A note from Saoirse-

"Writing this book has been a therapeutic journey. It grew from the inner wishes of someone navigating hardship—to find a hero, a companion, and, ultimately, a path to healing. I hope it resonates with others who have faced struggles of their own. It is my wish that, like I have found my husband in my life, that none of us have to navigate the journey of life alone."

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In the mountains of North Banes, a northern country near Norway, a man in the form of a wolf stood up contentedly and addressed his shivering children as he finished setting a trap for hunting. "Ok kids, the last trap is set, let's go home and have some dinner!" 

He turned around and his kids all stood in a line covered in fur under their coats shivering. They were in their human form most of the time, so mostly they were just wearing their fur to stay warm. 

One of them complained, "Dad why do we have to eat wild animals, I like chicken nuggets better." 

Dad sighed, "Where has Saoirse gone off to; she was just here a minute ago." 

He looked around him and endless white forests showed no signs of footprints. Gentle snowflakes had been falling steadily and would have covered them up anyway. 

Saoirse's sister spoke up, "I told her she would get into trouble, I tried to tell her not to but she was following a weird white rabbit." Then she folded her arms, "Saoirse is so weird, she said it wanted her to follow her."

Saoirse!" he called, his voice breaking through the stillness of the forest. He sniffed the air, his sharp senses searching for any trace of her—but there was nothing. Only the faint scent of the falling snow, masking everything else. His stomach churned. This wasn't normal. Saoirse always left a trail, always came back. This silence felt… wrong.

"Saoirse!" Dad repeated "It's time to go home! Come back here!" He yelled into the forest. 

There was no response. He hastily took his other children home and called for an emergency search. He rallied the pack and a hundred werewolves searched every inch of the forest, only to come back with nothing. She was simply gone as if she had never been there at all. 

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The sound of Saoirse's footsteps on the undisturbed hard snow was all she had heard for hours as she quietly stalked a white rabbit that hopped lightly on top of the snow. It paused nibbling on a sprig of greenery. She felt a slight draw to it as if it was beckoning her to follow. It wasn't heavy enough to break the surface of the snow so it left little paw prints on top that made it easy to follow even with its camouflage. once in a while, it paused and swiveled its ears as it glanced up to make sure she was still following. 

For Saoirse, who was only 10 years old, she didn't see the possible danger of easy prey that was in the mood to be followed. 'Such a silly rabbit, I wonder where it is going off to anyways.' She thought to herself. 

Once again it looked up at her and then continued hopping along as she inched in closer to it. A frozen dead branch caught on the fur on her face as she crouched low in her wolf cub form under the underbrush. Batting it away and adjusting her muscles, she shifted closer to the rabbit.   

Its small beedy eyes once again glance at her,  lured her closer, giving her a sense that it was taking her somewhere deliberately. Now she was only a yard away. 

Then it darted into a burrow. 

She let out a frustrated breath that seemed to swirl around in the air a bit. She would have to try digging for it or look for the other opening.  

Her coat caught on another branch as she attempted to get closer to the entrance so she took it off exasperated. 

Looking around she found that she was alone, but she didn't mind; it wasn't hard for her to find her way back. She went further into the trees, determined to find another opening. Snow was up to her chest now, but she pushed on, ignoring the cold that clung to her fur. As she found the other opening to the burrow, she leaned on a tree that clung to the edge of the embankment and began digging. 

Then the ground gave way. 

She fell, tumbling down the mountainside, her body scraping against trees, fur left behind with each impact. Her vision went black as she hit the snow below and she heard the crunch of bone. 

"Ah! My paw is broken" she said wincing as she realized she couldn't put weight on it. She looked up and realized that climbing back up was impossible; she would have to find another way home. This cliff had never been here before she realized, how in Midgard had it come out of nowhere and why was it so much colder here? 

The forest was dark, even with her night vision and the wind was biting into her skin. 

I have to get up, she thought exhaustedly, but she only slowly drifted off to sleep as she froze.