Arn burst into the clearing.  The sudden emergence into the sun almost blinding him and causing him to run into the small young healer’s daughter.  His charge through the woods and his explosive culmination had left him breathless and he stumbled as his legs buckled beneath him doing their utmost to stop the forward motion of the big man.

He groaned as he inevitably fell forward, taking the poor lady along with him.  However, the impact was lessened by his herculean effort to not hurt the girl.  The hunter landed on his knees straddling the girls own legs.  His strong fore arms landed and dug into the ground on either side of the young girl’s head.  She probably would land with her eyes staring directly at his chest covered in furs not inches from her nose. 

For half a second the big bear man remained on top of her.  His mind trying to process what had just occurred.  His thought a mixture of surprise and confusion.  He felt as if somebody had woken him up from deep sleep with a splash of ice-cold water.  

Suddenly, realization rushed into his mind as quickly as blood rushed into his face.  He all bout pounced off her with an agility that was impressive for his large frame.  Arn had not been so close to another human, let a lone a female one since he was a young boy.  Their proximity had been enough for him to get a whiff of her scent utilizing his keen nose.  His face burned with embarrassment and he could not bring himself to look at her in the eyes.  

It was extremely fortunate thus, that he noticed the blood and signs of footprints.  A small group seemed to have moved towards the direction of a mountain stream he knew well and that fed the fields planted by the village.  He was not such an elite hunter that he knew whose the tracks belonged to but he was skilled enough to know that the tracks belonged to teens at the most.  

[color=ed1c24]DANGER!![/color]

The voice in his mind appeared again.  His eyes scanned the scene hurriedly.  A sense of urgency starting to settle in.  Why the urgency?  Why did the sight of blood so disturbed him?  Though it was unadvisable, many children played in the woods, definitely not taboo for teens.  So why was he trying to solve this puzzle?

All these questions sent his mind reeling.  All he knew was that he needed to follow the tracks.  He turned to the young Gwendolyn.  His voice gruff and still with a tinge of apologetic embarrassment.  [color=0054a6]“I..am going to follow the tracks…you should head back.  It may be dangerous.”[/color]

It never occurred to him that his words may be constituted as offensive.  He was merely speaking the truth that he saw.  If he had thought better about it, it would make a great deal of sense to invite one versed in healing along.  After all, if his sudden burst of premonition was turned out to be true, then medical need might be required. The big man however was too used to being and acting alone.  He also felt he was protecting her from whatever lay ahead. 

The big man looked at the young girl through the top of his eyes and lowered head.  He stood up not waiting for a reply from her and moved in the direction of the tracks.  He would not stop her should she decide to come but he would move quickly enough to ensure he did not loose the tracks. 

The forest invited him in.  The cool shadows caressing and dancing on his furs as he moved through the woods.  The slivers of light that managed to break through the thick covering of foliage seemed to tease, to hint only to disappear a second later. 

He pressed forward.  The hunter had been in these woods many times.  However, this time it felt that as he moved deeper into the depths of the forest that he was moving into the unknown.  It seemed to him just as one steps into a dark lake.  What will emerge on the other side?