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My name is Nathaniel Ray Hart. This is my legacy.

I was born on the seventeenth of December into a family of timber wolves, raised in a self-reliant village far to the north of this kingdom. Unlike our surrounding kingdoms, Canniban has its own special flare about it that attracts tourists and adventurers, knights and legends alike to exploit its many wonders. Or so I hear. I've never been outside these snow-coated woods.

My home, my people. We are a small community. We mostly fend for ourselves. We hunt our own food, particularly underdeveloped deer, the weird ones that walk on all fours, seeing as the weather doesn't exactly provide for good gardening conditions, although our relationship with the outside world has provided us with a steady income of resources, should something go wrong.

Of the many families residing within these ice cold walls, there are only two individuals I truly socialize myself with. Sylvia, my mother, a kind woman with a brave heart who seems too young for her age. And Jacob, a twenty-four year old ordinary light grey colored wolf born within city walls and now my neighbor and most trusted friend.

Tonight, after finishing our usual chores and duties around the village, Jacob and I have retreated to the woods to enjoy our buzz in the sweet silence of the northern nature. As we sit comfortably on high tree branches, I struggle with the rolling paper in my hands. Out of the corner of my eye, I catch the flare of Jacob's ignited match as he lights his joint.

"Want some help?," he asks.

"I got it," I reply, irritation in my voice.

As he calmly puffs on his rolled bud, I continue to attempt to roll mine. After several minutes of countless fuck-ups, the paper finally cooperates with my fingers and rolls into place. I lick the glue to finish my roll when the joint decides to split in the middle, causing all my effort to fall back into the small tin case I keep my bud in.

"Fuck!," I proclaim, tossing the broken joint into the tin in frustration.

Jacob rests his joint between his lips and extends his hand towards me. "Give it here," he orders.

"I don't know what the fuck my problem is today," I complain, handing him the tin case, "Can't get anything to work with me."

"The great Father Kush seems to have lost his touch," he teases, grinning to himself, "Perhaps you no longer fit the title. Maybe I should steal a little thunder."

"Try it and you'll find my boot up your ass," I picked back at him. He chuckled as he handed me my finely rolled joint and tin case back. "Thanks," I said as I reach for the matches in my hoody pocket.

I struck the match, lit my herb-in-a-stick and enjoyed my first puff. As I exhaled, I closed my eyes and focused on the light, frosty breeze blowing through my fur and tried to collect my thoughts.

"Where did you say you got this from?," Jacob asked in curiosity.

I shrugged my shoulders as I took another puff. "Some merchant passing through the area," I answered, holding in my hit. I exhale. "I'm guessing he stocked up on strain from within the city walls. This shit was too damn expensive to come from a local farm."

"What did you expect?," he questioned, nudging the back of my shoulder, "It's weed. Nobody cares where it comes from, it's all about the money."

"Money, money, money," I slowly emphasized, bobbing my head from side to side at the end of each word.

As we sit amongst the tree tops, puffing our bud, I take a look out into the horizon. I see a vast sea of snow covering what I assume to be soil underneath. Tall, thick, leafless trees rise high above the ground, reaching out into the late night sky. A bright, yellow sun glimmers in the distance, preparing to set, as its rays shine down between tree limbs and small twigs to reflect off the white snow on the ground. As I feel the brisk northern air seep between the hairs of my coat, causing a rush of goosebumps to surface under my fur, I watch the snow sparkle from the light of the sun, creating a beautiful display of tiny dancing fireballs along the floor of the woods. I look up to find no clouds, but instead a clear dusk sky. On one side, there is a barrage of yellows and reds and oranges that stretch across from one edge of the Earth to the other. On the other side is a gorgeous blend of blues that fade darker towards the horizon. All of this beauty that seemed to be sectioned off from the rest of the world by the towering white mountains that circle around everything in sight. It's most definitely a lovely view. Very therapeutic. I even see specks of white light poking through the darker blues of the sky, taking their rightful place as the first stars of the night. Sadly, my concentration on the wonders of the outdoors was cut short by a small lump of ash that had ridden the air flow onto my snout, fallen into hundreds of pieces, and found its way up my nostrils.

"Aaaachoo!," I exclaimed, sniffing roughly and rubbing my nose. I looked at the cherry of my joint to find that the ash that was once rolled marijuana was still resting at the tip. I then looked over to Jacob who was sitting on a branch level to my shoulders and his joint resting between his fingers hovering over my head.

