04-03-2017, 08:50 PM
They looked at one another, a silent exchange that said far more than she could read. She had after all, had very little interaction with others of her species these last years, and the subtle nuances of their nonverbal communication went a bit over her head.
But they turned to her and smiled, and with that one moment of welcome she was suddenly back among friends. Don’t go, they asked her, stay, and just like that, she was home again. Or as home as she ever got, at least.
“Okay,” she agreed, her face relaxing into a smile to match theirs, quiet and welcoming as they stepped closer and offered soft touches that evoked a gentle, glowing warmth in her chest. “I’d like that.” And she offered her own soft touches in return, gently exploring the curve of Spark’s neck, the hard plane of Spear’s shoulder.
They traced the scars that marred her back, and she shuddered as their lips traced the puckered flesh. Almost no one ever touched her, as and certainly not there. It didn't hurt, hadn’t in a long time, but there was something inexplicably intimate about even those soft, friendly touches that had her pulling back just a little, a quiet gasp of indrawn breath chased by a whispered apology.
“I’m sorry.”
She flushed and ducked her head again, cleared her throat and explained, “The fire came back, and it...it burned them away. I was...I was alone for a long time. Couldn't follow my fath...the man who adopted me to his new home, so I’ve spent most of my time in the forest by myself. It...the fire used to hurt me, but it doesn't anymore. That's...that's really all there is to tell, I guess.”
She glanced at Spark, and then at Spear. “What about you? What has happened to you? It’s been a very long time, my friends.”
But they turned to her and smiled, and with that one moment of welcome she was suddenly back among friends. Don’t go, they asked her, stay, and just like that, she was home again. Or as home as she ever got, at least.
“Okay,” she agreed, her face relaxing into a smile to match theirs, quiet and welcoming as they stepped closer and offered soft touches that evoked a gentle, glowing warmth in her chest. “I’d like that.” And she offered her own soft touches in return, gently exploring the curve of Spark’s neck, the hard plane of Spear’s shoulder.
They traced the scars that marred her back, and she shuddered as their lips traced the puckered flesh. Almost no one ever touched her, as and certainly not there. It didn't hurt, hadn’t in a long time, but there was something inexplicably intimate about even those soft, friendly touches that had her pulling back just a little, a quiet gasp of indrawn breath chased by a whispered apology.
“I’m sorry.”
She flushed and ducked her head again, cleared her throat and explained, “The fire came back, and it...it burned them away. I was...I was alone for a long time. Couldn't follow my fath...the man who adopted me to his new home, so I’ve spent most of my time in the forest by myself. It...the fire used to hurt me, but it doesn't anymore. That's...that's really all there is to tell, I guess.”
She glanced at Spark, and then at Spear. “What about you? What has happened to you? It’s been a very long time, my friends.”