In a world that felt so lifeless and desolate, she was a beacon of light -- stunningly beautiful and serene, her brilliant blue fur a stark contrast to the glimmering rainbow of sand that surrounded them. For a split second, it almost felt like everything would be okay. That the pain might someday lift, that he could go on living even without his parents; but he felt the heavy weight of his loss weigh down on his shoulders as soon as he drifted back to reality. Steel didn't bother to hide the awed look that had crept across his boyish features, instead letting his jaw unhinge slightly as he watched her creep closer. It took him a moment to regain his composure, and when he did he forced his mouth closed and his brows furrowed slightly as she spoke.
The stranger answered him, saying she liked to explore and that she'd just been wandering on this beach. Soon after, she'd ask if he had a home, or if he was an explorer like her. Steel honestly wished he could've met her a season or two before, wished he could tell her he had a home with his parents, but everything had changed. "I don't have a home," he explained, a bit warily, eying her skeptically now. It was strange to him that a girl his age might not have a home, for the only reason he didn't have one had been circumstances beyond his control. Was she in a similar predicament? Or was she content to live on her own, without a pack? Did she even have family, he wondered enviously? "And I don't know where I want to live either. I'm on my own now." It seemed a decent enough explanation, and he would shrug his wide shoulders slowly after he spoke. "I'm Steel," he would explain afterward, feeling as though she ought to know his name at the very least.
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