"Sorry about that," he apologizes, "I only meant to bring you back to planet Earth."

I turned my head back to the pleasant view and endured the next few seconds of awkward silence until Jacob asks me what's wrong. Sort of.

"You seem distracted, Nate," He states.

"It's been one of those days," I replied.

"Right," he continues, "expect yesterday was one of those days. And the day before that. And the past few days before then weren't that much different either. What's goin' on with you?"

I ignored the question and let another few seconds of silence flow by with the breeze.

"You know what I think?," he asks, hopping down to a branch at my level.

"You're gonna tell me anyway," I said, waving my hand so he would get on with it.

"You need a vacation," he says, sounding to be so sure of himself.

"What?," I questioned with cockiness, turning my head to read the serious expression on his face.

"You heard me," he replies, taking one of the last puffs left on his joint. "You've been doing the same things in this frosted forest everyday for far too long and it's starting to wedge a rod up your ass."

"I'm fine, Jake," I tell him as I take one of the last puffs left on mine.

"But you're not, though," he argues, pointing his joint at me, "I can read it all over you. This routine has made you so stiff you won't even consider the idea."

I crossed my arms and pretended to ignore him as I exhaled smoke in irritation.

"Look," he continues, "You remember the stories about my uncle I told you when we first met?"

"Vaguely," I answered, "I remember you telling me he works inside the castle."

"Right.", Jacob says as he nodded his head. "He's the Court Physician."

"Mkay. So?"

"So it just happens that he offered me an apprenticeship," Jacob announced, quite proudly. "He wants to train me to take over the job when he passes."

I paused to process his words. "When did this happen?," I asked curiously.

"A couple days ago," he tells me, "It's all in this letter."

Jacob pulled an opened envelope out of the pocket of his treasured jean jacket and handed it to me. I pulled the letter out of the envelope and skimmed through the words on the page. Mostly talk of typical issues among other common complaints. Then more complaints over an uprising smuggler epidemic. Some casual ranting about the "proper" behavior that some castle guards seem to lack. Some nonsense about... does that say "magic"? And a fat paragraph devoted to the claimed apprenticeship Jacob's uncle had offered him.

I slipped the letter back into the envelope and handed it back to Jacob. "Great," I announce with a partially fake smile, "I'm happy for you. What's it have to do with me?"

"I want you to come with me, Nate," he answers. "For your own good. You've been trapped in this frozen wasteland for two decades. It's about time for a change of scenery."

"That's sweet, Jake, really," I tell him, thumping the ashes from what's left of my joint, "I'm flattered you have a hard on for me but at least take me to dinner before you beg me to move in with you."

"C'mon, man, do you even know what grass looks like?", Jacob presses me as he leans into my view, "For all you know, it could change your life."

I looked him in the eye and raised an eyebrow.

"Not literally, smartass," he says, turning his head in frustration. "All I'm trying to achieve here is bringing my buddy back," Jacob rests a hand on my shoulder, "You're getting dull."

"I'm getting dull," I repeated, laughing under my breath.

"Yeah, you're getting dull," he states once more, "For lack of a better word. And a new lease on a new life is what you need. Why should I be the only one of us making a change?"

"I can't just leave, Jacob," I tell him.

"Why not?," he questioned, narrowing his eyebrows as if I was speaking gibberish, "What's stopping you besides you?"

More silence rises as we both flick our roaches into the snow below.

"If not for yourself, then for our friendship," Jacob suggests. "There's no question that I'm taking my uncle up on this offer. It's right down my alley and it finally gives me something to work towards. That being said, I don't know if coming back to visit will even be an option once I get settled. What's that going to mean for the two of us if you stay behind?"

Several minutes slowly float by before another word is said. The sun had gone down and the beauty it had provided the area receded into the darkness of the night.

Suddenly feeling the urge to leave the conversation, I jumped down to the ground and began the walk back to the village. No sooner, I hear Jacob's ruined sneakers hit the ground as he follows behind me. The sound of the snow crunching under my boots as I stepped echoed in my mind as I pondered his words in the silence between us.

I'm getting dull. I need a new lease on life. A change of scenery. Even if he's right, leaving won't be that simple. This place is all I know and I have never done well with change. Not since I was ten.

"I'm sorry if I'm pushing you too hard, man," Jacob says as he jogs up next to me. "I just don't see what you, of all people, could have to be afraid of."

