When Ghosts Come A-Calling [Reece]

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She'd settled in quite nicely in their new home. The company was pleasant, the land was bountiful. There was no reason for her to feel off; to feel edgy about something she couldn't pinpoint. Her heart was rebelling though, the dark piece that had been tainted since birth. She'd thought it had subsided after leaving the old pack-grounds and the ghosts of Zarek's victims behind. Things had been going so well - she'd been getting on wonderfully with Reece, he'd been opening up to her a little, they had a nice place to stay for the winter.  But her dreams were plagued lately. Dark shadows that tickled her mind and had her heart beating wildly with bloodlust. The madness was edging back, as though in response to some deed that she wasn't aware of. Perhaps there were other descendants of his nearby. Perhaps they had perpetrated some new horror that was igniting the hunger of her own tightly bottled madness. Her head was spinning with her desperate attempt to keep things hidden - she couldn't let the pack see her this out of sort. Not now, when they were just getting to know each other.  She galloped blindly through the open hills, leaping haphazardly over the the brush that cropped up intermittently. But the faster she ran, the closer her demons seemed to get. Finally, exhausted from her crazed sprint, she skidded to a halt. "Leave me alone! Get away from me" she snarled, batting a paw at the air that was closing in on her. She could almost hear the air vibrating with her great-grandfather's laughter, her blood running colder than ice. Oh, she wanted to kill him! Tear him limb from limb. Her heart sang with the burning desire for vengeance; vengeance she knew was not directed by herself, but the darkness of his genetics. "No, Nocturne. Don't let them get you. Ignore them. Ignore them!" She didn't care if anyone heard her. Those with good sense would leave her muttering, anxiety-ridden self well alone. She turned in a tight circle, her hackles up and her teeth bared. "Don't you dare laugh at me" she snarled at the demon that had hounded her for the past 2.5 years. Ever since she had heard the tales of him, he'd been shadowing her, goading her into letting go of her morals and joining him. He would whisper words of comfort, words of encouragement - a gilded tongue that he must have learnt in the afterlife. "I will not succumb. I won't, I won't , I won't! Your blood doesn't mean anything. " She paused, a wild glint in her eyes as she dragged her teeth sharply across one foreleg. "See? It's red and liquid - just as worthless as the blood of those you murdered!" "Speech"

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When he realized that Nocturne was missing, it was easy to abandon his insanity. The male had been accepted on the promise he never harm another within the pack grounds. It made sense, he caressed the notion with an idle mind. While he had managed to shush the laughter, he found himself unable to process. Dark matter forever followed him around, and he sucked in a breath at the reminder.

There was something to be said for the darkness that swallowed him up. It consumed him and caused things to feel almost endless. As his mouth turned upward, Reece paused in his hurried state. Nocturne could look after herself. That was something not to be denied, but on the other hand the irritation plagued him. His shoulders rolled and he resumed the pacing, following the hungered scent along the ground.

It was enough to cause him to grin, as he realized how foolish he must have looked. Yes, he spoke in tongues and his words were riddled as ever. There was vulnerability in taking a pack on. It meant he had obligations that reached beyond what better suited his needs. The adjustment, as he had decided to call it, was never about to be as smooth as the world would have hoped. There was never a chance that he could prove to be nothing but a brilliant wolf, an obedient little pet to wolves he had not traveled with.

When he finally found her in the distance, his walk paced to a lope. He headed towards her amicably, only until he realized the scent that followed her around was not normal. It was not what plagued him in his senses most of every other day. His concern blossomed, and his paws crawled until he felt the feeling of hopelessness seize him. It bothered him that he worried about her; but it had been a fair while now.

His head cocked to the side as he rounded up along side her, only to be caught on the tail end of her words. His head cocked to the side as she scored herself, and the snarl proved evident. What in the hell was she doing? Mouth twisted with concern, and he approached carefully. His nose reached out, and he touched her side carefully, announcing his presence. Had she lost it?

