The Boy Who Cried 'Wolfmon'!
Chapter 4: 'Note to Self . . .'
Takuya groaned as he was abruptly awakened from a nice dream by a sharp prodding in his ribs. Eyes squeezed shut, Takuya swatted at the unwanted physical contact. Despite the boy's efforts, the poking continued. He grunted and mumbled, "Muuurrfff . . . M'up, m'up . . . stoop pooking meeee . . ."
But the brunette was the exact opposite of his words. As soon as he had spoken, he rolled over and immediately returned to 'Dream Land'.
Wolfmon, being the one who disturbed Takuya, leered at the sleeping boy. Having run out of patience, the raven-haired teen roughly kicked the boy's rear, making sure his sharp toenails made contact.
Finally awake, Takuya yelped in a mixture of pain and surprise, and lept up from the dirt to a standing position. He whimpered as he gingerly touched his wounded bum. His expression hardened as he glared at the other boy. "What was that for?!"
"You wouldn't wake up," Wolfmon said bluntly. He sighed. "Anyways, your breakfast's over there --" he motioned toward the rock/table. "-- Don't leave this cave when you finish. I'm going out for a while."
As the raven-haired boy began to walk off, Takuya exclaimed, "W-Wait! Where are you going?"
Wolfmon stopped in mid-stride. " . . . Just . . . out," he said without looking back. He continued to exit the cave.
When he was out of sight, Takuya turned his gaze toward the table. Resting on top of it was a cup of water and a plate of bread and unidentifiable meat. The boy sat beside it on the ground, and poked the mystery meat. It seemed dead enough, so he shoved the whole piece - which was very large - inside his mouth. It was hard to chew since the meat took up all the space in his mouth. When he finally got it at least semi-digestible, he swallowed, choked, and thumped his chest a little with his fist until the lump of food went down. He gasped for air as his esophagus at last became clear.
"Erg . . ." Takuya muttered. "Note to self: Never eat half-chewed food. Especially meat."
After the brunette had scarfed the bread and downed the water, he looked toward the direction that the Wolfmon had been walking. He was pretty sure that that tunnel led to the exit, but he couldn't tell since it was engulfed in shadows. His only light was the torch attached to the cave wall. It was secured by a metal ring, and looked like it could be removed.
Takuya grinned. The Wolfmon had told him not to leave, but Takuya promised himself that he wouldn't let anyone boss him around anymore. He gripped the torch right below its flame, and lifted it out of the rusty, metal ring. The teen stood up, then realizing that his backpack was missing, glanced around the room, panicking.
"Dammit!" Takuya swore, then pouted. The Wolfmon must've taken it, to make sure he wouldn't leave. He stomped off toward the supposed exit. Backpack or no backpack, nothing was going to stop him!
Takuya figured that he had been very deep in the cave, for it took at least a half hour before he came upon two tunnels in his path. He didn't know which one to choose, but he finally came to a solution.
Holding the torch out in front of him, Takuya covered his eyes with his other hand, and spun around in circles. He soon slowed down, and began walking forward, hands still acting as a blindfold.
That was a big mistake.
"OW!"
Takuya stumbled backwards as he rubbed his nose. He gradually opened his eyes, and found that he had walked right into the rock wall.
"Another note to self:" he grumbled. "Never walk with eyes closed."
After recovering, the brunette stood up awkwardly, and took the path of the right tunnel. He figured that right is always right, right?
After an hour of walking, Takuya began muttering to himself. "Gaaahh . . . How deep did that Wolfmon take me?! I'm surprised he had enough strength to carry me . . . Bah, he probably just dragged be here. That would explain those tears in my shirt -- WAAAAH!"
The boy had tripped on a large stone that was centered in the middle of the cave and had let the torch fly from his hand and land nearby. He whimpered as he sat up, and looked at his shin where it had hit the rock. Sure enough, his pant leg was torn and his leg was bleeding. Takuya cleaned up the wound a little with a handkerchief he kept in his back pocket.
Looking upwards, he saw a small light coming from an opening at the end of the cave. The exit! Takuya struggled to stand, but hissed with pain as he put weight on his hurt leg. He fell back down to the ground, and decided to get up more steadily.
