forelsket (n.) || the euphoria you experience when falling in love

She greeted, stepping inside the cafe.

Esther broke into a smile behind the register counter, "Hi, Miki! I'll never get tired of seeing you more often. How is that meat diet going?"

She laughed, shaking her head, as Esther embraced her, "Really good, I'm going to try to break off by summer, though. I feel like I'm packing on the pounds."

"I can imagine," Esther said, "I still find it odd but I guess kids have their cravings these days."

"Hey," She pretended to pout, "I'm not a kid, I'm seventeen years old!"

"Gosh," Esther feigned shock, "I'm so sorry, Miki. I meant a totally-full-grown-adult who is completely capable of taking care of herself. How could I forget?" Esther poked her on the nose and she laughed, rolling her eyes.

"Okay, alright," She replied, "Don't make it worse."

She followed Esther into the backroom where her supplies were neatly stacked and boxed as they always were. They teased each other a little more as they carried the boxes out to her sled. She knelt down to secure the straps and Esther helped beside her.

"It won't be too long and you won't be able to use this sled," Esther commented, "The spring season is leaving holes in the snow."

She accidentally snorted, then cleared her throat and chuckled a little, "I mean, yeah. I'll have to get the wagon back out. But I figured it would be a good last run, there is still enough snow and ice packed on the road."

She finished securing the boxes and stood up to pat her hands on her jeans, ridding herself of the dirt that tried to cling to her skin.

Esther glanced out at the forest beyond the town, her face growing serious, "Be careful out there, Miki. The forest is a dangerous place."

She frowned at the sudden statement and she turned to face Esther, "What?"

"Some men came into the cafe this morning," Esther sighed, "They were out for the first hunt of the spring, hunting some peasants or something like that. I'm not sure, but Miki, they were talking about a group of wolves," Her blood instantly ran cold, Esther continued, "They said they came out of nowhere and appeared to be aggressive. I know that you spend a lot of time in the forest, but for both our sakes I think you should stay indoors until these wolves are killed. Miki, promise me you'll stay inside, okay?"

She could hardly breath as she swallowed around her dry tongue, "That's odd," She mumured weakly, "I haven't heard anything. I promise I'll stay inside. Thank you, for the warning, I really appreciate it."

"Since your basically my daughter, its my job to keep you safe," Esther drew her into another hug, "Call me when you get home, okay? If I don't get a call, I'm showing up to check on you."

"I will," She felt like she was going to pass out.

"Are you alright, dear?" Esther frowned at her, "You look a pit pale."

She brushed off the concern, "Yeah, I'm probably pale from the winter hiding the sun."

"Alright then," Esther kissed her on the forehead, "I love you, remember to call me."

"Love you, too."

She numbly walked away from the cafe. She couldn't believe her ears. The nights that she laid awake with in confliction were becoming a reality. Her worries were proven true. Those men had stumbled across her wolves and everyone in town probably knew by now. She didn't know what would happen - no, that was a lie. She did know what was going to happen. She had known all along and she chose to ignore it to prolong her little piece of heaven.

A foolish attempt, really. Karma was always a bitch and she was never late. She reached her house in a daze. She didn't want to admit the reality of the situation. She couldn't lock away her wolves in the barn again, they needed to figure something else out.

She ditched her sled by the front porch and ran around back the house. She stumbled into the forest and, despite her will to shout, she waited anxiously. She didn't know if anyone was nearby and she didn't need the suspicion.

It felt like an eternity of listening to the forest before she saw her wolves finally appeared. Thane was leading as he bound over to her and slobbered her with his tongue. She couldn't resist the giggle that rose in her chest and a smile crossed her face as Cross emerged with Arch.

Silently, her heart was thrumming. Skeet all but ran to her side, almost knocking her over in his excitement, and then Lake followed. Lake ran a few circles around them before he came over and she scratched under his chin as his tongue lolled out of his mouth.

For a moment, she was horrified when Ever didn't immediately appear, and when he finally did, she didn't miss the blood matted on his shoulder. She gasped and practically flew to his side.

"Oh, my baby," She assessed the injury, "Those hunters took a shot at you? Good lord, I can't believe it!" She took a deep breath when Skeet whined at her panic, "Its okay, boys, its just a skin wound. They just skinned him, see?" The wolves seemed to glance at Ever's shoulder and relax.

Cross came over and started licking the wound. Ever gave a whine of pain and tried to move away. Cross growled, attempting to continue to clean the wound, and she only then realized how each of her wolves were covered in dirt and other forest debris - as though they went through a tussle of some sort.

She reached out to stop Cross and he snapped at her fingers. She immediately pinched his ear and he backed away in irritation. His eyes portrayed his question, why she wouldn't let him continue to care for his brother, and she smiled a little at him. He always acted all tough and serious but on the inside he cared.

"I know you are trying to help," She said, "But, with all this dirt, he's going to get an infection if it isn't cleaned properly. Plus, the dirt probably feels like glass." Cross slightly tilted his head, almost saying, and what will you do about it?

"Come on, Ever," She stood to her feet, "It is time for you guys to get a bath."

She led the wolves into her house. They were over-elated that she was letting them back in her home as they wandered to smell all the new scents and explore. She felt nostalgia watching them, it brought back so many memories of when they were pups in front of her fireplace. Right before she headed upstairs, she called Esther to let her know that she made it safely.

Then, she drew warm water in the bathroom tub and when it was full, she brought Ever in first. He followed her without hesitation and he didn't mind the water at all as she bathed him. She grumbled a few times as his fur seemed endless in dirt, but when the water finally rinsed clean, she carefully cleaned around his injury.

