Sunset Valley When the Canary doesn't sing...

No chance...No choice... Her paws thundered against the ground with adrenaline-fueled power. No light...without darkness... Her baby blue eyes were enlarged with fear. Must...go on. She ran, she ran from the thing that chased her. The thing that attacked her. The thing that drove her into the Earth. That would never let her escape. Never. The thing that ate her from inside....Memory. She tripped over a rock and fell to the hard earth, sobbing without tears. It was just sound, dry, cold sound. The sound of a million cries poured from her mouth. Why? Why did it attack her so? What had she done, in any way, to deserve this? 

The sobs stopped, and only rattling breaths came from the beautiful creature. Her silken fur had dried blood in it and her gorgeous baby blue eyes looked milky and haunted. She shivered, her paws shaking and tail quivering. The memories attacked her fiercely here, now at her weakest point. Batting her over and over again. Sinking its fangs into her brain, causing her to still, like solid stone. Her eyes were the widest they could be expanded, and her breaths were tiny puffs, quieter than ever.

With a slight sigh and a deep drawing of breath, Kastor tore himself away from the safe cover of the forest and loped down into the valley below. It certainly had seemed beautiful when he has first laid eyes upon its rolling green expanse, he just hoped it would prove as rich and as plentiful as it appeared.

His maw parted once more, searching for the distinct trails of rabbits or perhapse mice. To his relief, this new terrain seemed just as infested with critters as the forest had been. But there was something else. Kastor couldn't quite place the deep, heavy scent that lay underneath the surface. It was almost as if fear itself had acquired a smell, something so subtle yet strangely overpowering that even himself was becoming wary of.

A furrowed frown replaced his usual relaxed expression as the feathered brute pressed forward along the trail. His ochre optics spotted her first, a quaking mottled figure with eyes wide and legs stock still and shivering. "Are you alright?" he voiced eventually, forcing his paws to carry him closer to the unknown canine. Stupid, he growled in his head, of course she wasn't ok. With an exasperated breath, he let his warm amber gaze graze the icy blue orbs of the other, hoping she would pick up the hint.

The woman curled up, trying to protect herself from the terrible thoughts, her muscles rippled with tension. She felt like she was going to explode. She just needed help...anyone to help.

A voice. She snapped back to life, finding a male above her. She sat up in shock, narrowly avoiding hitting him, and was silent for a moment. She teetered on the edge of her balance for a moment before taking 7 deep breaths and stilling. Her eyes found his. "Thank you..." She spoke, her voice soft and shaky. His voice, that was a voice she would remember forever. A voice that tried to help her in her attack, unlike her parents, who ran thinking she was a demon. She shook and looked down at her trembling paws. She looked behind her, feeling like the darkness lurked around, but once she looked back on a living soul, it vanished.

She stood, still trembling a bit, and prayed he didn't think she was an absolute weirdo."I...thanks...I'm Win." She dipped her head, thick fur cascading around her slim figure. "I-um, sorry." She thought maybe she should explain herself, but he was a random stranger.

A light flurry of snow embraced the grayscale boy as he nimbly stepped back a pace and tilted his head, watching as her plumed skull whistled no more than a whisker away from his muzzle. She was in shock, that part was obvious, but from what? Giving his pelt a quick shake, he relaxed down onto his haunches and let the thought slip away... for now.

"You're quite welcome," he answered, blinking not in amusement, but in pity as his auds swivelled to listen to her unsteady voice. Her gaze was clear, focusing back on himself in an almost relieved manner, yet the brute couldn't quite place the reason. The moment forced his earlier thought to rise to the surface and pester him again which made everything inside his head swim in a dizzying circle. He hated not knowing.

Win. Nice name. Pretty, nonetheless. He listened once again as she spoke softly. "There's no need to apologise," he voiced quietly. The girl confused him but really it was no surprise seeing the traumatised look on her face signalled that she had been through a rough time. "The name's Kastor." On that note, he thumped his tail encouragingly.

Oops! I said wist as in wystala, but I meant win XD

Win saw his tail thump and smiled, ears perking a little. It felt nice to have someone to speak with. Kastor...nice name indeed. "Are, are you from here?" She tried to be as steady as possible with her speech, but it was hard. She saw the confused looks on his face and thought about answering his mental questions."I have...panic attacks, from-from the past," she said with a gulp. Win shook out her thick fur, trying to shake the thought. It was hard to speak of it, but she understood his questioning. Getting comfortable, she waited for him to answer her questions.

