Arrow Lake the truth is i never shook my shadow

ava sat down with a long sigh, holding her skull between two paws.

her head hurt.  

where had dinah gone, would she ever come home, why hadn’t ava gone with her, would dinah forgive her, would she ever see her again, why had mama had more kids, why weren’t they enough, why does ava’s head hurt—

will it ever stop?

hunger raked her thinning belly. she’d caught nothing since she left; her disorientation handicapped any chance of stealth, and as it turned out seeing two of everything made for a shit hunter. 

ava’s gaze turned to the sky where blurred clouds threaded through beads of oscillating blue. did caracal ever look down at them and wonder where the pieces of his family went?

a scoff. dinah’s scent faded here. ava worried the dirt with her muddied paw, wondering if mama noticed she’d traded her last surviving daughters for newborn sons.

Ana had meant to go home. Ponyboy had gone home, after all; it only seemed right that she should too. Back to the island, as she'd meant from the beginning. But that wasn't home anymore, was it?

She wasn't sure she knew where home was anymore. She wasn't sure she knew where she was anymore, either. The day dragged on and she dragged herself with it, on and on until something familiar broke the monotony. Something she'd thought lost forever.

Ana would never forget the scent of her siblings.

But she couldn't quite believe it until she saw it, until her slow shaking steps brought her close enough to see the slash of red across her sister's face. Her breath caught in her throat, and she could do nothing but stare. Ava. It was her. It was Ava. Tears welled in her eyes, but Ana couldn't move, couldn't speak. Ava. She'd never thought she would see her again.

a silhouette burned in the corner of her eyes.

ava dragged her streaking gaze towards it, immobilized by disbelief.

ana?

her mouth parted in a tiny gasp of surprise. when she rose she felt as if something was pinning her skull to a tree trunk. pushing back the gasp of pain, ava stumbled and then ran towards the face of her tear-stained sister,  ignoring the way the edges of her outline seemed to blur together with the earth, and the sharp stab of pain in her temple.

it had to be real.

Ava stumbled and ran. Ana trembled, finally jolted from her daze by the flurry of movement. And she ran too then, caution thrown to the wind. There was no need for it. This was her sister; she was safer with her than anyone else.

Ana reached out to embrace her. Words still seemed so far away, so useless and out of reach. They didn't need to say anything. They never had.

ana. 

ava pressed her head to the patchwork shoulder of her sister, her eyes closed as she hugged so tight she might never let go. 

the scent on her fur spoke of the wildwood. ava pulled away, holding the full bore of her sister’s gaze. 

where have you been? those mismatched eyes asked — are you okay?

she crowded her sister for answers, overjoyed for the first time in a long time.