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It was a mark of how used she was to his company that she didn't lunge for his throat when his nose tapped her shoulder. Nonetheless, she whirled about to face him, wide eyes staring at his familiar features and yet not really seeing them. She was being torn in two directions, Zarek's whispers inciting the darkness in her heart to expand and fester. Only the shred of obstinacy that had defined her very person from the first day. The sliver of her that was still clean of darkness was struggling. Zarek was no longer just a figment of her mind, but a very real presence. She'd never seen him, and yet the broad, dark grey shape that danced just in front of her vision could be no other creature. The very aura of the ghost resonated with the part of her heart she'd like to rip out and destroy. As it was, she enjoyed life too much to do so.  "He's back, Reece!" Her voice was low and rough, the darkness setting her wild eyes on fire. "His spirit is back - some imbecile is worshipping him. Giving the ghost enough energy to defile the lands again." She snarled in fury, whirling about on her haunches and slashing at Zarek's illusion. her claws ripping though his laughing face...only to have him re-emerge unscathed. You can't escape your heritage, moonshine his words echoed in her ears. She hated the nickname he seemed to have given her - too eerily familiar to his own 'sunshine' who was put to death so brutally. "Don't call me that" she hissed venomously, her tail lashing from side to side. "You have no right to ruin my life. None whatsoever!" You are my kin - that gives me all the right in the world. Not that Zarek ever needed right, as far as she was concerned. From what she knew of him, he just took without asking. She was shaking, desperate to tear up the illusion that was ruining her self-control and rational thought patterns. "You may remember our first meeting, Reece" she commented out of the blue, whipping about to face her companion again. "I mentioned that the dead should be left to rot without a word spoken of their legacy and lunacy." She lost her wild gaze for a moment, remembrance softening the silver eyes for a moment. "You didn't understand then" she continued, a sorrowful note to her tale. "And now you will see why. Feeding angry ghosts with devotion brings them closer to life - hungry for the vibrancy on earth that they were forced to depart. They may not be able to cause the same damage as they once could, but they can corrupt. They will corrupt." She raked the ground with her claws, deep furrows in the ground speaking of her agitation. "They start with those like me first, those who already had a taste of darkness, those stand so precariously on the edge of the two worlds. One little push to send me over the precipice and into the madness that my genetics so desire." A harsh whine tore through her lips, her features scrunching at the painful injustice of it all. "When I find the one responsible for bringing Zarek back, I am going to tear him apart; limb from damned limb " "Speech"

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Concerned features were fixed on the female, knowing that there was no danger. Oh, she could have sliced him up into little bits - in the moments he did not react. But Reece was well versed enough in his decisions, he knew the risks and the calculated one was forever considered. Head cocked to the side and his gaze lingered on him, and his mouth turned up faintly as she rounded on him. It brought him stepping back, but she was content to listen to what needed to come out of his mouth.

Head cocked to the side and he studied the creature that was his companion for months upon months. His mouth quirked lightly and he found his nose flaring lightly as the craziness begun. Oh, it was turned on him, but she was not aggressive. She spoke as is she was desperate, as if the craziness would consume her alive this very moment. Reece remained still and there was no fading from one side to the other. He swayed, faintly, but that was a natural state. The male could never remain perfectly still, rather he was just still.

Whatever haunted her was a nasty torment, and somehow it had come back. The quiet voices should have stilled long ago, but now they had come back. His ears pulled back, and he watched the lunacy take her. It had, evidently, been happening for a while. He was strictly unaccustomed to seeing the female lose it, to see her billowing down into the earth in a nasty spiral. Yes, it was not her fault, but on the other hand it seemed like ghosts haunted her just as readily.

He winced away from the notion, the silence continued on his end while she spoke. Yes, he remembered her words readily enough. But honestly, he had dismissed her. He had lived with the ghosts for far longer than he had known her, and they tugged him in the direction of the better. Ah, he ached to visit his graveyard. The need for it burned in him, and he forced it away. There would be time, he wagered, and perhaps even the chance to find one anew. Surely death had plagued, in its own way, everywhere else in the world?

