Jill allowed me to leave the safety of the house after I finished eating some of the food that she had cooked for me so that I could go explore the community and everything that it had to offer, and I breathed a small sigh of relief with my shoulders sagging as if the weight of the world was lifted from them.

Oh, thank Gods...

I folded my arms across my chest and tucked my head closer to my chest, and my feet started to lead me to the woods, even though I had no idea why I was going that way or wanted to go that way.

Maybe there was something interesting or important that I needed to see...

I bit back an annoyed scoff and rolled my eyes, pursing my lips into a thin line. Or maybe it is because I wanted to just be alone and not have to deal with anyone else. I folded my arms tighter across my chest and grabbed my sides tighter together. I didn't say a word and bit the inside of my lip, slowly blinking while I looked around, trying to find anything interesting or exciting that would be there.

Maybe I could find and make some new Werewolf friends...

My heart skipped a beat when I thought that, and a small shiver of excitement went down my spine. I picked my pace just a tad and entered the woods where I hoped that someone, or something, was waiting for me just at the edge of them.

But nothing was there...

And unfortunately, there wasn't anyone, or anything, there...

My heart ached and became filled with sadness while I looked around before I took another hesitant step into the forest. I didn't say a word and bit the inside of my lip while I continued to look around, silently wondering if there would be other Werewolves in these woods but deeper into them than I had been so far.

Maybe I wouldn't be stopped, I thought while I bit the inside of my lip and continued to walk further and further into the woods, making a mental note of where I had gone and what path I should take to get back home again.

Home...

My heart skipped a beat before it started to pound faster and harder in my chest, and I couldn't help but grin while I shook my head when that thought crossed my mind.

Oh Gods, I have a home now...

Hope bubbled its way into my chest, no matter how hard I tried to dampen it, and I couldn't help but get more excited about having a place to call my own, something that I had been yearning for for years, even if it meant that I had to be away from my group and the family I had made along the way.

The happiness in my steps stopped as soon as thought crossed my mind, and I couldn't help but let out a tired sigh while my heart twinged with guilt, sadness, and pain.

Oh Gods, please keep them safe...

I yearned to be by their side again just as much as I yearned to have a place of my own, and I couldn't help but silently pray that they would find an actual family beside the one that we found ourselves in for so many years without anyone to help us.

I bit back a tired sigh and tucked my head closer to my chest, biting the inside of my lip. I continued to walk down the path that I was following, not knowing where I was going and wondering what I would see.

Maybe I could see if there were other Werewolves...

My heart skipped a beat before it started to pound hard and fast in my chest, and a shiver went down my spine. Excitement and nervousness filled my body, and I looked this way and that, trying to see if I would be able to see any Werewolves out and about.

I didn't try to get off this path that I found myself on, and I couldn't help but wonder if I would be ok if I did step off of this path because as Jason said, I was a part of this family now, even if they had never met me...

I took a deep breath and released it with a small whoosh, and my heart ached and became filled with pain and sadness because I knew that it wouldn't be a good idea for me to step off of the path just yet.

Something stirred to my left, and I stopped and turned that way to see that nothing was there. However, that didn't stop my body from growing tense because I could feel that something, or someone, was watching me.

Oh Gods, protect me.

My whole body grew further tense, and I looked this way and that, even though I wasn't able to see who was there. "Hello?" I asked, my voice barely above a whisper before I cleared my throat and shifted on my feet. "Hello? Is someone there?"

Silence...

I bit back a small gulp and hesitated before I bit back a tired sigh and shook my head, moving a hand through my hair and across my face.

I decided that I wasn't going to push the creature to show me itself when it didn't want to show itself to me. "Ok, then," I said and started to walk the way that I was going with the thing that was watching me go that way. "Be that way."

The thing in the trees started to follow me, but for some reason, I was not afraid of it. It kept watching me from the trees, and I couldn't help but wonder if it would appear as soon as there was a place for it to appear.

I bit back a tired sigh and moved a hand through my hair and across my face while I rubbed the bridge of my nose. I cleared my throat and licked my lips, silently praying that the creature would appear when it was safe so that I could see it.

Could it be a friend..?

Or was it a foe?

I stopped again and turned to look toward the area that the creature was at, and the creature stopped as well. I scowled and narrowed my eyes, folding my arms across my chest and stared at the area where the creature was located. "Are you a friend or a foe?" I asked and raised an eyebrow in question while I "studied" it. "Or are you just there?"

The creature didn't move toward me and didn't leave the safety of the trees. It didn't say that it was a friend or a foe, and I couldn't help but sigh and shake my head while I rubbed the bridge of my nose and pursed my lips in annoyance.

"Whatever," I said before I cleared my throat and shifted on my feet. "Are you going to keep an eye on me while I walk around the area?" I asked and raised an eyebrow in question. "Or are you going to stay in one spot?"

Again, the creature didn't move and didn't even seem to blink, and I bit back a tired sigh and shook my head, pursing my lips further in annoyance.

"Ok," I said and cleared my throat while I shifted on my feet, getting a little unnerved by this thing that was silently watching me. "Just... don't hurt me, please? Or at least give me some sort of sign before you do because I am not in the mood to fight someone or something right now. I just got here, and I don't want to be sent away again."

Because I have no idea where I would be going after this...

The creature seemed to chuckle and slowly nod, silently indicating that it wasn't in the mood to attack me or get into a fight, and I couldn't help but breathe a small sigh of relief while I slowly nodded.

Oh, thank Gods...

"Ok, then let's go."

And with that, and without another word, we started to explore the woods together...