The Wolf Whisperer Chapter 4: The Hunt

After following the wolf deeper into the forest, Scarlet grows tired and gestures to the wolf that she needs to rest. She lays out her bedroll, stretches out and falls into an exhausted sleep. The wolf, still saddened by the loss of his son, lay down next to Scarlet. Slowly settling in beside her and finally resting his head on her arm protectively. He too then falls asleep, comforted by the girl's closeness.

In the early morning the wolf wakes, feeling thirsty and stiff. He sniffs the air, sensing food close by. He gently rouses the still sleeping girl by licking her face. Scarlet opens her eyes to see the wolf nosing her bow as if to say “We need to go and hunt”. Without stopping to question, Scarlet grabs up her knife and bow and follows the wolf further into the forest.

After what seemed like hours of stomping around and looking for the animal that the wolf had caught scent of earlier, they come across a stream and drink. Clumsily Scarlet reaches with her hand again and again slurping at the water. She catches sight of the wolf in the corner of her eye. Was he raising his eyebrow at her?

 A rustling noise comes from behind a nearby bush. Determined to catch something for their breakfast and show her worth to the leader of the pack, Scarlet creeps quietly up to the bush. Slowly she circles around to surprise her prey. She draws her bow and jumps out only to find to a cloud of grasshoppers, just becoming active in the morning sunshine. The wolf jumps up to catch the grasshoppers. As they whiz past his face he snaps at them and chews them up. Scarlet tries to imitate his actions without success, so she scoops them off the ground and gobbles the crunchy insects hungrily. When all the grasshoppers are gone the wolf walks over to a blackberry bush and starts eating. The juice running down his chin makes Scarlet wrinkle her nose. But the berries, plump and ripe, look so delicious, Scarlet starts eating them by the handful. When they are both quite full of blackberries, Scarlet packs some extra into her satchel. Thirst satisfied, belly full and exhausted from all the grasshopper catching, they stretch out in the mid-morning sun for a much needed nap.