When I find the one responsible for bringing Zarek back, I am going to tear him apart; limb from damned limb. The stillness, commonly unknown to the restless male, stalled him in his steps. The name had not crossed his path anywhere but in his own mind for years. It did not need to be questioned, he knew exactly who she spoke of. The wolf with the crazed look in his eyes was almost too much for him, even as the image pushed through his mind. Of course, the only time he had ever crossed paths with the beast, apart from his skeleton, had been covered in blood while slaughtering his family.

The intensity that the golden eyed wolf turned on the silver eyes was worrisome. His lip curled, disgusted at the sound in the air. “You never said his name before.” Brittle words offered on the air, colder than he would have welcomed. His steps pushed himself back, away from her a few paces as his eyes rushed over the sight of her, and the tension rode him. “Zarek,” Bittersweet on his tongue, it rushed out of his mouth. “Is your relative, is he?”

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She hadn't expected the mention of Zarek to be the one thing that sparked words onto Reece's tongue. He had been surprisingly silent during her outburst, simply waiting and listening as she tried to put into words what was eating her heart. But now he spoke, and the tone quality was quite unlike anything she had heard him use. She watched him step backwards, those golden eyes so dead and frigid when they locked onto hers. Something in the back of her mind warned of things about to go awry; that this was a discussion that should never have been brought to the surface. For so many months, all these years, she had never spoken of her past. Firstly to keep herself from remembering the fact that she was tainted, and secondly, to spare herself the judgement of others. She was rooted to the spot, her anger and confusion blocking out the sensible part of her that called for caution. Reece's question hung on the air, crisp as a snowflake. At the astute observation she snarled, stalking about in an agitated circle as she spoke. "If only he was just a relative" she fumed, taking another wild swipe at a nearby pebble and growling as it skittered away from her paw. "He was my murdering scoundrel of a great-grandfather." She didn't have the presence of mind to see how her words were affecting the male. Her heart was too conflicted between what she wanted, and what her genetics and upbringing dictated. She turned to face the male again, pure hatred pulling her features into an unpretty grimace. "No matter how much I ignore him, how much I fight against his evil...he's always here!" An angry paw was lifted to bat Reece on the chest to prove her point. "My heart is tainted; rotting and festering with the darkness of his legacy, a constant reminder of what he was capable of. What I... am capable of." The last sentence was little more than a whisper, and she choked half-way through them. She didn't want to go down that road, she didn't want a life of bloodshed and misery.  She dropped her head in defeat for a moment, the fight leaving her when Zarek's ghost faded away. She was too worn and too relieved at his temporary departure to wonder why. "His ghost has always plagued me, some days more than others" she conceded, letting her body drop unceremoniously to the ground. "As time passed, his ghost grew weaker, his hold on my heart lessened." She angled her head up to meet Reece's gaze, pain lined into ever inch of her features. "I was beginning to think that he'd been forgotten, that he was simply a nightmare of those who encountered him. But now? Now he's back...and vengeful. Ever so vengeful!" "Speech"

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The stillness was too much, it was out of place for Reece. If the female would have been more in her mind, she would have noted the danger building in his expression. Of course the words danced in his mind that he could never harm a member of his pack, or anyone who wandered on the lands that he now called his home. But what did it mean if he lost it, and it was Nocturne? If he hurt her when he slipped over the edge, there would be no going back. It would no longer matter, because his vows had been taken with the intention only to remain at her side.

Everything in just a moment, he assessed, could be rendered moot. It could be so pointless that it could suck up air, depriving the world of oxygen just to be considered. Well, the problem advanced on him rapidly, even as he realized she had spoke again. Not just a relative. Not just someone without as much value, something that could be dismissed. Great-Grandfather.

