it was no secret the girl got no sleep, as much as she tried to make it one. she hadn't gotten proper sleep since her papa's temporary death that must have happened so long ago by now. not many seemed to care about or remember the event anymore, but she did. she would never forget it. it came to remind her whenever she woke up that it had happened. the blood across the submarine floors would never erase from her head. the panic she felt when she woke up would not go away.

not only that, but she had work to do. she had no time for sleep and the fact that she had to rest due to her recent illness put her even more behind than she already had been. it felt better to just stay awake, even if she still felt the panic and hallucinated and suffered from several other symptoms. it's not like she'd stay awake forever - eventually her body had to collapse and rest, which she'd allow it to do, because she didn't have much say over the matter.

she still didn't enjoy it, though. sleep felt good, but waking up felt terrible, and realizing what she had done felt even worse. she had wasted time. she had potentially let bad things happen because she had been asleep. just like when mister dad's sweaters and bandages had been stolen while she'd napped, just like when her papa began to bleed out right next to her unconscious body. it was terrifying to think anything had happened because she had been asleep.

so, she was quick to get back into her old habits of working and avoiding rest at all costs when she got well again, as clear by her tired eyes. she wobbled through the territory with lynn, planning on gathering some ingredients. she wanted to cook something nice for everybody. so, the girl was currently climbing up a palm tree that had grown slanted along the beach, planning to knock down some of the coconuts.

lynn sat below, the harpy eagle watching as the girl carefully moved upward. once goldie got to the coconuts, she began to hit them and cause them to fall. once she knocked down several, the girl began to slowly and carefully crawl back down. she had been feeling tired for a while, so she hadn't felt too concerned about her safety as she moved along the tree, but now that she began to move downward, her dizziness rose and she felt unconsciousness overtaking her before she could protest.

the feline's grip on the tree loosened and her unconscious body slipped off, resulting in her falling to the sandy ground with a thud. she landed on her side and lucky for her, she would escape with only some bruises. she remained unconscious for a few more moments until she was awoken by lynn screeching in alarm and concern. the girl opened her eyes quickly as she felt pain enter her though and winced, pushing herself upward in a dizzy fashion. "ow..." she'd grumble quietly.

goldie looked around, wincing from the slight pain and bright sun. how long had she been asleep? she looked to her surroundings, letting her slight panic subside as she came to the conclusion it'd only been a few moments. it's okay. she didn't waste much time. she let in deep breaths, looking to lynn. "sh...i'm fine."

the girl's dizziness grew as she turned to paper, her balance more wobbly than usual, likely from both the exhaustion and the fact she just fell out of a tree after passing out. she blinked a few times, trying to fix it, though that didn't seem to work much at all. she didn't seem to be looking at anything in particular, her gaze distant as she tried to grab hold on the world and wake herself up.

at paper's words, she twitched her ear a couple times. the answer wasn't hard to come up with. "my papa...the best papa ever," she'd say quickly, her voice seeming a bit out of breath. she was also still recovering from the panic she felt whenever she woke up. she closed her eyes for a moment, shaking her head. "it's fine - i jus' passed out for a moment."

© MADI

the girl felt herself calm down and she attempted to push herself back into a standing position, almost falling over again. she blinked a few more times, turning her dizzy attention to rosemary as she approached and spoke up. her ear flicked at her words, a little bit of guilt entering her gaze. she needed to stop worrying them so much. she was doing better, too.

perhaps accepting her offer would please her, though, and would help her feel better. "o-okay, if you want," she'd say with a small nod, stumbling slightly from the movement. she didn't really plan on using the information for herself, but it would be better if she did learn. plus, she could use it for others. her papa, for example, certainly could use more sleep.

goldie blinked a couple more times, looking to lucifer, shaking her head lightly at his words. "tha' would b-be nice, but," she didn't quite know how to explain it. she didn't want to tell them the real reason she didn't sleep. "others don' needa' go to all tha' trouble for me. an' sleeping isn't so bad, just waking up. i feel better not doin' it." that was about as in-depth as she'd go into it for now.

It seems Aita was counted amongst the lucky few who had not been present when Pincher had succumbed to the chill touch of death, even a temporary status enough to leave scars the like of which time may never touch, left to fester and grow worse until the mind is prepared to handle it once more to permit the healing process. Yet such could never quite escape even a child for signs of something were written upon many, a heavy weight which bore down upon a certain few while others seemed to shoulder it with ease, the way Goldie handled herself enough to speak of how heavy a burden this was upon her.

Though they moved their belongs to a tree house to be closer to their teachers such a distance had done little to wear at their want to be close to the ocean, to hear the gentle lull of it within those still moments or the more thunderous sound as the waves crashed upon the shore. Small paws shuffled through the wet sand, dragging steps speaking of their own fatigue, sleep given little mind though their own reasoning found root in more private matters. For a time the voices escaped them, little more than hushed sounds upon the wind their mind put no importance to, until one in particular reached them.

The gaze which turned towards the assembled few was blurry, but shapes and smears of colour struggling to come together into what seemed illegible shapes, a soft sound of confusion rising with their next exhale. “Goldie,” it is a soft murmur barely moving their lips when the dark bengal finally makes their own approach, eyes widening as they look upon her, filled with something they had felt only in moments they were alone – fear.

There is much they want to say, the words lingering upon the edge of their tongue yet they seemed incapable of speaking once more, feeling the prickle of tears build within their eyes they struggle to hold back. In place of words they reach out one paw and try to place it atop Goldie's, hoping the gesture offers her some small comfort.

the tyhpoon — sage — tags