They reached the edge of another forest towards the end of the afternoon. Kashvi was glad to be out of the wind, it messed with her senses and made her feel disorientated.

Kashvi and Ruby nearly hadn't found their way back to the camp. Kashvi shuddered to think what would have happened if they hadn't made it back in time. She cursed herself for leaving Devon on his own on the plains. They had really needed to find food though. Kashvi was running out of energy trying to keep the hex on the werewolf up.

As soon as Ruby's arrows had taken down Mateo, Kashvi had sprinted across the camp, slamming herself into Devon, embracing him and checking for injuries. It made her choke up to think she could have lost him. Without Devon...she wasn't sure that she would still see the point.

Devon had argued with her about putting restraints back on the wolf, insisted Mateo had saved his life. Kashvi understood, Devon was desperate to humanize the werewolf, to find companionship in him. But if Kashvi let it go on like that, all he would find would be sharp claws and waiting teeth.

The werewolf was a means to an end, that was all. It was werewolves that got Kashvi’s family after the bombs and she had met enough ronins since to fill her wolf quota for a lifetime. They may not have been as rabid as the Chimera but that was what made them worse.

Werewolves killed and raped with full sentiency about what they were doing. Kashvi looked back at the werewolf disguised in a man's body and wondered how many bloody atrocities Mateo had committed? If Mateo had come across Devon first, without injuries, what would he have done to him? Kashvi shuddered, it didn't bear thinking about.

Ruby gave her a concerned look and reached out to squeeze her wrist as they entered through the tree line. The clammy smell of 'forest' pervaded Kashvi's nostrils and she could hear Devon muttering, "Thank fuck," behind them.

They kept walking until it started to get dark, eventually settling on a mossy area to sleep for the night. Despite Kashvi’s reticence regarding forests, it certainly felt a lot more comfortable than the hard earth of the plains. They lit a small fire and started to cook the rats her and Ruby had managed to catch.

"Mouse-ahka?" Devon asked, grinning as he proffered some roasted meat towards the wolf. Kashvi sighed.

"Devon - seriously, you have to quit it with the food puns," she scolded.

"I'll quit when I run out of them," Devon replied beaming, his mood had certainly improved since getting to the forest.

Kashvi narrowed her eyes as Mateo snorted and took the flesh from Devon's hands with his teeth, carefully avoiding the younger boy's fingers.

"Good boy," Devon grinned, patting the wolf on his head. Mateo growled but continued chewing the rat flesh.

Kashvi turned to roll her eyes at Ruby who pursed her lips and smiled back. Suddenly, Mateo spat out the meat and Kashvi flinched.

"Lone Betas," Matteo said quickly, "Coming this way, two of them."

Kashvi jumped to her feet and drew her machete. Ruby was already stalking round the other side with her crossbow readied.

Two beefy looking Betas crashed through the trees. Ruby let an arrow fly at one of the wolves but he caught it with a nasty leer on his face. There was an obvious moment of shock when they looked around and saw Mateo tied up and growling at them.

Kashvi didn't have time to wonder if it was an ordering growl or a warning one, before the first Beta rushed towards her, fangs out and eyes flashing. Kashvi yelped as a claw caught her hip bone. These Betas must have fed recently as they were stronger and faster than the others Kashvi and Devon had encountered.

They also didn't look ragged or poorly kept. Kashvi brought the machete down as she heard a cry from behind her. She whipped her head round to see Ruby thrown against a tree, her body slumping down awkwardly.

The Beta used Kashvi's momentary distraction to try and take another swipe at her. She was thrown across the site, landing heavily on her back, the machete falling from her grasp. Kashvi looked up to see Ruby springing forwards to stick an arrow through the throat of the first Beta, killing him.

However, the second one was charging towards her. Kashvi could hear Devon shouting something before there was a flash of light and a loud clap reverberated around the trees.

The second Beta fell dead like a stone in front of her. Kashvi scrambled up, grabbing her blade and ran back towards the others. Devon was lying on the floor in a collapsed heap. Ruby got to him first, cradling him upwards and shaking him, "Devon? Devon!"

Kashvi skidded to a stop and fell to her knees, cursing under her breath as she reached for her bag and pulled out a small crystal vial. She unplugged the cork and poured the last few precious drops on Devon’s dry lips.

"What happened?" Ruby asked, her face anxious.

"He cast a spell," Kashvi bit out, slapping Devon's cheeks to try and wake him. "That's what killed the Beta but it's nearly fucking killed Devon. We're not meant to be able to use magic....shit!" She exclaimed, shaking him harder. "Wake up you fucking asshole you are not allowed to..."

Devon jerked up, coughing and spluttering. Kashvi fell back, breathing out a heavy sigh of relief. Her eyes caught with Mateo's shocked, wide ones before he turned back to frown at the now retching Devon.

