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set in cottontail valley
She blinked once, and woke on the second or third. It wasn’t hard for the pup to rouse from rest. With her youth she was a natural early bird, and it was the time of day she enjoyed most. With winter’s claws deep in the landscape's flesh dawn had grown frighten, slowing its appearance and making the night longer then she prefer. The earthen colored fey understood, accepting its fear just as she accepted all that she felt. Deciding that to show the sun there was nothing to be scared of, she crept from the warmth of the cave and ventured into the frost.
Large round paws padded through the night’s snow, leaving large and visible prints for the sun to follow. Many had tracked her by the footfalls, so the orb should have no trouble keeping up. The dark seemed to worsen the further she traveled from the cave’s mouth. It was frightened too, she figured, of the warmth and comfort that was found within its mouth. Looking back she smiled at what scared all the things that claimed to be more powerful then it. The dark, monsters and creatures of evil, all recoiled when venturing to close to her home.
Golden streaks painted the snow around her and she watched as her shadow grew slowly before her. The shadows of the forest retreated still, as the sun followed. Taking to her paws once more she started her journey again, counting paws steps and creating games as she went along and beckoned the dawn to come. The pup shaped shadow lengthened, showing that her efforts had been rewarded. She turned to face it, her back to the dark and the monsters the stirred within its gloom.
Face warm from the bright and clear sky, little eyes peered up at the light that had finally found her. Her pawsteps had shown it the way, bringing the sun to where it needed to be. She didn’t even need to look for the night that retreated to the woods at her back, none of it could hide from the morning’s courage. She sat, basking as only a pup could. Proud to help a friend face its fear, Mati began to learn how fears could vanish. With the help of a friend.
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[html] Forward dated to today.
Lannen was deep into another pack's territory and he knew it. The trouble was that he didn't care. Couldn't even find it in him to care. With fingers of shadows pointing the way for him, he swept through the quiet, snow filled territory like a ghost. Despite his size and build, he was good at being quiet. His silver tipped tail caught the light from time to time as his wooden brown eyes scanned the snow for any sign of life. But as far as he could discern, there were no tracks. Only scents curling strongly through the quiet night, setting off alarm bells in his head.
It'd take a lot more than those alarm bells to make him leave.
How irresponsible could he possibly be? He reeked of AniWaya now, having been there long enough to pick up the scent of the land. The white wolf was possibly endangering those of his tribe, but that inner demon still whispered to him, propelling him forward. Tonight he couldn't stay put to save his life. He couldn't obey simple instincts buzzing about his brain like a swarm of wasps.
He needed to do something before he....He needed to find someone, to talk before his actions spelled out worse trouble. He snorted, disgruntled, and headed toward a peaceful looking valley. He spotted a earth-toned pup as the light began to raise with the sun.
Slowing his approach, he made certain the snow crunched beneath his paws. He wanted to alert the girl to his presence before he came too near. The inner demon melted inside of him and he found control again. This was a girl, a child. Was she lost? Was this her home?
"You lost, babe?" he asked.
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[html] http://i76.photobucket.com/albums/j40/k ... ump/05.png); background-position: top center; background-repeat: no-repeat;"> yay!
Lost in her thoughts, the little girl watched the sun with her imagination brewing. Good morning she thought to the bright orb. Nose pointing high in the air she greeted it, wondering what it would eat for breakfast. Of course she had gone without, waking to early for there to be anything prepared. Still Mati thought deeply on the sun’s morning meal. Large round clouds billowed through the sky, dark with the night’s receding shadows. Would he eat those?
Noise made a swiveling ear turn behind her. A long moment later she turned to see who was standing behind her. The large alabaster wolf was a formidable creature, and on another day the mixture of the sight of him and his strange smell would strike fear in her heart. But she had taught the sun to rise and not fear the monster that was night, he would be no match for her.
No. She piped simply. Of course she wasn’t lost. This was her home. He was the one that smelled so oddly. Standing to face him she held the sun to her back. Of course her new friend would stand behind her while she confronted this trespasser. If he thought that he was off the hook for stomping around in Crimson Dream snow and not asking for permission first, he was truly mistaken.
But I finks you are. Looking at him in suspicion her eyes narrowed.
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[html] Posting from work, shhh.
Lannen couldn't help the half smile that spread his face when the earth toned girl regarded him with such suspicion. This child really was something else - being out in the cold dawn in the first place. And now she faced him without the blink of an eye. The white man really admired that. She seemed so sure of herself, with her back to the sun, facing the shadow that he cast.
