~Forgotten Hearts~

Chapter One, The Forest

Ester ran. They ran as far as their legs would take them. Their chest was burning, as they had been running for hours now. They had cuts and scratches all along their arms and legs, and their wings were torn to shreds. They were crying as they ran, memories flashing through their mind. Eventually they collapsed, crying and crying. They wrapped what was left of their wings around themself, falling asleep.

"Hello?! Are you alright?!"

Called a voice from outside. They gazed around their mind for a moment before heading back to the outside world. Their eyes fluttered open as they saw a beautiful foxoid gazing at them. The foxoid had beautiful deep blue eyes and long strawberry blonde hair. His face was littered with freckles too. Ester's eyes widened when they saw this beautiful foxoid. They took a deep breath, sitting up and gazing at the other.

"Are you alright?!"

The foxoid asked, worry in his eyes.

"..I don't know. I don't remember what happened.."

Ester said, trying to stand. They winced, as their cuts and wounds were still open and bleeding. They gazed at their wings, and sniffled a bit, holding back tears. Their wings were just bone. The webbing between their wings had been completely torn away. They knew they could no longer fly. They buried their face into their hands, crying once again. 

"Hey.. What happened..? Do you remember..?"

The foxoid asked, sitting in front of the other, kindness in his voice. Ester looked up at him, uncertainty in their eyes.

"..I was.. I was running from the castle, and.. I ended up here."

They said, taking a deep breath to calm themself. 

"Why were you running?"

The foxoid asked once again.

"..."

They were silent, looking back down to the forest floor. They seemed hesitant to tell the other, as if they were feeling guilty about what had happened.

"You don't have to tell me.. I just want to make sure you're alright"

The foxoid said, smiling a bit.

"My name is Milo, by the way. What's yours?"

Milo asked, smiling softly at the other.

"..My name is Ester."

They said, looking up at the other with a weak smile.

"I think you should rest. I'll take care of your wounds, you just sleep. Alright?"

Milo said, gazing at the others' wounds with worry. Ester nodded, laying down on the softest patch of grass they could find. They closed their eyes and fell asleep rather quickly. Milo smiled, and got to work. He held out his hands, and created a healing bubble. Their wounds began healing, as Milo ran off into the forest to gather food for the other. A few moments later he returned with armfuls of berries, and he smiled, seeing that the other was fully healed, except their wings. Milo sat close by to the other, waiting for them to wake.

A few hours later Ester woke with a jolt, waking from a nightmare. They sat up, noticing the pain was gone, they were just extremely sore now. They saw the pile of berries in front of them and smiled, looking around for Milo. They sighed, smiling softly as they saw Milo sleeping peacefully nearby. They then turned back to the berries, gazing at them questioningly. They took one, and ate it, being extremely surprised at how good it had tasted.

'How have I never had these before?! They're delicious!'

They thought, smiling brightly. They then gazed around, looking for herbs and an animal to kill for meat. They grinned, thinking of a wonderful recipe they could make with this newfound favorite of theirs. They spotted a grove of herbs, and also heard a deer nearby. They decided to go for the deer first. They stood, sniffing the air and pinpointing the direction of the deer. They then shifted into their small dragon form, getting low to the ground and running quickly toward the deer. They soon saw it, and grinned. They stayed low to the ground, getting ready to pounce. Moments later they pounced on the deer, snapping its neck and smiling to themself. They then shifted to their humanoid form, picking up the deer and taking it back to the clearing. Once they had hidden it around the clearing edge they headed for the herb grove that was nearby. They collected several different herbs that were commonly used for cooking and returned to the clearing. They then began cooking food for the two of them.