Change in Life

Chapter 14. Atonement

One thing that had changed about himself, that he was now very appreciative for, was his developing wild ties. His stomach grumbled and in turn his wild fox trait kicked in. Along with his increased urge to fill his belly, that stubborn self-loathing human mind was swiftly put aside. A much more forthcoming and determined Blake was now in charge. And it had one thing on its mind. 

I have to have her back!

One way or the other, he had to find her, convince her he was still important to her, and retie the bond. There were not going to be any lame excuses, no thoughts of doubt, and no believing Jade didn't like him. This Blake was not going to let the same thing happen now as what had happened to Sky. Jade was too important to just let go.

However, how to woo her was beyond his comprehension. What could he do to prove his life meant something to her? What more could he do? He had saved her two times, three including his transformation. He had shown his intellect by using a silver tongue to make Cleo and Shadow run the other way, and raiding the chicken hutch with maximum results showed his forward thinking. Even if that night did almost kill them, the food they got was marvelous.

When his gut growled again, and the tug at his realization that there might be more to their relationship than friendship, it dawned on him. The only core things wild animals thought about were food and mating. The latter was out of the question. No matter how much they would love each other, the boundary of his human state of mind could not possibly be crossed to create a sexual relation with her. However, when he told the dogs after their close escape that he wanted to mate with her, and the words came out naturally, the thought suddenly confused him.

The only thing that would bring her back would be food. Finding something that would appeal to Jade's palate would be tricky. Rabbits and mice were her current diet, so getting anything she ate regularly would be insignificant. On occasion they would scavenge dead sparrows and crows, so poultry was also out of the question. He had to find something special.

People had special food all the time. Oh... the thought of bringing her a hot roast lamb with all the trimmings was divine. Blake had not eaten human food for so long that even a burnt toasted cheese sandwich was mouthwatering, and he was sure Jade's would too. She would basically be compelled to come back to him. After last time though, he never wanted to see another house again. Surely there must be something in the wild that was tasty and rare enough to be called a delicacy?

Well, Blake thought determinedly, to find something new, I have to go somewhere new.

Not wasting a second more, he ran in the direction of the river, thinking along the way of what other wildlife lived in the woods that he had failed to notice. He remembered that sometime ago while plodding along the river he spotted small hoof tracks of something he didn't recognize upstream from the waterfall. He had quickly ignored, for they were too big to be anything he could hunt. Maybe there were some grazing animals farther upstream in open lands where he hadn't explored yet, possibly some feral sheep or goats?

After making it to the river in no time at all and now trotting up stream, he pondered on how to deliver this bounty of food to Jade as well as making sure she knew it was him who made the kill. Going straight to her den, saying sorry then paying the fine seemed inappropriate for the outcome he wanted. It had to be done subtly. Leaving it in a place he knew she passed often and letting her discover it might be the best way. If she was truly regretful and knew he wanted her back, she would come looking for him.

*

Half the night passed before Blake saw any change in scenery. The river had curved in a few places and he had passed a couple of light rapids before the flowing water widened to a lake. The trees here became farther apart and grew a lot taller now by not having to compete for sunlight with its neighbor. Long grass grew, along with stray blooming purple flowers here and there.