by Sky Winters
“You have to catch whatever is running,” Jordan said as he tried to dig out a small piece of fish gut with his finger nail. “If you don’t keep everything then you are in trouble when they stope biting. Raven understood, but it didn’t make things any easier.
She managed to make it through the fish cleaning without throwing up, or even making too many gagging sounds. Jordan seemed impressed. It was hard for Raven to understand what was going on. They clearly got along very well. She could feel his excitement the night before, but Jordan was definitely keeping his distance.
“So am I invited to stay for dinner?” Raven asked. She was not making things easy for Jordan. He had after all tried to kick her out earlier, but she felt like she could sense a change in his attitude. She had shown him her skills and they had been laughing and talking all day. As mad as she had been with Jordan at different points of the day, Raven could feel herself falling for the enigmatic man.
“Of course,” Jordan smiled, “You can wait until your leg feels better.” He could tell that Raven was disappointed by that statement. She walked into the kitchen and started looking for the pots and pans that she needed. Raven was not trying to further ingratiate herself to her host. She was past that. If Jordan couldn’t see how much help she would be than forget him. Raven liked to cook.
Angry cooking always made the food taste better. It was something that she had noticed over the years. Being in the on again off again whatever you want to call it with Travis and many other relationship woes, it somehow seemed to help with her skills in the kitchen. This bout of angry cooking was made even worse by the pain in her knee. Raven was still limping a bit as she walked. Most of the swelling had gone, but the knee was still a bright purple. Raven slammed a frying pan down onto the counter, it was time to cook.
The fish was delicious. Jordan had brought in what he called a “Scrounger’s salad.” It was a mix of roots and leaves that grew naturally in the area. It was horrible. Jordan had run out of salad dressing months before. The crunchy, leafy tasteless mass was loaded with vitamins and minerals, and Raven tried to keep reminding herself of that fact as she tried to swallow the bizarre salad.
“This is actually the root of a sapling,” Jordan said as he explained the different parts of the salad. It really didn’t help with the taste, but Raven wanted to learn everything she could about living off the grid. It seemed like the best idea, considering the grid was not really an option anymore.
Raven sat across the table half listening to what she really saw as the perfect man. He was strong, handsome, he knew how to live in the forest, and he was not covered in strange lumps and deformities. The worst part was that clearly they were compatible. They had just had a great day together. The only problem was that for some unknown reason Jordan wanted Raven to leave. Raven needed to know why, it was driving her crazy.
“I will clean,” Jordan said as he grabbed the plates and walked over to the sink. Raven watched as he carefully scrubbed the plates and soaked the pots and pans. It was her dad’s favorite part of doing dishes, leaving things to soak. He would always say that. Raven would come into the kitchen a few hours later and see her mother doing the dishes. It wasn’t too long before Raven started doing it to. Dishes became a game of chicken, “Who can go the longest with dirty dishes in the sink?” Her father would ask with a devilish smile on his face.
“Are you okay?” Jordan’s voice brought Raven back to reality. She could feel the tears running down her face. She had been staring into the soapy water and crying, but it felt so good. She had been so focused on the bad memories lately. Raven threw herself at Jordan and wrapped her arms around him. She didn’t care who it was, she needed a hug. To her surprise Jordan wrapped his arms around her and kissed the top of her head. Raven could feel a real warmth in the hug.
When she finally let go Raven looked at Jordan, but he was already moving out the door. It was hard to tell because he had moved so fast, but it looked like he was crying. Raven wiped her eyes and started washing the dishes. As she washed the dishes she actually felt a closer connection to her parents. It was a disturbing trend. She was already doing all the cooking and cleaning. I better leave this cabin before I become his maid, she thought.
Jordan returned with another load of firewood. The tinder box beside the fireplace was overflowing already when he dropped the new load beside it. Raven smiled to herself. She knew that he had been crying. “I think we have enough now,” Raven smiled, but Jordan didn’t even respond he walked over to finish the dishes.
