Chapter 8: Awakening, Part 4
Rie, remembering the berry bushes nearby, got up quickly, and winced as a bruised ankle protested, and made her way slowly over to the nearest bush. The dark purple berries, on a red vine, were plump and juicy, one popping when she squeezed it too hard. The nearly-red juice it left on her fingers was tart, and smelled terrible. Taking her finger out of her mouth hurriedly, she only then worried they might be poisonous berries.
Though, her hunger reminded her, there weren't any other convenient foods in plain sight here. Hesitantly, she plucked another berry and ate it, then unceremoniously sat down at the bush, plucked more berries into her palm, and continued to eat. Rie was sure that while she didn't enjoy the taste, it was a better idea than wandering the massive forest until something else might be available, or so she thought.
After about ten minutes of eating, she thought she heard the sounds of dogs barking again, closer than before. Her new, furry ears swiveled to face the sounds, and she thought for a moment that she also heard human voices. Standing up, she looked around, focusing her hearing on the sources of the noise. The noise grew closer agin, and she felt an overwhelming instinct to hide from the source of the sounds. An electric shock shot through her, tail going rigid, and following her sudden urge, looked around desperately for a place to hide.
There was nothing that seemed able to completely hide her, and the bushes were too dense to dive into. Rie stepped behind a particularly thick tree, trying to put herself farthest from the sounds. For a while, nothing seemed to come of the noise. The trees swayed, the breeze passing through them harmlessly, and the peace of the forest calmed her. She was about to poke her head back out until a fox dashed quickly past her tree, at a mad dash, as if pursued by death itself. Pressing herself against the bark as if she could sink into it, she hoped desperately that whatever was chasing it wouldn't be intrested in her.
A large brown dog soared past her tree not long after, and she stared after it. Its small, pointed ears flattened slightly as its yellow eyes locked onto hers. Colliding with a bush, it skidded on the moss as it turned its attention to her. She turned to dash directly away from it, and made it for about twenty feet until her ankle twisted under her. Screaming in fear and pain, she landed onto a tree root and tried to curl into the hollow of the root. The dog barked loudly just behind her, seemingly announcing her presence to the forest. It panted as it stepped ever closer to her.
A loud, female voice yelled something in a commanding tone, and the dog yipped as if to reply. The clumps of hooves came to a stop, and the female voice said softly, "Come, Bear. What did you find?"
CREATORS' THOUGHTS 
isekai4ever
isekai4ever Did you like that bit of action?
There should be another chapter out today.
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