[PRP]Is the past ever just the past?[Caelin & Mapiya]-Ended

[Roniel REVOLUTION]

It was a great relief when Mapiya made it onto the bank. Caelin didn't know if in his exhausted state he'd be strong enough to haul her out if she needed it. He followed her up as soon as she was secure on the bank and managed it faster but no less strenuously. When he made it to the top his forelegs gave out first and collapsed him almost face first into a puddle. Rain still patterned down around and on him but it felt like a blessing after the waters of the river.

He lay his head down on a tuft of grass and listened as air was pumped in and out of his strained lungs. A dazed sort of disconnection came over him and he marveled at what a joy the act of simply not moving could be. They had survived. Somehow, both of them had made it through the moment.  

[Keantha]

"Cae?" Mapiya's voice held a faint note of desperation as she struggled to raise her head. He had to have escaped too, she couldn't loose him again!! Sheer stubborn determination lifted her head, pain racking her body at the moment but she had to see him, had to reassure herself he was ok.

Her body protested every movement, but the panic was more than the pain as her body moved without her consent. Her legs shook so badly, it took her three times to rise to stumble to his side,her golden eyes dull with shock and exhaustion but focused on him.  

[Roniel REVOLUTION]

Mapiya's voice came hazily though his exhaustion and it was only with effort that he was able to focus his eyes on her. "Piya?" Speaking focused his mind further and suddenly he noticed that she had moved to his side.

"Piya!" He pushed himself onto his belly with his head up but his legs would let him rise no further. "You should just lie down. Don't... don't strain yourself." Inwardly he marveled at the strength that she still had left. What drove her to exert herself like this? He coughed out a breath of water and hoped that whatever moved her over to him wasn't the same emotions that had made her go tearing off in the first place.  

[Keantha]

Tears filled her eyes as she slowly, legs shaking, knelt down, first her front then her back till she was laying beside him. Her body was cold to the touch and shivering both from the cold and the the exhaustion. A shaky sigh slid from her troat as she lays her head against his front legs, her golden eyes closing again. She had almost lost him again, and this time it was her own fault.  

[Roniel REVOLUTION]

Now Caelin was even more confused and on top of that some of the damnable awkwardness from his youth seemed to return through the exhaustion. Everything about Mapiya since he had met her the second time had been so unpredictable. He never knew if she was about to burst into tears, to run off and almost kill herself in a river, or whether she was going to try to bite his head off. The sudden tenderness and contact had taken him by surprise and his weary mind was having a hard time comprehending what was even going on.

She was so cold. She was probably just seeking his warmth. He began to lay his head down over her back but caught himself in indecision before the act was completed. So many emotions had torn through both of them during this storm. Was this need for closeness just a continuation of that? Could it be any more?

Though her mane flaked mud and was tangled from the stream, beneath his chin it felt like the softest thing he had ever felt. Deep breaths puffed in and out of his flared nostrils but they were slowing now, calming. They were both still alive.  

[Keantha]

Her breathing slowed as his warmth began to creep into her exhausted body, her shivering easing off. When she had gained control of her breathing again she spoke softly "I nearly lost you again...and this time it -would- have been my fault. " The pain the filled her voice was shocking. " I don't think I could handle loosing you again.."  

[Roniel REVOLUTION]

His eyes blinked wide and Caelin sucked in a breath quick enough to sound almost pained. The next one spoke more definitely of inward hurt and Caelin couldn't speak for a moment from the emotions that threatened to overwhelm him. He was too exhausted to be able to fight them off. He could only lie there close to her and thinking about what she had said and what she meant.

"You were the one who almost drowned, not me..." he replied hoarsely. "I was fine. I'm a strong swimmer, but you..." aren't and almost drowned, he could have finished if his voice hadn't failed him.  

[Keantha]

She pressed her face against his shoulder her breath catching again though this time it had nothing to do with exhaustion and everything to do with him. "I missed you. I missed you so much. I never forgot, not even when I was at my most furious, I still remembered."

His memory had always been with her and saw her through everything. She had loved him, hated him, feared for him and cried for him all her life. Now he was back and this time...this time she was not giving in without a fight.  

[Roniel REVOLUTION]

"I...." He remembered all those moments between his time spent with her. They were not moments he had enjoyed or was very proud of in retrospect. He had been bitter and angry, believing himself betrayed. All his time had been spent running away from pains that he could never escape from. They were pains whose wounds still lingered even though he knew now who had truly bestowed them upon him.

"I could never stop thinking about you." That part was true even if they weren't always the most pleasant of thoughts. "I couldn't just move on with my life after leaving." His eyes shut and his voice grew dull. "Everything has been so empty for so long."  

[Keantha]

Her stripped ears swiveled up when he spoke, but she didn't raise her head from it's place on his shoulder. They had both been so young and so stupid. A faint snort of laughter spilled from her as she realized it took them both nearly dying for her to admit how she felt.

Lifting her head she looked up at him, her golden eyes bright and piercing again. Even with the mud coating her body and spackled on ehr face, she was stunning "Don't you ever leave me again you hear me Cae? I am tired of being lonely."  

[Roniel REVOLUTION]

His head lifted when she lifted hers and likewise his mouth opened when hers did. Unlike Mapiya, however, Caelin's was to gape and not to speak. "I... I..." he stammered.

His mind worked while his voice didn't. In his time wandering he had slowly taken a sort of code into his heart. He would stay in one place no longer than he wished to stay. He would leave when he wished and he would go where his hooves took him. He never worried about where his path might take him if he felt that it was truly the direction he was meant to be running in. Could he do the same thing here? Trust his instincts and not worry about what consequences they might bring?

Yes, came the answer from his mind, the wind, or maybe both.

His voice and eyes were both soft when he was finally able to master his voice for a reply. "I won't, Piya. Never again. We've both been lonely for too long."  

[Keantha]

She smiled gently before laying her head back on his shoulder a content sigh slipping from her. It had taken them years of pain, lies, betrayl, near death but finally....they had both come home. No longer to be alone, no longer to wonder what was to come. It was just...right.  

[Roniel REVOLUTION]

The mud was almost washed from Mapiya's mane by the rain Caelin noticed as he rested his head back down upon it. The silver shone through the wetness beautifully. She had always been so beautiful.

The wetness had soaked him through but it didn't seem to matter now. He was warm while he was beside her in both heart and body. The rain would stop eventually and they would dry but what had been forged that day would not disappear so quickly.

It wouldn't disappear ever. This time he wouldn't let it. This time he'd believe in her and refuse to pay heed to what anyone else might say, no matter how trusted. This time, they'd make it. Together.