Untamed

Soon, they go upstairs to change into an outfit Jason refers to as “outside clothes”. I wait for them to come down as the sunlight begins to dim outside. Suddenly, I hear footsteps coming down the steps. Jason is the first to make an appearance. He’s dressed in a pair of gray sweat pants, a dingy white shirt, and an old pair of white tennis shoes.

  He is also wearing a book-bag over his shoulders. I stand to my feet and giggle at his appearance.

  "What are you wearing?"

  He looks down at himself and laughs too.

  "Clothes I don’t need anymore,” he replies with his words mixed with laughter. "Do I look horrible?"

  "I wouldn’t wear that,” I reply. "So, I’m guessing you guys will transform tonight. Am I right?”

  “Yup,” he replies.

  Suddenly, I hear approaching footsteps. Eric and Jessica walks into the living room, pushing each other on the way down like bitter kids. They’re also dressed in raggedy outfits with book-bags on their backs.

  "Dude, what the hell are you wearing?" Jason asks Eric with broad eyes.

  Eric looks down at his tight pink shirt, which shows off his flat abs. He’s also wearing a pair of black tights. I can’t help but laugh at his ridiculous outfit.

  "I didn’t have anything else to wear. I have to use Raven’s stuff,” Eric replies shamefully.

  He looks over at his sister who is snorting.

  "What are you laughing at stupid? It’s your clothes.”

  Maria comes down the steps next.

  "Hey Iva, here..,” Maria says while she tosses me a black coat. "...it might get chilly tonight.”

  "What about you?" I ask her.

  "Uh, fur...duh,” she replies.

  I pull the coat over my head and slip my arms into the sleeves. Luckily for me, it’s just my size.

  Maria spots Eric and his womanish appearance.

  “What are you…?” she starts to speak but revises her statement. “I’m just going to act like I didn’t see you with that on.”

  “I’m wearing clothes,” Eric says humorlessly to Maria. “It’s not a big deal.”

  Maria presses her lips together tightly and shakes her face.

  "Everyone’s here but Mane,” Jason states.

  "I swear he’s worse than a female sometimes,” Eric says with his hands on his hips.

  Jessica snickers and replies...

  "You’re the one to talk, Erica.”

  Everyone laughs at Jessica’s joke.

  "Why do you have to be such a drag?" Eric asks Jessica.

  "Why do you have to dress up like one?" she counters.

  “Oh dammnn,” Jason and Maria says simultaneously.

  We laugh at Eric as he stands there with a blank face.

  “Give me some,” Jessica says with a raised hand.

  Everyone, except for Eric, gives Jessica a high-five.

  “I’m sorry bro,” Jason says while approaching Eric. “Let me get that for you.”

  Jason kneels down and pretends to pick up an invisible object off the floor. He then presents the invisible object to Eric.

  “What are you doing?” Eric asks.

  “Your face fell off back there. I got it for you,” Jason replies.

  Eric pushes Jason’s hands away.

  “Ha-ha,” Eric says tonelessly.

  “Couldn’t help myself bro,” Jason states while giggling.

  “Whatever,” Eric says with folded arms.

  Suddenly, I hear those infamous footsteps approaching us. Daniel comes downstairs and walks into the living room. His eyes stop on Eric. Daniel rolls his eyes and marches through the kitchen and then proceeds out of the back door.

  We follow him off the back porch and into the woods. Daniel walks in the lead, Eric, Jessica, and Maria are in the middle. Jason and I are following behind them.

  "So, when will I transform? How does that work?" I ask Jason.

  "With us, it happens around puberty. But you’ll know when it’s time. Before we transform, we have what we call, a spiritual encounter. The animal would visit you in a dream or, sometimes, call out to you. Have you noticed anything like that?"

  "No, not at all,”

  “No voices or anything?” he presses on.

  “Nope, not yet,” I reply.

  "Well, it won’t be long hopefully. My animal spirit called out to me when I was sleeping.”

  "And after it visits you, what’s next?"

  Jason breathes out slowly with wide eyes. It’s almost like he’s thinking about something traumatizing.

  "Then you get these muscle pains. That means your body is preparing itself for the awakening. The awakening is another word for transformation.”

  "Is it painful?"

  "It’s extremely painful,” he says with a twisted face. “I wanted to die when it happened to me.”

  “Seriously?”

  “I’m dead serious,” he replies. “Your muscles are expanding. It’s like being ripped apart constantly. That’s the best way to describe the pain.”

