Sister Elaina always said winter errands should be done fast.
"Road, market, road," she told them that morning. "No dawdling, no shortcuts, no 'let's see what's behind that tree,' understood?"
"Yes, Sister," the four children answered, more or less together.
On the way into town, nothing unusual happened. They traded borrowed coins for flour, candles, salt, and a sack of potatoes. Stallkeepers spoke in low voices about the cold and about wolves, nobody lingered in the square.
By the time they started back, the sun hung low, turning the snow a dull yellow.
Alaric carried the flour sack in front of him. Rin had the potatoes slung over one shoulder. Kellan balanced a bundle of firewood across his back, and Mira hugged a wooden box of candles.
"Next time we should bring a cart," Rin grumbled. "Then you can pull it and I'll sit in it."
"We don't have a cart," Kellan said.
"That's why I said next time."
"Less talking," Elaina said. "More walking."
The road out of town cut between white‑washed fields. A low stone wall ran along one side. Beyond it, untouched snow and the dark line of the southern trees.
Alaric's breath puffed in front of him. He kept his eyes mostly on the road, partly on the treeline.
Halfway home, he saw them.
Tracks.
They crossed the road and ran parallel to the wall, heading toward the chapel side. Each print was deeper and wider than his boot, with clear claw marks at the front.
Mira slowed. "Those weren't here this morning," she said quietly.
Elaina followed their line with her eyes. Her jaw tightened. "Don't stare. Keep moving."
"They're big," Rin whispered.
"Bigger than Torren's," Kellan agreed.
Alaric swallowed and shifted the flour on his arms. The air felt colder than it had a moment ago.
They walked.
The bell tower finally came into sight over the rise. Only a few hundred more paces.
Wind drifted sideways across the road, carrying a smell that did not belong in clean snow: damp fur, old blood, something sharp and metallic that stung the nose.
The hairs on Alaric's arms rose under his sleeves.
"Elaina," he said.
"I know," she replied, voice tight. "Stay close."
The road curved gently right. Here, the treeline came nearer than anywhere else along their route. A gap in the wall opened onto a field that ran almost up to the first row of trees.
The world was too quiet. No birds. No distant hammering from town. Even their own footsteps seemed muffled.
Rin shifted her sack. The burlap rasped loud in the silence.
Snow crunched somewhere behind them.
Not their steps. Heavier. Slower.
Alaric didn't look back. His fingers dug into the flour sack. He felt the familiar urge to whisper Confirma and run, but he forced himself to match Elaina's calm pace.
"Don't stop," she said. "Don't run. We walk to the door."
The chapel roof was visible now, just beyond the last bend.
The snow crunched again. Closer.
Rin's breath hitched. "Sister...."
A low growl rolled over the road, vibrating through Alaric's boots.
He turned despite every order in his head.
The wolf stood in the center of the track behind them.
It was too big. Shoulder high to Elaina's chest, fur a dirty white with grey streaks. Its eyes glowed a pale, icy blue. Each breath steamed from its jaws and left crystals floating in the air.
Two smaller wolves stepped out from the trees to either side, their fur darker, bodies coiled and ready.
The big one, the Frostfang watched them, head low. Frost clung to its muzzle and the tips of its fur.
"Elaina?" Mira whispered.
"Behind me," Elaina said. Her voice had changed, all warmth left it. "Now."
The children obeyed automatically, moving in a clump behind her back. Flour and potatoes and firewood shifted as they tried to keep their load and obey at the same time.
Elaina took one step forward, hands slightly raised. A faint shimmer of pale light gathered around her fingers, the hint of a barrier.
The Frostfang padded closer. Each step left deep holes in the snow. The two smaller wolves fanned out, one angling toward the wall, the other toward the open field, teeth bared.
"Torren said they hunt in packs," Kellan muttered.
"Quiet," Elaina hissed without turning.
Alaric's heart hammered. He could feel mana rising in his chest out of instinct, begging to be shaped.
He couldn't outrun this thing. None of them could.
But if it lunged.....
"Confirma," he whispered, low enough that only he could hear, feeling aura coil around his legs and arms. Just in case.
The Frostfang dipped its head, muscles bunching.
Then it sprang.