Each day melted in to the next, in to the next, in to the next. The differences came as tiny moments of relief: a brighter sun some mornings, a stronger smell in the air at night, the intricate changes to the soil; the lack of familiarity had been novel at first but now the dog was tired of it.
It smelled like a giant, untouched field of grass. Sometimes after waking, Damocles would look around for the barricades and be confused when he did not see them. There was nothing penning him in. No streets to mind, no dogs to watch or threaten.
The night hid him relatively well. The only thing he could not abide was the occasional
clink of his collar's rusty medallion when he stooped to sniff at one thing or another. As Damocles crossed from the dry reeds to something much softer, he stumbled. The hill he'd been traversing bordered a stretch of beach, and so far he'd not set foot upon it, so when he sank and slid he was caught by surprise.
Trying to adjust his footing led to a plume of dust rising around his haunches. He turned too sharply and caught some in his eyes - barking dully and bowing too, instinctively trying to rub his face against his foreleg; soon enough he was tumbling with his legs tucked close to his chest, and hit the bottom hard.
Well that was fucking stupid.
hope you don't mind me!
yakone was startled by the sound of something heavy falling into the dirt. she turned immediately, her head ducked low and her ears forward with interest as she carefully picked through the sands toward the sound.
prey was her first thought, but as she focused on the fallen creature through the darkness she realized it was a wolf. or... something like a wolf, at least.
she let out a low and inquisitive
woof, trotting forward to sniff the stranger cautiously for injuries.
are you okay? her gleaming moon-silver eyes seemed to ask, her head tilted as she peered at the odd wolf.
The world spun even after he had stopped. Over and under, endlessly, for a few minutes at least. When he deigned to rise Damocles coughed a little oough sound and spat out some of the grit he'd somehow eaten as his face had come down.
A second or two later was an answer. It came out of the dark prior to a long pale snout, and a pair of luminous eyes the likes of which he had never seen before. Somehow familiar; imploring, with more care than caution.
Damocles couldn't effectively bristle with the short quality of his coat but, that's the feeling that rippled through his body. He punched the sand and tried to push himself back and up at the same time, to give himself some space, but the sand gave way instead.
Alert now - if a bit dizzy - the dog observed the stranger with an obvious stare.
what a strange little creature! yakone hardly blinked as he scrambled for purchase in the loose sand, curiosity overwhelming any alarm bells sounded by his odd appearance. her tail began to wave in earnest, putting a slight wiggle in her step as she put one tentative paw forward. she leaned in, sniffing at him in a somewhat exaggerated fashion as if to say what are you?