put the pieces back together

She ached. Pain radiated through her entire being. Light blinked in front of her eyes are her lids fought to stay open. Beside her, the bear lay in a pool of its own blood. With its dying breath, she felt proud. Pleased to have helped Tate even if it meant she got hurt in the process. Too hurt if she were being honest. Though it hadn’t been her first or second encounter with a bear, this one had been enraged. Something was wrong with the animals. She could see it in the beast’s eyes as she and Tate fought it off.

As she drifted in and out, she heard his voice. That accented tone that begged her to stay awake. “Wur’ya’takin’me,” Bramble’s voice is garbled as she feels herself lifted onto his back and the journey begin back to the castle. Thankfully for Tate, it is not a very far walk, but it is far enough that her injuries ooze out onto his chocolate pelt. Though she is tall, she is light, and as she lifts her head, she wants to reach over and kiss him.

He is saving her. How many times had she dreamed of this moment? While she often dreamed of her being the valiant knight that saves the day, there is often a dream where someone equally as strong and capable as her saves her too. Was this her moment? “How can I thank ya?” Bramble’s words are slurred as she tries not to flop too much on his back. It is then that she smells the scent of home. He was taking her to the castle?

“We at the castle?” She questions as she lets her head fall against his side. Her paw reaches up to pat him on the shoulder. “You saved me,” her words are still mush as her eyelids continue to flutter. The bear had done a number on her and if someone didn’t answer sooner than later, she would begin to worry.