While he would curse himself later, it propelled him back away from her as if she had attempted to rip a piece off his face. He stumbled lightly, but never clattered to the ground like could have been otherwise expected of him. No, he managed to stay righted, all while the desperation shined in his eyes. Nocturne, his heart cried fiercely, Stop. But never could his head connect the words enough to his mouth to speak it.

There was nothing, only the brittle sound to his voice when he managed to speak. “We're all capable of things that we do not wish to be.” The ice in his words seemed to be burning away, rapidly being replaced by anger. While he fought, begging from his rational side. She had not known, she had not known at all! But to be still birthed from the scum of the earth! To be defiled with her soul by the beast that was that wolf from the pits of nowhere pretty--

“Precious to think that a murderer will ever be forgotten.” Brisk words growled, sharp on the air as his laughter filled with rage pulled from the air. His tail lashed, once, but his body rolled with the reaction. His mouth twitched and he fought the sensation that would have battered him down. Hell awaited from him, but his words were accompanied with a faint shake. “Damned it be for all the families slaughtered who would have someone remember the beast in hopes of escaping the burn for revenge.”

His eyes narrowed, eying the ground before his paws. “Forgive the selfish souls, Nocturne, who may want to never forget what that monster has done to the innocent!” Jaws snapped at the air and his eyes glazed over, wild looking. His heart pounding in his chest, the panic rolled through him as he fought not to lunge at her. It actually hurt him not to, “Forgive me that I won't sympathize, I assume you never met the wolf. You never found him staring at you with blood of your three month of sister's throat splashed about his face.”

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She felt the change in the male before she was really aware of it mentally. Whilst she was slowly muddling her way out of the oily madness that Zarek's ghost cast upon her, Reece was growing cold and distant...and angry. His first words were like blow to the face and she flinched at them. Was he insinuating that she could be just as bad? Did he really think her capable enough to overstep the boundaries of madness and lose herself to evil? Part of her had always thought that he saw the good in her - the bit that she was trying so hard to preserve and culture. She wanted to retaliate, say something to make him change his mind and hers...but no words came out. Her tongue was tied in knots; not even a growl of complaint making it past her lips. Instead she stood silently, taking in the growing lines of tension in his shoulders, the increasing heat in his eyes. They were spiralling out of control, now. She and him, feeding off each other's rampant emotions...and nothing good was going to come of it. "I didn't ask them to forget" she cried back, thrashing her tail in agitation. Why wasn't he seeing her? Why wasn't he understanding her like he had otherwise done so often? "But never should so much thought, so much energy be given to his ghost. Is it worth the risk of having his ghost corrupt new generations to his evil machinations?" She paused briefly, giving him just enough time to think over the question but not answer. "No, it is not! They can mourn the death in private - grieve for their families rather than think on the demon that killed them." She trailed off, at his wild look. Something was off - something she had said was rattling him in a manner she had not anticipated. When the great unveiling occurred, she was shocked. It was a punch to the gut with a good part of her heart ripped open. She opened her mouth, but no words were released. She didn't know what to say, shock warring with the desperate need to apologise for her ancestor's actions...and the desire to wash away the hurts that scarred him so deeply. "He...I...I don't know" she stuttered lamely, taking a wobbly step towards her friend. She could only imagine his pain, and suddenly things started to click into place. Reece knew the madness she was battling; he had experienced it first-hand. No wonder he lost his self-restraint at times....with the ghosts of family begging for revenge, what else was she to expect? "Speech"

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Ears swayed on his head, unseeing eyes watched the female as she seemed to realize something was off about him. Instead, his lip curled and front teeth showed, not an ounce of fear to be accompanied. No, he was not going to be violent on the act and choices, but instead he would not be giving into the emphasis rolling through his mind. Life, could he even begin to grasp it, not when so much was lost.

