fa’liya opens her eyes to the sound of earth scattering.
for a breath, she does not understand it. the world has gone soft at the edges, blurred where sickness has made the trees lean and swim, and the boy before her is nothing more than a small dark shape moving too close, mirroring her with another spray of soil kicks over the mess.
her stomach twists again, but this time there is nothing left in her to offer.
too late, of course. fa’liya stares at the dirt clinging to his paws, using her vomit like glue, and something in her chest gives a sick little pull. one trembling foreleg shifts, claws carving a shallow line into the ground as she forces herself straighter, ears flattening hard against her skull.
but the boy is adamant on remaining with her, so she concedes with a hiss.
for a breath, she does not understand it. the world has gone soft at the edges, blurred where sickness has made the trees lean and swim, and the boy before her is nothing more than a small dark shape moving too close, mirroring her with another spray of soil kicks over the mess.
her stomach twists again, but this time there is nothing left in her to offer.
stop—he does not stop, nor he does not recoil from her, and she is horrified by it.
i said stop!she rasps, and there is more force in it now, though it shakes at the edges. clearly, she is not sharp enough for the word to mean anything.
do not touch that!
too late, of course. fa’liya stares at the dirt clinging to his paws, using her vomit like glue, and something in her chest gives a sick little pull. one trembling foreleg shifts, claws carving a shallow line into the ground as she forces herself straighter, ears flattening hard against her skull.
you should be with the others.the fact falls on deaf ears, she is sure. this one had the listening skills of a rock.
but the boy is adamant on remaining with her, so she concedes with a hiss.
fine. but you cannot tell anyone,she says.
do you understand?