VII.
"Sheldon Lee, could it really be you?"
Sheldon closed his eyes, an intense feeling of relief washed over him as Penny hesitantly raised a hand to touch the side of his face, his slight beard tickling her palm. He had waited so patiently for this day, he had waited years, for this specific moment. He had fought through wars, torture, and deceit, just to find her and it was worth it. It was all worth it, because she was back, and she was his. He finally risked opening his eyes and searched her own. Her eyes were sad and confused.
He turned his head towards the hand on his cheek and pressed his lips to her palm, "It's me, Penelope. I've waited so long for you, I never stopped trying to find you." He desperately wished for his words to resonate the despair he felt. It had taken him the better half of a decade to finally come to terms that he would not be waking up with Penelope in his arms, unless he did something about it. After that, he steeled himself and made it his mission to find the woman he loved with everything.
It wasn't easy, especially with her family constantly moving every few years. Though, something brought him to Newmist, his Pack told him it was useless, and the town was so small that if the Queens lived there, they would stick out easily. He had almost believed them, until he crossed over the borderline that crossed through the woods. Despite the smell of pine needles and fresh rain, his snout picked up on a scent that was extremely distinct.
"Mama's gonna have a cow, if she finds out I'm in the woods," Penelope grinned rebelliously.
Sheldon Lee looked at the shorter girl and smiled in return. He knew it was inappropriate of them to be running off together, gallivanting through the dark forest but something about her brought out the recalcitrant side of him. Besides, he knew that together they could defend themselves against nearly anything.
He took Penelope's hand in his own, and he pulled her to the center of the woods, "Look," he said simply, gesturing to the ground. Penelope looked to the mossy ground and gasped, surrounding her feet were an abundance of flowers, all white and vibrant.
Sheldon smiled at her reaction and bent to a crouching position, he plucked a flower from the ground and twirled it in between his fingers, bringing the flower to his eyeline he spoke softly, "These here flowers are called Clematis' they remind me ov' ya'," he stood and walked towards her. "The white of these petals represent innocence and purity, just like my Penelope," his Texan accent was thick, and it was one of the things Penelope loved about him. She smiled.
Sheldon's mother once told him that he acted as if the sun comes up just to hear him crow, and no woman would ever love him for him if he kept that attitude up. Though, Sheldon never cared enough about a woman to even think about changing, but once he met Penelope, he knew his mother was right. It was a shame she passed away before he could introduce the two.
"The biggest thing 'bout this here flower that reminds me ov'ya is the smell," he brought the flower to her nose, Penny giggled as it tickled her nostril, "It smells like vanilla, Shelly," she grinned, she loved the scent of vanilla. Sheldon just nodded his head excitedly. "Pa had me huntin' the other day and I came by these, I read up on'em. It's rarer than hen's teeth I found 'em, but I'm glad I did…" he placed the flower behind her ear and pulled her into a tight embrace.
Penelope pulled away slightly and raised her hand, it started glowing a light green and she waved it over her ear, the flower floated from her ear and defied gravity in between their bodies. She flicked her wrist, and it was suddenly encased in a glass container that resembled the rose from the Beauty and the Beast movie Penelope loved.
"I'll cherish it foreva', Sheldon Lee."
Sheldon smiled widely and pulled her in close, inhaling deeply as the scent of her vanilla hair invaded his nostrils.
Sheldon didn't even think about slowing down once his snout caught wind of the scent, his Pack struggled to keep up with him, it had been a while since they went trekking. Sheldon would've made it to the end of the woods a lot quicker if it wasn't for a loud howl and the sound of a whizz! that went by. Coming to an abrupt halt, Sheldon whizzed around and noticed Howard laying on his side, withering. Sheldon's piercing blue eyes narrowed in on three men eagerly high-fiving each other, they believed to be out of sight—behind two large boulders, but they weren't.
