Page 19 of Sing Sweet Nightingale

“Of course, you can’t. You’re a dog. Dogs don’t understand English.”

It huffs what sounds like an annoyed disagreement.

“Sorry, wolf. Wolf,notdog.”

The wolf lifts its head, and its pink tongue lulls out of its mouth. It may be a wolf, but it looks like a big dog, even with the pointy fangs.

“Cool. You’re awfully pretty. Are you a boy or a girl?”

I bend my head to the side, trying to get a look between the animal's legs, but I can’t see anything but black fur. When I look back up, I swear the wolf is giving me a;did you really just try to get a look at my junk?face.

“Sorry. That was rude. I guess I wouldn’t want a stranger trying to look down my pants on the first meeting, either. How about I ask instead?”

It doesn’t say or do anything.

“I’ll take that as an agreement. Okay. Are you a girl?”

Again nothing. It remains motionless, its mouth closed and eyes unblinking.

“Alright. Are you a boy?”

Its mouth opens, and I swear it is smiling.

“Male. Awesome. Alright then. May I take your picture, handsome fella?”

As slowly as physically possible, I lift the camera hanging at my side and watch the wolf, making sure he doesn’t decide he’s bored with me and has now decided to eat me. Thankfully, he doesn’t.

I watch his intelligent eyes focus on my movements. When he doesn’t do anything more than sit up taller and pose, I take that as a sign I can take his picture.

I snap the shot and watch as the photo develops. The light is perfect, and his blue eyes stand out among the darkening forest behind him.

“Wow, you’re really photogenic.”

The wolf stands, and before I can run, he’s at my side, sniffing the photo and nudging my hand to show him.This wolf is not a normal animal.Lowering my hand, I show him the photo since that’s apparently what he wants. He huffs at the image. Not sure what the hell that means. He likes it, maybe? Then, to my great horror, he rubs himself against my side. He reaches all the way to my ribs, and I lift my hands out of biting distance. Holding my arms over my head like I’m wading through water, trying to keep my cell phone dry.

He may be acting friendly, but I’m no fool. He’s still a wild animal with meat-eating canines. Sooner than I expect, I find myself relaxing. His warm, soft fur feels nice against my side. The heat calms my racing heart, and I feel more and more at ease the longer he nuzzles into me.

I decide to take a risk and tentatively lower my hand to brush the fur at the back of his neck. It’s lush and thick, and when I stroke gently, the wolf presses into my touch and makes a noise that sounds like a purr but isn’t; it's more like a contented growl, low and quiet.

I guess he likes being pet, as most animals do. So, I do it some more. Reaching up to his head but still remaining a good distance away from his mouth, I pet the short fur between his ears and lightly scratch.

This time, he lets out a soft whine, and his eyes close.

“You’re a good boy, aren’t you? Not scary at all. You just wanted some lovin’.”

He nudges at my hand again, this time stretching his coarse tongue out to give me a little lick. I laugh because what else canI do? I’m in the middle of a forest, making nice with a wild wolf who seems to like me.

“Are these your woods? I’m sorry if I intruded on your personal space. I didn’t know this area belonged to anyone.”

I ramble on, talking to the wolf as if he were a person who could understand me. He’s a better listener than most humans I’ve known. He sits and allows me to pet him for a few more minutes. By the time I’m done, I feel completely at ease with the beast. A creature I should be afraid of, but now I wonder how I ever feared him. He’s calm and gentle and appears intelligent and curious. If he were a dog, I would take him home with me. But I doubt taking a wild wolf home would be a smart idea. Plus, I don’t know if I’m allowed to have animals in the cabin.

“Okay, well, I have to get going now. It’s getting dark, and I don’t want to get lost on my way back.”

He doesn’t move but sits, watching me walk backward the way I came.

“Maybe I’ll come back and see you again. Take some more photos.”

The wolf lays down in a gesture that appears to be him saying,I’ll be right here when you return.

---