Shreya wasn't a good liar. She couldn't just say she killed someone and stole all her things... The gift couldn't be passed off that way. Besides, that was something wolves only did in the leanest of times. Things were getting better for them, or so the Elders said. They didn't have to resort to their old ways of thievery, and if they ever had to do those things again, Shreya wasn't joining in. She wasn't like the rest of them. She had integrity.

Integrity didn't breed survivors. Survival meant no limitations. The wolves who survived did anything it took to do so. They were the smart ones. The harsh ones. The cunning ones. The brutal ones. The ones that her sister was growing up to be like. The kind that her mother was.

And as special as Shreya pretended to be, she knew she wasn't that much better than them. She ate the same food they did, lived in the same lean-tos, relied on the same base instincts, and listened to the same stories they did. She was a wolf through and through.

Ellie was going to prance back to her Stockbrunn life, not knowing a single thing about survival. She'd go back to her mother and father and whoever-else and they'd be too happy to see her to scold her. Cheer. Giggles. Celebration. They'd prepare a bath for her in a real tub, not in some stream somewhere, and give her a fresh dress to wear out of the hundreds she probably owned.

They'd gently remind her not to go back into the woods, that she got lucky this time, and then she'd go to bed on top of five sheepskin blankets. The next day, once her parents' backs were turned, she'd wake up, and sneak off to get some other type of flower, maybe a cousin to the leven-tinte or whatever she had called it. This flower would be as red as her poofy skirt, because, why not?

Their precious daughter's importance would be tested after that.

Maybe she'd be important enough for Stockbrunn to burn down the forest to avenge her.

Everyone would suffer.

Or maybe Ellie was a liar, and was as common a person as Shreya was a wolf. That whole self-importance thing could've been a bluff so Shreya wouldn't mess with her. Ellie's only weapon had been her word. Humans will say anything when they're desperate. They always like bringing up money and family, like money matters at all to wolves and hearing about their family will make their hearts bleed. Wolves have their own families to take care of.

"I think this is far enough. I can make it back from here." Ellie said. "Thank you so much, Shreya. I owe you."

"Okay."

"I'm going to try getting back to the path tomorrow. Ianes' Wall. Will you be there?"

"No, I won't, and you won't." Never mind Shreya's second guess about Ellie bluffing. Ellie was pampered. A headstrong and pampered fool.

"I won't be alone. I'll bring friends."

"So more people can die?" Shreya asked.

"Lots of people survive in the woods. You're proof of that." Ellie said. "The woods aren't just for woods dwellers. Stockbrunnians are allowed, too."

Shreya hoped beyond all hope that Ellie's mama would talk some sense into her. "You're not leaving Stockbrunn. Didn't you say this was rare?"

Ellie smiled in a way that made Shreya wince. It reminded her of one of Shanti's calculating smiles. "I'll find a way. I'd just like to give you a thank-you present. I won't be able to sleep until I do. It won't be money or a letter."

"I can't say I'll be there."

"I'll keep coming by Ianes' Wall until you show up."

"You should do something else. I won't be there."

"You'll be there, trust me." Ellie said. "Then I'll give you your gift and we never have to see each other again. It'll be that simple."

Shreya decided to settle for that. "Fine. Gift. And you never come back to the woods."

"Yep! See you later, Shreya. Get home safely!" Ellie needed that last exclamation more than Shreya did. She reached over and patted her on the arm, a gesture that Shreya guessed meant goodbye in Stockbrunnian culture.

Shreya watched her go, making her way down a fork in the path.

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A/N: This is an interactive fantasy serial. Voting takes place on Thursdays through Sundays on the story's main site. The most up-to-date chapters can also be found there, but uploading will happen in parts on RRL as well. The next RRL update (Chapter 1.5) will be the last one for this batch, then we'll move onto Chapter 2.