June 28, 2016, 09:52 AM
Set after his visit to Seadog Sanctuary. Staying vague until that thread is over.
The sand felt good under his paws, but he could never pretend to like the heat. Warsaw had been colder, and his thick, shaggy coat had been good for that - when he was dry. Now, though, Marbas was finding that the only relief from this heat was to soak in the churning tide. He stumbled into the waters and sank down in rapture, taking a moment to roll over and wet his back as well. He was a sight to see, fur sodden and hanging, sand hiding his true color - but he didn't care.His mind was miles away, reliving the events from earlier again and again. How dare they, how dare they, he thought, but the sentence never finished. How dare they what?
His thoughts soured further as the idea that he might've been the one at fault began to flood his mind. What else could he have done? They would never have accepted him, anyway. It was silly to try and play nice when all the world involved fighting, and triumph over one another. He was merely acting in the natural way of things - anyone could see.
Except those two women - the red one especially. They'd both seemed to understand violence as well as he did, and yet, he had been denied. Things were different here than Warsaw, that much was certain. It was clear that, in these lands, not everything could be won through bravado and strength.
Marbas sat up in the tide, feeling a little better, now. In a way, this suited him rather well. As much as he had trained and practiced, he'd never been able to measure up to the rest of the Cairn brood. Perhaps it was his mother's inferior blood, or perhaps it was something in he, Marbas, that kept him trailing behind the rest. But here, where strength did not have to be one's strength...
Here, maybe, he could get somewhere. Somewhere that required more finesse than violence - A softer paw, a sharper tongue. Here, maybe, he could rise above bastard, and become something more.
He allowed himself one small, secretive smile before wading deeper into the surf. Now was not the time to wallow, but to celebrate. He was in a new land, and it was a wonderful day to go for a swim.