Four Paws and A New Tale

Chapter 23:

It was late November and the weather was starting to become warm again. Jacob had finished his exam period the week before and now he and Pixie enjoyed their early morning walk around the property.

The sun was peaking its smiling face over the horizon and bathing the land in a golden light, it was beautiful. Jacob was nearly done school, another two weeks and he would graduate, next year he would start a life free from the confines of the public education system. His last year had been enjoyable and a small part of him would miss it.

Jacob paused, looking at the sun he sighed loudly, he still had no idea what he was going to do once he'd graduated, but his mother was more worried about that than he was.

He didn't like making her worry, but lately, she was worrying him. His mother tried to hide it, but Jacob could see, she had been slowing down, struggling to do normally easy tasks, forgetting things and suffering frequent coughing fits.

He clenched his fists, what was he supposed to do?

Barking broke his train of thought, he ran in the direction of the sound but stopped when he saw Pixie, she was crouched down low, she was growling with her teeth bared, and was facing off against a Brown Snake.

The serpent hissed and pulled its head back into an 'S' shape, Jacob noticed Pixie's muscles tense as she prepared to pounce, Jacob tried to stop her, but his warning was too slow.

Pixie jumped at her foe, the snake's head shot forward and bit her on the neck, she yelped and fell to the ground, whimpering as the snake injected her with its deadly venom.

The snake let go and pulled its fangs out, Jacob gave a shout of rage and slammed his heel upon the serpent's head, killing it instantly. He threw the dead snake away and knelt beside Pixie, her breathing was heavy, blood poured from her neck, she whimpered, and her eyes began to close.

"No, no, no, no. Not again! I can't lose you again!" Jacob screamed.

"Arh..." Pixie barked weakly, she lifted her head and licked a tear from Jacob's cheek, he began to bawl in full force.

"Pixie, no, Pixie please." He begged the fox, but he knew, the wound was bad, the venom was in her bloodstream, she wouldn't last much longer, Jacob tried to save her, but he couldn't, not this time.

He pulled the collar from her neck, he gripped it tightly and tried to stem the blood flow, "Come on Pix, you've got to stay strong, you've got to stay with me, remember, I promised you, we'd go home, we'd go back to Sharpedo bluff, you can't leave me now, not yet, please, I still need you."

After all that had happened since they met; Jacob saving Pixie, Pixie saving Jacob, her trying to kill him, him being forced to kill her, they had fought through it all, they had overcome legends and become heroes by their blood, sweat and tears, and now all of it came to an end. A legacy ended all too soon... Jacob clutched the collar, Pixie's blood covered his hands, his fists were clenched impossibly tight, tears streamed from his closed eyes, he screamed his frustration.

He had to tell her, at least once... She had to know.

Jacob picked Pixie up and clutched her against his chest, she whimpered quietly, her body was racked with pain and she couldn't think, her sight was beginning to grow dim.

"Pixie, I love you."

Pixie tried to offer a bark of comfort, a smile, anything, but she couldn't, her vision started to swim, she was scared, she held Jacob close as he wept, and she died.

Jacob cried for a long time, the sun was now high overhead, its brightness rubbed salt in the fresh wound, the wound in his heart that could not be healed.

Jacob placed Pixie on the ground, he smiled sadly at her still form, his tears watered the ground around her, but then his tears stopped falling, he didn't have any more. Rio had been right, he had run out, he had no tears left. Rio had told him that tears tell other people how you feel, Jacob was out of tears, but he needed more, he needed to tell Pixie, how much she meant to him.

"Pixie, I wish you were still here..."

A flash of light caused Jacob to open his closed eyes, the collar in his hand, it was glowing. The tag detached itself from the collar and lifted upwards, it glowed and spun and changed shape, it become longer and thinner and it was now a light blue colour.

It was identical to one of Jirachi's three wish tags, the tag floated downwards, and Jacob caught it, words were inscribed upon it, they read 'Pixie, I wish you were still here.'

The wish tag began to glow again and so did Pixie, they both glowed white. They glowed brighter, and brighter and brighter still until it became so bright that Jacob had to close his eyes, when he opened them again, the wish tag was gone.

Pixie lay still, her blood was gone, the wound in her neck was healed, once again she wore the pink collar, but now it was clean and there was no tag on it.

"Pixie?"

Pixie stirred from her permanent sleep, she lifted her tired head and opened her heavy eyes.

"Arh?"

"Pixie!"

Jacob clutched her tight and held her close. She was okay. She wasn't gone. Perhaps they would keep their promise yet, they would go home, to Sharpedo bluff.