The rain pattered down throughout the night. Seraphina had originally thought that her plan was very successful. The waterproof broad leaves could replace the canopy, and at least the inside of the house wouldn't get wet.
However, she hadn't expected that the ground without a threshold had an irregular terrain. In the second half of the night, as more and more rainwater flowing down from all sides accumulated, it began to seep into the house.
She had originally wanted to find something to block it, but later found that there was no material at all to fill the gaps in the leaf wall. When she was at a loss, Auris came up with a solution.
It dug a not - very - deep ditch, only about half a palm - width wide, along the wall on the ground. It walked around the house once. The rainwater gathered in this drainage ditch and flowed outside the house, so the central ground wouldn't get wet anymore.
"You're so clever." Seraphina touched its head appreciatively. Auris raised its head and wagged its tail. It pawed at the thatch on the ground a few times and then lay on it, just blocking the cold wind whistling in through the door for her.
They slept lightly, huddled together. Seraphina hugged one of its front paws, and the whole person nestled beside its belly like a little wolf cub. Because she had to ensure that the kindling didn't go out, she forced herself to wake up every two hours to add firewood. Moreover, from time to time, raindrops fell on her head, and she also had to prevent the fire from being extinguished.
She couldn't sleep soundly. For some reason, Auris also stayed awake all night. It closed its eyes and leaned against the big stone. Every time she made a little movement, it would wake up instantly and look at her with a pair of slightly puzzled green eyes.
Seraphina thought that it was because it wasn't used to resting in an enclosed space for the first time. However, later, after she accidentally fell asleep because she was too tired, when she woke up again, the fire hadn't gone out. There were a few more pieces of firewood added. Then she knew that it must have been Auris.
Seraphina looked at the silent gray giant wolf. It knew how important the kindling was to her. Their food, lighting, and heating at night all came from this little flame. Therefore, it silently guarded her all night.
She rubbed its furry ears that were twitching and then whispered in its ear, "Auris, Auris."
It opened its eyes a little and looked at her, and then forcefully pressed her under its paw. It made a "huhu" sound in its throat, as if to say: Go to sleep.
Under Seraphina was soft leather. Auris' thick fur was like the best quilt. In her ear was the slight crackling sound of the firewood burning. The rain outside had almost stopped.
When it was dawn, Seraphina was still asleep. Auris walked out of the cottage quietly. It stretched its four legs apart, front and back, and stretched on the wet grass. The "scarecrow" standing outside had fallen halfway, and there were many scattered branches and leaves on the ground. Presumably, this rain should have brought a lot of trouble to the animals.
But they had a house, and none of the other wolves did! Auris was obviously very happy. It ran around the house again and again. This big square thing could shelter from the wind and rain. At this moment, it even looked beautiful in its eyes.
It was made by the little female, so it was a good thing.
It cleaned up the dead branches and leaves in front of their house, bunched them up, and pawed them all down the slope. When it had finished all this, it found that Seraphina still hadn't gotten up in the house.
She, who had always been hard - working, got up every day when the sun rose. She always seemed to have endless things to do, chopping firewood, picking fruits, tidying up furs, and tying leaves. And those actions that seemed aimless to it always brought surprises.
It was luckier than any other wolf now!
'Little female, get up. The sun is shining on your tail.' Auris walked over and gently nudged her shoulder with its nose. But Seraphina didn't respond. She curled up under the leather, hugging her arms, and seemed to be shivering slightly.
'Huhu' Auris walked around her a few times strangely, and then, as if it had suddenly discovered something, it put its head close, with its nose moving against her lower abdomen, sniffing something.
'Hulu Hulu' It jumped up suddenly, and then made a low and rapid barking sound in its throat. It was terrified. Seraphina seemed to finally wake up after being tossed around by it. She gritted her teeth and sat up, her face as pale as a sheet.
"Auris, don't be afraid. I'm not injured." She shivered and took out the sanitary napkins she had made long ago from her small bag, and then moved behind the big stone to change them secretly. During this process, Auris kept trying to come over to lick her wound and blood. She had to drive it away several times before it walked away resentfully.
Because she had been busy working all the time, she had even forgotten that her period had been postponed for a long time. Seraphina crouched beside the fire, hugging her stomach. She put on all the clothes she could wear, and there were several pieces of torn leather covering her legs, but she still couldn't stop the abdominal cramps.
Cold sweat drenched her hair. She thought that this would probably be the toughest "reception" since her period first came. There was no hot water, hot food, or warm bedding. There was only a leaf - walled house with wind blowing through from all sides and a wolf that didn't understand anything.
