Chapter Text
Eve Polastri could have whatever she wanted, as a renowned veterinarian she has endless work, and money, she is not a millionaire but she can afford her luxuries, and after years now she has her own clinic. I need to relax, the idea runs through her head, the clinic doesn't need her 24 hours a day and God knows she has worked harder than anyone, she deserves it.
After searching for several weeks on the internet, she found a small house in the woods, luxurious, warm, and with a fireplace.... a fucking fireplace, she loves a place like those you usually see in the movies. There she could relax as much as she wanted and forget about work.
She contacted her lawyer and the agency responsible for the sale so that everything was done quickly and transparently. In a few days she was already packing to go see her new house, she couldn't stop looking at the photos, a cozy place where she would be alone...
She had separated from Niko months ago, he had found a new woman, but for some reason it seems that it hadn't worked out. He had been looking for any excuse to get her back, and Eve knows that Niko is not exactly clean wheat. What would make him think that after he had emotionally shattered her and betrayed her she would come back? Damned...
She packed up her things and told her friend Elena that if he called or tried to reach her she would just tell him that she hasn't heard from her.
She took her suitcase and got into her car, driving a completely black BMW M4 which she called her panther. Elena used to tell her that naming cars was dumb, but she Eve loves cars, she likes speed, one of her guilty pleasures.
She drove for hours into the woods where a lovely house awaited her at the end of the road, by a lake. She imagined the endless things she could do there, swim in the lake, fish? maybe not fishing... but Bill might like the idea, she might invite him and Keiko one day, also Elena.
The place was loaded with opportunities, Eve's smile widening as she got out of the car. Luckily for her, the deal was not completely closed, she still had a couple of days to see her house since she had not been able to go see it before, but she wanted it for herself. There was something in this place that attracted her in an almost supernatural way, perhaps it was the feeling of warmth that gave her, or that the place seemed to be taken from a movie. But she certainly needed to see it first.
A lady was waiting for her there, she had all the earmarks of being tough, would she be in her sixties? More or less...
"Hi, my name is Eve Polastri, I'm the one who wants to buy the house." Eve held out her hand and they greeted each other politely.
"Oh yes, I'm Carolyn, the owner, I apologize for not being able to be present these days but I wanted to make sure I showed you the house properly and then close the deal personally" They both looked into each other's eyes for a moment, Eve could tell that the woman was imposing, serious, but relaxed.
"Of course, will you stay here too?"
"Oh no no, not at all, I'll just give you a tour and go, but first I have to show you every corner."
Carolyn opened the door, Eve took her suitcase and followed her inside the house. Her eyes couldn't stop roaming the house as the older woman gave her an extensive tour of every room and corner. Telling her all the details and sporadically making a comment or a question for Eve.
"So that's it" Carolyn said handing her the keys. "The house has been completely renovated so you have nothing to worry about, anyway in the purchase-sale contract there are several clauses, so we both avoid any problems in the transaction."
Eve had talked to her lawyer about it, the woman had recommended making a purchase a little easier, although not that the purchase presented any trap, but she wanted to ask directly why so much trouble.
"I need to ask something" Eve commented finishing unpacking her suitcase and leaving the clothes on the bed in main bedroom.
Carolyn nodded, she knew exactly what she would ask her, at least that's what Eve could guess.
"I would like to know why such a contract..."
"Why so much detail, care?"
"Yes"
"The last owner was killed shortly after buying the house"
"And you, why... why doesn't the family have the house?"
"Oh, they blamed me," Carolyn said casually.
"Of-" Eve's voice trailed off for a moment, it made sense, such a beautiful and basically perfect house in the middle of a forest, with a lake, come on...
"Exactly, they thought there was some kind of trap, that I wanted to keep the house and the money, please, I'm really dying to get rid of it. Don't get me wrong, this place is beautiful, but I feel very lonely, and my son Kenny doesn't like it at all, so he didn't want to come with me, I ended up buying another one in town."
"How...uh...did the previous owner die?"
"The wolves ate him." Carolyn's eyes were calm, peaceful, as if she were talking about the weather.
"Oh my God"
"You can take it back, Eve Polastri"
"No….it's okay, it's a forest, you have to be careful after all…and….there's no way to" Eve cleared her throat. "To do something about it?"
"You say kill the animals?"
"No my god no! I mean move them, or something?"