He was intrigued. At a young age, he'd been headstrong and pugnacious too. That had followed him into adulthood. He did have an authority issue, and it was a damn big one. But looking down at the resolute little girl, he found he could tow the line for her. At least for the entertainment value.
"I've been lost for a while," he said. He wondered what she'd do next.
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[html] http://i76.photobucket.com/albums/j40/k ... ump/05.png); background-position: top center; background-repeat: no-repeat;"> I wont tell… omg I love writing with you…
The pup rarely thought about future, or worried about what was to come. She had always been one to live in the moment; of course there had been many reasons to worry about such a moment. Still she wasn’t much of a worrywart, and soon enough she would grow out of her scaredy-cat phase. Hopefully.
His answer confused her, but instead of asking what he meant she thought on the response. Violet eyes peered into the amber ones he wore. They were deep liquid pool unlike the bright shining suns she bore. She was able to look deep within them, instead of catching his emotions from their sparkle like she did with her blue-eyed mother. Of course they still were filled with feeling, but they were too convoluted for the pup to describe.
The brown coated girl took a step forward, sensing that he was harmless. A paw touched the long shadow he cast onto the pure snow. It didn’t make lots of sense for him to be so lost for any length of time. She could smell his family on him, many different wolves that she didn’t know. It was the same way she smelled, covered in the scent of her mothers and siblings.
They must miss you, speaking of the family that he wore all over him. She knew that if she left, ran away or got lost there would many out looking for her.
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[html] This is my brand of heroin. Yumm.
She certainly was something else. What a doll. Lannen loved children. His thoughts turned back to the brighter days of the spring before, when he had romped and wrestled with his younger brothers and sisters. They would be making their way out into the big, bad world now. Those times had been simpler, happier. He had never thought those days would come to an end. But they had come to a screeching, crashing halt. And he had no one to blame but himself.
He wondered how they were, but couldn't picture their faces or imagined what each one would look like now. It was a humbling, quiet moment as he wondered about everything he'd left, everything he'd lost because of the tenuous hold he had on his control. It was better now, but it wouldn't be the same. Did they miss him? He didn't want to think about it too closely.
"I doubt it, kid," he said with a half self-deprecating, half sad smile. Would they miss him? He doubted it. Would they remember him? He hadn't left them with the best memories. Some things were better left swept under the rug where he had left them. "What's your name? I'm Lannen."
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[html] http://i76.photobucket.com/albums/j40/k ... ump/05.png); background-position: top center; background-repeat: no-repeat;"> ohhhh theres the rush… !
Another step closer, and she was closing the gap between them. He stayed where he was, but Mati just wanted to get a little closer look. He was much like her mother, in color and size. Though she noticed that he may have a bit more silver in him. She enjoyed colors, picking out the different ones that others didn’t notice. He had blue too, with pick undertone in his face. Of course any one else would just call him white, but Mati saw what he was really made of.
So his family wasn’t looking for him. It was odd, and she couldn’t help but question it. Did his pack not like him? If they didn’t then he should leave, maybe to join hers where she could go looking for him if he went missing. Here she would love him, like a brother as she did Haven. Or he could be an uncle or another relative that she could remember the name of.
Her thoughts became distracted as his gave her his name. taking it in she smiled, though not the first of the day it was the first given to her new friend. I’m Mati. This is Crimson Dreams. her tail wagged as she watched him. Eyes peered as she wondered if she would ever be as tall as he was. So your nots lost anymores. Mati added quickly, in case he was still worried that he didn’t know where he was. Standing once again she took a step then stopped to sit, You wana join? Her voice was a little more hushed, unsure of how he would feel about the pack. Still, if they weren’t going to miss him…
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[html] http://i76.photobucket.com/albums/j40/k ... ump/12.png); background-position: top center; background-repeat: no-repeat;"> It seemed that this little girl would charm every smile he had out of him today. She looked up at him with wide-eyed innocence. And below those plum colored irises swirled an internal kindness, a bright light in this world. He hoped that as she grew that her kindness would remain, that something wouldn't come and snuff it out. She was wonderful, he could tell already.
He felt his heart swell, and the feeling was almost unfamiliar. "Thank you," he said. "But I do have a home already. It is called AniWaya. Have you heard of it?" His new home was very different from the one he'd left behind. He felt he should explain some more, but he didn't know why. The little girl didn't have any hold over him, not physically. But still, he felt inclined to elaborate. "I left the home I grew up in. I came to AniWaya, near here, to start a new life."
