she's gone... [open]

[»KINDLE ♫]

He was alone. More alone than he'd ever been in his entire life. Before Alya there had always been his aunt, even if she had been a little distant sometimes, to unleash his pent up feelings onto and she would always listen to how he felt and give advice to him after. When Alya had been there, he wouldn't have even questioned seeing her about his emotions and unloading everything he felt unto her and she too would listen, though she actually looked like she cared rather than his aunt's blank stare and she would offer genuine advice that he still followed, even now. But she was gone and there was nothing to bring her or her advice back. He would never see her smile or the gleam in her eye when she told him of new treasure and it was all because of their stupid thieving. He'd known it was wrong and he'd done it anyway, putting them both at risk. Why did it have to be her that was punished? He was the one that had encouraged her to steal again by following along with her... He should have been the one lying lifeless on the floor, the crimson jaws of his murderer hovering over his gurgling throat. She hadn't deserved to die.

Looking up from his aimless walk, Garrett spotted a pond a few steps ahead of him. The water looked crisp and clear, just right for a refreshing drink, but quenching his thirst was not the first thought on his mind. As he wandered closer and got to the edge, his amber eyes that usually burned with fire looked down into the cold pond, as dull as the water itself. It would be so easy just to swiftly dip into the cool liquid and stay under until the bubbles stopped and he would be reunited with Alya once again. It was only when his paws came into contact with the icy pond did he jolt back to his senses, if only momentarily and he froze at the waters edge like a deer in the headlights. Perhaps if someone was to come along and distract his mind from its original way, he could be saved... If only for a while.


So this took a really dark turn very fast... Anyway, send whoever you want in!

[DENI.]

She was hungry. This was the one pervading thought in her mind. Her stomach growled constantly, urging her to feed it. But she couldn't. She'd tried, and for the most part she had failed. Obviously she'd gotten some food, or else she wouldn't be alive, but it hadn't been enough. Her shoulder blades were starting to protrude through her pelt, and she knew within a couple of weeks all of her bones would look like that. At least her nose was able to lead her to something - water. She was a long way from the city, she'd hoped that she could find food out here better than she could in there... Well that had been a hopeless venture. Who knew that hunting was actually a little harder than it looked? She was getting a bit better, though. She had actually pounced that last rabbit! But its squeals caught her off guard and then it was gone.

She sighed as she finally came upon the lake that her nose had been leading her to. It wasn't food, but at least something would be in her belly. She lowered her head, her pink tongue lolling out of her mouth to lap greedily at the water. It wasn't until she had been drinking for nigh on a minute that she noticed she wasn't alone. Her head rose slowly, her reddish brown eyes seeking out her new companion... A wolf. Her brown nose twitched as she took in his scent. It was similar to that of a dog's... But different, wilder. The wolf didn't exactly look wild, though. Actually, he looked a bit strange. Why was he just standing there staring at the water?

Concern overrode her desire to run, and although she held her ground, she decided to call out to her. "Hey, you okay?" He voice was soft, but she was sure he could hear her. Her muscles were bunched - ready to run just in case he wasn't quite so friendly.

( OOC: Hope you don't mind me hopping in! )

[»KINDLE ♫]

There was noise. It was somewhere nearby and it only momentarily made the wolf falter in his thoughts, his amber eyes staying fixed onto the water as his ears swivelled towards the sound. Whoever had just entered was not making their way towards him directly and was instead heading for the water, though they were still a little distance away and hadn't seemed to notice him yet. Whilst slowly being pulled out of the metaphorical ocean of depression, his normal reasoning returned and the strong tug to run away from the other being nearby started to pull him away from the water. His mind was still a little fuzzed with the emotional conflict it was having and so he half-moved away from the waters edge, paws sloshing through the water as he made his way back to dry land.

When his feet finally connected with solid ground, he slowly raised and turned his head to look at the white girl that had called out to him. Concern had definitely been in her voice, though whether it was genuine or not was something that still needed to be determined. Garrett's normally sharp mind was a little dull at this moment and so he stared for a few moments, thinking about how much the girl had sounded like Alya. He shook his head slowly, turning it away to look at the ground once again before replying to her.

"Y-yeah... I'm fine. I just-" He cut off his words, shaking his head a little again and keeping his eyes fixed onto the ground. He was confused, lost and most of all: alone. Whilst he knew the girl was just trying to help, he was so lost that he didn't even know how to respond apart from denying his obvious need for help and trying to avoid eye contact.

[DENI.]

There was definitely something wrong with the wolf. His reaction to her speaking was slow and sluggish, almost as though he were pulling himself out of a daze. Kyra didn't have a lot of experience in comforting or figuring out what was wrong, and right now really wasn't the best time for her to be focusing her attention on another dog. If she thought logically, and not with her heart, she wouldn't spare him any time. She would finish drinking and continue her search for food. But Kyra wasn't like that, and she never would be. She was smart, yes, but she allowed her heart to dictate her actions far more than her brain. That was why she would spare a moment for this wolf. Perhaps he would spare one for her in return, perhaps he wouldn't, but her conscious wouldn't allow her to abandon him to an unknown fate.

