I leaped up into the treetops, heading for the platform where the rope was hanging. I still have trouble gauging my strength and I just barely undershot my target. I reached towards the platform as I was losing momentum, hoping to at least catch on to the edge and pull myself up. My fingers were just shy of the platform and I felt myself going back down.
'Damn,' I thought to myself as I turned my attention to look for a branch to land on.
However just as I was falling away from the platform I felt someone grab my hands and catch me. I looked up and saw Ishi, pulling me up.
She pulled me up onto the platform, like I weighed nothing. Embarrassed, I couldn't meet her eyes. She already thinks I'm clumsy and useless, so much for improving her opinion of me.
"Thanks, Ishi." I said.
When she didn't reply right away I looked up and realized that she was still holding my hands. Her expression was unreadable, but it quickly shifted back to that disdainful look she tends to wear around me.
She clicked her tongue at me, released my hands rather roughly and walked away.
I heaved a sigh of relief and walked over to the rope. It was connected to a pulley. I grabbed the rope and started pulling. Once I got the slack out of the rope, and started pulling Marshall upwards, I realized how heavy he really is.
I was struggling to keep myself from slipping- pulling on the rope with all my might. I was straining and struggling. Dania came over to help, she used her tail to keep us from getting pulled off the platform by the rope. Marshall was just short of halfway up when I was running out of steam. Dania was also losing strength as we both slipped, being pulled up and away by the counter weight on the other end of the rope.
We both yelped in surprise and I could hear and "Aarf?!" From Marshall down below. We tried to stop ourselves but it was useless. Just as we were about to lose the last bit of control and be swept away completely, someone grabbed the end of the rope behind us and started pulling. We turned around and saw Ishi behind us.
She had stormed off after helping me up, but didn't go far. She has been glaring at us from a distance all this while. I guess she couldn't stand to see us struggle any longer. She pulled the rope with ease, as if Marshall was no heavier than a basket of fish that they would be heaving up. With her help, we raised him up to the treetops. If I wasn't so exhausted I probably would have laughed at the sight. Puppy Marshall looked so cute and dopey, dangling from the rope as we heaved him up.
Once we got him on the platform and he shifted, I turned around to thank her again. She was gone. I looked around and didn't see her nearby. She must have snuck away while we got Marshall situated. I'll have to thank her later.
Dania led the way towards Isola's place. All of us were quiet on the walk there, lost in our own thoughts. It was just past mid day and the vibrant orange of the sky was filtering down through the leaves of the tree tops. We made our way across town and up the stairs to Isola's house. Dania knocked on the door and announced it was us.
Isola opened the door and waved us in "Come in, quickly." she always acts so paranoid, like a mad scientist.
We went inside and sat down on the rug. she joined us after securing the door.
"Dania says that you two are mates?" Isola said, addressing Marshall and I.
"Yes." I said, as Marshall nodded affirmatively.
"Interesting.." Isola said, eyeing us both. "When did this happen?"
"Ummm.." I looked over at Marshall, feeling embarrassed at the memory of what we did yesterday.
"Yesterday." He said, looking me confidently.
"Natural mates then? Who gave you the binding rope?" She asked
"My uncle gave it to me before I left." Marshall told her.
"Huh?!" I balked, then quickly covered my mouth.
I was a little surprised to hear Dr. H gave Marshall the magic rope. When I left, I was beastless. Why would he encourage Marshall to be mates with someone as weak and useless as I was?
"Did he have any inkling about her species?" Isola asked slowly, mentally forming a time line.
"I don't think so." Marshall said.
Isola was quiet for a while, she was clearly deep in thought and was looking though her notes, making more notations here and there.
Marshall looked down at me quizzically. I could feel him asking me what's wrong. I was still unused to the bond and the mental connection, so I ended up talking aloud.
"Why would he approve?" I whispered to Marshall.
"Why wouldn't he? You are my mate." Marshall said confidently as he put his arm around my shoulders.
"But I was so weak and useless. I wouldn't have been of any use to the tribe." I said back.
"He didn't think you were weak."
"Pretty sure he explicitly told me so once or twice during our checkups." I said sarcastically, remembering the time he said the exact words, 'you are too weak.'
"After the ritual, he told me that you were very powerful.. but you needed more time to heal." Marshall said.
Before I had the chance to ask, Isola chimed in, "What ritual?"
Marshall just scratched the back of his head and looked adorably confused as he tried to recall the name of the ritual his uncle did the night before I left. "I think it started with an M… no maybe a K? Ka…..? Hmm no, that's not right…"
Isola looked pointedly at me, "What was done at this ritual."
"He brought us to the Stonehenge on a full moon and had me sit in the center. He placed like totems all around the outsides of the circle and by each pillar. He chanted something.. I don't remember what. I remember feeling like I was struck by lightening and then I must have passed out." I told her what I remembered.
"Yeah, I carried you home." Marshall said proudly, trying to contribute to the conversation.
Throughout my whole story, Isola looked about as excited as a kid on Christmas. She was listening intently and hadn't even taken any notes until I was done talking. I patted Marshall's leg in recognition of his statement, as a thank you.
"You look… excited. Does this mean something?" I asked her nervously.
I felt that we were approaching the answers to our questions. Excitement and dread swirled around in my stomach, making me feel a little queasy. Either I was this 'chosen by god' or whatever… or Marshall and I had made a huge mistake. Maybe what we felt wasn't the mate bond but was intense attraction. But then again, if we weren't mates then how did we forge a bond without the gods ceremony? I nervously awaited her answer.
"It seems to me that your uncle is more than just a doctor. The ritual he performed is very risky, if it is not prepared exactly right. Most normal doctors don't know about this ritual because it has nothing to do with medicine. He must have studied with a Majin at some point. I would love to meet him!" Isola said excitedly.
"Hmm.. He never mentioned anything about that." Marshall said.
I tried to get us back on track, "Isola, what does this mean for us?"
"Right, right. Sorry. So the ritual is Ka'an Chiua, it was designed to gauge just how much vitality one has. It is risky because they are essentially groping at your soul, which is the source of your vitality. The Majin created this ritual so they could safely extract vitality without killing the subject. However that's ancient history. Now a days, the ritual is almost never used, since the only known Majin apprentices live in the capital. He must have suspected that you are one of Gods' chosen and was attempting to prove it."
"How do we know if he proved it or not?" Dania chimed in from the other side of me.
"Only the caster knows." Isola turned to look at Marshall, "Did he say anything after the ritual? Anything that might indicate what he found?"
"Ummmmmm…" Marshall cocked his head as he tried to remember. "I think he said she is more powerful than my mother, our alpha. He also said she was a bottomless well?"
"Really?!" Isola's eyes lit up in excitement.
"I think so." Marshall replied, not sounding entirely certain.
"This is fascinating!" Isola muttered as she scribbled on her various note papers.
"What's fascinating?" I asked her.
"Everything! Oh, where should I begin?!" she said, crazily flipping through her papers.
"Can you start by putting our minds at ease?" I almost begged her. The suspense was killing me.
"Afraid not." She replied simply.
" . . . ?!"