Bramblepoint i have reached these lands but newly

“I missed you.”

It burst out of him on the wings of a contented, slightly relieved sigh, and the sound of the baldly spoken words made him want to curl in on himself and implode like a dying star. He endured and maintained, but just barely — his sulphureous eyes, unbeknownst to him, were warm and affectionate as they fell upon the sprightly girl who smashed a leaf into his chest with great gusto. It made a pleasant crackling sound and released the unmistakable scent of maple, and it was these things that would make him think of her from now on: the crunch of leaflitter and greensweet scent of coming summer. He craned his neck, taking liberties that he probably shouldn’t be, but he had missed her and she was taller and he confessed a strange need to investigate these things with the touch of his muzzle against her crown. “Sorry,” he lied, following it up with a modicum of truth: “Can’t help myself.”

“Well, here’s the story,” he said, his memories flitting briefly to another blue-eyed girl to whom he’d told a story, once upon a time. By now, Lucy had faded from his thoughts almost completely and Alya’s features were superimposed upon the little ghost’s memory — but now and again he thought of his childhood friend and wondered what had happened to her and where she was and if she’d ever come back. “After I met you, but before the wolverine, I got back together with one of my cousins — Rian.” He uttered the name lightly, having no idea that the O’Malley’s name had likely been dropped by the Cerberus at some point in time. “We had a real good talk, and — ” he wasn’t going to tell her about the crying “ — ripped apart this giant swamp together.” Dark lips pulled into a boyish half-grin at the memory. “It was at the east side of Neverwinter. We cracked all the ice and ripped up some trees. I don’t know what all came over us, but it felt good.”

The grin was still on his face, but it faded a little as he apologized: “I meant to come and see you sooner, darlin’, believe me, please.” He licked his lips nervously, then made to nose boldly at her cheek. “I was in a bad way, getting angrier and angrier. My older brother’s wife was put in charge of the pack and she didn’t know pretty much any of us by name — and I challenged her for leadership but I lost.” One ear fanned awry in remembered dismay and shame, but he rallied bravely. “I didn’t want to lead the pack or anything. I just didn’t want her to do it. She was bigger, faster, and stronger then — but I bet we’d be evenly matched now.” He didn’t want Alya to think he was some pushover, after all.

“Anyway…I was licking my wounds when Rian came around again, and we talked about striking out on our own, going somewhere new. Shortly after that, my brother came back — Rannoch, remember? — and the three of us left Neverwinter Forest together. We’ve been on our own for a good while now.” He hesitated, before lowering to his haunches and simply looking at the girl who’d quite possibly saved his life last winter.

“I’m sorry I didn’t come to see you before this,” he said.