let the rain fall down ;; nelio

[Tawny <3]

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[atrb=background,http://i1218.photobucket.com/albums/dd415/Somatra1/tback-2.jpg] [scrolly:h(370), w(340),sy] Thunderheads rumbled above, crying down upon the beach with a harsh fierceness. The topsoil of the sand was wet, yet dry underneath. It made it very difficult to run, let alone to walk, she the female tried her best to remain on top of things without toppling over. Her training did not seem to want to do well this particular day, what with the storm and all. Not to mention that it was not safe for her to be out there. Thunderheads gave the world lightning, and lightning would strike water. Being a Cael, lightning striking water was a very bad thing. At this point in time, she did not care, for her mind was far too overloaded with everything that was happening to process the danger. Tawny moved into the water recklessly. Her bones crushed and reformed, twisting into a new shape as the golden tail emerged from her body. Her webbed paws slashed at the water, ears flat as she propelled herself through the raging sea. She fought against the waves and the rain as they both battered against her. It tired her and she did not wish to fail at breathing, so she settled for underwater instead. She dove down, close to the bottom, and continued her swimming. The fish were all tucked away at the very bottom, hiding from the wrath of the ocean. She followed the floor, placing her paws down when the ground began to slope upwards. She pushed herself in the same direction. The Cael burst from the beneath the waves and found herself on the difficult-to-reach Talyn Island. Her copper-flecked, silver eyes shone in confusion, wondering how she had gotten here so fast. She did not realize she had strayed so far from the caverns, where she was supposed to have stayed until the storm passed. She had slipped out when no one was looking. Sighing, she dragged herself out of the water and into the few thick trees that sat upon the island. She dried herself out, allowing her tail to return to her. Her weight dropped, her fur coloration returned to normal, and she was placed back into her lupine form. She appeared as a regular brown wolf. Tawny dug herself a small hole beneath a set of thick brambles that laid underneath a tree, snuggling tightly within it. She would be safe here, if the waves did not reach massive heights and threatened to wash away the tiny island. She doubted such things, though. There was no wind. Only looming thunderclouds, lightning, thunder, and massive amounts of rain. Perhaps a slight rise in the water's levels, but nothing more. The air was humid and she almost wanted to sweat if there had not been so much water flying around, and it was even hotter within her little nest of brambles. She curled her tail around herself and lowered her head, though did not set it down completely. Not a drop hit her head, though the storm was fierce. "How can I be ready for this?" She asked herself. In the last several weeks of watching everyone practice and work so hard, she had doubted herself in the whole thing. She was not sure that she would be able to hold up her end of the bargain. She had helped train everyone and had helped organize the entire thing. The Centena Accord would be the first spot on their list, especially since she stressed greatly that the Hellion Mafia should be skipped over. She had a very bad feeling in the pit of her stomach that if they ever went there, the chances of them coming out were slim to none. She had not practiced anything herself, nothing like a routine, so she was far from prepared. Tawny stared into the nothingness, barely able to make out the shapes of the things in front of her with how dark it was, and debated on keeping herself out of the act. She had seen what everyone had done, and she knew quite a bit about each act, but she would not interfere. Perhaps she would just announce them, explain what they were, and then stand aside to let the magic happen. "You just have stage fright, silly old girl..." She muttered to herself, knowing the real issue laid there. She did not really fancy performing in front of others. In front of the other members of the Circus was one thing, but in front of a massive group of wolves she did not know was another. Her head dropped onto her paws. "What will I do?" [/scrolly]

[Nelio]

