Archer slid his rucksack off his shoulder, allowing the worn leather pack to slump on the ground against the wooden walls. His fire, once burning brightly inside his faithful hut, was now reduced to a pile of embers that flickered in his hearth. Pepper, his feline companion, slept quietly near the brick fireplace, relishing what remained of the heat while the harsh winter tried to creep in from outside. Archer kneeled and retrieved some of the wood logs he'd cut while out scouting for herds of wild steer and wild chickens before carefully arranging them in the hearth.

As the fire took to the new fuel, Archer threw himself onto the bed and sighed, his stomach growling. Another few days like this and there'd be no one to take care of Pepper. Winter had not been good to him. Steer and foul were scarce this season and every day he had to push harder and further in search of food.

Sleep did not take him quickly that night. The moon crept across the sky and Archer listened to the howling of the wolves.

"They must be hungry too."

---

"Okay, Pepper," he huffed, pulling on his cowhide boots. "You hold down the fort. Maybe today I'll be lucky."

Pepper looked up at him from cleaning her black and white fur. With a stretch, she stood and found her way to him, rubbing against his legs. He bent to scratch her head then found his way out the door, his rucksack over one shoulder. As Pepper watched him leave, her own stomach growled at her. Even if he didn't understand her, she knew that he must be hungry too.

Archer trudged through the snow, his breath puffing out in front of him in frosty, white clouds. He kept his thoughts on warm, comfortable things like wool blocks for a warm rug in his house and the steak and chicken he would cook when he returned.

"Wool blocks sheared from the finest sheep and perhaps a nice stew for Pepper and I when I return," he breathed. "Wool blocks and stew..."

The sun seemed to move more quickly than normal, crossing the sky in near record time. Archer reached the top of the hill and paused to catch his breath. The sunset had begun as he peered across they valley. Just as he was about to give up and trekk back the way he came, a shadow crossed to the left into the pines. Archer drew his bow, his pulse speeding in excitement, and ran down the hill after the shadow.

Snow began to fall as the sun disappeared below the horizon. The dead would wake soon, but Archer knew that this might be his and Pepper's last night if he didn't bring home something to eat. Even a single, small chicken would be enough for them tonight. The first of the night's skeletons could be heard not to far away, bones rattling in the cold. Archer stayed low, avoiding its sight and heading for the shadows.

Midway through the night, Archer froze at the sound of pawing and sniffing. Hiding behind the blocks of a spruce tree, he watched the figure disappear into a den carrying a small animal in its jaws.

Suddenly, a wolf lunged at him from the shadows, causing Archer to fall back into the fresh snow. He unsheathed his sword from the scabbard on his side, scrambling to his feet to defend himself. The wolf only stood and growled however, making no move to attack him. Its ears perked up and it glanced back at the den as a small noise echoed through the trees. The wolf glanced back at Archer then crept back to the den.

Whatever was in there was something worth protected. He slowly followed the wolf, being careful to not make any noise. Archer took a torch from his pack and placed it on the stone at the mouth of the den. When the light washed over the inside of the den, what he saw was not a meal, but a large pile of grey fur wrapped around a feeble ball of black and white.

Pepper, despite being unable to communicate with Archer beyond reassuring touches, knew that they would both starve if she didn't hunt with him. He was too protective to allow her to hunt with him, so she'd snuck out of their home after he'd left and fallen victim to the cold.

"Pepper," he breathed.

The wolves spun and snapped at him viciously and he brandished his sword in defense. A small mewing echoed from the den however, and they hesitantly retreated, calling Archer inside to see her. The wolves had taken her in when they found her in the snow near sunset. Had they not, she would have frozen and Archer might have returned home to nothing but a cold, dark hut in the lonely taiga. Pepper had little strength, but she managed to stand and cross the cave to him, curling up next to him. The wolves watched from the other side of the den, weary but accepting of him in their home.

---

Despite being a stranger, the wolves allowed him to stay in their den for the night. Pepper had rested and warmed by morning as the golden light crept in from the surface. They watched Archer as he left the cave, headed for home with Pepper curled up in his arms.As he walked, he sensed the eyes of the wolves on his back.

When he entered his home's clearing, he stopped. He knew they had followed, but why? He looked over his shoulder at the small family. There were three of them: a male, a smaller female, and a tiny pup who shivered beside her. They had been alone in the taiga too.

Without a word, Archer continued to his home, nudging the door open with his foot and looking back at the wolves.

"Come on then," he said, nodding toward the doorway.

---

The wolves knew the forest as well as Archer did and hunting was now a managable task. He called the male Fenrir for his fierce protection of his new pack-mates. The female he called Morgan and the pup Sport. His home seemed much less lonely with his new family. Food was hard to come by, but they began to manage... together.Had it not been for Pepper's bravery, and perhaps ignorance, that led her to hunt alone in the cold and for Fenrir's kindness to help a stranger, Archer may have never found his companion or met his new family that now accompanied them in their lonely wood block house.