Phoenix Maplewood iii. anger

backdated 02.19.18

❝ even though they say
that time heals all wounds
the scars are still there
i can't forget what happened
i can't forget how i felt ❞

---

she had left the duo behind; a twinge of regret played in her gut.  it was easy to ignore, for something else roiled in waves from her chest — anger.

most of it was with herself —
how could she let herself become so comfortable?
how could she believe that she'd been welcome?
how could she get so close?

some of it was with others —
he chose them over me.  he has used me as i thought he would, and now he is finished i am worth nothing to him.

and as much as she wanted to blow off steam, she did not know how she would manage it without hurting herself more, or without wasting the scarce prey animals that remained, so instead she sulked.

@Ukko

He’d been told long ago that Pheonix Maplewood was no more. The details have long been hazy, blocking out the certain time in his life where he’d once had everything. The first time. He had a girl and a position of power and before he knew it, it came crashing down and he caved, running like the coward his father always thought him to be. It became no surprise when history continued to repeat in his life and he somehow ends up in the middle of a place he once called him.
 
Memories of Tavi take him back and he relives them as he moves through, heading through the forbidden territory as if one of his former friends remained behind. But, maybe, he can make peace.
 
The scent of another grips his attention and at first, he freezes, thinking immediately he’ll turn and disappear from any chance of running into someone. But the scent is not familiar and he is curious. If it were Saena, or Reek, he’s certain he’d be able to recollect their signature easy enough. Instead, he sees someone else—someone that looks a little different than he’s used to—and stands with little intent to shy away should she spot him.

she freezes, the scent of another arriving before his footfalls and for that he is lucky for when he emerges into view he looks very much like the dark man who sought to hurt her.

she is almost angry with the stranger in this moment for disturbing her very productive doom and gloom but instead regards him with a tentative and watchful eye, her muscles coiled lest he has come to hurt her too.

It doesn’t take long for her to notice him but she immediately shuts off any chance of approach. Her angled features keep him firmly rooted in place. The wound across her face causes his ears to fall back and his nose twitches at the stale scent of blood. The standoffish behavior begins to make sense and so he steps back, slowly, and shifts his posture for something more comfortable. He has little interest in pissing off someone already in a bad place.
 
His tail swishes a few times behind him, hanging low and brushing his hocks, and offers a quiet boof in greeting.

she is not yet world-weary despite her years as a loner; that will come just a few short days later when the dark man comes upon her once more and defiles her.  for now she remains blissfully unaware.  he steps back and it assuages her, and her hardened eyes lose their dangerous glint.

she returns his boofing with a curious whine, the firm leather of her nose flaring to take in his scent.  comfortable, she pushes forward, erasing the distance he had allowed her and chuffs back at him.

When she whines, his ears flatten against his head. He lowers his head a little but she takes a step closer, offering a playful show of his incisors. The chuff in return is a nice surprise and his tail speeds up a few wags. At this point, he doesn’t know what to do, but he doesn’t allow himself to get closer, leaving the ball in her court. In lieu of closing the distance, he shifts his weight from foot to foot in a little dance. The Maplewood has always made him feel like home and though his life fell off course long ago, no one being here puts him at ease to open up.

she noticed his hesitancy to draw closer to her although (she thought) it was clear that it was what she desired.  she swept towards him with confidence in tow, noticing the way his tail's wagging multiplied.

good.

carefully, she dipped the arc of her spine into a beckoning play bow despite the protest from the lacerations on her side and swung her hips in the air, her tail flagging.  her whines grew in pitch, come play with me!

She invites him to play and he tries to think of the last time he’d let loose. He thinks of Tavi, briefly, and the fun they’ve had in this very forest. It drifts, briefly, to the last time he’d seen her and his eyes droop a little, fighting back the swell of pain in his chest. He’d never got to properly say goodbye, or visit her grave—he wonders if they’re still there, in the keep—but he does not linger.
 
As if to consider the invitation, Ukko watches her a few more seconds but he stomps forward with his two front paws to accept. His tail lashes behind him and he stomps ahead again, then turning and taking off, moving through the forest as if he’d never left at all.

she chases eagerly behind him.  this is a game she liked, one she was familiar with and of course, this was the end she preferred to be on.  

she punctuated the air with excited yips as she rounded, lightly and playfully nipping the air when she came close.

For a moment, he forgets who is behind him. He is taken back to the warm days with Tavi, before everything fell apart. If he doesn’t look back, it’s her chasing him, and a smile forms on his muzzle that parts and his tongue lolls out of his mouth. When the stranger is close and snaps the air, he turns his head to look behind him but his smile disappears briefly when he realizes where he is. In an attempt to brush it off, he veers off, cutting her off and attempts to try and trip her up as he barks in her direction.

she does not see the disappointment cross his face.  instead she sees his large, dark form cut in front of her and she tumbles through the snow with a surprised yip! as she'd been moving too fast to come to any kind of stop.

her body tucks defensively as she rolls, and she tries to gain her footing once more, tail tucked close to her body as she nips weakly towards his forelimbs.

As he spins around quickly, successfully causing her to topple over, he charges close and hits the ground in a dive. Her nips at his forelimbs go ignore as he noses his way around her ankles. He rolls over, snaking his front legs from her assault but offering his back legs in return and tumbles over her as best he can.

not yet had her fear of dark-pelted men come.  she quite enjoyed their play despite the dangerously prone position she'd been put into.  she nips at his back legs, curling her own towards that soft underbelly to protect it from the gentle assault of his nipping.  her own teeth try to find the playful banner of the stranger's tail as her front legs attempt to "grab" his hind legs.