The Sentinels whiskey kisses

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@Aria

 

he needed her, he craved the comfort of her embrace. as the stars rose into their dark blanket, Casmir searched for the pale beta. she had been upon the borders, a stalwart sentinel, a guardian of donnelaith; as much as he rued the death of Behati, he knew that Aria's caresses, her comfort; he would fall into it and allow himself to sob, to mourn the gossamer girl as he had not yet.

Casmir called for her then, his tones underlaid with desperation.

ruh roh

Aria stiffened at Casmir's call. She had done such a great job ignoring his presence entirely and (although not really) getting over him. It hadn't been very long, but a surge of what she labeled as real maturity had entered her bloodstream and mindset- thanks to the help of Pearl and Lasher. She hesitated, deciding whether or not to answer his desperate call, feeling that she did not need him. The white girl had done just fine without him- better even. She almost opted to ignore his plea completely and remain at the borders. 

But old habits die hard, so she got up off her ass and went to him, her posture straight yet somehow relaxed. 

"Casmir," she said to the boy, her tail held behind her, waving occasionally. 

she approached, and had Casmir spared a moment, he would have questioned why she was so cool toward him. yet he didn't; he thought only of his need. he moved toward her then, dark muzzle questing. "Aria," he whispered, seeking to enfold her into his arms, tears tightening his throat, threatening to spill down his cheeks. "she's dead." 

he knew that the pale beta would know of whom he spoke.

The girl remained silent, accepting his embrace but not returning the warmth. Nuzzling her head under his chin, she let out a soft sigh. It had been she who had killed Behati- only partially, however- and somehow the whole situation had slipped under the radar. Aria would never reveal that she had been the cause, or how little remorse she felt about the whole situation. She had gotten what was coming for her, and unfortunately the judgement of the pretty Beta had been against the other. Oh well.

"I know Casmir," she murmured softly to him, her tone betraying the truth of her feelings. It was filled with grief and despair, despite the fact that she really could care less the other had died. "I'm sorry it happened," she said, but it was a lie. She only wished to console him.

Aria was up for an Oscar -- Cas felt his troubles began to ebb as she embraced him, her voice full of all the anguish he felt in his soul. "I never got to say goodbye!" he sobbed, then bit his lip to stop the crying. the tearfilled gold of his eyes met the paleness of Aria's gaze; he sighed and offered her a tight, small smile. "what have you been up to?" 

it was the question to which the boy did not want an answer. but there was no possible way for him to know that, and so he watched her, desperately grateful for her continued love (or so he thought).

He wailed on for a little bit, and Aria gave the boy a few gentle kisses. He could easily win her back, but the pale girl was doing her best to keep to her promise to herself. She didn't truly need him. "She knew what she meant to you," she told him, returning his smile. Then she shrugged, holding back the far to blunt 'banging your dad' comment. 

"Border patrols," she told him, a vague smile still on her face. "I was kidnapped," she then offered lightly, wondering if he had heard of her adventure past enemy lines.

his eyes widened. "kidnapped?" he hadn't known. "i've been out of the loop -- i'm sorry," he mumbled, his (now single) ear falling back against his head. "what happened?" his eyes fell to the almost-healed wound upon her shoulder, and a soft whine broke from the boy's throat. first Behati, then Aria had been kidnapped -- hurt. he really did suck.

"i'm an awful boyfriend," he muttered, looking for her for an explanation. and, if he was being honest -- reassurance.

She almost told him, she didn't mind telling the story, but his next string of words stopped her. The girl raised her head and she watched him with a careful pair of white eyes. "You still think I'm your girlfriend?" she asked quietly. It wasn't condescending and didn't seem to him out- it was more from her point of view. "After all the stress I caused you?" she asked, gears turning once again in her head. 

he realized his faux pas almost too late -- the boy backpedaled madly. "no -- no, i mean -- in general." but his heart gave a little flip at the realization that she had not downright said no. "i needed to hear those things you said -- i needed to talk about them. to man up," he added, a most unLasherlike sentiment. a muscle jumped in his cheek; Cas stared off into the blackness, suddenly cold with exhaustion. 

"it's just all so ... fucked up," he sighed, momentarily unable to look at Aria.

He turned his attention away from her, and she stood silently for a moment. "Right," she answered softly, trying to shaking the fact that she felt now like he was using her... she couldn't tell. She stood silently for a little while, finally shrugging. "It's fine," she told him, her own gaze falling to her feet. "I'm here for you if you need me... you don't need to pretend anything," she said, her newfound motto rolling through her brain as she spoke. She didn't need him. Aria looked up at him with a small smile, her tail wagging slowly behind her.

"No strings attached," she added, head tilting. 

no strings attached. what did that even mean? he was quiet. in a way, he also felt like he was using her, coming to her in his time of need -- however, he'd always felt like he offered his own brand of comfort. of humour. she was cool, her eyes even devoid of the passion that they had both felt during their last meeting. his eyes narrowed for a moment; his gaze then softened. "what ... what if i wanted there to be strings ... ?"


smooth, asshat.

