Summer Dreams [PRP-Devi]

[sarhea]

The summer sun shone brightly down upon Scatterstone, yet it's heat was slowly fading as the peak hour of the day had passed, and time entered afternoon. It had been a pleasant day, free of mishaps, free of anything.

Shanda lay stretched to her full length atop the large outcropping of boulders right on the water's edge, her white pelt soaking up the sun's cooling rays. She dozed in peace, the sounds of the gulls overhead, the gentle lapping of the waves against the rocks. She loved Scatterstone in the summer. Yes, violent storms arose out of nowhere, but for the most part, things were calm. She would take rain storms over ice and snow storms any day.

The only thing that would make this day better was someone to talk to. It had been quiet on the beach as of late, quieter than normal. As much as Shanda loved the peace, she'd also grown to like company, for the sheer lack of it. The beach's other so called permanent residents had not been seen in months, visitors were few and far between, but today, none of those cares bothered her. Shanda lazily lifted her head, her heavy eyes gazing out across the open sea. She lightly stretched, her forelegs stretched straight out before her, before resting her head between them. This was an almost perfect day...

[gah-short-but that's ok-so glad you're back!]

[blackrage]

For any other animal on the white beaches of Scatterstone, it was a relatively normal day. Yet, for one lone wolf, it was quite the opposite...

...I can't escape this hell.....So many times I've tried..

Darkness. It was everywhere. Again. The same wretched mist clung to the ground below, if there even was an earth below. The obsucurace of the mist was here yet again, and somehow, he knew he had been here before. It was the same..the impending shadows hovered around him, suffocationg, yet he felt nothing towards them. As far as he could tell, his physical form was lying upon this transparent ground, limbs crossed, head laying upon them, tail curled in close, and eyes closed. But as the world repeats itself, so do the nightmares of it's own beings.

..But I'm still caged inside...

The eyes of the still being became slowly opened. A blue left eye..then a red right eye. The colors of the void caught and refracted; the gray seethed together with the black, and the white lept through the middle, swirling around into unrecognizable masses of fog. Through this mist, those same eyes seem to glow as they appeared. Black auds flickered forwards, while the rest of his body was still stationary. his mind never had time to click and tell him where he was before the environment changed shifts.

..Somebody get me through this nightmare..

“NOOO!”

The scream of his nightmare rang out. Now on his feet, the wolf raced out into the darkness again, calling out another's name. Desperate. Needing. Tormented.....All this he watched from the sidelines, paws crossed, head resting on them. Eyes peered out into the fog and darkness, riddling with a glow. After a moment he lifted his head, just as his other trailed off into the darkness, the lonely silhouettes playing out in his mind, the memories that forever danced within his head. "Devi?"

That voice. Where did he recognize it from? The question was itching at the back of his mind, tearing into his conscience. He knew it all to well, yet he could not find the write words to describe it. "Devi, please...." There it was again, and the words clicked.

Love.....beautiful....white....wolf.....black....Shanda..

"Shanda..." "Shanda, I-...."

It all came back to him, as he lay there in his dream. Her ruffled, sweet- smelling fur. The way her warmth seeped into him from when he hugged her, his limbs crossing over her in protection of the closest thing to his heart. It was in that tiny moment, that if he had died then, he would have died happy; curled around his love, no matter whether she loved him or not. It wouldn't have matter. Only that she knew. So it would be, that he would tell her again, all over in his dreams, his recollections. These things he witnessed every night. Sometimes they were sweet, and lovely; just as the shine of her caring eyes, and the curves of her body, the smell of her skin, and the pure heaven of her face when he looked upon it just as the sun shone against her cheeks.

Then, they would turn as they might do, into the deep depression of reality that was what happened afterwards. His insanity. Her attack. Everything that was his fault now; and everything that he now was to bear. Even his brother, he felt to whom he would no longer belong. How could his brother ever forgive him? Ever take him back as his brother? ....worse to his thoughts..

How could his lovely Shanda?

It was with the thoughts of her that he awoke, the sun's bright rays pounding him on the face as he opened his eyes. A yawn came to him, and he stretched his body, gaping mouth echoing the sounds of sleep to the world. His tail flickered the sand and flashed it to the sea. He brushed against the rock to his left, claws clicking lightly against the surface. Only..he never understood...

..Shanda was just above him. It was the same rock.

