OPEN unexpected yet expected

[XANTI]

the hardest thing to me is facing the fear i live

no one can help me now, it’s under my heart!

The cheetah’s paws touched down on the black sands. Xe stood next to the Blood Falls. Xe sighed, adjusted xyr satchel, and scanned the side of the volcano. The opening to the cave system remained intact. And, according to the legends xe’d heard in xyr youth, Requiem and Vayu always left the cave system intact for each eruption and earthquake. However, it wasn’t ready to go inside and survey the damage… or meet the survivors.

Xanti’s scorpion tail curled up. Then xe exhaled. Half-closed xyr golden eyes.

Xe scanned the line of felled trees. And saw the changed landscape of the volcano’s face. Yet, in the distance, xe saw the trees sway along the banks of the Hawit River.

Xanti sighed. Xyr right ear twitched as xe focused on the gurgling on the waterfall. What was the probability that xyr mother and xyr three siblings had all survived? Horrible. Xe didn’t want to think about who xe would prefer to have survived. Which face and voice did xe want to greet xem? Xe shook xyr head. Beginner’s mind.

“Hey!” Xanti called. The cheetah’s voice was steady. “I’m back from my trip to the mainland. Got the surgical supplies. The hell happened these past two weeks?!”

// somebody tell this poor enby that his mom is dead / already cannibalized and xyr three siblings are missing and presumed dead

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[kole.]

Kole had almost forgotten about Xanti. Not for a lack of care, of course; alright, maybe; but truth be told, Kole didn't remember any particular interactions with the cheetahcore before. Kole had never had a habit of just dropping by with medical staff of any of the groups he'd joined before, he didn't need healing; perks of vampirism; and he'd never had any sort of interest in being a doctor. Kole was better at breaking people than fixing them, in his opinion.

So, when he heard Xanti's voice while he was out planting one day, it was a momentary lapse in memory that stopped him in his tracks. He knew he'd heard the voice before, but who it belonged to was lost to him. Wasn't until he got a little closer and actually spotted the doctor xemself that Kole remembered. Oh shit, that's right, Xanti was one of the doctors here. Duh.

"Xantiiii," Kole drawled, pretending that he hadn't just forgotten that this guy existed in the first place. He felt a little guilty about that, in hindsight. Oops. "Glad to see you're back, buddy. Meteor'll be happy with the supplies, and I'm glad I don't have to go out lookin' for 'em myself anymore. Which reminds me..." he plonked his ass down on the sand, "Meteor's Pharoah now. Few casualties in the eruption, old man Prometheus was one of 'em, 'parently. Along with, uhh, Ryouki, Siri... Couple missin', too, but I guess they're dead. Not great, y'know?"

[XANTI]

the hardest thing to me is facing the fear i live

no one can help me now, it’s under my heart!

Xanti’s head tilted. Golden eyes slid to the coyote. Naturally, Xanti knew as little about the templar as he knew about xem, but Xanti bothered to keep a running list of all the cultists. Idiots were like a school of fish: fun to watch from a distance, but impossible for xem to enjoy swimming with. Best to keep to xemself.

“Thanks,” Xanti drawled in response. A perfect mimic of Kole’s tone.

However, when Kole spoke the name Siri, Xanti flinched. For an instant, rage flashed across xyr face and contorted xyr muzzle. Fangs bared. But then xe exhaled, and the expression slipped back into disdain. Xe rolled xyr tongue over a fang and telekinetically pulled out a joint from the satchel.

Never ascribe to malice what was most likely caused by ignorance. Xanti rolled xyr eyes while xe thought of embedding bone knives into Kole's eye sockets.

“Hell of a way to tell me my mom’s dead. Gimme a light, would ya?” Xanti telekinetically wiggled the joint in front of Kole. Xyr golden eyes were cold, but, by the tension in xyr jaw, Xanti was pissed. “Considering you forgot I’m a cheetah and therefore possibly related to any dead or missing cheetahs, how about my siblings?” Then a sarcastic sigh.

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[kole.]

The corners of Kole's smile slowly turned downwards. He cleared his throat awkwardly, eyeing the joint wiggling in front of his face, and momentarily thought he could probably do with one himself now, if only to help bury the awkwardness and shame that had swelled up inside him. In his defence, Kole hadn't been paying attention to much of anyone except Meteor lately, and had, in fact, forgotten that there was a connection between Siri and Xanti.

He took a deep breath, let air fill his lungs, and then let it out. The oxygen in his lungs turned to flames, albeit small, controlled, lighting up the end of the spliff.

He'd never been great at thinking before he spoke, in hindsight.

"...Amongst the missing," he clarified quietly, avoiding eye contact as he reached his back paw up to awkwardly scratch behind his ears. "Sorry."

[XANTI]

the hardest thing to me is facing the fear i live

no one can help me now, it’s under my heart!

Xanti’s right ear twitched. Xe supposed Kole should feel ashamed of himself, but xe didn’t much care for seeing the coyote’s weakness flashed in front of xem. What good was shame when it was so boring to witness? And, even worse, useless.

Hence why Xanti’d asked the coyote to repay that stupidity with a favor. When the coyote completed the small task, Xanti wordlessly nodded in thanks and chomped on xyr joint. How much more shit can xe get this ashamed idiot to do as payment for his stupidity?

Inhale. The citrusy weed was a dull throb in the lungs.

Exhale. The smoke curled from Xanti’s nostrils. And the light in xyr golden eyes mellowed.

“Wonderful. Mom’s dead. Siblings pressumed dead.” Xanti rolled xyr eyes. Took another inhale. Goddamn, xe’d need this whole fucking joint to make it to xyr den without stabbing an idiot like Kole in the face.

Paws flexed. The cheetah’s claws couldn’t sheathe or unsheathe like most cats, but there was tension. Relief xyr mom was dead—xe’d never liked that bitch—and a bit of relief, too, about the sibling xe’d hated the most. Glad xe didn’t have to see those two idiots anymore. But, damn, xe’d actually liked two of xyr siblings. Internally, xe felt like a tornado carrying a hodgepodge of emotional garbage.

Exhale. More smoke. And the cheetah blinked lazily. Xe shrugged xyr shoulder.

“You want to carry this shit for me?” Xanti had already pulled the satchel off and was holding it to Kole expectantly. “Nothin’ fragile. Bunch of stainless steel metal tools. Easier to sanitize and sharper than bone weapons.”

Xanti ducked into the entrance to the cave system. Xyr weed-dialated eyes blinked in the darkness, in the illuminating torchling.

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