A Leopard's Life

Chapter 1: Why is she crying?

M
Why?
Why is she crying?
What did they say to her?
Was it something I did?
Is it my fault?
Why won't she talk to me?
Why won't she answer me?
It has to be my fault.
But I want to know what I did wrong.
But she won't tell me.

I
I tried to stop the tears from falling but I couldn't. They ran down my face and seemed to be taunting me as they escaped my eyelids. I'd sworn I wouldn't cry again, but that promise fell into the dust with my tears. The words still rang in my ears.
'Request denied'.
That was it. Two Words. After 10 years, two words was all he could say to me, and he couldn't even say them himself. But did I hate him? No, I'm to weak to hate, and trust me, I've tried. I'm too weak to stop myself from crying. Too weak to do anything. Too weak to get us out of here. I'm sorry, Misaki. I told her through my mind. You're only still here because of me. She didn't respond. I suppose it's true then, our bond does weaken when we're sad. Will we ever get over that bridge? We don't really have much of a choice. We HAD to get over it. I stared at the ground, half hoping for the shadow wolves to appear again. The other half of me knew that they wouldn't. I took a several deep, shaky breaths and eventually managed to stop myself from crying. Instantly Misaki's worried questioning mews filled my mind.

I can't really explain how I could understand her. I heard the same mewing, purrs and growls that anyone else does, but I knew what they meant, somehow. I guess this must be part of the 'freakish curse' they were referring to. The freakish curse that included the shadow wolves, the purple clouds and sparkles, the never-aging leopard cub that seems tied to me either through fate or destiny, whichever word is preferred. I'm okay. I assured Misaki. It wasn't your fault. That's all she needed to know. She wouldn't understand even if I told her. Sometimes I wish I was in her position, being innocent and knowing that she, at least, didn't deserve this. I did. But that doesn't mean I wasn't going to get us out of here. For Misaki, not me. If only he hadn't denied my request. If only...