavy feeling in his chest that sank like a rock he sat against a tree and laid his head in his arms. He mulled over the wild response he had had to seeing her and chastised himself for such behavior.
A large shrub rustled nearby and he held his breath; stock still and anxious to see her again.
A doe emerged from the brush and paused to nip at a nearby bush. Her coat was thick and sheen as if wet, with ruffles and knots from running. Her eyes roamed constantly as she nibbled the leaves and her sides rose and fell rapidly.
Spooked, he realized.
He slowly rose and took a step when it turned his way. He remained stationary on one foot within the snow until he was fully covered in white and camouflaged. As such he slowly lowered his leg to the ground and eased his way into a crouch. He exhaled a steady stream of warm air to slow his heartrate; steam swirling away before him.
Beneath his frosted cloak he slipped his remaining knife into his hand and grimaced at the thought of his supplies tucked away in that tree near Cain Sander; including his arrows. Testing the weight by the pull of his arm, he spun the blade around in his fingers experimentally to see if he still could without his sense of touch. To his amazement and satisfaction he discovered he could.
I guess some things you don’t have to think about, he recited to himself and smiled. Low to the ground and still coated in snow he ghosted his way forward with his weight distributed to each foot to avoid breaking through the crunchy ice. He passed atop the snow lightly and through the icy gales toward the doe with knife in hand.