  I exhale. That’s something I’m definitely not looking forward to.

  “So, what other abilities do you have?” I change the subject.

  “Besides transforming into an animal, we all have a distinct skill. Mane is strong. Athena is super-fast. I’m balanced with both speed and strength. Plus all felines are fast healers. And Raven and Aero can see things in slow-motion. It’s a focusing ability. That’s the best way to describe their gift.”

  “Wow, that’s cool,”

  “Yeah, it is,” Jason agrees.

  Suddenly, Daniel stops at a small clearing.

  "Okay, let’s do this,” Daniel announces to everyone.

  Jason, Daniel, and Maria kicks off their shoes and stuff them inside of their backpack.

  "Courage, show yourself,” Maria says to Jason.

  He breathes in deeply while shaking his hands and wobbling his legs; as if he’s warming up for a track run. He stops and looks over at me.

  "Iva, you should step back,”

  I step back with my eyes locked onto him. He takes in a deep breath and holds it. I witness his body starting to tremble. I see a vein in the middle of his head coming into view. Suddenly, I hear a cracking sound.

  I realize that his right forearm has snapped into two places. I gasp loudly but quickly cover my mouth. Then I hear another crack. I see his rib-cage expanding. Then his face starts to shift into a beastly form. Orange and yellow fur grows all over his body.

  His ears grow upward. His nose flattens. His eyes become yellow. Everything is happening so rapidly. The sight is both creepy and astonishing at the same time.

  He yells out in pain, and then his yell converts into a roar all of a sudden. He falls forward onto the ground. Just like that, Jason is gone, and a large tiger is standing where he once was. He looks over at me and then winks. He removes his attention from me and shifts at Maria, who is right next to him.

  "Athena, show yourself,” Courage says in a deep voice to Maria.

  After a deep inhale, her bones begin to shift like Jason’s. Suddenly, her muscles begin to bulge, and then yellow fur covers her body. She falls forward as her clothes burst all over the forest floor. A large cheetah falls gently onto the ground.

  “Mane, show yourself,” Athena says to Daniel.

  I turn to face Daniel. His transformation seems a lot less stressful than the others. He takes in a deep breath and maintains it. I can see his big shoulders expanding. His clothes rip apart and a muscular black lion falls onto the ground with a thump. He shakes off the remaining fabric from his back.

  "How did you like that?" Athena asks in a deep, feminine, voice.

  I open my mouth but no words are coming out.

  “I will never get used to seeing that,” I reply in astonishment. “It’s breathtaking.”

  “The surprise is still to come,” Courage says to me as we begin to follow behind Mane.

  Together, we continue up the trail. Cou
rage and I stay in the back of the group.

  "Are Eric and Jessica going to transform too?" I ask Courage.

  "Yeah they will, soon enough,” he replies.

  I look up at the sky as it begins to turn pinkish purple. The trail gradually starts to incline as we hike more and more. I almost trip over a root protruding from the ground but I catch my balance. Suddenly, a large insect flies into my face.

  I swat at it wildly.

  “Oh my God. What the hell was that? This is crazy. There are bugs out here. OMG! Is it on me? Is it?”

  I hold my arms close to my body, feeling completely grossed-out.

  "There are no bugs on you. Calm down,” Courage replies.

  I can tell he’s slightly amused by my complaining. Although he's trying to do it secretively, I can still hear him snickering at me.

  "I’m glad you find this amusing, jerk,”

  “You don’t get out much, do you?”

  “Not really. I swear if I see a spider, I’m out of here.”

  “And where would you go?” Courage asks me.

  “I don’t know, but you’ll never hear from me again.”

  I continue walking with my arms pressed tightly against my body. Suddenly, I hear a noise. Luckily, it was only an owl hooting.

  “A SPIDER!” Courage shouts.

  I yelp and take off running away like the coward that I am.

  “Iva, it was just a joke!”

  I stop running and rotate to him. I never knew I could run so fast. In a matter of seconds, I managed to clear fifteen-yards.

  “What?” I reply.

  “It was a joke,” he clarifies while laughing.

  “You jerk,” I say as I make my way back towards the group.

  “What's going on back there?” Eric asks.

  “I told her I saw a spider,” Courage replies.

  Eric and Jessica laughs at me.

  “That's awesome,” Eric states.

  “Stop it before she has a heart attack,” Athena says while giggling.

