✯ — I TELL YOU THIS STORY, SAVE YOUR LIFE, SET YOU FREE

Tena was the urge of collapse.  Her entire body ached with exhaustion.  The cuts and gashes across her small form were nothing to the pure fatigue.  Every step grew more forced.  Her sky blue eyes were on the precipice of dropping.  Still, she seemed determined to keep moving no matter what, to put more and more distance between them and her old home as she could.

It was still too hot to travel during day.  The summer sun beat down mercilessly on the desert sands, and Tena knew her companion was not built for these conditions.  Night was only so much better, as the chill descended onto the land.  They had to pick and choose their battles; Tena had opted for the cold, something much easier to handle than dehydration and heat exhaustion in her opinion.

She was made for this environment; it did not bother her.  Her friend, made for the mountains, could no doubt better withstand the cold of the desert than the blistering heat.  Neither was truly ideal for him she imagined.

For most of the night's journey, she had remained silent.  Lavi's presence still bothered her.  She had not asked for someone to come with her on this impromptu trip-home-gone-wrong.  She had to wonder if him running into her was truly pure luck or destiny.  Knowing Lavi as a Jedi, he'd probably opt to say the Force might've pushed them together; he had saved her life after all.  Tena had to worry that if he had not just happened to insist on coming along, that she might be dead.  Or back in chains.

The former was more likely.  Disobedient slaves were more trouble than they were worth and Tena had caused her fair share of trouble before and after escaping all those moons ago.  She did not regret running when the opportunity had presented itself but... She had still left so many behind.  It was not fair.

Her intention had been to scout the situation out.  To plan.  To act.  To free her family and childhood friends.  Lavi had gone along with it, though she wondered if he had had a bad feeling about it all from the start.  Indeed things had gone downhill rather quickly.  No family, but before she could spot her friends, she'd been spotted by the enemy.  It all spiraled from there, starting with getting separated from her uninvited companion.

He'd found her in the end, just in the nick of time to help her escape.  Neither got out of it unscarred.

Tena grit her teeth, tail-tip twitching.  He should not have gotten involved.  She probably should not have left the safety of Snowbound, from which they were so far away from.  It would take quite some time she knew, to get back to the tundra.  Until then, the weary sand cat kept pushing herself, determined, though her confidence was waning.  She'd gotten them into this mess, she was getting them out and that meant making sure they got out of the desert fast as possible even if they were still quite a ways away.

[ [member=869]lavi s.[/member] ]
[div style="text-align: right; text-transform: lowercase; text-shadow: 0px 0px 2px steelblue; font-size: 12px;"]— tena moonspinner ✯

Lavi imagined trying to convince the sand cat to take a break would not go very far in his favor.  He was realizing that Tena was perhaps someone to push until the last moment, until there was not anything more to be done, or could be.  Whether it was others, or, more noticably, herself.  The Andean mountain cat was not sure he could keep up with her fierce stubbornness.  Lavi knew they needed to stop, rest more efficently than they had thus far, then keep moving.

He wanted out of the desert just as badly as she did.

He could never understand the weight of chains around his paws, but he understood the drive to leave.  To escape the very atmosphere of such a place.  He understood it hurt because the mission had failed.  She had not found who she was looking for, and she had not broken out any of her friends.  Perhaps, the young Jedi mused, she was pushing herself to the brink because she did not want to think.  Because she wanted to avoid it.

He could not hold back his weary sigh anymore, turning his amber eyes sharply on the exhausted feline before him.  "Te," he pressed gently, pushing forward to catch up and stood beside her.  "Te we should take a break." He could foresee her arguing from a mile away but decided to move now and not to give her the actual opportunity to.

With a flick of his ear, he bounded towards a nearby rocky overhang and plopped down on the sandrock, waiting expecantly for her to follow.

At night, the desert was actually quite beautiful.  Lavi inlined his head towards the stars thoughtfully.  "No use in pushing ourselves to complete exhaustion; we'll die before we make it back.  It's okay to actually get some rest." He advised, setting his tail neatly over his paws.  "We're gonna make it out of here, Te, okay?  Just... Don't waste all your waking energy till you drop.  I don't want to have to carry you back to Snowbound." Lavi offered a small smile, hoping that his words could do something to relax her.  "Besides, the stars are really pretty tonight, don't you think?"

code by spacexual

✯ — I TELL YOU THIS STORY, SAVE YOUR LIFE, SET YOU FREE

A sharp response tingled on her tongue, so prepared she could taste the bite of it.  A million reasons to not stop to keep going flashing in her distinct eyes.  As the Jedi moved away so quickly, they died there on her tongue.  For a long moment, she just stood there and watched him go, looking for a protest but realizing that odds were, he would not listen to her.  But he had to.