Supporting himself with one hand against the wall, Takuya limped toward the light. He started out at a slow pace, but kept increasing as he got closer to the exit. He began to squint his eyes as the light shone on his face. He was almost there . . . just a little further. . .
Takuya grinned as he gazed up at the sky. It was a cloudless blue, a perfect day for a walk. The mischievous smile immediately dissapeared as he winced in pain. His shin had continued to bleed, and had begun to sting. The boy collapsed to the ground just outside the cave, clutching at his leg.
"Ahh . . ." he muttered as he used his handkerchief to wipe at his wound again. His breath caught in his throat as he heard a deep, snorting sound from nearby. Takuya carefully looked up as a drop of sweat trickled down his face.
An enormous dinosaur-like monster was standing a few feet in front of Takuya, emerging from behind the cover of trees. The teen whimpered under his breath, knowing that he wasn't able to defend himself against the creature.
"Eh . . . A M-M-M- . . ." he stuttered. " . . . M-Monochromon!" The massive monster continued to snort and grunt aggressively. The Monochromon was a common creature in the forest, but they usually don't attack random people . . .
Takuya looked around, and found a large nest on the ground beside him, littered with giant white eggs.
He quickly returned his gaze to the Monochromon, who was giving one last warning snort. "S-Sorry!" Takuya stammered. "I-I don't want your eggs!" He tried to scooch away from the nest, but could only move a few inches due to his leg. "Final note to self:" Takuya muttered. "Always listen to the Wolfmon when he says to stay put!"
The Monochromon finally began to stampede towards the wounded boy. Takuya squeezed his eyes shut, knowing that this was the end . . .
Instead of meeting with death, Takuya heard a whistling noise, and then a roar of pain. His eyes shot open, focusing on Wolfmon fending off the Monochromon. With one more swift swipe of his blade, the raven-haired teen had slain the monster, with only a few scratches on himself. He returned the sword to its sheath, and turned to glare at the brunette, who was cowering on the ground.
"Didn't I tell you to stay in the cave?!" he snapped harshly. Takuya cringed and shifted his gaze to the dirt, not wanting to make eye-contact. Wolfmon continued to leer at the boy, but soon, his expression softened and he let out a sigh. He kneeled beside Takuya, whose eyes were still averted, and examined his wounded shin.
"You klutz," he remarked, and then sighed again. "Come on."
Wolfmon turned his back towards the brunette, motioning him to get on. Surprised at first, Takuya awkwardly climbed onto his back, and wrapped his arms around the teen's neck as he stood. The wolf-like boy wobbled unsteadily at first, but regained balance as he trekked back into the cave. His arms encircled one of Takuya's legs on each side of his body, he was careful to avoid the cut on the other boy's leg. They traveled in silence, neither speaking a word. The brunette knew that it was going to be awhile before they made it back to their destination, so he made himself comfortable. He shifted slightly, rested his head on the Wolfmon's back, and closed his eyes. He heard the soft 'thump-thump' of the other teen's heart, and smiled. The beating soon became quicker, and Takuya wondered if Wolfmon was pushing himself too hard.
"Are you okay?" the brunette inquired softly.
"Yeah . . ." The raven-haired boy replied, even though a blush had crept to his face.
Those few words were spoken, and then it was back to silence. Takuya had never really been used to it. Back in the village, there was always at least one person out in the street. He was used to the hustle and bustle, and all of the noise and cheers . . . Great. Now he was making himself homesick. He had to think of something else! He buried his face into the other boy's back, and let his own hair mingle with the other's long ponytail.
Despite Takuya's nuzzling, Wolfmon continued to look straight ahead. He knew these tunnels like the back of his hand, and he liked the quiet. It gave him time to think. Soon, instead of hearing the regular silence, soft snores erupted from the boy he was carrying. He frowned, even though he didn't mind the noise. He slowed down his pace, as to not wake Takuya, and his frown slowly turned into a sweet smile.
END OF CHAPTER 4
Ritina: Blargh . . . I would've finished this sooner, but I had a stupid history project to do. And now I have a cold. (sneeze) Joy.