Back to square one

"You sure? I'd say slightly on the left. I've been hunting for two decades, I know my stuff, kid." Reggy had few strands of white hair and a grey beard. His beer belly shown his love for life and his frown indicated his frustration.

"Yes." Oswald nodded.

His headache started. The more he focused on the traces, the more he felt it. His eyes scanned the whole area and, because he was leading the group, none of them saw his enlarged irises and constricted pupils, nothing was natural about his glare. He stopped after fifteen minutes walking straight. A clearing, hundreds of meters large, gave access to the rocky part of the mountain.

There was no cave to be seen, but it was where their presence was the most omnipresent.

"I lost them." He said, when the sun hit his eyes, the headache intensified and he lost his focus. Everything was back to normal on his face.

His teammates were more than happy to find the plain, it meant they had way more chances to find the wolves with someone as good as Oswald. They were certain of it because they found new traces, all going left and right, impossible to tell where they were going, only that they came back more than once.

"What are we supposed to do if we find all of them at once?" He asked.

Reggy laughed. "War? Four against eight? Hah! What do you think? They are animals, if the enemy can't defend itself, then they'll run away! Worst case scenario we focus on Tom, he's the youngest of the group, he'll be the target."

Tom gulped down his saliva.

Suddenly, they heard noises coming from a bush, few steps away from them. They all wielded their weapon, ready to use. The little bit of feathers that escaped the bush was shot dead, it was a couple of partridges.

"We should head back home." Said Tom, the young boy was tired and not ready to find out if Reggy was right.

He saw, for a second, two beastly eyes staring at him.

"This way, straight ahead." Said Oswald, avoiding the headache by not using his enhanced sight more than necessary.

"Eh?" Said Tom before scratching his eyes. He could've sworn he saw something weird, yet he refrained from saying something stupid to not look ridiculous.

On their way back, they saw a boar family from afar, because the trees were too large to shoot properly, no arrow was shot. Oswald ran after them, it was his first occasion to kill a big animal. He lost his group in seconds. He came back two minutes later with an adult one, his knife sunk into its brain.

Adelmo commented on Oswald way of hunting. "I must say it's remarkably more effective than an arrow. But your weakness is your range. The farther you'll throw, the lesser it'll have strength."

Tom was impressed. He never saw a boar die this way. Its eye stuck out, the poor animal had no time to suffer. Its fifty kilos were dragged in the snow, it left behind a blood trail. Though it wasn't too heavy for him, Oswald asked Reggy. "Mind to drag it with me?" And all of them went back to the butcher's shop.

Once bled, the boar was skinned by the butcher-apprentice duo, under Adelmo's gaze. Oswald had a small bundle of meat, packed with ice to bring back home and its skin as well.

Simon was given work and Oswald came back to his house before night

He installed lumps of fat on his rooftop for the crows to feast.

From his window, he stared at the beautiful moon.

'Soon, very soon, it'll be full. It'll be the most perfect circle of all time.' He thought, he couldn't help but stare at it for hours. His mother was worried about his fascination because he slept less, but because she had a wonderful meaty dinner and also because he seemed in high spirit, she let go of the matter.

In her belly, Meryl felt the baby moving, its activity became more important every week, it pained her to be kicked high in her abdomen or near her bladder.

Next day, early in the morning, Oswald precipitated in the kitchen, his thoughts revoluted around eating. His stomach grumbled and his stomach ached until he had a proper breakfast. Thankfully, Cluck had a regular laying and the little chicken managed to smother the pain.

During the day, Oswald rejected the hunters and stayed next to his mother, her fever never ended in the first place, she needed an escort to go to the toilet. Her nose was blocked and because she had a high body temperature, she had no more energy to work.

Snow fell, it was hard to see the barn from the house's entrance. Impossible to see the mountains around them. The white hell that surrounded the house pressed on the roof, made the wood creak. The freezing wind whistled on the whole structure and entered every crevices it offered.

The boy did his best to make lunch and dinner, but every vegetable ended up burnt.

Under her bedsheets and pelts, she shivered. Meryl's lips were dry, her skin too, the lack of nurturing affected her thoughts. "I thought I could make it". She muttered. The lonely speech was caught by Oswald's sensitive ear.

"Mother, you are more than okay, nothing can happen to you, don't waste your saliva and rest."

"I can't... can't-!" Meryl's voice went from a whisper to a high pitched scream, she started to give birth. Her eight-month pregnancy came to an end earlier because of her fragile health. Her hopes of making another child were thin, but she wanted to give herself every chances she could.

'Not again! Not now!' Oswald thought. Stress came from all direction for him. He wanted to calm down but the resounding voice of his pained mother shook his bones and her life-threatening state too. But the worst part was, that because of the snowstorm, he couldn't admire the moon for a second.

Someone banged on the door. Oswald's nose started to bleed. He repeatedly hit his head until he reached the entrance to stay with his precious mother, he was careful enough to not slip on his blood.

He called, hoping the best. "Father?" Or the worst.

When he opened the door, he saw someone he wasn't expecting. His head was about to explode.

"Hey Ozzy, how's your free trial going?" Asked Stan with a wolfish smile.