06-26-2009, 12:41 AM
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| http://digital-bonsai.com/katew/rp/kae/ ... tblood.jpg); background-position:top center; background-repeat:no-repeat; background-position:fixed; padding-top:248px; padding-left:25px; padding-right:25px; padding-bottom:10px;"> mall-caps;">In Character The hybrid pawed through the mess of bones and decaying fabric indifferently. She had never been weak of the stomach, and neither Death nor his remnants had never bothered her. Revulsion was not an emotion she experienced often—there was little in the ugly way of the world that could shock the seasoned Lykoi. The stale, musty scent of old decay permeated her nose, but she was not bothered by it in the least. When she had taken what she wanted, the Lykoi bent over the coffin again, leaning down and looking at the mess she'd made of the human's bones, regarding what was left of him with a single golden eye. He had died some time ago, she was certain, and maybe even by now his soul was gone. Looking at the bones made Kaena acutely aware of her own mortality. Before long, she would be bones and dust in the ground, rotting away to nothing and returning to the earth. She had never been religious, and she did not have answers for what lie beyond the light. The ashen hybrid would find out before too long, she figured—she was nearing ten now, and there were not many who lived to be her age, let alone older. Perhaps if she never left Inferni again and walked carefully for the rest of her life—but where was the fun in that? Determined as she was for longevity, she would not alter her ways. It had worked thus far. There was no good goddamn reason to change now. As her mind wandered, another approached. Her voice rang out, but it did not startle the Lykoi—it was one of the few tones she recognized instantaneously, and it was one that would never frighten or scare her. Her brilliant fire-gold eye shut tightly, and she swallowed hard. Neither Kaena nor Fatin had loved the other enough to dart away from their opposing lives; neither would abandon everything for her counterpart. Kaena had been the Aquila of Inferni, her massive family surrounding her, and Fatin had lived a mirror of her life in Jaded Shadows. Both had kept men, perhaps because they were afraid to admit how they really felt about each other—it was much the same story with Zarah. Kaena had been so goddamn close, so close to becoming her idol's everything, her lover, but she had run away at the drop of a hat, too frightened to say she was finished with the male sex. In her heart, Kaena thought maybe it would always be this way—but there was always that tiny, frenetic hope burning brightly in her chest, just below the blood-red star that proclaimed her a Lykoi. The coyote turned around slowly, her eye opening again, shining brightly as she gazed on the red wolf, devouring her appearance—if it was possible, she was even more gorgeous than when Kaena had last laid eyes on her. All of her red hair flowed around her head, a flaming halo of brilliant vermilion and copper, the sun glinting golden off of it in parts. At once, all of the old feelings were alive in Kaena again, throbbing in her heart and her head. How could Fatin have ever avowed to love her? She was ugly, both physically and in personality; Kaena was all violence and bravado with a pulsing core of red-hot hate at her core. How could the red wolf—kind, sweet, generous, beautiful Fatin—ever love her again? There was that sad smile again, the right side of her face almost grimacing as the knotty scar tissue impeded her expression. "Sadly not," she said, though she was sure Fatin knew this. Such was her fate; the red she-wolf was doomed to love the very worst of them, casting her golden light upon only the darkest souls. The Lykoi thought of Salvaged briefly, and wondered if Fatin knew. She walked toward the red wolf, arms outstretched, ceasing to speak for the moment. There were no words for this, and Kaena had not even considered the possibility of rejection from the red she-wolf. |