The atmosphere in the woods became almost ominous the further we walked. The voices of the hunters dropped significantly, and a quick look around showed that they were all staring ahead, not particularly at anything, with intense expressions of concentration, which only grew when we came to a halt.

The stock-still bodies of the lycans didn't sway in the strength of the wind like mine almost did, and I could see some of the hunters' fingers twitching, as if resisting an urge.

By then, unease had unfurled in my chest. I glanced at Athena, and immediately she placed a finger against her lips, the color of her eyes which usually mirrored her son's glazed over, an almost wet look in them. Alarmed, I looked at Hannes, however, he was the picture of calmness.

His arms were folded across his wide chest, warm eyes almost languidly looking around us before settling on me. Immediately, he straightened from where he'd been propped against the tree, becoming concerned at my expression, but the abrupt noises of two of the hunters dashing away into the woods startled me and I whipped around to follow them with my eyes.

Said eyes widened in shock and disbelief as I saw a female and male hunter weave between trees, moving towards something that I could not see. I began to walk forward, wanting to get a better view.

Jeremiah came to my side almost immediately, his hand resting on my shoulder just as I saw the male hunter leap forward, claws extended, and hurl what appeared to be a brown deer into the snow.

The female lycan flanked his side momentarily and I watched as she sank her own claws into the deer's body, ignoring the cries from the animal, only stopping when her claws were embedded deeply into it. I winced as she twisted her arm, and the noises emitting from the animal cut off sharply. Bones cracked and I watched as the male hunter withdrew what looked to be a large sack.

I felt Hannes before I saw him, and noticed the way Jeremiah slipped away from beside me as Hannes took his place. My attention returned to the hunters gathering the now dead deer in their arms, hands drifting over the animal's fur as if in awe or almost in a satisfactory way, before dumping it into the sack.

"Breathe," Hannes rested a hand against my back as he spoke, and when I looked at him, the reassuring smile which had been playing on his lips faltered. He pulled me closer to him, his voice low as he murmured into my ear, "You can always return back home. I'll have Willow walk with you if that's what you'd desire."

I shook my head firmly. "That won't be needed," I turned back to stare at the sack that the female hunter now held; the bottom of it was beginning to drip with blood. "I was just surprised."

I became more so when the lycan made a bee-line straight for me, her smile almost infectious and obvious excitement nearly heart-warming. She couldn't be a few years younger than myself.

"Look, Luna." She pushed the sack forward towards me, bloodied hands peeling the top open so that I could see inside. "Isn't it a beauty?"

I immediately noticed the opened blank dark eyes of the deer, and the way it's body had been broken so it could fit into the sack. I took a small step backwards when a strong smell began to tickle my nostrils and forced a smile.

The woman turned to Athena who'd been ambling her way over. The hunters had resumed walking again whilst the Elder enthusiastically praised the female for the catch, and I hurried to go along with the rest of the hunters, knowing that Hannes would be close by.

"Was that too gruesome for you, Olivia?" Athena asked suddenly. Genuine concern leaked into her voice, and she reached an arm out to hold my wrist, slowing my pace.

When I shook my head, she nodded, satisfied. "Okay, good. Our ways of hunting may startle you, or be a bit vicious in your view, but it's the way we do it here in Wildeland."

"It's fine." I muttered, watching as a hunter darted forward abruptly, no doubt catching sight of prey. I'd obviously expected to see animals being killed when I agreed to join them on the hunt, so what I'd witnessed hadn't been entirely unexpected.

"This is for you, Olivia." Athena withdrew a dagger after taking off her gloves and shoving them into her pocket. I looked between her and the weapon, confused, and then weighed the dagger in my hands when she gave it to me.

My fingers drifted over the bright red and black hilt of the dagger whilst I admired it, taking notice of the sharpness of the blade. When I looked up from it, both Hannes and Athena were watching me.

"One day, you may need to hunt. The likelihood of nearby stores being destroyed is strong, especially with all the chaos that has been going on. Use this dagger to assist you whilst hunting if that happens." Athena advised. She smiled brightly, her fingers lacing together to rest before her as I admired the dagger in my hands once again. "I made it myself." She admitted.

"It's also sharp enough to kill others if needed." Hannes grunted, taking my elbow and guiding me forward when a male lycan almost barged into me; he'd evidently been eager for a kill.

"Thank you." I told Athena, smiling gratefully at her. I continued to hold the dagger in my hands for several seconds, since I had nowhere to put it, and Willow popped up by my side.

"I could hold on to that for you until we return back to your home, if you'd like me to." She offered. I nodded, whispering my thanks to her as I handed the dagger over.

My head jerked forward when I heard panicked squeaking, and I watched as a male hunter approached, his brown eyes glimmering as he showed me the rabbit he held, fingers tightly clutching its stomach as he lifted it in the air. The hindlegs kicked rapidly, and its ears twitched every now and then.

For a short moment, as I reached a hand out to touch its soft grey fur, I wondered why the hunters were so insistent on showing me their catch. But as I looked upon the male lycan's face, whose name I came to know as Jae, I realized that the hunters wanted to see my reactions.

