Bitterroot Valley drag me under

@Sega

the water at her feet moves in ripples and waves, pulling at the lake's shore like it means to swallow it whole. her paws are half-sunken into silt, and she feels the pull in her bones. it’s an old instinct, that want for oblivion, but it entices her to no end. not quite death, yet close enough to make her heart tremble all the same.

rain collects in fluttering lashes and falls to the pool beneath her, and the girl's eyes follow the mirrored image that stares back at her. it is a reverie short lived when a stone kicks forward behind her—her head whirls to glance back, only to soften at the sight of a familiar sight.

"oh," she exhales, "hi."

rain gathered on his shoulders, tracing down the ridges of old scars. golden eyes found her first—thin, sharp thing that she was—half-swallowed by the lake’s reflection. for a moment, he only watched her, chest rising slow, as though afraid she might vanish again if he spoke too soon.

then, low and rough through the rain, his voice came.

twitch, he said, the name a breath more than a word. you gone long.

he came closer, not close enough to crowd her, but close enough that his scent—river and stone and pine—folded into hers. his brow furrowed, though relief softened the hard set of his face.

where go? he asked simply, the weight of a month in the question.

or rather,

why did she go?

for a long moment she only watched him—raindrops break the shape of his face in the lake until he looked like something dreamed. he always looks a little out of place in the rain.

to hear her name in his mouth, spoken in horrible softness, made her heart stutter. it had been weeks since she'd heard it spoken aloud.

for a beat, she says nothing. watches the rain crawl over his muzzle instead.

"sorry," she gives a slight scoff, though not mocking—more nervous. "didn’t think you’d notice." its flat and offhanded, but her eyes don’t leave his.

the lake laps against her forelegs, cold creeping up through her fur. she looks down at it, at the mirrored shape of him beside her. "had to visit someone." a half-truth, easy on her tongue.

his ears tipped back against the rain, a quiet sound leaving him. of frustration. droplets clung to the line of his jaw, catching on the rough cut of old scars.

[ibndent]notice, he echoed, slow. hn. not blind, twitch.

he stepped nearer, the ground sucking faintly beneath his paws, scent of wet earth rising between them. his eyes swept her thin frame— ribs beneath fur, mud at her ankles, the tremor she tried to hide.

you not built for alone, sega said at last, voice low and even, the broken common softened by the space between words. storm take young quick. world colder now.

his gaze moved past her to the lake’s skin, black and rippling, and for a moment it seemed his reflection spoke more than he did.

someone, he repeated after a while, quieter, unsure if he believed her. they give you food? safe place?

her ears flicked back at his tone, hazel irises darting across the lake, as if the water might take away her uncertainy.

"y'don't have to worry about me, sega." she said, the corner of her mouth twitching slightly. "always land on my feet."

when she finally looked back, something softer had found its way through the guarded mask—apology, maybe, or something that wanted to be.

"it wasn't…" her words trail off, and she swallowed thickly before trying again. "they're dead. wanted to say goodbye before it got too cold." her shoulders eased with the admission, breath leaving in a visible fog. "but yes. i took care of myself."

though she doesn't say anything when her eyes found him, the thought is loud. had he missed her?

sega’s ears tipped, steady despite the weight of her words.

long fall still hurt, even if you land, he murmured.

when she admitted the truth, his gaze softened—only a breath, but real.

dead deserve goodbye, he said. but not alone. too young for that.

he stepped close enough for their scents to meet, rain and river mixing.

you came back. that what matter.

a beat, his voice lower.

i did notice you gone.

then, gently:

next time… let me walk with you.

twitch sucks in a breath when he takes steps closer, just long enough to give her away. all of him chips away the numb shell she’d been holding onto since she left. long fall still hurt, he had said. she knows it.

her ears dipped toward him, slow, almost shy. rain slicked her fur flat along her nape, gathering at the hollow of her throat. tentatively, she leans into him so that their shoulders brush and so her nose bumps his. its a fleeting touch she does not cling to, retracting quickly.

on top of it all, he had missed her—at least she thought so. that fact unravels something warm and soft in her chest, enough to give thanks for. it settles well in her heart, and the bashful smile cutting across her face is proof.

"right, got it." she whispered there. her tail gave one quiet sweep behind her, betraying her relief. she collects herself then; "so, what's happened while i was gone?"

sega felt the light touch of her nose, the brief press of her shoulder, and something in him eased — a quiet settling, like snow finding its place on a branch. her smile pulled one from him too, small and crooked.

at her question, he breathed out, slow, the rain misting from his coat.

hn. much, he said, voice low. more mouths now.

his tail gave a single sweep through the wet grass.

two boys. young. wild in bone. hungry in belly. a pause, warm. they stay under my watch.

he looked at her then, head tilting just slightly, as if showing something private.

you meet them, he murmured. they need see who come back.

another breath, softer still.

they need family. you part of that.

her ears pricked at that—more mouths—two boy, young and wild and growing under his watch. a huff of laughter as she speaks, "sounds like they'll be keeping you busy."

family. he called her family, and he said it like it wasn’t a question but cold hard fact. it does something toxic and ruinous to her like a hot stone dropped in deep water, rippling through places in her she’d allowed to grow cold. the effect it has is evident in the way her tail begins to sway at the statement.

a beat. another smile, small and earnest.

"usually i'm not great at family dynamics," she admitted, eyes narrowing "but i guess i can make an exception." her tail flicked, brushing the lake's surface. "...they don't bite, do they?"

sega’s ear tipped at her laugh, a faint warmth settling behind his steady gaze. busy was one word for it — the boys were all sharp elbows and louder hunger; but he only gave a low hum, the kind that admitted she wasn’t wrong.

her shift, the way her tail moved at the word family, didn’t escape him. it lit something quiet in his chest, something that eased the hard lines of his posture. she wasn’t running from the word. not from him. that was enough.

at her question, the corner of his mouth tugged; not quite a smile, but close.

hn, he rumbled, a soft chuff escaping. only a little.

her ears pricked at that —only a little—and a low snort slipped out of her before she could stop it. there was relief in the sound, threaded through with something warmer, something dangerously close to fondness.

"yeah, go figure," she muttered. in the pause that comes after, her crown drops so that her nose can break the surface of the lake with a soft plunk, cold water rushing up her muzzle and flooding her senses.

when she comes up again, there are droplets hanging from her whiskers. "i'll try n' find them after a nap, if that works."

lowkey hate this post sorry x_x

sega watched her dip into the lake, the soft plunk and the spray on her whiskers pulling a rare ease into his posture. she looked more alive like this— less guarded, more herself.

he gave a slow nod, the kind that carried quiet approval. hn. good plan, he murmured, breath misting.

his tail swept once through the grass, steady. she’d rest, meet the boys, weave herself back into the shape of great sky in her own time.

they find you too, he added, eyes warm. young always do.

water dripped off her muzzle in a thin line, catching on the curve of her chin before falling back to the lake. she blinked the droplets from her lashes, gave a tiny shake that ruffled the fur along her neck.

she glanced at him through the curtain of rain, softer than before, a little shy in a way she’d never admit to.

“i’ll let you know how it goes after,” she said with a nod, shifting her weight. ”see you tomorrow?”

sega’s ears tipped, the rain threading softly through his fur as he watched her. the shy note in her voice tugged something warm from him.

hn. tomorrow, he murmured, a simple promise.

his tail swept once through the wet grass.

i see you then.