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[bg=00c5cd] Lio had been sitting in his cavern all day, with Dreamith by his side. Mornings were often spent with his mate, enjoying her in every way and shape possible while he had her close. Afternoons and evenings were often given to Tor and split with his training and checking in with members of the circus. All around Lio was finally happy, he knew that his mate cared for him, she had demonstrated it time and time again in private and around other wolves, in particular Tor. As for Tor, he was beyond content to know the younger female cared about him, intensely. Their ability to communicate through their minds only furthered his feelings for the beautiful sea colored female. He did more of his fair share of hunting for both of the females he cared about, making sure they were keeping their energy up and keeping safe. This only afforded him more muscle tone, and now he would look like a normal brown wolf, except for the speckling and bright electric blue along his chest and back. Today however it would seem no weather would smile down on him, so through the thunder, and lightning in the morning he had spent the day curled around his mate, snuffling into her fur and whispering beloved things. But in a short break he had headed out to check on the other members, only to find one missing, his lovely sister, Tawny. He had not seen her with his latest attempts at cooling the fires within the group and now he was entirely worried about her. He had not meant by any means to neglect her and he knew they would be spending a lot of time now that the Circus has made plans to go to the Accord, and their time to leave the Cove was swiftly approaching. Ideally he would have liked to travel under less…unpleasant circumstances, but the Circus would have to know how to travel and perform in all different types of environments, and all types of weather. There was no better time then now to test the fortitude of the group he had assembled. He looked around the beaches, and even around the cliffs for his adopted family, but he saw nothing. He saw no glimmer of gold climbing the cliffs, or jumping down, no fin or tail in the churning water, and when he howled he heard nothing back. His heart began to pound as he considered everything that could have happened to her. Had he been stupid to leave her alone? Had she been hurt in this storm and was he too stupid to have gone out earlier and find her? Was his selfish nature the cause of her leaving or his injury? He ran the beach, tripping, because even though his muscles were toned and ready for travel, no wolf could run well in sand that sucked you in one moment and resembled rock in hardness the next. He tried to find her scent but it ended near the water, and the hail mary of storm broke just above him as he searched. The ran came down in torrents, and the sky opened up to thrash about around him. His silver eyes reflected the light from the lightning, and as the rain pelted him and his light blue tail emerged, his coat dampened, and then soaked all the way through…“TAWNY!” His howl tried to break through the storm but he was sure she could not hear him….the only hope he had was to try to make it through the water to check the island…if she was not there…she had left him, or been taken from him…Just as he was about to move in lightning flashed behind him and slammed into one of the trees, as though the sparse forest had any to spare, and the large tree came plummeting to earth, crashing into the sand. His eyes watched as steam rose from the now dead tree and he flung himself into the water. For an instant he thought the sheer force of the waves would throw him out, casting him out and away from his destination as if fate itself deemed him unworthy to go to the island. Angrily he pushed himself through the waves, allowing them to push at him at certain times, and finding the breaks in which his tail could propel him further and faster than constantly fighting the waves and currents. He ran into several fish who were uprooted by the waves and sand, and managed to place them in his mouth. Natural instinct allowed him to hang on to them as he surged through the water, listening to the waves shake by the sheer force of thunder above him. His eyes watched as lighting surged through the sky and reflected off his eyes and the water around him. But his thoughts were all for the brown wolf he loved as he loved no other. Tawny was special and important to him, and not in a romantic mate way, she was the only family he would ever have and if he lost her, he could finally commiserate with her feelings for losing Jade…but he didn’t want to commiserate, he wanted her back, now. He finally felt beach underneath him, but it was not quite the smooth landing he wanted. The waves surged and pushed him up, throwing him onto the beach with such force the ribs in his side ached and her heard a popping sound as he lay there, pelted by rain, his mouth falling open and the fish, long since dead from the shifting of water lay dead beside him. He lay there for a long moment, feeling as though he were unable to move, short, shallow breaths were less painful and so he went with those, his mouth and tongue open for what seemed like hours. In reality it had only been minutes but from his vantage point of laying flat on the ground he could see Tawny’s eyes, the rest of her hidden from his sight. “Tawny…” Had it not been for the lightning around he would not have seen the light reflected in her eyes but luckily he had. Now realistically it could have been anyone else laying there in the makeshift den, but his heart told him it was Tawny, the barest trace of her scent filtered in through his nose in the rain and he struggled to get up. Bruised ribs protested any movement, but he slowly gathered the fish, and moved to where she lay. He sniffed, dropped the fish to the side and said in a low voice, ”Tawny, please tell me it’s you…because if I got bruised ribs and angry muscles only to find out it isn’t I’m going to be sorely disappointed…” Half laughing and half groaning he flopped to the sand in front of her, shielding her from the storm, and allowing the rain to smack into his pelt from the back as he put his head down close to take in her scent at a reassuring rate. Pushing his nose into her face just to prove he could and how much he cared he sighed gently…”I thought…I had lost you….What are you doing out here Tawny!”