Reece was a killer, there was no arguing that. There was no way to process such realities. Every single wolf that had ever walked into his life had been given the choice to live or to die. It was a surprise, in his mind, how many would push Reece's trigger. There would be a loss of life, and they would attempt to fill the void within him. They would, as ghosts, attempt to take him over and consume him. It was hopeless, it was not something that would keep him on his feet. But he had a conscience, and it was filled with every death he had ever committed.

Now, he watched the female he adored with a blankness that did not suit Reece. There was no charm, there was nothing warm and forgiving. There was no longer even the struggle, and the only show that he wanted to avoid hurting her was his incessant need to back up. To gain space from her, before hearts were broken and the rallying cry for his head was called. Zarek's great granddaughter stood before him, and he felt positively ill. There was no more Nocturne, simply another one of the spawn.

“All the dead and walking wounded cannot humor you.” Fierce words were quiet, even as he stared at her. “Zarek's had power since the day he entered the world and the day I found his bones he still burned through every cell I had left in my body.” There was no moving on, there was no ridding himself of the memories. Anymore than she could stop him from pestering her, although she had not likely crossed the beast's path. No, he had found himself very disappointed.

It was not that she attempted to be selfish, but there was just something in her words that angered him. The fierceness could not be squished, no matter how hard he tried. The bitterness was too much for him, and he turned away easily enough. “If I could have thrown them in the flames, I would have. Instead, his grave site is one of the few places I can find in my sleep. He slaughtered everything I ever had...” Voice trailed off, “And I buried the monster. I gave him the respect he never offered me.”

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The ground was slipping out from beneath her body, the overcast sky swirling and dipping and lurching. Zarek had murdered Reece's family. Killed them...and he had witnessed! Her chest was tight, her heart beating against her ribs uncomfortably. What horror that must have been - how utterly damaging to the soul! She had killed out of necessity. She had taken no pleasure in it, and even she was compassionate enough to know that someone was going to miss the arrogant scumbag. His words cut into her like poisoned barbs, piercing straight through her tender heart and leaving gaping wounds to fester.  She could see it in his eyes and hear it in his voice. She'd lost all his self-respect for something she had never chosen. He was judging her, just as she had always worried that she would be judged. He was pulling away from her, and she lacked the energy to follow him. Instead, she lay on the unforgiving ground, feeling as though the weight of the universe had suddenly descended on her shoulders. She didn't know what to say, how to answer to his cutting remarks. "I never asked for this, Reece" she managed after a long moment, beseeching gaze trying to hold that of her erst-while friend. "You can't judge me for something I have no power over." She hated the pleading the note to her voice, hated the way she was so weak and vulnerable in this instant.  Never in her life had she needed to plead her case. She had always, without fail, made sure that she had the cards and the power to turn the situation to her advantage. Now she had the distinct feeling that neither of them knew what to do...and whichever power she might have had to make things right and slipped right into the earth and disappeared from sight. "I'm sorry, Reece. I'm so terribly sorry" she whispered brokenly, knowing that words of consolation would never be enough .They wouldn't bring back the family he had seen killed, they wouldn't breathe life into the sister that he had lost. "I can't change the past, no matter how much I wish I could" she continued forlornly. "Please don't punish me for something I could not prevent." "Speech"

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Sure, things seemed so reasonable when she put that in the end it was not her fault that she was born to the monster who had destroyed his world. While the beast known as Zarek had not taken his following two sisters, the ones he had adopted and lost in other tragic ways, there was nothing that could be denied in his eyes. There was no forgiveness, and he simply could not see the female for who she was. Everything he saw when he looked at her was shades of Zarek, even those damnable eyes that he had spent hours watching!

While he never spat at her, there was a temptation just to tell her where to place her pitiful feelings. In the end, he was surprised she was not jumping up and demanding him to do the things she wanted him to. It was the normal way of the kin of Zarek, wasn't it? They all thought they were the only being in the world that mattered. His teeth clenched, and he half turned away.

No, he would not murder the female he had given so much of himself to. At this point it seemed moot, but it had not felt that way the first time. This was not the first relative of Zarek he had crossed, but the male who had been stifled with disease had been put out of his misery swiftly. It had been a mercy! All along, for all the evil and sin committed against Reece - he had given Zarek and his kin too much.

