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 Posted: Fri Jun 23, 2006 11:03 am
At first, once the adrenaline subsided, Gareth couldnt help but sheepishly wag his tail. Somewhere in him, he was furious that Kapu had gashed Mozelle’s head so- but this was Kapu! The man she loved, and was looking for– and then, he didn’t feel so good. Slowly his tail stilled and he peered down at his feet, and curved his ears to the dome of his head. Why did he act so disappointed? Surely there was never anything between them? Even if there had been- how could it have? He was nothing like the men she knew. Even if Kapu had been found dead, he’d never have been able to win her from all the males that would come crawling to her door.
Why did it hurt then? Just like all the other times– but, Mozelle was different. She had actually been a friend, not someone he’d admired in private.
It made him thoroughly disappointed in himself to even be thinking such things. She was a grandmother now, surely that would make her happy. They were happy together- stories should end like that. Why did it feel like his story never ended?
Kapu’s stern voice broke hit him across the ear, and he rose his head.
He paused for a moment, trying to translate what he was saying. There was a ringing in his ears.
What was he talking about?
"I- what?"
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Posted: Fri Jun 23, 2006 11:49 am
Mozelle felt her heart beating against her rib cage. Even if Gareth didn't understand what the black male had said, she sure as heck did. And for a moment she found herself torn. Here, right in front of her, was the male that she had been looking for all this time. So why didn't she feel relieved? Was it really as he had said, that Gareth was stealing her away? She had to admit, she found herself a bit pulled towards him...
She narrowed her eyes, but found no words to speak. Kapu, on the other hand, didn't seem to have any trouble finding something to say.
"You heard me, little man," he growled, advancing forward again. "Do you honestly think that I'm so blind? I see the way you cling to her."
"Kapu.. please. He--" Mozelle tried to get in before things got out of hand, but her former mate cut her off before she could get much out.
"No! See, this is the exact thing I worried about when I came back and found you gone. I was afraid that you had run off with some other male, moved on, forgotten about me. Now it seems that all that I've worried about has come true. How could you?"
The female was infuriated now. He had mysteriously disappeared for a year. He had come back and scratched her up a bit, tried to go after Gareth... and now he was blaming her for everything? She shook her head, her hackles rising as she pulled her lips back in a silent snarl.
"None of this is my fault, you know very well. I thought you were dead. I only wound up here because I was looking for you." Suddenly she whining, finding that she couldn't stay mad at him for long. "Kapu... you have no idea what I went through when you were gone from that spot. And the human stench! Kapu.. I nearly died that day when you left. It just... I was..." She shook her head and lowered it, closing her eyes. Her shoulders hunched over as her ears fell back against her head. All of this was simply too much.
Seeing her like that made his heart twist and turn. Kapu lowered his head a little and let his tail droop. "Aaka... honestly I didn't know." Crawling towards her, he attempted to catch her eyes, though he found that they were closed. "Come on Aaka."
Mo, with Kapu's coaxings, lifted her head and looked at him. But she didn't seem at all pleased. "My name is Mozelle, damnit!" she growled, glaring at him angrily. The male was surprised and found himself speechless. "Just get away from here, Kapu. You don't belong here."
The male growled and shook his head. "I'm not leaving without--"
"Yes you are!" she snarled, lashing out at him with her forepaws. She caught his ears, tearing one of them, and he yelped out in surprise, backing off as he did so. Once he was out of her striking range, he blinked at her.
"What are you doing?" he whined, his tail tucked.
"Protecting the one I love," was her simple reply.
Kapu, beaten beyond his own belief, began to slink away from the scene. But he wasn't going fast enough for the female. She growled again then dashed at him. That got the male running and within minutes he was out of sight and scent-range.
Confident that he was gone, Mozelle snorted then turned and glanced at Gareth. Her ears folded back slightly as she limped back to him. Once she was by his side again, she sank down to her belly and, as if nothing had ever happened, started to lick her injured paw.