  “I'm glad everyone loves to see me suffer,” I announce.

  Courage maneuvers his big frame closer to me.

  "Hop on me,” he says.

  "Are you for real?"

  "It’ll be fun.”

  He halts and I lift my leg over his back. After climbing onto his back he begins to walk again.

  "I have to charge you for this ride,” he says.

  "No way, you owe me for scaring the shit out of me,” I reply.

  “Okay, you big baby.”

  Five minutes later, everyone stops at a vast clearing. This clearing is wide with no trees and it comes with a beautiful view of the colorful sunset.

  "We’re here,” Courage says and stops walking.

  I slide off his back and gaze at the sun peeking at me from over the trees.

  “Whoa, this is absolutely beautiful,” I say to him.

  Eric and Jessica finally take off their shoes and stuff them into a backpack. Eric walks over to me barefooted with a huge grin. He lifts me off of my feet and holds me like an infant.

  "What are you doing?" I ask.

  "Go with him Iva, it’ll be fine,” Jessica says.

  Eric begins walking through the clearing.

  "Where are you taking me?"

  Eric looks down at me and says...

  "You’ll see in a second. Trust me, you’ll thank me later.”

  "Okay,” I reply weakly.

  I look over at the sunset again. I see treetops in the horizon. Then it hits me like a ton of bricks; he’s walking me towards a cliff. My brain switches to panic mode instantly.

  “Fasten your seat-belt, farm girl,” Eric says while laughing.

  "Are you crazy...?"

  Before I finish the sentence he runs into a sprint and leaps off the cliff with me in his arms. I feel myself falling at an incredible speed. The adrenaline is expanding massively inside my stomach. I let out a scream halfway down, but I can only feel it vibrating in my throat. The fierce wind causes me to become temporarily deaf. Before I impact into the ground, I feel my body lift upward.

  I incline higher and higher until I swoosh over the trees. My throat is starting to burn from me screaming at the top of my lungs. We continue to incline higher and higher until we pause in the sky. I have to be hundreds of feet above ground. In this moment, when we reach our peak in the sky, I can finally hear myself screaming like a crazy person. I feel my lungs slam against my back as I shoot towards the ground again.

  “OH MY FUCKING…!” I can’t muster another word because the wind is so powerful.

  The ground is approaching rapidly. I close my eyes tightly while the wind blows hard against my face. Every inch of my body is overdosing on adrenaline as I plummet to the ground at a chaotic speed. I feel my body lift again but only slightly. Now, the wind is no longer blowing hard against my face, yet it’s a gentle breeze flowing smoothly through my hair.

  Eventually, I stop screaming like a maniac and sluggishly open my eyelids. My tense body settles down. It’s as if I’m driving an invisible car in midair. I can see trees pass by me. In front of me I can see the subtle sunlight and all of the glorious colors surrounding it. I realize that Eric’s arms are no longer holding me. Instead of hands, these yellowish talons are holding me by my upper body and shoulders.

  My legs are hanging in the air. I use my hands to squeeze down on his talons as hard as I can. I’ve never been on a roller-coaster before, but I have seen people ride them on television several times. This is similar to a roller-coaster with the metal restrainers over your shoulders.

  I gaze above me and see these large brown wings gliding in the wind. An eagle looks down into my eyes and says,

  “Now this is how you live.”

  He then shifts forward again. I look below me and see my reflection in a lake. The water is so crisp and clean that I can see a school of fish swimming smoothly through it. He lowers me closer to the water.

  The tips of my shoes caress the surface of the water, gently. Then I witness the fish behavior changing. Fish of various size and colors begin to jump from the water while they follow me. The beauty of it all…it’s hard to put into literal words. I’ve never witnessed anything so stunning in my entire life.

  I shoot skyward abruptly, and then I feel my body turning. I’m now flying over trees. Land appears below my feet shortly after. He opens his talons and I fall onto my feet. I turn around just in time to watch the giant eagle land onto the thin grass. The wind from his wings makes me stagger backwards and collapse onto the side of a fallen tree. I grab my chest to make sure my heart is still beating.

  Athena and Courage approaches me.

  "How did you enjoy your first roller-coaster?" Athena asks.

  I can’t respond. I’m too much in awe to speak a word.

  "Did you like it or what?" Courage presses on eagerly.

  I open my mouth but the words are not fully developed.

  "Please….that…what you did….don’t…never again,” I reply.

  "You didn’t like it?" Aero, the giant eagle, asks with his bold voice.

