Painted Paradise
Reunions
Nisa! Her lime green eyes, turned amber by the glittering fire in the forest, shone bright but tainted with fear. Silver struggled for words, but no words where needed. She ran to his side and pressed against his fur, entwining her tail with his. Her voice came in shattered gasps, tightened with emotion and purrs of joy. Silver suddenly felt guilt pollute his heart, why hadn’t he put up more of a fight against abandoning her?
“Nisa, I’m so sorry-“ he began, but Nisa cut him off. “I don’t know and I don’t care. We need to get out of here first,” she whispered barely audible against the fighting going around her. The two weaved across the thick of the fight, never going far enough away where their fur wasn’t brushing. Once out of the fight, Nisa broke into a run with Silver following. They ran until Silvers heart felt like it was about to explode into flames and his limbs began to ache. They stopped finally next to the spring of water that choked dry about a half mile further down the stream. The water trickled sheepishly over carved polished stones, feeding the grass patches that managed to survive even in the watery mud. Silver suddenly felt memories give his aching limbs new strength; this was his home and his territory!
The forest hadn’t changed much accept a few new sharp-scented leaves beginning to burst into full-grown greenery and some stunted tree sprouts dying back to shrivels from the lack of sun rays. A kitten caught his attention a little deeper in the forest, its scent peeking through the tall grasses and tree trunks. Silver followed the familiar path through the grass, curving through some thorny rose bushes and sky-reaching grassy stalks. He curved to find a hollowed-out tree where golden-amber stalks of wheat and dead grass were sticking out sloppily inside. He rushed and felt a purr force its way from his chest.
A single kit was huddled in the nest, looking older but still as sickly as ever. He went in slowly, then ran to the kittens’ side and licked the ruffled fur on its back into place. The kitten opened its eyes, surprising Silver since last time he saw it, it was too young to have its eyes opened yet. Now he realized during the few weeks he was gone, his kittens hadn’t stopped growing until his return. The kitten stared up at Silver, its eyes a bright baby blue color, respectfully. The kitten was slightly put off, and then terrified as it turned and whined for its mother.
Silver felt grief and guilt wash over him; his own kitten didn’t remember who he was. Nisa followed, nosing her way into the shadowed hollow of the dead tree and rasping her tongue over the kitten. It stopped crying immediately, then rested its head on its front paws and relaxed. “Don’t worry,” Nisa whispered, obviously catching Silver’s shock. “The kitten only knew you for a few days. You’ve been gone a few weeks; it’ll recognize your scent as its father eventually.” Silver nodded, guilt still gripping the darkest depths of his mind.
“Where’s the other one?” he whispered slowly. He had already guessed the answer, but he had to ask eventually. Pain flooded Nisa from ears to tail, making Silver even guiltier for asking. “She passed away a few days after you left. I have no idea how this one made it after I couldn’t keep it warm properly. I had to catch my own food afterwards, so I had to abandon it daily…” her voice cracked, and Silver realized how painful he must have made it for her.
“I still have this one though; I think he’s even getting stronger!” he changed the subject quickly, changing her gaze to the now sleeping kitten below her, its icy baby blue gaze shut off from the world with its eyes closed. Silver felt hope run through his paws, despite the unconvinced edge to Nisa’s voice when she talked about her kitten. Maybe this kitten was destined to survive after all?
“Should we name it then?” Silver meowed hopefully. Nisa frowned, “I told you we shouldn’t name it until we know it’s going to survive. We shouldn’t get too close to it otherwise.” Silver nodded with frustration sucking the fresh hope out of him. This one had to survive; it was a month away from weaning!
“Where did you go?” Nisa’s anger caught him by surprise. “I thought I lost you!” tears ran down her cheeks, and Silver felt the pure power in her words. Silver had truly hurt her, and he didn’t know how to fix that pain. “I was chasing pray for you and the kittens and I chased it over that restricted fence,” he began slowly. “I was attacked and caught there, and thrown in a cage.” He quivered at the thought, “oh Nisa it was horrible! All the Pokémon in the cage where only half conscious, half sane! I thought I was going to end up like that, Nisa, I thought I was never going to see you again!” The pain he had been pushing away all this time began to tear apart his walls and storm in. Nisa’s angered face shrank back into pain.
She pressed her side into his, offering what little comfort she could, but to Silver it was all the comfort in the world. “It doesn’t matter anymore,” she whispered. “You’re out of that place and I’m not letting you go back if I’m bleeding and broken,” her voice went down so low that Silver wondered if the last part was only meant for herself to hear. “Besides, I know what that’s like from experience.”
