The Spirit of the Black Wolf

part 2

How do two things become one? How do two hearts become one life? I'll tell you how: twins.

That's right. Twins. I'm the youngest twin, only by seven minutes. We were two babies who shared the same life. We were intact. But how do you become a whole devoid of the other half? Now I can't answer that question for you. I can only show you. Our love for each other is stronger than the average siblings' bond. We were nobody without our last puzzle piece. If my twin left the room when we were just kids, I cried my eyes out. Nothing stopped those tears, but my brother. Every night we held hands in bed until the other fell asleep. We did everything we possibly could together when we were younger. Never once did we wish the other were never our twin. We were supposed to be together. Who could you rely on to always be there for you? Or tell your deep secrets to? We knew just about everything about one another. I will always love my twin. Regardless of what happens, we'll always be there for each other. Even though we live by two bodies, we are still one. And without that other half, you'll be nothing but empty. And that's how I feel now. I feel like a half empty glass of milk, waiting to fade away any moment now. My life... our life, can only be lived if we're together. Mason McKinley is my brother. My twin. My life.

The stars whisper in the dark, trying to stay silent from the angry moon. Watching the wolf, all alone, reminds me of something. But too many thoughts rushing through my head wipe away all the memories. My back pack rests under my throbbing head as my eyes chase after the patterns of the stars forming in the endless sky. The sound of a stick being snapped takes me back to reality. I turn in instinct and see that the wolf has vanished. The sky clears up and the moon appears brighter. From this new image of the night, a howl follows; a long, weary howl. It strikes my thoughts and the scene plays all over in my mind like a movie. Except for the fact that I can't press stop. I have no control over it. Not even the cause of it. My eyes seal shut; real tight; as if I'm trying to block this negative reminder. Doesn't work. Where's my other half when I need him? I whisper his name, just barely, into the midst of dusk. I sit back up, and there sits the wolf again. He came back. Maybe he's hungry now. The wolf stares into my eyes. Holding onto that familiar feeling, I remember what the wolf reminds me of. And that reminder only makes it worse. We are both alone. Both where we're not supposed to be. I hear an owl hoot from behind me, and so I turn to face that direction. And back I turn to face the wolf; except for the fact that he deserted me again.

I open my eyes to perceive the intense sun excel through the tree branches as the rays of heat are absorbed into my skin. With the morning sky, I observe how stained up my white t-shirt is. White with dark red patches. A tear strikes down my cheek, and that single tear is enough to tell me, nothing will ever take this pain away. Nothing will ever replace my other half. I take a sip of my water and gobble down a piece of beef jerky. That's definately not enough to make my stomach pain disappear. I heave my backpack around my shoulders and take one last glance behind me. There is no way I can possibly go back there. Back to the place that took half of my life away. My journey begins with the first painful step. A limp follows, every time my left foot hits the dirt. Yet again, that's not the major pain here. Keep guessing, but you'll never be able to undergo my pain. Sometimes it's hard to even feel my own pain; because most of the time, it's invisible to me and the insecure world.