Duo

The Legend of Duo

For the pack, life on the Glacier meant enduring harsh, freezing weather that lasted throughout the year, but this spring blizzard was unusual. The wind was howling, and rain and snow swirled heavily outside the cave. Deep within, nearly a dozen wolves, alongside several pups, sat to wait out the storm.

An old grey she-wolf was nestled against the back wall, entertaining one of the young pups with her long, swishing tail. To her left, another pair of pups were wrestling over a piece of bone. The group had been settled in silence for the last couple of hours, and the energetic younglings were beginning to become restless with boredom.

"Cloud," a dark male wolf called. "Why don't you tell us one of your stories? To help pass the time."

The grey she-wolf's ear flickered in acknowledgement. "Aye, I suppose I could." She inclined her head towards the rambunctious youngsters. "If you will listen."

"What kind of story?" a fourth pup questioned, crossing the cave to Cloud's side. Two more bounded after him.

"Come settle, and I will tell you," Cloud murmured. The pups gathered around at her request, curious expressions crossing their faces. "I will pass on to you one of our pack's most famous Legends. Would you like that?"

"Yes!" several pups barked in unison.

"All right," said Cloud, in her slow, raspy voice. By now, the other adult wolves were also giving her their attention. The elder she-wolf was well known for her storytelling skill. "This is the Legend of Duo, a two-headed wolf, who was born on our lands many generations ago."

"Two heads?" repeated a pup. The others uttered similar startled noises.

"Shh," said Cloud, though a small smile graced her muzzle. "All will be explained, all right?" The pups nodded. "Her story truly began well before her birth, with the visit of humans on our territory." Every individual in the cave shuddered with trepidation at her words. "These humans were a warrior group - known as military - and were using our remote lands to test their weapons. These weapons were not fang or claw: these were human made chemicals, called nuclear, that caused explosions to wrack the earth and strange fluids to poison our waters." The pups gasped with shock, and Cloud nodded solemnly. "It was a difficult time for all creatures living on these lands. Our wolf ancestors struggled when our prey scattered, and many members journeyed across the Ice Lands to hunt and settle elsewhere. Many more stayed, too stubborn or afraid to leave the place they called home. And they suffered for it."

Cloud took a slow breath, and took in the rapt, attentive gaze of her audience. "Even after the humans sunk the evidence of their activities and left the lands for good, the effects remained. Any creature that touched the water or breathed the air was influenced by the nuclear chemicals. Our ancestral pack reported many strange occurrences. Wolves born in this age experienced early blindness, unnatural coat colours, a prevalence of albinism, and a variety of other birth defects. Pups were born with extra toes or shortened tails. Mostly minor things...until Duo was born."

"In truth, though we call her Duo, her real birth name has been lost to the passage of time," Cloud amended. "It is possible she was never given a name at all, as her mother certainly must have believed she would die. But the one fact that has remained unblemished since her time is that she was born terribly, undeniably deformed." Cloud closed her eyes, as if to imagine the scene, and her audience followed suit. "As the story goes, her mother, a wolf named Aona, experienced a difficult labour. She bore two healthy pups before her daughter - or daughters, rather - were born. At first, in the dark of the birthing cave, Aona was joyful. She had three beautiful children, and her youngest looked just like her, with fur the colour of silver and snow. It wasn't until the newborn moved that she saw the second head." The pups could not withhold their gasps. "Duo was a monstrosity, even to their own mother. Aona was heartbroken and terrified at the sight of her combined daughters, but she could not bring herself to reject her child. So she did what even a good mother may have struggled to do - she cleaned and nuzzled Duo, the same as her other children, and encouraged them to nurse. It was to Aona's great surprise that Duo began to feed, and moved with the eagerness of any normal pup. It was then that Aona decided she would do anything she could to raise and protect them."