[sarhea]

The warm rays soothed her soul as Shanda slumbered peacefully. Her mind drifted in and out of conscientiousness, her body fighting sleep. She could not sleep now, if she did, there would be no sleep tonight, and Shanda was not a creature of the night. But in the end, sleep won out, her mind drifting into a dream state she had not found herself in for quite some time.

At first, she saw nothing, nothing but darkness and the stars up above. She felt the cool sand under her feet. I'm at the beach, she thought, feeling better that she at least knew where she was. Things began to come into focus, into the light as an surreal moon began to rise, it's light casting a blue glow to everything it touched. She began to walk down the shoreline, an unknown force leading her along. She didn't know what to feel; fear, peace...

The night was almost to beautiful and serene to feel fearful. It was a perfect, quiet night. Quiet...there were no sounds at all, other than the lap of the water against the sand. No night time creatures, no wind, nothing else. Now something just didn't seem right, as she picked up the pace. But where was she going? Every inch of ground she coved was the same as what came before it, almost to the point, she felt she was running in place. A panic began to come over her, pushing her into a sprint, a sprint to nowhere.

Before too long, she was out of breath, her body refusing move an inch further, and she colasped into a heap on the ground. Why? Why was she here? She drew her legs close, curling into a tight ball. Maybe if she just closed her eyes and stayed still, this would all go away. She could feel herself growing colder, sending shivers racing down her spine. She closed her eyes tighter, hoping for something to wake her up.

A strange, but familiar scent came to her. It was the first thing she had smelt since falling into this dream.
"Shanda. Shanda, I..." a very quiet voice echoed in her mind as warmth came over her. That voice....so familiar....but then she realized, she was not alone. She froze, her breathing coming in very slow, quiet motions. Something was next to her, she could feel it wrapping itself around her. Warmth spread over her, chasing the cold away, and a peace she had not felt in a long time. She raised her head, opening her eyes. And met the gaze of another; one eye blue, the other blood red....

"I want you to remember something no matter what you choose...and that is.....that I love you."

Her heart about exploded. Devi? She jumped to her feet, spinning to face the dark male who had been laying beside her. His eyes held such kind, gentle expressions. This was wrong! Memories came flooding back. The last thing she remembered of Devi was the look of hate and betrayal as he'd picked himself up off the ground after she had rammed into him, stopping his murderous rampage aimed at his only brother.

"No...Devi...why? How can you....love...someone who has treated you as I have?"

Then things grew dark, including the dark beast's expression, his eyes narrowing to slits as he rose to his feet. Shanda backed down, until her rump hit a boulder that appeared out of nowhere. She dropped to her belly as Devi stalked closer, and with every step he took in her direction, her head lowered further, until he was right upon her and she rolled submissivly onto her back, tail tucked between her legs. His harsh gaze locked onto her.

"Yes, how could I love such a backstabbing half-breed!" his voice roared, hurting her ears. Her eyes widened in terror as he suddenly lunged out at her, his massive clawed paws hitting the rock on either side of her head, sparks shooting in all directions....

Shanda lurched so hard as the last image jerked her from her sleep that she felt her perch atop the massive rock loosing its position. Her eyes dazed in fear, she clawed frantically at the rock as she slipped over the side, landing with a splash in the shallow waters below. She coughed and gaged as she scrambled to her feet and made her way the few feet to the shore. She was trembling uncontrollably. What a nightmare. She had not though of Devi in almost a year, after giving up hope that he would come back and let her explain, after Tarot had dissappeared once more. She sat there, facing the sea before her, the sun an orange ball just above the horizion. Why after all this time, were these memories invading her peace? She stood, shaking the sea water from her white pelt, turning back towards the treeline and her den below. Stepping over the rocks surrounding the large boulder, a hint of black fur caught her attention out of the corner of her eye. The breeze was blowing the wrong direction for her to make out a scent; which also meant the breeze was carrying her scent in the unknown creature's direction. She took a few steps closer, readying herself to run at a moment's notice. A form began to take shape, laying stretched out against the base of the very rock she had been laying upon....a large black and gray marked wolf....

"Devi?" she croaked in surprise, suddenly finding herself unable to move....