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Posted: Fri Jun 23, 2006 12:16 pm
He heard Kapu’s words, but it felt as though he was speaking backwards. Suddenly, he was approaching, and Gareth felt himself jerking backwards. “I never intended-“ He spoke quickly, his own fur bristling against his back out of nerves. Had he never intended? He’d never thought but...
But words now were so cool in his throat that he couldnt speak. Mozelle was still speaking with Kapu worlds away, and he hung silently wondering if perhaps he should leave for a bit. He still wouldn’t leave Mozelle. Not unless she wanted him to. The thought of it twisted his stomach and made his throat run sour.
Kapu was laying on the ground though, approaching Mozelle in a slow begging crouch. That black form and yellow eyes– he turned away and shut his eyes. So much that he was not.
And then she was yelling, and subconsciously Gareth jerked to the side to see what was happening. Mozelle had one of Kapu’s ears in the path of her claws, and a moment later blood had flecked and the ear was torn. The black male tucked his tail, and almost missing the words Mozelle had said, he watched the creature drag himself back into the woods.
Was this a dream?
But he was already moving to Mozelle, who seemed to have hurt herself in the process. “Are you alright?” He panted, and closed the space from where Kapu left to where she now sat.
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Posted: Fri Jun 23, 2006 12:29 pm
Mozelle, out of breath for the most part, continued to lick her injured paw. It didn't hurt so much, but she knew that it would be troubling her later on. She just hoped she'd be able to use it like before.
When Gareth came over, she simply forgot her wound. Had she really meant what she said to Kapu, that she was protecting the one that she loved? It definitely wasn't the black male that she was protecting; she had torn his ear and chased him off! Glancing at Gareth, she couldn't help but smile at him.
"I'm fine, Gareth. I just hurt my paw is all." The spotted female then stretched out her forepaws, closing her eyes for a moment. But that single act alerted her to another wound, that one above her eye. "Aaah.." she winced, closng the single eye that had the cut above it. "I hope that doesn't scar," she mumbled, trying to clean it by licking her paw then rubbing it over her head the best that she could. But it still stung and she simply sighed, giving it up for the moment.
"What about you, Gareth?" she asked afterwards, her voice soft. "He didn't get at you, did he?" Oh boy would she show Kapu a bit of her mind if he had gotten at the brown male...
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Posted: Fri Jun 23, 2006 12:40 pm
“No, no he didn’t-“ Gareth spoke, and watched as she tried to dab some of the drying blood off of her head. His heart fell again. She shouldn’t have gotten hurt. He had taken hits before. Not that he didn’t doubt Kapu could kill him about as fast as he could blink but– what kind of man was he to let Mozelle get hurt for him?
Sheepishly he balked and lowered his eyes, shaking his head slowly. “I’m sorry Mozelle, I–“ His fur rose and fell in a slight flinch, and his head shook more sternly. “If I wasn’t such a coward all the time you wouldn’t of had to get hurt-!”
“I’m sorry.” He repeated again. It was a favorite phrase, but he really felt he had meaning for it this time. “Now I’ve messed up you and Kapu–“
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Posted: Fri Jun 23, 2006 12:57 pm
Mozelle nodded. "Good." Well, at least there was one good thing about this day. She would have never forgiven herself if he had gotten hurt. That would have been her own neglegence and she would have felt absolutely horrible. But, fortunately, he went by unscathed.
Yet then he went and blamed himself for her getting hurt. She was a bit infuriated, but managed to keep herself calm. "No.. Gareth, don't ever say that, please." She whined and crawled closer to him, her ears laid back against her head. Mo wished that there was something she could do to help him become more confident, but at that moment in time she was fresh out of ideas.
Things only grew darker in her mind when he blamed himself for breaking her and Kapu up. Narrowing her eyes, she gently bumped his head. "No you didn't. That was something between me and him, you didn't do a thing." Though he had been the reason that they had fought in the first place, it wasn't actually his fault. Kapu had taken things too far and she was simply tired of it. She wanted a male that would trust her with other males, know that she was loyal forever and always. He wasn't that, and so she had shown him the door.
The male who she believed was that was actually...