Its ok, I changed it in my previous post :)

Kastor nodded, accepting and admiring the fact that she was very much broken but had the confidence to share her feelings. It took a lot of courage to be able to do that. He let his tail fall still, sending a dusting of snow in her direction before returning his focus to her words.

"No, I am not native to these parts," he began, his words soft and friendly, "I was born up on the high plateau, north of here." It was only a small fraction of his history, yet he hoped it would be enough to satisfy her enquiery. As she released the information about her panic attacks, he nodded, a pained expression clouding his usual relaxed self. "You're not alone, he sighed, holding her gaze, "I too did not have a very pleasing past..

She nodded to the male, listening closely to his story. "Are you traveling towards family, or are you a dispersal?" She tilted her head, blue eyes lit with true curiosity. He was kind, a stranger, but he felt very familiar. It was probably just the fact that they shared a similar story. To loners, bad pasts, seemingly kind-hearted. She smiled and perked her ears, excited to hear. She wondered if he was traveling from a mate and pups, after all, he seemed the age to have a mate. He had a nice pelt too, which would just help him. She could see how any wolf would find him attractive.

The feathered male began to relax as she smiled, it was nice to speak to someone seemingly friendly for once. "Well, my family live a long way away," he chuffed, "I'm not sure they would accept me back anyway." His auds flicked uncomfortably as he spoke but he continued his speech. "I guess you could say I'm a dispersal.

With a slight tilt of his head, he wondered silently where this conversation was going; whether Win would simply part ways with him or something else, he wasn't sure. "How about yourself?" He spoke once more, feeling a light breeze tickle his pelt and tucking his tail round his paws in a gesture as if to say 'I'm staying as long as you do".

"I guess you could call me a dispersal...not by choice though. I-um they thought I was possessed. They told me to find a soul that could cleanse mine." she shuffled her paws, her mother had always thought she should find a mate who could 'cleanse' her and give her pups. She never had been to fond of the thought of a mate, but was coming to throw the thought elsewhere lately. She wasn't exactly searching, but she would never mind to stumble across somebody special. There was something about his voice...She tested it again, looking away and flickhing at the darkness that bit her,. Turning her head back, she found that it had disappeared. How..?What..? "Do-do you feel that?"

He listened intently, his warm ochre optics round with understanding as the mottled woman spoke. Though she didn't voice it, the way her words were phrased led the feathered brute to believe she was searching for a being, perhapse a mate, to 'cleanse her soul.' He himself wasn't participating in that type of quest, he was merely driven out by his own kin to wander the wilds. They had probably expected him to be killed off in the first few months of his independence and he smiled inwardly, pleased to have proven them wrong. Though, as he focused his attention back towards her, he could sense some kind of unnatural aura hanging in the air. "I do," he murmured, observing as she twisted her cranium round to gaze behind her before turning back to him. "Is this... why they thought you were possessed...? With a nervous glance down at his paws, he sat stock still, not wanting to make any movements that would upset the cloudy girl.

The girl nodded softly. "Yes. They-they just did not understand. I don't need somebody to cure me, I just need a friend." She spoke clearly, despite her sad story. "But don't worry...I'm not truly possessed." She said with a forced laugh, not really wanting to smile in these moments. Though she felt like she had found a friend, and wondered if they'd stick together or part ways.

He caught on lightly to her dry humour and thumped his tail in agreement, mirroring her grin upon his own muzzle. "It's alright, he voiced quietly, beginning to relax from his tense posture as she confirmed his query without a mishap, "I'm not one to dwell on things for too long." His optics softened, no longer holding their guarded look he had for strangers, but moulding into a more curious, understanding gaze he reserved purely for companions. "And I'm sure you could spare a space by your side for me," he chuckled, "Travelling with others is far more amusing and useful that making journeys alone. If you'd like me to that is..

"I'd like that very much. It'll be nice to have somebody there when...that happens." She said, excited. Her tail thumped. "So Kastor," she said, rising to her paws and starting to slowly stroll into the sunset(picturing the movies right now, XD),"What do you like to do on spare time?" A warm smile spread across her face, as they were partners now--traveling only, mind you-- and she had a companion for her long journeys.