‘I mean how do we know that Nevaeh can do anything?’ she looked at the twins. 'Seriously, you’ve met her right?’ she added.
Claudine and Caro cloaked their expressions, a look Amber picked up on.
‘I knew it,’ she pounced, pointing a finger at them triumphantly.
‘You think the same thing as me.’
Claudine shushed her, looking behind them. Amber felt like dancing - she wasn’t the only one who had doubts.
A commotion of whining and snarling drew their attention outside. Even in the darkness you could see two naked figures crouching on the patio facing their totems, their heads bowed. It was something Amber had never tired of seeing, and she knew that as experienced as they were, joining was the most crucial. If the totem sensed that their energies were not on the same frequency, or there was danger, the reaction reversed. Instead of joining, their own totems might attack them. In her training, Andrea had told her about the legend of a totem sister who was swallowed whole. Like any legend the possibility of it happening again was always at the back of her mind. It seemed impossible when she watched the way they blended so intimately.
The twins shifted next to her. Joining was contagious, and she knew it wouldn’t be long before they too, were outside. With their joining complete, Seth and Nettles turned to look at the three of them in the window, before disappearing in a flurry of silver and black hair.
Amber shivered. Before she joined this group, she never seriously thought about the environment, except what bin to put her plastic in. Now it seemed so much more serious.
‘What were you saying?’ Caro slurped at her tea, ignoring the way her twin had started to pace round the kitchen. Joining was contagious and Caro, who always bragged that she was the eldest by two minutes, did seem to be more in control. Claudine started to growl, and Amber backed away returning to the lounge. She remembered a time when they were upset by something while waiting to join and almost exploded into a fury of fur. Apparently it was quite normal for the youngest initiates to lose control and she didn’t want to be in striking distance. She knew that the twins would wait until Seth and Nettles had returned; patrolling was always done in rotation, for safety.
In the lounge, she felt the familiar butterflies at the way Andrea flipped her hair over. She had been so stressed lately, and they never seemed to spend any time with each other. Now that school was finished for the summer holidays, she was always alone. She sat next to her feeling guilty and bit her lip wondering if she should tell her.
‘Andrea…I…’ Andrea shushed her, a flash of irritation spreading across her face and held her mobile out briefly to make a point.
Amber mouthed a sorry, but Andrea was too busy talking to one of the elders and waved her away. Feelings of guilt melted instantly and she pulled her own phone out while picking up her bag. Scrolling through the messages in the hallway, she half listened to Claudine and Caro growling.
At least someone needed her; she reasoned and almost jumped when her mobile vibrated.
Andrea would literally kill her if she saw who it was, especially when they had all been warned about having non-totem friends; she had both.
‘Okay…I’m off now. Think I’ll pop into the hospital to see her,’ she said, shuffling a bit before realising that as usual no-one was paying her any attention.
19
Wrapped in the body of their totem, Seth and Nettles were finally free to follow the ancient Gaia law by allowing their totem to take control. It was a way of integrating with different packs. And tonight, they were on the lookout for any strays that had become confused. It was becoming quite common lately, and they often had to guide them back. For some, it was too late. They had wandered into gardens and were attacked by guard dogs.
Integrating was always risky. By losing, if only for a short time, the reasoning of the human mind, they put themselves in danger. But it was necessary to become accepted.
Seth, whose totem was a silver haired male fox, padded lightly through the woods, a light rain had fallen and he kept his ears alert to the keening cry of the others. Cries, not only distinguish different packs but also warn others that circle the village. Their instinct to feed was roused by a small rabbit that lay on its side with its throat cut, and at first they were wary – it wasn’t a fresh kill. Tucking their tails between their legs, they sniffed, hesitating between fleeing and eating.
Seth licked his nostrils, which flared in response, testing the air before moving in. Nettles held back the growling of his stomach and the scent of blood was too overwhelming. Once their stomachs were sated, the male licked his paws and flank, while the female whined again, identifying smells and judging the distance of each one. The smell of a fawn and its mother drifted towards her mingling with the musk of smaller animals that had passed the same way.
There was one smell that was stronger than the animals in the wood, and she nervously backed away from the stench of wet clothing, her ears twitching instinctively and alert. She circled the male cautiously, nudging him on his flanks, and he snarled at her. Defensive, her brownish hair standing on end, she sniffed the air - something was wrong. The grumbling cry of alarm sounded from her throat, her tail and ears flattening against the terror.
It was quiet, too quiet, compared to the previous week. Then the woods were alive with the chatter of birds and insect life. Apart from the normal badgers or antelope and abundant rabbit warrens, the reduced smells from their kind made them nervous. They knew they were alone.
The packs seemed to be choosing strange, untried routes that often got them lost, or worse, trapped on private hunting grounds where the dogs rounded them up for the kill. The female whined loudly now – they both sensed danger and with that their totems released their human mind. At first, Seth used to find this the most difficult when he woke up in the body of an animal but soon adjusted. For Nettles, it had always felt natural, and only took a few minutes to focus her vision until everything became crystal clear to the point of being psychedelic. She took in the remains of the rabbit, and the traces of blood left on the leaf. The only sounds she heard were her totem’s shallow breathing. Seth whined as he stumbled slightly after waking up in his totem.
