Wolves of the Wing

Chapter 6

                                                                          CHAPTER 6

                                                        THE CLOUDBERRY FESTIVAL

            "Sita!"

          Sita's companion's concerned voices rang in her ears as she fell to the ground, her eyes closing and the power draining all her strength and disappearing as fast as it had come. She hit the ground with a thump and blood splashed up around her. Her dreams wandered.

          She could see her parents flashing, her mother a dusty white with gold eyes and her father black with golden patches and magenta eyes, fur flying from their skin, which was slowly melting away revealing liquidy flesh. The flesh slid off their bones and disappeared into the ground. A gentle breeze blew the bones to dust and carried them away into the dark. Tears slid into Sita's eyes.

        "No! Come back! Don't leave me!", she ran after the wind as fast as she could, her tears flying past her and the darkness turning to grassy hills. 

        She slowed to a halt at the top of a hill panting, as the wind carried the rest of her parents into the setting sun. She watched in anguish, long, velvety grass brushing her legs and stomach. "Come back", she whispered and crumpled to the ground, burying her face into her paws, the night growing around her in rays of fading pinks and oranges streaked across the purple clouds and indigo sky.

        She heard a voice whisper in the wind, joined by a new one intertwining into each other. Sita lifted her head, the night had fallen. Misty figures yawned in front of her, looking at her with love. They lifted their heads to howl and faded, their howls not coming. Sita howled from where she lay, howled a song of longing and sorrow, tears still falling but less frequent until they stopped all together and she stood. Her song changed to joy at the realization that her parents were with her.

       We are always here when you need us the most. The voices in the wind said in hushed whispers. We are here. We are here. They repeated getting fainter. Then, a sinister voice whispered in the wind. Harden not your heart. Lest your world fall to darkness.

       Sita woke with a start, her blue eyes searching her surroundings. She was in a small cave. Bats hung from the ceiling. Felix and Rain no where to be found. That was a strange dream. Suddenly the voice echoed in the cave. Harden not your heart... It faded and she shivered. She looked over her shoulder from where she lay. She saw her bag lying a few paw steps away and a fat rabbit was lying on the ground next to her, a bite in its neck, the mark of Felix. She sat up and bent to take a bite of meat, when Rain strolled in with spanish moss dripping with water in her jaws. "Hey Siffta, you're affwaffke", Rain said her jaws crammed with moss.

     "What?", Sita said confused.

     "You're awake", Rain said after setting the moss down in front of Sita. "Go on, you need a drink."

     "I can manage getting to a river. I'd rather not drink out of a plant", She laughed. "Especially a plant that's been in your mouth."

    "Hey!", Rain said pretending to be hurt by her comment and then leapt at Sita in the start of a play fight.

    Sita dodged to the side and Rain fell forward, her eyes gleaming with laughter. Sita lunged and playfully bit Rain's ear. Sita and Rain fought until Felix came in.

     "What are you doing, exactly?", he said staring at them in disgust.

    Sita was under Rain, while Rain had her paws around Sita's neck. "Who put thistles in his food?", Sita said, staring after Felix as he stalked away.