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Post by Daisy Duke on May 27, 2010 13:45:54 GMT -5
Starlight looked at Granite with a confused and somewhat worried look on her face. Everything had seemed perfectly fine and now all of a sudden his emotions had switched. She rose to her paws and tilted her head as she looked at him searching his face for any sign of what he was thinking. "Granite, everyone has their weaknesses. . . that's just how it is. I wouldn't love you any less because of them." She answered, hoping to help reassure him and get him to tell her what was truly bothering him. "I have many weaknesses and regrets as well. . . many that you don't know. . ." She added, though her voice was much softer than it had been before. She shifted her golden green gaze from him to the ground for a moment and then back to him as she waited for him to continue with what he was saying. She knew that he had probably done things in his past that he wasn't proud of. But that wouldn't make anything change about her feelings for him. At least, she didn't think it would. . .
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Post by Bunny of Randomness on May 27, 2010 15:05:11 GMT -5
Granite stared hard at his large tawny paws. “But you're much braver than I. Oh I pretend, but that doesn't mean I'm any less of a coward. After you left, I...my brother dominated. I didn't dare go against him, and even when I started getting stronger, I couldn't...beat the crowd. There's so many things that I've seen and helped to do, vile things that shouldn't see the light of day, ones I wish I could change...It was finally the last straw when they attacked that poor cub!” The tawny male squeezed his eyes shut. “There was...a cub I found, half dead, when I was out hunting. He...reminded me of another cub I help to... anyway, I brought him to my den, and began to nurse him back to health. Nettle found out and snitched to my brother since he's always been Oak's follower, and they...Well, I came back from hunting one day and there was the cub, in the middle of camp, being attacked by Oak! I tried to fight him, I really did, but I couldn't save little Kiba... Oak ordered me to sit and watch as he killed Kiba and I....I can never forgive myself for letting him do it. If only I had had the backbone to keep fighting, then all the senseless death I've seen wouldn't have happened. I'm sure, even with everything you've gone through, you're a better puma than me and I could never be good enough for you!” Even as he tried to fight the tears, they began to well in his eyes, streaming down his face to his chin and the falling gently to the desert floor, where it was instantly absorbed.
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Post by Daisy Duke on May 27, 2010 16:28:00 GMT -5
Starlight lowered her eyes to the desert ground as she sifted through all of the things that he had just said. She couldn't decide if she was upset or not about everything that he had said. She was silent for a very long time before she finally raised her eyes from the sandy ground to look at Granite. She gazed at him for a long while before she finally formed her thoughts into words. "It's okay. . . You made a mistake, there is nothing that you can do to change the past so there is no need to waste your time or energy regretting it and trying to change it. . ." Starlight whispered softly to him. She rose to her paws and walked over to him before nuzzling him with a small smile on her face. A soft purr rumbled in her chest as she pressed her pelt to his side. A small cloud of doubt was still in the back of her mind as she stored everything he had just told her. But she knew that she couldn't possibly be mad at him for something that had happened so long ago.
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Post by Bunny of Randomness on May 27, 2010 18:07:17 GMT -5
Granite rested his large tawny head on Starlight's shoulder. For a moment letting her purrs soothe his pain. “I-I'm glad that you can still accept me, even though I let this all happen...I suppose that's why when I saw the others picking on Waterfall's cub just because it was possible that he was half-pride, I snapped!” The male puma let out a soft growl. “I killed Snakebite, and I would have killed Nettle if Oak hadn't restrained me. So Father threw me out, but if he hadn't, I never would have found you.” Granite sighed as his tension began to melt away. For almost as long as he could remember, he had never relaxed, but with Starlight, he knew he was completely safe and that he could always trust her. “I've really missed you...Without you, everything went so horribly wrong in my life.”
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Post by Daisy Duke on May 27, 2010 22:31:24 GMT -5
Starlight smiled as she felt his muscles relax and he returned her affectionate nuzzle. She could tell that he must have wanted to tell someone about that for a long time and now she knew that he had to feel so much better getting it off his chest. "It's okay, no cub raised in that pride will ever be able to have a normal life. That pride was always full of hate and prejudice. I am glad that my mother left with me. Otherwise who knows how I might have ended up. . ." She replied, her mind wandering back to all of the corruption and hate that the pride lived in. Now that she was free of them she couldn't think of any reason why she would want to go back there. There was and never had been anything there for her. Except for Granite. But now that he was with her again and they were both away from the pride, they might actually have the chance to live normal lives and be happy again. Happiness had seemed so far out of reach for Starlight for so long but now, with Granite by her, she felt as if there wasn't anything she couldn't do. "We are together now and that is all that matters. Nothing can separate us now. . ." She added as she rubbed her head against his strong shoulder.
