The basement was a frozen cave, the door a flimsy barrier against the biting wind. The cold reached my bones, making me tremble. My skin itched.
Wrapped in a tattered quilt, my wolf felt the urge to cry. Tears slowly made their way down my face, snort following soon after as a cried for a while.
But I soon stopped.
It was hard to keep warm and I was getting thirsty.
My mouth felt dry and I was suddenly desperate for any kind of water. But when I thought of going upstairs to get water, I feared that my uncle would catch me and I would be thrown out.
I heard the rain falling outside, so I stepped out.
There, one spotted dirty water leaking from the drains. A stray cat was lapping it up. Watching the cat drink, my thirst got worse. I immediately knelt and joined the cat.
Who cared about dignity. I could not afford to care about dignity. Survival was all that was on my mind.
The water was cold, but it quenched my thirst. So, I stood up and wiped my mouth. But the moment I looked up, I found myself facing my brother.
There was a trace of disgust on his face.
My body trembled slightly, and I instinctively tried to run away.
"Come on, let's go to our den for family dinner," he said and I froze in my steps.
I turned to find that he had stepped towards me, so I backed away, afraid he would be disgusted by me. But he instantly grabbed my arm.
"I said come!" He dragged me to the car.
I felt uneasy as I entered the car. I was not sure why they wanted me back.
The drive there was silent.
When we arrived at their new den, I was met with a tidy two-story den with a small courtyard.
It was so different from the life I lived. They were living comfortably, while I could not even find water to drink.
I lingered at the door. Discomfort filled my wolf. I felt like an outsider. Maybe it was because I was.
Inside, I could hear laughter and joy, a warmth that filled the air, completely different from the cold that tore through my bones.
My parents covered my sister in praises, yet I could not even enter the door of the den.
When my sister asked where I was, the room fell silent.
"She burnt down our den and still has the guts to come back?" My father asked.
"Let her come for dinner, and then we'll scold her properly," my mother answered coldly.
My brother stood beside me, expressionless.
I stared at my brother, in disbelief.
"You were there... You saw it. It wasn't me, she was the one who...," I immediately stared saying but he cut me off with a sharp
"Shut up!" His voice startled me, and I shrank back.
Being shouted at was normal and I had become sensitive to loud sound. His loud growl made my wolf tremble, so I stepped back in fear.
"I'm sorry," I muttered.
My brother's expression turned even colder.
"Can't we just have one peaceful Full Moon Day? Does it really matter who caused the fire?" He said with a sneer.
His words stung my wolf. It seemed that it did not matter as long as I was the one who was hurt.
He was clearly warning me to watch my words. He did not want to get my sister in trouble.
I touched my bony arms and nodded. "I won't say anything," I promised.
Hearing my words, his expression softened slightly.
"Come inside and eat. Mom and Dad asked me to pick you up."
I looked down and shook my head.
"Can you give me some money? I need to buy herbs." His face froze, his eyes filled with loathing.
"Do you even have a heart? You finally come back to our den, and all you do is ask for money?" He threw some money at me like trash.
I didn't react, just knelt down and picked up the money.
He clenched his fists, furious.
"Pathetic. I'm humiliating you, and you still won't fight back?" He sneered.
The old me would have fought back, screamed at him, and thrown punches.
But this time, I stayed silent.
Suddenly, the wound on my back hurt like hell. The pain resonated into my wolf. I recalled I had just walked out into the rain and drank some dirty water.
My wound probably hurt from getting wet, since it had not fully healed.
"Can I have some herbal tea... please...since I felt too weak" I said as I tilted slightly, eyes filling with tears.
My brother chuckled, a look of triumph flickering on his face.
He didn't say a word, just turned around and walked to the door.
He slammed it shut behind him, shouting, "She didn't want to come in! We tried!"
The pain got so bad that my vision went dark. I tilted and collapsed to the floor.
As I fell, for a moment, I thought I saw panic flash across their faces..
