Neverwinter Forest bad bad things

@Hide

takes place right after this

Muffled cursing echoes through the forest.

He’d mumble things like Who does she think she is? Talking to me like that. or Stupid motherfucker. She’s a fucking liar. Before growling or pawing at the earth.

It wasn't really hard to find Orochi. The rain wasn't too bad and his voice was pretty easy to follow. He was still angry as well, ears pressed back against his skull and fur along his nape standing on end. But as he approached, his pawsteps slowed, and his posture sagged. 

"Orochi?" he asked, brows drawn together and head lowered in apology. He couldn't help but think he'd done something to hurt his friend back there, and he didn't know what he'd said wrong.

He heard Hide before he actually saw him. His voice caught him off guard, and so his response was a growl. When he recognized his friend it died in his throat, but his features didn’t soften and his voice stayed sharp.

What? He averted his glare. I thought you were to busy listening to Ruò talk about why I’m so- Weak. Orochi bit his tongue.

Hide's ears pressed back and he hesitated, shoulders tensing up. So Orochi had thought he was agreeing with Ruo? "She was wrong," he murmured, lowering his head further. A low growl formed in his own throat and he wrinkled his nose. "I wanted to know what she said to you. To make you fight her in the first place. That's why I was asking why." 

He'd never met a wolf that made him that angry before. So much judgment and so little knowledge of what she was talking about.

Orochi slowly turned his head so Hide was barely in view. His head was held low and his muscles were tense. He looked genuinely sorry. That took some of the edge away, but a lot of anger still festered in the pit of his stomach. 

What did she say? That wasn’t worth asking. Whatever she said would just make him even more upset.

"Doesn't matter. She was wrong," Hide insisted, unwilling to vocalize what the woman had told him. There was no point in it. His chest wrenched a bit and he sighed through his nose, ears lowering even further than they already were. "You thought I was agreeing with her?" he asked, voice quiet and slightly strained.

He could guess what had been said. Only bad things. Orochi growls again as he imagines the scenario.

Did he think he agreed with her? Well, yeah, that’s what his question implied right? But now he wasn’t so sure. He hoped he was wrong. 

Were you? Finally, he spun around to face Hide.

His eyes widened at the question and he turned his full attention to Orochi, ears angled forward and maw snapping shut in surprise. 

"I... no!" he blurted, taking a step forward. "I was... I was angry with her. She shouldn't have been saying that stuff. I got mad, and-and I just..." His head lowered back down and he whined, brows knitting back together. "She must've said something really bad to you, to hurt you like that. I wanted to know what she said. I wanted to yell at her, or fight her, or... anything. I was angry."

His assumption couldn’t be further from the truth.

Hide’s eyes flew wide open, and ears shot up. The denial was quick, and it was followed up by an explanation. Orochi was surprised to say the least.

I- he paused to sigh deeply. I’m sorry. Apologizing didn’t come naturally, but he gave it his best shot.

Everyone I’ve ever met just thinks of me as some weak kid. I just thought for a second that you would too. It was a strange assumption now that he was thinking back on it. Hide had done nothing but praise him this whole time. Underlying insecurities got the best of him.

"Me? Orochi, I'm literally in no position to be calling anyone weak," Hide responded, voice still hushed and a tiny bit strained. Stupid emotions and all that. They sucked.

He took a deep breath before he spoke again. "Between the two of us, who wins the fights?" It was Orochi, every single time. "Who's faster?" Even with three legs? Still Orochi. "More experienced, independent, driven?" All Orochi. He gave a bit more pause, unsure if he should bring it up, before he continued. "Who has two eyes that actually function properly? Who can see?" 

"I can't call you weak. You're not the weak one," he finished, head still lowered and ears pressed back and posture sagging a bit. That was why he'd gotten so angry in the first place, after all - Orochi was powerful. He'd overcome his disability - learned to fight with it - while Hide's nose was still skinned from the last time he'd walked into a tree. It was humiliating, the distance between them, and to have Ruo talk down to the one wolf he admired more than anyone else? That was unacceptable.