  I sigh hard with huge, astonished, eyes.

  "No. I mean...yes..,” I take a moment to calm my pounding heart. "That was the most fun, life threatening thing, I’ve ever done.”

  I take another deep breath and release it extra slowly.

  "I think I just...died,” I say while laughing.

  "Adrenaline, this is Iva; Iva, this is adrenaline,” Aero says.

  He shifts left and right.

  "Where’s Raven?" Aero asks Courage and Athena.

  A giant black bird swoops down and lands perfectly on the ground.

  "How did she like it?" Raven asks.

  "Iva and adrenaline has a love, hate, relationship,” Aero responds. “It’s complicated,”

  Aero turns to me.

  "Hey, want to see something cool? Check this out,”

  Aero burst ha
rd into the air. His wings create a strong gust of wind that almost blows me back. I look up into the air and notice he’s already a small spec in the sky. I then see him descending towards the ground, hastily, until he shoots down the cliff.

  I wait for him to reappear but it doesn’t happen.

  "Guys, where is he?" I ask them, but my concern ceases when I see him heading towards the sky again.

  This time he’s spinning wildly as he climbs towards the atmosphere.

  “YEAH!” his voice echoes.

  "Iva, please don’t pay him any attention,” Raven says.

  "The more you feed into it, the worse it gets. He has attention issues,” Athena states.

  "It gets annoying,” Courage adds.

  He swoops back to us without blowing too much wind everywhere.

  "Cool, right?" Aero asks me as he lands.

  "How fucking lame,” Raven blurts out blankly.

  He shifts towards his sister.

  "I didn't ask you,” he says before brushing her face with his wing and taking off into the horizon.

  "You little prick,” Raven says as she takes off after him.

  “Here they go again,” Athena says as she sits on the ground next to me.

  "Where’s Mane?" I ask.

  Athena lifts her chin up and looks left.

  "Over there,” she responds.

  I look over and see Mane sitting by himself, staring at the sunset.

  "Don’t worry about him,” Courage says while flattening onto the dirt. "He’ll come over when he’s fit and ready.”

  We watched on as Raven and Aero play tag until the sky becomes inky blue. They finally call a truce when the moon reaches its peak in the night’s sky. Tonight’s moon seems a lot more vivid than usual. Maybe that’s because my view is so clear from here. As Aero and Raven dances around the full moon, I can’t help but think about my mom and her safety.

  I feel a warm rub against my leg. I look down at Courage, who is looking back at me.

  "What’s bothering you?" he asks.

  I stare back at the moon.

  "My mom,” I reply, watching Raven and Aero spinning upward together.

  "Don’t worry about her,” he assures me. “I have parents too, remember. I always tell myself that they will be okay.”

  "How can you? Aren’t you scared?"

  "You just have to have faith and everything else will fall into place,” he explains.

  "I understand you completely, Iva,” Athena joins in the conversation. “I know a lot about fear. It can drive you crazy. It can ruin your social life, give you strange thoughts,” she suddenly pauses and lowers her voice. "It can keep you up at night. It’s a disease. Don’t let fear get inside your head because when it goes in, it’s hard to get out,”

  A brief silence falls over the three of us. Athena stands and walks away. She falls down flat on the ground with her face turned away.

  "She’s fine. Sometimes she gets paranoid, that’s all,” Courage says in a quiet tone. “She always feels like something bad will happen. It’s weird.”

  I look over to see Mane approaching us sluggishly.

  "You finally decided to come over,” Courage says to him.

  Mane doesn’t respond immediately. He flops onto the ground in front of me, scattering dirt into the air.

  "It’s getting late,” Mane says. "I might head back soon.”

  We all take a break to stare at Aero and Raven dive-bombing in the horizon, then shooting straight up again.

  "Hey Mane, Iva is scared about her mom,” Courage says softly.

  Mane slowly shifts his yellow eyes into mine.

  "Don’t be afraid. Fear is your enemy. It’s the worst enemy you’ll ever have,” Mane assures me.

  "I can’t help it. She’s my mother,” I reply.

  “Remember what I told you in the hallway?” Mane asks me.

  “Yes.”

  “The same rules apply. If you show fear, you unconsciously become prey.”

  “Plus, the Blaires are out-numbered right now,” Courage adds. “They should be the ones who are scared. They know they can’t stand a chance against us. Your mom will be safe.”

