Forever Home

Part 6

     I severely limped in my path for as long as I could before I couldn't take the pain anymore. I stopped and started again multiple times. My situation kept getting worse and worse. I was scared and vulnerable. And it was all because of me. As I continued to limp my way through the valley, my father came to mind. He was in a similar situation like this once. I was more like him than I originally thought. He was separated from my mother and the herd during a terrible storm like that. And now it happened to me. I grew slightly joyful at this thought. I was becoming like him, but not in the way I wanted to. I was learning the hard way. I was definitely learning my lesson.

Nightfall returned once more, and the moon attempted to greet me with a full spirit. I ignored it and found a place to sleep. Unfortunately, the pain of my leg kept me awake most of the night. The worst part was that I knew the lion would be back. There was no way he was just going to disappear forever after that. We injured each other, but I was weaker. I can't run away from him next time. When a new day came, I limped over to the field again and watched the sunrise. Despite the amount of physical and emotional pain I was in, missing out on greeting the sun seemed like a crime to me. The sun was my only company, and at night, the moon.

Tears escaped my eyes again as I thought of my mother and the herd. My mother must've been utterly heartbroken. She lost her mate and her daughter. I was lonely out here on my own, but I couldn't imagine how alone my mother felt. She probably feels like a failure of a mother, but it's my fault. My selfish desperation for freedom ate away at me until I gave in at one of the worst times. The storm added to the adrenaline that flowed through my soul, and I'll admit, that was the best run I've ever had.

I felt that my soul was satisfied for a while. I looked down at my leg. It hurt more today than it did the day before. The bone was still showing, and I could see some fresh skin that began to partly cover the wound, attempting to heal it as quickly as it could. Shreds of skin dangled around the wound. Dried blood made my leg look black. The open wound went from just below my knee to directly above it. My entire leg was a bit swollen and throbbed heavily. I lifted my leg to bend it. Pain shot through from my hoof to my shoulder like a bullet. I winced at the sudden sharpness and looked at the wound again. My leg was incredibly tight and stiff, and as I moved it I could see the bone at work, grinding as I bent my leg back and forth. I was surprised the bone wasn't crushed in the lion's jaws.

The sound of chirping brought me out of my thoughts. I looked up at the clear sky to see a couple of birds greeting the morning sky. My attention was refocused on the pain that lingered in my leg. I thought about finding another waterhole to wash the blood off, but after licking around the wound myself, I realized how caked on the blood was. If I couldn't do anything about it, then water wouldn't help. After a while I was back on my journey. I had no idea where I was going, or what I was looking for. I was searching for anything really. Comfort, help, my mother, my herd, even my father was an option. I continued to travel for days. I eventually lost track of how long I had been apart from my herd. I walked through the never-ending plains with my head low. A lingering feeling of sadness had made a home in my heart. My limp got better with every passing day, but I still wasn't able to escape any threats. The sun became my only friend, and I remained loyal to it. At night, when the moon replaced the burning light in the sky, I would cry myself to sleep.

Nightmares of the storm and the mountain lion haunted my sleep. I would wake up either screaming or in tears. I thought about my mother every minute of everyday, and mourned over how much I missed her. My heart ached and longed to feel her warmth again. I wanted to fall asleep beside her once more. She was the only one I loved in my life and I was never going to see her again. One moment I had everything, and in the blink of an eye I lost it all. My happiness was ripped from my heart, and it was all my fault.