Chapter Eight

    When I woke up the day after my encounter with the wolfwalkers, I thought everything that had happened the day before had been a dream. Humans that could change into wolves in their sleep? What a ridiculous idea! But I remembered the smells, the sights, and the shock. You couldn't get all of that just from a dream. It was all real. Very real.

    After eating some berries to boost my energy, I set off into the woods to hunt for breakfast. I came to the place where I had seen the wolfwalkers before. The deer was again stripped to the bone, gleaming white in the morning sun. I thought back to the day before when Mebh had exposed me to the wolf pack and Robyn. I could still see the tracks of all the wolves departing towards the den.

    Just then, I saw a deer in the distance upstream of me, drinking water from the river that flowed by beside me. I crouched down and unslung my crossbow. Loading an arrow, I slowly and stealthily walked over to some bushes which would provide me with cover for my shot. I fired and heard the whistle of the arrow as it sailed through the air and struck the deer's chest, right in the heart. A perfect shot. I walked over to the deer. It was a big one, so I grabbed a deer leg and left the rest for the wolves.

    When I got back home, I saw Robyn and Mebh waiting for me near the porch. Robyn waved to me. When I walked over to them, Robyn stood up. "Hey, Sean, could we talk to you?" I agreed, curious. Robyn scratched the back of her neck. "Well, the thing is, we kind of killed the Lord Protector." 

    I almost fainted. "You did WHAT!?" Robyn and Mebh jumped at this. 

    "Calm down, calm down. We'll fill ya in, townie." Mebh said. She patted the ground. "C'mere and sit with us." I dusted the snow off the ground and sat.

    And so, Robyn explained how she and the wolves were being threatened by the Lord Protector, and how they fought him and his guards in a climactic battle by their den, with Mebh saying things like "Oh, yeah, I remember that!" and "You totally crushed that!". When Robyn was explaining how the Lord Protector had died, I was going into shock. 

    "I didn't know this for how long?" I asked. Robyn thought about this. "Well, it was a little over a month ago."

    "I sometimes wish I could have wrung his neck for what he did to me."

    Mebh spoke up. "Yeah, I wish that too. He took my mammy away and locked her inside a cage. Robyn here," the redhead punched Robyn on the shoulder, "set her free!"

    I had a question to ask Robyn. "Hey, how did you become a wolfwalker if you hunted wolves?" 

    Robyn chuckled. "Well, I snuck out to follow my dad to see the forest one day. When I was going back, a pack of wolves attacked. I panicked and accidentally shot my bird, Merlyn." I raised my eyebrow at this. Robyn sighed. "Yes, yes, it sounds dumb, but I'd like to see you try to fight a pack of wolves. Anyway, Mebh picked up Merlyn and took him. I followed her and accidentally got caught in a trap. Mebh was playing around and accidentally bit me in the arm because I 'kicked her in the gob too much'."

    "You did, though!" protested Mebh. "It was bound to happen, alright?" 

    "Anyways, when I got bit, Mebh tried to heal me, but it was too late apparently, because I turned into a wolfwalker. That pretty much completes our background."

    "Wow. There was a lot of information ( A/N: And lore, MatPat) in not a lot of time. Could I be alone for a bit to process this?"

    Robyn stood up. "Yeah, sure. It must be a lot for this to just be thrown at you. Come on, Mebh."

    Mebh stood up and mock-pouted. "We didn't even get any town tasties, though!"

    I was puzzled by this. "Town tasties? What are those?"

    "It's what she calls bread," Robyn explained. "Mebh, he's got enough on his hands already! Come on, Moll and Bill are waiting for us!"

    "Fine." Mebh stood up and walked with Robyn out of the clearing and into the tall trees and brush, with their pack awaiting them.