He paused beneath a hefty beech, lifting a wing to scratch the skin of his hip against its bark. A groan of pleasure rumbled from his chest. In the heat of summer, it was far preferable to spend his time in the shade of the trees, or submerge himself to the eyes in the deep parts of the river.
He thought about Loess, where family he barely knew lived. By rights, he should feel at home there. Yet something stopped him from feeling like he belonged. Maybe with time that feeling would fade. He hoped so, anyway. For now, he wandered where he wanted to, slept alone with the stars for company and little else. What else did he need, really?
That was bullshit, if course. It was lonely and he knew it. But his family was a tangled mess, and his love life was rather non-existent at the moment. It was all tied up in regret and mistakes and he knew it was mostly his fault. Rather than face these things, he let himself fade into the background, among the trees and birds. Youthful vigor and curiosity had been steadily replaced with a general mistrust in himself and those around him.
So he let the trees keep him close, and wandered deeper into them, feeling his breath deepen in the gloom of the forest. It was peaceful here, even if he himself wasn't. He could pretend, for a while at least, that all was right in his world.
@[savage]