Part 1: Pinecones

The thudding of a chase met my ears, sounding thunderous to my keen senses. Unusual, as the beasts of this forest have sensed my presence, and the villagers have not ventured near the treeline since the last few children. I sink into the murky depths, and lie in wait at the water's edge. Perhaps I can get a meal out of this yet.

I waited but a few moments before a small child flew out from the forestry, hair trailing like tendrils of flame. She tripped and fell to her knees, just a mere 3 meters away from where I hid. A man soon followed, and he stumbled towards my sanctuary. The child crawled away from him, exhausted from the chase, but her hunter would have none of it. He took hold of her long tresses, and dragged her to the water, so near that if not for these lily pads, I would have been revealed immediately.

I watched unmoving as he wrapped his hands around her slender neck, and forced her under the murky waters of my loch. Bubbles streamed to the surface as she screamed for help, and she desperately scrabbled for release of that deadly grip.

I watched in horrid fascination, as I'd never seen emotions such as these on a human's face. I was beginning to think the only emotion they felt was fear.

The hunter looked up, eyes darting from side to side. It seems he had felt my gaze. His hold loosened slightly when he saw my slitted eyes, and this was enough for the girl to rise above the dark waters to take a gulp of fresh air. But it seems the hunter had forgotten about the prey, and was getting an inkling that he was the hunted.

He scrambled away from the reedy bank, and pointed a trembling finger to the girl.

"You! You summoned a demon, didn't you! DIDN'T YOU!"

In his eyes, fear swirled with irrational anger, and my heart raced at the intensity, the potency of the sheer terror running through his veins. It made me eager for the meal to come. Quickly deciding to take action, I leapt out of the loch, going right over the drenched girl so as to prevent his escape. I clenched my jaws on his shoulder, and dragged his flailing body into the waters that would soon consume him. All this happened in the span of five seconds, and by the time the girl’s wits came about her, the man was already tissue and bones beneath the red surface.

I slowly rose back to the top of the bloodied waters, and she watched in fearful awe when I began to walk towards the shore, as if it were land I was walking upon. I then came upon the bank, reverse hooves creating deep indents in the loam. It seems the ruse is up, as vague recognition came to alight in her golden eyes, now fading to more of a honey amber.

After a few moments of appraisal, she slowly rose to her feet, maintaining eye contact the entire time. She raised a trembling hand, and reached up to stroke my snout. I debated whether or not to bite the hand, but decided to be generous and meet her halfway.

Her eyes showed a curious wonder, and seemed astonished when her fingers met my dark coat. Her fingers experimentally brushed down the silky ebony coat, gradually growing more confidence when she saw that her ministrations were okay. She looked back up to my unusual eyes, giggling, and flashed me the brightest smile I've ever seen. Her childish enthusiasm was endearing.

I carefully nudged the small girl away from the dangerous banks. After all, I'm not the only danger around these parts. She seemed puzzled at my intentions at first, but eventually gave in, allowing me to gently push her out of harm's way. She ran back to the treeline, and I had initially thought she was attempting to run from me, after I just spared her life. Surprisingly enough, when she reached the rough bark of a pine tree, she crouched down to grab something she had seen with her little hands.

She brushed off a few stray needles from the mystery object, and shuffled back to me. With an air of triumph about her, she proudly displayed a rather large pinecone. I cocked my head the side, the action conveying a silent question of "now what on earth would you need that for?"

She seemed slightly disappointed at my lack of appreciation, and carefully set it down at my feet, as if handling a precious gem for a wealthy noble. Once the pinecone was in a satisfactory position, she ran off to collect more. I sank to the floor, long knobbly legs folding to allow me comfort. I watched her hunched form as she scrabbled through the undergrowth to collect more of the the cones, letting out a squeal of surprised glee when the occasional insect scrambled out from it's hiding place.

This human is quite unusual. Not only had she turned her back to me, but she had also made it her mission to collect prizes for me. Strange indeed. No other human had displayed such bold behavior before, and it felt somewhat refreshing to have an entity with almost no fear of me. Animals flee in my presence, and most humans are absolutely terrified. Rightly so, as the few humans that cross my path never live to tell the tale. Food is food, and I had long since begun to disregard human life. None of them really mattered individually since they all ended up dead.

But as I continued observing her, I felt less and less inclined to end her now. Perhaps I'm not that hungry? Well, I did just have a meal, so it's a given that my hunger is sated. I glanced back to the pinecone, now accompanied by many more huddled in a pile, then looked back at the girl still eagerly searching for more prizes. Perhaps I will keep her by my side, if only as a snack.

Author's Note

I have a tendency to somewhat overuse or misplace commas.... Does anyone have a way to fix that habit?