Welcome to Gaia! :: View User's Journal | Gaia Journals

Rose and the Stars

Rose didn't want to open her eyes at first. Her head was clear, and she knew that it hadn't been not too long ago. She knew that she'd been made a prisoner, and that somehow, she'd been rescued, though that seemed less possible. Except for what she felt.

Rose remembered seeing Kyrre's face, impossibly, in that cave-prison, and could only guess that the warm, slightly furry arms that held onto her now could only be his. She recognized them from part of her journey to the kitsune lands. Except now, the arms held her close to the kitsune chest, protectively. She wondered why everything seemed so still, so quiet. He wasn't running, he wasn't even moving.

Rose opened her eyes tentatively, and was surprised to see his yellow eyes about a foot away, looking down, searchingly, into hers.

More than a little abashed, Rose couldn't speak. She flushed, and waited for... for somthing? She felt frozen by his gaze, and was puzzled slightly. And yet... she didn't mind so much.

"Rose?" Kyrre's velvety voice asked her carefully. "Are you feeling well?"

Rose practically choked on her response. Since when exactly had he gotten so....

"Yes. Ya, I think I am." she responded, blushing. She finally looked away from his face, to see where she was.

They were in Kyrre's tent, now with all the rolled-up flaps down. But it was unmistakably the camp, again. She sighed in relief.

"Are you certain? I could let Trella take a look at you?" Kyrre asked.

Rose noticed that even while he seemed eager to make certain she was fine, he didn't really seem eager for her to be further from him, let alone out of his sight. She noticed a ruffling of one of the bottom edges of the tent, and guessed that Trella- and quite possibly the whole camp- were waiting on the other side.

"No, I feel fine. Honestly." she said, and made an effort to sit up, realizing he was holding her in his lap. But he did not let her move. She frowned slightly. "Everyone's out there, aren't they?" Rose asked. She didn't need Kyrre's nod to know they were; the fact that he didn't immediately deny it was enough proof.

"Well, they need to know I'm ok. They've all got a lot resting on me, don't they?" Rose asked.

Kyrre was still holding onto her just as solidly. Rose made a mental note to either work out herself, or never go completley kitsune again. She knew that when she was fully herself, he could never overpower her. And yet now, she was stuck. But... that wasn't all of it. He looked at her with... was that pity?

"How... how bad do I look?" Rose asked finally.

That did it. Kyrre looked away before answering. "Not... that bad."

What a lie.

"Right. Except for...?" Rose prompted.

He didn't answer. She saw her own arm, and remembered a few things specifically.

"I mean, the bruises will heal." Rose answered for herself. "But is my hair really that bad?" she asked, poutingly.

Kyrre looked back to her quickly.

"Yes, the bruises will heal. Eventually. And... I think we can do something about your hair. But..." Kyrre smiled. Finally. "You look like the undead, Rose."

Rose wanted to laugh. "So, do I look like a vampire, or a zombie?" she retorted.

"More like a zombie." Kyrre responded. Not laughing, not smiling, but still not as upset as before.

"Ok then." Rose said. "Who can we get to fix my hair? And maybe Trella can Heal some of these bruises? Maybe then I'll look alive again."

Kyrre smiled, but there was still worry in his eyes. He called for Trella and, surprisingly, Sahm, who both slipped in quickly.

After about ten minutes, all the bruises were healed to the point of looking a week old, Rose was wearing something much more befitting of a queen-to-be, and Sahm had shaped what was left of Rose's hair into something much better.

They then strategized for a few moments, while Trella raised the tent flaps again. The whole camp was not, as Rose had feared, waiting to see her. But more than a hundred were.

They would be leaving soon. The whole camp. They could pack up and be ready to leave in thirty minutes, and the whole Fifth Leaf Den would escort Rose to the capitol, and remain as her honor guard in the city outskirts, with at least twenty guards near her at all times. Because a few things had become apparent.

One was that Regg and Grewin hadn't been found. But another was that Regg's scent, unlike Grewin's, never entered the tunnels. Either he escaped or, more likely, he had done his job. It wouldn't be the first time that a kitsune had worked with the demons. Which placed him in league with Estefan.

So, as Trella and Kyrre went out among the camp to help with preparations to leave, Rose had a minute with Sahm, alone.

He hardly looked at her, and Rose knew he felt responsible for the whole thing.

"It's not your fault, you know." Rose tried telling him. He only shook his head. But Rose had an idea. "But... you can make things a bit better." She smiled, and he finally looked at her.

After Sahm ran off, Lial brought in the white bunny girl that they had also rescued, after the kitsunes had flooded into the cavern.

The bunny, whose name was Chelle, had been a prisoner for only a month. She talked to Rose for a while, retelling only the basics. Her whole den of bunny anthros had been attacked by the demons and she believed most had died in the ensuing fire. The tan bunny was a girl that Chelle had known growing up, but had gone missing half a year earlier. Chelle also told Rose what she suspected about the collars. She had kept hers to study, and had even retrieved Rose's. Rose threw hers into a fire, and shuddered.

Chelle told Rose about the centuar girl that had been there, as well. Her name had been Galyiche*, and she had shown up there a week ago. Chelle had also known a neko who had been there. But apparently, she had been there before Chelle, and had been, as Chelle retold reluctantly, shipped to wherever the demon trainers sold the trained slaves. Apparently, the tan bunny should have gone earlier, but the demon told Chelle that that bunny was there to show the others how to behave properly.

Chelle left after a little bit, saying she was going to return to see if there were any of her people left. Rose hugger her goodbye, and after Chelle left, Rose realized that the whole camp was about ready to leave. The last thing to be done- which was already being worked on- was taking down Kyrre's tent.

A short while later, the whole Fifth Leaf Den, led by Kyrre and Sahm, with Trella and Rose in the middle of the procession (that still moved at a run), was on their way.

And a tiny little sparrow was well on its way back to Northern Gaia, carrying a special message.


((*Galyiche is pronounced Gal-YEE-chay. And... here is a picture of Chelle and Galyiche.))