come back, little bird

All senses are on alert: cherry red eyes scan the horizon, ears prick to catch the slightest sounds, even his tongue flicks to taste the air. Unbidden, his mind flashes to the possibilities still left before him, to the darkest reaches of the future. What if she'd fallen, or been hurt by an animal. Or another wolf. His hackles spring to life at the thought. He'd kill them, whoever so much as touched her. His heart thrums against his ribs, desperate for some kind of resolution to the situation. All night he'd stayed awake, fretting and pacing within the confines of the bone-white trees. Even now that nervous energy hums through every muscle strand, adrenaline fueling him past sleep deprivation.



A lone call reaches his ears, a solemn answer to his request. Relief floods him instantly, and he feels the air flee from his lungs in a long breath. But where there was fear only betrayal remains. She'd broken her promise.



He smells her long before she comes into view, that familiar scent he'd fallen asleep next to and fought so hard to keep alive. Finally she stops, and offers him one questioning word. For a long moment he's silent, staring her down with the fire in his eyes normally reserved for his enemies. Their enemies. They were supposed to be a team, a pair. Always for each other, never against. But even this thought doesn't quell his anger. He takes a slow, rattling breath. Without it, his only sounds would surely be unintelligible.



"Ellasyn," he hisses in a low voice. "What the fuck did you do?" There's danger in his tone, rage and hurt and confusion all mixing into a slow, halting speech.