[Tawny <3]

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[atrb=background,http://i1218.photobucket.com/albums/dd415/Somatra1/tback-2.jpg] [scrolly:h(370), w(340),sy] The raging storm above made it difficult to focus on anything and very hard to hear. The wind and the rain howled in her ears like a wolf who'd just gotten their tail cut off. Perhaps it would die down at some point, but she did not think so, not with the way the rain was pelting through the bush she had made a temporary home out of. She would just remain there for the duration of the storm, out of the majority of harm's way at least for a little bit. There was nothing really stopping the storm from pushing the waves to engulf the entire small island, or for there to be enough rain to provide enough of a connection for the lightning. If the electrical current could manage to shoot through that, then she was pretty much screwed. Electricity could kill anyone in instants, so she believed her best bet was to remain where she was until the storm passed, no matter how dangerous it got nor how lonely she became. For now, Tawny's mind was preoccupied with the upcoming performance. The time to leave came so soon and with this weather it would not be easy, not to mention dangerous to some extent. There were things they'd need to watch out for, things that could get them all killed in minutes or things that would pick them off one by one. However, it was not really this that she was focused on. It was more or less the performance itself. She hated speaking and doing things in front of others unless she was teaching or trusted that they would not mock her. This group was the only one she trusted, and even then it was still hard to get up in front of them. Total strangers would not be pleased if they came to perform and the act was screwed up. She did not want to be the one to do that, because she feared failure. Her mind trailed to other things, the members of the group. She got along decently with Dreamith and Tortoiseshell, but then there was Crow and Raynor. She had her misgivings of Raynor because he was from a pack and his loyalty did not lie with them, which was something she feared could cause problems in the future. The last thing she wanted was for these people to be harmed because a trust issue was set to be in the way. Sighing, she pushed that thought aside and trained on Crow. She was not a fan of Yagi in general, and while he seemed harmless, he seemed to threaten her dear brother, Nelio. The Yagi was territorial over Tor, and that bothered her. She knew their relationship was good beyond most, but she knew Nelio was her friend too, and that it had caused some tension with the first meeting. Frowning, her train of thought changed direction again. She had adopted Nelio as her brother, loving and trusting him more than she had her own blood sister. Jade had come and gone constantly without any word at all, then simply vanished in the end. Her trust in her sister had shattered completely and if she ever saw her again, she had a feeling the first thing she would do would be to deny her of ever even being family. Her parents had left her, her first pack had left her, and now even her sister left her. While she mourned such losses, she knew that she could not have trusted them from the start. The only one that had managed to prove something to her was Nelio. He had remained by her side as she had to him, and that was a trust she would never doubt. He was her brother and she loved him more than anything else in the world, and she refused to let his dream of this circus die. Her ears twitched, hearing at thump on the sand and a slight crack to follow. Her head lifted, the lightning causing a reflection in her eyes, and searched desperately for the source of the noise. At first, she saw nothing and wanted a growl to come from her throat, but when she heard the voice all fears diminished. She jumped when he appeared out of nowhere, asking if it was her. In a small voice, she spoke, "I am here, Nelio... Do not fret." She felt most of the force of the storm disappear when he slipped himself into the little makeshift den as well, shielding her from the storm. She smiled at his care, feeling the smile widen when his breath tickled her damp pelt. Tawny licked his forehead reassuringly, then nuzzled his shoulder. Tawny felt herself tense at his question, what she had been doing out in the storm. Sure, there were a billion lies she could have thought of in an instant to tell him, a way to escape being cornered like she was and forced to tell the truth. The last thing she wanted to do was admit that she was afraid of what they were about to go, for she feared that he'd tell her she should have mentioned it beforehand and that now the plans were ruined because she hadn't. In her mindset, that was how she believed things would play out, when deep down she knew that's not how it worked. Nelio was her brother, and the chances of him hating her were very slim. "It's n-nothing, Lio..." She noticed her one fault in that moment: she stuttered. [/scrolly]

