Muddy River — The Shape of Dreams

He leapt onto the back of the deer, using his powerful legs to send him forcefully into the air and sharp claws dug deep into the flesh of the beast. It seemed even with the twig snapping at an inopportune moment, Caedwyn had still managed to get the beast by surprise. His jaws flashed open before snapping shut again. His teeth pierced into the back of the bucks neck. Any moment now, he was sure Enya would jump forward and take the buck by the throat and bring it down. "No! Stop!" He hardly had time to hear her cry out, much less comprehend it with the adrenaline of the moment pumping through his veins. "Caedwyn! Stop it!" When she shouted louder, the noise hit him unexpectedly. It sounded pained and desperate. The urgency of her voice drew his attention, eyes flicking over to where he had left her as his jaws opened and head lifted to try to find her. But she wasn't in the bushes where he'd left her. Instead she was on the ground, laying on her side. Something wasn't right. SOMETHING WASN'T RIGHT. Had some creature caught her? Was there danger? His forelegs released their grip on the bucking deer and he slid off, not paying attention to see what the beast did when he let go. His attention was fully on Enya now. "Enya!" He shouted back, his voice full of a worry he didn't know it could have. The sound was strange and equally desperate. What had happened? He rushed to her, his breath ragged both from his attack on the deer and from the quickness at which he made his way to her. His eyes darted over her. Blood. Blood!? Why was there blood? His noise picked up unmistakable scent and his eyes began to search her. "Are you hurt? W-What happened? H-How?" He was speaking so fast that his words came out jumbled. There! Along her back he could see the flesh was torn. His head lifted momentarily to gaze back at the bushes where he had left her. Was there some sort of predator nearby? Another wolf? Something else? But nothing had emerged behind her in pursuit. His eyes moved back down to her and he pushed his nose in close to examine her. A bite mark on the back of her neck, and long cuts on her shoulders moving down her back. It was almost like... like... the deer. A thought crept in the back of his mind. Not fully formed but just as potent. It was like the buck. His nose was close to the bite mark. He could see it now. The marks lined up perfectly with his jaws. But how? It didn't quite make sense, and yet somehow this malformed suspicion... this evil fear began to grow in him. Had he somehow hurt her? Maybe an illusion? Had he jumped on Enya thinking it was a deer? Was this some sort of cruel trick being played on him? Some evil force lurking to turn him against Enya? "I don't understand." He said, his voice shaking and his body trembling. "Did I... did .... I ...". He couldn't even finish the words and instead looked down at Enya, his eyes began to shimmer on the verge of tears. --- Speech.