And once people face painful experiences, they will put themselves in a deeper and more difficult situation. Seraphina had always been an optimistic and hard - working person who actively tried to improve her life.
Without food, she would look for fruits. She could even force herself to eat the raw meat that the beasts ate. Without clothes, she would make leather. Everything at hand that could be used was a way for her to survive.
But now, once she fell down, the gears of life seemed to be jammed. Seraphina lay on the ground, hugging her arms. She told herself that she would just rest for a while and then she would be fine.
While she was feeling sad alone, the giant wolf kept pacing around her. It didn't know what had happened to her. She was injured and bleeding, but she wouldn't let it help with the healing.
The not - very - smart brain of the giant wolf seemed to be all tangled up. It bit bundles of firewood over, imitating what she usually did, and also brought several ripe tofu fruits. It even carefully bit a coconut fruit filled with stream water and placed it beside her.
It looked at Seraphina expectantly. However, except for adding a few pieces of firewood, she didn't touch any of the food.
'Huhu' It rubbed its head against her head. She had originally thought that it would stay with her like this, but unexpectedly, it barked a few times and then turned around and ran out of the house.
"It probably thinks that I'm sick." Seraphina thought weakly. Her mouth was dry, but she couldn't drink the cold water or eat the cold fruits. Her limbs were sore. She rubbed her stomach, thinking about the unfinished work, and suddenly felt extremely disheartened.
About an hour later, the water in the coconut fruit closer to the fire had become warm. She tried to drink some, and her stomach felt a bit better.
There was suddenly some movement on the slope below. She thought that it was Auris playing outside. However, after waiting for a while, it didn't come in. Instead, the noise became louder. It seemed to be rummaging around by the stream. She could clearly hear the sound of it stepping on the stones.
"Auris?" Seraphina called out. Then it seemed to pause for a second, and then there was the sound of something rubbing against the gravel ground again. She wanted to move outside to have a look. Before she could lift the leather curtain, it squeezed in.
The giant wolf had a chicken in a sorry state in its mouth. Besides that, there was half a horned deer.
She guessed that the deer was hunted by it in cooperation with other giant wolves because the back half of the deer had been bitten off by sharp teeth. As for the chicken, it was probably the Brocade - flower Chicken she had seen last time. The reason why it was said to be in a sorry state was that its feathers were scattered, and its skin and meat were pitted.
Presumably, the noise it made by the stream just now was probably to pluck the feathers there.
'Huhu' Auris also seemed a bit embarrassed. It piled the deer meat with the outer skin torn off on the stone covered with broad leaves, and put the tattered chicken beside her feet.
"Were you trying to pluck the chicken feathers?" There were still a few brightly colored feathers remaining at the corner of its mouth, but Auris didn't know it at all. It pawed at the firewood beside the fire, probably meaning for her to eat.
She stared at its pair of green wolf eyes. Maybe because it thought it hadn't done well, it didn't even dare to look at her. It huffed twice and then turned around and walked outside. Its tail swung and just blocked the leather curtain doorway of hers.
"Big stupid wolf..." Seraphina murmured to herself.
The Brocade - flower Chicken was small and delicate. It probably thought that she would like this. It also wanted to help her pluck the feathers, but because its wolf mouth was too big, it couldn't bite off the feathers at all. As a result, when it used the stone to rub, it ruined the whole chicken.
It thought that it hadn't done well, so it didn't even have the face to face her. Seraphina, however, was so shocked that she couldn't speak. It wasn't a human. It was just a wild beast. How many people in the world could do this much for her?
"Big stupid wolf."
After the first day, after the menstrual cramps eased, Seraphina changed the pants stained with blood. She stood in front of the house, looking at the pants drying on the branch, and suddenly felt a chilly sensation in her lower body.
Auris walked around her. It was very curious about the exposed skin on her lower body. Its wolf nose always wanted to get closer. Every time, she pushed it away forcefully. The torn leather wrapped around her waist only reached below her knees, so when its coarse and hard wolf fur brushed against her calves, it felt a little itchy.
'Huhu' Usually, this was the time for it to go out on patrol. But today, for some reason, it still lingered near home and refused to leave.
"I'm fine. Don't worry." Seraphina patted its head. The persistent smell of blood kept Auris in a state of tension. It tilted its head and looked at her for a while, and then suddenly raised its head and licked her cheek. Its green wolf eyes seemed to say: Don't be afraid. I'm with you.