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[html] http://i76.photobucket.com/albums/j40/k ... ump/05.png); background-position: top center; background-repeat: no-repeat;"> <3 I made a playlist…
It was a thought that she really had never thought of before. If he had left his mothers and came all the way to this new Aniwaya place, then what would stop anyone else from leaving and going off to other packs. The pup tried to picture herself leaving the mansion with no real intention of ever coming back. To leave her family, their faces never to been see again almost brought tears to her eyes.
Ignoring the feeling, she tried to focus on how he started this new life. Her tail slowed her waging while her thoughts grew deep. It wasn’t easy for her to d too much at one time, though she still inched closer. Why dids you leave? That was it, the way she could imagine turning away and forgetting that her family ever existed. Something bad, so bad must have happened that he was so mad at them that his only choice was to leave and never go back.
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[html] http://i76.photobucket.com/albums/j40/k ... ump/12.png); background-position: top center; background-repeat: no-repeat;"> <3
She hit all the hard notes, pushed all his buttons in. If it had been anyone else quizzing him this way, he would have raged at them. His past was a wound that hadn't healed at all. He still ached at the fact that he had had to leave everything he loved behind. Not that he would admit it in the light of day. But he found that he could think of these questions with a clear head and try to formulate their answers when the girl's clear voice spoke them.
And it was important for him to face these questions that had chased him down the long winding road, leading him to these lands in the first place. It was time to answer these questions, not because the little girl asked them, but because he needed to know the answers himself. It was the only way he could make peace with it. It was the only way he could come to terms, and move on. He had a life to live, and it wouldn't do to waste it on regret.
"I left because...I love my best friend." His answer was honest, and his voice was low as he recalled the days that had passed and blurred in red sparks of anger. It was because of that fire he had to leave, and he was grateful now that his love for his friend, for his family, had outweighed any other factor. "His name is Shane. We grew up together, like brothers. When I was young, my own brother was lost. But Shane was there. And as we grew, we took leadership in our pack. But it was hard for me. I grew jealous - I don't know if it was jealousy. But I couldn't be in the same room with him. The more we rose in the pack, the more resentment I felt. Until one day, it came to blows." There was shame in his voice, in the quiet truth of his words. He didn't want the little girl to bear the weight of his confession, but now he couldn't stop. "I left to save him, and myself." He couldn't have lived with himself if he had killed Shane. Because although Lannen had fought, Shane had never defended himself. The love was too deep, a brotherhood.
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It had never been her intention to invoke such an emotion from the male. For her entire short life there had been clear-cut answers to all her questions. Why this? And why that? There had been easy questions she guessed. This one was difficult; such a conclusion simple to come to just by looking into his eyes. Though the words he spoke were beyond her at first, as the story unfolded she began to understand. The sorrowful tale made her think of her own brothers, and how she was certain they would always remain together. Although the idea that happiness didn’t last forever was beginning to become a possibility for the little fey.
His sacrifice was inspiring, though it was hard to understand the jealously he spoke of. The only one she had ever been jealous of was her sister, her coat of pure white matching their mothers and her pure ocean blue eyes. All things were vain, but easy to induce envy. So, you left even though you loved him? Her question was more to imprint the idea in her mind. Love didn’t always mean staying, there were times when it meant more to leave then stay.
Do you think he misses you? Mati tried to picture his adopted brother. Maybe with a coat of black like her brother Salem’s, or maybe even white like Lannen’s own, twins in every way but blood. I’m sure he does. She thought aloud as eyes watched him even more closely, even though she had only known him a few moments she was sure she would miss him if he left. When he left. How could his brother not?
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[html] http://i76.photobucket.com/albums/j40/k ... ump/12.png); background-position: top center; background-repeat: no-repeat;"> It seemed this little girl knew everything that Lannen needed to hear, even if he didn't want to hear it. She made him think, which wasn't something he had done for a while. He wasn't a reflective creature. He was reactive, all hard edges and energy. It was strange for him to consider his life from her perspective. But it was clear that her thought processes brought clarity to his own life. Mati's observations and questions made him step back and reconsider things. He wasn't used to that at all.
