Laugh with the Sinners

Chapter 1

She pushed the front of her left heel into the damp dirt beneath her feet and lowered her upper half downwards in the slightest. She took a deep breath, sending a gush of chilled air into her lungs, and held it. Her eyes stayed trained on the man's legs, not that he noticed, watching for the smallest twitch of muscle to indicate which direction he planned on throwing himself. Goosebumps covered her exposed skin from the frosty Autumn air and she fought against a shiver, potentially from the adrenaline more than the cold. His left leg straightened within half a second and she ducked to the right, avoiding his attempt to tackle her. In a swift turn, she pushed his back towards the floor where his momentum assisted her in landing him atop the dirt. She had successfully pinned him, her knee sitting atop his back, his wrists held between her hands. He vibrated beneath her in a laugh.

"That was a pleasure to experience." He chuckled. She pushed herself off his back and helped in lifting him up. She winced at the bruise already forming under his eye, she really hadn't meant to hit him that hard.

"Sorry about that," She pointed towards his eye.

"No need love, battle bruises are the ultimate temporary tattoos," he laughed to himself and she couldn't help but crack a smile. The spectators that had originally been watching the brawl between her and the man had begun veering off to other fight circles in hopes of more entertainment to help pass time. On the way to the medical tent they passed the children's fight circles, luckily the children's hands were strapped in foam gloves to avoid bruising and hopefully keep the overprotective mother's complaints to a minimum. They giggled and ran around as the instructors attempted in teaching them proper stances and how to use the enemy's weakness, of course, some kids listened with the odd one crying. Just past the children's ground was the medical tent where the older wolves would fuss around the injured and recite soothing words as they popped joints back into place to assist in the healing or push ice packs to swollen soon-to-be bruises, even though it will heal within a day.

"What's your name kid?" The man spoke from beside her. She glanced over at him. He was of medium height, his short dark brown hair had gained greys over the years and his little brown eyes pressed for her answer.

"Lennon, and yours?" She asked. He smiled, the crow's feet that gathered around his eyes suited him, the way they would suit Santa or an elder man looking towards his wife.

"Calvin. How exotic, where did your parents come up with that?" He asked, they had reached the tent and he had turned to face her.

"Lyana found me on her way back from a book club where they were reading about the beetles, she took it as a sign." She replied, shrugging a shoulder. It didn't bother her that she had never met her parents, it was almost a common occurrence among werewolves to have lost loved ones, they weren't the most sustainable and peaceful breed.

"So you are a Night Wolf, I assume?" He asked, looking slightly too intrigued. The pack was made up of three main groups, the Alphas and their leadership group, the average wolves that would provide, live and thrive in the pack, and the Night Wolves which made the pack famous. Night Wolves included orphaned Lycans found around the packs that are sent in and then trained to become optimal fighters. They are then traded between packs in return for resources, information etc. To work as bodyguards, protectors, Warriors or to become of the leadership circle. Due to this trade, the pack remains in alliance with the majority of packs, well cared for due to the produce brought in, and well guarded by the remaining Night Wolves.

Before she could reply cheers sounded from behind them, turning around a fighter emerged from one of the circles. Arms in the air in triumph, around him spectators clapped and a few bothered to help the poor soul that laid coughing atop the soil.

"A great warrior that boys is, I watched his earlier fight. He pummelled a large middle age man within 3 minutes. Talk about talent. Do you know him?" Calvin asked. In the distance, the fighter glanced over and smirked before turning and receiving a towel from one of the coaches.

"Yeah, I know him." Before Calvin could respond, an elder lady scurried out from the tent towards him, muttering to him things like "Come, come we will get this cleaned up," and "Lord that wretched girl has given us another black eye to work with." She pulled at Calvin's arm, pulling him slowly up the stairs. Muttering "Let go of me woman!" He disappeared behind the curtains attached to the tent. She turned back towards the fight ground and rubbed the tense area between her shoulder and neck, glancing down at her mud-ridden clothes, she decided she needed a bath. She began walking back to her cabin, about a 15-minute walk from the fight circles.

The night wolves' cabins were on either side of a small dirt road just behind the fight circles, it's where they housed the elders who would determine the night wolves' fate, the night wolves themselves, and visitors such as visiting Alphas and potential trade makers. The pack house resided on the other side of the clearing next to the Sistene lake that had just begun to freeze over. There were only a few cabins that resided out of the clearing, the two eldest night wolves lived in the two that were merely 70 meters from one another and a 15-minute walk from the edge of the clearing. They were placed there because they kept the two strongest Night Wolves to protect the pack, they were not up for trade. The other two cabins included Lyana, an elder that practically raised the pups and Gordon who was the head perimeter runner, but they resided on the other side of Sistene lake.

15 minutes of cool breeze and damp forest flooring later, Lennon had finally reached her sanctuary surrounded by log walls and draped in soft rugs. It was as close to home as she had ever had and the countless knickknacks and fairy lights really put her at peace. She sidestepped the numerous pot plants and leafless vines that corroded the porch and dug for the key under the cat's mat. Though Brad was an inside cat, the mat allowed for a hidden place for the key to reside. Upon the click of the key was the delighted purr of Brad at her feet, head butting her ankles like the odd animal he was, his unruly long yet soft hair brushing against her legs. He looked incredibly fat due to his fur, but it was a great defense against the soon-to-be winter air, not that it really mattered since he never left the cabin. She placed the key in its original spot and sidestepped the puff known as Brad and into the kitchen. The cabin was freezing and Lennon's toes started to numb against the chilled hardwood floor, she stepped forward onto one of the countless rugs thrown around the place and then toward the fireplace at the other side of the cabin. The open space would take a good 30 minutes to heat up after she had started the fire, but a few heavy blankets and Brad would gladly keep her skin toasty in the meantime. Though the cold did not bother wolves as much as it would humans, it was still an unpleasant feeling and the lack of a wolf's winter coat in human form didn't help.

One full bath later and the fire was slowly starting to affect the larger logs and begin crackling. Lennon could almost feel the flames dance across her cheeks as she sighed. It had begun to get dark and she had lit most of the candles around the room. Most of the pack was void of electricity, other than the pack house which worked off of solar panels and generators, and the elder's cabins which also harbored the power of sunlight and gas. Fortunately the hot water and gas worked, allowing for limited amounts of steamy showers and heated meals. In many previous years, the pack area had just been an old house in the woods, then the Alpha had bought it and built the pack housing, using the old water system. The water and gas bills were unbelievably high and originally puzzled the contractors until pack members were hired in their place and kept quiet. Unfortunately, the electricity had stopped working and just never got fixed, because the Alpha wanted the smallest number of humans near pack grounds and no one was qualified to fix underground wires and such.

Lennon laid her tired back along with the old couch and snuggled into the blankets, Brad curled into her leg and she drifted off, glad it wasn't her running the perimeter on this cold Autumn night.