"Change," I tell him roughly, looking him in the eye while the groves in our shoes collects more snow, "I'm afraid of the change and you know damn well why. Now drop it."

I lowered my head, staring at the ground as we walked and rested my hands in the pockets of my pull-over hoody. The next five minutes were quiet as Jacob and I head home, side by side.

Eventually, we get back into the village and greet the elderly sitting in their rocking chairs on their porches. Most of our residents being dog folk makes the cold weather bearable for them as other species living here stick to their homes, coming out only to partake in community assignments and enjoying the snow when it feels right. As we pass by each household, I count in my head how many windows were still showing candle light, determining which families had all gone to sleep, and which has yet to expire for the night.

I have a habit of eavesdropping wherever I'm able, my ears have always been abnormally sensitive and it's hard for me to miss a sound even when I'm not trying to pick it up. In one home, I could hear children giving their parents a hard time, refusing to go to sleep and begging to hear another bedtime story. In another across the dirt road from the first, I hear a young teenager throwing a fit over his mother taking away his pipe, and proclaiming that his bedtime was unfair for his age. I chuckled silently then choose another building. In this one, I hear grunts and moans of a young couple in the midst of hot, passionate sex, going at it like... well, dogs. The sounds emanating from the household drew my mind back to the last time a woman had given me a decent release but I quickly shook away the thoughts and pressed on ahead.

Jacob and I reached our own homes, said goodnight and headed inside our own front doors. On the other side of mine, I find my mother sitting on the sofa with a blanket draped over her lap and a mug of hot cocoa in her hands in a living room I almost didn't recognize. A bright fire dances inside the fireplace and I happen to notice something that makes me uneasy.

"Ma, I keep telling you this is a fire hazard," I scold her, dragging her favorite rug away from the open fireplace. "As if you don't know. If you're going to reorganize, you have to pay attention to where you put things." I sat down on the sofa next to her, in front of a second mug of cocoa sitting on the coffee table made for me. I gripped the handle to bring the liquid to my mouth as I felt my mother's hand pop me in the back of the head.

"I spend all day straightening up the house and that's how you thank me?," She playfully complains. "Hmph. Kids."

"I'm not a kid," I tell her, "And if I wasn't around, you probably wouldn't have a house to straighten up. It would have burnt up along with your first attempt to reorganize."

She laughed and sipped her cocoa. I sipped mine. Blissful silence filled the room as we sit and watch the fire. The wood crackled and popped as the fire danced atop, doing its job in heating our home.

"How was your day?," she asked me, wearing a sweet smile.

"Um... Different," I answered her. "The hunt today was a bust. My group found nothing and from what I hear, only one other group was able to track any meat. Not sure if they managed to bring any in though."

"That seems strange," she says, resting her head against her palm.

"Yeah, well, all of us group leaders decided to give it another go tomorrow," I inform her. "Maybe we'll be able to cut ourselves some slack, if we're lucky."

"Anything else new?"

"Yeah, actually," I replied, nodding my head. "Jake's uncle offered him an apprenticeship. He's the Court Physician. Apparently."

"Court Physician?," my mother repeated, "as in the King's physician?"

"That's right."

"Oh my, that's astounding!," she exclaims. "I'll have to bake him a congratulatory cake."

As I considered heading to bed, Jacob's words continued to echo in the back of my mind. The thought of moving to a new place, with new people, new scenery, new lifestyles and no sense of recognition to any of it made me a tad bit queasy. I don't sit well with drastic changes.

Still, Jacob wouldn't say such things if he didn't have reason. Maybe this never changing way of life has made me dull. For lack of a better word. I don't question the fact that there could be more to life waiting for me on the other side of these mountains. In fact, when I was a kid, I often talked with my mother about leaving and making something better of myself in a fascinating new place. Adventuring was my passion in my younger years.

Nowadays, such luxury seems too far out of reach for me. Even if I wanted to go with Jacob, my duties lie here with my mother and the rest of the people residing. It's been my job for over a decade now to take care of the fragile, middle aged woman and I can't throw such responsibility aside to chase a dream. If I left, there is no telling what could happen. And that's the part that scares me the most. I'd rather stick to what I know and keep things steady.

I finished my cocoa, kissed my mother goodnight and placed the empty mug on the kitchen counter to be washed in the morning before heading upstairs to my room. Not bothering to get undressed, I simply took off my boots and fell backwards onto my bed. Though thoughts of Jacob's offer endlessly continued to flow through my mind, I was asleep within minutes.

