The Bracken Woods A northern visitor

For Lilia, the unknown was what lay beyond the great forest to the North. She’d tread in the shadows before, skirting along the edge but the trees grew thick and shut the light out, making it appear as though a traveller could pass through in days of ominous darkness before seeing the sky again. Such an adventure did not interest her, as she preferred shorter journeys and better views, but she felt inclined to investigate the area nonetheless.

It wasn’t long until she found herself irked by the thorny bushes, and realized with a yelp that their previously she’d or broken branches made for a prickly carpet beneath the green fern fronds. She mumbled darkly as she licked at her offended paw pad, but continued to rove a bit deeper into the wolf woods, wincing every time she stepped on something prickly.

She paused when she saw a beacon of light in the distance, only to discover it was a wolf- pure white in colour, at least from a distance, and tall. Lilia eyed the stranger, sniffing the breeze to identify anything familiar or unusual about their scent, to discover only that the stranger was female. She bristled lightly, knowing there was no way she could run if she needed to, not with these thorns underfoot. She heaved a sigh and made to step forward when that very step proved to be her downfall.

She shrieked with anger and frustration when a thorn lodged itself in just alongside one of her claws. She dropped to the ground, turned her paw over recklessly tore the branch away from her foot, which left the thorn very much imbedded still. Now, she had to worry the thorn out with her teeth, and she was not happy about it.