  We watch as Aero and Raven put on another fantastic display. This time they are flying around in a giant circle. For no particular reason, Mane gets up and walks away from us.

  “Where’s Mane going?” I ask Courage.

  I see Mane walking further from us, slowly.

  “That’s just Mane being Mane. Sometimes he just gets up in a middle of a conversation and walks away.”

  Courage then shifts his eyes over to Mane.

  “Hey, where are you going?”

  Mane gently turns his face towards us and replies…

  “To the lake.”

  He proceeds to walk until he disappears behind some trees.

  “Let’s go with him,” I tell Courage.

  “Mane likes to be alone. That's how he is,” he replies.

  “He’s been like that since our father’s death,” Athena turns her head to explain. “He just sits down there, staring at the water. You can go. I might join you guys later.”

  I stand and begin to follow Mane’s paw-prints. I quickly discover a black shadow moving slowly in the distance.

  “Hey, wait up,” I shout to him.

  He stops and turns around. I then play ketch-up by jogging toward him.

  “What do you want?” he asks.

  “I was just wondering if you wanted some company, that’s all,” I reply while trying to catch my breath.

  He shifts forward and remains stationary. When he finally continues to walk, he mutters the word “fine” underneath his breath. Together, we begin to stroll across the flat plain.

  I want to stir up a conversation, but I can’t seem to muster the bravery to speak. Further down, we reach this long steep, rocky, hill. He places a paw on the hilltop but I stop him from proceeding.

  “Hey, can I get a lift?”

  He shifts his harsh eyes into mines. I step back slightly and quickly rephrase.

  “That’s if you want to do it.”

  It takes him a bit of time to respond.

  “I guess so,” he says halfheartedly.

  Due to his size, it takes some time to climb onto his back.

  “Hold on tightly. You’re no good to us dead,” he tells me in a humorless tone.

  “Okay,” I reply while grasping his hair firmly.

  “Are you on?” he asks me.

  “Yeah, I think so.”

  He shifts his face sideways.

  “Are you on or not?” he asks harshly.

  “Yes, I’m on.” I reply.

  I lean forward and hold on tighter. He walks onto the hill and proceeds downward, increasing speed automatically. He dodges large rocks by leaping over and around them. The rough bumpy ride is now over. I see a gentle black lagoon that mirrors the moon and the trees surrounding it. This body of water is narrow and it extends pass my eyes limitations.

  I get off Mane’s back and step onto soft grass.

  “Thank you,” I tell him as I slide off his back.

  He proceeds to walk beside the tranquil stream without responding. I follow behind him, eager to gather his attention. Seconds roll by as we both remain closemouthed. The odd silence grows the more we remain quiet. I clear my throat and turn my face to the top of his bushy head.

  “So, um, do you spend a lot of time here?”

  He takes his precious time to answer my question.

  “Yeah, I guess you can say that.”

  Our small conversation only satisfies me momentarily. Soon, that aching silence comes back with a vengeance. I hate awkward silences.

  “Did your father used to bring you here?” my voice shrinks gradually throughout this sentence.

  I feel so stupid asking him that. He instantly freezes and remains stationary for a moment. He then turns his head to me but only slightly.

  “Who told yo
u about him?” he asks in a very harsh tone.

  “Your mother did,” I reply nervously.

  He shifts forward and begins to walk again.

  “I’m sorry. I shouldn’t have brought him up.”

  I decide not to open my mouth and say anything that might annoy him further, but a moment later, I’m not the one breaking the silence.

  “I’m come here, sometimes, to get away,” he tells me modestly.

  I stop as he cuts across me and sits in front of his reflection.

  “I used to go fishing here with him,” he says to me as he looks into the dimly lit water.

  “I’ve never been fishing before.”

  He finally lifts his face and look into my eyes.

  “Never…?” he asks.

  I lower my head in total embarrassment.

  “I never did a lot of things,” I clarify.

  He shifts back into the lake again. Suddenly, a small thin shadow cruises by us.

  “What kind of fish was that?” I think out loud.

  He gazes into the water.

  “It’s hard to tell, but by the size of it, I would guess a Silver-side,” he informs me.

  “Did you bring a lot of them home?”

  “It’s not all about catching and eating. Sometimes, it’s good to just catch them, observe them, and let them go.”

  “Why fish if you’re not going to keep them?”

  “Do you really want to listen to me talk about fish?” he asks with his head turned to me slightly.

  “I don’t mind.”

