Alexis ran, just for the sake of running. She loved it. She loved the feel of the wind in her face, the sound of the air rushing past her, the different smells she encountered, but most of all she loved the psychical exertion. Alexis could get a good night’s sleep after running. She inhaled deeply and released, sprinting ever faster. Smells like freedom.
Where’s Alexis? That was Vivi, finally noticing she’d disappeared. There was a moment where everyone scanned the meadow, thinking back to when they’d last seen her.
Alexis! Raven shrieked. What are you doing?
Oi, come back, Shayne sounded more whiny than concerned. He wanted to run around and be free too.
It’s not safe, come home. As usual, Jasmine’s alpha command had no effect on Alexis.
Kammal tried again anyway. Get back here, now!
Alexis unlocked the mental gate between her and her pack just for a second – not long enough for them to see where she was, but long enough to say, no way, I’m finally having some fun.
Way to go, Lexxiee! Daine chuckled.
Daine, Jasmine said scoldingly.
.
Alexis laughed out loud as her claws tore into the ground with every stride, throwing leaves and dirt into the air behind her. She came to a skidding halt at the sight of another wolf.
Just fifty metres away, leaves crunched under the scraggy lone wolf’s padded paws as he trotted through the forest, nose centimetres from the damp ground. Alexis loved the variation in colour of his fur – the top half of him was a lovely dark brown, his underbelly was a lighter shade. His face bore wonderful markings – a light strip down his snout and creamed colour chin and cheeks. Light brown circles surrounded each bright green eye, and his ears were darker than the rest of his body - almost black, save the inside fluff which was closer to white. He was beautiful as a wolf; Alexis wondered what he looked like in human form.
He lifted his wet, black nose from the ground and inhaled the crisp forest air. What was he searching for? His head did a slow rotation, taking in his surroundings. His emerald eyes locked on her, and his ears perked up in interest, one paw lifting from the ground.
He turned to leave rather quickly.
“Sometimes,” Alexis grinned to herself as the other wolf began to trot away, “breaking the rules is totally worth it.”
The wolf paused and turned back to her, with one paw lifted from the forest floor. His head cocked to one side comically. “Pardon?” he called after a long moment of consideration.
“Huh?” Alexis asked in an all too innocent tone. “Oh, I was just talking to myself.”
He trotted closer, stopping a cautious three meters back. “What rules are you breaking?”
Alexis smirked, eliminating a meter between them. “The real question is, what rules are you breaking?”
His paw sunk to the ground, his head dropping a fraction. The childish interest left his face, and when he spoke his tone was cheerless. “I really shouldn’t be on your territory, hey.”
“I couldn’t care less,” Alexis clarified. “My alpha on the other hand... You’re lucky he hasn’t found you yet. It’s a bad time for us.”
He considered this, his large fluffy head bobbing in a nod. “Because of Malik, right? He’s insane.”
“Thank you captain obvious,” Alexis smirked. “You know him?”
“We’ve crossed paths before,” Dakota agreed.
Alexis pulled a face. “Yous aren’t friends, right?”
“Not in the slightest.”
“Thank god...” Alexis muttered, then cursed. “They’ve found me.”
He frowned in confusion. “Sorry?”
“Nothing,” she assured him quickly. “I have to go now.” The tip of her tail lightly brushed his wet black nose as she turned and galloped away.
“Alexis!” he called.
She turned.
“It is Alexis, right?”
“Yeah.”
He approached her, no longer wary. His head was filled with a new kind of bold. “Can we meet again? I could- help you fight off Malik.”
She thought for a second. “I would really like that.”
His emerald eyes glittered. “Me too.”
“But that can’t happen.”
A large dark grey wolf came skidding through the trees. It leapt the remaining space between them snarling wildly, and he scampered backwards. Its eyes gleamed in madness and drool webbed between each of its bare white teeth. “Kammal!” Alexis cried, throwing herself at the grey wolf. “Leave him!”
A red-brown wolf with black streaked through its fur appeared on Alexis’s right, taller and more muscular than any wolf he had ever seen. Though it looked like it could rip someone clean in half in a second flat, it approached with an air of innocent friendliness. The two met each other’s gaze over the white wolf and the grey wolf, and the red wolf’s eyes narrowed.
Alexis and Kammal snarled at each other, ears flat against their skulls. Each one attempted to stand taller than the other, show more of their sharp fangs, and raise their hackles higher. They circled around each other, nipping at one another’s ankles.
