by Cheree Alsop
I gave him a bland look and he laughed again in the easy way he always seemed to carry when he was with his sister and away from the court or castle servants.
“You think they’re going to wait around forever?” he asked. He opened the door and Koya stepped through. She stopped just outside and waited for me. I walked slowly out into the moonlight. It fell across my shoulders and tangled in my hair as though reminding me that it possessed my nights. I closed my eyes and breathed deeply of the cool air; a smile spread across my face.
I heard a faint outlet of breath and opened my eyes to meet Koya’s gaze. A slight blush colored her cheeks and she glanced away. “You look like you belong out here,” she said quietly. Her forehead creased slightly. “In the night, I mean. It’s like you’re complete out here.” She looked up quickly as though afraid she had said something wrong, but her words echoed my feelings exactly.
I had been away from the fall of moonlight and the glow of the stars so long I forgot how real I felt beneath their quiet contemplation. I nodded and a smile of relief touched Koya’s face. Joven walked passed. “Come on, you two. The faster we go the less likely we’ll be spotted by gossiping servants who’ll no doubt spread word of our eccentric family.”
“Joven,” Koya chided, but her tone was worn as though she had rebuked him for the comment so many times it no longer held meaning for either of them.
We waited until two guards armed with swords and knives marched past. A scent of meat and bread drifted from them, remnants of their not-too distant dinner.
Joven motioned and we hurried across the torch-lit walkway into the depths of the garden. Joven turned right, then left. Koya and I followed behind as quickly as we could. Koya’s dress snagged on an outreaching rosebush and she paused to untangle it. I waited near her wanting to help but worried I would tear the delicate cloth. She pulled it free quickly, then turned and tripped over an exposed root. I caught her before she fell to the ground.
My breath caught in my throat at the feel of her against my body. Her hands clutched my arms, her fingers soft against my bare skin. Her scent of meadow gold and vanilla tangled around us. I froze, afraid that I would hurt her or do something wrong. She watched me with her searching blue eyes as if she could see the torment of my soul. The moment felt like a hundred years pressed into a single breath before she righted her slippered feet and stood. Her hand brushed down my arm and I wondered if it was my imagination that her fingers lingered in mine a second before her hand fell away.
I watched her, my mind a muddled mess of human and wolven thoughts still weighed down by the fog of one who had just gotten over a heavy sickness. I waited until she took a few steps, then followed slowly, ready to catch her should she trip again. She didn’t, but she looked back and I read something in her eyes that I didn’t understand, something light like laughter but with edges soft and golden like the setting of the summer sun.
“Through here,” Joven whispered. He held open a gate I hadn’t noticed set deep within the wall and covered with vines. It smelled as if no one had been this way for years.
“I can’t believe you remembered this,” Koya said with a pleased smile. “How long has it been?”
Joven chuckled. “A long time since we lost ourselves in the forest,” he said, his voice taking on a wistful tone. “I wouldn’t mind doing the same now.”
“Me neither,” Koya agreed. She stepped past and waited for me to follow.
I crossed the threshold of the gate and paused outside the wall. Seeing the world unfettered by walls, bars, or chains made it look fresh and clean. Moonlight skipped upon outstretched leaves that rustled quietly with the laughter of a beckoning breeze. The grasses that rushed to meet the Vielkeep Castle wall waved back and forth, a green and tawny meadow kept free of trees for a clear view of intruders. The trees stood further back, and I was surprised to see how old they were. The forest was much more ancient than the castle or the wall. I wondered how much work it had taken to keep it at bay for so long.
“Are they out there?”
It took me a moment to realize Joven and Koya were waiting for me. A thrill ran up my spine when I remembered what we had come here to do. I cupped my hands around my mouth and gave a low, throaty howl. It wasn’t loud, but the sound reverberated through the forest. I waited a moment with no response and fought off a wave of sorrow. Maybe my pack had waited as long as they could. Maybe they went home and left me to my fate.
Koya set a hand on my arm. “Try it again,” she said quietly.