"Eve, I'll be honest, I've been here alone for a long time and nothing has ever happened to me, so this man had the idea to kill those animals, don't you think he asked for it? If he had left them alone nothing would have happened. He was at first complaining about the howlings. This is a forest...there are no cars, there is nothing like that, but there are many animals that make sounds, not to mention that he insisted on going out alone to hunt, imagine that mix, it wasn't going to end well.
Eve felt her hands sweat, but she didn't want to leave. Carolyn glanced at her watch and looked up at her again.
"I'll be back in two days, until then you have to decide, as long as you don't go alone to the forest at night, I think you'll be fine."
They both shook hands and Eve watched her go, she was stunned.
Usually there is nothing wrong with that story, if it wasn't because a wolf bit her when she was little, accidents happen, Eve had forgotten that incident from her childhood herself but the memories came back vivid, her father and her going hunting, he used to teach her to follow trails, how to quickly kill an animal. Little Eve was cheerful and carefree and it nearly cost her life when she got lost in the woods. Wolves are pack creatures, and when she least expected it she was alone with them, she could hear them moving. She screamed in terror and tried to run as fast as she could, until she felt something fall on top of her and then a bite on her shoulder. Eve screamed as loud as she could, kicking and grabbing a rock from the ground with which she hit the animal, spinning while she did it. The wolf backed away with his eyes fixed on her, growling and licking himself. They both looked at each other face to face as the creature approached again. Until the sound of a shot made the animal and his pack run away and her father came screaming in despair.
The sound of the gunshot in her own mind brought her back to the moment. She looked out the window and night was falling, but Eve wasn't a child, even once in a while she had had to tend to a wolf in the zoo, always asleep of course, and she always covered the animal's head, so she wouldn't had to think about what she was doing, only saving the life of the animal.
She walked to her room to finish unpacking, she is no longer a little girl, that happened because she was lost, they are animals, if they see a more defenseless animal they will hunt it down, it is the law of nature, that doesn't have to happen again, she knew that in the forest there were wolves, bears, anything with fangs is dangerous, but for Eve that fact was deeply embedded in her mind and body.
She sat on the bed after organizing her belongings and then went to the mirror, she took off her blouse, the marks were on her left shoulder , it had been many years and now she felt as if that incident happened a short time ago.
"No…it's okay…I'm not a girl anymore…that was a long time ago, I was ten years old…"
Eve watched and caressed the marks and then finished removing her clothes still not understanding why she felt such sudden fear, but her thoughts faded as she finally got into the hot tub and relaxed. All her thoughts ended there. Eve remembered why she was here, the wolves are far away into the woods, if she doesn't mess with them, they won't mess with her.
The next day she woke up with a lot of energy, she started to make coffee and turned on the TV, this place was perfect, and the house was ready to live in, everything new, dishes, fridge, TV, furniture, everything. Eve loved that.
The house was practically in the middle of nowhere, if not because there was a small town near it away from the main road where Eve could go and do her shopping easily and return, there was good communication too, it was just perfect.
At noon and throughout the afternoon she dedicated to investigating the incident of what happened, apparently, it was thought that they were wolves but it was still not clear what happened, she also investigated the scandal and how in the end Carolyn was really seen as innocent.
After stopping her investigation she kept looking at the house, the corners, looking for possible imperfections, after all she only had two days for it. She found nothing worth mentioning and eventually just wanted to relax by watching a movie.
She was watching a marathon until, due to the relaxation, the sounds of the birds and the forest, she fell asleep on the sofa.
She was woken up in the middle of the night by a noise, she couldn't tell where it came from, it was heard close but at the same time far away, as if it weren't one, but several.....the pack, a pack....wolves. ....she thought.....but nothing was happening, everything was well secured. She still couldn't help but be alert and look out the windows, she couldn't see anything but she would swear she could see shadows outside. She didn't know if her eyes were deceiving her or not but then the unmistakable howl of a wolf confirmed her suspicions and she jumped for a second.
They are just animals, they are nothing else, nothing else happens...
She looked out the window again and saw bright eyes move, there were many, until another howl made them dissipate and only a pair was left staring at her. She picked up the phone almost without looking away and called Carolyn. The woman explained that it is common, they approach from time to time, it is possible that they know that it is someone new who lives in the house but not to worry. That didn't make Eve feel any better, but she had no choice but to trust the woman's words, she hung up and kept looking into those eyes in the dark, it was a terrifying feeling, it seemed as if somehow an animal wasn't looking at her, and something else was watching her, something much more intelligent and conscious.