“I would have done them,” Jordan said as they argued about the true intentions behind letting the dishes soak. “I also believe in letting things air dry.” Jordan said with a little laugh. “Thank you,” the dark haired man sat down and rolled his neck back and forth. He was clearly trying to work out a kink I his neck.
Raven slid her hands onto Jordan’s shoulders and started to knead at the muscles. Likely carrying too much firewood, Raven chuckled to herself. Jordan relaxed his muscles and leaned his head back against Raven’s chest. Raven decided to stop worrying about the mixed signals. They are very comfy, Raven had C-cup breasts, and they seemed to work well as pillows. She had noticed that many men had laid their heads against her breasts over the years. Raven focused on the back rub.
“Do you need one?” Jordan asked when Raven moved away from the chair.
“I wouldn’t let you touch me with a ten foot pole,” Raven said playfully as she started walking away. Jordan leaned over backwards and grabbed the young woman’s slender waist without getting off the chair. Unfortunately, he had stretched too far backwards and the chair tipped over. They landed in a pile on the floor. They were face to face. Inches from each other, Raven wanted Jordan to make the first move.
“I could use another back rub,” Jordan said as he tried to get up off the floor. Raven pushed his hands away and used the fallen man to push herself to standing. When Jordan tried to get up the second time Raven stepped over him to walk outside.
The stars were alive in the sky. Even through the thick forest canopy Raven could see them twinkling brightly in the night sky. The moon was high in the sky as well. “Full moon,” Jordan said as he walked up beside Raven. It was an amazing sight to behold. She allowed herself to rest against Jordan’s muscular chest. She could feel washboard abs through the tight t-shirt.
Shooting stars crossed the sky. It was almost possible to forget that there was a virus out there that seemed to be eating the world from the inside out. The giant viruses that had been released from the permafrost, and spread on arctic winds were now even effecting the animal populations. It didn’t seem too far fetched since most of these viruses came from a time before human beings existed. They were clearly very adaptable. The viruses had survived for millions of years. They had simply been waiting for some moron to come along and disturb their slumber.
Raven thought about the colossal stupidity that had caused their current situation, it came as no surprise to her that it happened. As she stared at the vast cosmos before her, Raven could see the complexity of the universe around her. Man was forever trying to prove that he is the master of nature and nature was forever standing right there to prove him wrong. How could anyone believe that there wouldn’t be consequences for destroying an entire ecosystem?
Raven tried not to think about it. It was not like she had done anything to try and stop what was happening. Raven had always laughed at her friends who got involved in causes. She had never been politically active or socially aware. Raven knew that she was part of the problem, and that she should have done more, but it all seemed pointless now. There was no going back, Raven decided she needed to focus on what she could control.
Raven watched a white trail dart across the sky and smiled. Nothing ever mattered when you stared up at the stars. Raven was always in awe when she looked at the night sky. She wanted to ask Jordan about what was bothering him and why she couldn’t stay, but she didn’t want to ruin the perfectly good moment that t
hey were having. Instead she grabbed Jordan’s arm and wrapped it around herself. Jordan took his other arm and put it around Raven as well.
As it got later Raven could feel a chill in the air. She headed inside the cabin. “Are you coming?” She asked Jordan who didn’t move.
“No, I am going to sleep out here.” Jordan said as he pulled out a canvas chair and plopped it down on the porch. “I’m okay out here,” Jordan reassured his guest. “I am just going to take a little run. I have to check my nets and stuff.”
“Yeah, okay,” Raven said as she walked back inside without turning back. She was trying to remind herself that she was done worrying about what was going on with Jordan. The fact was that Raven was a strong, independent woman. There was no way that she needed a man, or anyone, to help her survive. Raven took off her shoes and then wrapped herself up in the blankets. It was time for sleep.
