Soulmates Across Borders

Chapter 12

Upon waking, Solí went to find Waiata. She wasn't in her borrowed nohonga. She looked around and spotted a lady who was tanning deer hides nearby.

"Did you see the wolf tribe's wise woman wake up?"

The lady nodded. "She headed toward the river a few moments ago."

Solí nodded her thanks and left immediately, Pango following after her.

Why are you so upset?

I suppose there's no point in trying to keep it from you, she admitted. Then she recalled the dream sequence in her mind so Pango could learn what had happened.

He was quiet for a while as they walked through the bear tribe's large village. Children played in the dirt paths between the nohonga. Older children kept an eye on them while the adults left the village to go attend to their tribal duties. Some left for the gardens, while others headed the same direction as Solí, with fishing nets draped over their shoulders. It was a gorgeous day, with a light breeze to lessen the heat of the sun. Butterflies drifted about and birds chirped from the surrounding trees.

I don't like this, Pango said finally as they reached the river. Waiata was nowhere to be seen, but upriver, a couple bear tribesmen were wading in the water with fishing nets.

I don't like it either, she admitted as she led the way upriver to the two fishermen. The water in the river flowed by with a calming babble.

Do you think the soulmate makutu clouded your thinking?

I know it did! The soulmate bond makes you love your soulmate the way I love you.

But you can't be in love with a beastman! Pango stopped walking, and Solí had to turn around to look down at him. They murder our people, Solí. You would betray us all if you accept your bond to the beastman!

I feel the same way, but what am I supposed to do then? The man knows how to find me now.

Only at night. We are far from our village here. He would have to travel through thick forestland for a full moon cycle to find you here. If you stay awake at night, you might never see him again.

You want me to stay awake every night? She shot him a sideways glance.

Hey! I'd stay up with you. I could go back to being nocturnal. I'd love it.

I'm not sensing a hint of sarcasm.

No really?

Solí scoffed. Maybe this is irrelevant anyways. We need to find Waiata and learn what the wise women say about all this. Then aloud she called out to the fishermen. "Good morning! Have you seen the wolf tribe's wise woman come by here?"

"I think I saw her downriver," one answered.

Solí waved in thanks and turned back to walk along the river. Pango padded along behind her. She could feel his eyes boring into her back.

It wasn't just the soulbond makutu that was messing with her head. Her soulmate captivated her. He was handsome and charismatic. He seemed to be a good man too, even if he ordered his men to invade Solí's village. He wanted to look past their differences and be with her. And though it infuriated her, she realized she liked the idea of not needing to marry Tokah.

She'd never had a disagreement with her bonded wolf before. They always agreed on everything. It was part of the soulbond makutu. From the moment Solí's father bound them together seven years ago, they had loved each other. But Pango didn't love the beastman because the beastman was not his soulmate.

Solí closed herself off to Pango and swallowed her sadness. Now that she had spoken to Aer'ehk she couldn't imagine a future without him. It infuriated her, but they were connected. Though her soulmate was a beastman, she couldn't reject him any more than she could forsake her wolf. She only hoped that Aer'ehk felt the same way. That the soulbond makutu was also forcing him to empathize with her.

Then maybe they could both live to see a future where they wouldn't want to kill each other's people.

They found Waiata naked and wading into the water further downstream. She saw Solí and Pango coming. "Leave me in peace while I bathe," Waiata called out to them as she sank down into the water.

"Come back to the borrowed nohonga when you're done. I want to talk about what you learned in your mo-ay mo-ayah dream."

"There's nothing to tell you yet." Waiata continued her way deeper into the river. "Last night I only spoke with a few wise women. They are helping spread the word. We will hold a council of wise women tonight. We will meet in a grand mo-ay mo-ayah dream of all the wise women of all the nation and discuss this matter more fully tonight. You must be patient."

"I understand. Please don't tell anyone about this until tomorrow morning, alright?"

"Of course, of course! Leave me to bathe in peace, child!" Waiata scolded her.

Feeling rather frazzled, Solí turned and led the way back to the village where they found some food to eat that the women of the bear tribe had laid out for the poor wolf tribe's people. There were so many of her people gathered around the food that Solí felt like she could only take the bare minimum.

After thanking the bear tribe's women, she turned and found a place in the shade to sit in the grass. She ate her deer jerky and hand-full of berries as slowly as she could to savor the meal.

"Where have you been?"

Solí turned to see Tokah glaring down at her. "I woke up and went to the river and now I'm breaking my fast with my people. Was I supposed to be somewhere?"

"I came to meet you this morning, but you weren't in your nohonga. I wasted all morning looking for you."

"Next time maybe you should tell me of your intentions to meet."

"No, next time, you should come find me. As the prince of the bear tribe, I should not be bothered with the task of searching for my fiancé."

"I see." Solí had to fight hard to keep from rolling her eyes.

"Our fathers have important business to discuss with us. We require your presence."

Pango, why didn't my father's wolf tell you they were looking for me?

When Pango didn't reply, she realized he had closed himself off to her, likely because she had done that to him first. No wonder Tokah was mad at her. Her father was likely furious as well, since he wasn't able to contact her thanks to her rash decision to shun her wolf. With a heavy dose of guilt, she nodded and stood to follow Tokah and his lumbering bear through the village, with Pango padding along behind them.

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1123 Words ~ 13136 Total