[Nelio]

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[bg=00c5cd] You could not have pried him away from Tawny if something had bit his tail and attempted to drag him off the small island back into the water. His large, mermaid like tail moved forward to wrap around the female Cael in front of him, to entwine his tail with hers, a mixture of beautiful gold and light electric which caught his eye for a moment before staring back into her face. Tawny was beautiful and the only other Cael he had run in to that did not have the bright colorations that were prevalent amongst their species. She was the one who made him feel normal, she knew about his dream and she had chosen to take part in it, but not for the same reasons as Dreamith or Tor. She wanted it for the same reasons he did, to travel, to be a part of something else, which for Nelio was impressive. She didn’t do it to impress him, or to get closer to his heart, she did it for herself..She was independent and in his mind lovely. His nose took in her scent fully as he opened his eyes wider, now that his frontal half was beginning to dry slightly and took in the sight of her. She looked so small, and so scared in that moment that he scooted even closer and pushed his head underneath hers to make sure her head was resting comfortable on the back of his neck. He kept their tails together and made sure for the most part he was covering her from the rain and wind and other elements. He knew that Tor, and Dreamith would be safe in their dens in the rocks by the beach, and that they would be dry and although they might be scared they weren’t in the same position the two of them were at this very moment. Even though the conditions were not the best they could have been Lio could not have been happier to find his lovely Tawny and to spend some time along with her, even if it was on a small island in the middle nowhere during the worst storm he had seen since he had come to the cove. But he would have given anything to know she was safe, and by the painful throb in his shoulder he knew in his own way he had paid the price.. In those silent moments between them he wondered just how long he would be able to have Tawny by his side. Would she stay with him forever? Or would they be parted by the fact that eventually she might fall in love like he did…he simply could not bear the loss of her, it felt as though she were tied to his heart, what kept him grounded, and no matter if he had several litters or several mates nothing could ever take Tawny’s place, and he knew that, he just wondered if she really knew the extent of how much it would kill him if she were to ever leave him. They were both products of abandonment and he could not imagine either of them living fulfilled lives without each other. One of the dreams that made him happiest was to imagine them sitting together in a meadow of sorts, old and aged wolfs with more stories than any other of their traveling days, memories to share for the rest of their lives together. The thought kept him warm in that moment as he lay underneath her. “I always have to fret about you, going out in anything like this, you will be the death of me…” He sighed in pain as she nuzzled his shoulder, that he knew would be sore for several days with the crack he had heard, but when she licked his forehead he closed his eyes and enjoyed it. In turn he moved his head to lick along her chest and neck, helping her to dry as best he could as well as being affectionate with her. He knew that any other male that attempted to get close to her in this capacity would be losing their nose, or tail, whichever his spunky sister could reach, and he secretly delighted that they trusted each other so much from the first time they had met. His ears twitched back and forth as she stated it was nothing, but it was the way she had said that made him lift her gently off of him and look into her eyes. His own were questioning her, and in that ‘big brother’ kind of way. “Really? Nothing you say? Because your voice tells me otherwise, and the Tawny I know and love would not come out into the storm unless something was truly eating away at her, AND the Tawny I know wouldn’t hide things from me….So tell me, what ails you? I cannot fix it if you don’t tell me…” His voice was surprisingly gentle, for he had realized a long time ago that there was much more to be gotten from being kind and gentle then aggressively pushy and angry with anyone. His eyes however did hold hers, looking in to them to show her that firstly he did consider himself dominant enough to care for her should she need it but that she also had his full and undivided attention. Beyond his statement he did not weasel in against her or push at her, but he let her know through his eyes that they could wait out the whole storm just like this, staring at each other silently if she so preferred. Although he couldn’t help his tongue lolled out from his mouth to the side, with his muzzle open just a little too wide for it not to be funny. Hey, hilarity never hurt anyone, right?

