Chapter 1 ~ Wolves

                                    

                                          
Thanks to HaleyBop96 for the cover she made me :)
                          
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Chapter 1
                          
Arabella glanced at the darkening sky quickly then resumed scrubbing her bloody hands furiously. She used the newly fallen snow to aid her with getting her hands clean. At last her hands were clean and she sighed, relieved. She pushed her long ebony black hair out of her eyes and looked down at herself for any traces of blood she might have missed. Luckily her violet dress was clean; she wouldn’t have to worry about someone finding out what she had done.
                          
The forest was eerie at this time of the day but it seemed that Arabella always found herself here at that time. The barren trees swayed silently in a chilly breeze. The only sound to be heard was the crunching of snow underneath Arabella’s feet. Arabella picked up her purple cloak and tied the string around her neck. She pulled up her hood and wrapped the rest of the fabric close to her; she hoped it would bring her extra warmth on this chilly night.
                          
She scanned her surroundings warily as she approached the outskirts of the forest. No one seemed to be following her but she could never be too careful. She pushed thoughts of bloody snow out of her mind and trudged out of the forest and into a farmer’s field. She had to get back before the doors to the citadel closed. They always closed a little while after complete darkness fell and they didn’t open until morning. The only exception would be if someone or something important needed entrance to the fortress.
                          
It wasn’t long before the tall walls of the fortress loomed over her. The entrance to the citadel was usually guarded by a few men in shiny silver armour. Their visors hid their face as they stood still waiting for trouble to present itself. The two guards on either side of the opening in the wall didn’t even give her a glance as she briskly walked past them, careful to avoid them catching a glimpse of her face. It was always better to be safe than sorry. Coming in at this time might not be worrying to many people but if anyone paid more attention to her, Arabella’s movements might be deemed suspicious.
                          
She made her way through the deserted market just as vendors seemed to be packing up their wares. They gave her curious looks but they returned to what they were doing moments later. Arabella kept her eyes on the castle before her and only focused a little on not tripping on the treacherous cobblestone streets.
                          
As she walked over the drawbridge the guards stationed at this entrance actually looked at her but quickly dismissed her as they saw who she was. One of the perks of having a job tending to the royal family was that Arabella was known to the guards and knights of the castle; they recognized her and didn’t bother her very much.
                          
By now complete darkness had fallen and the only light came from lit torches fixed to the castle wall. The flickering flames cast moving shadows and Arabella was never sure if anyone was hiding in the shadows. Of course, that was only when she only used her sight, if Arabelle used her amazing hearing, she could hear a person breathing in the shadows. Humans didn’t have hearing like Arabella’s; because of what she was she had much better hearing. She had to always be careful that she didn’t give herself away by showing that she heard things she couldn’t have if she was normal.
                          
Arabella took a side door that lead to a series of tunnels and navigated her way through the castle with ease; she’d been doing so for years. Arabella liked to just take the less crowded hallways instead of walking through more crowded areas. The more crowded areas were more decorated because they were the part of the castle that were most seen. The hallways only had a few shields with various crests on them and some flags in the king’s colours: blue and silver.