1 Got Caught!

Gretta covered her lips with both hands from behind a pine tree twice the size of her body. Her heart was racing erratically, and she was attempting to hold her breath so as not to be heard by the creature she was secretly admiring.

She kept telling herself, 'This is only a dream, this is only a dream,' but when she moved her head back towards the front, the creature was still standing there.

Her body shivered once more as the massive thing ripped open the person beneath it. Gretta desperately wanted to leave that spot, but her legs appeared to freeze and she couldn't stand up.

She tried to make her legs move because she didn't want her body to take the place of someone there to tear to bits.

Unfortunately, when she attempted to take a step back, her foot tripped on a dry branch, making a terrible sound. She had earlier slipped back to hide behind the tree.

Gretta could feel her heart racing and wished she could get out of there. At the same time, her ears picked up on the sound of footfall approaching the tree. She clinched her fists and swallowed forcefully.

"What are you up to?" Gretta was shocked by a deep, ominous voice. When she turned around, the creature's face was right next to her. Gretta could feel the creature's breath on her shoulder from this close.

Gretta's eyes welled up with tears, and she felt as if she were about to cry. Her body froze, unable to move an inch till the thing moved gently.

The creature stared in disbelief as it stood directly in front of Gretta. The creature's body was twice as large as hers, and it was completely covered in thick black fur.

His green sharp eyes pressed up against Gretta's. Gretta was already trembling as he watched.

"Elisabeth," the creature said.

Gretta had no idea what the furry creature meant. She tried to open her mouth, but her fear was stronger than her curiosity.

With a hand covered in long, sharp claws, the furry creature was about to touch Gretta's face. Gretta was panicking and screaming even before it touched her cheek.

"Akkhhhh!" she yelled with all her might before he passed out.

Because of Gretta's scream, the creature covered its ears and looked at the girl who was already lying on the ground.

"Gret!" The call came in from the east.

A single shot hit the creature's left back shoulder as he was about to turn towards the source of the sound. He winced, clutching his shoulder.

The gunfire had not yet stopped, and bullet after bullet struck the creature and Gretta. He became enraged and picked up a large branch, hurling it at the human who had shot him.

The throw struck the man, causing him to fall and be crushed by a branch.

The creature heard the boisterous sound of footsteps and, feeling unsafe in the area, he drew Gretta into his arms and fled.

*

Gretta slowly opened her eyes. Her head felt dizzy, as if she had collided with something. When she saw the sky covered in thick leaves from the trees, she was taken aback.

"Where is this?" she muttered as she struggled to get out of her sleeping position.

"Are you... awake?" Gretta was startled by the voice of a man sitting across from her.

Gretta stared blankly at the person in front of her because her brain wasn't fully functioning yet. She was still attempting to recover her memories.

"W-who are you?" She inquired as she remembered the dimness of the large, furry creature she had encountered before passing out.

Gretta was already asking him again before he could finish his sentence.

"What brings me here? What happened to the furry thing?"

"A feathered creature... Do you mean, me?"

"No way. A large black creature with green eyes and thick hair. He almost ate me earlier; where did he go?" Gretta described the creature's characteristics using hand gestures.

"Yeah, that's me," the man said slowly.

Gretta mistook the man's seriousness for a joke. She laughed because she thought it was funny.

"No, I mean you're just an ordinary human, though you might be a little hairy. But, I mean, he's a monster, not a regular human-"

"That is, indeed, me." Gretta's words were cut off by the man. He tried to be truthful despite the girl's disbelief.

Gretta tried to explain again, but when she looked back at the man, he was no longer the same. His eyeballs turned green, and his voice became heavy and terrifying, just like the voices of the creatures Gretta had encountered.

"It was really me," the man said, his voice hoarse and deep.

The girl recoiled in surprise, standing with her mouth open and taking a few steps back. She almost fell because she tripped over a rock, but she was saved by the tree behind her.

"I'm not a monster, and I'm not going to hurt you." The man attempted to reassure Gretta.