[Tawny <3]

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[atrb=background,http://i1218.photobucket.com/albums/dd415/Somatra1/tback-2.jpg] [scrolly:h(370), w(340),sy] Her eyes twitched slightly as his tail intertwined with hers, and she stared at them for a moment or two. The combination was beautiful, like rain and lightning. Like the very storm that threatened to crash down everything around them in seconds. The wind whipped the trees back and forth, causing her to become uncomfortable. She hated storms like this, when they threatened to take away everything in just one fell swoop. A storm like this had taken her sister from her, down the waterfall and had given her own mind memory loss when she struck a rock. It was a wonder to her why her parents never mentioned Jade after that. However, she did not worry of it. Jade was no longer her and she had Nelio instead. Tawny could not bear being apart from him as she had been from her own blood related sister. The connection she felt with him was on a deeper level than she'd ever had with anyone else, even with her own parents. This was not a relationship she would just give up, not something she would just give away freely. She'd make herself pay a horrid price before doing such a thing. She loved him so much, and he was the only one she cared about in that way. If she could remain by his side every second of every day as Dreamith did, then she probably would. She had never bonded well with people in the first place, so this was something special to her, and she wasn't willing to give it up. Tawny came to pretty much blatantly ignore his words. She knew he cared for her and fretted for her well being whenever she was not present, and she did the same for him. However, she knew he could care for himself and didn't really bother to check up on him. Besides...he had a mate...Dreamith...and he had someone else he loved...Tor. She was not blind. The wheels in her head had clicked awhile ago, combining the competitive and hostile faces of Tor and Dreamith aside one another. She was not stupid and what went on there was easy to see. She knew he was a peacemaker, yes, but there were certain things that could not be hidden. She said nothing of it, though, for it was none of her business. Besides, he was faithful, as far as she was concerned. She accepted his grooming with a small smile, glad he such a loving wolf. His statement about her not being herself, though, made her want to crawl into a deep, dark hole and hide for the rest of eternity. At the sight of his face, though, she snorted, wanting to burst out laughing. She held it back, though, already weak from what she was about to reveal to him. She was afraid of what had happened to her and even though she knew it was a good thing, a gift from the Great Spirit, she still feared it greatly. "Lio...the Great Spirit has gifted me with the ability to create Hallucinations. It manifested a few weeks ago and I didn't tell anyone because I wanted no one to worry." That was all she could say in that moment, but she knew she needed to explain more. Hiding the entire time, she pulled out the three pink koi fish that had lingered above her head the entire time, hiding in the bushes or in the water as she went along, even in the sand. She didn't want anyone to think she was insane by talking to them, for they talked first, but she wasn't sure what else to do. "I can create and control the images in a hallucination just fine now, but I can't make it all go away. These three pink koi fish are always here, always lingering above my head. It scares me, Lio, and I don't think I want to perform anymore. On top of my severe fear of performing in front of massive groups, this doesn't make it better!" She was frustrated and tired, unsure of how else to speak to him. She had to let it out, though. She had to. [/scrolly]

[Nelio]

