Chapter Five: The Wolf Of Fear

The walk continued for miles through the deep and untamed wilderness of the woodlands. The trail had ended around six miles behind them, and Lysette wanted to continue forward, despite how harsh the terrain now was. Penny, despite not being happy with the conditions, continued forward in hopes that Lysette would calm down and come down from her uncalled - for rage.

No words had been spoken since Lysette's eyes changed back, and that gave them both nothing but time to think. But whilst Penny was concerned about her guardian's Mindset, Lysette was only concerned for the path ahead. She was determined to get them to a safe location. Even if they were far away from any town, they could get food. Lysette could hunt, she could gather, she knew how to survive and would pass on that knowledge to Penny.

After walking a while longer, they both stumble upon a small log cabin, resting on a small hill above a creek. No lights could be seen coming from within the cabin, which lead Lysette to believe the cabin to be an old Hunters cabin. It had either been abandoned or forgotten, as from what she could tell, Noone had been there for some time.

" There are no fresh tracks" Lysette pointed out as they approached the cabin. " And I'm not hearing any sounds coming from inside, I believe it's abandoned" Lysette added as she and Penny approached the old, hole ridden wooden front door of the cabin. After convincing herself that it would be okay, Lysette pushed open the door and saw nothing but a dark room before her. Some slight sunlight managed to shine through the windows but not enough to illuminate the entire room enough to be comfortable stepping inside.

" Do you think it could he trapped? " Penny asks, finally building the courage to speak to Lysette who did not offer her a response. Instead, after looking down and noticing a small rock near her foot on the ground, Lysette picked up the rock and tossed the small rock inside the cabin, and heard the small knock as it collided with the floor. Without another word, Lysette took a deep breath before stepping inside and searching for any light sources.

" Did you not pack a flashlight? " Penny asked, trying her best to use the most respectful tone she could possibly muster. Though Lysette again did not respond. Instead, after scavenging around for a little, the old wolf had managed to find a small lantern and after a few minutes, was happy to see a small glow emitting from it. The light still did not deliver enough competition against the darkness but it was better than nothing.

" I am sorry " Lysette finally spoke after sitting the lantern on the table. Penny crossed her arms as she stepped into the darkness of the cabin and kept her distance from Lysette.

" I'm sorry too..I didn't mean to upset you" Penny apologized as Lysette approached her. " I'm just stressed and I'm tired, I didn't mean to take it out on you. You did not deserve my temper" Lysette seemed to possess genuine regret in her voice but something still didn't sit right with Penny. This time was different, and something was off about her guardian. And for the time being, Penny had decided it would be best to remain cautious.

" I know I said we should go into the towns but, if we did that, we run the risk of more confrontation than we need. I decided without telling you and that was not right. But either way, we are here now. And I believe she should continue further up the mountain after resting here for a few days. We don't know who owns this cabin and whilst it is abandoned, they could return at any time" Lysette explained her logic and Penny agreed with it to prevent confrontation. " Well I guess we should see if we can stumble across a bed or something" Penny sighed as she began trying to feel her way around the cabin, running into walls and stumbling over misplaced furniture. After a falling down a few times, Penny finally managed to find a door knob and once she turned the knob, opening what she hoped was a door, she was presented with a small room with a small bed. Being as careful as she could by holding herself against the walls of the room, Penny began searching for another lantern, hoping to find one but having no success.

" Dammit" Penny complained. " This is ridiculous"

" Do you need the lantern? " Lysette called out to which Penny denied. " It's kind of late for that. I think I am just going to try and lay down, maybe in the morning we will be able to see what we are doing" Penny hoped. After stumbling to the bed, Penny layed down on what felt like a rock slab. The bed was far too stiff for her to find any shape or form of comfortability, but she would have to make the best of this situation.

It wasn't too long after laying down, that Penny heard the stumbling and bumbling outside of the room. Lysette obviously was trying to find herself a bed as well and after a few more crashing noises, a silence fell upon the cabin. " Goodnight" Lysette called out and Penny offered the same well wishes.

The night was going to be a long one, but at least they were safe for the time being.

No matter how hard she tried, Penny couldn't remove the thought of Lysettes anger from earlier. The eyes didn't belong to the woman who had practically raised her, and that was concerning. Something was wrong but Penny was not quite sure what to do about it. If Lysette's mentality was wavering or deteriorating, then that could only spell nothing but trouble for the both of them. Pressure had been something that Lysette was not a stranger too but she always managed to keep her composure as far as Penny knew. So what had changed? What was different about this time?There did not seem to be any clear answers at the moment. And though she had apologized, it didn't change what had happened. In that moment, the look in her eyes, Lysette wanted to harm Penny. She wanted to destroy her, or at least that is the way it seemed. And why did the eyes change colors to begin with? Penny was left with nothing but questions that she knew she couldn't answer at the moment. But that answer might need to come soon, as Lysette could snap at any moment.