They were proud of what they caught, but seeing me admire and silently praise, or attempt to anyway, the animals before they were killed, pleased them even more so. This realization was something that surprised me, and I silently marveled at them each time their happy expressions grew when they saw me looking upon the animals they gathered.

I couldn't resist flinching each time one was killed however; the noises of bones or necks being broken were sharp, and the sounds the animals emitted were also extremely loud.

As I walked with Hannes, he explained to me that the animals were used in meals, which were usually shared amongst the pack. Hunting lessened the amount of money the lycans had to spend in stores or supermarkets as well. Searching for animals was something that the lycans did very frequently, an every other day occurrence.

I'd been observing the hunt for almost two hours before several female lycans approached me. None of them held any sacks containing animals, and they simply seemed interested in talking with me. Almost immediately, Jeremiah and Willow had clamped in on either side of me, the way they did so almost humorous.

"Would you like to help in preparing the meats for the pack this evening?" A female lycan, Birch, asked me. "We use the animals we gathered here to make delicious meals and give them to the people."

I hesitated, and I could feel Willow's eyes on me. I knew she would be willing to speak on my behalf if I showed discomfort.

"Perhaps another day." I eventually said, eyes skipping forward to where Hannes walked with his mother. His head was angled my way, and his eyes found mine before he turned to speak to his mother, who had been jabbing a finger into his abdomen as she spoke, only for her to wince when she pushed too hard.

"Perhaps you would like to have dinner with us then?" Another lycan spoke; Sophie. She was gesturing to the circle of friends around her, who too looked on in earnest. Sophie was the tallest amongst them and her smile and eyes were so gentle.

I glanced between the two stern warriors walking beside me, before explaining that Willow and Jeremiah would have to come as well. I braced myself for a reaction that would be similar to the ones Helda and Yanneek had, but Sophie instead agreed, seeing no issue with them being in her home.

"What time should I come to your house?" I heard the noise of a frantic squeaking as I asked this and glanced behind me to see a hunter slip a rabbit into his sack.

"By five this evening the food should be ready."

"I know where she lives." Jeremiah abruptly told me before I could ask for directions to Sophie's home. I lifted my eyebrows high at him when his cheeks darkened and he glanced away, clearing his throat as he did so, before saying, "I know where she lives so I'll be able to show you."

I looked at Sophie, and she nodded, a secretive smile on her lips as she eyed Jeremiah before looking to me as she said, "I will see you at five then."

"Shh!" The sharp sound came from Athena, and we all watched as she gave a silent command for the hunters to halt from walking; her hand was waving wildly in a 'stay back' sort of motion so I assumed that was what she meant anyway.

Athena's darkening eyes were fixated on a deer, which was in the distance, head bowed low as it appeared to be searching for something amongst the snow. It did not appear to notice us, which pleased the elder. Athena licked her lips in anticipation, shoulders swaying every so slightly as she began to crouch, never peeling her gaze away from her prey.

For a long while, she stayed put, and no one moved. And then Athena's upper lip curled, and I could see the growth of claws from her hands, her body shifting as she got into an almost strange stance, still crouching.

A second ticked by, and then she was off. I saw a blur of movement, and then noticed snow kicking up behind her as she ran, her arms pumping rapidly by her sides. My mouth opened in disbelief at how fast Athena was running; the speed at which she moved was not at all what I had expected. The deer didn't have a chance at surviving.

Athena launched her body into the deer, startling it. It didn't take her long to pin down the animal, and even from the distance, I could see her claws sinking into its neck, sliding through flesh and skin as she dragged her claws through it.

The animal's legs kicked feebly as Athena began to kill it, and I could see its blood sinking into the snow, saw some of the flesh hanging limply by its neck as the elder practically sawed through it, soft grunts falling from Athena's lips as she moved her arms back and forth, claws continuing to sink into the neck repeatedly until the deer laid still, dead.

I was staring at Athena and the animal, a wave of uneasiness, awe and disgust making my stomach clench as Athena rose to her feet with the limp deer in her hands.

Her shirt was becoming soaked with the deer's blood, and there was a thrill-like shimmer in her eyes. A hunter quickly prepared a sack for Athena as she approached with the dead animal, and I side-stepped out of her path.

It was shocking, the entire way she'd reacted to seeing the animal and the swift way she'd moved. I knew she enjoyed hunting, like most of the persons around me did, but I had been taken aback by the vicious way she killed the deer, even though she'd warned me beforehand that things could become gory.

As I watched Athena, I recalled that one of the many things in which I'd learnt about lycans from my parents, and what I'd seen whilst I was younger, was that lycans in general immensely enjoyed the hunting process.

I'd seen expressions of lycans' similar to Athena's when they killed or sought out their prey, and what I had observed as a child, was that most lycans got some sort of 'high' or adrenaline rush as they hunted. Lycans' ways of killing their prey could be seen as extremely violent or gruesome, but it was the way they hunted, so I really shouldn't have been surprised at Athena's behavior, or any of the hunters'.

Nonetheless, I told Hannes I'd be returning back to the house; I'd seen enough for the day.

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