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The Wolf and the Butterfly
Ch. 1
Pg. 1
Intro

______"That way! Hurry! We're onto him, boys!" The gruff voice boomed out at the edge of the Kosher woodlands, almot shaking the ripe green leaves from their branches. A gunshot cracked immediately after the voice faded, sending its bone-chilling echo resonating from every solid object amidst the forest, and releasing a horde of the wolf's worst possible enemy--hunting dogs--hot on the trail. The hunt was really on now.
______The dogs bayed, barked, and yapped, lost in a total frenzy to be the first one with a score on the target. Although the dogs were agile, it would be a few moments before they had made their rounds sniffing out the area and fallen into their line with the fasted an most skilled hunters at its lead. Noses sniffed and snorted while frantic claws scratched the dirt. A dark red pointer, who had ventured deeper into the territory than had most, stopped suddenly to gaze back into the darkness of the looming vegitation. A pair of shifty golden eyes watched from a distance, brimming with cautiousness and blunt dispise. The dark red pointer needed no further bidding. He let out a bay to shake the sky, happily accepting the challenge, and broke quickly away from the fray.
______The eyes dissapeared into the shadows, but the dog now had a firm lock on the trail. Its long, narrow tail flung exitedly back and forth, striking at its sides as it ran headlong into an unseen world. It was a confident hound, but the creature it sought was far from foolish.
______The hunted's paws were thick and swift, and the hunted himself was young and strong. His tall dark ears twitched nervously, following the movements of the hunters who seemed to be gaining a slight ground. His breaths were strained. The summer air was unusually dense for so early in the season. It was humid, and felt almost as thick as hot syrup. To add to the situation, his fur had only now begun to shed, so it was heavy on his burly body. He felt a drop of wearyness fall from his tounge, but he felt determination pulsing through his veins. Behind him, he once again heard the bay of the leading dog. It was almost ringing in his ear. ______Restiveness began to take hold on him. His heartbeat quickened, and his feet were moving at an almost uncontrollable pace, but he had been running for a time now, and he was beginning to grow weak. The scar on his left forelimb ached fiercely, causing him to scarper with a slight limp. The dog's call seemed to bounce from all of the trees around him, richocheting in his head until the sound was nearly unbearable. He made a final jump to get ahead, but was suddenly drug to his stomach, letting out a cringing yelp as the fangs dug into his haunches.

______The man with the booming voice had stumbled around chasing after his pack hounds. His plump round belly and face showed his increasing age, along with the gray hairs that accented his head and chin. His rugged old red denim outershirt was laden with holes and other various signs of the hard life the garment had suffered.
______"All right, Jesper! Whatcha found ol' boy? Come on, did yuh get 'im?" the man called in a cheery tone.
______He trotted up to the scene as quickly as his paunchy legs could carry him. The dark red pointer stood growling ferociously at what it had cornered, joined by several of the other dogs who had caught up. They all watched nervously, their fur standing on edge as they paced. The old man with the booming voice pushed his way to the front of where the dogs had gathered, shotgun loaded and ready, aimed straight ahead to the cornered victim.
______"Hehe, got you now you blasted--" the man stopped mid-sentance, lowering his firearm slowly. His face was covered with a look of plain surprise, for what he saw sitting before him was not at all the wolf he had seen before. Nor was it the wolf he had been hunting for the last three days, or the wolf he was positive his dogs would, could, and had found. What he saw sitting before him was nothing more than a badly dressed teenage boy.
______The man cocked his head slowly to one side, sneering slightly, "What the--where the heck did you come from, boy? You look like you've been lost in the woods for days."
______The boy did indeed seem a bit rugged. His leather jacket and plain white tee shirt were covered with holes, dirt, and blood stains. The right leg of his jeans had been torn all the way at the knee and now only hung there by a few strong threads. It was a strange sight for the old man, to say the least. The boy's scruffy dark gray hair was almost back, and looked as if it hadn't been washed or even combed for about a week, give or take a couple of days for circumstance.
______"What are you doin' out here boy? This here's private land. You're 'a tresspassin' I'll have yuh know."
______The boy just let his head loll over on his shoulder, his golden eyes showing his exhaustion, "I was just roamin' mister. I think I saw a wolf come this way."