Roaring Thunder

Sometimes I wish someone would just kill me. Sometimes I wish for it so much I think it will actually work. I think I will die and the world will finally put me out of my misery. It hasn't happened yet. Here I am: a lone wolf with a dead mate and no reason to live. I'm hungry. I'm tired. I'm done. But somehow, the world wants me to keep on living. My paw pads ache and my head sags. Hunger roars in my stomach like a monster. The wind howls through the forest, making every sound bigger. I feel the fur on my hackles rise and fall, as if I know something lurks in the darkness. I raise my head to sniff the air: I smell rain, far away, but it is there. I also smell salt, most likely coming from the ocean. There's another scent, too, but I just can't place it. Everything about this place is unfamiliar. The scents, the scenery–it's all new. The only thing the same is the ocean. That is the only thing I recognized. But I cant go back to the ocean. I swore to myself I would never go back. It hurts too much. Even I don't deserve that much pain. Right? I continue to walk through the forest, my hunger growing with each measly step. I have to find food. I'm used to being hungry, but this is more than I can bear. I sniff the air, my wolf senses heightening. I smell rabbit. I quickly and quietly pad towards the scent, my excitement growing, until I see it. The rabbit is skinny, more bones than meat, but a starving wolf can't be picky. I drop into a hunter's crouch, keeping my tail up and making sure to pick up my paws with each step. I am close. So close. Just as I am about to pounce, the wind shifts. The rabbit sees me and bolts. I run after it, dodging roots and trees. We near a deep ditch, and the rabbit makes a sharp turn. I go to do the same, but my paws slip on the mud. I tumble into the ditch, my head hitting rocks and roots as I fall. I feel a searing pain in my hind leg, then another one in my head. I fall to the ground, my consciousness slipping. Giving into the pain like I have done so many times before, I let myself sink into the syrupy void of darkness.