The large brown wolf noticed one of them taking aim again, he was only glad that instead of rifles they had arrows. He snarled at Leonard and Raj who immediately understood their Alpha's command, and before the males could release their arrows, Leonard and Raj were tearing into their flesh. Their screams covered by the whimpers that left Howard's muzzle. He watched with worried eyes as Bernadette circled her husband and gently nudged his body. Bernadette was the salutary, the healer, she was the one who fixed any of their injuries. She was studying Howard's arrow wound.
Amy had come up to his side and gently nuzzled him, at one-point Amy was completely obsessed with him. She tried in vain to make him forget Penelope, she wanted him for herself. But after stepping over her boundaries, Sheldon had laid into her so fiercely she was terrified of him. She realized then just how important his bond with this mystery woman was, she didn't like it…but she understood it. Sheldon glanced at her and then back at the town he could see between the trees. He knew Penelope was there, he could smell her. But looking back at Howard, he knew his Pack needed him.
He bowed his head and immediately Leonard and Raj reappeared, the fur on their face coated in crimson blood. 'Did you leave them somewhere inconspicuously?' Raj bowed his own head, and Leonard replied, 'Yes.' With that, the Pack was off again, but in the opposite direction of the town. The further he got, the more her scent faded, it almost left him in distress. But at the sound of his friend in pain, whimpering, he knew he had to be an Alpha before all else.
Penny frowned, "But Sheldon…how? I…I don't remember?"
Sheldon raised his arm and held the hand that was on his face, he brought it to his lips and kissed her knuckles, "You were taken from me so many years ago, Penelope. It took me ten years to kick it into high-gear but I never stopped searching for you since," he told her honestly, "I was so disheartened when I realized you wouldn't remember me. That day in the occult shop, I wanted so badly to grab you and kiss you, but I couldn't. You had a life here, and you didn't know me."
Penny took her hand from Sheldon's and narrowed her eyes, everything he was telling her sounded correct and she did remember him…but something else was missing. "How many years has it been, Sheldon?" She was afraid to ask, she was afraid to hear the answer. Though, she knew she had to know.
The tall male watched her cautiously as he spoke, "Two hundred and eleven years."
She gasped, she hadn't been expecting that at all. "But…I'm twenty-six."
"In a sense," he said softly, he knew she was in a state of shock, "You're two hundred and twenty-six years old, Penelope."
She swore she could've fainted just then, what was he telling her? The last thing she remembered was being pulled away from Sheldon, desperation in her eyes as she tried in vain to fight against her mother, she had been fifteen at the time. "No, I would be dead. That's impossible."
"Not impossible, improbable, because you're in existence." He sighed as he sat beside her, "Penelope, I know you remember me. But it seems you have yet to remember what I am, what you are. You must have many questions, and I know you're eager for the answers but only you can answer them. You must remember, Penelope."
She furrowed her eyebrows, what she is?
"You're insinuating I was born in seventeen ninety-three, and that's just not right. No human could survive that long, Sheldon Lee." She knew Sheldon wouldn't ever lie to her, he never did. Though, she found it hard to believe she was born over two hundred years ago. She looked at Sheldon and felt a shiver run through her body. He gave her a look, a knowing look, and it made her mind swirl.
Sheldon produced a gleaming object from his pants pocket, and it glistened in the moonlight as it swung back and forth. She gasped at the sight of her necklace, she touched her neck and felt it bare. She reached forward and gripped the crescent moon in between her fingers, "My necklace…" she whispered. Sheldon nodded, "I was surprised being in the necklaces presence never triggered your memory." He gestured for her to turn her back to him, and she did.
He gently placed the silver chain around her neck, "It basically called out to you," he informed her and clasped the link. Penny let her hair fall loose and touched the red ruby adorning the crescent moon. Suddenly a quick electrical bolt ran through her, igniting a fire in her stomach. Sheldon watched in both astonishment and worry.