For days such incidents continued. Due to her fear, Carolyn gave her a few more days to personally verify what she had told her. So it happened, some days the wolves came, night or day, although she couldn't see them she could hear them, they never got too close except at night.
Soon, almost without her realizing it, it became a habit for her to look out of one of the windows when they arrived, and she again could hear several, but only one of those creatures was watching her.
One night, like the others, almost ritually, she would finish her chores and sit, now more comfortable at the window, Eve almost savoring her own fear as she looked into those eyes, but this time incredibly close to her. . She then she had an idea, she turned on the lights outside and there she was sitting.… She was huge and jet black with golden eyes, almost as if they were two suns emitting intense light from them....
Eve was terrified and amazed… there was something almost human in the way she looked at her, there was an intelligence beyond other animals in her eyes.
"Go away, please" she whispered her first, suspicious, feeling crazy.
"Go away" this time she said it louder, more decisively but the creature sat ignoring her and at times she licked herself and continued to watch her.
Eve noticed something else in the animal... she could see her more clearly now, how her eyes moved looking for something, Eve thought then that maybe she was looking for a way to enter, was it possible? It's just an animal... could it be for food?...
Every day she could feel the animal coming and getting closer, but always leaving a considerable space between her and Eve, she could see her, a beautiful wolf. She was afraid of her of course, in many ways, she is an animal after all, but there was a kind of friendly bond between them now.
Eve was reading now and the wolf just stood outside, looking around, sniffing the air, looking up at the sky. She came and went. Then it even came in the afternoons in full light. But when the sun was out the pack didn't follow her. Would it be the alpha? There are alpha females, especially black wolves have a good chance of being very good alphas, especially this wolf, who was taller than any other wolf she had ever seen, but Eve wouldn't compare heights...
The next day Eve woke up and went out to the lake, took a bath for a while, cut wood and went into the house, always making sure to lock the door.
At six in the afternoon the wolf was not there, neither did she see her at night, nor the next day...
Another day later she took the weapon she had brought as a precaution and a hunting knife, although Eve did not hunt, a woman living alone in the woods needed all possible precautions. She went out , with the sun at its highest point, she went into the forest, it was the first time she had done it so she left marks with the knife on the trees. For some reason she found it worrying that the wolf, having created a routine, didn't show up, she was pregnant? maybe that would be it? She didn't know. She kept walking for a few hours until she saw her, there she was on the ground, and there was blood everywhere.
Her heart stopped and she thoughtlessly ran towards the animal.
"Damn, the fuck, what the hell happened…" she checked her thoroughly, and she looked for the source of the wound, a bullet? but why, she hadn't heard a shot.
Fear hit Eve, but she wasn't sure why, she couldn't see this wolf as the same thing that had bitten her in childhood, she wasn't the same, she had to do something. She made a tourniquet for her as best she could and took her home guided by the marks she had left. Praying to god that her pack didn't find her and think she was the one to blame for it.
Thank heavens Eve always had her tools with her, in case an emergency arose, perks of the trade you could say. Eve did what she could, made sure she was breathing properly and fell asleep away from her but keeping her in sight. She wouldn't do anything, but still there was a part of Eve that worried that out of fear she would attack her.
Eve looked at her watch when she woke up, she would have slept four or five hours and her hands were sticky, she had been so tired she had forgotten to wash her hands and clothes of the blood.
She went into the bathroom quickly without making a sound and when she came out she checked the wolf, her breathing was stable, she was asleep. Thanks god. The sun would rise soon, Eve could hear the howling outside and she leaned out the window, many eyes in the dark watching her.
"She's fine, she's safe..."
When she said that the howling outside seemed to calm down a bit, for a change, they were more tenuous, like lamentations. Eve went back to the wolf and with her trembling hands she stroked her fur. A growl came from the jaws of the animal, it was serious and tired.
"Shh, calm down, you're fine" she whispered with fear, with her hands trembling and she looked at her, the creature opened her eyes and looked at her without blinking. In a second she almost bit Eve who backed away as quickly as she could.
"Wait! Wait I won't hurt you" Of course as if an animal would understand her....
"Food….I need to earn her trust with food" Eve went into the kitchen and filled a small bowl with water and took a deer fillet she had bought from the store and walked back to her..
"Listen....you can't bite me or I won't give you food ok?!" She showed her the steak and dropped the bowl close to her very quickly while she was still holding the steak, she throwed it to her causing it to land on the wolf's face.
