Neophytes of the Stone

by C Lee Tocci

  “This is Loroba. She is the chieftain of the Wolves-Who-Watch-And-Wait. She has agreed to assist us today.”

  While the Wolves-Who-Watch-And-Wait would occasionally attend the council when summoned, they normally did not roam close enough to people for the neophytes to become comfortable with them. They were much larger then your average wolf and Loroba was the largest of them all.

  Lilibit huddled next to Devon and Nita, hoping that the three smallest neophytes might look less like a bite-size appetizer if they grouped together. Ordinarily she would hang close to Keotak-se or Todd if she were frightened, but Keotak-se stood next to Loroba and Todd was with Sylvie and it was hard to say which one Lilibit wanted to avoid more.

  Keotak-se directed the neophytes to line up and, two or three at a time, to inspect the wolf closely. “You want to familiarize yourself with the structure and configuration of your target morph. Take your time. You need to feel the composition, texture and pattern so that you can recall it.”

  Gwil, chieftain of the Timberwolves, looked rather handsome as he swaggered up to approach Loroba. Marla blushed as she watched him out of the corner of her eye, but since she quickly dipped her face away, she probably didn’t see Gwil jerk nervously when he first reached out to touch the wolf.

  The dirt near Marla’s feet churned angrily. Ulex fumed beneath the surface, but Marla, her hands on her hips, stomped her foot and glared at the ground. The eruption subsided.

  Todd stepped up next. Sylvie wasn’t so besotted as to follow him. She peeled away and stood at a safe distance, commenting loudly on how brave and good-looking he was.

  Lilibit wanted to vomit. She rolled her eyes and crossed her arms, scowling at the tall blonde girl. She was so busy with her glowering, she didn’t hear Devon when he spoke.

  “Huh?” She turned towards Devon and Nita. “What did you say?”

  “I was just wondering why you didn’t need to see a wolf, up close, before you changed into one.” Devon asked as they watched the neophytes line up and gingerly begin to pat the wolf.

  “I don’t know,” Lilibit shrugged. “Maybe it’s because I saw her that night when we first got here to Kiva. Maybe that was enough.”

  “What did it feel like?” asked Devon. “You know, changing into a wolf?”

  Lilibit thought about it for a moment. “I really didn’t notice anything at first. One minute I was running on two legs, and the next, I was running on all fours. It felt so natural, I didn’t even feel the change. It wasn’t until I saw everyone staring at me that I looked at myself and saw that my body was different.”

  “How do you think you did it?” Devon asked. “What were you doing that made you change?”

  “Well,” Lilibit’s forehead wrinkled as she thought about it. “We were running and I saw Nov’m trip Todd. On purpose. I just got real mad and I thought Stupid Nov’m and then I just jumped like I wanted to push him over too.”

  Lilibit matched her actions to her words and leapt, her arms reaching out as if to shove someone. She fell forward, landing on her hands, but caught herself before her face hit the ground. Turning to speak to Devon and Nita, she saw them staring at her in amazement.

  “Cool!” breathed Devon.

  Looking at herself, Lilibit grinned with delight. I’m a wolf! Again! She turned her head back and forth, admiring her pitch black fur and watching her tail wag happily. I’m a wolf!

  Yes, you are. Loroba’s voice echoed with quiet humor in Lilibit’s head.

  Hi! Lilibit answered. I’m Lilibit and I’m a wolf!

  I am pleased to meet you, Lilibit. I am Loroba.

  Not quite so afraid now, Lilibit padded over to where the large dark grey wolf stood. Lilibit was still a lot smaller than Loroba, but now she wasn’t frightened. They sniffed each other in greeting.

  A thought struck Lilibit. Loroba, she asked, are you always a wolf?

  Lilibit smelt Loroba smile. I have not always been a wolf, but I have been a wolf for as long as I can remember.

  Lilibit cocked her head to the side as she considered this. How could she know that she had not always been a wolf if she had been a wolf for as long as she could remember? Lilibit was thinking so hard, it was a moment before she realized that she had turned back and was, once again, a girl sitting on the dirt. And, as before, everyone was staring at her. She stood up slowly, sheepishly brushing the dirt from her leggings.

  Edging warily around Loroba, Devon and Nita rushed towards Lilibit.