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[bg=00c5cd] Lio could hardly lie, he enjoyed his time with Tawny more than he could ever admit. It was just so easy with her, their thoughts, their emotions, they were bound to each other in every sense of the word. When he thought she might be in danger, he went out of his way to find her, to assure her security, and he would do so for the rest of his life. There were similarities, battles that were fought by both of them for acceptance from other Caella because of their coloring, and yet here they were wrapped around each other and entangled, gold and blue. His tail reminded him of the bluest ocean, enveloping hers and offering her the never ending comfort of the sea, while hers was completely bright and the color of the sun, the irridescence of her tail was something to behold to all who saw her, and Lio had a sudden image of males of other packs ogling her. He couldn’t help but try to fight down the bile that rose in his throat at the very image of it, his pelt bristled inwardly, and he knew some of the fur on is shoulders was standing out as he imagined Tawny falling for a male on one of their journeys. For a moment it made him hesitate to travel with her, maybe they could hunker down in the cove forever… No, he couldn’t hide like that, and he couldn’t deny Tawny her life either, she wanted the same things he did, although it had been his idea to perform he knew that she craved adventure and purpose just as much as he did. It was one of the reasons they worked so very well together in every aspect. Now here she was huddled on an island being buffeted by a storm, and he was the only thing that could comfort her. He wished he was warm, and dry and fluffy and could wrap himself around her, but unfortunately the constant buffering of the rain against him kept him wet and slick. He crept closer to her and began to lick the top of her head and anywhere else he could reach to comfort her. “Tawny, it will be okay, even if we were swept away, we would still be together, you know it would take death to sweep me away from you.” He settled in against her with a large huff of rebellion against anything that would remove him from her. He would just sit here and pretend to be belligerent against the storm, the rain, and the crashing noises which made both wolves push their ears back against their heads. The time spent away from Tawny always hurt him, and she was constantly on his mind. Even during the confrontation between Dreamith and Tor in the forest, he had resolved to find Tawny and spend time with her. He knew Tor and Dreamith both cared for him, but it would not be enough to ease the tension between them, ever. While Lio would hope he could have both the wolves, the fact that they could barely be civil had begun to wear on him, and question his own decisions involving mates and family. Not that he would tell anyone that, not even Tawny. Shaking his head to rid himself of those kinds of thoughts he pushed his nose deep into her pelt and inhaled her scent, being as comforting as he could while lightning hit the waters around them and thunder shook the bare shelter they had. It took all of his control not to jump with every boom but for her sake he remained the stable, protective male by her side. When she began to speak and explain to him that she had been gifted by the Spirits above he listened carefully. He knew deep down it had to be something big to allow her to get into this type of state mentally and emotionally but he had no idea what she was about to reveal to him. Hallucinations hmm? He looked into her eyes with his own swirling silver ones and felt a slight feeling of reproach. “I wish you would have found my Tawny, I could have helped you! I could have been by your side through this before it got so bad that this is how you are feeling…and I am not no one! I need to know when something happens to you! Especially something like this..” He didn’t know the extent of what her hallucinations were but something low and slick was at the bottom of his belly and he was sure it was something akin to anxiety. How would he ever be able to travel if Tawny couldn’t? Would he give up his whole dream for her? He knew that he would hand the circus over to someone else in a heart beat….the realization hit him as though a tree had fallen on him. He watched with big eyes as three hot pink koi fish arrived above her head and he tilted his, watching them do a dance, that should have only happened in water. But here it was above her head, dancing around each other, and he looked down on the beautiful female in front of him. “Tawny you have indeed been gifted Tawny, and I could see how it would be scary having to deal with something like this all the time, and for it to come so suddenly and just when we were considering leaving…..I could hold off on going if you are not able to perform..” He didn’t want to say that he would stop traveling all together if she changed her mind but he also decided to be encouraging, “You know Tawny, I think this gift if perfect for you…I understand how you might be scared to perform but maybe you could create hallucinations for the other acts? Be more of a behind the scenes performer? At least until or if you get over your fear, you could have an act with me if you like, if it would help your nerves…I don’t ever want you to feel like you have to do something when you don’t…” His eyes were filled with compassion and perhaps something else, a spark of something else when he looked at her…

[Tawny <3]

