Bearclaw Valley I’m your toy, I’m your toy, I’m your toy

sometimes i wanna smack him lmao

So close.

Although he’d made a nice step forward moments before, the mere mention of her sister sent him back ten. He wasn’t sure what he’d done wrong—shouldn’t she be glad that he was concerned for her sister? It made sense to him that she would, but the feeling clearly was not shared as she huffed, spat out words, and stood right up. He wasn’t sure how to react, not to her initial comment, as he was still terribly confused by what seemed to him as a lack of concern for Laurel. But then she continued and he felt words rise in his throat, threatening to spill out with a growl; he was able to swallow it all back down and calm his thoughts, yet his silence was short-lived.

“What are you talking about?” he shot back, disgruntled but also worried—had he failed to make her feel as if she was important? That she could not be replaced? He felt his stomach twist with the thought, recalling so vividly his own experiences with the same feelings. “I do care about you, Indra—you were one of the first to join me here, you can’t be replaced.” Perhaps he was projecting now. And with a shake of his head, he added: “I don’t even want to have sex with you, so how could that be all I care about?” But then he heard his own voice and what he’d said, and started backtracking immediately. “I mean, I wouldn’t mind it,” he tried to clarify. “But you wouldn’t want that.”—right?—“And I would never force you into anything.” He didn’t want to force anyone, ever, especially not those within his own pack.

Alexander’s ears perked up and then fell again. “You’re interesting,” he responded, making a poor attempt at assuring her. This time, when he thought about mentioning any of the others, he stopped himself before he could speak and just repeated back: “You are interesting to me.” He left out how they were all interesting, in their own ways, as well as refrained from creeping forward to nip playfully at her shoulder—because that was something that worked with Reigi, it was for her. Indra was not Reigi nor Laurel, just as they were neither her nor one another. Each of them were different and, though using the same tactics on all would be easier for him, he knew he could not treat them all the same way.