"Gareth, don't you worry about a thing. He didn't trust me and that was his own fault that he got given the boot. You just relax and..." she stopped as she began to lick at his ears, like she had before when he was nervous. Then she went from licking to nuzzling his neck and scooting closer.
But then she realized what she was doing and instantly pulled away looking very ashamed. "I-I'm.. aah, forgive me, Gareth.."
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Posted: Fri Jun 23, 2006 1:30 pm
He listened to her silently, and did believe she wasn’t angry with him... but he was still angry with himself. What would Phib say when he found out about this, if he did? Why couldn’t he ever be brave enough to do what he had to do? But now... he wobbled on one foot while other people helped him up. Phenn, Thallen, Jaden– and now even Mozelle. For his brothers, holding him up had even cost them their lives. Thallen might not have agreed to that. But to Gareth, the world tended to begin and end at it’s demise somewhere because of his faults.
“I just don’t want–“ He spoke slowly, his head shaking. As he spoke, she moved closer and began to lick his ears. It was a calming action, and his stance relaxed somewhat. “-It’s wrong of me not to be able to stick up for myself. What if something really bad happens?” He peeped, and lowered his eyes.
But by now, she was nuzzling against his chest. What did it all mean? Was he still too dumb to figure it out? Her motions sent a slight shiver down his back, and abruptly it ended as she pulled away.
"You havnt done anything that needs to be forgiven-" he remaked sheepishly and shook his head. He was the one who needed to do it.
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Posted: Fri Jun 23, 2006 1:40 pm
"Nothing bad will happen now, Gareth. Everything will be fine, just don't worry," she whispered, crawling back towards him. For all the world she just wanted to curl up with him and rest. But he didn't seem to be returning any of her feelings and so she began to wonder if perhaps she had been wrong about it all along.
Mozelle had thought that something had been there, but maybe not...
"No, I've done everything that needs to be forgiven," she sighed, looking off to the side. She didn't deserve him anyways. He was too kind and gentle and innocent. Fate couldn't possibly allow them to be together. "I shouldn't have done that, really, it's too much I suppose."
Sighing again, the female rose to her paws then began slowly walking back to the den, her head lowered in a shameful manner. She had chased away the only one who had loved her and now she was going for someone who probably didn't even return the feelings or even think that he might. Mo shook her head and mumbled random things to herself, her tail not even swaying with the wind.
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Posted: Fri Jun 23, 2006 2:05 pm
“No– wait!” Gareth spoke without really even realizing why he was calling her back. If she wanted to leave, she could leave couldnt she? She got hurt, she just met back with Kapu and lost him in a matter of minutes... why shouldn’t she have some time alone. But...something... something about this was not about Kapu. It wasn’t about what had happened. He had felt this before.
“Mozelle, you’ve never done anything that needs to be forgiven, I swear- how could you?” He balked, and stumbled towards her. She was sluggishly walking away, and he moved in front of the way, his tail down and ears folded. “I’m sorry–“
Why did he keep saying that. He was sorry. Why was he so stupid that he couldnt figure it out? His head furrowed. All of this. Kapu saying he was coming between them. Mozelle saying she was protecting the one she loved. Had she said that? Or was it what he had wished he’d said?
“Mozelle...” Everything had to be so confusing. Things seemed too clear that they couldnt be. He’d been in this situation before- and every time he was wrong. He wanted...
She had done it, he hadn’t. Was she just affectionate? Or did he make up these things because he was so pathetic?
“You couldn’t do anything that would that would bother you–“ He peeped, and shifted his tails. He wanted....
“I just want–“
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Posted: Fri Jun 23, 2006 2:13 pm
For a moment the female was frightened when he suddenly blocked her way and began speaking quickly. But then she raised her head and ears as she found a flicker of hope. He was trying to say something, but was seemingly having some issues getting it all out.
"Gareth, Gareth.." she whispered, a soft smile occupying her maw as her violet eyes scanned his pale green ones. "It's alright... just... what are you trying to say?" she asked softly, so soft that she was afraid he might not be able to hear her. But she wasn't going to repeat it. The moment would be broken if she spoke again, Mozelle thought.