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[atrb=background,http://i1218.photobucket.com/albums/dd415/Somatra1/tback-2.jpg] [scrolly:h(370), w(340),sy] The storm was diminishing into more of a second thought in her mind at the moment. The warmth of her dear friend was more important to her right now, as well as his presence. She loved him more than anyone else she was even remotely acquainted with, more than she had loved her own sister. They had fought similar fights, seeking acceptance among their own species for awhile, and had gained nothing but a good personality from it. Her heart was hard and guarded, for she wanted to protect herself from any sort of heartbreak that dared to come her way again. Lio seemed to be her only true friend in this world, the only one she would even consider dying for, and it was difficult for anyone to reach that position in her heart. She never wanted to be separated from him, and now that she thought about it, she was sure nothing would ever do so. Her mind was focused mostly on traveling, and how much it scared her at the moment. She almost didn't want to leave, wanting to remain in the cove for the rest of her life and hide. However, she couldn't do that, to herself or her friend. She had made him a promise to get this Circus working, to at least try to help him with it. It had succeeded so far, they just needed to get their first performance done to see how well everything went. She could only hope that it would be a success as well, hope that such a thing would make her partner in crime happy. His licks atop her head were comforting and she had just about forgotten about the storm. His words made her smile. "Indeed... It makes me happy to hear such things, to know that I've such a stubborn friend in you, Lio." Her humor was half-hearted, but had good intention. She was glad to know it would take that much to lose him, though she hoped it never came to that. She nudged his shoulder. Tawny chuckled lightly at the feeling of his nose pressing into her pelt and inhaling her smell. It tickled and she nipped his ear gently, a slight demand to stop. While she didn't mind that he did it, she wasn't really in the mood for it, something she didn't often deny him. He was probably one of the few that she was always happy to see, one she would always offer a greeting smile and even a rare tail-wag to when he reached her sights. Anyone else would just be given an indifferent nod and hardly be spoken to. It was how she had been for years, and she wasn't intent on changing that. Only the ones she considered friends would receive any sort of friendly gesture out of her. Any stranger would be treated with a mild form of hostility until proven to be of little threat to her. She wondered how she got this way, but she didn't care to know nor change. From the moment she started speaking, she could feel his slight reproach coming off his fur and she knew he wouldn't be too happy with her. Indeed, she should have found him and he could have helped her through it, but...she didn't want him to worry. "Lio...you are everything to me, so you aren't no one. However, you've had enough on your plate lately with getting the Circus ready for its first act! I couldn't add more weight to your shoulders with this...I refused to!" Though her voice had risen slightly, there was no hint of anger in it. Only mere concern for him. This was his dream and she was not willing to make him give it all up just for her. She wouldn't let him, actually. They had both worked hard to get the small group to where it was now and she wasn't about to walk away from it without knowing if it were a success or not. The three fish giggled slightly at his wide eyes and she shook her head harshly, not wanting to even hear them, let alone see them. It had been bothering her to no extent lately, and she almost resented the power with a fiery passion. At his first sentence, her head was shaking violently back and forth. "No! No, no, no, no, no. You did not work this hard and plan this so well for it to just be postponed even further." There was a tint of rage in those words, showing her passion for the dream. She calmed herself and listened. Hallucinations for the other acts? She had been practicing, so that was feasible. She wasn't perfect with her power, but she could do enough for an act. Make the others glow, make shapes form around them as they danced. "I could do that... Behind the scenes seems to fit better." An act with him? She hadn't thought of such before, though in that moment it seemed like a good idea. "I suppose we could work on one together. Don't expect my peanut gallery to be excluded, though." Tawny almost spat at the three fish swirling above her head. After glaring at them spitefully, she lowered her head and sighed. "Why must something like this happen at a time like this?" She muttered to herself. Weakly, she curled herself closer to the male, warmed at his compassion for her. Her heart tweaked slightly, seeming to skip a beat. She pushed it aside, despite the thoughts of what it was, and buried her face into his side. She tried to pretend the fish weren't there. [/scrolly]

[Nelio]

