Emma
My lungs ached as I coughed around the tightness in my chest, a metallic taste filling my mouth. The woods were darker than before. The smell of pine accompanied every step we took as thin needles crunched under our feet.
I closed my eyes, squeezing Luna’s hand as she led me through the trees. Images of a wolf running on four paws and the guardians flashed through my mind.
"It’s still possible," Luna said, breaking my concentration.
"What?"
"It doesn’t take much to know what you’re thinking, Emma," Luna explained, picking up the pace. "Everything you think and feel now, all of us have experienced before."
"But you said it was possible. What’s possible?"
"To put things in reverse, to calm the Earth. It’s never been this bad—at least, not so long as I’ve been a guardian. I’ve seen a lot, but not like this."
"And you still think we can change it?"
"Not without scars, no. But we can stop the bleeding."
I closed my eyes again, my thoughts settling on the noises around us. The pine needles called out to me, and like an image from Luna’s memory, the last part of our song filled my mind.
We walk on pins and needles / as the world lies awake / Pins and needles / Pins and needles
"Pins and needles."
The paper in my pocket called to me, but I couldn’t stop. Not now. We kept running.
* * * * *
I dragged Luna up the steps toward Tucker’s room. The house was still empty, and would probably stay that way for the rest of the afternoon. With most of the pack gone, I considered keeping the final words to myself, but they just about burst through my chest when I bumped into Tucker in the hallway.
"I know the rest of the song," I blurted out, resulting in very surprised looks from both Tucker and Luna.
"But we don’t have a chorus," Luna said, unzipping her coat.
"I do. When we were in the woods I—"
"Breathe first," Tucker said, sitting me down on the top step. "You have all the words?" I nodded. "And a melody?"
Luna squeezed my hand. "Leave the melody to me."
"What now?" I stared at them. "Do we wait for the others?"
Tucker disappeared down the hall, appearing at the top of the stairs moments later with his coat. "They’ll meet us there."
"Where?"
"The tree."
* * * * *
The pack was waiting for us, just as Tucker had promised. I wasn’t sure how they'd known and decided it was some form of guardian magic. The tree Tucker spoke of wasn’t the same one he’d shown me as a child. This one was much bigger, its bark cracked to show the green energy underneath.
Streams of energy flowed from the tree to the rest of the Earth. Every few seconds, the light of the tree would glow and its energy would pulse away from it.
"This isn’t the same tree as before." I glanced down at Tucker and Luna who had changed into wolves as soon as we'd entered the new forest.
"This isn’t the only tree," Tucker said, canting his head to one side. "You can find trees like this all over the world, so long as you know where to look."
"Or if you have a guardian to show you the way," Luna added.
"But I thought the tree was the heart. Isn’t that why we’re going to sing to it?" I covered my ears when the tree hummed, sending another wave of energy into the Earth.
"The heart’s deep underground. Keeping it close to the surface, within reach, would mean anyone could take it. The anger you’ve seen is nothing like what could happen if anyone ever did find it."
"Why the trees?"
"They’re the Earth’s eyes and ears, Emma," Tucker explained. "Messengers."
"When we start to sing, the tree will hum, sending the song to all of the other trees," Luna said.
"But if it only needs us to sing, why does it take the guardians away?" I crumpled in front of them, throwing my arms around Tucker’s mane.
"Emma, look at me."
I raised my head at him.
"We don’t die. The guardians just fall into the Earth, remember? You taught me this."
"Both of you?" My eyes jumped from Tucker to Luna.
Luna nuzzled under my chin. "None of us know. It’s up to the Earth to decide who it needs to help it grow."
"When will I join you?"
"When you are ready," Tucker replied, his voice hoarse. "What does the rest of the song say?"
Rummaging through my pockets, I tore off the first verse I'd written before, placing the piece of paper between us. This verse doesn't fit. That was before I’d met the pack. Before the fever. I wasn’t just singing with Tucker anymore.
"Now all we need is our melody," Tucker said, nodding in Luna’s direction.
Tears pricked at the backs of my eyes. I couldn’t stand to watch and pressed a hand into each of their scruffs. Luna began to hum, and soon, the other wolves started to howl. Falling into the melody, I sang the words, my voice joined by many others.
On my perch / a ridge of white / I watch the sky / as it fills with light.
From where I am / the world falls / Our home, our haven / isn’t one at all.
We walk on pins and needles / as the world lies awake / Pins and needles / Pins and needles
We walk on pins and needles...
My voice trailed off, and I held back a cry when a searing pain ripped through my chest. Gasping for breath, I gripped at my wolves, unable to hear them and hoping they were still there. No one answered, and for a long moment, I feared the Earth had swallowed us whole. But then I heard it, a faint melody carried on the wind.
Something touched my cheek. Warm. Covered in fur.
"Emma, open your eyes."
* * * * *
Emma
Time stopped then. Each time I gathered enough courage, the fear of what I might see crept in. Was it really Tucker I’d heard? Maybe I’d imagined it.
And what about Luna? I could feel both of them at my sides, so either we’d all survived, or we were dead. I strained to hear something. Anything aside for my beating heart.
Someone—Luna, I thought—nuzzled under my chin. "Why won't you open your eyes?"
Heat rushed to my cheeks as I grabbed at her neck fur. "I’m afraid of what I might see."
Tucker rumbled, shifting his weight to my left. "You’ll have to open them eventually."
"I know." My throat was tight. "I’m not ready."
"Ready?"
"What for?" Luna asked.
"For this to end. " For your memories to end. That was all this was, after all—my memories of them. As soon as I opened my eyes, they’d be gone. They’d be a dream, a story...a...
"Open your eyes," they urged, pulling away from me.
My heart cried out for them to stay with me, but they didn’t hear it. Resting the palms of my hands on the ground, I drew in a ragged breath.
I took another, slower than before. Was the air cleaner?
I opened my eyes and stared at the ground. My hands were still human, but the Earth beneath them had changed. There were still pine needles and snow, but peeking through the natural debris were fresh blades of grass.
I lifted my gaze, scanning the area in front of me along with the forms belonging to each of my wolves. I struggled to fight my nausea as it surged into the back of my throat.
Tucker's tail swept the ground behind him. "Well?"
"Are we dead?" I asked.
The wolves laughed at that.
"No, we aren't dead," Luna replied, bumping her head against Tucker’s shoulder.
"How?" It was all I could say.
"Why are we all still alive?"
I nodded.
Luna shrugged.
"It could be because you’re our alpha," Tucker suggested. "Or because you share a bond with the entire pack."
"Or because you fell in love with two guardians instead of one," Luna added. "Funny thing about life is that it’s unpredictable. We can only control our own actions. Everything else is up to fate."
"Are you still...you?" I asked.
"Of course we are!"
"So you’re still guardians?"
"You mean, can we shift?" Tucker chimed in, shifting as he did. "Looks like."
"Does this please you?" Luna padded up beside me before shifting to take me in her arms.
"It does." I hugged her back and kissed her on the lips.
The rest of the pack closed in around us.
"Looks like the Earth gave us a second chance at life." Tucker coiled an arm around my waist.
Luna broke our kiss and smiled. "He's right. It could've taken any one of us, and yet we all remain."
"A second life," I tested the words on my tongue, but it seemed almost impossible knowing everything I'd learned from the pack.
"Take it for what it is, Emma," Tucker said. "We were given this second life for a reason. Our pack is like no other before it—"
"And perhaps that's what we needed," Luna added. "So, what now? What do you want us to do?"
"To love every minute of it." I hugged them both. "And everyone in it."
* * *
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