The bear wailed. Another animal snarling. Sounds of struggle. Gnashing of teeth. Paws slashing through the air and not hitting anything. Then, another wet, awful stabbing sound. A low, guttural whine. It took another hit for the whining to subside.

Marietta finally opened her eyes. A wolf stood before her, panting from its fight.

It said something in her own ugly tongue, then switched into a clumsy Casternian Common. "It's good that it was hurt already. It was bleeding. Lots of pain. We're lucky." Its forearms were covered in blood, splashes from when it struggled against the bear. It held a stick with a knife tethered to the end. The makeshift spear had served it well.

"If you're going to use that thing on me next—"

"No. I'm friendly." Its blue eyes widened in surprise.

Its kind were the furthest thing from friendly. Wolves not being feral didn't make them any less dangerous. If anything, it made them ten times worse than things like the bear they'd just faced. They were liars. Con artist. Not to be trusted.

"Did you see a girl here?" The wolf asked. It undid the string, freeing its knife.

"Are you going to threaten to eat me if I don't tell you?" Marietta crossed her arms. The adrenaline had left her for the most part.

"I'm nice. I'm her friend."

"Sure you are. I see right through you."

"See right through me... So do I. You know her." It said. "I can tell you've been with her."

"And she's gone now. You can't have her. Woe is you, wolf."

"She's somewhere here." It wiped its knife on its pant leg. "I don't want to kill her. And I don't want to kill you. I would've let her do it if I did." It gestured to the bear, its back riddled with wounds.

"Then what's your angle? What do you want?"

It mused on that for a moment. "She has something of mine. I need it back."

Hearing that was all it took for everything to click in Marietta's mind. This wolf was the woods dweller that Ellie was trying to see. Fooled by its hat and cape get-up, she'd actually believed that it was human. Marietta had to confirm that for herself. "She doesn't know what you are, does she?"

"No." Was that a hint of fear? Worry? The wolf had more of a stake in its secret than it was letting on.

"If you want to keep it that way, you're going to need my help." Marietta said.

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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 post will be Chapter 4.5.

Chapter 9 is live on the site now. Voting on the latest chapter will end on TODAY (Sunday) at 11:59 PM EST. There's also a chance for readers to comment with character suggestions. See Chapter 9, the latest chapter, for more information.