Sanna couldnāt have been more surprised when the young man outside spokeāspoke to her. She would have thought he was talking to another man outside, but there was no reason he would think one of those fearsome men were afraid. No, she was the only one afraid here. And she had tried so hard to not let it show; perhaps it was their animal side that let them sense things like her emotions. Her lips parted as he continued to throw soft words her way; she wasnāt sure what she was supposed to do. Many people had talked at herāyelled at her, cursed her, but no one had ever spoken to her except her brother.
After a long silence, she finally found her voice. āAre youā¦are you talking to me?ā she whispered back, staring at the little barred window in the door. It was obvious he was, but she still found it somewhat unbelievableāand to add to that, he was not mocking her or being cruel. He had apologizedā¦for what? Was he apologizing because she was going to die? Perhaps. And yet his voice was soothing, similar to Myrrahās when he was trying to comfort her. Why in the world would this man want to comfort her?
āIām not scared,ā she said in the same whispered tone, but it was a lie. But once she admitted it out loud, Sanna feared that she would not be able to hold it in anymore. But what was his purpose in doing this? Was it simply pity? It didnāt feel like it, but kindness from someone who wasnāt her brotherālet alone someone from the Wolf Clanā¦ Sanna could not quite believe it. āIā¦You donāt have to apologize,ā she said softly, scooting slightly closer to the door despite herself. Maybe it was because of his tone of voice sounding like Myrrahās, but he did feel almost familiar.
She crushed her knees to her chest and shivered. Fall was breathing its last, heralding the arrival of the winter months. It was growing cold; she pulled the cloak even tighter around herself. It was quiet again, but now that the dam had been broken she didnāt want it to be silent. If it was silent she would be left alone with her fear. She fumbled for something to say in her fear-stricken mind and only drew blanks. āā¦Do you have any siblings? Iā¦I have an older brother,ā she whispered hesitantly. āHis nameās Myrrah. Mine is Sanna.ā What else did she have to talk about?
How she was an orphan that brought misery to the people who knew her?
How the villagers despised her and blamed her for every bad thing?
How she almost believed that?
How she had felt when the villagers had broken in the door and threatened her into coming out to be the sacrifice?
One thing came to her and she grasped it. āThe forest,ā she started haltingly. āā¦Itās beautiful.ā She didnāt care if he ignored her words or even if he laughed at her. Just saying things felt goodānot that she hadnāt spoken to her brother, but he was always so bent on protecting Sanna he took things too seriously. But the forest truly was beautifulāwith the wildness that the village never had. āI used to imagine what it would be like inside the forest,ā she said quietly, feeling her heart easing now that she was thinking about her daydreams. āIt was more beautiful than I ever I thought it would be.ā Why was she saying these things? But it was almost like she was used to this manās presenceāit wasnāt hard at all to simply speak whatever was on her mind.
All of a sudden she heard some men outside walk by, one of them emitting a low chuckle, the sort that sounded malicious and feral. Her blood ran cold and her peaceful thoughts fell flatāthe dread began to seep through the wood of the little prison and drown her. A long silence ensued and she forced the words out of her that sounded more strained than she would have liked. āAm Iā¦Am I going to die?ā She hadn't wanted to ask, but there was no stopping it now.