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 Posted: Fri Jul 29, 2011 10:13 pm
- DAY FOUR - Apries cast anxious glance up at the sky. It was a bit past morning, going on into afternoon, and the clouds up above were gray stormheads. They looked about as angry as a cloud could look, and frankly Pri was shocked that there was no thunder yet.
A dead hare swung from his jaws where he had it by it's ears. He'd managed to find what was probably a popular nesting place and made his own meal off one that was probably kin to the one he know held. Hares were a bit bigger than their rabbit cousins, so one had made for pretty good eating. Enough to keep him content for most of the day, as long as he didn't get involved in strenous activites. This second hare wasn't for him though, it was for Lani-Ai.
Every time he thought about her he felt a slight blush cross his face and his heart rate accelerate. He knew exactly what it was, though in the interest of making sure Lani-Ai didn't get hurt worse than she had been he'd gone through all the possible feelings it could be, and also various outcomes. He wasn't yet sure if he should let Lani-Ai know how he felt. Her situation was complicated and he wasn't sure if the ties that bound her to him, those little ties that weren't yet even a week old, could be enough to sever those with three years to their name. Perhaps if they grew worn with time, like rope, he'd have a chance. But what if they'd only grown stronger? He was just setting himself up for heartbreak.
His tail tightened a little more around the object it held, a delicate shell of dappled blues and grays.
Finally Apries' ears caught sound of the ocean waves hitting rock, and the light grew a little stronger. He hurried forward, and broke through the treeline. Eyes scanned the horizon and, yes! There she was. Pri felt something inside him relax, though he hadn't been aware of any tension until that point.
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Posted: Sat Jul 30, 2011 5:21 pm
Lanj-Ai had just woken up, slightly wishing Apries had slept on the cliff with her. However this had given her time to lap up some dew, fix the shells that had scattered a bit, and groom herself. She had noticed the sky turning grey, looking down when she spotted something moving in the corner of her eye. When she glanced over a smile broke out on her face, patiently waiting for him to come close enough to hear her.
"Good morning. Or is it afternoon?" She was happy to see Apries, as she was the other days. Her heart skipped a beat, startling Lani-Ai enough to blink and widen her eyes. Why was she getting so worked up over seeing Apries? Because she had a friend who cared enough to see her? Or...
She spotted the hare, quickly making room so he can sit down and eat, tail wrapping around herself. She still had the shell she had decided to claim, the one that was red, similar to Apries, or enough to remind her of him. It was under her paw, gently held still. "How was your night?"
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Posted: Sun Jul 31, 2011 11:40 pm
Apries set the hare down at his feet and smiled in a slightly embarassed way. "Well after I left it was a bit of a disaster. Turns out a lot of things are sleeping at night, so hunting wasn't really possible. So I sorta cat-naped until dawn, then I found this hare's warren and got a meal." He nudged the hare closer to Lani-Ai with his nose. "I thought you might like one."
For some reason this simple sentence made him blush a little. Apries glanced over at Lani-Ai's little arrangement of shells to distract himself, though the blush deepened just a bit more since he'd brought those as well.
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Posted: Sun Jul 31, 2011 11:57 pm
She blushed as well when he nudged the kill, looking to the side. "Oh!" She exclaimed, looking at Apries nervously, however happily at the same time. "Thank you! Prey won't come by for some strange reason, they must be avoiding open areas because of the storm coming." She mewed, head tilting. "Speaking of which, why did you come up here? Don't you want to find shelter? Ah! I'm n-not complaining! I promise!" She shook her head hurriedly, paws touching his as she leaned closer.
"I don't mind you here at all!" She had some notion in her brain to tell Apries that he was welcomed, however jerked her paws away and blushes darker when she realized how forward she was being, and how confusing. She began to eat, distracting herself.
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Posted: Mon Aug 01, 2011 12:07 am
Apries felt like his face was on fire, he was blushing so hard now, but he managed to keep his expression fairly straight. "Ah, I'm glad you don't mind me around. I-I'd hate to be a bother."