I swallowed against the knot of frustration and lifted my hands once more. As soon as the notes left my lips, eight different howls responded with tones of anxiety, happiness, and expectation. Koya gasped at my side and I covered her hand with my own. I listened to paws pad through the undergrowth until eyes stared out at us shining golden in the light of the moon.
“Koya, get behind me,” Joven said in a quiet voice edged with steel.
She hesitated, but her fingers shook slightly. I moved my hand from hers and she slipped behind her brother. I left them both and walked slowly through the long grass. I wore human clothes and smelled of confinement behind walls and among people. I had endured suffering and torment far beyond what I would have thought myself capable. I had survived despite the odds and hatreds of those who held me captive. I was far different than the wolf that had been captured and taken away from them long ago. I hoped I wasn’t too different.
A black wolf with gray eyes stepped past the row of trees. He held his head high as he tested the air. A breeze blew faintly behind him, carrying to me his scent of pine and forest loam, fallen leaves and plentiful food. His coat was thick and eyes clear. He took another step forward followed by his mate, a lithe, gray creature with light blue eyes different from any wolf I had ever seen. She waved her tail slowly from side to side and her paws pranced with her eagerness to run forward, but she would wait for her mate to decide.
The black alpha stopped a few feet away and studied me. I met his eyes, then casually let mine drift to the side to acknowledge his superiority. In the human language that now ran through my mind, the tones and notes that made up his name translated to Shadow Runner. He and his mate, Silver Leaf, had raised me for as long as I could remember. I owed them my life and my respect. I loved them the same way I imagined human children felt for their parents after being apart and realizing how much their parents did for them.
I crouched so that Shadow Runner understood I still accepted his dominance. He had chosen to follow me with his pack for a full year, showing a devotion I had yet to see in humans. He and the pack had howled songs of courage and bravery each night, pleading for me to survive. He had kept me alive, and the thought that he might turn away, that I might have changed so much I no longer belonged to the pack, brought tears to my eyes.
Shadow Runner’s head tilted to the side as he studied my face. He took two steps forward to close the space between us. I heard Joven whisper a reassurance to Koya in a tight voice as though he was also uncertain of my safety. The black wolf stared at me, no challenge in his eyes, only curiosity. Silver Leaf gave a slight whine and he let out a huff in response. Silver Leaf leaped forward and jumped on me, her licks and whines welcome after the long absence. At Shadow Runner’s acceptance, the six other wolves bounded into the clearing.
Four of them had been pups when I was taken. Cricket, Pond Jumper, Trace, and Night Seeker now ran on long, lanky legs they were still getting used to. They tripped over each other and ended up in a sprawling pile a few feet away. Traveler and Gull stepped around them. Traveler’s fur held so much gray the black that marked him as Shadow Runner’s father was barely visible. Gull, slender like her sister Silver Leaf but brown and white like the birds that circled the lakes, brushed my shoulder with hers and nipped at the back of my head.
I smiled but remembered not to grin. Wolves didn’t show teeth to each other lightly. It was surprising how easily the human expression came to me. Traveler sniffed my hair, then sneeze
d. The yearling pups finally untangled themselves and gamboled over to me. Their paws were large and heads big, but their bodies were still lanky and they had yet to grow into their long limbs. All four pups were healthy and had thick coats. Pond Jumper licked my face and when I tried to push him away, Trace jumped on my back. Within seconds, I had a full wolf-pile on top of me. Paws and teeth made marks on my skin, but I pushed back in play. I was used to the wrestling and biting and had long ago perfected the art of fighting off such attacks, though the wolves had been much younger.
I shoved the last one away and let out a mocking growl. The younger pups growled back in voices much deeper and fuller than I expected. I glanced over my shoulder and saw Joven and Koya watching me. Koya had a hand to her mouth and her eyes were wide with dismay as though she thought the wolves were going to eat me any moment. Joven’s face was pale and he held an arm protectively around Koya’s shoulders.