...in no position to be calling anyone weak. What did he mean by that?

I don’t understand. He would’ve asked for clarification, but he didn’t have to. It’s given to him slowly.

Who wins the fight?
Who’s faster?
Who’s more experienced, independent, faster?
Who can see?

There’s this pain that claws at his stomach as the list goes on. He’s felt what Hide was feeling now. There were unique differences between the two, but the root of the problem was still the same. It all stems from a feeling inadequacy.

Orochi took a deep breath before stepping closer to Hide. He put himself at his level so their foreheads touched. Don’t talk about yourself like that. You’re strong, Hide.

Most of the time, Hide tried to be positive about this kind of stuff. About his lack of vision, about his inability to live life like everyone else. What did Hide contribute? Protection for the pack? That was laughable. A hunter? Also a joke. Maybe Hua was right and he should just become a counselor or a babysitter or something - where he didn't have to go out and prove how weak he was. Anyone could beat Hide in a fight if they tried hard enough - Ruo could've probably done so, if they'd fought. His movements were awkward and unsteady and he wasn't a nimble fighter like he probably could've been if his vision had stayed. 

It sucked, thinking about what he could've had.

The rain wasn't heavy, but he was grateful for it as it fell onto his fur. He was pretty sure he was crying, and that was even more embarrassing. Just the icing on the cake, really.

There was a pressure on his forehead and Hide blinked in alarm before he realized what was happening. Normally, his skin probably would've warmed beneath his fur at contact like this, but for the moment, he was just so grateful for the physical touch. He leaned into it and squeezed his eyes shut. "You say that," he began, trying to keep his voice from wobbling. It may or may not have worked. "But I don't... I have nothing to offer anyone."

That’s not true! Trying to think of something, anything else to say made his mind go haywire. It wasn’t like there wasn’t anything to say. Everything’s buried in the depths of his mind, and digging it up was a struggle.

Orochi was never a wolf who used his words. Act first, talk later; that’s his way of life. So, instead of attempting to think of some miraculous thing to say, he throws his head on the side of Hide’s neck.

You’re my friend, he mumbled through his fur. Always helping him, being with him, having an ear open for him. Orochi’s never had anything like that in his life, and it was deeply appreciated.

Hide offered his friendship, and that was the most important thing to him.

For a minute, Hide didn't think Orochi would be able to come up with anything to say. He'd just leave it at that's not true! and be done with it. But then the other boy pressed his skull into Hide's neck, and the younger paused. Blind eyes wide as he slowly leaned his own head down to reciprocate the hug, cheek pressed into Orochi's fur. 

You're my friend.

Not a burden, not a student, not a leech or a tagalong or an annoyance. A friend. Hide had hoped that Orochi thought of him that way, but hadn't allowed himself to expect it. He'd known Orochi was his friend all along, but the fact that his sentiment was echoed caused his breath to stutter and his face to scrunch up in what he knew was a super unattractive way. He let out a soft, choked-off sound, burying his face into Orochi's neck. 

"You're my friend, too," he whispered, blinking a few times to compose himself. "Thank you."

Orochi wasn’t familiar with comfort in any form. It was rare for him to receive it, and even more rare to offer it himself. Getting physical with it? Practically unheard of. It’s a bit weird, but a fuzzy feeling overrides that. He didn’t want to pull away. You’re welcome.

He stayed where he was for a little while longer before moving back to look Hide in the eyes. You wanna get out of here? Putting as much distance between them and Ruò as possible would probably do them both good.

Hide would've been glad to bask in Orochi's presence, like, all day. The physical contact was nothing new, but this level - this comfort and trust and closeness was unlike the other boy. It made Hide's skin warm beneath his fur, and there was a weird squirmy feeling in his stomach. 

Then, Orochi pulled away, leaving Hide a bit confused at the sudden lack of anchor. But the other wolf spoke soon after, and Hide sighed in relief. "Yeah," he agreed, a small smile tugging on his maw as he nudged his friend's shoulder. "I'm getting kinda hungry," he informed him - as though that was anything new.