Like Animals

~ Chapter four ~

The soft sound of rain woke Kalyk the next morning, droplets thrumming on the stones gently. She rolled over, stretching, refusing to open her eyes. She knew she wasn't in the base, and for a brief moment she forgot why exactly. 

She didn't particularly care. 

Kalyk sighed, wanting to go back to sleep, wherever she was. But she knew Shanti wouldn't be fooled, and had probably already noticed she was awake. Kalyk pretended to be asleep anyways, expecting a paw to begin prodding her until she opened her eyes. Nothing happened. 

She didn't particularly care about that, either. That is, until she opened her eyes and realized she was alone, and Shanti was no where to be found. 

Kalyk immediately became afraid, and her fur trembled as sounds of thunder crackled overhead. 

"Shanti?!?!" she called out, although already knowing it would be in vain. Her friend's scent was stale, and with the storm already picking up outside it would be impossible to follow her. A small whine sounded in the hyena's throat, and her heart pounded. What am I going to do?! What if she doesn't come back?? From the smell of it, Kalyk guessed that that Shanti had left early the night before. And she hadn't been around since. With every passing second, it became harder and harder for Kalyk to ignore the fact that her friend would never return. 

Her thoughts were interrupted by an even louder crack of thunder that sent renewed panic through her bones. I have to do something! Kalyk thought. She crept towards the entrance of the makeshift den only to see torrents of rain pelting the ground much harder than it had been just a few minutes ago. Gusts of wind buffeted Kalyk's face and flattened her ears, and she quickly retreated back inside. She was afraid. She was cold. She crept farther into the darkness, telling herself it was safe. At this point, there really wasn't much else to do.

Was it past sunrise yet? She couldn't tell. If it was, would Ryven think to look for her? Kalyk remembered her fight with Shanti the previous night. Had had her friend been right? Were their superiors hiding something from them? Maybe Ryven wanted this to happen. Maybe he just didn't care. 

No, Kalyk thought. Ryven had raised her and Shanti since they were little. At least, for as long as she could remember. She had trusted him. Shouldn't I still trust him?

A sudden flare of lightning illuminated a bold shape in the entrance of the den. Kalyk tensed, not moving her eyes from whoever had discovered her shelter. A stray breeze wandering towards her carried the scent of rain, damp leaves, and... Ryven?!?

The large wolf's gaze pierced through the snug darkness of the den and directly into Kalyk's eyes, sending a chill down her spine. But she forced a smile and scampered towards him, tail wagging. Ryven didn't move. 

"Where is Shanti?" he growled, tugging his attention briskly around the den before glancing down at Kalyk once more. The hyena whined softly, lowering her head and blinking up at him nervously. 

"I don't know," she responded. "I just woke up and she was gone!! You can find her, right Ryven?" Hope began to rise in her chest. Maybe everything would be okay. Maybe they would get Shanti back together. Maybe life wouldn't change forever. 

Ryven shook his head, and then paused. "Did anything unusual happen last night, perhaps? Anything that would cause her absence?" 

Kalyk stared at the ground, shying away from his prying eyes. She didn't know if she should mention their argument. Her faith in Ryven was beginning to dwindle, and Shanti would probably get in trouble for talking that way about their Superiors. If we find her, that is.

"No," she lied, not daring to look up from the hard earth. It was the first time Kalyk had ever done that. It had never occurred to her before that moment that the truth would be worse then something else that... wasn't the truth. But lying was surprisingly easy, apart from the fearful pounding in her chest. They were just words, that could be spoken just as easily as the truth. It made Kalyk wonder how easy Ryven found it to lie. 

Suddenly there was a rough nudge at her shoulder and the hyena bolted upright. Ryven was looking at her intensely, his low growl echoing around the den. "Did you hear me?" he asked. Kalyk shook her head, and his eyes narrowed. "I said it's time we go back to the base."

Kalyk blinked, confused, and Ryven merely turned and began walking out of the den. "Wait...!" She barked and trotted after him. "Aren't we going to look for Shanti?"

The gray wolf paused but didn't look back. "We're going home. Shanti has betrayed us all."

- AUTHOR'S NOTE -

Told ya things would pick up! And it just gets better

I'm sorry to the one and a half ShantiXKalyk shippers, however this isn't the end haha. 

It would be totally cool if anyone who's reading wants to guess in the comments what's really going on. Where did Shanti go? Is Ryven to be trusted? Nobody knows! Well, I know because I'm the author. And maybe a few of my friends. I tend to rant to them about my story ideas. But to other handful of you, I'd love to watch the squabble. Or just anyone responding to my writing at all makes me happy, you know?

I'll leave it at that for now, and wait for nonexistant fanart to start rolling in.