His normal musk was covered in the scent of a coppery rust. Her mind could only hope that the stag she was fretting over was actually Alleo. But there was a sigh of relief, and as she plead for it to be him she got a response the confirm it. His muzzle pressing firmly against her forehead, grounding her just long enough before she began to run her muzzle across his frame. She was top out of it, everything was so jumbled in her head that the only way she could tell how wounded he was would require her to actually feel all over his frame. She could feel the way his muscles tensed against her maw - the pain he had to be feeling and she continually apologized. Usually she could feel the contours of his frame, the movement and flinches of his muscles - as if he were one with her - but tonight… it was all too much to piece together.

Ettore bounced upon her back, and as Alleo reached for Rasta, he spread his wings and gracefully glided toward the ground. But, as he said that he would be fine - that he had to find her first she felt her ears pin back a little. His maw brushed against hers, covered in his blood, uniting the two of them once more. Still, it was only when he withdrew his own maw that she instantly tried to wipe it off upon her coat - leaving maroon smears across her pallid coat. But she couldn't stand the scent being that close to her nostrils - to always breathe it in, to have it masking the other scents.

Alleo saying that he had fought against her, against the Falls because of his sister. Her head snapped away, roots carefully pulling from the ground to place Ettore back upon her withers as he complained from his place on the ground. Alleo said he understood if she hated him, but that he would have done the same thing all over if given the chance. Her voice caught in her throat. Would you protect me, or your sister, if we were both being attacked and you could only help one? she wanted to question him, but a strong part of her wanted to live in ignorance - to believe that he cared enough to protect her. Her jaw clenches, before her body jerks at the sound of something messing with the trees (alas, it was only the wind, but as disoriented as she was it took her a moment to realize it). Blind eyes flicker back in the direction he should be before actual words manage to fall from her lips. "You deserve to be happy," she finally decides upon - ears pulling forward to focus on him. "You also deserve to be healed…"


Maybe he'd catch the tinge of pain lingering in her voice, maybe he'd think it was just from the disorientation of so many foreign things in what used to be her home. But, it was different now - it was contaminated with blood, and she wouldn't be able to figure out what she wanted until she could clearly see everything again. "You should have gotten healed first. I can protect myself," she says - this time the hurt of the situation clearly ringing in her voice as the roots wave in front of her bodice - forming the ball she had hid in to prove to him that she had been fine. But, when they disappear she's even more torn than before - heart shattering as she fights back the tears. "But I'm glad you cared enough to find me."

Aye, she tries to stand tall - like it didn't make a difference that he fought against her family. She should have known better. She should have seen how he wasn't happy. She should have seen the pain she was causing him. She should have let him leave. Maybe then this wouldn't have happened.

She almost wants to leave, but she knows if she does that she might sever the only thing that tended to give her joy in this world. She knew she had to give it time. So, she tried to stand there, to be the strong leader she used to be. She tried to regain her picture of the world. She tried to forgive him, for the hurt that the notion caused. And, to be sure that he didn't cling to the worst she offered four more words, "I don't hate you." Ettore bounced, nodding, agreeing. For he could see in her soul that there was still a bright bubble of love for this stag who had done so much for her. He could see it was trying to break past the hurt - the idea that she wasn't as worthy of love in Alleo's eyes. She knew, after all, that him fighting against the Falls wasn't saying anything about their relationship. The only thing it said anything about was about how he felt in the Falls. It was just going to take time for the darkness of the hurt to fade, for the brightness to crack through, and for her mind to accept what had just happened.

Rasta & Alleo

you're my end and my beginning, even when i lose i'm winning
'cause i give you all of me - and you give me all of you