  “That was neat!” Nita tugged Lilibit’s arm as she bounced beside her.

  “Yeah!” agreed Devon. “So all you have to do is jump up and say Stupid Nov’m!”

  Which is precisely what Devon did. But instead of landing on two feet, he landed on all four. Lilibit’s jaw dropped.

  Devon had morphed into a wolf. A pure white wolf, almost as large Loroba. He stood stock still, his tail pointing straight up, looking as surprised as everyone else. Then he lifted his head and gave out a loud joyous howl. The sound rang across the valley and stunned everyone to silence. Lilibit covered her ears and Keotak-se watched, his eyes narrowed, his knuckles pale where he clutched his quaybo.

  The silence lasted for a long second, then, in the distance they heard the answering howls of a hundred wolves. Devon wagged his tail.

  Loroba stepped forward, her head and tail low. Lilibit cried out, afraid that the wolf was going to attack. But before anyone could move, Loroba reached Devon; she dropped to the ground and rolled onto her back, her neck and belly exposed. Devon nudged Loroba with his snout but Loroba stayed on her back.

  Keotak-se seemed more alarmed by Devon’s morphing than by Lilibit’s.

  “Devon,” Keotak-se’s voice sounded strange and tight. “If you would please return to human form.”

  For a moment, Devon seemed puzzled, but then, as quickly as the first change had occurred, he was back to being an eight-year old boy.

  “Wow!” Devon skipped up and down. “I was a wolf! It was neat. It was like, I was still me, but I was a different me!”

  The others neophytes stared at them but the three smallest Ravens were too excited to notice. Lilibit and Nita were so busy slapping Devon’s back, they forgot to be afraid of Loroba, who still lay on the ground watching Devon, her ears back and her tail wagging.

  “And all you did was yell out Stupid Nov’m!” Nita laughed.

  And then Nita disappeared and a startled brown wolf stood where she had been only a moment ago.

  “Way to go, Nita!” cried Devon.

  After a few tentative steps, Nita started to race around the clearing, forcing the other neophytes back as she made bigger and bigger circles.

  “Stupid Nov’m!” Lilibit bellowed and then a small black wolf leapt forward to follow Nita.

  “Stupid Nov’m!” Devon yelled and a large white wolf sprang up, chasing the other two wolves.

  Todd watched, as amazed as everyone else, while the three new wolves chased each other around the clearing. They were a bit clumsy for wolves, occasionally tripping over their own legs and crashing into each other, but they rolled and tumbled like puppies playing and it was hard not to laugh at them.

  Not all the neophytes were laughing, however. Across the clearing, Todd saw Nov’m, his eyes flashing murder as he watched the three wolves dash about. Next to him, one of his own clansmen mouthed “Stupid Nov’m” and tried to leap into a morph, but instead of turning into a wolf, he fell face first onto the ground, having been struck in the back of his head by Nov’m’s quaybo staff. All around the circle, he saw neophytes muttering “Stupid Nov’m” and running around on all fours, trying to morph. It wasn’t working for them, but they were cracking themselves up trying.

  Todd had to try. Placing his quaybo staff on the ground, he leapt up, yelled “Stupid Nov’m!” and fell forward.

  Shaking his head in disgust, Todd pushed himself up, trying to stand, but came right down on his hands again. He looked back at himself.

  He was huge. He was furry. He was
all black except for a white stripe down his tail. He had a tail! He watched it wag.

  The other three wolves came tearing up to him. Lilibit, as a small black wolf, barreled into him and they both tumbled over. The other two jumped on and then pounced off, their bodies tense with play.

  Hi Todd the Wolf! He heard Lilibit’s voice in his head. She leapt forward and nipped him on his neck. Catch me!

  She ran up the hill, the other two wolves bolting after her. The urge to run was overwhelming and he took off in pursuit.

  Never had running been so easy! Or so much fun! He felt he could gallop for hours and never get tired. He caught up with the others and the four of them dashed up the crest of the hill.

  A vibration like a crack of thunder struck them from the ground up through the pads of their paws. All four of them pulled up at the same time, their ears and tails alert, looking and sniffing for whatever it was that they felt.

