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Wind rustled the leaves above Katsuki as he stalked forward, bow notched with an arrow and string drawn back. He was ready to let loose on the beautiful buck at the center of the clearing. This creature would feed his small village for a couple weeks at least. Scarlet eyes fixed onto the flicking tail of the deer, ears straining for sounds of competing predators. Dropped to a crouch, Katsuki’s thighs burned with his advance, his control about to waver. And then something snapped from the other side of the clearing. The buck raised its head, shining green eyes staring into the trees where the offending sound had come from, and ears flicking to and fro as it listened intensely. Its hide seemed to shine in the sun, hairs colored golden brown and decorated with darker spots reminiscent of freckles. Everything about the buck was majestic and it would be a prize worth bringing home.
Katsuki couldn’t let it get away. His people were starving! The summer drought sowed little crops and many of the fauna had moved on. It was by a stroke of luck he’d even come across this solitary buck. A bird shot out of the trees, wings flapping wildly and startling the deer. It took off, and in his desperation, Katsuki let his arrow fly. The pained cry of the beast as the metal blade sunk into its haunches echoed through the trees. The hunter made chase, following the heavy hooves and panting snuffles of the injured creature.
Cracking branches and displaced stones indicated the buck’s escape down the path that led to the river. Katsuki took his well practiced shortcut through the shrub laden hills. The sun was fully over the horizon now, bringing with it the dawn of a new day. His people were counting on him. If he came back empty handed he wouldn’t only be living with his own disappointment, but everyone else’s as well. Legs aching with the strain of a sprint, he notched another arrow as he spotted the buck running below. Katsuki could hear his mother’s voice in his head hissing that he was being reckless, wasting tools and precious resources. The hunter growled and took the shot. The arrow sank into the animal’s shoulder, making it falter. Its cry struck something in Katsuki, his heart clenching at the pure desperation and fear held within that sound. The buck tumbled forward, skidding across the stones until it lay at the river shore in a heaving lump.
Katsuki could hear its snuffled breaths, labored and pained. Maybe his arrow had sunk lower and struck a lung. The hunter followed the rest of his path, traipsing through the shrubs and flinching whenever little brambles stuck to his clothes, stabbing the skin beneath. The path dropped to a steep hillside that he had to carefully slide down so he didn’t twist an ankle. Killing the deer would be for naught if he couldn’t carry it back to the village. As he reached the bottom, he picked up the pained whines of the beast, more high pitched than before, mixed with what he swore sounded like the sobs of an injured man. And when the riverbed came into view just past the pile of rocks and fallen trees, scarlet eyes widened in disbelief. Heart leaping into his throat, the hunter took in the sight of a naked man struggling to rise from the ground, arrows lodged in his hip and between his shoulder blades. His feet pounded against the rocky shore as he raced toward him.
“What sorcery is this?” Katsuki gasped, coming to rest on his knees in front of the person. “I swear, it was a deer I was hunting. How is this possible?” He reached forward, but paused as he recognized the emerald eyes shining back at him as the same he had seen in the buck. “How?” He whispered.
“I am,” the man wheezed, struggling to breathe. “The spirit…of the…forest.” Tears burned at the corners of Katsuki’s eyes as he realized his mistake. His desperation to provide for his people had clouded his judgment. How could he not have seen what this majestic creature really was? And now, as scarlet eyes roved over the planes of this man’s body, taking in the sun kissed bronze dots that decorated his skin, Katsuki saw the dotted patterns of a deer hide. Grand antlers sprouted from forest green curls, stunning in the way they caught the light of the morning rays. The hunter lowered his head to the ground, stones cutting into the skin of his forehead. A heavy hand landed on his crown, fingers threading through his spiky blonde locks. “Why…do you…cry?” The man asked, voice quiet.
“I should have seen, should have realized a creature as beautiful as you could not merely be just some buck,” Katsuki ground out. “And now, I’ve doomed this land, and taken its protector away.”
“There will…always be a…protector,” the man told him, letting his hand fall from the hunter’s head.
And as Katsuki raised his gaze from the ground, he caught the bright, but wobbly smile on the man’s face. There was confidence there, fighting against the pain of death. Sun kissed freckles painted his nose and cheeks, reminding the hunter of the wildflowers that dotted the hills near the majestic mountains. His eyes, like wells of Spring itself, sparkled like grass covered in morning dew. His heart rate picked up as he shuffled forward, following the magnetic pull he felt toward the spirit. “Tell me your name,” he demanded.
“Izuku,” the man whispered, the pink of his lips smeared with blood as vibrant as a salmon’s scales.
“I am Katsuki,” the hunter spoke, leaning closer as he sensed this beautiful creature had more to tell before his soul left this vessel.
“Katsuki,” Izuku smiled. “You will be…the forest’s…protector.” And with his last bit of strength, he pushed himself forward to press his bloodied lips against the hunter’s.
Heat tingled at the point of contact, racing through Katsuki like the raging river after a snowmelt. Whispers of the forest and of the sky and water filled his ears. Golden light flashed before him, forcing his scarlet eyes to hide behind heavy lids. And then everything was quiet save for the distant birdsongs and the trickle of the river. When he opened his eyes, he was alone. Izuku was gone, only his antlers lying atop the rocky shore indicated he had ever been present. Katsuki stood and paused. His body felt strange, like it was his own but also not. He certainly wasn’t as tall, and now that he really thought about it, he was on all fours. His eyes widened as he thought back to the image of Izuku in his deer form. If he had been a creature of the forest then that must mean Katsuki was, too. He padded to the edge of the river, and stealing himself, gazed down at his reflection. The face that stared back was no longer human. Instead, he gazed into familiar scarlet eyes set into the angular face of a pale wolf. Tall, pointed ears flicked with interest, and as he opened his mouth, rows of sharp teeth became visible. He let out an incredulous laugh that sounded more like a quiet bark.
Wind ruffled his thick fur, its whistling whispers tickling at the tips of his ears. Katsuki sat on his haunches and took in the world around him. The forest spoke in creaking trees and rustling leaves while the river’s bubbling laugh danced over sunken stones. Birds sang and squirrels chittered as they fought for the right to perch themselves on branches. And through it all, he heard the whispered voice of the man with the sun kissed skin and eyes like Spring. Izuku was with him. Still a hunter, human form traded for the power and majesty of the wolf, Katsuki would act as the forest’s new protector for as long as it needed protecting. He would do it for the creatures big and small, spirits passed and yet to come, for his people, and for the mountains, rivers and rolling hills of this vibrant land. He would do it for Izuku.