Mariyah tensed as the sound grew closer, staring into the thick area of the forest ahead of her. Dense brush hid the source of the noise as it continued to become louder.

But finally, a human emerged from the bushes.

It was a boy. A tall boy with almost wavy black hair that just covered his forehead, yet showed enough for her to see the gray tattoo. “Hello?” he called out in as gentle of a voice his deep tone could manage.

Her swollen and bloodshot eyes looked up at him, tinted with nerves and curiosity...Is that the Shifter boy from the market? He had a bow tucked around his shoulder, holding a quiver full of arrows in one of his hands. A small squirrel was hanging by the tail from the waistband of his black trousers’.

Mariyah looked him up and down, unsure. Mariyah's lips parted to speak but no words could come out. Her screams of agony had stolen her voice. All that he could hear from her was a raspy attempt at “hello”.

He held out his hands, palms facing her, to show he meant no harm. He looked at her ragged dress and dirty appearance. “What are you doing out here?” She looked much different than his bright and vibrant memory of her in the city.

She shook her head, knowing she couldn’t answer such a loaded question with the state her voice was in.

His eyes scanned the surrounding area, looking around and behind him every few moments. “Shouldn’t you head home?”

“I can’t,” she tried, but it wasn't audible. She shook her head again, closing her eyes for a brief second and exhaling sharply through her nose.

He noted her response to mentioning her home before looking around once more. He then returned his attention to her, noticing her trembling body and torn up knuckles. “Are you going to stay out here then? All night?”

She nodded.

“Are you headed somewhere?”

She hesitated, not knowing the answer to that question, and shook her head quickly, grunting at the frustration in the loss of her voice. Her eyes grew fuzzy as the longer she stood, the weaker she felt.

He sighed loudly and ran a hand through his hair, looking around through the trees. He looked up at the dimming sky and then back at her. “You’re out here alone? Is anyone looking for you?”

Again, she shook her head. Soliath surely thinks I’m far gone by now…and I will be soon. Somewhere far from this miserable kingdom. But she didn't fully believe that. She loved Seenparay. But she didn't love what it was doing to its people, and there was no place for her here. She stared up at him, waiting to see what he’d say.

He stayed silent for a few seconds, studying her carefully, before asking, “Do-” he cleared his throat, “Do you need somewhere to stay for the night?”

Mariyah looked around at what had become her temporary living space. Soil. And a pile of leaves. Oh, and an accessory of grief induced vomit somewhere not far from her sleeping area. But she couldn't intrude. She returned his gaze with a small smile and shook her head, clasping her hands together to say, “Thank you.”

But in her heavy and burdened yet wide eyes, the boy could see the true answer staring plainly back at him. “Are you sure?”

She looked at him blankly.

“Here,” he whispered gently. He held out his hand to her.

She looked at him for some time, then stared at the ground for a few moments before reaching out her hand and holding onto his, attempting to stand up. As she took her first step, her knees buckled under her and she fell onto the ground. Embarrassed, she attempted again.

He watched her, chewing on the inside of his cheek as he thought for a moment. He looked around him, again, before returning his attention to her. “I’m not going to hurt you. But it’d be easier if I shift. Alright?”

She nodded enthusiastically, showing him she wasn’t afraid.

He continued to bite the inside of his cheek as he stood there for a moment, as if battling whether or not this was a safe idea, until his body then morphed into a large black bear in front of her.

She swallowed her built up anxiety. Bear shifts are feared by most Naturals.

“Can you climb on?” he asked her.

On your back? she thought. After some hesitation, she winced as she held onto his fur and pulled herself onto his back. She positioned herself and held onto him tightly. “Thank you,” she finally forced out a whisper, just barely understandable.

He began into the trees and carried her through the forest for a long while. The deeper he took her, the greener the plant life began. She started seeing flowers and mushrooms along the path. Observing them on their walk gave her a small drop of peace for a short moment. Small, but that was enough.

It wasn’t until a few moments later that they arrived at his hut. “This is it,” he said as they arrived. It wasn’t much, just a few long sticks holding up a cloth for shelter with a makeshift bed underneath. A fire was lit to the side with pots scattered around and a large stone for a seat.

“You can lay there” he said to her, crouching down so she could climb off. He shifted into a human after she dismounted and pointed to a bed held up by short pieces of logs. She watched him with every movement and allowed him to help her to his bed. Why is he doing this? She pressed her hands into the bed as she sat down on it. It was made of animal pelts and stuffed with grass, but it was the first soft thing she'd sat on in a while.

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“Before you sleep, let me,” he said to her, crouching down under his shelter and rummaging around in a small chest.

She watched him with curiosity as he looked around through some sacks and jars until he found some sort of clear colored jelly. He put it to the side and then fetched a bowl of water with a ragged washcloth. “This will hurt a bit,” he said as he took one of her hands in his. He poured cold water over her dirty and battered fingers. His forehead scrunched as he saw the skin dangling off. “How did this happen?” he asked her, looking closely into her eyes

She opened her mouth to speak again but nothing but hoarse croaks came out. She was thankful for that. Oh, nothing too bad. I just decided to attack a tree, thank you for asking.

“It’s okay,” he said. He set her hand down on her lap and turned around, putting warm tea in a pot over the fire. “That should help when it’s warmed up,” he said to her. His eyes blanketed her as he observed her and then looked at her tired face. He studied her curiously, wondering what her story was while they waited for the tea.

When it was time, he took the pot and poured a cup of tea for her. “Here,” he said, handing her the cup.

