Chapter 5. Already Home

"I am on my knees, 'cause you're everything I need and I've made a mess of myself on my own. Now I am on my face, and I'm calling out your name. And I won't run away, 'cause I'm already home".
-Thousand Foot Krutch, "Already Home"

There was no escape from the pain, not even in unconsciousness. Her mind raked with what felt like a fever. She felt her body seize whenever a bullet was pulled. It felt like she was burning. Surely this was hell. It had to be. There was nothing else for her. She died…

Or so she thought. For hours after her rescue, Bane noticed Canis was going in and out of consciousness. Did she know that he had taken her, that he'd saved her life? After taking three silver bullets, he was impressed she was still alive. He had underestimated her by a long shot. Her drive to live was unrivaled, even to his standards. Bane knew the bullet extraction was painful, but it had to be done before the silver got too deep into her blood. He didn't need her dying on him. Not yet at least.

One incident had him particularly worried. The bullet in her shoulder was fairly deep and it seemed to be lodged into the bone. Canis was still out like a light, but Bane knew she could feel his every movement toward her. She could still feel pain. When he tried to dig it out with a small pair of pliers, the only thing he got for his efforts were several scratches on his already injured arm and a series of painful howls, yelps, and whimpers. She didn't fear death, but obviously hated pain. Many times, he saw the wolf almost come through; obviously thinking her human host was being threatened. Her human mind may have been out, but the wolf was still fairly strong. He knew what he had to do, but could he do it? Would it be worth the risk? It had to be at this rate. He needed her alive…Just so he could dominate her again later. Hesitantly, he took off his mask and pressed it to Canis' face. The pain quickly set in.

"Breathe…breathe Pequeña Lupa…quick!".

He knew she could hear him. She inhaled deeply and the two minds were calm as one, the pain gone temporarily. Now he needed to get back to work. The bullet would be hard to extract but he had to do it. Quickly putting the mask back on, he set back to work. The painkillers worked extraordinarily well, as Canis didn't even twitch as he dug to retrieve the bullet and then watched with slight amazement as the hole started to slowly heal on its own accord.

"Hm…Lupinotuum really can heal from silver. It just takes a little longer" he removed the bullet from her back easily. The moment the silver was gone, the hole began to close, "Remarkable…"

In the darkness of her mind, Canis could hear his voice. Bane's…was this hell? The pain had been unbearable until she heard his voice, telling her to breathe. And then there was nothing. A painless nothingness. She felt calm and safe. She wasn't Canis or the Wolf. She was nothing and no one. Just a tiny fragment of her former self.

Sarantha…

Was she back? Was the little ten year old blind girl back? Was the curse broken? No, it couldn't be. Her creator hadn't been killed by her. That was the only way to do it. So far, her fangs hadn't met his throat. So no, Sarantha was still gone…she was still dead. Killed by the wolf. A burning sensation spread through her again, like that fire she felt before. She screamed, and it turned into a howl, which brought him back to her side.

Canis felt him touch her, her head and her face. She heard him say she was burning up and feverish. It would take weeks for her to fully recover he assumed. The holes were healed, but the silver was still there. Three shots…things weren't looking well. Canis shook, chills wracking her body though she was immensely hot. She heard Bane's voice again, a little weaker now, telling her to breathe and she did. Once again, that nothing feeling returned.

"I can't keep doing that, Lupinotuum. I need it too. And imagine…I'm only doing this to dominate you again. However, I appreciate you returning this".

For hours or days, she didn't know, it went like this. Fire and then nothing. The nothing always following his voice. Eventually, Canis grew accustomed to hearing it. Sometimes he talked to her, telling her how he admired her drive to live. At one point he informed her she was changing more. A new moon phase had come, the first quarter was here and her hair, he told her, was turning black. Often times, she felt him touch it, just for a second, then pull his large hand away as if…as if repulsed…

Her hair really was changing color. Bane wondered if perhaps that was her fur color when shifted. Night black…it fit. It was a gorgeous color and suited a creature like her. She was lovely to look at, but under that beauty was a beast, a beast ready to fight first chance she got. The idea excited him. She'd be quite a fighter he knew and he was looking forward to the challenge.

A part of him liked how she was changing and for more than just her strength. She was beautiful truly. But that was the nature of Lupinotuum. They couldn't attract prey being ugly. Even her smell was attractive. She smelled of a certain flower, like a mix of a rose and a lily. But once again, that was necessary for her kind to eat.

The blood came off on his coat, somewhat. They were stains, but faint. For that he was grateful and his bite wound was healing as well. Not as fast as her wounds, but still…soon it'd just be another scar. For three days it went like this. He'd watch over her, take whatever food he could get to sustain himself, and, with nothing else really to do, he'd talk to her. He knew she could hear him, but she never responded. Bane tried to keep things on a general level, but when one is alone with one person who would listen, conversations sometimes got deep and somewhat analytical. It reminded him of the days in the Pit, something he didn't want to go into detail with her. It wasn't important, hopefully never would be when it came to her.

A lot of the time he had to remind himself that she was his enemy, nothing more and nothing less. He was only keeping her alive to possibly kill her later. That he found himself questioning at times. Wow…she was making him doubt himself. Wonderful…

He wasn't awake when she woke. Her molten gold eyes slid open and she peered at her rescuer with slightly opened eyes. Bane had fallen asleep in the chair, though she wasn't sure if he was asleep at first. He looked like he was just sitting with his eyes closed. But his calm breathing and lack of reaction to her awakening told her he was asleep. Something, and she couldn't quite put her finger on it, seemed different about Bane when he was asleep. Any other time, he seemed so aware, so alert of his surroundings. Now he just looked…vulnerable. She was half tempted to bolt, to get out of there, and something told her that would be the smart thing. But something held her in place. Curiosity took over.

He'd saved her. But why? Why all of a sudden was she so important now? Hm…he'd probably beat the snot out of her later. She'd heard all he said, and all that made him look even more vulnerable. He could be hurt too. A beast he may have seemed, but underneath it was still a man. This only reinforced her determination to keep the wolf's venom away from him. He was human. He still had a soul and it wasn't worth him losing it over her fascination. Canis moved a little closer just to catch a scent of him. It was the same as before: Sickly sweet. Something that both repulsed and attracted her. He definitely would make an intriguing wolf. But still…his soul wasn't worth it. A lost soul it was, but one regardless.

"We can't hurt him" she told the wolf, "Not after all that he's done. We just can't".
I don't know about you but I could. He's an alpha.
"He's just a man. An ordinary man".
Not ordinary…he's something different. Something, like us, that is beyond human.

When Canis thought about it, he somewhat reminded her of how she imagined a fallen angel would look. Strong, but broken. A part of her pitied him and wanted to piece him back together. A part of him had reached her, touched her heart in a way no one else ever had. She knew she should hate him, but no. After this, she couldn't. She pitied him. He was like her: A wolf without a pack. A heart without a home.

But she wondered, what hid behind that mask? What did he have to hide? She wanted to know and to know everything. Stealthily, she got up and found the clasp of the mask, taking it off…

Canis should've found what she saw repulsing and gross. All those scars, gnarled and twisted around his mouth. They looked painful. With a single finger, she traced a scar. Suddenly, those brown-green orbs opened, pain and anger glowing in them. He grabbed her small wrist in his large hand and squeezed it.

"What…do you think…you're doing?" he asked through gritted teeth.