05-06-2021, 11:07 PM
despite the overwhelming odds, tomorrow came
Despite Yanhua’s obvious distaste for the whole journey, I had grown to appreciate it for the lessons it had brought our little (growing) family.
These are the direction my thoughts have traveled today, on a particularly warm winter day (the days seemed a little warmer than normal since the sun had returned). I wonder where @[Yanhua] had gotten off to, and I find myself occupied with the need to check in with him. Though I see him almost daily, it’s hard to remember to check in. To really check in. It had been a good while since we had talked about his mother or his new duties in her absence or any of the other things that could be bothering him, and I think it’s past time that I do just that.
I move casually through the giant redwoods, gazing peacefully at the delicate crystal flowers that bloom along the path I am on. They are the most unique flower I’d ever seen or even worked with (which, of course, I had as soon as they’d started to grow). Though their petals are made of the same material as any other flower petal, and are soft and velvety to the touch, they have a very crystalline appearance to them. I am in no rush at the moment, so I simply take time to enjoy the way the sunlight filters down through the trees above and glints softly off the flower petals, shattering the light so it hits the ground in speckles of rainbow light beneath them. It is such a subtle transition that it’s hard to see, but when one really looks, you could see the rainbow colors.
Wit was old enough that he was starting to explore the forest on his own or with his half-sister, Saturnelle, so I had allowed him to wander while I set about to looking for his father. It is almost a relief to have some time to myself these days, to appreciate the solitude and quiet, but I still miss him, nonetheless. I miss Memorie as well, but she still pops in from time to time, so I can’t complain. I am just happy to see her at all.
I pass by a giant mushroom, and I stop for just a moment to admire it. This one is tall and very slender, except at the top, which balloons out. And the crown is an intensely bright yellow. I bet this one would glow at night. It just reminds me of the sun rising, as it is just starting to peek itself up over the distant horizon. I glance around, taking note of my surroundings, so I could find this place again. Night is still one of those anxiety-inducing affairs, and somehow, I feel this place would be comforting.
When I look up, there he is. Yanhua. I don’t know if he has found his way to me, or if this is just where our paths had met on his perimeter scans, but it brings a very soft and affectionate smile to my lips. “M’love,” I say, my voice mimicking the expression on my face. I move toward him in a graceful walk. When I draw up close to him, I pull my neck softly up to his, resting my chin on his back in a gentle embrace that expresses my pleasure of seeing him as well as the love that I feel for him. After a moment, I take a small step back and gently brush his cheek with my lips, nibbling at a lock of his glowing mane as I draw away. “I was just looking for you.”
I am just about to ask him how he is when something weird happens. The peaceful, affectionate look on my face turns to a mixture of shock, pain, and panic. Everything hurt. In ways that I could never have imagined. It felt like I was being ripped apart from the inside out, and right before my mate, I sink to my knees, collapsing into the red dirt along the path. Those beautiful, crystal flowers I had admired earlier are now crushed by the weight of my body rolling over onto them. And then I lay still. Deathly still.
Borderline
OOC - Lol. Surprise! I’m back!