What was she staring at? I’d meant to do it, all of it, I hadn’t really been scared- not even at all. I huffed ever so slightly as I moved to make my way back towards the dark and red girl, tail flicking slightly in an agitation I refused to let show before asking after the mushroom she had all but destroyed. If I didn’t know better I’d almost say she wasn’t listening. Fortunately everyone tends to listen when I speak so I’m willing to give her the benefit of the doubt- at least for now, my attention returning to her own as my violet and gold gaze lifted from the ruined mushroom at her feet to meet her own eyes now. My question about why girls jump on me all the time was actually a legitimate one and really why not ask an actual girl? I’m not sure she actually heard me though, handsome features scowling slightly at her response about my yelp from earlier, tail twitching once more though I continued to hold myself upright and tall like herself- not about to let her dictate the terms of this conversation entirely. At least she was proving to be friendlier then those girls from Asteraia.

“You surprised me, that’s all, if I did that to you I am willing to gamble you would make the same noise.”

One eye lifted, very near daring her to argue as she suddenly decided to move herself closer, bringing her form right next to my own until the black of her shoulder pressed into the white fur of mine. Alright then. I never would understand females I don’t think, or why they always seemed to want to touch me or walk next to me. One day I would, at least, one day I would look back upon moments like these and laugh at how naive I was as a boy and my juvenile attempts at flirtation from such a young age. As for her pressing against my shoulder, well, I suppose that was alright- her next words bringing a rather smug grin to my lips as I chuckled.

“Well I must be at least a bit pretty- you couldn’t be closer to me if you tried. That means you like me.”

I grinned playfully once more, teasing, teeth reaching suddenly to snap at her ear, perhaps catch it in my jaws and tug on it as I did with my sibling when we played, curious to see if a game could be drawn from the girl before she mentioned those mushrooms again, my gaze moving to follow her own. Hmm, there were rather a lot of them I suppose, I just hadn’t noticed before although how I could be expected to know about something I’ve never seen before I don’t know. If I asked her about Burro’s or Pronghorns she would surely be just as confused as I had been about the strange plants that seemed to swarm over this area like a disease. I’m not entirely sure I like them, to be honest, features scowling slightly once more before I moved to step forward and away from her as she nudged at my shoulder, wandering to the nearest mushroom that remained undestroyed, paw lifting to poke at it experimentally once more, offering her an answer all the same, head briefly looking over my shoulder as I replied.

“I’m from Diveen, the pack with the ravine and the cliffs and the big fields- we don’t have any of these mushrooms there, at least, not ones that look like this.”

There was a marked distaste to my voice, having decided that such a plant was not at all to my liking after all, turning away from it now, paws padding softly back across that damp, mossy ground. It was cold, but it was soft, so different to my own birth pack once more. I liked it- maybe one day when I had my own pack I could make this soft moss grow, my juvenile mind unable to understand the exact manner of botany in this moment any why exactly that was unlikely to work. I moved to seat myself then, opposite her, this Belhara, one leg folding over the other in a habit I had begun to develop- one sure to follow me into later life as I regarded her again.

“When I am King you can be in my pack if you want, you can be the one who chases off all the trespassers. We are not having mushrooms there though, I don’t like them. So you can crush any of them you find too, Belhara.”

I repeated her name now, committing it to memory as I did before suddenly lunging forward and from my seated position, aiming to knock the girl right over and pin her beneath me, pressing my nose right to her own as I did- maybe even seeing if I could make her yelp too- just to prove anyone could make that sound when they got surprised by something, white tail waving in amusement.

“Surprise attack!”

I grinned once more, leaping off her, dancing away a few strides before pivoting to face her once more, offering a puppy bow in this moment as the violet of my gaze narrowed daringly upon her own, lithe, athletic form (gangly though it was) moving easily atop that mossy ground. The blessing of Angel blood I suppose before I scoffed in a manner wholly teasing once more.

“How will you be my guard one day if you’re not ready for surprise attacks. Such a shame. I shall have to find someone else now…”

It was goading, teasing, attempting to draw a rise from her in play, each muscle pulled tense and taut just in case she decided to try and lunge back at me.




h y r u l e
The Once and Future King