The next day began uneventful. Uneventful for me, anyway. I woke up, bathed, made myself some breakfast, and started chores around the house. I swept the floors, cleaned the counter tops and washed the dishes, including the cocoa mugs my mother and I used. Her cleaning spree last night didn't leave me much to do so I went outside and began splitting wood for the extra cold nights. After filling the gaps in our shed where the wood is kept, I shoveled snow off the pathway leading from the dirt road to my front door. Then I shoveled the sections of the road itself that the other residents hadn't. Keeping this road clear is a community chore, among others, that all take part in. I usually finish what the lazy ones don't to kill a few hours.

After finding myself with not much else to do, I met up with a few dozen of our residents to begin a hunt. The small crowd before me stand scattered in random spots, chatting with friends, awaiting their orders to begin. I folded my tongue back, placed four fingers on top and let out a loud whistle to catch their attention. Once all eyes were on me, I spoke.

"I don't think I need to tell you how we do this," I began, feeling slightly unenthusiastic. "We go out into these woods and we bring home food. As simple as that. We've done it a million times before, and that routine is not about to change."

"Didn't we do this yesterday?," I hear a voice yell from within the crowd.

"Yeah, we did, but it seems the game shifted to a different area," I answered the random voice. "You all know we didn't bring anything in and as far as I know, the other groups weren't any luckier."

"So, what, we have no food?," a different voice asked.

"That's crap!," said another, "Jenkins' group brought in at least two dozen heads last night!"

"Who the hell told you that?," the first voice asks. "I was with Jenkins last night, his group didn't find a damn thing!"

"Like it matters!," argued the voice of a woman. "If all the game has shifted, we have no source of food at all!"

"Could you all please shut the fuck up for a second?", I raised my voice over the murmur and felt a slight headache developing. "Even if we had scared off all the deer, rabbits, foxes and everything else out there, and that's a big if, we still have supplies rolling in from castle walls to provide for everyone. Some of you are twice my age, you should know this. Our dinner is still out there waiting, we just have to find it. You all played hide and seek when you were kids, right? Consider this no different. Now get out there and do your God damn jobs."

The crowd broke up into smaller groups and took off into the woods in different directions, most of the older individuals staring me down as they did so. I took my own path with a backpack of supplies I had grabbed from my home earlier and ventured into the frosted forest for a good half hour, nose in the air trying to catch even the slightest scent of a venison meal. I caught a whiff and changed my direction. Another good hour past before the scent became strong enough for me to decide to settle in and wait.

After setting up a few snare traps around the area lined with bait, I chose a suitable position in the trees to get comfortable and made myself at home. Searching around in the backpack I brought along, I pulled out a small, single handed crossbow, a bolt which I loaded into the crossbow, a bottle of water, a small bag of trail mix, my pipe, a box of matches and my tin case. Wedging my crossbow between two branches, I took a swig from my water bottle and packed some bud into the pipe. I lit a match and took a hit from the pipe, laid my head back and let my thoughts wander. A small buzz flowed through my body as I exhaled.

I was thinking of Jacob's offer again. No matter how many times I told myself leaving wasn't an option, I couldn't help but consider the possibilities. I thought about how he questioned what would happen to our friendship if I stayed behind. He's a prick for pointing that out but it's true that I don't want to lose Jacob as a friend. We're more of brothers than anything. The connection him and I share is like being inside each others heads. Most of the time. Other times, I want to dig my claws into his neck and rip his fucking throat out. Not often though.

I wonder how things would be if I did go. How would we get there? Would we walk? I suppose we could catch a ride back on the next supply buggy to come through. Where would we stay? I assume Jacob's uncle has a spare room for him. I guess I'd be okay with crashing on the floor until I figured something out for myself. I would need a job, a source of income to provide for myself.

How would things change here? Would my mother be alright on her own? Granted, the woman can pull her own weight, but there are things she can't handle herself. Who would take leadership over my hunt group? The position wouldn't be that hard to fill, come to think of it. I'm pretty sure many of the older men and women here don't appreciate being told how to hunt from a man my age anyway.

"Wait," I said out loud, shaking my head.

I'm not going, I shouldn't be worrying about any of this.

I hate to turn Jacob down, especially if he wants me to accompany him as he makes something of himself. I feel like I'm letting him down. As well as I know him, I can only hope he would understand.