The wind was starting to pick up and it sounded like rain was just starting to fall. Raven wasn’t used to the noises in the cabin yet. She tried to drown everything out and just get some sleep. She started thinking about Jordan out on the cold rainy night. Raven knew that he would be back in an hour or so, but she would sleep a lot better when Jordan got back.
The door burst open and Raven looked up to see, three strange men coming in the door. “I told you I saw a fire back here,” a squeaky voice was saying as they started to look around. There was no place to hide. Raven tried to get under the bed. It was futile, but she had to try. She was sure that they had seen her.
The short man who had been speaking saw her first, “How are you this evening?” The man sounded very polite for a home invader, “Boys we have company.” Raven watched the feet in the room as they moved over toward her. A big pair of hands pulled her out from under the bed and dropped her onto the mattress.
As they moved closer Raven noticed the bumps and stretched skin. These men were clearly infected. The lumpers were already scary to look at, but the way they walked toward Raven and the looks that passed between the three strange men made the young woman feel as though she could sense their stares crawling over her skin. She wrapped herself in the blanket.
They had the exit blocked off. Raven knew that there was no escape. Even if Jordan got back, there wasn’t much that he could do about it. He was only one man. Raven laid back on the bed and got ready to kick the first man who stepped into range.
“You got this all wrong sweetie,” the short man seemed to be the leader. He looked as if he thought he was going to convince Raven that she was going to enjoy this experience. The other two men didn’t make a sound. They were each about a head taller than the talker. One had short mouse-brown hair, he had a hugely distended abdomen, but his arms solid muscle. The other man had red hair, and was built a lot more like Jordan, his biggest lump was what looked like a giant mole, the size of a softball, popping off of his arm.
Where are you Jordan? Raven thought as the men got closer. She started to think about things that she could tell the intruders. Like that the place was owned by a biker gang and they would be back any minute. She was still thinking as the two taller men lunged at her. Missing the brown haired man entirely, Raven donkey kicked the red head. He went flying backwards grabbing his nose. The fat man had been expecting his buddy to grab the other arm, but the skinnier man was trying to put pressure on his bleeding nose.
Raven used her free hand to smack and punch at the fat man. The short man was laughing too hard to be of much use. “I told you guys this would be fun,” the short man laughed. His sickening voice was really starting to grate on Raven’s nerves. As she rained down blows on the intruders head, Raven kept focusing Jordan. She didn’t know why, but she felt like she was really communicating with Jordan.
“Will somebody grab her other arm!” The fat man shouted. The short man laughed as he climbed on top of Raven and put a knee onto her arm. As the short man started to undo his pants a familiar low rumbling growl came from behind.
“Uh, guys,” The red head sounded frightened as he tried to get someone’s attention. The fat man turned around first.
“Whoa,” he yelled as he let go of Raven and backed away. “Who left the door open?” The brown haired seemed more annoyed than scared, but his face gave away the fear that he felt.
“Okay, so we are all going to move forward.” The short man said. “If we stick together everything will be fine.”
“Awwwoooooo!” The wolf let out its baleful wail. The short man was the only one who seemed committed to the idea of sticking together. As soon as the wolf cried out the taller men ran. The short man was left to deal with the snarling wolf. Fur standing on end the wolf looked much bigger than the first time Raven had seen it. The shorter man was looking all over the room for something to help him deal with the wolf. He saw a broom near the end of the bed and he stood up to grab it.
In the confusion the short man had forgotten to do his pants back up. As the belt dragged the jeans down to the floor, the short man found himself falling and rolling. The wolf just continued to snarl. The man had forgotten all about the broom and was just trying to run as fast as he could out the door. The wolf followed him to the door snapping at his heels.
As they reached the door the wolf started to stand on his hind legs and his fur started to recede. Raven found herself staring at a naked Jordan. He was watching the thieves run away through the tiny window in the door. Jordan watched to make sure that they all left, and then he turned to check on Raven, but she was already right beside him.
