In the heart of the storm (Open)

[Krisian Temak]

The sun is rising. My time is running out. I need to hunt now. Lifting my head, I sniff the air to find my next meal. There is a scent. A sweet scent. The scent of a fox just south of my den. I run swiftly in the direction of the scent, stopping and sniffing the air and ground occasionally to see if my breakfast has moved. At this point, I can practically taste my morning meal. I slow my stride down to a walk and move through a few trees where I see my prey. Good. It hasn't caught on yet. I slowly start to stalk, moving closer and closer until I'm only a few yards away. I lunge into the air and attempt to come down on the fox to pin it. The fox turns and starts to run. To little, to late. My paw comes down full force on the foxes tail and now it's time to eat. I take my other paw and swipe the foxes head to knock it over. Leaning over the fox with my paw on its chest now, I whisper, I am thankful for you to provide substance for me this morning. I lean farther down and place my jaw around its neck. In one fell swoop, I sink my teeth in and rip through it's neck killing it instantly.

After swallowing the delicious neck of the fox, I can see a storm coming in. Great. Another blizzard. Taking the rest of the fox into my mouth, I run back towards my den quickly. I can't afford to lose this meal. The blizzard is drawing closer and snow slowly starts to drift down on top of me. The wind starts howling through the trees around me.

I finally reach my den and run inside. Placing the fox on the ground, I lay down next to it and begin ripping pieces of it and eating. I haven't eaten in twelve hours and even though it's a small fox, it does the trick. After eating every piece of meat off the bones, I decide I need to watch the snowfall.

A bright light begins swirling over my body. My hind legs and paws elongate into my legs and feet. My front legs and paws elongate slightly into my arms and hands. My snout shorts as my body lengthens. In a matter or seconds, I'm standing in my den, completely naked. A human being. Turning around to my makeshift bed made out of leaves, grass and dirt, I find my clothes and put them on. Although I has been alive for two years and shifting should be just another day in the park, I still love the way it feels.

I briskly put my clothes on and I take my brush to my hair to get rid of this frizzy mess. After a few moments of brushing, I throw the brush onto the bed and walk to my boots. Placing them on my feet and zipping them up, I instantly feel warmer. The inside of my boots are made with fox fur that my father had made for me before he died. I place the my mothers wedding ring on my finger and walk towards the entrance to my den. The snow is coming down harder now and it's almost a full blizzard.
I love the snow