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[bg=00c5cd] He knew that the storm would soon blow itself, serious storms rarely ever lasted for long periods of time, there just was not enough air and moisture to sustain them, and while the Cove seemed to have plenty of those things, he knew the storm would pass, and he had no compulsion about spending the remaining time with Tawny, he knew he couldn’t have asked for better company and as they were conversing and comforting each other the storm became nothing short of an after thought. For a long moment he busied himself by noticing what a darker brown her pelt was when it was wet versus dry, and just where her scales of gold began underneath her pelt. Soon his metallic silver eyes climbed their way into her eyes where he saw what he usually did with Tawny, that her mind was constantly working or thinking of something. He so rarely saw her smile completely, but he knew the reasons behind that. Her past had been just as traumatic as his, if not worse and so when she did think, he knew it was a thought process plagued with pain, and a long whimper escaped his muzzle as he tried to wave his tail over hers to distract her. “Oh well you know stubborn is my middle name! I’m only stubborn when it comes to taking care of those special to me, and Tawny…you are one of the most special wolves I have ever come to know.” He felt a similar need to take care of the other wolves in the circus as well as her, but she was one of the few he would have surfed the storm to find and make sure she was well. He imagined he could do almost anything if it would make Tawny smile and make her feel comfortable and safe once more. Her nudge to his shoulder dropped his head down to rub his nose against her cheeks and head. He hoped as well that it would not take the worst of circumstances to part them, for he did not really want to ever part from her, but surely it did not need to come to such a drastic end. A sense of foreboding coated his mind and he physically shuddered to try to rid himself of the feeling that it might just come to such an end. She put a quick end to his playing around, tugging on his ear, but he had gotten a good reaction out of her and so he had no problems stopping the behavior if it was truly bothering her. But his eyes were smiling when he looked down on her in that moment. They were like two grown up puppies tugging on each other and flopping around, their tails mingling and rubbing against each other, and Nelio could not help but sigh happily. The storm could have overtaken the island at that point but he could have cared less. “Tawny it’s just so wonderful to be near you, I just want you to be happy, and I will do anything in my power to make it so for you! It makes my heart stop when I see you sad, or diminished from the beautiful female I know you to be. Yet my heart sings whenever you smile at me…” Leaning in close he nuzzled her lovingly. When she made her comment about not burdening him he snorted loudly at her. “Burden me?! Burden me?! How would the Circus fair without you?! You are our coordinator, you are the one who will make everything seamless and wonderful, I could not do it without you! So if something is going on that makes you not want to perform or can’t travel, I need to know. You can say you refuse all you want, but what if she would have gotten hurt when you were alone? Or washed up on the beach and hit your head on a rock…how would I ever find you? How would I ever live without you Tawny…?” He sighed and nearly hiccupped as the emotion nearly choked him and he looked down and away with the sheer force of it. It was true though, he couldn’t see living without Tawny, and the idea that she didn’t tell him something important sheerly because she didn’t want to burden him just killed a small part of him. “The Circus means nothing to me without you Tawny…” He stared into her eyes while he said it, and knew he spoke the truth. In the beginning it was just going to be Tawny and himself, and even if every member quit or left him he would still have her. “Remember…we said even if the Circus fell through we would travel together till we were old..remember? Two old wolves who would finally join a pack or be there to tell stories to the young ones?…That was you and me..” His gaze never wavered from hers as he tried to make her understand that pink fish or no pink fish he would always have her by his side. He watched as she ran the thought through her head about working more behind the scenes, but he also liked that she seemed to like the idea of doing an act with him as well, and he nodded to encourage her to seriously think it over with a happy smile on his muzzle. When she buried her face into his side, he protectively set his head over her body and curled in tighter, as if to hide her from the three pink menaces above her. “Tawny, I don’t make myself out to be someone who knows a lot about everything, because I don’t. I don’t know why the great spirit gifted you with this power, but I do know that it will be a huge help with the Circus and it could very well save your life some day…and so annoying and horrid as it may seem, perhaps it is not all bad?”