I WILL NEVER FORGET [amali]

[Luca]

[div style="margin: 0 auto; border-width:0; width: 70%; text-align: justify; line-height: 1.5; font-family: arial; font-size: 9pt;"]For once, his embrace was returned. With it came that familiar energizing rush that all affection gave him, freeing his body from some of its tired weight. It was odd, the sensation swelling in his chest, the tiny tears of joy that wet the fur of his cheeks. He felt relieved, although he couldnt quite place why. Never before had he felt such a connection, such a pure and beautiful love, and it was with someone whose face was missing from any of his memories. Surely they knew one another, there must be history between them, but at the moment all he could think about was here and now. The feeling of the other hound's paws in his fur, the cool grass beneath them, the gentle brush of petals against his pelt. Everything else didn't matter nearly as much as the long embrace they shared. It was hard to tell how much time passed. It could have been hours, or mere minutes, but eventually he found it in himself to break the relative silence. He took a shaky breath, and exhaled into the other's fur. "Who are we?" He heard himself say, although his words were slightly muffled by the fur of the one below him. He pulled his head back and stared down at the pale one with his dual-toned eyes. "I don't know your name. I love you, I love you so much but I don't know who you are," he said softly, his words gentle and hushed as they fell from his lips.

Memories. The ocean washing over his paws, a basket of freshly baked muffins, the dense foliage of a rainforest. He squeezed his eyes shit again, panting out a quick breath of surprise. He didn't know who he was either. This body didn't feel familiar, and the name that danced on the edge of his mind didn't feel fitting. He was beginning to piece together his earlier days, cold grey streets and dark rooms, but those memories were void of the warm light that he now associated with his sole companion. He was something dark, sent to consume the light and convert it to what he was. That couldn't be right, though, this relationship was clearly far from the realm of predator and prey. Red, so much red stained the hazy memories of his past, but the thought of harming the other canine filled him with an icy wave of fear and disgust. This was the exception, he came to discover as he delved deeper into his mind. An oddity, a mistake. But oh, how beautiful of a mistake it was.

He bit down gently on his lip, lashes falling half-closed over unfocused eyes. His past intentions may have been dark, but none of that mattered now. Every brush of the other's fur against his made his skin tingle and face grow warm, and the once overwhelming lethargy that had overtaken him faded into a plesant sleepiness. His body was warm, relaxed and heavy, but he couldnt quite being himself to ignore the strange island that wouldn't quite leave his mind. That beach, it reappeared in his thoughts with every breath of vanilla scented air.