Even this one, who had entered parts of him he had closed off after the loss of the little black lady, Emerald, who had been his little treasure. He had not allowed any part of him to accept another, until Nocturne had wiggled her way into his life. “He was simply a nightmare of those who encountered him,” The male parroted back the words that had been thrown at him. “Blasted everything that I breathe, Nocturne, is a nightmare thanks to the blood that flows through your veins.”

The snapped words were crisp, “It's not your fault, but you certainly could have informed me!” Let me know before I gave you something more than sweet words. His eyes shuttered this time around though, and he twisted away, moving from her. No, he could not stay a moment longer. It just was not meant to be, he could not - not this moment, not the next. For now, the torment was eating him alive.

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She winced at his words, her ears flattening to her skull at the biting tone. She curbed the urge to repeat that it wasn't her fault, that she would have done anything to change her heritage and the legacy that came with it. If he didn't accept it the first time, reiterating the point wasn't going to change anything. It was only when he turned away, ready to leave her for ever that she found her paws again. She scrambled forwards, shooting off to intercept him like a poorly aimed missile. The sudden action had her heart pumping furiously, and she found a small spark of fury to latch on to. Anything was better than the utter desolation that was creeping upon her.  "How was I supposed to know that he destroyed your family and life?" she demanded angrily, putting himself firmly in his path. She wasn't going to let him leave - she couldn't allow him to leave! "Do you think I'm proud of what he's done? Do you really think I'd want to acknowledge the blood that taints my veins?" She trembled with all the emotion that wanted to get out but couldn't. She wanted to throw him to the ground and knock some sense into that thick skull; she wanted to throw herself at his feet and beg for his forgiveness. Instead, she clung to the little ray of raw emotion that kept her standing. "I knew I would be judged for who he was the moment I brought his name in connection with mine" she continued, an answering steely bite to her tone. "I knew others would be too blinded by prejudice to give me a chance. Can you blame me for staying silent of the matter? Can you really condemn me to a life of exile and humiliation simply because I share the blood of a madman?" She fell silent, her chest heaving with the words that should perhaps have been said a long time ago. "I don't judge you for the darkness you've seen. I don't hold you in less regard simply because of the blood that stains your paws...Why can't you treat me the same? Why can't you see through the illusion of my heritage and see that I want nothing to do with my ancestors?" There was nothing more for her to say. If Reece didn't see now; if he couldn't take that leap of faith and take her for who she was...then all was lost. Physical violence would only be a temporary relief...and it would ruin all chance of possible reconciliation. Her cards were laid bare, and it was time to see what the other wolf did with them. "Speech"

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Hindsight was a pretty thing. Perhaps later on, when his mind had returned to him, he would acknowledge her point. There was a sense in the words, this would have happened no matter what the outcome. Perhaps they still would have bonded though, if he had been given the chance to brace himself. It felt nothing more than a lie, an attempt at pulling the wool over his eyes when he desperately wanted to be trusted. Somehow, he had decided how little she trusted him was evident in her inability to share, putting aside the fact she was right in her selection.

His eyes fired back though, not impressed that she had stepped in his pathway. No, there was something dangerous in his features, and the growl rumbled in his chest. Yes, there was an honest intent in some ways as he stalked toward her. He allowed himself to get into her face, shaking. Reece never should have allowed himself to get so far into the pit. But the wild look in his eyes proved there was just no more Reece home, now it had to be accepted for what it was.

Eyes twinkled as the rage that buried into his soul, and he blossomed himself into a spiral that had his teeth showing quite plainly. “You never gave me a chance!” His words snapped, “Pretty little Nocturne, dear, I told you that there was no running from who you are!” His tone was climbing skyward, getting louder. His point was a stab at their previous conversations. There was no hiding from what was deep within.

