Under The Cover of Darkness

-chapter 12-~reconstructing~

The chirping of birds and the movement of the air as the breeze whispered through the branches around us were forgotten as I concentrated on my mind.
I concentrated on the spirit of my wolf, I imagined her smokey grey coat and recalled the feeling of her untamable need for hunting especially.
When she got the urge to chase, that's what she did. When she saw something she wanted, she went after it. She took chances without a second thought, and she did anything to survive.
To be a werewolf meant to understand the spirit of the wolf, because you'd been inside the mind of one. It is always easy to judge ones motives from the outside, and just as easy to misinterpret. My wolf and I had plenty in common, that's why we worked so well together.
I felt her stir within me. I sensed her restlessness at the injury of one of our own. I sensed her resolve to do what it took to heal him, our friend. Our pack mate.
I took a deep breath. In through my nose. And I released it through my mouth in one efficient push.
I allowed my eyes to open. I knew when I laid my eyes on Henry's still form, when I could see each hair on his distantly shaven face, when I could sense the motion of each individual leaf in the foliage that surrounded us, hear the movements of the life that surrounded me but also zero in on any desired sensation, that she had awoken within me.
I concentrated on her feelings, and relaxed. We were one, and I didn't need to tell her what we needed, so I allowed her to control our body.
To describe what it feels like to share a body with another spirit, well, not that I have anything to compare to, but there isn't any conflict. Our souls are bound and simply function as two sides to a coin. Certain situations trigger each side. There is no rhyme or reason either, especially when acting on primal instinct.
I lifted my hand to caress Henry's cheek. I instantly heard a growl from beside me. I turned my head to meet Brighton- or should I say Brighton's wolf spirit's eyes. They were illuminated a bright blue, indicating his control over Brighton's body, much like mine would be if I could see myself right now.
I simply ignored Brighton, my wild side was present every time he had snubbed us. We were proud when driven to it, and despite the connection of our souls, he hadn't quite earned his place in our hearts just yet. Well, he didn't get to know he was in our hearts, anyways. Not just yet.
He must've awoken when we did, sensing our close proximity and intense emotion.
I returned my attention to Henry once more, bringing my second hand to hold the other side of Henry's face.
Another growl rumbled beside me this time, more insistently. My body froze at the command of an Alpha laced in the guttural sound.
My head snapped towards Brighton. I looked him dead in the eye and released a growl of my own. We were dominant and we knew it. Brighton was physically stronger, but we didn't care.
We felt hesitant at Brighton's feelings. Through the connection of our souls we could feel his desperation.
That gave us pause. What was he desperate for? This was about Henry, what could he possibly want right now? I was overcome with a wave of irritation for a moment. This wasn't about him. All he was doing was distracting me from the task at hand, the rather important one at that.
Then I felt another wave of something, regret. It seeped through the connection of our souls and I gave Brighton one last look into his crystal blue eyes. I wanted to tell him that we would give him a chance. Mates only came around once, after all.
And with that I shut my eyes again and concentrated on the energies around me. With Brighton's wolf awake and so near to me, this was difficult to do without just solely concentrating on the soul of our mates.
Then something moved in the 5th dimension. Just barely. And then again and the subtle movement was so small and soft that it tickled my senses. I felt my fingers tighten around Henry's face.
Not knowing how else to call to Henry's spirit we lifted our face to the sky and released a howl. With human vocal chords, i'd rather not describe what it sounded like, but my sound reached the far corners of the forest in the early morning.
Henry's skin under my fingertips warmed considerably, causing me to draw my attention to his face once again, and when I did, I released a gasp of surprise.
A smile so wide it hurt my cheeks spread uncontrollably as I met Henry's familiar blue glowing eyes, no longer unresponsive and white.
Looking at him then, I felt like we were dancing in the 5th dimension together. I could feel my wolf spirit's care for him, how her worry as well as mine was soothed away because there with us was the calming presence of Henry's wolf spirit. He had a strong, reassuring presence about him.
Then, with quiet certainty, Henry's eyes closed. He appeared to be settling off into a peaceful sleep, but I did not worry. The steady rise and fall of his chest indicated that he was indeed asleep now, and that whatever he had been experiencing before, whatever had caused him to sleep disturbingly, had been eradicated.
Relief flooded my mind, my spirit and my wolf's could rest for the time being. Now, by my command, my palms left Henry's cheeks and I sat back on my feet.
I shook my head in disbelief, "Brighton, how did you-"
A long, mournful howl sounded not too far off, and as I gazed at the empty spot next to me, I believed I knew who's cry it was.