"Just take a deep breath and tell me.."
Her heart pounded, faster and faster, against her chest. There was a fluttery feeling in her chest and for a moment she was sure that she was going to throw. But she kept it all in and instead waited patiently for him.
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Posted: Fri Jun 23, 2006 2:54 pm
Oh, that didn’t help... how could he say something? What would she think if he said it? Did he even know what he wanted to say? No, he knew. He hadn’t even allowed himself to think it. Even now, his mind wouldn’t repeat the words for fear they might take root. He’d loved before, although not quite like this. No woman like that would be waiting on him.
“But I-“ he stammered. He couldn’t say anything unless he knew. Why would Mozelle not say something if she felt like that? If she felt like that. Of course she didn’t feel like that! But as he stood there, she was still waiting for an answer.
It would be easier if he knew, if she said something– but that made him a coward, didn’t it? How could he ask her to do everything? All he was doing was running away again. He had said he’d never run from her, but in his mind he was bolting.
He had no right, not now. She was hurt, Kapu had come– the timing wasn’t right.
It would never be right.
"...-" He fidgetted, and lowered his ears. "I, I mean, you-- nothing you could..." he fumbled, unable to grab in words. Finally, he paused and steadied his thoughts, although by now the ringing in his ears was loud enough to deafen him. "I know, it probably doesn't mean anything but- you've done so much for me and I keep screwing it up-- but..."
Well, this was coming out lovely, he thought, and bit his tongue. "--I love you. It probably doesn't matter but--"
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Posted: Fri Jun 23, 2006 3:10 pm
Mozelle blinked at him as he continued to fumble for the right words. He was simply adorable when he was all nervous like this, which was practically all the time, but that didn't matter. She continued to smile warmly at him, watching him with those beautiful eyes of hers. She didn't seem him as a coward at all, and she never would.
"It's alright, Gareth... just let it out," she coaxed in a whisper, never letting her eyes stray from him. And then--finally.
It was like a great weight lifted from her shoulders. He had admitted to loving her, and there wasn't anyting else in the world that would have made her happier. Finally, all of her doubts were chased away with those simple words. Her smile broadened and her eyes sparkled like never before.
"It does matter, Gareth... it matters so much to me," she whispered softly, closing the gap between the two and nuzzling him under his chin. "It matters because I love you too, Gareth."
And all the world simply smiled.
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Posted: Fri Jun 23, 2006 3:31 pm
He’d thought that after all this time he had grown a good mind for predicting the outcome of his actions. Point A and B will go down to C– never D. But now... now this! Had she said something else and he had only imagined words falling from her mouth? But then she stepped forward, nuzzling her head against his chin.
Slowly the end of his tail swayed. It was impossible... “You-you do?” He peeped in surprise, feeling her head brush against him again. It was so unreal, all of it. But...she certainly felt real.
“I love you!” He spoke again, this time with more meaning. "Oh, I do-!"
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Posted: Fri Jun 23, 2006 3:39 pm
Mozelle laughed happily, feeling truly happy for the first time in a long while. It was simply amazing. She had never thought that she could win the love of another wolf, not after Kapu. Not after all that he had done and everything. But here she was.. with Gareth.
"Yes, I love you Gareth, with everything that I have," she yipped happily, moving her head so that she could nibble on his ears.
"I love you..."
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Posted: Fri Jun 23, 2006 3:51 pm
It was still hard to comprehend. But it was wonderful. Maybe comprehension was too overrated. All this feeling was about as much as he could take. Never had he felt quite full like this. Her mouth moved across his ears, and the end of his tail thrashed pleasantly. It was only then, with her head so close against his that he was reminded of the faint smell of blood.
“You’re still hurt–“ He balked and moved his head to the side, and began to cross his tongue across the top of her head. The blood was coppery against his tongue, but the fact that he was this close blinded him to it.
She really felt like that? Did he deserve it? He doubted he ever would, but– he could never not love her.
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