I looked back at the wolves; they had noticed the humans. Shadow Runner lifted his lips in a snarl, sure I was in danger. I lifted a hand to calm him, then dropped it again, amazed at the human reactions that overtook the wolven instincts that had been my life for so long. I blew air through my nose and gave a short grunt. The alpha refused to be appeased. I wished I was in wolf form so I could communicate better, but the moon was still bright overhead and wouldn’t be releasing its hold anytime soon.
I turned my back on Shadow Runner and heard his surprised outlet of breath. I rose slowly and walked back to Koya and Joven. The siblings watched me warily as if afraid that I was as wild as the wolves behind me. Their lack of trust shouldn’t have hurt given the short time we had known each other, but the faint scent of fear that wafted from them both struck me to the heart. I stopped a few feet short and held out a hand.
Koya glanced at Joven who refused to take his eyes off me. His easy smile and casual manner were gone. Instead, I saw a protector who would defend his sister against a pack of eight wolves capable of taking down full-grown moose and elk. I admired his courage, but hoped it didn’t get in the way of what I wanted to do. Koya gave him one last look, then slipped her hand into mine. I walked back mindful of her smaller steps and the hesitancy in her posture. Wolves sensed weakness; I could only hope they would trust her because I did.
When we were within a few paces of the pack, I motioned for Koya to crouch. She surprised me by kneeling in the grass, taking away her ability to run if things became dangerous. I followed her example and knelt beside her. Shadow Runner watched us carefully, his body still and the other wolves crouched behind him. The pups peered around their elders, but they wouldn’t break the line unless allowed to do so by their alpha.
I ducked my head and Koya did the same. Her hand still held mine and the slight trembling of her fingers was the only thing that gave her away. When Shadow Runner refused to step forward, I lifted my head and met his eyes. He gazed back calmly but with the everlasting stubbornness of the wolf. He wouldn’t budge.
I was about to give up when Silver Leaf stepped forward. Shadow Runner growled a nearly silent warning, but she refused to listen. She kept her head up and ears pricked forward as she closed the distance between us. Koya’s hand tightened in mine, but she kept her eyes down and waited. I heard her breath catch in her throat when Silver Leaf paused only inches from her.
The wolf who had been my mother looked at me. I tipped my head toward Koya and gave a short whine. Silver Leaf sniffed Koya’s golden hair, the fine fabric of her blue wrap, the silver circlet that held back her hair, and bent her head to sniff our hands entwined together. She then nipped me on the shoulder faster than I could move and gave Koya a quick lick on the cheek before she returned to her mate.
Shadow Runner gave a quiet sniff of reluctant approval and the pups ran forward to greet Koya. She laughed when they licked her hands and nipped at her hair. She smoothed their fur and didn’t mind when they licked her face. Joven let out a quiet breath and I turned to see him step forward. When he crouched, the pups ran up to him without preamble and began to prance around as if they were much younger. Traveler gave a sneeze that substituted for a laugh and Gull leaned against Silver Leaf while both sisters watched the younger pups play.
“They’re not very scary,” Joven said with a laugh.
“They’re adorable,” Koya agreed. She ran a hand down Cricket’s back and the pup licked her arm happily. Night Seeker and Pond Jumper chased each other around her while Trace leaned against Joven who scratched the top of his head as if he was a dog.
It was funny to see the wolves act so docile and to watch Joven and Koya’s walls break down as the wolves accepted them. I sat near Silver Leaf and Shadow Runner feeling more complete than I had for a year. Both wolves gave quiet huffs of approval and Silver Leaf kept watching me as if reminding herself that I was really there. I settled back on my elbows content to feel the comfort of their presence once more.
“This is what the guards are afraid of?” Joven asked with a scoff.
A strange scent touched my nose and a growl ripped from Shadow Runner’s throat. I sat up slowly. A surge of adrenaline ran through my limbs.
Joven paused in the act of ruffling Pond Jumper’s fur. Both he and Koya stared at the alpha. “What’s wrong?” Joven asked quietly.
I stood with my eyes still on the wolf and my nose searching the breeze. The scent it brought was vile, dark, and sour like rotten milk and mildewed stinkweed. It turned my stomach and set my teeth on edge. I searched the forest but couldn’t see anything unusual.