Another match flared bright as I struck the tip to light the weed in my pipe once more. Holding my breath with the smoke heating up my lunges, another larger buzz rushed through me, as if from nowhere. It spread throughout my body, down to the tip of each finger and toe and the length of my tail. It felt great. I continued to hold my breath as long as I could to keep the buzz flowing. When I exhaled, there was no smoke unabsorbed by my lunges to release into the air. I repeated this several times until there was nothing but ash left in the pipe. Stowing the piece back into the backpack, I then began to dig into my munchy bag of trail mix.

I chewed the small pretzels and crackers andlooked down to the base of the tree I was sitting in. The snare trap below remains untouched, as does the bait. I doubt any of the others were any different. I look around in every direction to find no sign of life. It's still going to be a while before anything shows up for dinner.

As I turned my head, something in the snow caught my eye. I set my munchy bag aside and jumped down out of the tree. I approached the patch of snow that called to me to find a set of tracks. Deer tracks, and by the size, it seemed to be a buck.

How did I miss this? Were they here when I got here?

I hopped back up to my spot in the tree, gathered my things and began following the trail of prints. They went on for quite a while. Making turns here and there leading from one large hole in the snow to the next, marking where the big fella had stopped to rest. I found a puddle of freezing piss that reeked to high heaven and soaked into the snow and a pile of droppings not too far from it. After a while, the prints led straight through an enormous wall of large pricker bushes. I assumed they stretched on for a while so I took to moving through the treetops. To my surprise, not only was my assumption correct, it was so correct that I spent a good twenty minutes hoping through the trees from branch to branch before the bushes below receded.

The tree line stopped only a few yards ahead from the end of the pricker bushes and what I found beyond that was quite a sight. What seemed like hundreds of bucks and does gracefully gallop and play in a large, wide open white field. I caught a glimpse of a hare's head pop out of a small hole in the ground. No doubt there were several more to be found here. Who knows what else?

"Sonovabitch...," I said to myself with a large smile. "A fucking goldmine!"

I guess this is where everything shifted to. This will make some people happy.

I heard a few crunches of snow underneath me and looked down. A doe walking the treeline minding her own business. Making for a perfect target. Digging through my backpack, I pulled out the still loaded crossbow, just realizing how unsafe it was to pack it away like that, I aimed for the head and let the bolt fly. In a millisecond, the bolt struck the top of the poor girl's head and stuck in her skull. She instantly dropped, lifeless, letting her blood dribble out around the bolt jammed into her brain to pool in the snow underneath her.

I looked among the rest of the herd to be sure I hadn't startled them. They remained as they were, running, lying, and dancing around in the snow. I jumped down from the tree and dragged the corpse into the woods as far as the pricker bushes would let me. When I felt unnoticeable, I began the dirty work, skinning and gutting the creature for its delicacies.

This never was my most favorite sport, what with all the blood, but it did have its advantages. The meat was delicious and it came with a certain sense of accomplishment knowing I was the one to bring such a delicious meal to my mother's table. Once the others hear of this field, I'm sure they'll be eager to get a grasp on the same rewards.

Soon, the deed was done, the meat safely stored in a thick leather bag in my backpack, and the animal carcass lying at my feet. "Rest in peace, madam," I said, nodding my head to the remains. I then turned around and took to the treetops once more to be on my way back.

Twenty minutes later, I found myself back to the outer edge of the bushes and another fifteen passed before I arrived in the area I had originally chose for my hunting grounds. Among the snare traps I had placed before, I found only a hare and a fox had taking the bait and got themselves killed. Not bothering to skin and gut them here, I put their bodies in the backpack as well, took down and stored the remaining undisturbed snare traps while leaving to bait in hopes to coax some life to spill out closer to civilization then headed back to the village. The hour and a half walk flew by much faster this time around. I came to find that a few from my group had already made their way back when I arrived, standing and muttering in the spot where they had all originally gathered. Without drawing closer, I heard chatter of failure and frustration. I walked up to the small group to give them a few final orders.

"And our brilliant leader returns," said a wolf with a pissy voice matching one of those from before the hunt. "I bet you did no better than the rest of us, you little smartass."

Instantly changing my mind, I said nothing. Instead I dropped my backpack in the snow, opened it and threw the leather bag of meat at the man. It bounced off his chest and into his hands as I tossed the rabbit and fox at his feet then, finally, I decided to fuck him over.