The white man looked down at the earth toned child. She seemed so young, as if the ravages of the world hadn't touched her. He hoped she'd keep some of that light as she grew into a woman. She had the gift of compassion, searching outside herself to draw another in. Even as stranger, like him. She reminded him of things he had long left behind. And now a hope began to bloom somewhere inside of him, although he was yet unaware of it.
"When you love someone, Mati, really love someone...you'll do whatever it takes to keep them safe." Even if the act eats you alive. His thoughts turned over Shane, times they had laughed together, learned together. It wasn't easy to imagine a life without him, but here he was, living a life without his brother in every way but blood. "I don't know."
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[html] http://i76.photobucket.com/albums/j40/k ... ump/05.png); background-position: top center; background-repeat: no-repeat;"> short :|
Mati tried to think about someone she loved, so much like he described. Many names came to her. She loved her mothers, of course. As well as her brothers and sister, and there was Simon who was her knight in shining sandy hued armor. What she had yet to know was that a child’s love was far different then that of an adult. She loved without reason, and without question. As she aged that would fall from her, and what would be left would full of circumstance and with many more strings attached.
There are a bunch around here you can love. Her voice reflective, thinking of al the different souls that dotted the massive landscape. He would find someone, she was sure. Someone that would remind him of his brother maybe, or something that filled the hole in his heart that had been left by his departure. And then you would never had to go. Though she thought of him staying in Crimson Dreams boarders, she spoke of the surrounding territories as well. She liked him, and knew she would be happy knowing that he was near by.
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[html] http://i76.photobucket.com/albums/j40/k ... ump/12.png); background-position: top center; background-repeat: no-repeat;"> Also short!
The white male looked down at the purple-eyed girl, brown eyes suddenly slick and shiny. He shook his head for a moment, then snorted to himself. Good god, man! You are not a pup to be reduced to tears by a mere slip of a girl! Lannen subscribed to the "real men don't cry" school of thought. Still, the way that the brown colored pup could command both his attention and his heart was strange. There was something spellbinding about the way she wove her words, about the wide-eyed innocence that reached out and offered friendship to a battered man.
"I like it here," he said. "I plan to stay for a long while." He smiled, then and moved to nudge the kid with his nose. He used to do that with his little brothers and sisters. "As for people to love...I think I'll start with you." She made it so easy. How couldn't he love her? How couldn't anyone?
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Her heart grew, believing that he was true to his words. She had met many new people who brought a bunch of new idea into her mind, but Lannen was something different. It was almost like she was able to teach him something, though she was sure he had know it all along. Adult knew everything. Her smile grew as she told her that he liked it, though she was strangely sad that he didn’t want to join them in Crimson Dreams. Still his next words erased any disappointment.
She smiled, wide and open. His nudge of the noise brought her to her paws, and she batted at his snout. His lost friend, knowing that he had made such sacrifices would stay with Mati. There would be times where she would have to give up things she loved, so that they could live and flourish. His example would lead her in those hard times. Donts worry, I’ll love you too Lannen. Her voice was high and full of excitement. Reaching with her mouth for his ear she started to believe he could another one of her brothers. Another one to give her heart to.
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[html] http://i76.photobucket.com/albums/j40/k ... ump/12.png); background-position: top center; background-repeat: no-repeat;"> A half smile took hold of his jaw. It seemed as though this young girl's peace and serenity was contagious. He no longer felt a fight raging inside of him, waiting to burst out and take hold of whichever poor creature got in his way. There was something very special about this child. Lannen loved all children, happy to be around their innocent and unique presence. But there was something truly unique about this girl, a quality he couldn't quite put a name to.
He laughed when she batted at his snout, snuffing at her playfully, cold condensation curling from his nostrils as he did so. He nudged her once again, half a challenge for her to bat at his face once more. He winked at her, and noticed where the sun's position was in the sky as it broke for a moment from between the clouds.
"I think it is time for me to go," he said, straightening and shaking his pelt a little where wetness had settled between his shoulder blades. He looked back down at the purple-eyed girl. "I hope you don't mind if I visit."
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The time? Where did such precious things go? The pup looked at the white and silver hued male. Though his push had made her want to push him back, Mati settled four paws on the ground, her eyes watching his movements. She was in the mood to play, not caring about the hour, and he had to go home. It made her sad, so much so that her smile all but disappeared. It was his second statement that breathed new life into her, returning the wag to her tail. Visit? Mati wouldn't settle for anything less. She would have been truly content with him staying, but she was a beast of compromise.
Promise you will?
It would be something that she would hold him to. Nothing was more sacred then a promise.
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