Shadow Runner and Silver Leaf stalked toward the tree line. The pups waited near Traveler and Gull like silent shadows amid the grass. The way the wolves acted let me know that they had encountered the creatures before. Shadow Runner and Silver Leaf paced side by side instead of flanking as hunting wolves usually did. Their ruffs were up and teeth bared, but their snarls had died away to silence as they neared the trees and waited.
I followed them as I would have done when I ran with the pack. “Be careful,” Koya called softly behind me.
I peered into the shadows with a hand on each wolf’s back. Every muscle in my body was tense and ready for the unknown. The smell grew stronger and a shudder ran down my spine. I wished I was in wolf form. I had never been able to figure out fighting without sharp teeth and the agility of a four-footed animal. A shape moved within the shelter of the trees. Cold flooded through my body. I blinked and willed my eyes to make sense of what I saw. A gasp left my lips.
A white skeletal face looked out at me, but it was completely wrong. Skin hung down in shredded sags, long white pieces that fluttered in the faint breeze and gave off the vile smell. Sunken holes took place of eyes, and there were no lips, only bare teeth jagged and yellow in the gaping void of a mouth. The creature stood as a human but taller, and in the place of hands its white skin ended in tattered claws. Clawed feet stood on the forest floor, but when it took a step forward, no sound betrayed its presence.
Fear ran down my spine in an icy rush. No such creature should be alive, yet its chest rose and fell and I could make out the vague, stuttered beating of a heart. Malice rolled from the creature in waves. It meant to hurt anything in its path.
The creature took another step forward and I heard Koya gasp when it came into view. I glanced back at the brother and sister and said the first human word of my existence. “Run.” It came out guttural and animalistic, more of a growl than a spoken word, but Joven grabbed Koya’s hand and pulled her back toward the wall.
I turned with the wolves and bared my teeth. The creature took another silent step forward and though its drifting skin caught on the bark of a tree, there was no sound and the creature gave no acknowledgement of pain.
Shadow Runner and Silver Leaf stalked forward. Neither would let the creature near the pups. Instead of flanking to either side like a wolf would when facing a mountain lion or a bear, they met it head on. It wasn’t until the creature walked out from the shelter of the trees that I saw the reason why. Jagged stalks s
tood out along the creature’s back and sides like branches that had been broken off. There was no way to attack those areas without being hurt.
Its clawed hands moved almost faster than I could follow. Silver Leaf jumped out of the way, but not before a claw scratched along her chest. She let out a yelp of pain. Shadow Runner leaped up and tore a big shred of skin hanging from its shoulder. The creature turned with its mouth open in protest, but no sound escaped it. It caught Shadow Runner by the throat and threw him against a tree. Shadow Runner limped back and let out a fierce growl.
Gull and Traveler joined the pack. Each paced to either side of the alpha. He lowered his head and flattened his ears. The creature wasn’t going to hurt their family. I looked around for anything I could use as a weapon. My human body felt inadequate to fight something so fierce and full of rage. I needed to defend my loved ones, but didn’t know how.
The creature swiped at Gull but she darted out of the way. It turned back with incredible speed and slashed at Silver Leaf’s muzzle. She ducked and a claw cut the tip of her ear. Shadow Runner jumped at its side but missed its neck and bit down on one of the stalks. The creature merely shook him off as though it barely felt it.
Gull and Silver Leaf attacked at the same time, biting its legs while Traveler tried to grab its throat. It caught Traveler in its claws and picked him up by his neck. I grabbed a branch lying on the ground and hit the creature’s stomach as hard as I could. The branch broke and the creature fell back a step, dropping Traveler.
The creature grabbed the branch and jerked it out of my grasp. It gnashed its teeth at me but no sound came from its mouth. It turned toward Silver Leaf again and I saw an opening. When it reached its claws forward, a small hole under its arm revealed sickly gray muscles. I grabbed the branch the creature had discarded and drove it into the hole. This time a shriek sounded so loud the wolves fell back and Koya let out a scream. The shriek came not from the creature’s mouth, but from the hole where I had driven the stick.