Bearly Made It Out Alive

Scylla was getting older and wiser. Hell, she would be a year old next season. Practically ancient! In her advanced age, the girl was straying farther and farther from home. She wanted to get out in the world. She wanted to explore. And that's just what she was doing today. The small fae had made her way away from home in the early morning hours when the sun was still waking up from it's nightly sleep. The sky was colored in the beginning shades of lavender, peach and gold. Her family would still be asleep. Most of them, anyway. Some would sleep until midday. Some later. Scylla liked to be up when the rest of the world was asleep, so she was often awake way before the sun was up. She did some of her best thinking when she was the only creature awake.

It was no secret that Scylla was a little odd. She didn't have the same interests that other puppies had. The girl was... scientifically driven. She was always on the lookout for interesting creatures with which she could carry out her crafts and creations. Having odd little paws unlike any other that she'd ever seen, it allowed Scylla to perfect the art of suturing and sewing. She was very, very good at it. Her father had told her that she had a cousin with similar digits, but Scy had never met the girl, so she would continue to think that she was special.

The crafting that Scylla took part in was of an anatomical nature. She collected specimens, heads, tails, bodies, and sewed them together, creating entirely new creatures of fantasy. She'd put a komodo dragons head on the body of a lynx. She'd created rabbits with antlers and snake body tentacles. There was no limit to her creativity. There was a limit to her supplies, however. The girl was constantly on the lookout for new creatures to pilfer body parts from and her curiosity took her far and wide.

The falls were an interesting place. She'd already found the skull of a young bear and decided to take it back with her. Rather than put it in her bag, Scylla wore it on her head much like a helmet. The girl sniffed along the edge of the waterway, looking for new things when a groan up ahead caught her attention. The young wolf stopped, ears perking through the eye holes of the bear skull. Up ahead the leaves rustled and Scylla shrank back as a gigantic brown bear pushed out into the open. She tried to hide in the shadows until she could make an escape, but the bear saw her. It must have recognized the skull atop her head as one of its own because it instantly slammed both paws down hard on the ground and roared at the girl. Ice stabbed daggers in the girl's stomach as she backpedaled, trying to look for an escape. The bear was already running full tilt towards her though. Great.

Scylla put a thick tree between herself and the bear, dancing to try and keep herself safe while she unsheathed the blade on her forearm. Striking outward, she sliced the foreleg of the giant bear, though it didn't even seem to notice in its rage. The bear was huge and muscled, a thick layer of fat stored on its body for winter. She wouldn't be surprised if she'd barely scratched the giant's skin, so she stabbed instead of slashed. The blade sank into the bears paw and it roared in pain, jerking back its appendage that was as big as Scylla herself.

Taking the opportunity as the bear pulled its paw away, Scylla ran. She was forced to hold the hilt of her blade between her teeth as there was no time to re-sheath it. It hampered her running and the bear soon caught up to her. Mismatched eyes frantically searched for some place to hide or some means of escape. Behind her, the bear stumbled to its knees in the water, giving the girl just enough time to put her blade back in place. Now she would be able to run properly.

As the slate colored child turned to look at the bear, she was hit full in the shoulder with one wide, flying paw. The strike sent Scylla flying circles into the water. The momentum of the rushing water sent her careening away from the bear, but she was still in just as much danger. Her shoulder aching and unable to attain its full range of motion, the girl scrambled to get enough air, let alone get to the bank. Luck seemed to be on her side as an overhanging branch caught on the strap of her satchel, holding her still in the water. Reaching up, Scylla was able to wrap her arm around the branch, using both the grip of her paw and her teeth to work her way up the branch and onto the bank. It was only after the adrenaline died away that the girl realized just how much pain she was in. It was going to be a long, long walk home.

"Scylla Klein"