All of a sudden, for no apparent reason, a calm overcame the atmosphere. Their fur flattened, they relaxed, ceasing the battle for dominance. To the lone wolf, it appeared no one had won. But then the red-brown wolf began herding Alexis away, as Kammal faced the lone wolf off, protecting his pack as they departed.
“Please,” he called as even Kammal turned to leave. Kammal turned back, ears perking up in curiosity. “Please, may I help you?” I don’t want to be alone anymore.
The plead seemed to infuriate Kammal. Snarling, he charged, fangs bared once more. “Don’t make me laugh, runt. You’re lucky I don’t kill you where you stand.” He possessed a voice of children’s nightmares. Snorting to himself like an angry bull, he turned and galloped away, past Alexis the red wolf, before he disappeared in the thick woods.
Alexis’s eyes stayed glued to the lone wolf. What’s his name? She thought, rummaging through his brain. And why can’t I find it? He watched her curiously as the red wolf nudged her away. Alexis was still looking over her shoulder at him when she was ten meters away, still being herded, and he still matched her gaze. She darted around her shepherd back to him.
“What’s your name?” she asked, her bottomless blue eyes twinkling.
The lone wolf had to clear his throat before he could speak. “Dakota.”
“Dakota,” Alexis repeated quietly.
Alexis! Daine pushed between Alexis and Dakota and pushed Alexis away with his chest. He turned to the lone wolf briefly. “You’re leaving.”
“Bye, Dakota,” Alexis called, trying to see over Daine’s immense body.
“Bye... Alexis,” Dakota murmured as she disappeared into the trees.
Dakota didn’t move from that spot for a very long time, as if hoping Alexis would return. But she didn’t. When the sky turned black and the stars twinkled down at him mockingly, he was still alone. Heaving a great sigh, he trotted away, searching for a place to rest for the night.
A hollowed tree trunk large enough for him to curl up in looked like the perfect candidate, and he bee-lined for it immediately. As he kicked the dry pine needles around with his snout, something large, warm and furry dropped from above, digging its needle-like claws into his back, hissing and screaming. Dakota darted out of the tree hollow, but still it clung to him. Wild-eyed with panic, he bucked like a horse until it’s claws loosened enough for it to fling off, taking chunks of fur with it. Spinning around, Dakota tried to make out in the darkness what it was.
A racoon. Its bandit face peered at him through the darkness, growling bitterly to itself. With a rumble of frustration, he trotted off to find another suitable resting place.
Ahead a patch of space blacker than darkness caught his attention. It sliced a gap in a cliff face, dark grey in the moonlight. A cave. Dakota headed over, this time more wary. Glowing yellow eyes appeared in the darkness of the cave, and he froze, watching as they floated closer. A mountain lion slunk silently out of the crack, pausing to hiss at him.
He backed away, cautious not to make sudden movements, then ran deeper into the forest. It seemed no place would be uninhabited by wild animals. Giving up the search, he collapsed in a small clearing filled with soft grass, reaching for sleep.
Sleep did not reach back.
Water drip, drip, dripped onto his snout, and his eyes flicked open right before the sky pelted down bucket loads of rain.
Again he came to the conclusion that Mother Nature was a cruel and unforgiving woman, punishing him for the slaughter of his countless prey. The thought reminded him that he hadn’t eaten for a day and a bit. His stomach growled.
***
Alexis’ night was rather different, and a lot cosier.
After dinner with her adopted family, she headed for her room.
“Dakota,” she sighed, leaning against the window sill. “That’s such a common name.” Rain fell lightly from the grey sky, flecking the window pane with tiny droplets.
There was a rap at the door and it swung open. “Why are you moping?” Daine asked.
Alexis shrugged. “I’m not.”
Daine flicked on the light and immediately Alexis’s view of the night was replaced by the reflection of her bedroom. Her vivid blue eyes looked troubled, her supple pink lips were unsmiling - no wonder Daine thought something was up. He stood by the door, his flat brown eyes analysing her expression.
“It just seems a bit weird that you’re sitting in a dark room staring morbidly out the window.”
“I wasn’t being morbid,” Alexis crossed the room and flicked the light off. “The light was off so I could see the sky.”
“Right,” Daine ran a huge hand through his tangle of auburn hair. “Well there’s chocolate if you want some.”
“I’ll pass,” Alexis replied, eyes glued to the pale glow of the moon shining through the clouds.
“You... don’t want... chocolate?” Daine cupped his warm hand around Alexis’s face, concern written all over his russet brow. “What’s wrong?”
