ORIGIN

Somehow - miraculously - Bones wasn't dead. He couldn't quite remember what happened after he was thrown, or how he even managed to get here, but he was alive, and he was crawling up tunnel K.

Crawling, was indeed an accurate word. The wild dog's back legs felt like they no longer worked and perhaps they didn't. Bones hadn't dared to look back in fear of the fact that if they are indeed dragging behind him, he may never run or even walk again - but he was making some good progress, so perhaps they were working. He just couldn't feel them right now.

The smell of blood still hadn't left his nostrils, not just his own, but the foal's blood, too. Part of the reason why he hadn't looked back, other than his legs, was the blood that coated the fur on his back. He'd have to wash himself eventually, of course, but for now he had to get home. He missed home.

Bones was tired, too. He deserved a rest, he thought. But instead of what he thought would be gently lying down, he instead simply flopped hollowly onto the ground of the cave tunnel with a sharp whine, closing his eyes. He thought he'd be okay - but perhaps he was wrong. He sure didn't feel okay right now.

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A short whine left Bones' throat. He was happy to see his friend again and he needed him a lot right now, but his back hurt. He wasn't sure why Kerberos was so big to begin with, but he watched the giant white legs and even caught sight of one of his faces, but they were oddly blurry, as if he were made of something that had been smudged and ruined, almost unrecognizable.

His hearing wasn't much better - he heard the words, but they sounded as if they were underwater. It made his head hurt, a little, but he managed to take note of how warm Kerberos was, which then made him realise he was cold.

"I-I don't know," whimpered the blood-covered dog. Breathing in the cold air burned his throat and his lungs, it hurt almost as much as his back did. "G-Giggle might... Giggle might help." To his own (very large) ears, Bones did not sound like himself. He sounded like an old man at the end of his days rather than a young child, and he might have looked even worse than he sounded. The pup's neck moved slightly, as if trying to guide his head to lick the blood off his back, but he soon found it lying limp on the floor.

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Giggle's head snapped up as she heard her name howled--no, bellowed. There was a tone of urgency, and anyway he didn't normally call for her--she didn't think about it. She had scrambled up and was rocketing off in a lopsided, lurching gallop--running as fast as she could--toward the exit of the cave.

She'd never even ventured into the darkness before, but in she charged, letting out a shrill cackle as she went. It wasn't a sound of humor, though--it was an alert, a question, a call.

"Kerberos?" she cried, barking the name sharply. Did he need help? He'd proven himself an ally and--like it or not, and whether or not this turned out to be a trap--she felt protective of the dog. She--

She skidded to a halt, paws scrabbling and kicking up a plume of dust, as the pair came into sight. The massive white dog was standing over Bones, who was lying quietly in the black of the cave. Giggle bolted to him, scrambling up to him and sniffing frantically over his body, over his wounds, like any good and panicked mother.

His back smelled of burned flesh--reeked of it, in fact--and dried blood matted the fur all the way around.

Panic rose in her, terror, even, and she gasped a little as she spat out her questions. "What happened? What happened to you--what happened to him?!" she asked sharply, looking from Bones to Kerberos. She immediately looked back down, moving with terrified energy, sniffing and licking over Bones's face but not whining--never whining. She didn't want to frighten him even more.

But she had to know what had happened before she could try to help. Bones, she hoped he'd be all right...

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Roll the bones.

Bones watched the blurry figure of Kerberos run off, and soon heard his bellowed cry, though he couldn't make out the words as his eyes slowly shut. He felt strange - the pain had seemingly subsided for now, though he was cold and every limb felt horribly stiff. He thought, briefly, about running through Canis and unsurprisingly it didn't help much to comfort him, as his mind only drifted back to his legs and how stiff they were.

That was soon sorted though as warmth surrounded him after a few moments. He could ear something low but sharp, but again he didn't know what it was. He lay like this for a while, almost at peace. Another noise came, perhaps someone talking. A different voice from Kerberos. A voice he hadn't heard in a while, but certainly one he welcomed with open arms.

As a hot tongue draw over his face he tried his best to open his eyes again, though found his eyelids to be quite simply too heavy. He tried to open his mouth to talk, but instead there came another whine that rumbled in his throat. He shifted slightly, which brought the pain back, shooting down his spine. He whined again, sharper this time, as he tried to croak out words. "Mm.. mom...?"


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Giggle took a deep breath as she listened, glancing sharply up at Kerberos as he threatened to eat her. She wasn't entirely sure if he meant it as a threat, or if he was as panicked as she was, but her response came stern and swift.

"We're both going to help him. Get him onto your back; I'll make sure he doesn't fall. I'll help get him up. Or just carry him in your teeth, but we need to get him back to Canis, get him near water. Come on."

Giggle quickly trotted over and gave Bones a few more licks, then tried to grip him by the scruff of his neck, preparing to lift him onto Kerberos's back, if she was at all able.

Her mind was racing, tackling so many things at once.

What happened to him? Oh, Bones, what happened? I hope we're fast enough. How bad are his injuries?--I need to get him warm. Get the wound cleaned, get water into him. Get mushrooms on him, the ones that eat dead away. How much blood did he lose? Will Kerberos lose his mind and turn on me halfway back? I can't fight him, if he does. Shit, shit, shit.

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Roll the bones.

The painted dog allowed himself to be lifted. He had grown significantly since Giggle would have last seen him, now about two and a half feet at the shoulder, though he was still scrawny. There was only a faint whine as he was placed onto Kerberos, if he even allowed it.

Bones wasn't sure what was happening anymore. Things were simply doing things. As he slouched on the hound's back, he slowly closed his eyes. He realised that, limping all the way from Eridanus to tunnel K with an injured back took it out of him.

Maybe he could get some sleep here. It was warm, anyway.


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