She looked at the cup, before observing the scars that coated his knuckles as he handed it to her. She took it in her hands that were a bit less shaky now. After blowing gently on the steaming tea, she took one sip that was followed up by many more, having forgotten how thirsty and parched she really was. She cleared her throat and opened her mouth to speak. “Thank you,” she finally could get out, her voice quite a bit more clear this time. He could finally understand her. She let out a relieved sigh. “Thank you so much.”

He gave her a faint smile as he heard her soft voice, before holding out his hand. She looked at him confused, before she understood and placed her other hand in his. He began dabbing the dirt off gently with a washcloth. She flinched at the pain she felt when the cloth touched the open wounds on her knuckles.

“Oh- sorry.” His eyes continued to glance towards hers every few seconds, as if to make sure he was being gentle enough.

She swallowed nervously as she watched his fingers spread a clear jelly-like substance over her wounds. He then began to wrap her hand slowly. She took a deep breath. “You’re not in danger, just so you know.”

He looked up at her, questioningly.

She cleared her throat with a friendly smile, working on her voice. “I’m a Shifter. And there are no other Naturals around. It’s just me. I didn’t want you to be worried.”

He looked at her blank forehead, confused. “You’re not marked.”

“I wasn’t discovered at birth. I was a late Shifter, my parents hid it.”

His brow lifted, intrigued. “How could they have? The census documents that.”

“I didn’t shift in the first minutes, so, the midwife marked me as a Natural. When I did shift, my parents decided to keep it a secret. They wanted me to live a normal life.”

“Didn’t shift in the first minutes? I’ve never heard of that. And that worked?”

“Yes..well- it did. For seventeen years. And then I did something and ruined it all.” Her nostrils flared more as the burning sensation filled her sinuses. The tears would come soon if she continued.

“Someone found out?” He tore his eyes away from her and began on her other hand.

She pushed her hair behind her ear before beginning to explain. “I had made a friend out here in the forest. Oliver.” She looked up to the now orange sky as she spoke. “I spent most of my days with him and his village in secret, but my friends in the kingdom began to notice my disappearances.” She breathed out deeply. “I should have known better. One of them followed me with a guard. And they discovered us together.” She bit her lip to hold in her tears as she continued. “Oliver was killed. I shifted to protect him. The guard saw. But I didn’t kill the guard, I let him go. I didn't even really protect Oliver, I was too late, and I was stupid. By the time I made it home to my family, I wasn't fast enough. The guards knew.”

The boy stayed quiet for a long moment before responding, pausing the work on her hand. “And your parents?”

She nodded her head. “They hung them,” she whimpered halfway through the sentence as tears filled her eyes. She looked away in embarrassment at her failure to stay composed. She readjusted herself and nodded her head. “I fled to the forest where you found me. I haven’t gone anywhere since.”

He breathed out slowly, watching her tear filled eyes reflect the fire. “I’m sorry,” he said quietly.

She cleared her throat and blinked quickly, forcing away her emotions. “Thank you for helping me,” she whispered as she tried to change the topic.

He nodded his head. “Do you have any more family? Anyone else left?”

“No. It was just me and my parents. And my aunt, but she wanders.” She looked at him, remembering he wasn't alone when she saw him in the market. “Your sister isn’t here?”

He shook his head in return and his jaw tightened. “She’s gone.”

Her heart fell at the idea of him going through the pain that she did. She imagined his little sister starving or dying at the hand of a soldier and her stomach twisted. “I’m so sorry.”

He nodded his head as he continued to clean her hand, seeing her marking. She winced as he began trying to scrub it off, thinking it was some stain on her hand.

“That doesn’t come off,” she said with a faint smile.

“Hm?”

“It’s a birthmark.”

“Oh, sorry.” He studied its strange golden color carefully before adding the jelly and cloth around her knuckles. “That should help.”

“Thank you, again.” She resituated herself as she sat up a bit more. “Why are you helping me? You've been so kind.” She smiled faintly.

He shrugged his shoulders. “I remember you from the market. I was surprised to see you out here.”

She skimmed her fingers across the bandages. “Why don’t you stay with the others?”

“You mean a village?”

She nodded.

“I won’t stay in one of those again. You’re waiting to be slaughtered or starved living in those villages.” He put away his supplies and tossed down a few animal skins on the ground beside her bed. “I was part of one with my family. When they died, I left. I don’t plan on returning to one.”

“Ever?”

He sat down on his pelts. “I prefer it out here. I don’t know exactly where I am but it’s somewhere southeast of the kingdom. Far enough away that I can hunt and not get caught.”

She looked down at him beside her. “You’ve never gotten caught? You must be good at sneaking. I heard the king is strict about hunting in his forest.”

“The king is mad, not strict.” He shrugged and tapped his ear. “But no, I listen.”

She nodded her head and bit her lip. She found something interesting about him, but she didn’t know what it was. His kindness towards her gave her comfort, something that even the smallest amount meant the greatest to her during this time. She sighed and looked at the sky. “Thank you for what you’ve done,” she said quietly to him.

He watched her as she stared up at the sky. “It’s nothing,” he whispered. He turned around and stretched his body out onto the pelts. “Rest well.”

Mariyah leaned back, excited to find sleep again. But the moment her eyelids closed over her eyes, the blackness she saw was soon turned into the scene of her parents death. She gasped quietly and squeezed her thigh in pain as a sharp stab pushed into her heart.

The boy turned his head, hearing her gasp behind him, and watched her, barely able to see her from the fading light. All he could see were her trembling shoulders, and all he could hear were the sniffles and cries she thought were muffled by her hands.