  He looks back at the water.

  “It’s called catching and releasing. The term speaks for itself. My father showed me the value of it. It’s very calming. I don’t know why,”

  I see a larger fish traveling down the stream. Its scales are the color of a dirty-green.

  “What’s that one?”

  “That’s a steel-head. They’re mostly found further away near Ontario.”

  I look back into the water to search for more fish.

  “I’d love to go fishing one day,”

  Mane sluggishly glances up at me and then back into the peaceful water. He stands on all four paws, only to lower down into the thin grass. One steady paw after another, he gently prowls closer to the water. He stops when his nose touches the surface. A moment pass and he remains lifelessly still.

  “What are you...?” I begin to ask but it’s too late.

  He swiftly ducks his face into the water and keeps it submerged for a couple of seconds. He lifts his head with water pouring from his fur. He shakes the access water from his fur, and then he walks over to me like a dog holding a stick. Instead of it being a stick, I realize he’s holding this small fish in his mouth. I open my hands and suddenly I feel something wet in my palms.

  “That’s a silver-side,” he informs me.

  I shift away from the fish to look at Mane. The fish wiggles and then falls from my hands. It falls into the water and takes off. We watch the small fish swim away from us.

  “Sorry,” I apologize. “It was slippery.”

  “That’s fine,” he replies while looking at the water. “I haven’t held one of those in a …” he pauses momentarily to reflect. “…a very long time,”

  I see another obscure fish flowing pass us.

  “What’s kind of fish is that?” I ask him.

  “I think that’s a catfish. They keep the lake clean.”

  I continue to point out random fish swimming about in the lake and ask questions about them. Mane proudly replies to all of my questions, but in his usual stern way. I waste countless hours with him, walking under the moonlight, searching for fish and learning new things about them. I learn that every fish, even the bottom-feeders, have some sort of purpose in the water. One fish actually surprises me as it leaps off a rock and into the water.

  I quickly point to it and ask Mane what it is.

  “Iva, that’s a frog,” he says in a duh kind of way.

  “Oh, um, okay,” I reply, feeling a hint of stupid.

  Soon, the sun is making its return, brightening the cotton like clouds a florescent orange. I’m sitting next to Mane on top of a log, observing the lake in silence.

  “That’s a big one,” I point into the water.

  “Yeah, but I’ve caught bigger,” he retorts.

  I look over at him, who is observing the still water peacefully.

  “I understand why you come here. It’s really relaxing. You should invite the others next time.”

  “They don’t want to come down here,” he shoots back.

  “Maybe it’s because you’re so mean all the time. You’re not a very welcoming person.”

  “This is who I am, if they won’t accept me, I don’t care,” he replies.

  “But the person you are isn’t very…accepting. All you want to do is hide. Is that how you want to live the rest of your life?”

  “I don’t need someone to tell me how to run my life. Okay?”

  “Okay, I’m sorry.”

  We both shift back to the lake and admire its calmness, listening to the smooth sound of water pouring from a miniature waterfall. The sweet chirping from birds in the background complements this peaceful getaway.

  “Seriously, what’s your worst fear?” I ask him.

  “I fear nothing,” he replies with total confidence.

  “You’re so full of it.”

  “Why, because I’m not walking around with my tail tucked in?”

  “No. I know you fear something. Everyone fears something.”

  “I don’t,” he replies.

  I suck my teeth and roll my eyes by his stubbornness.

  “You know what, it’s my turn,” he tells me.

  “Your turn for what?” I reply.

  “It’s my turn to ask a question.”

  “Okay, go ahead.”

  I know he’s about to ask something really personal because he seems way too hesitant to ask.

  “So, what happened to your father?” he asks me.

  I sigh at Mane’s question.

  “He left. He and my mom had problems and he decided to leave. I remember it like it was yesterday. I can hear my mom begging for him to stay. I saw him leave the house and get into a car with one of our old neighbors. I never saw them again. I didn’t understand then, but as I got older, I realized he chose another woman over the both of us. I don’t understand why he would leave me,” I continue with a burning throat. “I loved him so much. I hoped that someday he would come back to us. I had dreams he did, but it never happened.”

  “Don’t feel bad, Iva. He’s a cold hearted bastard for leaving you. It appears both of our fathers died while we were young. The only difference is your father is still alive, that’s all. He’s not worth thinking about.”

  I smile warmly at his remark.

  “You’re right.”