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Post by Bunny of Randomness on May 28, 2010 13:02:31 GMT -5
“No, we'll never be apart again,” agreed Granite. The large tawny puma smiled faintly down at Starlight, who was rubbing her head up against his shoulder. He felt almost rejuvenated. It was almost like all he needed was for Starlight to forgive him, and everything was fine. He gave her a lick, his green eyes almost gentle. “I suppose it doesn't matter want our past was. Now that we're together, we can have a fresh start in our lives.” He rolled his shoulders a bit, suddenly realizing that he was starting to feel a bit warm and his fur still had sand in it from when they rolled down the hill. “Can we get under some shade, Starlight? You might be used to the heat here, but the mountains weren't as warm as this and I'm still not that used to the heat yet.”
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Post by Daisy Duke on May 28, 2010 13:32:18 GMT -5
Starlight chuckled with a purr rumbling in her chest as well. She had almost forgotten about the heat. She had grown use to it and her coat never got as thick as it use to when she had lived up in the mountains where it was cool and crisp all the time. Now her body had adjusted to the desert terrain. Her paws were tougher and could take the heat of the burning sand and the sharpness of the rocks. Her coat had lightened a little bit which made her almost the exact same shade as the sand was. And her eyes and ears had grown to be able to tell the soft breeze noises from the noises of a rabbit scuffling under a bush. "Of course, come on we can head back to the cave." She replied as she rose to her tan paws and lept forward a few feet before stopping and looking over her shoulder at him, a grin on her face as well.
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Post by Bunny of Randomness on May 28, 2010 14:38:30 GMT -5
Granite bounded after Starlight with a grin on his face. His large tawny paws were very hard from the jagged rocks and rugged ridges found in the mountain terrain where he had formerly lived. So the heat, like the sharp rocks, didn't really affect his paws. Unlike Starlight, his fur was darker and thicker, making his fur feel heavy and hot. As soon as they reach where the shade started, he heaved a sigh of relief. “I hope it won't take too long before I adjust to this too!” he commented with a laugh. “Maybe until I shed my coat again this coming season, it'd be better for me to go out at night, when I can stand the temperature!” But when he glanced back at the terrain, he saw the cliffs and gave them a longing look before looking back to Starlight. “D'you do much climbing anymore?”
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Post by Daisy Duke on May 28, 2010 16:50:52 GMT -5
Starlight strolled into the cool shade, her pace slowing as she felt her warm pelt instantly start to cool off. She sighed as her paws carried her further into the cave. She turned back to Granite and smiled, laughing a little as he spoke. When he asked her if she climbed much anymore a broad grin slid across her face. "Of course." She replied simply before heading deeper into the cave. She went past the ledge that she usually slept on, past the trickling pool of crystal clear cool water and back into the corner of the cave. It looked as if it was a dark corner of the cave and the cave ended but Starlight knew better. She glanced over her shoulder to make sure Granite was still behind her before she ducked her head and disappeared into a large dark gap in the wall. When she emerged from the short tunnel she looked up at her familiar jungle gym. It was a round room with a extremely high ceiling. There was a gap in the ceiling that filtered some light down into the cavern. All around the circular room, the walls were covered in ledges of rock. There were short ledges and big ones and it really was like a little kid's jungle gym only puma version. She smiled as she looked up at all of the walls and then turned back to wall she had emerged from to see if Granite had made it through or not.
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Post by Bunny of Randomness on May 28, 2010 19:50:40 GMT -5
Granite gave a sigh of relief when he walked into the dark coolness of Starlight's, and his, cave. He almost wished that he could dip his head in the water, but knew that he couldn't afford to waist the water like that. When Starlight padded over to a corner, he didn't expect what would happen next. When she suddenly disappeared into the shadow, he stood in shock for a moment before walking over. He wasn't fond of small spaces, and even the dens he slept in he made sure would be very roomy. After a few moments of hesitation that seemed like hours, he finally stepped in. When he saw the ledges, he entirely forgot where he was. “Whoa...” His whisper was almost breathed, but it echoed throughout the cave. Jumping up from ledge to ledge, he was almost like a cub after the first full hunt of new-leaf.
