Chapter 4: Morning Howl

"Hahh… Hahh! Come on, come on. I can do this. I must do this." HOWL! The howling intensifies the terror in the hassled woman as she tries to run faster than she already was. She was running at a pace as if she wouldn't be alive the moment she stopped on her steps. Which seemed to be just true even at this point. At this point, numerous spiritual hybrid wolves were running after her hazardously. Thirsty for her blood. Hungry for her flesh. Or maybe, neither really for her blood, nor for her flesh. But rather for her destruction, her defeat. Hungry for her downfall. Downfall from the wolf pack, from the wolf nation, and probably the entire history. "Just a matter of moments, and you should be out of these woods. You'll be safe and sound. And mostly, alive. Trust yourself, Azura." The lady hushes to herself as she begins to see the light of hope. The Hope, which doesn't take much time to be broken, is when Azura trips on her toes and sinks into the frozen surface of the forest. She tries her best to collect herself and get up immediately. However, the moment she lifted her face from the frozen grass, the first thing that met her eyes was the crimson glare of eyes which belonged to this fiercely looking red wolf. She could still run away from the other side, but not when the rest of the wolves had already surrounded her. Her whole presence is sheathed in terror as she witnesses the sight. The grunting and growling of these fine and fierce-looking creatures was having her breath hitched with every attempt. With the swiftness of the moment, Azura also swivels her body behind, precisely trundling backwards through her back. She probably didn't remember about the large and ravenous, radical red wolf. "Huh…" The verbal hitch releases from Azura's mouth as her skin hits the soft coat of the wolf from behind. By the corner of her eye, she glanced at the firing wolf before she entirely shifted her head as the wolf howled. Or even surprisingly, spoke. "This is the end, Azura. End of you. And end of…" "NO!" "Azura, honey, you're okay?" Well, that was not something a wolf would say. And neither was it a wolf for real, even. Nor was his place in were woods. Yeah, that's another thing, this place was for sure in the middle of the woods. "Nothing, Dad. I'm fine. By the way, good morning." Azura brightens her expression to the man as she greets him. But the latter didn't have it at all as he sighs while voicing subtly, "I would say good morning to you, too, but it doesn't seem like you're having it good, umm?" The words made by Azura's father were indeed true. Which is why Azura couldn't make any more excuses but just looked down, cluelessly and nervously, of course. The father smiles sadly at his little girl, not really little though, as he sits next to her and caresses her back. "I can't say that I know how you feel because I'm not in your place. But I can for sure sense that it must be terrifying to have these nightmares all the time. They were about the wolves in the woods, no?" The man asks his daughter. He receives a silent nod in response. "I knew it. And I also know that it's my fault, sweetie. I should've known that I should've taken you to the town because these woods and the howling environment are not for you. But what could I do? I've always been her, and my profession doesn't even meet the requirements they have there. I'm so sorry, Azura. I'm such a–" "No! You're not what you were about to say. You're the best father even and ever. And, you're worrying about us living in the woods? Dad, didn't you say that the almighty picks different situations and circumstances only for different people? Only for unique people. Who are capable, credible, and celestial? Who is the chosen one?. We are the chosen ones. I am the chosen one. The almighty chose me to be your daughter. Daughter of the hearty, brave, diamond hunter and the one who's a diamond himself, Frederick Barnes! What could be more blessed than this?" Azura concludes the part of her explanation that puts a shocked look on her face. "Whoa. When did my little girl grow so old?" Frederick asks with pride and mischief. The young lady giggles at the question raised by her father before she forms an answer following the concept of her father's question. "The time when my old father grew so little." The father then starts laughing at the mischievousness of his daughter. Azura didn't take a moment to join her father, and soon the duo was caught in a session of laughter. After a few moments of collecting themselves, Frederick was the first one to break the catch. "So it seems like we have reversed the roles now. Should I be the one to go to school now?" "Well, for my excessively loaded and forgetful dad's information, I'm in college now. But you may look cute being a school kid again." Azura points, and she was accurate at this point. Like, Frederick was such a heartfelt and handsome man that he could be a cute and contented young boy. With his caramel brunette shade of hair. Curtained in a long fringe divided into a side parting, with short sides and back. And the breezy environment of the woods just blended the pinkish glow in his skin, which just made him look even better and younger. By his body frame and persona, he didn't look like a diamond farmer but rather a man who'd wear diamonds all over him. Many women would have tried to hit on him if they were at a busy place. "Okay then, Miss Bachelorette, does this school kid need to remind you again that you're getting late, or are you enough to know it?" Was it that late already? Azura checked the time, and the first thing that came from her mouth was, "Oh shoot!" She gets up in an instant from her bed and rushes towards her closet. Frederick just chuckles while shaking his head. "I'll get the breakfast ready and all. Come down as quickly as you can." Frederick voices while leaving downstairs, to which Azura responds with a nod as if he could see her. Well,l if one would talk about the usual college girls getting ready for their day, it would most probably be them taking a lot of amount of time, worrying about what they would wear, being concerned about wearing a dress that would look similar to others, and so on. However, for Azura, the scenario is a little different. Neither does it take time for her to dress herself, even if she comes to special events, nor does she ever get worried about her outfit and the decision over her getup, as she most probably has all her clothes so simple, baggy, and nerdy. Which was just a perk for her as it helped her to be in the shadow and away from any unwanted attention, unlike the other hot girls in the college who were all over the college in talks and desirous of boys. "Maybe these pairs would do for today," Azura speaks to herself while springing a pair of light blue culottes and a brown hoodie with a free-size checked shirt. She gets freshened and pulls on her clothes Decided to wear today. She looks at her reflection in the mirror to check herself out. "Hmm, good to go." Azura murmurs to her reflection. But actually, it was not only good. But great, better, er, or could even say perfect. Not talking about Azura's getup or outfit. But rather about Azura herself. Yes. Azura might not have dressed like a beauty iconButbut she was just beautiful by herself. Her long, straight blonde hair blended with volume and curls, the pale complexion of her skin, with the texture of her forest green orbs. Ione weretotod tell truthfully, Azura was a virtue of vision. A living Beauty that was hard to believe. Sometimes it even resembles those wolves' vibes that often appear in Azura's nightmare. Though, according to Azura, none of these were in her bag of thought, and she was more than fine with it. It could also be the reason why Azura chose to be by herself,f mostly anywhere, because she didn't intend to get people hooked on her look. Besides, she never really cared about her looks much. The only moment it has an effect is the times when she gets thoughts of her not looking similar to her father. Which eventually had caused multiple concerns in her about the relationship between her and Frederick, which she just kept to herself, always. But anyway, she wasn't like her father by appearance, but by her persona, she was for sure like him, and she was proud. She was proud of the fact that she was born here. She was proud of the fact that Frederick's personality had an impact on her. She was proud to be the daughter of such a kind and gentle man as Frederick Barnes. "Azura Barnes, are you coming down or do I have to come back up again?" Azura hears her dad yelling from downstairs. "Just a moment, Dad. Huh… Alright. Just another day to stay away from anyone who comes in the way."