She sighed, leaning across to grab the bottle of alcohol from the bathroom counter.

"This will hurt, but its okay," She tried to soothe him but as soon as she dabbed the drench cotton swab on his open skin, he barked in pain and then continued to whine as loudly as he could. Though, he never tried to bite her, which was good. Cross appeared in the doorway in alarm and the other wolves crowded behind him.

"Its okay, guys, he's okay," She said and applied butterfly stitches to the injury. It wasn't that bad, barely a two inch gash, but she wanted to keep the chances of infection at zero. When she was finished, she dried Ever in a towel, drew new bath water, and brought Skeet in.

Skeet was happy with all the attention she was giving him and she grimaced at the amount of dirt that collected in the drain and was spread across her floors. Skeet licked her arms while she worked shampoo through his fur, as if grooming her in return for grooming him.

Thane wasn't as enthused with the bath. He refused to jump in the tub and when she scolded him, he put one paw on the side, giving her a side glance. She crossed her arms and he put both front paws on the side of the tub but still made no move to get in. She grumbled and bent down to pick up his butt.

"Gosh, you are heavy," She huffed, "What do you eat, an elk a day?!" Thane gave her a triumphant smile but after a few more tries, she managed to get him in the tub. He sat down with a scowl and she all but laughed as she bathed him.

Cross sat in the doorway the entire time, onlooking her process, and once Arch figured out what was going on, he tried to make multiple runs for it. She couldn't close the door because of Cross sitting in the way, so she would bring Arch back whenever he ran. Lake thought it was a game and took to running away with Arch, and she groaned as she dried Thane. Multiple times, he shook, splattering her with water.

She drew new bath water, as it grew blackened from each wolf, and then she turned to find Arch. Of course, he had ran, and after she found him in the living room, she drug him into the bathroom. Arch pried for any leverage he could, trying to stay away from the water, and it almost mirrored a cat's reaction.

By the time she got Arch in the water, her arms were bright red with scratches from Arch attempting to climb on top of her, and her clothes were soaked from almost falling in when Arch jumped from the water touching his foot. Once Arch was soaked, he gave up and sulked while she finished his bath relatively quick.

"Thank god," She muttered, drying Arch.

She let him go and glanced up for the next wolf. She was surprised to find Cross nipping at Lake as he tried to escape, as if Cross was helping her corral the wolf, but she realized she was wrong. When Lake finally quit trying to run, Cross gave her a quick glance before getting up and trotting off. He didn't want to be next, so he made Lake go before him.

She shook her head and gathered up Lake. It wasn't difficult to get him into the water but he wouldn't sit still. Constantly, he moved and sloshed water all over the place. He would circle and lick her face, she swore she was finished with him halfway through.

Finally, it was Cross' turn. She walked out into the hallway, Lake bounding down the stairs, and she found Cross laying on the steps.

"Come on, your turn." She said. Cross flicked an ear her way but didn't lift his head. She huffed, "I've been doing this all day, don't make it more difficult."

Cross ignored her.

"Please?"

He sighed, flattening his ears.

"Pretty please, you get a sweet treat?"

Cross finally lifted his head to look at her. His expression was deadpanned and she stifled her laugh. She thought he would roll his eyes and trot off but he slowly stood up. She was quiet as he stalked past her, clearly not happy, and she followed him into the bathroom.

He walked right up to the tub and stepped inside. He heaved another sigh and then looked at her, as if to say, get it over with.

She didn't think she bathed a wolf any faster. She worked quietly to bathe Cross and he would send her occasional glances of irritation. At least he isn't biting me, she thought. When she was done, Cross shook his fur in the middle of the bathroom and spread water everywhere before sending her a wolfish smirk over his shoulder and trotting out.

She scowled at his retreating form before cleaning the bathroom, mopping up all the water and dirt, and then she headed downstairs.

"Okay, back outside you go." She sung, the smell of wet dog overwhelming her nose. She grabbed some meat slices on her way out and they emerged to a lazy afternoon. She closed the door behind them and fed each of them some meat.

Then, Arch sauntered over to a particular dirty patch in her yard.

Her eyes widened, "No, Arch, no. Don't do it!"

Arch flopped into the muddy dirt and wildly rolled onto his back.

She groaned, tipping her face upwards, "I just spent three hours bathing you guys. Three hours!" She sighed, watching as a dirty Arch jumped around as if she hadn't just bathed him, "Why do I even try?"

Skeet rubbed against her leg and she smiled at him, "You'll stay clean, won't you, boy?"

He blinked.

"Alright, well, stay out of trouble." She said and the wolves took that as their cue.

Slowly, they trotted off into the forest after Cross. Their coats glistening in the late day light and she knew they would be safe for the night at least. For the night, they would be safe from the hunters in her town, but a heaviness settled over her heart when they disappeared. She had to make her decision, but was it even a choice?

She remembered the promise she had made the second day she found the wolf pups. She promised herself that she would raise them until they were old enough to survive on their own and then she would let them go back to the forest. She recalled foolishly asking herself how hard it would be and now standing in the moment, she realized just how hard it actually was.

Her wolves were in danger if they stayed with her. She had to protect them. They wouldn't move out of the area with her involvement in their lives. They wouldn't run to a safer place when the hunters pursued them, they would run to her. There was no other choice.

She had to fulfill her promise.

✙ ✙ ✙ ✙ ✙ ✙ ✙

(Not edited)