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Post by Daisy Duke on May 28, 2010 21:24:48 GMT -5
Starlight laughed softly as she looked up at Granite as he lept from ledge to ledge, looking right at home. She jumped up on to one of the lower ledges and gracefully lept up the wall. Her long legs stretched out in front of her as she lept across a large gap and landed on a larger ledge right next to Granite. "So what do you think?" She asked him, a smile on her face. She tilted her head playfully and sat down on the overhang, her side pressed carefully up against the wall so that way she wouldn't slip and fall off. Her golden green eyes looked around the cavern again as she remembered another secret place she had in the cave. Though she wasn't sure if she wanted him to know about it jut yet. She had to keep a few tricks up her sleeve after all. Plus if he was still like he was when he was a cub, if she told him she had a secret place but she didn't show him it, he would most likely go crazy wanting to know where it was so badly. She couldn't help but smile at the thought.
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Post by Bunny of Randomness on May 31, 2010 15:06:40 GMT -5
“It's AWESOME!” said Granite with a playful roar, rubbing his head against the wall, and then brushing his tawny face against the side of Starlight's neck. His grin was almost ear to ear. “How can you bear to go outside with this in here? I would barely be able to leave a place like this unless I was overcome by hunger!” Then the large tawny male puma shook his head with a sigh. 'Too bad this isn't out in the open... I would LOVE to feel the wind in my fur as I balanced on the peak of all of this!” That was when he noticed her smile, and he was sure it wasn't just because she was happy. He knew her too well. His eyes flashed with curiosity as he asked in an almost quieter tone, “Why are you smiling like that Starlight?”
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Post by Daisy Duke on May 31, 2010 19:32:02 GMT -5
Starlight shook her head playfully before rising to her paws and nudging him gently with her head. "Come with me." She added simply. She tilted her head back as she looked up towards the small opening in the ceiling that filtered in the light of the day. She began to climb higher and higher, jumping from ledge to ledge easily as she made her way closer and closer to the top. When she finally reached the opening, she went over to the left of it by the ceiling of the cavern. There she stopped on a ledge at the top and glanced over her shoulder at Granite, giving him a sly grin before she disappeared once again into the wall. There was a tunnel that was larger than the other one and she easily slunk through it until she got to the end where it opened up into a small circular space that was big enough for three pumas to fit in. She sat there and waited, her ears a couple inches from the ceiling. Her eyes gazed back into the tunnel she had just come through to see if Granite had followed her or not.
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Post by Bunny of Randomness on Jun 2, 2010 15:24:31 GMT -5
Granite leaped after Starlight eagerly, his mind humming with curiosity. Where was Starlight going? Why was it so much of a secret? He really wanted to know! But when the female puma entered yet another tunnel, the large tawny male froze, his curiosity fighting with his urge to run in the opposite direction. He couldn't stand small places, least of all tunnels! Why couldn't it just be somewhere out in the open? No! He was strong! He was a warrior! He wouldn't let something like this scare him! Squaring his shoulders, Granite walked in after Starlight. Before long, he felt his panic begin to rise. /The wall! They're so close! They're going to collapse in! I gotta get out! I gotta!/ He shook himself firmly like a dog. /Get hold of yourself, Granite!/ When he emerged into the space, he almost panted in relief. Instead, he nudged Starlight, hiding his relief behind his grin. “So how many more surprises do you have around?” he teased, “Do you have a mountain hidden in your fur too?”
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Post by Daisy Duke on Jun 2, 2010 23:42:53 GMT -5
Starlight grinned a sly grin at him as he appeared in the cavern behind her. When he was inside she rose to her paws but had to be careful to keep from bumping her head on the ceiling. "Not quite. . ." She responded. And before he could say another word, she climbed up onto a ledge in the ceiling of the cavern that was hidden well by the darkness. After she had pulled herself up onto the higher ledge, she turned the corner and climbed the rest of the way up and out of a large gap in the roof of the cave. She pulled her entire body out of the gap and stepped to the side so Granite to come through behind her. Her eyes turned to gaze out at the wide expanse of desert that was now laid out before her. This was the place she loved to come, especially at night when the stars were out. You could see all the way across the desert, to the city where the strays lived on one side and on the other side you could see clear to the beginning of the forest that both her and Granite had come from. She took a deep breath of the evening air and smiled. Nothing could be better than this, she thought as she kneaded the top of the cliff she was standing on. She looked over her shoulder to see if Granite had made it yet, not wanting to miss the expression on his face when he saw the cliffs that she now called home.
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