Puzzle Pieces

No explanation. Just read and let me know how you feel.

I walked out unsteadily into the salty night and leaned my face toward the breeze. Tonight, I would become independent. Tonight, I would take my first kill without the help of my father. Tonight, I would make myself worthy. I would be the kind of monster that I could accept, the one that chose her path, the one that decided it would be better to not take human life. The one that turned her back on her nature and opted for an alternative lifestyle.

I raced through the trees, feeling breathless but exhilarated. I stalked through the thick wood animalistically, sniffing, searching. Shortly after, I found the perfect prey. A big bear with her cubs.

She reared violently and stood for a protective attack but I didn’t want her, I wanted her children; I wanted their innocence and wonder. I wanted what my new life now denied me. I wanted their blood to warm my veins and my vacant heart.

I made quick work of the mother, draining her completely, and turned toward her nest, searching for the one that had fascinated me, the innocent one that I in turn wanted to capture. There was one cub that caught my attention, one that I wanted to take in hopes that I could somehow seize some of him and infuse it into me.

He caught my eye because he was bathing his siblings with his tongue, far more protective of them, far more aware of them, than should be expected. None of them realized that their mother would not return for them. He was a sweet cub, attentive, the big brother of the group, and for the simple fact that I wanted him, wanted to take him from their lives, I didn’t think I deserved to exist. I was still monstrous, but it was a level of monstrosity that I could sadly accept.

When he was nearly asleep, I cradled him and hugged him to me. His face, all eyes with a bit of nose and snout, was peaceful as if he knew what I was going to do to him, but was kind enough to allow it. I’d chosen him because I honestly wanted his sweet innocence to be transferred back to me, wanted to recapture my own childhood virtue.

I wanted that sweetness of innocence again, the vulnerability that comes with being too young to understand life.

I dipped my head toward the young cub’s neck and fed on him messily, internally thankful that he didn’t notice. I could feel his blood streaming down my throat, but I’d been so chaotic with this hunt that some of it had splashed across my face. I mentally noted that I would need to be more careful, more aware of a clean kill.

The blood again was warm, so musical, as it flowed through my body. I almost felt complete.

A twig snapped, jerking my attention from my feeding. My head shot upward and my preternatural eyes scanned the horizon, finding nothing at first, but then I looked to the left, into the darkness of the trees and saw a silhouette standing there, watching me. The bear cub was dead, still cradled in my arms, as I sat cross-legged on the chilly ground. The chill didn’t affect me as much; although I didn’t like the cold, it was a constant, dull reminder of my new arctic nature. I could feel a rivulet of blood dripping slowly from the corner of my right lip to my chin. My long hair clung to one of my cheeks, glued there by the bear’s blood. I must’ve looked fiendish to the human eye.