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 Posted: Tue Jan 04, 2011 6:08 pm
Nothing had ever hit him quite so hard before as the news he'd received just a day or two before, and it was only natural. Hearing that his entire birth family, his entire birth pack had been killed because of a lack of the very element that he could so easily control now, it hurt worse than any physica blow he could have suffered. The guilt was the worst, with constant questions of why, and why not.
Aimlessly he wandered, separated from Agrona and Mari both now, because Agrona had chased Mari off after she turned her frustration onto Rio, and had gotten quickly fed up with Rio's lethargic state and acceptance of said frustration, topped by his relentless guilt.
If he had stayed to fight for Vinny instead of simply... passively.... stepping aside as he had, would they all still be alive now? Probably, possibly, but would that have been the right decision? Staying would only have made things so much worse...
He couldn't walk another step. He simply collapsed where he'd been walking, letting himself fall to the forest floor on his stomach and shutting his eyes against the voices in his head. For once in five years he simply couldn't bring himself to be near his constant companion, not when the hurt was so fresh.
"Dios mi... Por que?"
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Posted: Tue Jan 04, 2011 6:58 pm
She came onto the river with mate in hand, their love so evident as the days meshed into weeks--hours becoming more and more precious to Naib, as she hoped they did for Hussan. She had her doubts at times, doubts of the love they shared and for how long it would last, but never at the fault of her better half; this time, although beautiful, also had a sinister side. It tore at her very soul, trying to keep alive an past so painful she very rarely thought on it at all.
The past was the past, afterall, a reminder she rarely needed to keep up with now-a-day. Gazing into the ripples of cool and clear waters did not do the horrible things it used to, her paws more able to sink into the pepple-bed with much less of a struggle...her lips willing to linger near the surface and breath in the fragrance that very few could indulge. The woman, as she was now, had clearly set her priorities straight and was headed toward a blissful ending. Naib had once wondered what it would feel like to die alone--she no longer had to worry about that.
Hussan was a good creature. Such a welcoming soul, who had offered his heart nearly days after they met, and remained true to his devotion even after they became one and had their children. And what beautiful tykes they had been; she was so proud to be a mother once again. If for no other reason she aimed to be the best parent she could, and for their litter she had been. They had both managed to be wonderful, gracious, and always fair. For Naib, this new life was a dream sequence. Every day she worried, coupled up with the doubt that had built up over the years, that all of her joy and contentment would be swallowed up and again she would be propped up on her sons shoulder sobbing...Angelo.
Again. The past...it was the past...Why suppressed memories were welling like tears, Naib could not understand. As they reached the bank, she saw the world move in slow motion. A smile was on her lips as her mate parted ways, off to find food perhaps? It remained as she turned to face the rivers flow, down stream where the forest thickened and arched to create a majestic canopy. In the moment she could not hear anything but a single chirp floating on a breeze...rustling leaves resounded as calmly as the river moved, but startled her nonetheless.
Had it been a rustle? It came from across the way--across the river, in fact, and through several patches of dark forest. It emanated a vibe so threatening, this dark forest before her, and the once placid wind she thought she heard was now quite the contrast. The gusts were strong and relentless! Naib was not a scrawny little thing but her distracted thoughts left her limbs weak and she fumbled into the stream. Fumbled...
No, she had been pulled. And for whatever reason Naib did not stop once she had started. Sinking into the water and rising up on the other end, her body reacted to the weather with a shiver--but not even that would slow her down. Her gut sensed something that her heart repelled, and when her head turned back to check the sandy clearing behind her, she felt pain for the first time in a long time. It was familiar and yet different, like seeing and old flame while your current watched from the sidelines.
Hussan was not there, but he would return again to find an empty lot. Would he chase her? Naib hoped not, for when her eyes fell to the floor she cried out; the sort of sound that made any listener's heart drop without even knowing the cause.
But oddly enough, when the words rolled from her maw they were quiet...they were...longing. "Rio!"
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Posted: Tue Jan 04, 2011 7:45 pm
For Rio the past wasn't quite as passed as he might have liked, nor as present as he would have wished. What could he have done if he'd only been there? He could have led them to safety.....
"Rio...!"
Rio's eyes snapped open at the familiar voice, another face lost from his past, but not dead, though at times he'd certainly wondered.
"Naib....?" His voice cracked just a little, but mostly she'd hear the disbelief, even over the near all consuming pain.
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Posted: Wed Jan 05, 2011 2:27 pm
"I--"
Naib fumbled over words that would go unheard, looking to make a move but, like stone, incapable to do so. This was--too surreal.
The female almost could not bring herself to believe it was him...But then he said her name, and in that same moment she tried to speak again. Her frail, dark lips parted ways with one another but nothing came out. She heard his disbelief, but more so than that she felt it...Did she even want to stay long enough for him to come-to and know that her presence was real?
Of course she did. She had to. Willing her sudden, mute voice to resound, Naib breathed the only things she could think to ask. "You're...here?"
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