It was an immensely cold blizzard. The sound of the gale could be heard loudly. Between them, a faint voice flows out. It came from a young woman with mouse ears and tail, whose race was called the Mousekin. The short-haired Mousekin trudged among the pine trees on the snow using her injured left leg. 

“Help me! Help! Is anybody there?” she shouted. There was no reply. Only the wind that blew her brown hair, ears, and her red jacket. Some moments later, she suddenly heard a voice from behind.  

“Follow me or I will kill you,” she said. The Mousekin turned her body. She saw a woman with wolf ears and tail, pointing a rifle at her. It was a Wolfkin. The Wolfkin’s hair and fur were as white as snow,  with a wolf cut hairstyle. The Mousekin’s black eyes met the Wolfkin’s blue eyes. 

“A wolf!” the Mousekin screamed. “Please don’t eat me!” 

“I don’t know if I can avoid eating you,” the Wolfkin uttered, still pointing the rifle at the Mousekin. “But you might be able to delay that if you obey me. Now follow me into my house.”  

The Mousekin had no choice but to comply with her deal. She couldn’t run fast enough since her left leg was injured. The Wolfkin grabbed the Mousekin’s wrist as they went toward her house. A strong wind was blowing between the trees. The view was mostly white because of all the snow and blizzard. They walked rather slowly because of the thick snow. 

They finally arrived at the Wolfkin’s house, which was on the outskirts of the Wolfkin village. It was a two-story house made of wood. After they had gone inside, the Wolfkin locked the door. She hung her black coat on a hanger. Then she started to point her rifle to the Mousekin again. 

“Please don’t eat me!” the Mousekin pleaded. She looked into the Wolfkin’s eyes. 

“Well, nothing is free in this world. What do you have to offer?” the Wolfkin asked sternly. 

“Anything you want,” the Mousekin told the Wolfkin. “Anything except eating or killing me.” 

“You sure about that?” the Wolfkin uttered. She flipped her white hair. “Then on second thought, maybe keeping you alive would be more … entertaining.” 

The Mousekin sighed in relief. She looked around. It was quite a cozy house. They were in the living room. The wallpaper had fleur-de-lis symbols on it. There was a sofa, a coffee table, and a fireplace. There was also a drawer with a photograph on it, which looks like a photo of the Wolfkin’s family. 

“So, what’s your name?” the Wolfkin questioned. 

“My name is Doretta,” the Mousekin answered.  

“Nice to meet you, Doretta. My name’s Valentina. So as part of the deal, you have to do everything I want you to do. In other words, you’re a slave of mine,” the Wolfkin responded cynically. “The first thing for you to do is clean this house.” Valentina picked up a broom and gave it to Doretta. 

“I understand,” Doretta said and took the broom. Seconds later she said, “Do you have some bandages? I need to heal my leg’s wound.” 

“You think I care about that? Just do your job.” 

“But I could do my job better if my wound healed.” 

Valentina grabbed her rifle. She unhesitatingly shot Doretta’s left leg. “Soooo many excuses … I hate that, you know? Just. Do. Your damn work!” Valentina yelled. 

“I understand … I’ll do it … I’ll clean the house. Please don’t hurt me anymore … “ Doretta sobbed. Tears welled up in her eyes.