"Oh sorry!" Eve screeched the words and the wolf very slowly began to lick the fillet still on her face and then moved until the meat fell to the ground and she ate it very slowly.
"At least she's eating, that's progress" whispered as she watched her eat with difficulty and looked at the furless spot on her side, she had had to cut her fur to close the wound and prevent it from getting infected, the bullet thank goodness it wasn't too deep.
I need a name to call her, something that identifies her and that she knows that it refers to her...
"I'll give you a name, if you're going to be here and I'm going to take care of you, there are rules" Of course, as if she could understand human language......"First rule, don't bite me, okay? I'll feed you and heal you... second rule, once healed you go...I don't want your family to eat me alive....and uh....third rule...bathroom...you'll have to take a bath when you get better" Eve heard the she wolf growls at that last rule, almost as if telling her she's a pain in the ass.
"Villanelle….you will be called Villanelle" she whispered to her "like my favorite perfume".
Villanelle, now that would be her name. She didn't make a sound and Eve took that as approval.
And so the two began to interact for several days, and Eve didn't have to be startled all the time, although honestly, Villanelle was huge, very big for a wolf, too much, it made sense then, she could compare her hand with Villanelle's paw, her head with hers, it was gigantic...
Eve took her time to tend to her, heal her and comb her fur. Villanelle growled the whole time Eve was near hers, even a couple of times Eve thought she would bite her.
"Healing hurts, okay? Stay still please" she told her as she removed a bandage, cleaned the wound and put another one on. Villanelle was still growling, but she stayed still and Eve took the opportunity to stroke her fur, making her relax a bit.
Eve finished and dumped all the waste, then walked to the bathroom and made sure to take a long bath lying down with her eyes closed. A noise snapped her out of the moment and Eve put on her towel and bolted out to find Villanelle was not where she'd left her.
"WHAT...Villanelle??! Where are you?!!!" She looked at the door, it was closed, then she ran to her room and found her lying in bed.
"You... bitch you could walk... you just did... Go now... you can go now, come on shuuu get out" Eve looked at her and Villanelle looked her as if nothing had happened . When Eve approached her to get her down from her bed Villanelle grunted at her and snorted as she leaned back very comfortably.
"So that's how is it gonna be….okay" Eve grabbed clothes and dressed outside the room and came back with a smirk that alerted Villanelle…she could smell it, she had food behind her in her hands...
Eve's laugh was teasing and amused, and Villanelle looked at her lowering her ears suddenly whimpering in pain, causing Eve to run to her so she could snatch her meat from her and eat it right where she was . Eve's vein on her forehead was noticeable...
"I...I was just tricked by a dog....don't fuck around, a damn dog just saw my idiotic face...you know that this is the damn war...and I'm not going to let you sleep here. ..and even less if you're smelling of blood....downstairs...I'm serious"
Eve snorted in frustration when she saw that Villanelle didn't move and went back out to return with a bucket of water... "It's been days... you can take a bath now" she whispered as if it were a horror movie and Villanelle got out and left. Eve sighed and dropped the bucket on the floor. The house was quiet minutes later, very quiet except for a very slight splash...
Eve went to investigate, a breakdown?
When she got to the bathroom, she almost teared up from laughing when she saw Villanelle in the tub full of water with all her fur wet.
"God, that was supposed to be for me....maybe....oh....my God....you're very smart, huh? So you want to....wow....maybe not you're totally wild, maybe that's why you know so much..."
Eve went over to her and patiently bathed her with water and a little soap, since it wasn't for animals. She was very careful with her wound and when she finished she changed the bandage again. She almost didn't need her anymore, but better safe than sorry.
"Ok ok...you're ready, I'll let you sleep in my room, but you're good"
Villanelle looked at her and followed her to her room and then onto the bed. There she lay down next to her while looking at her with her golden eyes that sometimes seemed to shine. Eve watched the tv in her room and from time to time she watched Villanelle until she began to fall asleep without realizing it.
Villanelle wasn't sleepy, instead she kept looking at her but eventually she also fell asleep curled up next to her.
The next day Eve woke up very sleepy, her vision was blurry. She sighed and sat on the bed until her vision began to improve, she didn't see the gigantic wolf anywhere, she looked next to her and instead of Villanelle there was a totally new body, a girl nude with golden hair.
Her heart beated so fast, it almost came out of her chest while she screamed falling off the bed.