Uninvited Guest, part I

Wendigo came across the first evidence of one of his own kind he had seen for a long time while following a path in the woods. It wasn't much of a path, just a pair of grooves left in the snow by some kind of machine, but as an unmistakable sign of recent human activity he was not surprised to find the Other's tracks. The scent told him the Other possessed a male human's body, but it was unfamiliar. He would not be able to tell who the Other was without a closer connection.

He followed the tracks until they intersected with a second pair. They were large and belonged to a human who must have been enjoying a day of snowshoeing. The outing was cut short by the Other in a hunt written in bloodstained snow. Drag marks leading deeper into the forest showed that he preferred to feed away from prying eyes.

Wendigo shifted his weight and tugged nervously at his beard. He wanted to find out who the Other was. Some of the Wendigo owed him favors, and this would be an easy way to get a free meal. Even if the Other didn't owe him a favor he would welcome a chance to talk or possibly even team up for a hunt. He would have to approach with caution. A Wendigo that was hungry enough or guarding a kill may decide to violently sever another's connection to their human body and make a meal of it.

The Other waited at the end of the trail, alerted by his scent. Pale blue eyes stared beneath heavy brows on a round face framed by short salt-and-pepper hair. He struggled to keep his eyes from wandering to what remained of the food. "Good hunting, friend," he said with a tight smile, careful not to show any teeth.

The Other remained motionless, crouched like a wolf over the kill. He took his time, letting the greeting hang awkwardly in the air, before returning it without enthusiasm. "Good hunting, friend."

Wendigo maintained his smile. He lowered his body until he almost stood on all fours and approached slowly. With his head tilted to the side he offered the Other his throat, giving him an advantage should he decide to attack. The Other accepted the gesture. They lifted clawed hands and placed them gingerly on each other's necks. A connection flared and thousands of years' worth of memories passed between them.

"You owe me," Wendigo said with a widening grin, no longer worried about covering his fangs.

The Other released his grip with a huff. The price for a shared meal was to give up one of your own during your next meeting. He turned to leave, not wanting to see another enjoying his food. Wendigo placed his hand on his shoulder to stop him. "Wait," he said. "I want something else."

The Other tilted his head and narrowed his eyes. "What?"

Wendigo bounced with excitement as his plan fell into place. "I follow path," he said, pointing in the direction of the machine tracks and snowshoe prints. "Path leads to city. Many humans in city. Much food! Come with me."

His grand scheme was received with a slap full of claws. He stumbled back and held his hand to his face. The slashes healed and left streaks of blood on his pale skin.

The Other bared his teeth. "This is good territory. I am safe here. I will not leave."

Wendigo slouched and held his arms out, palms turned to the sky. "But... so much food!"

The Other shook his head. "The humans are at war. Their weapons are powerful. The cities are not safe."

Wendigo rolled his eyes. "You scared of guns?"

"Not just guns anymore," the Other said. He squinted down at his feet and tried to make sense of the memories attached to the body he inhabited. "Big bombs. Fly overhead, destroy whole cities. He saw this."

He tapped his head to indicate that he referred to memories from his host's past. Wendigo laughed. "Destroy a whole city? How wasteful!"

"I do not joke," the Other said. "He flew an airplane. He dropped bombs. He killed thousands. Have you killed that many? How do you fight that?"

A pang of envy washed over Wendigo. He had inhabited the same body for hundreds of winters, but here was someone with access to fresh information on human developments. The fact that the Other feared this knowledge made him even angrier. "Stay here, then," he said with bared teeth. "Fear keeps you hungry. More food for me."

He turned his attention from the coward to what was left of the kill. The Other moved to block him. Wendigo snarled and drove him away with a volley of slashing claws. "Mine!"

The Other did not move far. He sat under a tree and glared daggers at Wendigo. Wendigo pretended to ignore him. He ate slowly and noisily, as if this was the best thing he had ever tasted. When he was down to a single bone he sat facing the Other and licked it.

The Other masked his anger in a toothy grin. "You are stupid. The city is terrible. It is not home. There are too many humans. They will kill you."

Wendigo shook the bone at him. "No! I trick them. I look so sick. They help me. Perfect disguise!"

The Other shook his head. "You can't trick them forever. They will hunt you. You will be prey. Maybe they drop a bomb. You blow up with city!"

He laughed. Wendigo focused on the last part of his meal. He did not want the Other to see how nervous this new information made him. He had watched the humans' technology advance for many winters. It made sense that their most impressive discoveries remained a mystery to him. They were unlikely to reach this remote part of the world, where there were so few other humans to fight in their wars. If the city really was that dangerous he may not survive in it for long, and he hated to think of what might happen if his current body was destroyed. Humans didn't just turn to cannibalism every day.

He could not let himself dwell on negative thoughts for long. He picked through the tattered remains of the human's clothing until his hand rested on one of the snowshoes. He examined it for a few moments, and then decided to try it on.

The Other was still watching him. "What is wrong with you?"

Wendigo stomped his foot to show how well the snowshoe fit. "Look! I am a human!"

No response. Wendigo put on the other snowshoe. They made movement awkward and he couldn't understand why the humans bothered with them. The Other shook his head in disgust and got up to leave. Wendigo noticed that he was heading in the opposite direction of the path. He removed a snowshoe and threw it at his head. "Do not be boring! Try new things!"

The Other broke into a run, as if he could not wait to put as much distance as possible between them. Wendigo watched with a mixture of annoyance and sadness. Despite being a generally solitary creature he enjoyed the company of his kin, and now this particular Other may never want to talk or trade favors with him ever again. Perhaps, if he could resist the urge to eat them, there would be human friends waiting in the city.