He paused for a moment to get his blush under control, then answered Lani-Ai's previous question. "I came up here to see you," he said, eyebrows knitting in a little confusion. "Is the storm really going to be so bad that I'd need shelter? You're not gonna sit out here in the middle of it, are you?"
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Posted: Mon Aug 01, 2011 12:16 am
She smiled when he stuttered, a sweet and kind smile. Was he nervous? She finished eating, paw still on her shell. Her eyes darted to look at the sky, sniffing the air before looking back at him. "Mmmm, well, we are near the ocean. Storms can get a bit rough. I don't really know how rough it will be." She said, drawing in the dirt with a nail. "Uhm, well it shouldn't bother me as much. I'm used to the weather here. However you," She looked up at him briefly. "Are not from around here." She looked at her shells, worried that they'd be swept away from the wind and rain.
"Could you... take my shells with you?" She asked softly. "If it doesn't bother you. I don't want them to get swept away, I can keep this one safe though." She lifted her paw, showing the special shell with a sheepish smile.
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Posted: Mon Aug 01, 2011 12:46 am
Apries' face became subtlely set and stubborn. "If you're staying up here, then so am I," he said. "Come on, we can dig a small hole to protect your shells in until the storm is over, if it starts to get that bad." As he finished speaking a flash of lightning forked through the clouds above them, followed immediately by a peal of thunder. Apries flinched a little, but didn't seem to be wavering in his stubborness.
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Posted: Mon Aug 01, 2011 1:24 am
Lani-Ai whipped her head up to look at him, shaking her head frantically. "Apries, no!" She exclaimed, making a move to touch him, however recoiled. "I'm used to storms! I know how to get through it! You don't. Please Apries, this isn't the first time a storm has come through." She said pleadingly, digging as she spoke. She looked up when another crack of lightening hit the sky, not flinching. She was used to those sounds, it didn't bother her.
"Please, for me?" She questioned, head tilting. "I'm worried about you. Didn't you say you've never been near a place with such water? I'm fine, I promise. I have to be tough to still be here!" She said, giving him a reassuring smile.
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Posted: Mon Aug 01, 2011 10:56 pm
"I've had to go through some pretty intense weather before, I'll be fine," Apries insisted, face set stubbornly.
The two agrued back and forth, and finally Lani-Ai won. So, very unhappy about the whole thing, Apries found himself making a trip from the cliff to a point in the forest with half of Lani-Ai's shells. He could have taken them all at once if he used his scarf but he was hoping he could still convince Lani-Ai to abandon the cliff and come down to shelter with him.
He trecked back to the cliff, the wind picking up with every second and lightning flashing frequently now. It would start to rain at any second. Unhappiness radiated from his every pore. "Lani, this storm is too bad! Even if that guy is coming back, he couldn't in this weather. Seriously, come down to the forest with me at least until it's over!"
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Posted: Mon Aug 01, 2011 11:13 pm
When he left she began collecting her shells, closing her eyes as wind swept up. It was fine, as long as he was okay! She wanted Apries to be safe, Lani-Ai was safe where she was. However as the storm went on she struggled to collect her shells. She heard a voice, head turning to spot Apries. Her face scrunched up, shaking her head.
"It's fine! I'll be fine!" Then she stopped. Why? Why was she still on this cliff? Why was she fighting so hard to stay on the cliff in such a storm? Her eyes widened, glazing over as she seemed to fade into her own thoughts.
'Why am I doing this?'
She had no reason to be on this cliff. Apries was right, he'd never return in such a storm. She was happy when Apries talked to her, happy when he returned in the mornings after a long night of sleep. She had fun with him, and he... he always came back. Apries was here, looking at her in a storm that was the worst she had seen in years. Yet he was here for her. Why? Was she on this cliff because she wanted to be? Or... or was it habit? Was this a sick habit she had gotten used to?
She was on this cliff... Yet when he had said that her ex wasn't returning in a storm she had been close to yelling she wasn't on this cliff for him. She was though..... right? Or was this just a habit? It had started with love, and yet now it was some sick habit. Or was it?
