Words: 1024Today had been a better day than before. Apokreis only suffered from a mild vision that required little intervention on Lakshmi’s part. He smiled at the young dog who gave him a grateful but tired smile in return. He made sure that Apokreis was settled in for the day, and made his way out into the packlands.
It was a nice day, Lakshmi thought. The clouds stopped the sun fron beating hotly down upon him as he walked, but there didn’t seem to be a threat of Rain. With his tasks done for the day, he made his way down to a patch of flowers only a half mile - or a little more - down from where Apokreis was, just in case they needed to fetch him.
The young dog’s visions were often severe, severe enough to cause bodily injury to the orange dog. Lakshmi checked on him every morning, and as a result his den was close to theirs. Sometimes he’d be there from the start of Apokreis’ sleep until he woke, like he had been tonight.
A precaution after the violent visions from the night before.
Lakshmi was grateful for a break, now, though. He sat in the flower patch - it was a familiar one. In fact he broke down here just yesterday, but he was fortunate that Kiana was there to help him calm down. He found his mind straying to the dark dog.
She was a calming pressence, it was nice! Lakshmi flushed in embarrassment that anyone had seen him though. This stomach churned with anxiety. She had said she wanted to see him again, but what if that was only to check up on him after his episode.
He frowned, shoulders hunching at the thought.
What if she only pitied him. He wondered if... If she would care about him. He couldn’t love her, no. Not yet, but if there was a spark there, he wanted to persue it. He hoped she felt the same.
He wasn’t quite sure how long he was sitting in the patch of flowers, but the next thing he knew a figure appeared before him. An imposing shape, large and powerful. He recognized that shape.
“Lakshmi, hello,” Kiana’s voice was gentle, an attempt not to startle the other. She knew Lakshmi would have a flight response if he was ever scared, unlike her immediate fight reflex. It was cute, in a way. He was a little skittish.She gave him a small smile and sat near him. Lakshmi gave her a shy smile, his nose down but he peaked up at her.
“Hi, hello,” he stumbled over the words. He could feel himself flush even hotter.Kiana gave a small chuckle, and smiled at him. Embarrassment burned hot in his chest, but the laughter didn’t seem mean spirited... Perhaps he was over-reacting... Kiana was nice, she wouldn’t be mean today would she?
Kiana watched the other carefully, seeing the faint pink flush through the thin silver fur on the other’s face. It was adorable, if she said so herself. He looked less panicky than yesterday, too, which was good. She’d seen him sit there for a while, but her shift hadn’t ended. Koka hadn’t come to relieve her yet.
Koka told her that her brother seemed fine this morning and that Lakshmi had left earlier than normal. Koka seemed almost pleased with the information, glad that her brother was alright. Kiana was surprised to find Koka seemed almost pleased, in the flower patches she found him in the day before.
She supposed the routines for a healer were a lot less strict than a guard’s.
“How are you doing today?” She asked, sinceraly. She wanted to hear the words from his mouth. Lakshmi seemed to calm at the words and smiled at her a little.
“Today was better than the day before,” he answered. “Kreis is a little tired, but its normal after what happened yesterday. I’ve perscribed him to rest...” He stopped himself from continuing that line of thought, but stumbled over his next words. “Um, so. So I’m not as worked up today.”
Kiana nodded. “That’s good to hear,” she told him kindly. She was pleased to see Lakshmi not looking so panic-stricken. He seemed a lot healthier. She was glad that she could help him with it, though. She found herself drawn to him, aching to protect him. It was a small feeling, down at the bottom of her chest.
Lakshmi amiled back at her. “Oh, um. How are you, then?” It was polite to ask that, right? Kiana had a hard job too, protecting the borders and making sure the seekers returned safely into the pack with new information. That job wasn’t something Lakshmi could do. He didn’t have the muscle for it.
He was far too soft that way. It was kind of embarrassing, but he was good at what he did, even if it made him anxious most of the time. Kiana gave him a smile.
“It was uneventful,” she told him. There were some minor encounters, mostly for directions. Nothing like a skirmish. Most of her day was spent just watching or training. She lived for the training days, they at least provided some entertainment. They made her feel almost like a puppy again, playfighting with her siblings.
She gave him a little grin. “Its better now that you’re here though,” she teased. She watched the silver dog flush again. Lakshmi sputtered, shoulders hunching as he tried to hide his face. Okay so maybe he wasn’t imagining a spark. He gave her a shy smile though.
“I’m glad,” he voice was ernest, and soft. He didn’t want to tell her how he worried and worried over her affection over him this morning. Perhaps they could work, he wondered about it. He would have to speak with her about it... Eventually.
Today was nice. He didn’t want to ruin it with heavy talk. He just wanted to enjoy her company, until they had to go their separate ways again. She gave him a small smile and a chuckle, smitten by how sincere Lakshmi sounded.
She was glad, too.