Punishment was deemed necessary in my pack life as well. A father or mother could punish their children as they see fit and could punish the children of others as deemed worthy. No one looked down upon my father for what he did, as long as he didn't leave permanent markings. That was the rule. A male could be scarred up to hell and back but females were not to be made ugly or impure with markings. They must always be ready for mating season when it came. Our pack was not the biggest nor was it the smallest. We had a lot of different bloodlines and my father had more than one guy in mind to take me off his hands. Unfortunately, none of them looked upon me with anything more than pity. They wanted a strong female, someone who could stand on equal standing with them and I flinch at the slightest movement.

I took to my animal form more times that I was human because there was a certain sense of freedom with being able to run and do as I pleased. As a fox, my father couldn't rule me. There was many a time I ran from him, knowing that I would returning to punishment later but it would all be worth it for the spare bits of freedom I got to accomplish while on my own. Maybe those snippets of freedom was what gave me the ultimate courage to leave the pack behind me.

The moment I reach for her scarred face, I know I've made a mistake. Her lips pull back, shwoing her teeth in warning and I react with the instinct of one well used to submission. My head instantly ducks, my eyes downcast and the whisper of a whine on my lips, asking forgiveness for my foolishness. Of course she doesn't like to be touched, just like me.

As I get up, the girl looks ready as ever to leave, with or without me and really, I couldn't blame her if she did. We have no connection to each other, no need to stay or protect anyone but ourselves. She could leave me here for the Hunter to do with as he pleases and I would never hold it against her, but she surprises me when she does something anyway. The moment her hand touches mine, I recoil as if slapped, my eyes turning wide in shock as I look at her. She pulls me toward her and I wince away, only turning my gaze back to the cafe when I notice there's no pain coming, at least not yet. What is she doing? Is she...helping me?

I listen to her voice, telling that it's a Dark Hunter and that? So many questions on the tip of my tongue but I never get to voice them because she's looking toward the door and I follow her gaze only to stiffen once more. The Hunter is almost through the door but he's blocked for now. She tugs me again and I stumble forward, wanting to go with her because instinct merits that she can be trusted far more than the man in the cafe but at the same time, my eyes dart back and forth, looking for escape from something I don't understand. She starts walking down the sidewalk, looking back at me as if to make sure I'm coming. I stumble along behind her, biting my lip as I try to figure out where to go from here.

I freeze again the minute I hear the bell ringing on the door and she seems to tense up too before dropping to all fours. My eyes widen, looking around in shock as she starts shifting right here on the sidewalk. People are starting to stare but she doesn't seem to mind. Within seconds, the curly haired girl is replaced by a majestic gray wolf. A gasp escapes my throat as I take a hesitant step back but I turn around as she does, facing the Hunter who's reaching for something. A weapon? I can smell the metallic of a blade. The hair on the back of my neck bristles as she warnsthe guy with a snarl but I know somehow that's not going to stop him.

When her eyes find mine, I can hear her voice and I bite my lip again before nodding. I know that following her has got to be better than staying here. As the guy pulls out his weapon, I leap forward after her, shifting in midair. By the time I reach the ground, there's a scarlet fox wtih black stripes where a girl used to stand, blue and gold eyes keeping a careful eye on the wolf as she skitters along after. You can't hear my feet even touching the ground, almost like I'm flying. I know I could easily slip through a hole or something but I think my chances are better if I stick with the wolf, at least for now. Maybe there's a pull of the pack that's aiding me in sticking with her but for now, I won't fight it. She hasn't tried to hurt me, at least not yet.