Brothers

Chapter 7: Fireflies

"You really don't talk much, do you?" I asked him as we walked.

"What do you mean?"

"Well, we've been walking together for a full night and I've been doing all of the talking."

"So?"

"If we're gonna be brothers we need to know more about each other. I've told you everything about me, I want to know more about you."

"What's there to know?" he scoffed and stopped to face me. "My family separated from the pack, Mother was unusually submissive and Father was dominate. They had a lot of chicks one year after me, and I practically raised them."

I shook my head. "No, there's more than that. You've never mentioned your parents with any kind of affection."

"Why should I? They left me to take care of those brats nearly all the time. Only once was I able to hunt with Father and he beat me for not being strong enough! My siblings worshiped me and my Father hated me. Mother was too weak to do anything about it. They never wanted me, and I never wanted my siblings. I'm glad the rexes came for them! Took them all away, so I could be free."

I was taken aback from his rant. "You had a different opinion when we first met."

"Opinions change, Spiny! I had just lost my family, of course I felt loss! But I've done a lot of thinking and I'm glad they're dead now."

I frowned and slowly walked up to him. "I'm sorry about that. I miss my parents every single day. I even dream about them sometimes."

He glared at me, there was nothing but a burning hatred in his red eyes. "Good for you!" he barked and walked off.

I stayed where I was, knowing he'd be back soon, he just needed to cool off. He had a lot of issues, and I was learning them quick. But maybe I could fix him. There had to be something in him, there was a reason we bonded.

I slowly woke to the sweet smell of flowers and the gentle breeze of the morning air. The memory still lingered, though it was quickly being replaced by reality. My head shot straight up when I remembered what I had just ran away from.

"Woah, woah, careful there!" Tappy's sweet voice called to me from above. She was perched in a tree right above me and quickly fluttered down to meet me. "I'm so happy to see that you're awake!"

The pain from my leg brought me even further to reality. "How long was I out?"

"Two days, you were exhausted. And I'm not surprised, you ran far. I can't even see the ocean when I fly as high as I dare. Though that could also just be it blending with the horizon."

The more I awoke, the more I realized it was my whole body that ached. "Well, hopefully Deinonychus should leave me alone for a bit. But we should get moving soon." I said and tried to stand.

"Careful, careful!" she warned me. "You used every single limb to run and they will be very sore, especially having rested for two whole days. Also, try to not use your injured leg at all."

I paused, my worst fear realized. "Why?" I asked her.

"Well, while only a few old scars opened, you created a lot of new cuts when trying to remove the sling. And once you were able to run on your leg, thankfully for not that long, I'm sure you did the damage that he warned you about. I also used the entire medical kit on your leg. It was nasty, and still is, honestly." she explained.

I groaned and decided it was best to stay laying down for now. "I didn't want this," I mumbled. "And now, thanks to my brother, I'll have a permanent limp."