Penny's arms shot out in front of her, and like a magic trick both of her hands produced a bright red light. The ring on her finger quickly disintegrating into thin air. Penny held onto her chest in shock once the jolt passed. She looked up at Sheldon, scared.
"Your abilities have been lying dormant for a long time, Penelope." He picked up her hand and turned it over, looking at the small tan line that was left where the ring used to be, "They're ready to come out now."
Before she could speak, she heard the voices of many men, she saw flashlights coming through the trees. Sheldon, already aware of the oncoming intruders, was standing and gave her a look, "Speak to your mother, I'll find you again when I can."
Before she could reply, she heard the ugly voice of Kurt, "Penny! What the hell are you doing out here?!" He shouted at her, obviously angry. He was accompanied by three other men, after wracking her brain she knew them to be Chet, Bryce, and Zack. They all carried some form of weapon and looked painfully arrogant as they carried beers with them. Penny stood to her feet, but immediately noticed the scared looks on their faces. She glanced behind her and nearly fell over.
She watched through her emerald eyes as he pushed harder, running ahead of her, he turned back with a grin on his face as his hindlegs pushed him further. He howled as trees whizzed by him, everything a blur. He chanced a look behind his shoulder and was shocked to see a flash of snow cover his vision and the two wolves tumbled over a small cliff and wrestled to the ground, playfully biting at each other.
She had pinned him down, her white-as-snow fur coat shining brightly in the sun, her emerald eyes gleaming confidently. She was radiant.
Sheldon.
That was her Sheldon Lee, and she knew it. His coat was shinier than she remembered, and his eyes were still the piercing blue iris' she obsessed over. "Penny get over here! Slowly. I'm gonna take this beast down!"
She suddenly felt very protective of the wolf and stepped in front of it, her arms spread widely, "He's by himself, Kurt, leave him alone. He's not hurting anyone!"
Kurt nearly grabbed her by her elbow and dragged her out of the trees, was she stupid?
"I'm gonna mount this one's head on my wall," Chet smirked as he raised his rifle, however, a loud howl was heard from above them and before the group knew it they were surrounded by wolves. At least ten. Kurt immediately regretted journeying into the woods to find his idiot girlfriend, she was about to get them both killed.
However, Penny wasn't afraid. She could hear the Wolves, they weren't going to attack, Sheldon had told them not to. "Let's just go, Kurt."
Kurt was actually going to obey Penny, but Chet had fired his rifle and before anyone could react, the terribly aimed bullet bounced off a tree and hit the hindleg of a grey wolf. Immediately the thundering of the forest floor could be heard, and the wolves closed in on Kurt, Chet, Bryce, and Zack.
There was the sound of multiple gunshots, and snarling. It was man verses beast, and Penny was horrified.
She felt like time was on a standstill, she didn't even realize Sheldon hadn't moved. He stayed beside her while everyone else got dirty.
'Do you understand me?'
She nodded slowly. 'Can you communicate with me?'
'I don't know how,' the thought came out whiny, and it surprised both she and Sheldon. Before he could reply, a piercing scream was immediately cut short and the two refocused on the mess, she saw Zack, Bryce, and Kurt high-tail from the woods and back towards the town, she narrowed her eyes…her boyfriend left her.
The group of wolves moved, and she gasped when she saw Chet lying on the ground lifeless.
'He hurt one of our own, he had to deal with the consequences.'
Penny looked at him, 'our own?'
He watched as his Pack and the neighboring Pack retreated, aware Penny was not a threat and was in fact one of their own. Sheldon bowed his head in respect at the black furred wolf that stood tall on a ledge, he was the Alpha of the other Pack and though they did not like each other, they didn't like humans even more. Enemy of my enemy…
Sheldon looked at Penny, 'Speak to your mother.' He said simply before speeding off into the night.
Penny stood there, by herself, confused.
"I'm two hundred and twenty-six years old?" From everything, that was the most appalling thing she heard.