The Blizzard
#2 of Short Stories
Would you brave a blizzard in search of a lost love?
The snow crunched underneath my paws, and the whistled through my ears. I felt my gift keeping me warm, but I still hugged my arms around my chest by some kind of instinct. I couldn't see my breath as I exhaled, but I knew that it was easily below freezing and then some. I took one last longing look back at the cabin I was about to abandon. How cozy I could be at this moment. How easy it would be to just curl up in front of the fireplace and listen to the howls of the muffled wind beyond the boards. But I wasn't supposed to be alone, and the other one that was with me has disappeared. Quietly cursing to myself, I jerked my eyes away from the cabin and trudged through the antagonizing wind, following the trail of paw prints in the snow as my eyes began to sting.
After a while, I had lost track of the passage of time completely. It was around the time that the cabin's light ceased to be a beacon to find my way back, but the trail continued, and I needed to keep going if I didn't want the storm to hide her prints.
She awoke in a cave, the only noise being the far off echoes of the still howling wind snaking its way through the tunnels. The cave looked old, and stalactites taller than her gazed down from above. The occasional stalagmite reached up to kiss the former, which might have been romantic if she wasn't alone and scared. She had no memory of this place. Was she still on the mountain? The evidence seemed to confirm that she was. If memory served, she remembered caves and mountains having a high correlation. She also noted that the wind meant she was still in the same area; given that she was still within the storm's embrace. She moved to stand, and realized that her head hurt. She must have hit it on something. Or maybe something hit it. She preferred not to think of the latter.
Back on her paws, she noticed that she was fully dressed for the cold. Maybe this was her doing, and she had somehow sleep-walked through a storm to get here. It was unlikely, but she felt that it might explain the unusual location, the lack of memories, and the headache. It gave her comfort, so she embraced the notion. She then decided that sitting still would not yield any information on her current situation, and so she elected to begin walking in the direction of the wind. She raised a paw and flexed a muscle. Light pierced the darkness.
The wind was not a friendly phenomenon on this night. It bit me. Pushed me around. I tried my best to ignore the bullying spirits that rode this harsh breeze. It took more time to ignore the judgmental glares of the trees, those sentinels of this place. The snow nipped at my ankles and clawed at my legs. The snow reached my knees, and my chest began to glow with my gift's effort. I don't recall the snow ever reaching this high here.
As I continued to push through this white blanket, I felt a shiver work its way up my spine. I felt the glow in my chest heat up further, when suddenly a stray spark arced off into the night. It must be getting colder than my gift can safely handle. I force myself to spread out my arms, and I tense up my muscles ever so slightly, and the glow begins to travel from my chest, spreading outward like a blossom of fire. I felt my arms and legs begin to warm, and the snow around me began to melt.
She missed the cabin, from where she had come so far. Every step she made through the darkness echoed beyond the radius of light granted to her. She missed the sitting area in front of the hearth, with the clock above the mantle that never ticked. She missed the quiet evenings alone, reading a murder mystery in the warm embrace of the ever roaring fire. She wanted to get back. To be safe again. From others, and herself. She was terrified of the things she could do. She stared at the star born in her paw, glowing brightly against the darkness around her. Her demons couldn't get her here. They dared not step into the light.
Her flower of light licked at the walls of the cave as the tunnels narrowed. The wind continued to increase in volume, and she could actually feel the breeze. It caressed her pointed ears, and she felt her tail begin to sway in the current. She was almost out. She rounded another bend in cave's throat and saw the mouth ahead of her.
I saw the wall of stone appear through the fog, and a wolf greeted me with a lotus of brilliance shining in her left paw. Her fur was as white as the snow that melted all around me.
But she didn't see me. I called out to her, but she didn't hear me. I tried to hold her hand, but it passed right through.
What she did see, however, was the shadow that stalked toward her.