He wasn’t sure how she was going to react. He had never shifted in front of someone before. He was about to try and explain everything to her when she grabbed his face with both hands and kissed him. It was overwhelming for Jordan. He was ready to face many different reactions, but this one he had not anticipated.
Raven led Jordan to the bed and threw him down on the low mattress. Raven got on top of Jordan and started to kiss her way down his body. She stopped to bite at his nipples until they got hard. Raven could feel another area getting hard as well. She kissed down Jordan’s stomach and his waist. Raven licked at his inner thighs. She could feel Jordan positioning himself. Trying to move her to where he wanted more attention, but Raven was only kissing around the aching appendage.
“I need you,” Jordan whispered, “You will be mine.”
Jordan took off her pants with one hand. He stood up with Raven in his arms and her legs wrapped around him. Jordan felt even bigger than he looked as Raven felt him push past her lower lips, deep inside of her.
“Ahhh!” She moaned as she ground herself against her lover. Jordan was holding her effortlessly in midair with his face buried in her chest. Raven had a fist full of Jordan’s black hair as she felt herself nearing completion. Their cries filled the room. She could feel Jordan starting to twitch as well.
The lovers collapsed on the bed. Exhausted and out of breath, they stayed locked together just enjoying the feeling of being with each other. Raven ran her fingers through Jordan’s hair. Jordan was running his finger along the curve of her hips. They didn’t talk for what seemed like hours, but in the very best way. Raven didn’t want it to stop, but she had too many questions.
“So eating a wolf made you a werewolf?” Raven asked when she couldn’t keep things together any longer.
“Yeah, I guess so,” Jordan shrugged. “As soon as I got over the virus I started to feel different, but I didn’t know what was going on. I was along the dock trying to catch some fish. I hadn’t been well enough to fish in a while so I was pretty much out of food. I walking between my lines trying to keep up with the number of fish that were biting that day when I all of a sudden I was in the water.
The worst part was that I wasn’t ever human anymore. I was doing a real doggy paddle. I got to the shore and it took me over a day to figure out how to shift back.” Jordan was staring up at the ceiling. “I have been getting better at it, but I am not really able to control it one hundred percent. Yesterday I shifted on the porch twic
e, in fact almost every time I left the house yesterday I turned into the wolf.”
Raven was smiling as she watched Jordan’s face going through its tortured motions. “I don’t care about that,” Raven traced the side of the werewolf’s face with her finger. He was stunning in the dim light of the cabin, and most importantly he really cared about her. “You’re still human, even as a wolf, you didn’t hurt me.”
Raven wrapped Jordan’s arm over her as she snuggled up with her back against his chest. She could tell that Jordan was still worried, but now that she knew what he was worried about, Raven knew that they could get passed this. There was a good chance that there was no place on Earth to escape this sickness, but she felt like she was already where she needed to be. She could feel Jordan’s heart beating and she could feel him breathing. For the first time in months Raven felt safe, she felt like she was home.
The sun crept through the cabin window and it crawled across the floor. Raven was already up. Her leg was feeling much better. It didn’t even bother her as she set the table. Raven had made breakfast, she felt like she was getting the hang of using the small, testy gas range. Jordan rolled over, “What are you doing up?” He asked as he put his feet on the floor and started looking for pants. “I don’t mind doing some of the cooking,” Jordan was pulling on a pair of baggy sweats.
“I know,” Raven smiled as she moved toward him. Raven kissed Jordan before handing him a mug of what she hoped was coffee. Raven had never made it without a coffee maker. Jordan made a horrible face, but he forced himself to swallow it.
“Chewy,” he said as he stuck his tongue out and wiped it off. His tongue was covered in loose grounds. The rest of the breakfast went much smoother. Pancakes and pan fried fish were easy enough. “Well what should we do now?” Jordan asked.
“I thought we could take a walk by the river,” Raven said as she watched Jordan trying to strain his coffee. Raven got up and started moving things around like she was looking for something.
