Seven

"Dude! You need to learn to transition soon. I can't do this bloody walking thing. We would have reached by now, only if we could run." Emora complained. She was hung on Romell's back who was giving her a piggyback ride despite his own painful situation.

"Yeah bro! Even if you can't, you should have listened to me. You could ride on Brian's back. We will be faster that way." Romell groaned under Emora's weight.

"I am not going to ride anybody on my back. I am sorry! If anything, Darla should give him a ride. After all she is his Mentor!" Romell laughed loudly and all the girls gave him disgusted looks. But Dormon, he wasn't talking. He was walking ahead of them, following Darla's directions quietly. Because all five of them were busy talking, Romell missed to see a stone ahead of him and tripped over it. He and Emora hit the forest floor, crushing the dry leaves under them. "It feels – so human! Have you ever heard a werewolf trip over a stone while walking? I am so embarrassed. How am I going to face others tomorrow?" Romell got up and helped Emora, searching her body for wounds.

"Shut up, Romell! Maybe four of you should go ahead and wait for us. I will walk with Dormon. It will be the best thing to do." Romell and Emora exchanged naughty smiles and wiggled their brows at Darla. But Gilly said in a serious tone, "We are not leaving Darla with him. We have no idea what he can do to her."

Dormon laughed. "Yeah, like I will kill her and throw her in the woods so that nobody can find her. Why? Just because I felt like it!" He said in a sarcastic tone and kept on walking ahead, dead leaves crunching loudly under his heavy feet.

"No – No, more like you will kiss her again or –" Brian slapped Romell on the back of his head.

"Come on Gilly! Let's go." Brian dragged Gilly along with him. She was beginning to protest but Brian stopped her with a look. The five of them understood what Brian meant and in a whiff four of them were gone leaving behind echoes of their howl and faint rustling of leaves. Dormon was aware of what was happening behind him. He wasn't much surprised when Darla slipped next to him. She stopped him and made him face her. "Dormon! I am sorry. It's just that –"

"I understand, Darla. You don't need to be sorry." They looked into each other's eyes. It was like a silent conversation passed between them without actually exchanging words. Both of them understood one another. "I am also sorry, Darla. I didn't mean anything I said." Darla smiled back at him. "Okay, let's go. We should not be delayed than this, otherwise Gilly will think I really have harmed you." Dormon turned and continued in the direction he was originally headed.

"But you are going in the wrong direction!" Darla shouted after him. Dormon turned on his tracks. They were laughing while looking at one another. "You never asked for the way, you just kept walking."

"So, where do we go now?" Darla went ahead and linked her hand with Dormon. Her fingers fit perfectly in the gaps of Dormon's palm. She ignored the tingles and began making her way in the right direction. Dormon tried to walk in sync with Darla's small strides. He did not try to separate his hand from hers. "Darla, where are we going? We have been walking for long now. Haven't we?"

"Yes. The place is far, it's actually on the hilltop at the end of our settlement. Since your home is at the beginning of the settlement, we have to go a complete round to reach there."

"But what is it that we have to go at this hour? We could have gone tomorrow morning."

"It is a very important place for our pack, so it is kept secret for outsiders as well. Since you are new and not even converted into your wolf form, many won't be in favor of taking you to that place. But I think you should start your training with knowledge of that place first. It is where we have our roots. My bothers, Marcus and Darren are guards of that place. But today they have put someone else as replacement for the night. I would not have managed to sneak you in, while my brothers were present. So now is the best time."

"Is there some problem with your brothers?"

"No. Marcus and Darren might look giant in frame, but they are the sweetest beings at heart. They are just a bit possessive about me. They think I am too naïve for the world and that is going to put me in trouble someday. Now also the friends I have is because they have approved of them. So, the idea of being around you without them knowing might not be good actually."

"Why didn't you tell them about me? I thought all pack members have idea of nearly everything that happens inside the pack." Dormon stopped in his tracks, pulling Darla before him. He gave Darla a questioning glance, but she did not know the answer herself. It was nothing to be hidden from her brothers, yet she had not dared to share anything about Dormon. The thought that she had hidden something from her brothers for the first time in her life kept nagging at the back of her head. Darla averted her gaze from Dormon and looked up. They already stood at the base of a steep hill. "We are here!" Darla said.