And so, even though she was a bit scared of him, she moved away from the water. Every step toward him seemed like an eternity. She knew that he was possibly unstable, she knew that he might kill her if she got too close, but she also knew that she had to try to help. She didn't know why she had to help, she didn't even know his name, but she just knew that she did. Finally she reached him, standing within a few feet of him. She could smell him better now, his wild scent crashing of her and causing her nose quiver as it tried to take in the smell. He smelled even wilder up close, like a canine crossed with the forest crossed with something else that she couldn't quite place.

"You don't seem fine," she insisted, ducking her head so that she could look into his eyes. His eyes were so different from her own, not only in color... There was something else. They were fiercer. If one of them was to survive on their own, nature dictated that it would be him. He was stronger, faster, perhaps even smarter. Catching food was probably laughably easy to him while she barely stayed alive. "You can talk to me. I know we don't know each other, but that's the best part about it. You can tell me anything, and then if you never want to see me again you don't have to. Or if you want to, I'll be there. I'm really alone, my people are gone. It would be nice to at least listen to someone for awhile." She offered him a tentative smile, her heart hammering against her chest so forcibly that she thought he would have to be able to hear it too.

[»KINDLE ♫]

He could tell his lies hadn't worked on the girl. They weren't even that convincing, his normal silver tongue sharp as a blade was now blunt and his tongue felt like sandpaper in his mouth every time he swallowed. He knew he needed a drink and some food soon or he was going to suffer dearly, but to him the thing he needed most now was Alya and her sweet laugh and sparkling eyes. He could easily turn and run now, he knew the girl would not come after him (she practically radiated her fear of him) and he'd be off running, easily finding a new place that could offer a reunion with Alya. His legs were still ingrown into the grown like cement blocks when he tried to move them, ending up just staying put with his head down. Silence hung heavy in the air as he continued to stay frozen, though the shuffling sound of movement broke the quiet within a few seconds and he felt the girl move closer again.

It seemed to take forever for her to reach him when in reality it was only a minute or so. She stopped a few paces short of him, probably hesitant to come close to such a wild creature should he turn on her with fangs and claws. He would never do anything of the sort to anyone, though an exception could be made with the disgusting creatures that ran his old pack, but he couldn't even bring himself to tell her that. The only thing he felt capable of doing was waiting to see what she'd do. Whether she'd run like he did or actually stay and help. He didn't know which he'd prefer her to do. It seemed only a few moments before he knew she'd decided to stay, her brown eyes coming to lock with his as she dipped her head down to level with his. His amber orbs flicked to look at hers, still as dull as ever, though he could tell she saw the fire of the wild in there, a flame that could never be extinguished.

The girl said many things to him and he listened to them all, ears still pulled back nervously but listening all the same. Her voice was so kind and gentle, coaxing him out from behind his walls and it made him want to spill out all his troubles there and then, releasing himself of the burden because he knew she'd listen. The only thing that stopped him was her voice. She sounded so much like her. Garrett opened his mouth, taking in a deep breath.

"My people are gone too." That was all he managed out, feeling his legs shake under him so much that he had to sit down, releasing a large sigh as he did.

[DENI.]

The wolf was one of few words, but Kyra knew that he was full of pain. Her anger and resentment at her humans kept her from feeling the full amount of pain that was pressing on her heart and stomach. She had lost her two best friends very recently, and had her world torn up, but she chose to be angry at the humans who caused it. It wasn't their fault the old one died, but it was their fault for sending Jessa away. Thoughts of her sister caused her to bite back a whine. She just wanted to know if Jessa was okay, they had been through everything together. As puppies they were the only ones who survived those awful hours. She was who Kyra had snuggled with every night of her life - but she was as good as dead now. Jessa could never return, Kyra was sure of that. The car that took her went far away, and there was no scent to follow.

Her brows knitted up sadly as the wolf collapse a bit, seemingly under the weight of his misery. Maybe he didn't have anyone to blame, or anyone to be angry at. Kyra could only hope that her anger and resentment would go on forever - lest she have to feel the full force of losing Jessa and the old one. She moved a bit closer to the wolf, feeling a kinship with him. Both of them were completely alone, it wasn't often that she found another who was like her in this way. She was not happy that the wolf was alone, not at all. She would much rather him be happy, that way they could play together, but there was some sort of perverse satisfaction that gathered in her gut knowing she wasn't the only one who was all alone.

