The woods passed in a blur of hebetude, quietude, and solitude.

Bare feet trudged across jagged grounds for a while before softness tickled her numb cheeks and a wet tongue lapped at the dried blood across her exposed skin. Ashelia barely registered any of it.

The look on the villagers' faces wouldn't leave her mind. It was all she saw, playing over and over again.

The stench of their fear choked her. Their apprehension widened and prodded at invisible wounds that would never heal.

When her body kept swaying, staggering, and buckling under the weight of her exhaustion, Efû moved in front of her, lowered himself, and motioned for her to climb atop him.

She didn't budge, standing hunched over and distant.

A quiet huff emanated from his beak before it made sure to carefully clamp around the tattered dress. Efû lifted her up and placed her on his back afore resuming their aimless journey. 

Ashelia rested her head against his neck, limp arms dangling, drowsy eyes leaking. A shaky inhale, a tremble of busted lips, but, the stoic expression plastered on her face never wavered.

Her pain multiplied his as Efû limped forward, swallowing down his hisses.

It wasn't until coldness attacked her legs that Ashelia jolted back to reality. Copper strands fell over dull blues as they blinked back into focus.

The lake looked as captivating as they'd first come across it.

Efû didn't stop until most of his body was submerged in the chilly water, relieved when she gripped his fur tighter.

"Efû?" She rasped.

'We need to wash off all the mud and blood, little one.'

Ashelia nodded, slid off his back, and moved to slip off her dress - or what remained of it. Efû tugged on the fabric, helping her out of it. "Thank you," she murmured, her arms dropping back in the lake.

Goosebumps rose on her skin as she rubbed off the dirt, the movements sluggish then urgent and frantic as her fingers scrubbed her limbs raw. Scarlet leaked from fresh wounds and Efû bumped his head against hers.

'Easy, Lia.'

Her breaths came out in fast, labored pants. Blue connected with mauve and she bit hard on her lower lip. Shaky inhales, faint whimpers, trembling hands covering her flushed face.

'It is alright, little one. Do not hold it in.'

A sob broke out then a cacophony of wails followed soon after.

Droplets gathered at the corners of his eyes but he didn't dare stop her. She needed this. So, Efû rubbed the length of his body all over her, soaking her with his scent and consoling her the best way he could at that moment.

When her bawls calmed considerably, his claws retracted and he proceeded to rub the remaining blood off her skin and lick her wounds until they started to heal.

"Thank you," she croaked.

He hummed, licked the tears off her cheek, and nudged her out of the water.

'Let's sleep, Lia. We need to rest in order to heal faster.'

Satisfied with her nods, Efû kept his body close to hers until they reached the tree. Settling down, he lifted his wing. 

Ashelia hugged herself and curled in a ball, snuggling against the warmth he offered as his fur cushioned her head and his feathers wrapped around her shivering form like the softest blanket in existence.

Time lapsed and neither succumbed to the lull of sleep.

"What am I, Efû?"

The abrupt question disrupted the gentle whoosh of the breeze, the quiet sway of the branches, and the melody of the night.

'You are Ashelia. My Ashelia.'

She breathed out a humorlessly chuckle. "I'm a monster, Efû."

He huffed. 'Rhudi is a monster. Well, he was one. You are nowhere near that.'

Ashelia buried her face in his side, borrowing more of his heat, hoping it'd warm her freezing soul. Perhaps, Efû was right. She wasn't a monster like Rhudi was.

The phantom weight of the silver dagger crushed her heart. The blood that oozed and drenched the soil beneath filled her lungs and she was drowning in recollections of silver eyes and melodic chants.

"I'm a monster nonetheless," she murmured.

A nearby crunch echoed and both of their heads snapped to the direction from which came the sound.

The gray wolf from before was sitting down on its hind legs with its head tilted to the side. Yellow eyes watched them closely.

They stared at each other for what felt like an eternity before the animal let out a huff and went back into the woods.

Ashelia sighed; she's had enough bloodshed for one night. She couldn't help but wonder, still, how it managed to approach them so stealthily, certain the animal only stepped on the twig to announce its presence.

