Word Count → 318
Somebody's got a cruuushh!
"Oh, but I don't want to be a Lykoi. I'm a de le Poer, and I'm very proud of that." spoke Talitha with a slight laugh.
Sage's head moved slightly in a vague nod, understanding. Talitha could be whatever it was she wanted to be, if it would make her happy. The hippie Lykoi wondered if her cousin was happy; something about Talitha was sad, melancholy. Why couldn't everyone be happy, all the time? Could it not be so easy? Even as she thought it, Sage reflected on her own recently mournful mood.
They'd searched for hours, almost nearly a full day, on that mountain and had found nothing. Her body had been beaten and bruised by the Earth itself, but she still kept that faintest hope. She could not be one to abandon all hope as her silvery sister had. One of them had to be stronger.
Chocolate locks fell about her face as she shifted her weight, supporting the quickly lilting Talitha. A hand moved gently to her face to move them aside, and straw colored eyes turned to her cousin's face. The de le Poer girl's features were lovely; red and creme fur with eyes to match. Sage's pretty cousin seemed to be near sleep, her body so relaxed and warm next to Sage's own small frame. Thin fingers lifted, wanting to touch her hair. She hesitated, though. Suddenly, the auburn body felt tense next to her. Did she hear a sob?
Sage looked around helplessly, face contorted into a woeful expression as empathy washed over her. Why was she crying? Had Sage done or said something wrong? Fearful of this, she placed a careful, gentle hand on the girl's shoulder, an arm now comfortably around her, nearly holding her. No one should have to hurt. Sage wanted to make her pain stop, her sadness, but she wondered if she even could.
"Talitha?" she asked softly, her voice merely a whisper, aching with concern for someone she'd only just met, but felt suddenly close to.
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