"Did it work?" Devon groaned, he coughed with a shudder and bright red blood splattered across the forest floor.

"Yes you idiot. It worked. Now don't ever try that again. Attempting magic under the curse could kill you," Kashvi snapped.

Devon whined, "I think it already did...my head..."

"How did you know where to direct the spell?" Kashvi exclaimed, more angry at herself for needing Devon to save her than anything.

"Mateo..." Devon moaned again, "I asked him to tell me where the Beta was, well, it's general direction anyway."

Kashvi flashed an angry look at Mateo, who raised his eyebrows and shrugged.

"Will he be okay?" Ruby asked, running her hand across Devon's brow.

"He'll be fine now," Kashvi sighed, "I've given him the last of a healing potion I had. He's just going to need to rest for the night and get plenty of fluids."

Ruby shook her head, "We're running out of water and I don't think it's going to rain..." She looked up at the tree canopy hopefully but the stars were out, no clouds.

"There's a stream."

Kashvi jerked her head at the sound of Mateo's voice. She frowned at him and he stared back impassively. "I can smell it, not far from here, you just need to go through the trees that way," Mateo lifted his bound hands gesturing, "and you'll reach it, only ten or fifteen minutes walk."

Kashvi looked at him more pointedly, trying to decide if he was leading them into some kind of trap.

"I'm thirsty," he shrugged by way of explanation.

"I'll go," Ruby rested her hand gently on Kashvi's shoulder. Kashvi looked over to where Devon was now sitting up and picking bits of dead leaves from his mouth with a disgusted face.

"Go with her Kashvi,” Devon instructed, “I'll be fine here, you'll hear me screaming if anything else tries to maul me. Besides, I've got a guard dog. Didn't he do well tonight?"

Kashvi glanced over to where Mateo was pulling a face.

"He's wagging his tail on the inside," Devon explained with a sigh, probably fully aware of how they were all looking at him right now.

Kashvi fixed Mateo with a pointed look, "Are they any more Betas nearby?"

"No," Mateo replied without missing a beat.

Kashvi glanced at Devon, "If any harm should come to him..." she didn't wait for the wolf's response but let Ruby help her up. They picked up their empty water flasks and made their way through the trees.

"Is your head okay?" Kashvi asked as they reach the stream ten minutes later. "You got thrown pretty hard against that tree."

"Yeah," Ruby smiled, "As a hunter you get used to being knocked about by wolves and I've had worse.” She lifted up her vest to show a thin pearled scar running up her side, "I got this two years ago, a female werewolf clawed me open, took me weeks to get up on my feet again."

Kashvi reached out and ran her finger up the length of the scar, the pale skin goose pimpling beneath her. She heard Ruby take a deep breath before the other girl caught her hand with her own, interlacing their fingers. Kashvi closed her eyes and leant up, brushing her lips against Ruby's in a gentle press. There was a warmth as their skin touched and a jolt of pleasure as Ruby's tongue swept across her lower lip, wetting the kiss.

It had been so long since Kashvi had felt human contact like this. With Devon it was a familial love and comfort but this...this could be hot and needy and life affirming. Kashvi pressed forward to signal her intent as Ruby wrapped her hands round Kashvi's sides, letting the water flasks fall to the mossy ground.

They spent a while longer by the stream, shedding their clothes and washing. Ruby finding ways to make Kashvi beg and pant, before they redressed and wandered back to the campsite.

Devon was asleep already, as Kashvi presumed he would be, although he was lying a little too close to the werewolf for Kashvi's liking. She looked at Mateo as he fixed his eyes lazily on them,

"Have fun?" he asked, his eyebrow raised.

Kashvi felt a flush of anger; of course the werewolf could hear them. She stalked forward and put a hand on Devon's forehead to check his temperature.

"He's fine," Mateo said drily, "I would have said if something was wrong."

Kashvi snorted, "Yeah, sure, because you're just our big friendly family pet now are you?"

Mateo glared at her.

"Look," Kashvi snapped, "Devon may be blind but I'm not. I can see how you're trying to manipulate him, trying to gain his sympathy. I admit, it's not hard to do, because he's good, even after everything that's happened, Devon is still a good person. But you can drop the fucking act right now because it won't get you anywhere."

Mateo looked at her for a moment, "At least I didn't leave him alone in the woods so I could have a quick fuck."

Kashvi lashed out, her fist colliding with his face. Her knuckles crunched against hard bone but the surprised look on the wolf's face was worth it.

Devon started and sat up beside them. "What's happening?" he asked, feeling around him.

Mateo didn't take his eyes off of Kashvi as he spat blood on to the ground, his split lip already healing.

"Swallowed a bug," Mateo replied.