I breathed in the clear air of spring cheerily. Nothing like a cool, spring day to reinvigorate you, I thought, flicking my tail. My magenta eyes spied young creatures exploring with their mothers, exploring the wonders of life. Laughing, I bounded ahead, my spirits light and my head head high proudly. Why was I so excited, you ask? Well, this was to be a major turning point in my life.
Luster had asked to be my mate.
I felt that we had known each other for long enough and accepted each other's flaws with love. We were connected to each other, and I needed someone in my life to come to when I had troubles, when I was down, when I needed help. We both knew that we were older now, and we were adults. Luster was twenty six, and I was twenty four, two years. Luster fit the bill, and with a plus: he was so very handsome.
I bounded up to the waterfall at the base of Kylenice, the mountain where we decided to settle. We would reside in the cave at the base of the mountain where I stayed and excavate new tunnels for our future little ones, if we ever had them. It was cozy, far away from humans, other Kiamaras and most other dangers, and it was abundant in food. Herbs, small prey, everything we needed was there.
I stopped and gasped when I reached the waterfall, which we called the Liquid Crystal Falls. The water is so clear, legend has it that when it was first formed, you couldn't even see your own reflection in it. Now, it has a white-blue tinge to it, pure and true. It's water is always cold and refreshing, and the pool it formed is always clear. Trees and vines crawled around on the ground, and small mountain flowers dotted the ground.
There, in the center of the pool, lounging around casually, was Luster. My breath caught in my throat as he turned around and his insense, glittering eyes met mine. He smiled a charming smile and I flashed my pearly whites back at him.
I approached him slowly and nuzzled him. "Hey," I said, grinning.
"Hi," he replied, looking down at the cool waters, a nervous expression flickering across his face. He seemed somewhat out of it, constantly looking around and fiddling.
"You alright?" I asked him, nudging him.
His head snapped back toward me quickly. "Yeah, yeah, fine," he said absentmindedly.
I rolled my eyes, not buying it for a millisecond. "No, really, what's wrong?" I pushed.
He sighed and looked around. "I've heard that there's a mountain lion around here," he said quietly. All the birds seemed to fall silent. "I heard that since it's spring, and since the winter had been hard, it's hungry and out for meat."
My head spinned as I looked away from Luster. "Well," I said, turning back. "What can a mountain lion do to us? Together, we can overcome anything." I hesitated, fear coursing through me unconditionally. "Right?"
He looked away and said nothing. The birds were all silent in a forest normally alive with sound. It was all too familiar and all too uncomfortable.
Suddenly, a vicious snarl pierced the silence and a massive mountin lion burst out from the distance. Its intense eyes bored into me as it snarled again, yellow teeth gleaming. I was paralyzed with fear, hauted by the grotesque memories regarding mountain lions in the past.
"Run!" Luster screamed as he started to sprint away. But the mountain lion was much faster. It pounced into Luster, raking sharp claws up his sides and stomach. He screeched, trying to throw off the monster, but it was stronger than he was. It screamed and it's teech pierced Luster's neck. His eyes flashed with pear and angst once, then his eyes lost their luster.
"NO!"
The mountain lion whipped around, eyes zeroing in in me. I sprinted as fast as I could away from Luster's lifeless body, from the feline, from everything, tears streaming down my face. My heart felt like it was being ripped in two harder and harder with every step I took and with every pulse of my heart. Sharp heartbreak twisted my nerves until they were tight-sttung and tense. I didn't even check to see if I was followed, I just ran. I ran away from all the memories, all the pain, all the heartbreak.
I was done.
I didn't keep track of time. I numbly ran. And ran. And ran. When I finally stopped, I realized that now I was far away from Kylenice, and I realized that today I was two years. With trembling spirits, I un-clenched my paws and there were the five feathers I had held close to me for so long. Two of them had the bottoms stained reddish. Those are the ones I wear around my ear. Two were unscathed, as pristine as they once were. Those went around my tail. And the last still had the lingering scent od Luster. That one, I wear around my paw.
I lifted my head to the sun. It was the color of blood.
Now, my life begins. For real.
---
For all of your information, you have all gained an upper hand on me. You may or may not use this against me, but I will find you if you do. I officially don't recall any of this. Goodbye.
~Chione