Feral Bonds

Chapter 63

"Well," Natania said as she and Meriam stood alone in the woods that was her mind, "this is new."

Meriam gazed around curiously as trees of varying colours stretched out as far as they could see. The cougar approached a pulsing green tree and Natania moved into her path. "I wouldn't touch those ones," she cautioned.

Meriam tilted her head. "What are they?"

"My memories," Natania answered, raising her head and sniffing. "The green ones are fearful, the blue ones are sad, the red ones are angry, the yellow ones are happy, the purple ones are mixed." She turned her gaze deeper into the woods, where the trees lost their colours and started to turn black. "The black ones are guilt, or failures or mistakes. They're the things I regret." She didn't know how she knew that, but it felt right.

Meriam frowned at her. "Have you been here before?"

"Not that I remember," Natania said, twitching her ears. "But it's my head so, I guess I live here. Feel free to snoop, but I wouldn't recommend touching the green ones. There weren't many instances where I was afraid." Fur prickled along her spine. "I relived enough of those to know you don't want to see them."

Meriam gave her a pitying look. "So, what are we doing here?"

Natania shrugged. "This hasn't happened to me before. I'm guessing we're going to need to make a connection in the bonds for you." Natania grimaced. "I've always pictured my bonds like a spider web, so look for something like that."

"A spider web?" Meriam paused mid step and frowned at her. "That's the best you could conjure?"

Natania laughed. "It makes sense, branches and webs. You'll understand when you see it. I'd bet money it's in the center of this." Her pack was her center, her anchor. She jerked her head. "Follow me."

Meriam kept close to her as they walked deeper into the woods. Occasionally branching off to brush against a yellow tree. Meriam never said anything, but she gave Natania a small smile every time she came back from one.

"Only want to see the happy ones, huh?"

"I'm curious as to what brings you joy," Meriam said. "I don't need to see your suffering." Meriam pinned her ears back. "Though it is very dark in here."

"Well," Natania said, with a grunt, "my life hasn't been sunshine and rainbows."

The black trees outweighed all the others as they reached the halfway point of the woods, but Natania occasionally picked out odd golden flecks on a tree. Little strings of gold, like dust in a bright room, branched off from them, and she wondered what those meant. Meriam didn't seem to notice them as they walked. Natania kind of expected someone in her head to be more curious to what they could find.

Natania would have delayed them endlessly with curiosity if it had been Meriam's head they were stuck in.

She halted when they passed by a green tree. It wasn't the colour that caught her attention, but the angry red sparks around it, sending streaks of red in all directions and making it look like a poorly decorated Christmas tree.

"What the fuck is that?" Natania muttered. She approached the tree and sniffed at it. She caught a faint trace of Gretchen, but that shouldn't have been possible. Natania flicked her ears and glanced at Meriam. "Do you smell anything?"

"Just us," Meriam replied, padding forward.

Natania put one paw on the tree and recoiled immediately, shuddering under the hold of the memory. Meriam saw her reaction and took several steps back to avoid touching it. "You just told me not to touch the green ones," Meriam said, with a frown.