Grinding her teeth, the Demdji trailed after him, ears flicking back.  "I don't think it's a go-" Was he trying to distract her?  Tena scowled, determined not to let the Jedi's ploy work.  The stars really were, in fact, pretty.  She would not pretend she had not noticed, but they were not important right now. He had to understand that.  Staying in a single place too long out here was throwing caution to the wind.  "Just because they haven't caught up to us yet..." The smaller feline insisted, shifting her paws restlessly.

Tena remembered the dash out the first time.  Moons and moons ago.  It'd been a lucky shot in the dark, and she'd taken it and ran with it.  She did not stop running either, until she the desert was miles and miles behind her, until she lost track of the days and the distance.  Even then, the sand cat ran into other Depurs, but they had not been the ones she'd been avoiding.  Had not been the ones calling for her blood.

And she'd caused trouble for them too. As she was liable to do in every case. Still.  When the trouble was done; Tena did not stick around long.  She did not desire her head on a pike or new chains around her paws, especially when both were equally likely possibilities.

Truthfully... Tena knew his words were reasonable.  He was not senseless.  He was proving far more intelligent and health-cautious than her at the moment, but he just wasn't wary enough for the situation that was all, she was sure.  Despite her exhaustion, her legs tingled with the need to move.  This desert was not safe now.  Not for either of them, now that he'd helped her.  Kriffing idiot.  Stupid Jedi.

She seethed, beginning to pace, stubbornly avoiding her companion's gaze.  "I'll be fine," she retorted, a growl low rumbling in her throat.  "You shouldn't even be here in the first place," Tena added, voice dropping with irritation and something akin to disappointment.  Lavi should be anywhere but here; with his sister maybe, wherever she was, or back in Snowbound.  "I didn't ask for your help."
[div style="text-align: right; text-transform: lowercase; text-shadow: 0px 0px 2px steelblue; font-size: 12px;"]— tena moonspinner ✯

Lavi waited her out patiently, ear flicking as she looked for ways to argue, to find a point against him.  The Andean wondered how her older brother dealt with her, but decided not to ask.  She did not talk about her family much at all from what he could tell, even though they'd gone out here hoping to do something helpful for them.  Lavi just shook his head and refocused on the sky, already tracking down the constellations he knew, wondering if somewhere, however near or far, Lessa was looking at the same stars.

"We're well ahead, Tena," he pointed out calmly, wishing she'd just slow down.  She was thinking too much. Worrying too much.  It would not surprise him if one of these days she gave herself a panic attack.  Which would do her no good, obviously.  He wished he had some tea.  His former master had always insisted a hot cup of tea was the solution to overthinking.  Lessa'd know just what kind too... Force, he hoped his sister was somewhere on the way back to Snowbound; he was tired of only having her in his thoughts, he wanted to see her for real.

Lavi's eyes flickered as she began to walk back and forth, brows creasing, another sigh escaping his maw as she spoke. Indeed, it was all luck and coincidence he ran into her.  He'd gotten a bit lost, then he'd been searching for his sister, planning on returning, but not before bumping into Tena.  Without hesitation, the Jedi had questioned where she was going and why.  He could have left it well alone; all she wanted to do was visit the place she came from, but something had... Stopped him.  Lavi had sensed she was holding back, and the Force whispered he ought to go with her.  His premonitions had never been clear, but he'd always recognized when the Force was warning him of danger and he saw she was going to be in danger.

He had hoped, perhaps in vain, he could prevent that by coming with her.  Instead, he might have helped it along, he really was not sure.  The Jedi was certain though, if he had not, she could be dead right now and for that reason, he shook his head again, a sad gleam in his eyes.  "Maybe I shouldn't," he agreed quietly.  "But I am, and you've stayed alive thus far."

"I plan on sticking with you, whether or not you like it because I knew you'd need my help." He tried for a smile, uncertain what it'd take to say to her to bring her to his side.  "And I was right. And I still am, because you're gonna kill yourself the way you're going, Tena."

"So how about we just sit for a little bit, breathe, and look at the stars?" You need the kriffing break, come on, Te. "I promise it's not gonna kill us to take a break.  And if someone does catch up, I'll take care of it."

code by spacexual