We made it down fairly easily. I brought my sachel with me to carry the pelts I have for trading. We started browsing the temporary shops that were set up. Dania was on a mission to find snacks, and I quickly lost track of her in the chaos.
I walked up to stall that was selling clothes and started browsing. My ears pricked up when I heard someone talking about a dire-wolf. I followed the sounds while eavesdropping on the conversation.
"Not bad looking, if I say so myself." One man said.
"Not at all. Too bad she's mated to that wolf that was here." Another man replied.
"Must not be much of a mate to have lost his girl. Heheh. Recon she ran away from him?" The first man asked.
I heard a man scratching his stubby chin.
"It's possible. He seemed mighty frightful. Maybe he scared 'er off." The second man replied.
I approached the side of a hut when I heard receding footsteps. I hurried around the corner to see two big war-bear men turning the corner ahead. I was about to follow then when I heard paper rustling on the wall next to me. I turned and saw a drawing of me posted on the wall. It read "Have you seen my mate?" And "Abducted from Hilraine. Reward for information."
Someone is looking for me? Marshall might be here! My heart soared at the thought. I ripped the picture off the wall and went to knock on the door of the hut. An old woman answered, by her stature she also appeared to be a war bear.
"Excuse me, ma'am…" I started, showing her the paper in my hands. "Do you know who posted this on your building? Was it a dire-wolf with white hair and purple eyes?" I asked eagerly.
"why yes it was. He was here just last night looking for her." She said, as she wiped her dirty hands on the apron she was wearing.
My heart leaped at the thought. Marshall is here! And he's looking for me! "Do you know where he's staying?" I asked her.
"Poor thing was turned out. He slept right outside the building there, left first thing this morning on foot."
She pointed at the next alley over. I thanked her and ran off, hoping to find a trace of him. I ran to the alley and saw nothing. I walked down the alley hoping to find a clue. I caught that scent again, the one that relaxes me. I breathed in deep and felt at peace.
Then I stopped and realized that I shouldn't feel at peace! I need to find Marshall. I did my best to ignore the smell as I wandered the streets and headed out of town.
The farther I got from the Merchant shops, the stronger the smell became. Before I knew it, I was running down the road away from Lashwood. I didn't know where I was going, but my body seemed to know. I let my instincts take over and lead me into the woods.
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MARSHALL POV:
I was walking though the woods, lost in thought. Ever since Mika disappeared I have been consumed by thoughts of her. I dream of her every night. Sometimes I swear I heard her voice, or saw her in the distance. I feel like I'm going crazy. Earlier this morning I thought I could feel my connection to her again, but it's just my imagination.
My mind has been filled with thoughts of everything that could happen to her out here. She's completely defenseless and would be easy to take advantage of. I promised her that no one would hurt her , yet here we are. She's missing and gods only know what could be happening to her.
My wolf is suffering from depression right now. The emotions are so intense that it's affecting me as well. I have been walking since dawn and have barely gotten anywhere. I sighed again, for the hundredth time, and leaned against a tree to take a break. At this rate, it was going to take me a month to get back to the town. I closed my eyes.
My mind is playing tricks on me again. I swear that I can feel her, as if she's close by. My heart started speeding up at the thought. I closed my eyes tighter and tried to rein in my emotions. I have done this too many times, fooled myself too many times.
I took a deep breath to calm myself. Wait! That scent again! That one that I smelled in the house! It's mixed with Mika's scent. My eyes shot open and I looked down the path towards Lashwood.
There, standing in the middle of the path, was a sight to behold. She looked exactly like Mika. She was short, with a slender build but defined muscles, a cute heart shaped face, long red hair, yellow eyes, tall fox ears and a big fluffy tail. She stood in the middle of the path, staring at me. Her eyes got bigger when she saw me. I sniffed again; I'm sure this is the scent from the house that day.
I pushed off from the tree and stalked towards her. She knows what happened to Mika! Murderous intent was surging within me. My wolf stood at attention, ready to avenge our mate. As I got closer, I felt the same mate bond that felt with Mika. It was hard to identify at first, with all the other emotions.
She looks so much like Mika, and even kind of smells like her. I wonder if this girl is related to her. Family or not, I will kill her if she has hurt my mate!
I let out a warning growl.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
I saw Marshall leaning against a tree, looking upset. I wanted to call out to him but I felt a lump in my throat. I have wanted nothing more than to be reunited with him, and now here he is. I stood there like an idiot just staring at him. Suddenly his head whipped around and he looked right at me. His expression was a little strange.
My heart fluttered as he pushed off from the tree and headed towards me. I looked away for a moment out of embarrassment, while i mentally prepared what I was going to say to him.
When I looked up, he was a few feet away from me and looked murderous! He must think I left him and he's pissed. Out of the many scenarios I mulled over in my mind, this was not one of them.
He growled, low and deep, sounding like he was ready to strike. I froze on the spot, all I could do was stare him. I have never seen Marshall angry, I didn't think he was even capable of getting mad.
His eyes were so cold and uncaring. He stood over me, looking down. I forget how big he really is because he's usually always down on my level. His ears were back and his tail was straight up. I felt my blood run cold as fear struck me. He might kill me.
"Where- "He stepped closer and I reflexively put my arms up to defend myself.
"M-Marshall!" I stuttered out, ducking away.
He paused. I was frozen in place so I couldn't see the expression on his face.
After a long silence, he leaned closer and sniffed me. So many emotions were surging at once that I ended up collapsing to my knees and crying. I was scared and sad, my heart was beating so fast it felt like it was going to burst. I hugged my knees to my chest and finally dared to look up.
The murderous aura was gone, replace with Marshall's cute confused look. He has his head slightly cocked to the side, ears up, as he said one word.
"Mika?"