[TWWM] Those Connected by Fate

Location: India (Early Autumn)

Sun parched grape vines, twisted and darkened with neglect, matted with unknown flora as nature desperately reclaimed her land. Kaito felt exposed, vulnerable. Flynn had vanished, back to his own time, to an unknown realm that Kaito had yet to discover. He was not afraid, just nervous. Nervous about the aura he knew felt safe, and yet somehow felt oddly disjointed...frightened...alone.

As he followed the call, followed what felt like a trail of fog, so faint and flickering that he often doubted its existence, he found himself feeling excited.

An edge crept into his mind, a new barrier. He had long since left the safety of the human world, a world he now belonged with even more than when he himself had been a human. He realized that perhaps this in-between was somewhere else… not tidy enough to have been the human realm, but not far enough into the trees to be the forest realm either. He felt the edges as they lapped at each other, nature pulling towards each other, as one tree grew, or another fell, taken hold by the rolling hills and grasses that played beneath the vines.

Now, as he approached the edge of the forest, it seemed incredibly dark and looming. Unlike the plains he's traversed thus far, being new and meager, this forest was powerful. Deep, dark and foreboding, and although Kaito couldn't seem to pin the feeling down, he felt as if the shadows themselves watched him here.

The aura called to him though, and clearing his mind, he stepped foot bravely into the realm of towering titans, trees and moss and rugged earth-feel ran rampant here. Wild and untamed. He let out a soft gasp as the breath of the earth seemed to coil itself up his legs, the smell of dirt and moss clinging to him, begging him to stay. This land was strange to him, and yet, he felt at home in his purpose. He knew that no matter where his love was, no matter the distance or trial, this was his purpose. Knowing this, his mind was calm, and he carried on.

The aura called still, and so deeper he dared. Past the smaller trees that dappled the edges of the powerful land, and even past the towering giants, looming higher than he could even see, lost amidst a canopy of woven evergreen needles that matted the sky. Still further he trekked, mud climbing up his snow-white legs, brambles clinging to his mane. He could of phased right through these things, cast them off as the spirited ones are apt to do. So focused he was on the trail of sense however, the thought hadn't even occurred to him. And so onward he went, becoming more and more tangled, up sharp embankments, and down steep ravines.

His paws crunched softly among the carpet of leaves, unkempt as it were, years of green and orange and brown and finally back to dirt, the layers squished gleefully at his step. He crested an embankment, rising above it carefully as to discern the best path down the other side. His eyes traced the edges of the hill, a fallen log, a small stream that coursed through the valley below, scanning until…

There, at the edge of the gently winding rivulet, sat an esk. Sunlight fell through the leaves, splashing brilliantly against the water, showering her in glints of light and glow. Her back was turned to him, but he knew in an instant it was her.

Words could not find him, so overflowing with joy he became. Without a thought, he flung himself down the hill, half floating, half careening into the underbrush. Moss and twigs erupted from the hillside as he burst into being behind her.

Spinning to see what the commotion was, her eyes widened in both surprise and curiosity. She was not as intuitive as he when it came to the sensing of spirits, and he was nearly upon her before she realized…

“KAITO!?” she cried, springing to her feet.

“OH COSETTE IT IS YOU!!” he cried, sliding to a stop before her, tears bursting from his eyes.

Without hesitating she rushed forward, closing the gap between them, and buried her face in his chest. “Oh Kaito, sweet Kaito!! You’ve found me! Oh thank you! I...I…”She broke down, sobbing uncontrollably.

“Oh no, no sweet girl, please don't cry my love…” he said, sitting down and cradling her in his arms. “Please my love, it is alright now, everything will be alright.” he crooned, calming her.

Her sobs became weaker as she sank into his soft mane, as cluttered with burrs and briers as it was. Finally she pulled away, staring at him from thin black eyes. “Oh Kaito, what have they done to us? I am so sorry…”

He hushed her and pulled a paw down her trembling shoulder. “Shh, shh, everything is alright. We are together again, and that's all that matters.”

His eyes were dark and round, pushed upwards in a squinting smile of sorts, tears of joy trailed down his soft white face as he stared at her, almost not believing that he truly found her at last. The joy she felt at his arrival seemed overshadowed though, and he sensed turmoil in her heart.

"Oh Cosette, what is it? Are you not happy that I've come?"