"Since you're the one with the mouth, you can wait here in the cold for everyone to get back. When they do, have them gather in the community house. And you," I pointed at one of the others who snickered at his comment, "Find the other group leaders when they return and have them gather their hunters in the house as well. Come get me from my home when everyone arrives."

There was no response from either of them, only blank stares.

"Am I understood?", I questioned, raising my voice. They both nodded in irritation then waited for me to pick up my earnings out of the snow and walk off before bitching about me behind my back. Literally. I heard every word until I turned up the dirt road and I knew they wanted me to.

I headed home to skin the hare and fox and store the meat. Not too long after I finish, build a fire in the fireplace and sit down on the sofa with a glass of milk, my mother walks through the door.

"Oh, hi honey," she says, hands full of paper grocery bags.

"I see you went shopping," I stated, sipping my milk.

"Just a few things I checked out of the village's food pantry," she replies, "Remember I said I was going to bake a cake to congratulate Jacob? I wasn't kidding you know."

I paused then pointed to the bags in her hands. "All that is for one cake?," I asked in curiosity.

"Well not quite," she began to explain, "I figured I'd invite him and his father over for dinner tonight. Kind of like a surprise party. Just without the party." She left the room, ventured into the kitchen and proceeded to begin cooking. I stood up off the sofa and walked in behind her.

"Ma, you know we can only take so much at a time from the pantry, right?," I asked her.

"Oh relax," she replied, moving around the kitchen with grace, "I have plenty here for the next few days and I barely put a dent into our limit."

"Just saying," I said, raising my hands in the air with my glass in one, "Be wary."

"Yes, yes," she half acknowledged me, waving her own hand in the air. "How was the hunt?"

I sat down in a chair and set my half empty glass of milk down on the table. "Better than expected," I answered proudly.

"Oh? How so?," She asked without looking back at me.

"To put it short," I began to explain, "The bastards didn't get as far away from us as they might have hoped. I found a large open field flooded with game."

"Well, I'll be damned," she stated, placing a hand on her hip as she stopped what she was doing to turned towards me. "Have you told the others?"

"Not yet," I answered, "I put out some orders to have all hunting groups meet in the community building."

"It's about time we get a little good luck around here," she said, turning back to her cooking.

Just then, there was a knock at the door.

That was fast.

"That's for me," I told her. l took the last gulp of milk from my glass and headed to the front door. On the other side was the wolf I ordered to find the other group leaders. "Alright, let's go," I told him.

We both walked out my front door and began to travel down the dirt road. We made our way to the center of the village where a large and wide building sat. This is our community building, where all disputes, laws, meetings, or anything of the sort pass through to keep the peace in our home.

As we passed through the double doors, I found a loud wave of chatter had filled the room. Rows of seats were filled from the entrance to the back wall. The man I walked down here with found himself a seat as I proceeded to the back of the room. I then turned to face the crowd and yelled, "Quiet down, please!" The chatter continued as if no one had heard me. I folded my tongue back, placed both index and both middle fingers on top and let loose an ear piercing whistle. The chatter faded and all eyes were on me.

"I know that our luck lately has pretty much gone to shit," I began. "And I'm pretty sure I now know why."

I noticed a couple of raised eyebrows amongst the crowd when I said that. Several of which belong to other leaders.

"There's a field about a two hour walk from the village," I continued, pointing in the field's direction. "One I'm sure that none of us knew was there. In it is the largest herd of deer I've seen since I started hunting. And to add on, there seemed to be a countless number of rabbit holes scattered throughout the field. All of you here who have been doing this since you were adolescent know that where there's prey, there's predator, meaning if all those deer and hares' are out there, there's bound to be even more variety of meat close by."

A light murmur erupted among them. The other leaders chatted and conversed among themselves, wondering what to make of the information.

"The problem," I started again, looking down to the floorboards, crossing my arms, "Is the massive amount of pricker bushes surrounding the field, making it impassible from the ground."

"Wait, then how the hell did you get there?," asked a skeptical voice from the back rows.

"What originally led me to the field was a set of buck tracks," I answered the voice. "I followed them until they disappeared into the bushes, took to the treetops and continued forward until I came to the field. As strange as this all sounds, the most ridiculous part is the length these bushes stretch out. I moved through the trees for twenty minutes at the least before the bushes receded and the field was visible. And as far as I can tell, those pricks circle all the way around, in all, making it two miles in diameter, at least. Honestly, I'm assuming that based on the size of the field."