  As I continue to search for new fish to learn about, I notice this bright orange one swimming pass us. It almost resembles a large goldfish. It has two miniature fins that look like wings. I stand up and gape at it.

  “Wow, what kind of fish was that?” I ask him.

  Mane stands up and watches it cruise through the tranquil water.

  “That’s strange. It was a koi-fish. That’s the first time I’ve ever seen one of those around here.”

  “It was so beautiful.”

  Although it’s far gone, we continue to stare down the lake together.

  “Well, it’s far gone now,” I say disappointingly.

  I lower back onto the log and continue to stare down the lake. Then I look up at the sky and yawn.

  “I can’t believe its morning already,” I speak up to the clouds.

  I look down at Mane, who is still gazing down the stream. He seems to be in defense mode.

  “Mane, are you okay?” I follow his gaze but see nothing unusual.

  I swallow hard and stand slowly to my feet.

  “Wait here,” h
e orders me firmly.

  “What’s going…?”

  Before I’m able to finish he takes off running.

  My heart rate starts to incline as I watch him shrink smaller and smaller. I wait, impatiently, for him to return. I look around at my surroundings with fearful eyes.

  With Mane at not my side, I feel so helpless right now.

  “Don’t leave me alone,” I say under my breath as I gaze into the darken wilderness.

  Below my feet, I spot a rock slightly bigger than my fist. I carefully squat down and pick it up. I look over and notice Mane charging back this way.

  “What’s happening…?”

  I stop speaking and gasp with glee. The rock slips from my hand without me noticing it. He’s comes to me with the metallic-orange fish in his mouth.

  “You didn’t have to do that.”

  He steps closer to me and I kneel down with my hands cupped. He tilts his head then places the fish gently into my palms.

  “Cool.”

  I gaze at the creature in my hands and gently caress its lustrous metallic scales with my thumbs. For some odd reason, it looks a lot brighter out of the water.

  “Whoa,” I utter as it wiggles.

  I look into Manes eyes, which are no longer harsh.

  “Well, you can’t keep it out for too long,” he notifies me.

  “I understand,” I say as I marvel at its splendor one last time.

  I rise to my feet carefully, walk over to the lake, kneel slowly onto the ground, emerge my hands into the water, and then I finally release my grasp. I stand and watch it glide peacefully down the stream. Mane walks up next to me and watches it vanish from our sight.

  “You didn’t have to do that,” I tell him.

  He looks up at me and then back at the stream.

  “I know,” his words come out subtlety.

  Soon, my little fishing trip with Mane is over. Now, we are hiking back into the dimly lit forest. I hitch another ride on top of Courage’s back. Just as before, we’re trailing behind everyone.

  “So, how did it go?” Courage asks me.

  “He took me fishing, well, sort of,” I reply to him.

  He chuckles mildly.

  “At least he didn’t bite your head off.”

  I laugh faintly at his joke.

  “For a second there, I thought he was,” I reply.

  We arrive at the small clearing, where I can see Eric and Jessica fully dressed.

  "What took you guys so long?" Eric says to us in a sarcastic way.

  "Sorry, we don’t have wings, Aero,” Athena argues.

  Mane picks up his backpack with his teeth and walks deep within the forest, leaving a trail of black hair behind him. Athena picks up a backpack and goes her own separate way into the woods.

  "Try not to stare too much,” Courage says with a wink before he grabs his backpack and walks off.

  The thin fur from his back begins to fall off, revealing his human flesh underneath. He emerges into the shadows. The faint morning light cast his silhouette. I watch as this shadow of a tiger gradually transitions into a human form.

  "Stop spying on me!" Jason shouts from the darkness.

  I laugh and turn my back towards him. A couple of minutes later, everyone emerges from the shadows, dressed in a new raggedy outfit. Together, we make it back to the house in little time. We enter through the back door with our feet dragging. Everyone marches upstairs, say goodnight to one another, and go into our separate rooms. Jason gives me another wink and says "Catch you later" before going into his room.

  I’m tired, dead-tired, yet it’s still hard for me to fall asleep. My mind is still a little shocked about everything. But who wouldn’t be? It's hard to believe my life has changed so drastically in a couple of days. One day, I'm at college studying English courses, and the next, I’m running from a demonic werewolf.

  As soon as I get a taste of normal, life throws me a curve-ball from hell. I can't help but wonder what else life has in-store for me...

 

  CHAPTER 29: IT’S MORE THAN A GAME