Her relief, however, was short-lived when a man returned not long after from where the wolf had disappeared.

What eased her nerves, but confused her as well, was Efû's nonchalance. She inched closer to him, her body curling further. After all, she was as clothed as the man approaching them with one raised eyebrow and pursed lips.

His eyes caught her attention, vivid amber, chasms of shrewdness and danger.

Ashelia growled lowly at him.

The man raised both of his hands. "I come in peace." His voice was gruff and the look on his face contradicted his words. Yet, he remained true to them as he sat cross-legged, not so far off to the side, his elbows on his knees and his head resting in his palms.

The girl avoided looking his way. 

Efû let out a hoot. 'Wolves have no decency, really.'

Ashelia choked on her breath while the man's laughter boomed around the secluded place.

A blush spread from the base of her neck to her cheeks. Lips set in a grim line, her brows furrowed. "Who are you and what do you want?"

The man cocked his head to the side, long, black hair tickling his broad shoulders. Ashelia fidgeted under the intensity of his gaze as it seemed to stare deep into her soul.

Suddenly, she saw nothing but darkness as Efû covered her whole with his wing, shielding her from the prying eyes of the stranger.

'And know very little about personal space. Rude.'

The man shot him a crooked grin.

"You're trespassing on my territory, aye."

'What tree did you piss on, pup?' The man flashed his teeth in a warning and a rumble vibrated in Efû's chest.

Ashelia coughed her way out and peeked at the two of them glaring at each other. "Shush, Efû! If this is truly his territory then we're the ones disrespecting his space!" She chided, aiming her frown at her companion. "Don't be rude."

'Lia, why must you embarrass me in front of this unwanted, stinky stranger?' Efû whined.

The man growled lowly.

Ashelia turned to him. "Excuse us, sir. We'll be on our way promptly."

'Sir? Lia!'

The stranger watched the girl before him, with swollen, red-rimmed eyes, and scattered wounds all over what little was exposed of her body. His gaze focused on cuts that could only be inflicted by incisors similar to the ones he had. His tongue teased the sharp teeth.

His nostrils flared. The stench of rogues was faint but it wafted around from the discarded dress by the lake. The girl, however, smelled like the gryphon before him but also reeked of power...unlike the previous time he stumbled upon her.

"You're one of us," he spoke after a while. 

Ashelia whipped around. "What?"

"You're a child of the moon."

"The moon? You're mistaken." She shook her head, shooting an incredulous look his way.

'He does not mean it literally, Lia.' Amber connected with Mauve before it bore in startled ice-blue.

"You're a wolf."

Her head moved from side to side again. "That can't be. My parents were human." 

Their village was small, dilapidated, and few lived in it - they were mostly men, the women hardly survived, and none of them shapeshifted into anything other than stupid drunks. 

It was a miracle how she and her mother managed to stay alive for long.

As far as she recalled, neither of her parents showed signs of inhumanity. Well, if her father's animalistic behavior was to be put aside. Or the fact that her mother summoned a dagger out of nowhere before her eyes shone a bright silver...

Her head throbbed. 

She didn't know what to think or believe anymore.

Ashelia glanced down at her hands. Phantom pain of her bones breaking and reforming to paws and lethal claws gripped at her knuckles and she tensed.

"I'd recognize a child of the moon when I see one, no matter what, pup."

Blue connected with amber as she bristled. "Don't call me that." 

Her snarl amused him. He smirked as if to say: you just proved me right.

Breathing deeply, the girl calmed down before rubbing down her face. "What am I, then? I can't even shift into a wolf. I'm simply a monster."

"Not yet." She hummed in confusion. "You'll shift eventually and we're not monsters." He flashed her a toothy grin. "We're fucking Lycans."

In a blink of an eye, the man morphed back into his wolf form. His transformation was swift, painless, and horrifying.

With a bark and a jerk of his head, he trotted back into the woods.

Word count: 1536.

Total word count: 19304.

Gryphon, also spelled griffin or griffon, composite mythological creature with a lion's body (winged or wingless) and a bird's head, usually that of an eagle.