That...that didn't matter! All she knew was that right now she found herself not wanting to be on the cliff! She wanted to go to Apries! Her paw left the shell she had been protecting so hard, eyes flicking when it was washed away by the violent rain. Lani-Ai let out a cry, attempting to grab it before it went over the cliff.
"My shell!" She cried out, however stopped herself from panicking. No. Apries was still there, and he was better than some sea-shell that reminded her of him. He was the real thing! She turned around, looking at Apries before finally walking towards him, moving against him to try and take some of his warmth, trembling from the cold.
"Please...please take me where it's safe." She whispered, nervous once more.
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Posted: Tue Aug 02, 2011 12:11 am
Apries nodded, bending his head against the wind and moving his body to shelter Lani-Ai from the worst of it. In this sense, oceans and deserts were much alike, and even if it had been some time since he'd been in a desert storm his body remembered how to move against the wind.
"Come on then," he called. "Forget the shells, I can get you more later." He'd moved half of her shells already, all her favorites, so it wasn't like all of them were lost. Still using his body to shield Lani-Ai from the wind he steered them towards the place he had picked as shelter.
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Posted: Tue Aug 02, 2011 12:24 am
Lani-Ai allowed herself to be steered, eyes looking up once or twice at the male taller than her. It had been a long time since she had someone protect her, and it caused her to blush slightly. She didn't know what to do, instead just allowing herself to be taken away. She felt like she melded into him, like he was made just for her to snuggle against. Was this feeling....wrong? Was this feeling that she wanted to just curl into him and never let go...wrong?
Her thoughts were caught off when he mentioned the shells, looking at the wet ground. "But it...That one was..." She trailed off, blushing darker as she nearly tripped over a stick. "It was special." She managed to whisper, not sure if he heard it or not. Were they close to the shelter? She would probably be a stuttering mess the second they slipped apart, knowing her she probably would stare at the ground and blush for the better part of the storm.
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Posted: Tue Aug 02, 2011 2:23 am
((Next post is your last for the day, then you start day five.))
Apries shook his head, still moving Lani-Ai forward. They'd finally reached the trees just as the sky opened up, and he wanted to get further under cover to protect them from the wind and rain. "I'll look tomorrow, okay. Maybe it got stuck somewhere, we'll see."
Finally they'd gone far enough in that Pri slackened his pace a bit. He looked down at Lani-Ai, a touch concerned. "You going to be alright," he asked. The question wasn't entirely directly at her physcial well-being.
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Posted: Tue Aug 02, 2011 2:48 am
In a way, Lani-Ai knew what he meant. In a way. To her it meant something, and maybe it wasn't what he meant but she certainly took it that way. It was such a vague question, yet a direct one yet. Are you going to be alright? Was she? Was she going to be alright? Everything she had built herself around was crumbling. She felt like a child, stuck in a world as big as the distance she could stretch her legs, floating in a black abyss while the world she once knew was crumbling before her. And then there was a voice, as cheesy as it sounded, and then she would know that it would be okay. Her world was changing, and some of this....no...all of it she had invited.
It was okay now. It'd be hard, but it was okay now. She'd be okay. "Yes, I'm going to be alright."
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Posted: Wed Aug 03, 2011 3:44 pm
Apries' eyes searched Lani-Ai's face a moment longer. He must have found what he was looking for, for he nodded and briefly leaned against Lani, supporting her.
They continued walking in silence and soon reached the point Apries had planed to shelter in. It wasn't too far from the cliffs, actually, for Pri would have worried himself sick had he been too far away. It was a little hollow that led inside a massive tangle of a bush covered in vines. Pri had added more most from the forest floor to the "roof" to help keep out as much rain as possible, then had proceeded to fill the hollow as full of comfortable things to lie on. The ground would probably get wet, but if there was enough stuff between them and it then they'd at least be able to sleep in relative comfort.
Apries led Lani-Ai into the hollow, barely big enough for the two of them, and curled up against the side of the bush that would recieve the brunt of the wind that managed to whistle through the trees. Lani-Ai found a comfortable spot and followed suit. The two foxes lay there, listening to the rage of the storm, and slowly drifted into an uneasy sleep.
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