Snowmelt

X

I stand in front of his den, mouth ajar, word dangling off the tip of my tongue, threatening to fall onto the ground, to explode into reality. It would be quiet, but shake me to my core. Nothing like this had happened before, and most likely never would again. 

The fear, in and of itself, was consuming me, and I knew that stating the truth as what it was -the truth- would do nothing to help it. I laughed inwardly as I realized all it would do would be to increase the terror tenfold, if not more. The fear I had lived with for so long, that had always remained the constant in my hectic life, might be the thing to do me in, to make me stumble and fall to my doom. I had been teetering on the edge of this cliff my whole life, my whole lie of a life. My fear -and that of others- it would be my downfall. It would be the cause of my own little apocalypse.

I shake out my fur, ridding myself of the chills down my spine. Firetrail glances at me, a sheepish but concerned look on his face. 

"Everything alright?" He asks, somehow seeming both curious and genuinely concerned at the same time, a rare skill that I lack.

"Depends on what you call alright. I just want to tell you something." I say, slightly taken aback at my own honesty. "Not really sure how, though..."

"Why don't you just say it? It would get the job done, and sometimes it's the best way to let somebody know something. To just... just say it. Ya know what I mean?" He cocks his head to the side, as though trying to read my mind just by looking into my eyes.

"Yes!" I exclaim, hopping with the energy of a young pup, a wide grin plastered on my face. Firetrail's face fills with confusion for a moment before he realizes what I'm talking about. I know the exact moment he realizes because his expression morphs from one of confusion to one of pure joy.

"Really?" I nod, still grinning like a maniac. He takes a step towards me, then another, until he's standing with his muzzle only inches from mine. I peer into his eyes, only noticing now the exhaustion tinting the dark green. He's been running this pack alone his whole life... I realize as he ducks underneath my head and rests his head on my shoulder, and I do the same.

"Thank you. It may sound weird or even crazy, but thank you." He murmurs in my ear, and his warm breath sends chills down my spine. They're new chills though. Not cold chills of fear, but warm ones of love. Love and belonging. Chills I had only ever felt the echoes of before.

I take a deep breath, breathing in Firetrail's warm scent, and one word takes the forefront in my mind. Mine.