Niet Alleen (Kesume)

[Laracal]

Laracal was dead from lack of sleep. She felt like a zombie. She stumbled around like a lazy drunk looking for the bathroom, except she was looking for a place to sleep. And of course, wolves don't drink. 

It looked like a heaven, a huge nest of grass. Had it been placed here for her? She smiled lazily. It was so far away, but it was worth it, most definately. 

She shivered, feeling creeped out. The feeling of someone watchinhmg her was looming over her. And what was that scent? It was so faint, and familiar. But I never see other kukkien, she thought. Her mind must be playing tricks on her again. She was tired, after all. 

The sky was cloudy today, smokey grey clouds that must have held a million gallons of water, ready to explode. She narrowed her eyes, unable to decide if she wanted it to rain or not. Good for the plants, who'd been looking parched for a few days now, but, all the same, she wanted her nap. And it's just so hard to nap in the rain.

The grass nest was getting closer. She walked toward it like it was the holy grail, it seemed entirely too good to be true. She furrowed her brow. It was still so far, closer but still far. She quickened her pace slightly. She snarled, irritated. All she wanted was to sleep.

She wished she could just break out in a full-out run. Like any normal wolf would do. What she'd give for that kind of freedom. 

Chirp, chirp, sang the birds. What music they make, such beauty. She loved to listen, as they composed their songs. 

"Ooo, a puddle." She paused, drinking enough to quench her thirst before countinuing on her way. Just a little farther... 

She approached with caution, but no one seemed to be living here. Hesitantly, she took a step onto the nest, and another, curling up in it. She breathed in the wonderful earthy scent. Snuggling up to the grass, she yawned and then smiled. 

Her eyelids slid closed and she started to slip off into her dream world, where everything was perfect and beautiful. She was humming to herself, attempting to lull herself from the awkward half-asleep stage and into a deep slumber. She was proud. What a find! Who would have thought? A nest in the prairie... it souned rediculous.

[Kesume]

Kesume was exhausted. He usually sleeps on high ground, on cliffs and bluffs, but there weren't any close to him. That's what he gets for wondering so far off, I guess. He stumbles upon an opening which lead to a larger opening; a calm prairie.

It looked like a heaven, a wide expanse of soft grass blanketed by the bright white stars. For a normal wolf it wouldn't be exactly safe to sleep out in the open like this, but the long blades of grass covering his body supplied him with perfect camouflage for his surroundings.

He shivered as a gust of cool evening breeze swept over him. He wandered around the grasslands for awhile looking for the perfect spot to lay his head. It felt good to have the waxy grass pressed against his feet as he tip-toed over the slight knolls.

The sky was a little cloudy, but not the gloomy grey clouds he was used to. Instead, beautifully fluffy white clouds canopied him from the sky. He took a deep breathe and inhaled the fresh, somewhat familiar scents. It felt very homely.

He kept on with his search without much luck. Sure, there were many fine places to lay his head, but fine is not good enough for a perfectionist like Kesume. So, he kept on walking and sniffing and searching.

He could hear owls conversing in the woods, who-ing softly back and forth. He loved to listen as their little voices pulsed.

No perfect spots yet. "Too rocky... too sandy... too grassy... too... puddly." It was proving to be quite the challenge.

He looked back at the opening from which he came, he had come quite a way. He was starting to groggy as his feet started to slip underneath him.

There! The perfect spot! Not too dry, not too puddly, just right. He nestled down into the soft grass. The delicate grass beneath him reminded him of his mother, but there was no time for that. His eyelids were already down and he was fast asleep.

--

His eyes started to open. The bright sunlight almost blinded him as it glared smearingly through the outlines of his eyes. He felt a very slight pressure on his side. He quickly sprang up off the ground to see what it was. He heard a thud as he turned around to take a look. Was it... another wolf? Not only a wolf, but a Kukkien!

It looked so tiny and weak. Its essence screamed pity. "Is that pup?... no," he reasoned to himself, "It must of thought I was just a heap of grass. I'm sure it'll just run off..."

[Laracal]

She awoke with confusion- tumbling down. No, wait, thrown. Where was she? She blinked her eyes together and started rapidly looking round. 

The nest! She'd been sleeping in one, shd recalled. But now it was gone! Only then did she notice she was lying in a shadow. "Who are you? What are you doing?" Was it a kukkien? He certainly didn't look lile any kukkien she'd ever seen before. I thought the grasses only grew on the mane... She sniffed the air expectantly. He smelled kukkien....

How long had he been here? Had he been watching her sleep? And what did he do with that wonderful nest? She looked around again, "Where...?" She whispered to herself. This was easily one of the oddest things that had ever happened to her. I mean, its not every day you wake up to another member of your species looming over you, right?

She smiled rather stupidly, she hadn't seen another of her kind since she left her parents; she was beginning to wonder if she was the last one.  Seriously, they were a rare sight for something so common. 

This wolf was almost twice her size! He was even larger than her brother had been last time she saw him. Maybe it was just the grass. It was quite long, after all. She noticed two extremely long blades of grass growing off each ear. What kind of plant was that? It wasn't one she'd ever seen before. It was rather attractive, really.

Her eyes crossed; a butterfly had perched itself on her nose. It was orange; a monarch. So very pretty, and probably hungry. Butterflies were always hungry. She breathed softly on it and it carried on to rest on a wildflower on her shoulder. Such lovely, sweet creatures butterflies were.

She looked over at the stranger again. She couldn't help herself. He was like nothing she'd ever seen before. Not entirely in a bad way, but right now she had no idea what to make of it. Where in the world did he even come from? He looked like an ancient god of myth, or a hero in one of her bedtime stories. Too abnormal and regal to exist out here, in the real world. 

What kind of soul would he have? He looked kind in appearance, but looks can be deceiving. And you never really know. You never really know...

[Kesume]

He could tell now that it was a girl. An awkward and dainty little Kukkien. Throughout his weeks of wolf watching he had never encountered another Kukkien.

He was quite bewildered to be standing in front of her after just moments of waking up. His mind was still in a swirling daze from his slumber. He managed to blurt out an unsure "Hello..." and then "My name is Kesume."