Alexis laughed, batting his hand away. “Nothing. I’m fine.”
“Uh-huh,” Daine wasn’t convinced. He joined her at the window. “What’s the scoop on the runt?”
“Who?” Alexis didn’t meet Daine’s gazed. She knew exactly who he meant, she’d just prefer it if he didn’t refer to him as the runt.
“The dude in the forest,” Daine said casually, catching a stray hair of Alexis’s and tucking it behind her ear. “The one on the enemy pack.”
Alexis rolled her eyes, mussing her hair so it fell back into her face. “He’s not part of the enemy pack. He’s just a wanderer who’s crossed paths with them before.”
“That’s not what I asked. Come on, why were you talking to him?”
Alexis shrugged, looking back out the window. “’Cause he’s interesting, and not a threat... What does Dakota mean?”
“It’s a Native American name meaning friend or forever smiling,” Daine recited.
I wonder how knows so much about names, Alexis thought. He’d once told her Alexis was Greek for defender.
“Why do you care? What’s that guys deal, anyway?” Daine was really pushing now. He was Alexis’s best friend, but could she tell him exactly what she was thinking? Alexis chose her words carefully, so she wouldn’t lie while still avoiding the exact truth.
“He’s been alone for so long, coming up a year. All the days blur into one another, all of them are the same; he wakes up, runs flat out for miles, hunts – if he can... he’s looking for something, he’s not sure what it is yet, but he knows it’s out there, and there’s like this gut feeling that’s urging him on. He misses his family, a lot-”
“Ok, ok,” Daine butted in. “I don’t need his life story. I just wanted to know why you’re so fascinated by him.”
“Don’t call me corny for saying this, but... I’ve looked into his soul, and it is pure.”
Daine laughed. “Man, Alexis, you are so corny.”
Alexis elbowed him in the guts, but it hit his solid abs and bounced off. “What the hell,” she muttered, “you don’t even work out.”
Raven slipped through the open door. “There you are.” She smiled at Daine, their arms instantly reaching for each other. Once she was wrapped in his beefy biceps, Daine bent his head down to kiss her. The usual pang of loneliness Alexis felt when they kissed didn’t strike. She looked back out the window, smiling to herself. Dakota.
“Hey, Alexis, what’s wrong?” Raven asked.
“Nothing!” Alexis insisted.
“There’s something wrong with Alexis?” a squeaky voice said from the corridor – either Vivi or Shayne. Both had high pitch, girly voices. The pair of them tumbled into Alexis’s room.
“What. The. Hell.” Alexis spun around to glare at them all. “I’m fine. There is nothing wrong with me. I was trying to get a few quiet minutes to myself...” she hinted. Nobody left. She sighed.
“Everybody out,” Kammal appeared at the door. “I need to speak to Alexis.”
Everyone sidled out grudgingly as Alexis looked expectantly up at her alpha, wondering what the hell he wanted. I swear to god, if he asks me what’s wrong...
Jasmine shortly followed Kammal, and Daine hovered in the doorway, sensing some adult business that he wanted in on.
“Alexis,” Kammal addressed her huskily. “We’re not trying to keep you prisoner here, not for no good reason.”
“We didn’t want to scare you before, but…” Jasmine trailed into silence, searching for words that would lessen the blow.
“Malik wants you dead,” Kammal said bluntly.
“You’ve messed up quite a few of his plans, and he wants you to pay for it. I’m sorry. Now please, will you just stay home where you’re safe?”
“I know. I knew it before any of you did.” Alexis tapped her temple. “I’ve known it for months.”
“But… why didn’t you say anything?”
“Why do you run off at every chance you get?” Daine demanded. “Are you trying to get yourself killed?”
“No! God.” Alexis folded her arms, turning away. “Just leave me alone.”
“Alexis, honey, we’re just trying to understand,” Jasmine touched Alexis’s arm but she jerked away as though it stung.
“You don’t need to understand! There is nothing to understand. Just go away.”
“Lexxiee-” Daine began pleadingly.
“You heard her,” Kammal snapped. “Get out.”
“Kammal-”
“Joseph!”
“Fine!” Daine huffed, storming from the room. Jasmine trailed after him, leaving Kammal and Alexis alone. He placed a hand on her shoulder, she didn’t move away.
“I know yer tough. I know yer brave. But even you know ya don’t stand a chance against a pack of them alone. Please, Alexis, we love ya too much to lose ya. No more going out by yerself.”
Gender:
Points: 997
Reviews: 32