The girl remained silent for a moment, looking up and studying his expression quietly. Her tail flicked behind her and she shrugged. "Do you?" she asked, ears cupping forward. Maybe if he wanted something she would as well, but she felt like she was climbing mountains to get over him. And that was alright, it'd be better in the long run, she thought. Aria stood a bit befuddled though- what did he want? What did she want?

he nodded, probably too eagerly, but he didn't give a shit. "well ... yeah," wasn't that obvious? clearly, he was a scumbag for wanting to hook up with Aria so soon after Behati's demise -- but it wasn't about hooking up now. it was about closure, once and for all -- it was about closure, once and for all. "i just ... i don't want to yank you around anymore, you know? i want ..."

i want i want i want

"what do you want?" the boy amended, watching her closely.

The ears of the girl perked, and her shoulders rolled forward as she thought. "I want to be happy, Casmir," she told him finally, watching him with a clear pair of eyes. "And I want you to be happy." She stood, walking over confidently and nuzzling just below his jaw, a pair of clean, white teeth soon finding the furs along it. "I think we both need a break from romance," she murmured to him, stepping back finally and observing his response.

"Friends?" she asked, but her implied offer still lie between her open paws. 

now, the friendzone isn't a real place; it's just the place reserved for men who pitch a fit that they aren't given sex when they are a Nice Guy, as if being nice to someone should result in sexual favors instead of gratitude. you know, like a normal dynamic. anyway, Casmir felt the wind go right out of his sails as, with a few gentle but cutting words, he was deposited into some realm near the friendzone , which didn't resolve around sex but the whine of 'i thought we had something!'

"a break," he mumbled. a break from him? or in general. friends. like they could be friends. but he was tired of fighting. the nausea in his gut told him that it was over. she was moving on and though it hurt like shit, he needed to do the same. fuck. "yeah," he said, lifting his eyes to her own. "friends."

The girl frowned, watching him as his spirits fell- not that they were too high to begin with. She held his gaze, then studying his features for a moment before she moved. She moved towards him, nuzzling against his neck. "Please don't be upset," she murmured to him. She was borderline. Half of her wanted to be upset that Casmir appeared to agree that friends was a good idea, but the other half was excited that both parties had agreed to move on. Her teeth found the hairs on his cheek and she nibbled softly at them, finding comfort in his soft fur. "You will always be special to me." 

she began to preen him and he tensed for a moment before relaxing into it as her teeth teased tangles from his fur. sighing, his eyes grew heavy and Cas was silent as he sought the fur of her own neck and began to groom it, enjoying not only the bonding of his species but the comfort of her closeness.

something occurred to him -- he drew away and found her eyes with his own. "Aria," the boy began hesitantly. "you will always be special to me too, but --" god this was hard. "is there -- uh --- is there someone else?" is that why she didn't want to be with him?

The girl smiled as he returned her affectionate grooming, feeling the comfort between the them just as soothing. His pulling away did not bother her, and neither did his question. She shook her head. "Of course not, Casmir," she replied smoothly, only half a lie. "It's just, the whole Behati thing- I believe that it's too much. I think we should just get to know each other as friends for a while," she explained calmly to him, her head tilting. What was going on in that handsome black head of his? she wondered, pearly white eyes resting to his missing ear. She leaned her muzzle forward and pressed her nose to his cheek briefly before pulling away again.

friends. friends. friends. Cas felt his blood ran cold, realized that he had lost not only Behati, but Aria. he pulled away from her, moving a few paces away. friends. without the promise of her warmth he did not know if he could remain with her. Cas couldn't fake what he didn't feel -- he had never been able to do that. 

"i think i need to leave donnelaith," he blurted suddenly, turning to face Aria again. he wanted her to do something! show something! besides this calm and cool new demeanour. he felt nothing from her, when he himself was so tortured.

Leave. Leave? Her head cocked, eyes widening with shock and perhaps fear. "Leave?" she repeated. Her spirits melted, her relaxed features suddenly shattering, revealing stiff, panicked ones. "No... no you can't leave," she begged, her head shaking wildly. She stepped towards him again, but did not touch, only standing and staring as she stared at him frantically. "Is that what you really want?" she asked, but the question was filled with silent pleas for him to stay. 

She'd decided to ward off relationships, perhaps, but she couldn't bare the thought of him leaving her for good.

PLOT TWIST

the boy got what he wanted from Aria, but he felt no different --  no better. somehow the thought of leaving the redwood forest became more and more pervasive; he stared off into the distance over her shoulder, and his features set first into a blank expression, then one of determination.

"i have to go," he whispered, wanting desperately to embrace her, to kiss her, though he made no move to do either. suddenly his head was awhirl! he blinked and stood to his paws.

"tell ... please tell everyone i love them. and ... goodbye."

the boy turned and with a long stride, he broke into a run, for the southlands.

he did not look back, though his throat clenched with a single sob.

The girl stepped forward, shocked and confused. She wished to embrace him, force him to stay- but he turned. He fled, and she hesitated before she chased him. 

"No!" she screamed after him, unable to help it. But after a few moments of sprinting, she realized it was no use. The girl stopped, sat, and remained, dumbfounded and numb. Her pale eyes watched his dark coat as it soon disappeared from her sight, and she let out silent cries of confusion. She wanted to know why. She wanted to know if it was her fault. It must've been, she'd pushed him out- only moments ago.

Aria lowered herself, trying to stop the tears from falling- failing. She remained in her spot for the rest of the day, trying to comprehend the situation and, soon after, trying to figure out what to tell his family.