He pressed his face into her fur just to feel the warmth and to hear her breath and to let her scent flood his senses. How did he ever survive without her? “I’m never even going near that place,” he murmured honestly. “Not until the last drop of my blood turns cold.”
“Nisa, I’m so sorry-“ he began, but Nisa cut him off. “I don’t know and I don’t care. We need to get out of here first,” she whispered barely audible against the fighting going around her. The two weaved across the thick of the fight, never going far enough away where their fur wasn’t brushing. Once out of the fight, Nisa broke into a run with Silver following. They ran until Silvers heart felt like it was about to explode into flames and his limbs began to ache. They stopped finally next to the spring of water that choked dry about a half mile further down the stream. The water trickled sheepishly over carved polished stones, feeding the grass patches that managed to survive even in the watery mud. Silver suddenly felt memories give his aching limbs new strength; this was his home and his territory!
The forest hadn’t changed much accept a few new sharp-scented leaves beginning to burst into full-grown greenery and some stunted tree sprouts dying back to shrivels from the lack of sun rays. A kitten caught his attention a little deeper in the forest, its scent peeking through the tall grasses and tree trunks. Silver followed the familiar path through the grass, curving through some thorny rose bushes and sky-reaching grassy stalks. He curved to find a hollowed-out tree where golden-amber stalks of wheat and dead grass were sticking out sloppily inside. He rushed and felt a purr force its way from his chest.
A single kit was huddled in the nest, looking older but still as sickly as ever. He went in slowly, then ran to the kittens’ side and licked the ruffled fur on its back into place. The kitten opened its eyes, surprising Silver since last time he saw it, it was too young to have its eyes opened yet. Now he realized during the few weeks he was gone, his kittens hadn’t stopped growing until his return. The kitten stared up at Silver, its eyes a bright baby blue color, respectfully. The kitten was slightly put off, and then terrified as it turned and whined for its mother.
Silver felt grief and guilt wash over him; his own kitten didn’t remember who he was. Nisa followed, nosing her way into the shadowed hollow of the dead tree and rasping her tongue over the kitten. It stopped crying immediately, then rested its head on its front paws and relaxed. “Don’t worry,” Nisa whispered, obviously catching Silver’s shock. “The kitten only knew you for a few days. You’ve been gone a few weeks; it’ll recognize your scent as its father eventually.” Silver nodded, guilt still gripping the darkest depths of his mind.
“Where’s the other one?” he whispered slowly. He had already guessed the answer, but he had to ask eventually. Pain flooded Nisa from ears to tail, making Silver even guiltier for asking. “She passed away a few days after you left. I have no idea how this one made it after I couldn’t keep it warm properly. I had to catch my own food afterwards, so I had to abandon it daily…” her voice cracked, and Silver realized how painful he must have made it for her.
“I still have this one though; I think he’s even getting stronger!” he changed the subject quickly, changing her gaze to the now sleeping kitten below her, its icy baby blue gaze shut off from the world with its eyes closed. Silver felt hope run through his paws, despite the unconvinced edge to Nisa’s voice when she talked about her kitten. Maybe this kitten was destined to survive after all?
“Should we name it then?” Silver meowed hopefully. Nisa frowned, “I told you we shouldn’t name it until we know it’s going to survive. We shouldn’t get too close to it otherwise.” Silver nodded with frustration sucking the fresh hope out of him. This one had to survive; it was a month away from weaning!
“Where did you go?” Nisa’s anger caught him by surprise. “I thought I lost you!” tears ran down her cheeks, and Silver felt the pure power in her words. Silver had truly hurt her, and he didn’t know how to fix that pain. “I was chasing pray for you and the kittens and I chased it over that restricted fence,” he began slowly. “I was attacked and caught there, and thrown in a cage.” He quivered at the thought, “oh Nisa it was horrible! All the Pokémon in the cage where only half conscious, half sane! I thought I was going to end up like that, Nisa, I thought I was never going to see you again!” The pain he had been pushing away all this time began to tear apart his walls and storm in. Nisa’s angered face shrank back into pain.
She pressed her side into his, offering what little comfort she could, but to Silver it was all the comfort in the world. “It doesn’t matter anymore,” she whispered. “You’re out of that place and I’m not letting you go back if I’m bleeding and broken,” her voice went down so low that Silver wondered if the last part was only meant for herself to hear. “Besides, I know what that’s like from experience.”
He pressed his face into her fur just to feel the warmth and to hear her breath and to let her scent flood his senses. How did he ever survive without her? “I’m never even going near that place,” he murmured honestly. “Not until the last drop of my blood turns cold.”