[sorry for the delay and the length...I don't get much rp done while my family is home]

[blackrage]

Muscles spasmed and shifted, sliding against the bone, just as the fur swam overtop of it all within the wolf’s movement. The stretch he had taken up only moments ago came to it’s end, as his body shivered before coming back to a resting point though it was not a cold night to the beach. Claws raked the sand with them as his forelegs came back, settling once again under his massive head. His expression though, was one of the main things to change. It was passive, longing, hoping only slightly, and saddened.

It was in the middle of his stretch however, that the other events occurred. Unknowing to him, Shanda had fallen out of her own nightmare, and plunged into the sea just behind him. The reason he never found this out at the initial fall though, was the same in everything that would wake up as he did. His stretching body cut off his hearing for the few moments in which he did so; thus, he took her landing as merely another wave. In the middle of which, he questioned himself..

"Get up! Get up, you two! Can't lay here in the snow, fools! Come on! I can't carry you..."

His brother's voice came back again to his ears, as he drifted somewhere between the fine line that separated sleep and wakefulness. His silver and black auds flickered slightly, remembering that night again, the thoughts of those around him, the memories, the faces. The voices. "Devi....Devi get up..." The wind blew a slight gust, and in his state, it threw him back to gale of winds that were the storm; like a soldier remembering the war. It all came back. But with the winds came the scent of his love.

He rubbed his head against the sands with the smell floating over his nostrils, feeling her soft fur underneath him when they had hid from the storm, and when he had tried to keep her warm by covering her completely. That, and when she had drawn her head back, and nuzzled her way under his foreleg and laid her head next to his.

But where had he gone so wrong?! His madness had come, for no reason that night. Why? ...Why had he been taken from his beautiful Shanda.....?!

"Devi?"

He paused, drawn to awakening by the introduction of a voice he knew so very well..Shanda's. He eyes opened, rather sharply..and he turned his head, body following like a snake's to come to face the one he didn't even think was there. How could she be..he could still be dreaming..but as soon as he looked up into the face of his goddess, he knew she was there, before him in all the glory that she was.

Or at least, that was how he thought of her. She really was beautiful to him.

..."Shanda.."..But the same could never be the same for him, as he lay there, half facing her, his mouth gaping open at the sight.

..and that was all he could do. Nothing else would move, save the the intense beating of his heart.

[sarhea]

For a second, she felt paralyzed, nothing would work, she even found herself holding her breath. It was Devi, no doubt about it. And how odd it was that she had just had a dream with him in it. Her subconscience mind must have somehow caught his scent...The dream had been quite frightful in the end, and she still did not understand it. Devi had never spoken badly of her-it was quite the opposite. Those few months after his disappearance, she'd come to realize that he had to have suffered from a personality disorder. She'd seen it from afar in the human villages, heard it talked of, but had never witnessed it up close and personal. And when the dark male's violent side had come forth, Tarot had always been involved. She still didn't know the whole story behind the two of them.

Shanda's courage had come a long way in the months since that night in the storm. Everyone was afraid of something. She'd even seen Tarot's fear, the ever confident beach king. She'd decided from that point on, to not let her fears rule her life, but help make her stronger. So now, even though she was terribly nervous about what would happen, she stood her ground, her claws taking firm grip in the wet sand.

Devi appeared to be dreaming when she spoke his name. She could sense that her voice had interrupted as she saw a new movement of the closed eyes...and then the dark male's eyes flew open, locking on her in an instant, his great head snapping up off the white sands, half his body following suit. Shanda couldn't help but flinch at the sudden movement, but she stood firm. There was no malice in his eyes, only utter shock, and his gaped open maw only supported the conclusion.

..."Shanda.."

He spoke, the voice so familiar. Yes, it really was Devi, and same as she, he appeared to have no control of his movements, each of them so stunned by the other's presence. The air was charged with energy, her every sense magnified as her mind screamed at what to do next, how to react. She could almost feel the racing of his heart, hear it, causing her own pulse to increase.

Finally, she managed to softly lift a paw, placing it one step closer to the stunned male. Another step, closer yet, her courage growing with each step. She even allowed her tail to sway gently behind her in peaceful greeting. She stopped several feet from him, her gaze taking in all that it could. She remembered him being injured that night, as she sent him tumbling across the ice. She remembered seeing blood....but as of yet, she could see no signs of past injury.

"Devi....you came back..." she finally spoke, her words calm and careful. And there she stood, her wet fur clinging to her form in sad, tangled clumps, nervously awaiting his next reaction.