You'll Be Sorry

Days of Yesteryear

Takoda looked at me with mournful eyes and turned to continue walking to the cabin. I grabbed his arm to try to stop him, but his weight made that a futile effort. He looked back at me, like I was just a mild inconvenience, and sighed. 

"You aren't safe here. When we get back to the cabin, we will talk this through. All will be revealed, in time." His voice was like velvet, pleading with me to wait. Although I knew I wasn't safe, I yearned to know what had become of my childhood friend. I was so busy with my worrying, I started tripping over branches and getting scrapped up on the rocks when I fell. Takoda was patient but did not touch me again. The sun was starting to set when we got back in sight at the cabin, and I started towards it. But, Takoda stopped at the tree line and looked at me. 

"There is ancient magic here, you must allow me to enter your safe harbor." He said solemnly like it was the most normal thing in the world to be discussing ancient magic. In my life, that had only been a lesson taught by the elders, it had never been real life. 

"You may enter?" I asked more then said, but it seemed to do the trick. I felt my cheeks redden as he stalked towards me, a sly grin on his face. "Very nice Cherie. Your nearly a pro." He teased lightly, and I felt my blush deepen. I turned on my heel and hurried to the cabin door. Takoda followed close behind, breathing lightly on my neck when I paused to open the door. I raised my shoulders as a shiver went down my spine, and I threw the door open. I suddenly became embarrassed by the state of the cabin. I had left in such a hurry that the pop had pooled on the ground in a large sticky puddle. 

I grabbed my old ripped shirt to clean it up and looked at Takoda from the ground. It made me feel like a small toddler compared to his large height, but I was on a mission. 

"So, how did you know I liked this drink? What happened to Cody?" I asked him, my heart burning with anxiety. He gestured for me to sit on the couch, and when I did he sat on the floor in front of me. He carefully crossed his legs and looked at me. 

"I did not harm your Cody. He is alive and well, although not the same as you once left him. That story is manifold and complex, with many twists and heartaches. But for any story to be complete, I must first know who this Cody was to you. I must hear your tale before I can tell mine."

I thought about this request. If he knew who Cody was, wouldn't he already know the story? I was about to ask him just that, but his eyes made me pause. It seemed important for him to know what had happened, and it was time I told the tale. It had eaten at my heart for long enough anyway, maybe releasing this burden now would help me put the past behind me. Besides, he said Cody was alive, which was one of my biggest reasons for not wanting to talk about it. It had been too painful to think about my friend being gone forever. 

"Well, it all started so many years ago...." I began. 

"Cody saved me when I fell into the water when I was young. The river wasn't that deep, but it was fast moving. I had seen a wolf jump out of the trees and it had scared me, making me fall. I yelled for help, but the wolf just left." I told him, remembering the events like I was watching them happen. "I tried to swim out, but I couldn't seem to keep my head above water long enough to see which way was the bank. I tried to grab the stones and branches, but they slipped through my fingers. I thought I was going to die. But I woke up on the side of the river, far from where I had fallen in. There was a boy leaning over me, his lips on mine. I jumped away, and he smiled at me. I wanted to run home, but I wasn't sure which way home was. It had gotten dark, and I wasn't supposed to be in the woods after the sunset. The boy told me his name was Cody, and that he lived in the woods with his family. I wasn't sure what he meant, I hadn't learned very much about rogues back then. He brought me to a small cave, where he said he slept. He didn't like to sleep with his pack, and they didn't care about where he was because he didn't have parents. I wanted to go home, but Cody said it would be too dangerous. When morning came, he told me how to get home, and I thought that would be the last time I saw him. But, the next time I went into the woods to get water, he was waiting by the river. He teased me that he was there to make sure I didn't drown again. I tried to ignore him, but he was so friendly. "I paused my story to get a drink of water and sat back down. Takoda smiled slightly and nodded for me to go on. 

"It seemed like the weeks flew by, me and Cody meeting up every day while I gathered water. He never came any closer to the pack land, but I didn't mind walking out to see him. We would run around in our wolf form and play fight. I thought things would always be that way, but I was wrong. One night, I heard the elders talking about a pack of rogues that had moved closer to the pack land border. It seems they were hunting our deer and the pack elders wanted something to be done about them. I listened as they planned an ambush for that night. I couldn't let them hurt Cody, so I hurried off to warn him. But it was dark, and the warriors were already in the woods by then. I searched for our meeting spot and hoped I would be able to find my way back to his cave. When I finally managed to get there, the warrior wolves were already attacking some stragglers of the pack. I rushed to Cody and we went to warn the main pack members. The last I saw of Cody was his tail disappearing into the woods, with the warriors hot on his trail." 

Takoda nodded and sighed. "Your friend made it away from the warriors, but at a cost. Many wolves were killed in that raid, and many more would have if they hadn't been warned of the danger. For years the pack roamed around, looking for a safe spot. But everywhere we went, the pack leaders found us and attacked. Most of the members we have now weren't with us during that raid, and so we came back here. We knew the legend was unfolding soon, so we had to come back to prepare everything. Cody is here, but not so. He would like to see you, but he knows that things are different now, as they should be. You are no longer a pup, nor is he. It is time for the past to be done away with, and the legend to unfold as it was foretold. The pain may linger, but until you have met your destiny, your Cody cannot come close to you." he said in a somber voice, and I looked at him with raised eyebrows. I had no idea what he was talking about, or why he spoke like that. 

"That doesn't really tell me anything," I muttered in a chilly voice, but it appeared to have no effect on him. He just grinned slyly and chuckled. 

"All will be revealed in time. Until then, would you like to meet the rest of the pack? I can bring them around if you so wish. This cabin has always been a safe haven for women and children, so you wouldn't have to worry about any males sniffing around. I am sure you will need a nursemaid when your time comes to meet your pup." He told me, and I instinctively put my hand over my stomach. But, he was right. I couldn't labor alone, in case something went wrong. Slowly, I looked up into his golden eyes and sighed. 

"Yes, I would like that Takoda." saying his name gave me chills for some reason, and I had an uneasy feeling about all this talk of legends unfolding. I made a mental note to ask him more about it at a later date. For now, I just wanted to sleep.