Chapter Text
The wolf ran through the woods, drawing ever closer to the Light that beckoned him on. The Light ahead promised a surcease to the pain in his heart and a healing of his wounds. It banished the shadows and offered solace to his soul. Part of him craved these things, while another part mourned what he left behind, what could never be.
A soft sound from behind made him slow and flick an ear back to listen. He shook his head and surged forward only to stumble when it came again. It was the sound of a soul caught in distress so similar to his own that it resonated within him, making him falter in his quest for the Light. Who, other than him, could be in such pain? Surely the powers that had brought him to this place wouldn't allow it to continue? The cry sounded again, closer and louder than before, and he stopped. His head swung back and forth and he whimpered in confusion. The Light called to him, but the cry tore at his heart and couldn't be ignored.
"Don't you go!"
The words held no meaning, but the raw despair in the tone resounded deep within him. He took one last regretful glance at the Light and then turned away. Loping towards him in a ground eating stride was a great black jaguar, his magnificent golden eyes filled with pain and longing and love. The wolf's heart beat faster. This was where he should be; this was his destiny. Joyfully he ran for the big cat, muscles coiling as he prepared to leap. The two animal spirits merged with an incandescent flash as their souls returned to the physical plane. Neither had noticed the darkness that slithered towards them from the trees. They wouldn't have remarked on it nor been surprised to see it, even if they had noticed. For how can there be Light without the Shadows that It casts?