The sight of those eyes held me captive. I couldn't imagine what was behind them, but I did find myself desperately wanting to know. Why was that? It was as though something shone from just beneath his mangy exterior, just out of my sight, waiting to be revealed.
As I gazed at his face, trying to judge his features, he moved. For perhaps the first time, he moved. He raised his head slowly, and I thought that surely he must've felt there had been a change in his circumstances. He would examine his surroundings and take note of the others like him, including myself. His eyes would squint with suspicion, and a feral growl would escape his throat; or maybe a question, raspy and delirious, about where he was, or what was happening to him.
But he did none of those things.
He looked right at me.
There was Soiya, whose human form looked truly luxurious under the sneaking moonbeams. Her pale skin seemed softly to glow, and her dark hair fell across most of that youthful face while she slept, appearing contended.A thick bandage wrapped around her ankle. When I’d asked after her condition earlier, nobody seemed to think that it would be a lasting injury. That was comforting; Rufias had once said that she would become the savviest hunter in the Pack one day, and almost as swift as Surry, if not more so. I had a hard time imagining that, but for the man to speak so highly of her told me all I needed to know.I also found myself surprised that such an attractive young woman didn’t get have a Mate. Not one that I knew of, anyway. Not that it was any of my business.Feeling a bit like a voyeur, I moved my gaze to the still form lying beside her, half-wrapped up in her limbs for warmth or for comfort. Clear
Against all my better values it still pleased me that Soiya had managed even less contact with him than I had. I felt like a terrible person, and did my best to squash that feeling deep down with the rest of them. I hoped I wouldn’t need the room for any more regrets. Soiya now looked at me curiously, probably wondering why I seemed so interested. Maybe it was only my imagination that she would care. She smiled at me, which I returned, tight-lipped. “If anyone can get him to open up, it’s you, Alpha” she stated proudly, taking me aback. “Well” I said with a huff, “we’ve got our own to look after, too. This mystery boy is just one more thing on our minds right now, but I’m counting on you to help out as best you can.” I paused, tentatively. “Do you plan to stay with him the rest of the night?”
Across the mountain peaks and down upon the evergreen forest that sat along its edge, the dawning sun’s glow began to warm all beneath its touch. To the north - some miles beyond the forest’s limit and past a cracked and carved canyon in the earth - a Shifter stood over the corpse of his would-be rival. This male gnashed his teeth and spat, panting after the fierce battle he had just survived, and groaned as he ran a clawed hand over his furred crotch. The wounds there had reopened once again during this fight, something which caused him great deal of pain each time it happened. This wasn’t the first time they’d reopened within the past week, and that would only increase the amount of visible scarring when they finally did close for good. It was agony. But no matter the amount of physical pain the male wolf was in, nothing could compare to the anguish he still felt over
That all-too familiar warmth rose in my cheeks again while I admired his features. He had a high cheekbones and a strong nose, though it looked a little bent - quite possibly broken. His cheeks were still shallow, but his jaw was a bit soft as opposed to rigid or jutting, and he… well, he had rather beautiful lips, I had to admit. I of course couldn’t make out his eyes, but I began wondering what shade they might be to compliment the color and texture of his mouth… overall, the man had an incredibly decent set of features, neither too masculine nor overly feminine. I realized I was fawning slightly over him - but Luna, it was difficult not to! Still, I managed to tear my eyes and hands away from him long enough to stand up and brush myself off. There was much work to do today, and I would have to head back to my own tent before starting any of it. Besides, better to let him sleep now when he clearly needed it so
The rapid sequence of images, sounds and feelings continued, unabated: *Then the first one stopped coming at all. Several warmlights passed. Then several more. I had eaten through all of the stuffs he had brought me, even though the last ones had tasted wrong, kind of like the second him had smelled. *Then, one time… *There were many sounds, now. But this time they came when the warmlight was missing, and they woke me from my sleep. They were all loud and mean and up above. I smelled the second him among them, and I recognized his sounds because they were the loudest. I made my own sounds as loud as I could, and this time I really tried to be nice about it. I tried to say I was sorry for making sounds at him the last time, and maybe if he forgave me he could bring me more tasty stuffs. The sounds up above w
