Escape
797 Words
LOGAN! Logan!
I jolted from sleep, my legs swinging to the side of the cot. "It was just another dream," I slurred, rubbing my eyes. It was the same one I'd had since Mom had passed. She was standing next to the edge of a cliff, extending her hand to me. Before I could reach her, she would disappear. It didn't matter how hard I ran or how long I pursued her, she was always just out of reach.
Massaging my temples, I felt the burn of the change coursing through my body. "Try to calm down!" I heard Harry whisper from beside me. "Ye get so worked up in yer sleep that yer body starts changing unawares. Wildest thing me eyes have e'er seen." He huffed into his pillow, fluffing it to the center before squaring his eyes back onto me. "Do you want to tell me what that was about?" He didn't hide the guarded tone that minced his words. He was probably worried I'd let something slip. Rowland could be anywhere, listening at any time.
"It was nothing," I admitted, my hot breath making a small steam cloud as I exhaled. "Just some stupid dream." I fought tears that were suddenly pooling under my eyelids. When I'd had the dream at home, I at least could walk down the hall and see Dad lying in his bed. But now? I was the most alone I'd ever felt in my entire life.
"Didn't sound like nothing." Harry grunted before rolling over. "Ye best rest up. Tomorrow is going to be a long day."
Roughly wiping away any trace of emotion, I stifled a yawn. "What else is new?"
There was a slight chuckle to Harry's voice, "You're going to earn your place tomorrow, boyyo. All that knowledge in yer wee brain is going to be my guide up the mountain." He mumbled a few more nay sayings about the hour of night, but eventually he rolled back over into peaceful slumber. The stillness that surrounded the camp at this time of night was incredible. During the day, it was all I could do to walk without mental interruption. Now, the most I faced was the sound of a foul smelling fart launching into the air. There was a soft pat and crunch on the snow outside as the night sentries followed their paths around the perimeter. I had yet to do night duty. My estimation was that they assumed I was still too much of a flight risk.
On that note, they'd be right. I was looking for a way out, any way that I could.
I laid there a while longer, listening to the soft hum of Harry's snores as I contemplated what he meant earlier. Up the mountain? Which one? The surrounding peaks weren't that tall, but they were sharp and covered in snow this time of year. Vegetation that survived in this weather flashed before my eyes. "We'll freaking freeze," I surmised. Any wind off the water would freeze to my...fur? I examined my arms.
We had stayed close to camp since I'd been here. There hadn't been much adventuring in my life with this new body. Would I have to wear a coat? And my feet... I examined the calloused skin forming on the pads. Grimacing, I scraped absently at the ball of my foot. Shoes were probably more of a hindrance, if I had to guess. Shifting my weight around on the creaking springs, I pulled the rough blanket tighter around my shoulders. The whir of the heater in the center of the room did little to drown out the sounds of the sleeping men around me.
It hadn't been easy to adjust to this community lifestyle. Everything--and I mean everything--was shared. We shared meals, routines, sleeping schedules, training. The only breathers I got were with Harry. I missed being in the small space with Dad where I sometimes had hours of alone time. I missed TV Land reruns in the middle of the night playing The Andy Griffith show... and the hot chocolate recipe that Mom had left taped into the cabinet door of our old house that we had carefully scraped off so we could bring it with us. I missed doing homework at the station. I missed the sound of Finn scratching the door when he wanted outside.
Finding it hard to drift back to sleep, I wondered what Ben was doing. I wondered where my dad was. I missed Finn so much it hurt. Closing my eyes against the gnawing anxiety of the unknown, I prayed that somehow I would find an opportunity to get away and get a message out to my community. I was alive, and they needed to know.
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
- Writer