Gretta didn't believe he was going to hurt her. If the man had been the furry creature Gretta had met earlier, she would have seen happen first hand how it tore a person apart.

Gretta grabbed whatever was nearby and threw the man with all her strength.

"Do not get too close!" She gave the order while holding a stick. The man continued to approach until Gretta threw him again.

Gretta's final throw grazed the man's gunshot wound in the back, causing him to wince. He was unaware of his injury and turned his body to the left, allowing the wood to strike the back of his right shoulder.

"It's up to you whether you believe me; if you don't, I won't come near you again." The man took a slow step back. "However, please allow me to treat my wound," he continued.

Gretta stopped her actions. Gretta remained where she was when the man returned to his original seat and placed the crushed leaf on his shoulder.

She couldn't stand it the few times she saw the man's expression of pain, but she was also afraid to approach. Worried that the man was a monster who devoured her.

"Don't you get tired of standing there?"

Gretta powerfully shook her head.

"Hey, I'm not going to hurt you. I brought you here because a hunter was shooting at me and you could get hurt if I left." The man was still attempting to explain Gretta's misunderstanding. He also dislikes being charged with a crime he did not commit.

"How can I believe? You ripped someone apart right in front of my eyes!" Gretta made a comment.

"Even caterpillars will bite if disturbed; should I be quiet when that damn hunter is about to kill me?" The man muttered without looking at Gretta. He concentrated on the injury on his shoulder.

Gretta began to believe him after hearing that, but she refused to come any closer.

However, the man's groan bothered her. He was still trying to stick the herb leaves into the wound, but the potion had not yet reached his wound, so he grimaced.

Was it true that the man was the same as the furry creature earlier, as Gretta became skeptical?

"W-wait," Gretta interrupted the man's action. "I'll assist you in trying to close the wound, but don't eat... me." Gretta was deeply disturbed by the man's actions.

The man agreed with a nod. He's also not a vampire-like creature that eats humans; instead, he's a werewolf who consumes food in the same way that humans do. He eats raw meat on occasion, but only non-human animal flesh. The breed does not prey on humans.

Gretta double-checked her safety before approaching him. She finally agreed to help him after a series of convincing sentences from the man.

"Please put it slowly," the man begged.

Gretta was sticking it very carefully, but either she was overdoing it or the wound was excruciatingly painful. He couldn't stop grinning and ranting about Gretta being rude.

Fortunately, Gretta was patient enough; however, she occasionally purposefully pressed the wound, causing the man to be surprised.

"Your name is Gretta?" inquired the man. "Earlier, I heard some people calling that name."

Gretta confirmed the gentleman's inquiry. Her opinion of the man began to shift slightly; perhaps he was a good person, and the person he tore apart was the evil hunter who attacked him. Although it cannot be justified, at least Gretta is not mistreated by that man.

Actually, the girl was curious about why the man took her; he heard Gretta's family calling her name, but instead took her rather than leaving her.

Gretta laughed at the man's response. He realized it was Gretta's family when they took the girl away, rather than another hunter who would catch him with Gretta.

"And what is your name?" Gretta inquired.

"Ahk, Leon!" Leon faced Gretta, his fingers open to show his claws.

Gretta sat, her hands forming a bulwark over her head. She held a cloth scarf in her hand, intending to wrap it around Leon's wound. Leon is taken aback when he feels leaves that aren't smooth get stuck in his wound.

Gretta's eyes welled up with tears, and he knew she was about to cry.

"I'm sorry," Leon said, grabbing Gretta's scarf and helping her to his feet. "I'll do it myself," he added.

Gretta and Leon sat silently across from each other. Leon was preoccupied with bandaging his wound, while Gretta struggled with her fear. Her gaze was drawn to the surrounding forest, which was not unfamiliar to her.

Gretta was certain she was in the Rhone Valley after seeing the path of the growing trees. Valais is a valley surrounded by the Alps. Follow the valley straight to the east and upstream until you reach Vercorin, where Gretta lives.