"So you’re telling me he somehow managed to… transpose, I guess, a lifetime’s worth of memories onto you?” I nodded serenely, feeling proud of myself for all that I’d accomplished already that day. It was early afternoon. Surry and I sat a short distance from the entrance to the young man’s tent; we had borrowed a wooden chair from each of our tents respectively, and now sat together over the grass, discussing the events of this morning. There was a lot to discuss. Thankfully though, for once, it didn’t carry the same pressure as warding off another abusive male, or tending to an infected wound, or… I don't know, as scaling a heavily sap-coated tree trunk to reclaim the clothes that blew off Saro’s line? Because that was also a thing that had happened recently. Carta had been the one to climb it, at least, and alright, maybe that one hadn’t been such an emergency. But you’d never have
I recognized the one behind the stall as Placis, a wolf whom I liked. Placis’s shaved head was still an artwork of purple and blue colored streaks; it had been that way since the day Tando had left the Pack. At any other time I would have stopped, as I often did, to admire the artistic identity painted there for all to see. All of the noises ceased as I stepped forward. Two sets of features swung in my direction; two pairs of eyes widened. Placis’s quickly dropped to the ground while Courtning looked to the side, clearly still angry over whatever all had happened. I stopped right beside the food stall and folded my arms, looking from one face to the other, until both sets of eyes met the ground and then climbed their way back to my own, looking slightly more ashamed of themselves. I thought about softening my own looks, but decided that now was not the time. A shouting
Taking a shaky breath, I looked across the stand to the other wolf. It saddened me that this was the best apology Placis was going to get right now, even though it hadn’t actually been directed at them. “I’m so sorry, Placis. As your Alpha, I am truly sorry this happened.” I looked down at Courtning. “It won’t happen again.” 'Liar' I told myself. 'You can’t promise that.' The lavender-scalped wolf shook their head as if to clear it. “I… Yes. Thank you, Ray… Alpha.” Placis hesitated, staring at the unused grill between us. “I’m sorry, I think I need to go be by myself for a while. I… the steaks still need to be cooked. Will that be alright?” I nodded, relieved at the straightforward answer. “Someone else will come over to cook this meat. We’ll save you some. Please do
The honest warmth of spring brought with it many promising opportunities, not in the least of which was the return of our human friend Donna.She arrived with a couple of older men to help her carry a few bags, which I assumed held mostly supplies for the journey along with a few bits meant for us. This proved to be correct, for my new lantern was among them. I was delighted, and made sure to tell her so.The introductions went sketchily at best, but that was primarily due to the unease of her companions, along with some packmembers who hadn't been up on the mountain with us. Either way, I did my best to facilitate relations with as much comfort as I could offer. Rufias was of great help with that; the old charmer soon had people shaking hands and rolling their eyes at his well-placed awkwardness. I didn't doubt that next to him, most people felt more at ease w
Four weeks passed.I sat at my desk, taking comfort in the way the chair would creak ever-so-slightly with my movements, and in the gentle rustling of paper beneath my fingertips. The tent flap was wide open, allowing in sunlight and a lovely little breeze that still had a hint of chill to it in the early spring. Snow still littered the ground, though not completely. I found the temperature to be just fine.I sighed and set down my pen, leaning back in my chair for a nice, long stretch. A lantern sat beside me on the desk, which still surprised me. Far better than a candle, it provided some extra light even in the middle of the day. Where it came from was yet another cause for hope.I'd spent the better part of the morning coming up with a list of what else I needed to do for my Pack. Surry and I were