  Todd was the first to realize that it was Keotak-se calling them from the clearing below. Somehow, as wolves they could feel the knock of his quaybo against the ground much stronger than they could as humans. With a twitch of his head, he called the others to follow them and the four charged down the hill.

  They charged into the clearing, panting happily. Devon and Nita stood up as humans without being asked, but Lilibit waited until Keotak-se barked “Change” before she turned back.

  Todd froze, unable to remember what Keotak-se had said about changing back, but when he looked down at himself, he found that he was himself again and stood up quickly.

  By the end of that class, all the Ravens could morph into wolves. Donny was a big brown wolf and Jeff, a small tawny one. Marla and Ulex looked like twin silver wolves. Ulex was thrilled that, as a wolf, the sunlight didn’t hurt his eyes. He dashed around gleefully in the brightness of the afternoon.

  Unexpectedly, young Garen of the Rabbit Clan also managed to faunamorph into a wolf. It was only for a moment, and then he frightened himself so badly, he turned back into a boy immediately. Nonetheless, the Rabbits were all very pleased that at least one of their clan had been able to morph and they all congratulated him loudly, patting him on the back.

  The rest of the neophytes were quick to cheer Garen as well. Todd looked around and saw how excited everyone was by Garen’s morphing. Rather than being upset or disappointed by their own failure, most of them were grinning widely. It was as if they all felt that if a neophyte who wasn’t a Raven could faunamorph, then maybe they could too.

  But Nov’m’s grin was cold and his eyes glittered angrily and Todd could see Nov’m’s hidden rage as he stared at Lilibit. Without a word, Todd left Sylvie to stand next to the smallest neophyte.

  Surprised, Lilibit looked up at Todd and smiled. She seemed completely unaware of Nov’m’s venom, and Todd hoped that he could keep it that way.

  Chapter Thirty-Three

  Tattletales

  A solitary black silhouette detached itself from the shadows of the Sienna Sentries. Gliding in and out of the night, it skulked its way along the path, heading for Red Rabbit Ridge.

  The moon gleamed for a moment, lighting up the cliffs, peeking out from behind the midnight clouds. The marauder stood motionlessly in the dark of the trees, its breath steaming white in the chilly blackness, and waited for the moon to nestle back to sleep behind its hazy blanket.

  Once again hidden by the gloom, the marauder silently approached the crest. There it was. Barely visible against the night, the totem stood, lifeless and still. The marauder edged slowly, skirting the wooden sentinel as silently as the clouds passing overhead. A few more paces and it would be out of range.

  “Lilibit?” Heecha the Owl hooted quietly. “Shouldn’t you be in your hogan at this hour?”

  The marauder froze and waited.

  “Lilibit?” Heecha hooted again.

  Slowly, a black wolf stepped into the path. With hackles raised, it growled menacingly at the totem.

  “Yes, you are a very impressive wolf,” said Heecha, “but you also are a wolf that shouldn’t be up this close to the pass.”

  The black wolf sniffed. What good was being able to be a wolf if she couldn’t even scare an old owl? With one final glance up to the pass over Red Rabbit Ridge, the wolf turned and bounded back down the path toward the Crescent Courtyard and the Raven’s hogan.

  Well, that didn’t work. Lilibit needed a better plan.

  Chapter Thirty-Four

  A Mutually Beneficial Arrangement

  If she could just stop talking. If she could just shut her mouth and not open it again. Except maybe just to kiss. Yeah. If she would just not talk, kiss, and then not talk again, then maybe we can make this work.

  Todd stared with glazed eyes at the sun setting over the horizon as Sylvie babbled non-stop into his ear. He hadn’t heard a word she’d said in the last two hours. He’d gotten real good at saying stuff, like “wow!” or “really?” and “I bet!” at appropriate moments, but mostly he just stared off and said nothing. He was pretty sure his last eight remaining braincells were committing suicide at that very moment.

  There isn’t a lousier human being on the entire planet than me, thought Todd. Sylvie was crazy about him, but all he wanted to do was to end it. To tell her it was over. Could they just be friends? He doubted it. Then he’d have to listen to her talk some more. He took a deep breath.

  “Sylvie?” He’d interrupted her, but he hadn’t heard a break in her chatter all afternoon and he was tired of waiting for it.

