When Arisia had not returned when she was supposed to, Bro’dee had become worried. The sun had set and his charge was still roaming around the forest, probably looking for the next victim she could save. She was noble and brave, he would give her that, but she lacked experience and it made her reckless. Bro’dee was sure it would only get her in trouble. No matter how much faith he had in her, sometimes creatures created their own problems. However, he held onto hope. Even if he was worried, he knew he would be able to find her and lend her a paw. His hope for her was strong enough. His hope in the world was strong enough.
But there was little hope could really do without action, so he knew he needed to get away from his comfortable rock and go looking for her. Just to be sure she was really alright.
When he found her, he was glad he had believed in his own abilities- she needed him. Some unknown lion was standing over her, hurting her with some impressive claws. Bro’dee knew he wouldn’t stand a chance against him head-on, so he had decided to attack the best way he knew how, with his speed as his asset. He charged forward with all his power, his small body slamming into the lion’s like a bullet from a human’s gun. It had been enough force to knock him off his friend, and a second blow seemed enough to send him away, though not without his threats floating in the air. Good: let him go. Bro’dee was not a fighter. He just wanted to make sure Arisia was alright.
With the lion gone, he turned back to his friend, moving over to her and carefully giving her a nudge with his muzzle.
“Arisia, do not worry- all will be well,” he said softly, his tone broken somewhat by his sorrow. To see his dear friend lying there wounded- he didn’t like it at all. He could only hope she would be able to recover from her wounds.
Arisia smiled at Bro’dee, happy to see him there beside her. She really needed a friend at that moment, and he had come like he had been cued. “Walker… thank you…” she said faintly. Bro’dee shook his head, smiling weakly.
“I did nothing you would not do for me- now, try to rest. I will keep you safe.” He looked at her wounds, frowning thoughtfully. A while ago, a female lion had told him about some herbs in the forest- plants that would help with the healing over large wounds. Perhaps it would be in his best interest to find those herbs now, before his companion lost too much of her blood and perished like the lion that dark beast had already killed.
“I will not be gone long,” he told her softly, “so do not leave me. I have hope- you will be alright.” Arisia chuckled, coughed, and offered a slight nod.
“Thanks… I’ll be here…” she mumbled.
Bro’dee reluctantly left her side, heading deeper into the forest to hunt for his herbs. Naturally, he didn’t leave Arisia for too long, and soon returned with a mouthful of what looked like weeds. Arisia watched him, vaguely, and wondered what he was trying to do. He placed the plants nearby her, using a paw to flatten them against a rock, producing some kind of gross plant goo. “What… are you going to do with that…?” she huffed faintly, hoping he wouldn’t say that she needed to eat it or something.
“I’m going to place this on your wounds,” he informed her, “it’s going to sting… so please be aware of that.” As gently as he could, he placed his paw against her wound, letting the medicine cling to her fur and seep into the gashes. She whimpered in pain, but did her best not to make too much of a fuss as he tended to her wounds. He had to make a couple of trips to get more of the plant before he felt he had applied enough onto her cuts. Once he finished, he moved around her, settling himself beside her, on the opposite side of her cuts. She smiled and turned her head towards her, placing it over one of his paws. He lowered his head beside her, letting the sides of their foreheads touch.
It seemed there wasn’t much more he could do for her at that point.
“You were right,” Arisia told him faintly, “I should have stayed with you and thought about the universe…”
“Don’t dwell on the past,” Bro’dee hummed softly, “you wanted to help, and there is no fault in that. Hope burns brightly within you, and you have the will to go out and make sure others can know that same hope. You are a kind, thoughtful leopard.”
“You’re flattering me- I must really be hurt, huh? Normally you like to make me feel like I’m doing something wrong…”
“Never,” chuckled Bro’dee, “I have a lot of faith in you- you will bring hope to these rogue lands. I will make sure of it.”
Arisia smiled, though her eyes had closed, “is that your way of telling me that you’re not going to let me die?” She asked softly, a bit of hope in her voice. Bro’dee gave the younger animal a bit of a cuddle, wanting to comfort her as though she were his daughter.
“You will not die- it is not your time.” He knew he had to believe in that. Hope was his thing, so naturally he had to hold onto it. Didn’t he? If he wasn’t careful, he would find himself worrying about whether she would live or not, not convinced she would be alright. Hope burned brightly for those who embraced it, and brought good things.
Once again, he had to believe that hardship would produce something meaningful in the end.
“Rest now, dear Arisia, I will be here for you when you wake up.”