Murmurs turned to loud debates amongst the crowd. All the hunters before me broke out in conversation, all heads turning to one another, their lips forging words that flowed through the room and bounced off the walls. I whistled once more to re-obtain their attention and gave my final statement.

"Your leaders, as well as myself, will discuss this further to decided how we'll take advantage of it," I said, pointing to the crowd. "In the meantime, the schedule will not change until you've been given further notice. You're dismissed."

I crossed my arms again as I watched the crowd before me stand up and make their own way out of the building. As they did so, a shepherd and a bloodhound - Jeremy and Greg, both are group leaders - made their way to me.

"Jeremy. Greg," I acknowledged them, nodding to them both. "I'm guessing you have some questions?"

"To say the least," said Jeremy. "How exactly did you come to find this field? In detail, please."

"In detail?," I repeat as I raised an eyebrow. "Mkay. Let's see, I walked into the woods, set up snare traps, placed bait in their centers, sat in a tree smoking a bowl and munching on trail mix for a good," I paused for a moment to estimate the time, "I want to say, maybe, twenty to twenty-five minutes, give or take. Then, I spotted the set of buck tracks I mentioned, and the rest you know."

They both gave me a blank stare.

"Alright then," said Jeremy, sounding as skeptical as anyone else.

"How did you not notice the buck that made the tracks?," asked Greg. "I'm assuming if they were there when you arrived in the area, you would have found them. If I'm right, assuming I am, then the buck had to have passed right by you."

"Is this an interrogation?" I questioned, raising my arms towards them, then recrossing them. "I scouted the area for footprints before I set up," I explained, feeling alienated, "So yes, you're right. I don't know how the tracks got there. I had a perfect view of the area from my position in the tree and I assure you I would have noticed if anything had passed by. That said, it shouldn't matter how they got there. You're concerns should be how we're going to get everyone else in."

They looked at each other with question in their eyes. Greg whispered something to Jeremy that even my ears couldn't pick up with all the racket from the others leaving going on.

"Look," I started again, re-grasping their attention, "I have no reason to lie to you. I realize my age might make you see me as inferior, but I am a leader, just the same as you, and I didn't cheat to get that position. So please show me a little respect."

Greg nodded as Jeremy said, "Fair enough."

"If you want proof, I'd be more than happy to take you there myself," I offered.

"That won't be necessary," said Greg. "Not now, at least. I'll inform the other leaders to meet here tomorrow morning and we'll discuss our next move then."

"Alright," I agreed, nodding my head. I then raised my arm towards the door, "Am I free to go, officers?," I asked, making my frustration known.

They both nodded and I turned to walk out the door.

Hard asses.

I think Jacob might be right. I am dull. I see what he was referring to after all that. I never paid attention to how boring it gets around here. And how stuck up some of the people can be.

I proceeded to walk back home wondering how to spend the rest of my afternoon. I noticed some kids building snowmen and making snow angels out behind the church house. Some were pelting each other with snowballs while others build a fort for protection. As I walked up the dirt road a few other older kids ran passed me with sleds heading towards the hill above the village.

As I walked up the dirt road, I looked up into the sky. I saw nothing but clouds prepare to drop heavy snow across the land.

When I walked up to my porch and proceeded through the front door, I came to find that Jacob and his father had already arrived and made themselves at home. They both sat on the sofa and my mother across the room from them in her rocking chair. I walked in and stretched out in the love seat next to the sofa.

"Nathaniel!," said Jacob's father, Albert. "It's been a while since you've been by the house. How are you?"

"Good, good," I answered, "long day."

"So I've heard," Albert replied. "Your mother here tells me you found new hunting grounds rich with game."

"So to speak," I said.

"And that's why you're the best hunter this village has," my mother said, reaching out to tap my nose with her finger.

"Easy, Ms. Hart," Jacob cautioned her, "Don't give him too much credit." He grinned at me to signify his sarcasm while the rest of us chuckled.

"So Nathaniel," my mother began, "You didn't tell me Jacob offered you to go with him to the castle."

"Yeah, I guess it slipped my mind at the time," I told her, scratching the back of my head, hoping she would buy the excuse.

"From what my son has told me, you haven't decided if you're going or not," said Albert.

I laughed. "Of course he told you that," I said, shaking my head. "Well, as it turns out, I have made my decision."

They all looked at me in suspension.

"Jacob," I said looking him in the eye, "I'd be happy to go."