Wolf's Rain: Paradise Ghost (Completed)

Chapter Twenty- Two

Ikira 

"Oh, my god. Oh, my god!" I panted the phrase over and over again, not knowing what else to say. The flowers, now secure tightly in my mouth, bounced and fluttered against every gait that I stretched out. Kiba, sprinting next to me, held his yellow wolf eyes wide in nervousness. 

"Just keep running! We have to get these to Wumphy before they wilt," He whimpered, locking eyes with my vibrant green orbs. Not knowing how to respond, I lowered my head in understanding. 

Looking ahead, I realized that we were nearing the pack territory. I pushed my legs harder through the ground, feeling the burning exhaustion of my muscles as they pleaded for some relief. Ignoring it, Kiba and I ripped past a bordering patrol and continued to the center of the den area. 

Most individuals had already heard the commotion as we entered the main area, exiting their dens or stopping what they were doing to see what was going on. "You know that some more problems are comin' when the Alphas come charging in." I heard an older male whisper to his friend beside him. Kiba lowered his head and softly laid the flowers on the ground, myself following in suit. 

When I lifted my head, Wumphy was walking towards us. Her eyes were fixed on the flowers beneath my feet, but she spoke out loud. "Yes, yes this will be plenty." With shaking wrinkled fingers, she picked them up and held them close to her chest like a newborn pup. 

When she finally looked up at us, her eyes wandered beyond us in distant search. "Where's the female?" She asked hesitantly. I swiftly grabbed my hand on my other arm, closing my eyes to not even dare let a tear out. 

Kiba cleared his throat, "She... gave us a head start." Whimpers and distressed voices weighed the air, making the news all the more morbid. The images of her eyes, saddened yet shining with determination as she faced the horrible monsters. A sickening feeling growled in my stomach, the wolf inside me begging to be released and give Darcia a piece of my mind. 

Wumphy looked down at the flowers, almost paying attention to every detail that they had. "Well then, let's make her sacrifice to her species not go in vain." She turned around and trotted to her den, tilting her head to gesture us to follow. 

Kiba and I walked side by side, wondering how we could be of use when it came to herbs and medicines. Arriving towards the entrance of the den, I could tell that there were already a few wolves inside. Hushed voices could be heard from the other side of the curtained vines. Are there more injured inside? I thought. 

When we parted the vines, the strong potent smell of flowers was all over. My instincts were all over, I could even feel my feet hop and prance in pace with excitement. Even Kiba was twitching his nostrils and his blue eyes flickered as the smell made the wolves grow excited. 

I looked to the right of the clay den, seeing that Wumphy was already busily molding the fresh flowers in a bowl. She was squishing them with a smooth rock, twisting her hand with smooth strokes. Looking inside of the bowl, I caught the glimpse of green liquid smearing around. 

"What's on you?" My attention was caught when I heard the confused sound of Kiba. I looked around to notice that there was a young boy admiring something around his arms. When the boy turned around to look at us, I was surprised to see little Toboe with dark green markings in his face. 

"What do you think, huh? It's like warrior paint!" He giggled out loud. I couldn't hide the smile that grew in my face. I stepped closer to him and reached out to hold out his arm. He gladly let me observed it. 

All around his limbs, face, and chest were these fine green streaks of liquid, all turning flowing in various flowery patterns. When I placed my finger on his skin and tried to smudge it away, I was shocked to see it was permanently there.