She moved closer to him, still cautious. She didn't think that the wolf would attack her now, but she also didn't want to push him too far. She pressed her forehead into his shoulder, pushing against it rather hard - but not quite hard enough to push him over or even really move him. She liked to feel his fur against hers, it comforted her and reminded her of the warmth from her sister's body. She wasn't really sure what to say, so she sat there for awhile, her forehead pressed up against his shoulder. Finally, she moved back, looking up into the wolf's sad face. "Maybe we'll find new people eventually, they won't be the same, but they'll be good too. It will be nice to not be alone." She smiled. She forced herself to think things like that. She couldn't believe that she would be alone forever.

[»KINDLE ♫]

Garrett had to keep his concentration on breathing steadily as he sat hunched on the floor, tears threatening to spill from his eyes. The feeling on the burning liquid building up both surprised and scared him a little, causing him to swiftly blink back the tears. He hadn't cried since he was a pup, despite all he'd been through and yet here he was about to turn on the water works. Even when he'd discovered Alya's freshly torn body, not a single tear had fallen and it was only now he began to question why. There were logical reasons, like he'd been too in shock to even think about emotion or his mind hadn't processed the thought of crying at that time. But then there were the reasons that ate away at him, reasons that were not even close to the truth and yet seemed the easiest to believe to him. He was a monster for not showing the world he cared; if she'd still been alive and seen his face, she wouldn't have seen anything there except for the look of a coward that left her to die. There was so much he could've done to give her a fighting chance and he'd done nothing. His fury could have burned into his actions and he could've yanked the disgusting pig that had taken her life from her away and shown him the pain he'd put her through. He could've stayed by her side until she'd taken her last breath. There were endless possibilities to the course of action he could've taken and he'd done the simplest thing. He'd run.

Glancing up at the girl again, he could see her own expression had saddened and his face softened a little. Perhaps his own sadness had brought up some bad memories for her, which left another soul that was tormented by his own carelessness. He wanted to apologise and even opened his mouth to do so, only stopped when the sadness turned into something fiercer. It was an emotion he'd tried to feel so many times, thinking it to be better than the drowning sadness that had consumed him but the flames had always been extinguished. It was anger, burning hatred for something in the world that had wronged her and he suddenly felt a connection to this wolf that he hadn't felt since Alya. She may not be like him in personality, appearance or spirit, but their experiences bound them together with some sort of invisible rope, strong enough to hold even the most lost souls together. When her head pressed against his fur, he didn't even flinch let alone run a mile like he normally would. Her smell enveloped him, instantly calming his raging mind, turning it from a hurricane to the sea after a storm as he breathed it in all he could. Closing his eyes, he lowered his own head atop of hers with a soft whine, his breathing back to the normal, steady flow along with his heart. When she pulled away, he felt the fur around the area she'd been instantly go cold again, though his heart was not as broken as it had been. The pieces were still shattered but now they seemed to fit together.

"Yeah." Garrett smiled back, his lips drawing up into a small but peaceful smile, one it hadn't become in a while. He was smiling for the first time in forever and... It actually felt real.

[DENI.]

The wolf laid his head down on hers with a soft whine, and for a moment she just enjoyed the contact. She breathed in his musty scent, and they stayed like that for awhile. Eventually she moved her own head back, not wanting to become too comfortable. Even though she was enjoying herself, she didn't want to make things weird or awkward. He smiled softly at her, and she couldn't help but to smile back. Making conversation with him was a bit difficult, but she found that she didn't mind. The sounds of the pond all around them were peaceful. Frogs croaked, and the water lapped gently at the shores.

She licked her nose once before she opened her mouth to speak. "I'm afraid you know everything about me except for my name. How rude of me!" She laughed a little, the twinkling sound echoing through the clearing. "My name is Kyra, and it is very nice to meet you." She smiled, cocking her head to the side. With her fear abated, her hunger came back to the forefront of her mind, gnawing and incessant. Her stomach growled loudly and she lowered her ears in embarrassment. "Heheheh... Sorry about that." She muttered.

---

OOC: sorry about the wait and the length!
"I'm talking."

[»KINDLE ♫]

The wolf let out a long sigh, his head resting gently on the girl's as he took deep breaths. All fear and sorrow seemed to melt away and for once, he felt at peace. The water gently washing onto the shore of the pond became a calming rhythm in his mind as he stayed there, feeling everything bad in the world just disappear. He hadn't felt this way in a long time and normally he'd be scared, especially because this girl was practically a stranger-they hadn't even exchanged names yet-but he didn't dwell on the fact for too long, even though a tiny seed of doubt planted itself in his mind. When she pulled away, Garrett's ears lowered a little and he looked down to her, though he couldn't help the little smile.

"My name's Garrett, it's lovely to meet you Kyra." He chuckled, his small smile growing into a fully-fledge grin that reached all the way to his eyes when he heard her laugh. He laughed at her stomach's protests, continuing even more when his own belly rumbled in reply. Rising to his paws, he gave her a soft nudge on the shoulder before gesturing with his head to the forest away from the pond, smiling all the while.

"I think we both deserve some food, if you'd care to join me?"