“I confessed to being a monster the day I could have you believe it.” His words breathed, the sound of his voice offered up with a bit of a shake. It was the last thing in the world that he could have wagered. Perhaps there was a finality in her voice, but his own held a wary tone that could not be denied. There was a stress in his features that could not be denied. “I gave you the option of running. I gave you the choice.”

“What did you ever give me! Words of hint, well I'm not a mind reader - while I never told you of my past, you damned well didn't tell me your dark secrets either.” Head tipped to the side and he considered the options at his paws. It was a nightmare, no matter what. His intense gaze dropped away, and there almost seemed to be a spark of life in him. Just for a few moments, then it seemed to slide away again.

“I would happily rip your throat out,” The snarl played on his lips as he closed in on her, but he passed by her again. He stomped past, his teeth shining in the light as he considered what could be a well promised move. He snapped towards her neck, but she was lucky he curbed himself so effortlessly. “But you've already eaten half my heart with your gluttony of tales. I can't let your death take me down with you, and it would.”

This time, would she let him go? His words were softly spoken, the ache in his voice was the first sound of Reece from moments long passed. Head cocked to the side, and he swallowed as he glanced over his shoulder carefully, “For all I pray for, it's not to lose you. At this point, it would crush me. I cannot lose you, but at this moment, I cannot be with you either.”

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His words cut right into her soul, the agony greater than anything she had yet experienced or imagined. It wasn't so much as the build-up to the inevitable, as much as he was right. She never had given him the chance to prove that he wouldn't jump to conclusions as she had feared. For all that she cared for him, she'd never trusted him enough for that. And now that she knew that she was willing to trust him with her life and sanity...it was too late. It was a crushing realisation that squeezed the oxygen from her lungs. It was a slow, painful process and she couldn't find the energy to breathe in. She was losing him, simply because she'd been too high-and-mighty; too sure of her own success without stopping to consider for a moment. Oh, she had climbed high - higher than anyone would ever have expected...and now she was paying the price. With each of his accusations - true to each blasted syllable - she wished she could just shrivel up and disappear for good. She was powerless to speak...and even if her throat wasn't so dry and constricted, what was she to say? That he was right? And then what...Beg for forgiveness? That wasn't going to get her anywhere. A whimper passed across her lips at his words, his admission of how much she had wounded him. She couldn't really remember how it had come to this? Where was the easy camaraderie from the early days, where each kept nicely to themselves? When had they slithered into this messy pit of caring more for the other than they realised. "You never told me. I never realised...I'm sorry" she whispered, unable to even look him in the eye. He moved past her and all she managed to do was shuffle awkwardly about...watching him go. He moved away, so achingly slowly...and yet it seemed like lightning-speed. "Don't leave me. Please, not now." She didn't have the breath or the energy to speak in more than a plaintive broken whisper....but that garnered no reply. Her legs gave out beneath her and she hit the ground with an ungainly thump. It felt as though the world was crashing down on her, squeezing her body into a tiny pocket of nothingness...and then smashing her apart with a hammer. Her world was disintegrating; the only steady thing the little pinpoint in the distance that was Reece. Her heart, the organ that had been so blissfully free of meddling emotion was suddenly pounding in her chest, her brain, her ears. Everything was filled with the sound of its rushing and clamouring, and she was powerless.  The male had long since disappeared from sight and night had fallen by the time her heart fell silent. Under the cold gaze of the unforgiving moon, she slowly picked herself off the ground. She was numb, frozen from the inside out. The speck of brightness in her life had been extinguished by her own deeds...and there was nothing more bitter than that. In one painful day, she had learnt of her own vulnerability. She turned her heavy paws for home, simply because that was all she had left. With each step closer to the dens, she forced the pain deeper into her heart and painted over the pain-rideen lines of her features. No-one could know of her loss. But with each step she took, there was no escaping the gentle laughter in her mind. Zarek's laughter, at separating her from the one thing that bound her to goodness. "Speech"

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