and the lamp-light o’er him streaming throws his shadow on the floor
Vesper had never had a problem with self-esteem. Since she was a puppy, she carried herself with an arrogant swagger and believed herself to be the best she could possibly be. However, even when her world was knocked down and reduced to a world of blood and pain, she never wanted to die. She had a survival drive that was almost feral, and now she knew she’d kill anyone who would threaten the safety of herself and those she cared about.
That included Sparrow, who still did not have the same strength. It had been blasphemy for her to speak of her death, however, and Ves did not regret the harshness with which she’d spoken. A wild thought flashed across her mind for an instant—that she might attack the woman, fight her until she fought back and drew blood from her scarred body. But she marked it as savage folly, and gentleness came instead.
“Life is hard,” Vesper murmured in cool agreement. “But you are here now. You’re with the coyotes of Inferni. Nothing’s harder than us.” She nipped lightly at her sibling’s scruff, but when she withdrew, it was with the hint of a smile; only a slight hesitation in her blue eyes showed that she wasn’t completely confident with her words this time. “You made it here. You survived that long; you’re surviving through war.” She blinked slowly. “I’d go as far to guess that you’ve survived through worse circumstances than I have.”
And even if she hadn’t, if the blood shed by the stronger sister was greater than her sister’s, the mental and emotional turmoil would balance that. Sparrow was a weak pup, and yet she was here; it must have been a tougher journey than the independent coywolf, even if the latter had been carried unconscious and bleeding into the realm of blood and fire.
She flicked an ear. “I’ve said all I can,” she admitted, at last sounding sure of her statement. “If you need… If you need somebody, I’m here. And you can stay until the rain lets up.” She had a feeling that wouldn’t be until late, but whether or not the hours were spent in conversation or silent sleep, she didn’t know or care. She gave her little sister a tentative lick on the ear then stepped back over to the deer hide bed, circling thrice then settling down.
Vessie is tryyyyingg. ;__;
table by raze; pattern by dinpattern
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