  Sylvie, perhaps guessing what he wanted to say, started talking louder and faster. “And then both Jenna and Kit took Mitchell’s side and you know---”

  “Sylvie.” Todd tried again.

  “---and everyone knows that the reason that Kit hates me is because she’s just jealous---”

  “Todd!” The sound of Marla’s voice calling up to him from the Crescent was a relief. Strangely, Sylvie looked relieved as well. They both stood up quickly.

  “Gotta go…” mumbled Todd.

  “Talk to you later…” Sylvie said quickly at the same time.

  Todd ran down the embankment to where Marla stood at the edge of courtyard, waiting with her fists on her hips.

  “You want to eat dinner with us?” If Marla was trying to keep indignation out of her voice, she wasn’t doing a good job. Todd could still hear it. He wanted to snap back at her that she’d been worse with Ulex, but he knew that conversation would lead nowhere. She turned and stomped back towards their hogan.

  Looking back up to the top of the hill, Todd saw Sylvie standing there, glaring. She tossed her head as she spun away with a huff, giving Todd a final glimpse of long blond hair and tight designer jeans disappearing over the crest.

  She must have packed a trunk when she’d come to Kiva, thought Todd as he slowly followed Marla across the paving stones. She has more clothes than a mall.

  It was then that Todd noticed something that made him stop dead in the middle of the courtyard. Marla was wearing designer jeans too. Almost the same jeans. He looked back up to the top of the hill, but Sylvie was gone.

  But there was no disputing the fact that Marla had on new jeans. And a new sweater. There was no way that she could have brought them with her from Dalton Point. Not only were they nicer than anything their foster parents had ever bought them, Marla, who had turned thirteen about a month or so earlier, had grown about an inch since they’d arrived in Kiva. These were new clothes. How did Marla and Sylvie get hold of new clothes? He walked into the hogan and looked around.

  He could hear Jeff puttering around up in his den. Lilibit was nowhere to be seen, as usual; she’d stroll in when it got too dark outside for exploring. Marla, Ulex, Donny, Devon and Nita were setting up the dinner around the hearth.

  He knew he’d been a bit preoccupied with Sylvie for the last few weeks, but he hadn’t realized how oblivious he’d been. Everyone, except Ulex of course, was wearing new clothes. And somehow, Marla had got some makeup. She was wearing lipstick.
Todd stood speechless for a moment.

  “Devon?” Todd said at last, choosing the person least likely to lie to him. “Where did you get those jeans?”

  Marla immediately looked guilty, grabbed a jug and walked quickly over to the spring in the corner that was masked with hanging vines.

  Devon glanced down at his legs before answering with a shrug. “Jeff.”

  Jeff must have heard, because he stuck his head out of his den at the same time as Todd bellowed “JEFF!”

  “Yes?” Jeff asked with phony innocence.

  “Where are you getting all this stuff from?”

  “I have my sources.”

  “Don’t give me that crap!” Todd’s neck was starting to hurt from glaring up at him. “Get down here!”

  Jeff swung his legs out of the hatch door of his den then slid to the ground barely using the rope vine. He landed like a crouching cat.

  “And what can I do for you?” Jeff asked smugly as he straightened up.

  “You can tell me how you’re getting all this stuff!” Todd’s hands balled into tight fists. “It’s got to be coming from outside the valley! Do you know what Gil-Salla’s going to do if she catches you?”

  “Relax, oh great chieftain.” Jeff pushed Todd to one side as he strutted over to the hearth and plopped himself into his mushroom chair. “I’ve been a good little boy. I haven’t left Kiva.”

  “Then how did you get this stuff?” Todd barked as he towered over Jeff. This didn’t seem to bother Jeff at all, he just smiled up at him sweetly and picked up a plate of food.

  “I needed new jeans,” Marla said in a small voice.

  Todd turned quickly to see Marla sheepishly pushing her way through the vines that hid the corner spring.

  “You?” Of all the people he would have suspected as being part of this, Marla was on the bottom of the list.

  Guilt morphed quickly into defiance as Marla lifted her chin and met Todd’s glare. “It’s easy for you. You don’t look stupid in the leather leggings and homespun tunics they give us. I looked like I was wearing a canvas sack!”