"Aona did her best to conceal the birth of her child, and for a week, she succeeded. By then, her mate was demanding to see the litter, and her pack's Alpha had begun to grow suspicious. He was a cruel and domineering leader, and Aona was at last forced to reveal her child's severe mutation." Cloud paused, and opened her eyes, to see all the wolves in the cave were waiting with baited breath. "It was tradition, back then, for any pups with such an extreme defect to be cast out to die. While Aona's mate was supportive of keeping Duo, the Alpha was furious. He demanded that Duo be placed out on the ice to die. Despite Aona's protests, he took Duo from the cave and carried them outside, to reveal their existence to the rest of the pack, who had gathered at Aona's cave. It was then, under the sunlight, that the two-headed pup's eyes began to open." Cloud's own eyes widened dramatically. "At first, it was the right eye, on both heads. In sync, they opened, revealing two white irises. And then the left ones opened, revealing pure black." The pups uttered curious noises amongst themselves. "Duo not only had two heads, but had two different eye colours. This was rare, and some wolves held the belief that heterochromia meant a wolf was born with special gifts, such as the ability to see the spirit world, or bestow blessings. Others believed it was a much darker phenomenon, and that a hetero eye could cast curses or bring bad luck. As Duo sat beneath the sunlight and took in their surroundings, they sent their gaze towards the cruel Alpha." Cloud paused for affect. "Supposedly, Duo's black eyes shivered in their sockets, and the Alpha uttered a shocked cry before falling to the ground. He died instantly, struck by their powerful gaze. We will never know if Duo truly cursed the Alpha, or if he spontaneously passed from the affects of the human chemicals, as early deaths were not unusual back then."

"But, what happened to Duo?" interrupted a small brown pup, eyes wide.

"I'm getting there," Cloud hummed. The pups wiggled anxiously. "The pack was deeply shakened. Their Alpha was dead, and they decided that the strangeness of Duo was too much to bear. They demanded Duo be cast out to die, in fear of the curse passing on. Aona refused, and so they demanded her exile, too. Her mate could not stand to leave his home and two remaining children, and so he stayed. Aona was forced to travel alone with her young pup across the Ice Lands, a fate of certain death. A tragic end for them both." Cloud dipped her head, acknowledging the various saddened expressions of the pups. "But the story does not end there. This Legend of Duo has remained a Legend for so many years, because even to this day, wolves report sightings. It is said that a small wolf spirit, not much bigger than you all, with two heads and two-coloured eyes still roams the Glacier. Many lost travellers claim they were guided through terrible storms to safety by such a spirit. Some say Duo appeared in their dreams, or ran alongside them as they crossed the Frozen Plains. Some say Duo still watches over these lands, and protects and guides those worthy of help." Cloud released a low breath, and smiled at the now wonder-struck expressions of the pups. "And you know what? I believe them, because I too have seen Duo."

"No way!" A pup yipped, and the other adult wolves chuckled slightly.

"Tell us, please!" Another pup added. "You're certain it was them?"

"I am certain," Cloud remarked. "As certain as the existence of my tail. But..." She tilted her head towards the entrance of the cave, where the storm had finally begun to settle. Her ears flickered as she caught the sound of the still-swirling wind; or was it the croon of a pair of faraway howls? "I think that's enough for today. We'll be able to go out soon." She smiled slightly to herself. "We'll save that story for another time."

Thanks so much to Valkyrae and Scvngr for the opportunity to win this rare and unique beauty! She will be forever cherished. I still can't believe she's mine!

The first hetero eyed Poly!! Wow. :D 

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Valkyrae, the pups last owner, rubbed the two heads while smiling down at the pups. "You two beauties will live an amazing life. I am honored to give you to someone today. Be good." 

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Gene approaches Duo and presses his ear tightly into her fur. He mumbles something under his breath before plucking a single hair strand directly from the coat. He turns his back to you and fumbles around with it and a series of objects. After a short period, he offers a small smile. "Despite the current, ahem, difference, Duo is completely clear! Not a carrier for anything at all."