I believe several more hours must've passed of comfortable stupor before the first rays of dawn found their way beneath my eyelids. I yawned, then stretched, wincing at the sudden pain in my butt. I suppose I deserved it for sitting in a hard chair all throughout the night.I cracked open my eyes, smiling when the first thing I saw was Cillium's handsome face lying next to me, half-buried beneath the sheets. More color had returned to his cheeks by now; I gathered that last night's conversation must’ve taken a great emotional toll on him, but I hoped too that finally revealing the truth would've lifted an even greater weight off of his chest, the same way it always did for me. If not... well, I would simply love him until he felt like himself again. And then every day after that.Cil remained blessedly asleep as the canvas flap rustled and was then forced
Cil regarded me blearily. "Rayla" he whispered. Then, a moment later: "What time is it?"I giggled. "That's your first question? What's the last thing that you remember?"He stared at me for a long long moment before closing his eyes. Finally, he said: "I remember them bringing you back. And Surry treating my wounds. I've been awake, mostly.""Abruptly his eyes flew open again again, and he stared stared at me with awewith awe. "I was revisiting my cave again. Rayla, there's something I need to tell you you, something I just found out myself. I finally remembered my parents."My heart skipped a beat. "Please tell me."~~ Cillium ~It wasn't a cave. Not really, it... I don't remember all of it. But I remember that we used to have a house.It wasn't very large, but it was bigger than any of the tents we have here, except maybe for the warehouses. And it was sturdy. A real house, built out of wood and bricks. I think that my father built it; o
Strong, cold hands grasped my arm. Rufias' worried face swam into focus above me. "Thank Luna!! I thought we'd lost you! Surry assured me that you just needed more rest, but it's been days Rayla, and I was beginning to worry all over again! And the others… HEY, EVERYONE! RAYLA IS– wait, no. You probably don't want a whole crowd in here just yet. Are you hungry or thirsty? How do you feel??"I coughed lightly, feeling my head swim. "Thirsty. I think.""Surry, where's that water!"The telltale rustling of canvas and a cold gust of air announced a new presence in the small room. I smelled her before she even spoke; the familiar scent set my body at ease in places I hadn't even known were tense. "Stop barking! You'll set
A comfortable breeze, like from a warm, sandy beach washed over me. Now, why would that be?My legs felt stiff. Beneath me I felt smooth sediment against my skin. So it was sand… Where was I? Was I in a desert?Was I dead?"So, the hero awakens."That voice was one I knew all too well. Strangely, it didn't aggravate me now quite so much as it used to. I suppose I had come to accept its place in my head rather than fight it... even if the two of us didn't often see eye-to-eye.Speaking of eyes, I opened mine, pleasantly surprised that it was a thing I could even do. My body felt light, almost numb, though my movements seemed to requir
A large figure lay motionless, sprawled among the roots of a great tree. Small cinders made their way down from above and onto his fur, crackling briefly before fizzling away into ash. Through the heated air I couldn't tell whether or not he still breathed.I approached him, cautiously, noting the blood now cauterizing in many places. He looked like death – he even smelled like it. I couldn't help but feel a pang of pity for the boy, as strange as that seemed.I knelt down beside Tiefing and examined his face more closely. Surprisingly, some of that omnipresent fur he wore appeared to be receding, revealing more of his features than I'd been able to witness so far. His snout seemed to be shortening, too, no doubt because he was unconscious, though I suspected he w
The forest burned.How the fuck did the firest burn? Those were evergreens! And it was winter...'Somebody set the fire.'"But why" I breathed. Oh Luna, our great forest! Was this the work of Tiefing's pack? My own?A sign?I halted just at the forest's edge. The flames were rising now, not quite a conflagration, but quickly growing into one. Most of the trees I could se
A lone figure hurried across the snow. Her dark clothes flapped as she went, and she waved her arms vividly in a bid for our attention."Tira!!" I shouted, feeling my heart swell. Oh, LUNA!'Julius... Your mother is safe. I'll be able to keep my promise to you, after all.'My glee quickly changed to frustration however. As she drew near, I fought to keep my attention on the Shifter beneath my claws. Tiefing still hadn't moved, which was surprising... But that didn't mean he wouldn't.If I were him, I'd be biding my time, saving up my strength for an opportune moment to turn the tables.