"No... I've just... I am in pain it seems, always. I have so many regrets... this is all my fault..." she stumbled over her words, rushing to explain between more tears. "That night... a telegram, my father..." another sob escaped, and Kaito pulled her into a hug. "Its alright my love, shhh."

She cried softly into his fur, trying to explain the tangle of events and emotions. "My father, he's gone... I ran, I wanted to run away from it all... but I still had you, I should of stayed... and now...we're lost to the world...forever."

"What do you mean?" he asked, not understanding her deep dismay.

She pulled away again, looking shocked. "Whoever did this to you... didn't they tell you? This is forever!" she gestured to herself.

"Oh, I know that. I just don't feel lost, to the world. I feel whole, as if my entire life was leading me to you, even in this form." tranquility and calm seemed to pour off him, and it unnerved her.

"You're not upset? We're...monsters...ghosts...Some kind of crazy earth spirit creatures! I'm lost! I'm trapped here in the forest! It feels like home but I wanted so badly to go to you... I did go to you!! You couldn't even see me!! I tried so hard...and you...you just walked away..." she cried again, pounding a foot against the ground.

"Oh Cosette, I'm so sorry. I never knew! I spent three whole months searching everywhere for you, my father surely thought me mad! My love, I'd give anything to make you feel safe, please."

Tears streamed down her face, her emotions were twisted and raw, and she felt selfish for being sad at a time like this.

"I don't even feel like Cosette any longer... I've moved on, this life is strange and new..."

"You could be called mud and I would still love you." he said jokingly, gently papping her snout with his paw.

"Oh stop it, you silly." she batted at his paw, trying not to giggle. "You always know how to help me."

His eyes squinted upwards, "You look lovely you know..." she pulled her head downward, blushing inwardly. "So, what do I call you now my love?"

She giggled, suddenly feeling silly. "I've been calling myself Sauvi... after my father's favorite wine."

"Sauvi" he said, testing the word in his mind. "Its lovely."

She felt she would burst, he was so kind, even as strange as she must look. Seeming to sense her thoughts, he spoke again.

"You're not a monster Sauvi, your spirit may be ... fragile... but you are still the same sweet girl who I fell in love with four months ago."

"Even as I am? This?" she gestured at herself again, "We're spirits now, what about our life together? What about getting married?"

He pulled her close, hugging her tight. "Shh, don't worry yourself with that. That might be so, but nothing will change the fact that I will always be here for you." He held her away, looking into her eyes with all seriousness. "I swear to you. What you look like matters nothing to me. I will always love you."

She gazed into his dark eyes, dapples of sunlight flitting across his soft face. "You will? You'll never leave?"

"Never. I swear to you. I will stay by your side, and love and protect you always. I swear it."

They sat close to each other in silence for a spell, simply reveling in each other's presence.

Kaito broke the silence, having been thinking on something she'd said. "You don't honestly believe you're a monster...do you?"

She shrugged sullenly. "I don't know... I'm not human...I've been changed into something I don't understand..."

"Truly? A girl, raised in the vineyards, who loved and cared for the vines as if they were her whole world... You don't see this as natural? As fate?" he gestured to the cluster of beautiful purple grapes that hung from her back.

She shifted uncomfortably, trying to find flaw with his words, but failing.

"You are a spirit of the vineyard, of the earth, your colors swirl together like a sunset sky, and you carry the vineyard with you into this life. I can't imagine a more beautiful result from all this."

She shifted again, turning to look at him. "Oh...that just made me realize... You don't seem to have any...plants, i suppose."

"Oh that! Yes, I have a few. They only seem to appear when I'm near my home though.

"Home..." she whispered, realizing her 'home' was here in the forest now. "That makes sense."

"Yes. So... is this where your home is? By this stream?"

"Oh...no. I just was wandering a bit. I can show you... if you'd like."

"I'd love to."

And so, the pair rose and walked side by side, her long dark tail swishing next to his. His high pale shoulders keeping stride, slowly to match her shorter legs, as her darker body wove through the trees next to him. She seemed at home here, but also very conflicted. He could sense that she had an injured soul, something just wasn't right. He mourned for her joy, and hoped that he may be able to return it to her one day. Only if by time, he would spend all eternity if thats what it took. He glanced down at her as she walked, her pointed little nose dipping towards the ground as she trotted.

'Let me heal your heart...' he thought to himself as they disappeared in shadow.