thaw

Discovering oneself again was a strange thing. Fickle, fluid, fragile. They believed in their dreams they were more themself than in their waking hours. In their dreams, they were not so alone. Often, their friend was by their side, frolicking in the snow, sneaking meat from the butcher's shop to share. 

Mongrel! Fucking rats!

They could recall the larger two-legged's screaming as they ran away, furious and swinging a large stick. Their friend laughed like the sound of bells, dexterous hands cradling their hard-won rewards and running through the creature's fur once they found a safe space to lie low. 

What do you think? their friend had asked, face obscured and fuzzy as it always was in these dreams. It's not so bad being a rat, is it?

It did not know if it liked being a rat much at the time, hungry and often cold, curled up around its friend in the night, no home to return to. But it missed those days now. It would do anything to go back. 

So, Rat dreamed.

As time went on, tendrils of memory wove through their mind, warming them from nose to tail-tip. In these dreams, they could run alongside their friend again, their pace slower for him intentionally so that he could keep up. He'd always defended them against the larger two-leggeds, in spite of his smaller size and the fact that no one seemed to want a rat like Rat around. They'd been an extra expense - an extra mouth to feed. One that could not be afforded in such a harsh, unforgiving world. 

They'd curled up beneath the large tree that night, just as they always did, but their mind did not take them to cold, busy streets. 

The first thing they noticed when they stirred into wakefulness was the warmth on their fur. Rarely had Rat ever experienced warmth that didn't belong to another body. The sensation was reminiscent of a fire, flickering light behind their eyelids and embers dancing through the night air. Only, when they opened their eyes, there was no fire - only endless green hills, sweet scents, birdsong in their ears. 

Rat stood slowly, mismatched eyes round as they took in their surroundings. Cautiously, they extended a paw, gently brushing against the tops of multicolored flowers beneath their feet. 

A dream? It must have been, but how could their mind have conjured such imagery if they'd never seen it before?

---

@Bonario

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Every leg ran as if they were covering the miles. Twitching paws, nails extending into the cold grass. The boy's fur was matted and clumped at the flank, long days and nights of not cleaning himself up right. Not taking care of himself right. An odor that was as wild as the wild world around Bonnie. 

Heard it now, he did. You smell fresh, old geezer would say. Would never be in a good way. Always scrunched up the nose, turned a head away. Frowned down at him with his gray face and plucked whiskers. Gramps had a way of giving that same look even as he grew older, got bigger. So, Bonnie got stronger. Got louder. Stood up straighter, raised that tail up higher, learned how to get in the face of someone who had the will to look him in the eye. 

​​​​​​Gramps wanted to feel disappointed? So be it. 
He made sure that expression would freeze on his face.

That night spilled across Bonnie's vision in an instant. 

A nasty growl sputtered out his dusty maw that drifted into soft, terrible whines...
The black of night was bright. Blood spilled across the forest floor. Teeth gnashed and cut through flesh.

 

---

Then there were wildflowers.

​

He dreamed.

He trotted by the side of a familiar face, moving as though they'd been in the field of beauty for a million years. His nose turned up.

Coolly: "Finally found some place warm?"

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It had never experienced warm like this before. Something in their chest twisted and ached with it. Would their friend still be here if they'd been able to bring him to a place like this? They hoped, wherever he was, that he was just as warm and content as they felt now.

This place was beautiful. For a moment, Rat did not want to wake, if only so they could indulge in the sensation for a while longer.

And then, a voice.

One they knew.

Turning its head to the wolf, Rat found its tail wagging, content and comfortable in stark contrast to how it had been when it'd first come across him.

Finally found some place warm?

"Mm," they hummed in affirmation, smile softening their face. "Warm. Like... fire?" Their voice was hoarse and rough from disuse, but they'd been practicing. Speech came easier over time, and while their sentence structure left much to be desired, they were trying. It was improving.

There was a certain level of gratitude they felt for the strange wolf before them. In spite of his gruff, rough-around-the-edges approach, he'd been kind enough to let them stay with him that frigid night.

Would they be here now, without that extended kindness? They weren't sure.

"Thank... you," they said simply, hoping that he understood why. They'd been wanting to say it for a while, and they were glad for this opportunity to do so, even if it was a dream.

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