no need to be here, no card to clock in

Levent Kartal · 10-14-2012, 09:55 PM

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Word Count → 403

The silence was hard for him to bear, memories he tried hard to suppress—the main reason for his northward exodus—coming back to haunt him as he stared at fingers linked in his lap. He grew uncomfortable, but decided to stretch his legs out and shove his hands down in his pockets rather than chop the cream digits off. Though the truth hung around in the back of his mind he focused on his surroundings, practicing a simple sort of meditation as he closed his eyes and focused on the sounds, the smells, the grass brushing his feet and the bark against his back…

The stick striking him in the face.

Levent made a startled noise and opened his eyes, his arms jerking up defensively as a barrage of twigs and small rocks struck him on the head and stomach. The voice declaring him a traitor was one that he recognized—albeit barely, not used to hearing it in anger. His heart clenched, but there was little he could say in his defense. He’d betrayed Eclipse and Hotaru and Cercatori d’Arte and he’d done worse things in the span of a few frantic seconds. And for that reason, his deep hidden guilt, he refused to move out of her throwing range or do anything but hold his arms up to block the worst of the ammunition.

To his utter surprise, Mai was the one to finally come to his defense. She snorted once, threateningly, and moved toward the tawny she-wolf, covering a startling amount of ground in a relatively few strides. Levent barked a command at her to halt, however, and she obeyed him, though one ear turned back as if she were puzzled why she was defending the asshole of a handler she’d gotten stuck with.

Eclipse, let me explain, Levent tried to say, but it came out too wheedling and pathetic. He was wheedling and pathetic, but that was beside the point, so he tried again. I didn’t mean—I didn’t mean to break my promise to you. It was best for the pack that I leave, best for… Best for Hotaru. Saying her name hurt him more than sticks and stones; it was a punch in the gut among everything else he had to feel terrible about. He knew that, even if everyone else was mad at him for leaving, Hotaru would be rejoicing that her pup-killer was gone.

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