ORIGIN

It was too late - by the time Leon had committed himself to trying again, all the magic in his paws had faded away into nothingness. There was no heat left, just the body warmth that occurred naturally to him. Granted he ran at a higher temperature than most anyways, it still wouldn't be enough to help the capybara. Leon froze, watching wide-eyed as Carrie decided that she just wanted to stand up. Before he could do anything to stop her, she was already getting up. Leon glanced at Makyna again and brought both fore-paws up to his mouth, nervously scratching at his face while Carrie struggled to stand. Then, a sudden crrraack - and everyone froze.

If Leon's eyes could go any wider, they'd probably pop right out of his head. He stared at the frozen limb that now bore a deep crack near the borders of the frostbite. His own heart pounded deafeningly, and he feared it was loud enough that everyone else could hear. When a voice entered his head, he glanced to Makyna. He knew it was hers, and it was instinct that he turned to look at her, mulling over her words. Did she seriously just suggest... Leon looked back at Carrie's leg and his heart sank. Even if they could thaw her leg again, that crack would have done irreparable damage to the tissue. Even if they did fix the leg, it would still be deeply wounded with a thick gash... assuming the tissue would be usable at all after being frozen solid. She was right. They would probably have to remove it.

The bear sucked in a slow breath, struggling to remain calm. He never thought he'd have to do something like this. Like, ever. "Carrie... maybe you should.. lay down again..." The bear mumbled stiffly. He glanced back at Makyna, just to double check that they were both on the same page. He'd find a way to remove the leg if he had to, but he didn't want to jump the gun. Severing limbs was kind of a big deal.

While Makyna got to work comforting the capybara and trying to prevent her from looking at her leg any further, Leon shuffled back, hanging near her frozen limb. He had received confirmation from Makyna that the plan was to remove her leg, but Leon still found himself hesitating. He wasn't sure exactly how to do this. He had no idea. All fire could do was burn, could it do more than that? Could it sever a limb? The thought alone frightened him, and whether or not he could do it was even more terrifying.

The lioness lowered her voice and delivered the news to Carrie. Once she had whispered those dreadful words, Leon took it as his cue to get to work. He didn't wait for Carrie to answer - he couldn't, because this had to be done, and if she cried and begged him to stop it would only make him feel worse. He had to do it before she had a chance to react. So, the boy summoned all his head again. He could feel it pulsing through his veins, beginning to accumulate in his limbs. For a brief moment, he feared that his spell would backfire and he would befall the same fate as Carrie. But no - Leon had to be confident. He knew he could do this. He had to, for Carrie's sake.

Holding his breath, Leon squeezed his eyes shut and pressed his paws to Carrie's leg again, at the junction of the frozen tissue and where it remained untouched. All of his focus went onto her, and he shut out everything else. Time for this leg to go.

Post Roll Edit:
His skin was getting hotter and hotter, even moreso than when he usually used his magic. It was beginning to burn him, but mostly he could feel the heat begin to cut through the capybara's unresponsive flesh. Magic burned through the limb, almost like lava; it destroyed the tendons and muscle that connected to the bone, fizzling through the tough tissue. The smell of burning skin and hair filled the room, filled his nose; it burned his paws too, and he gritted his teeth, trying to hold out as long as he could. Finally, the heat had eaten away at her frozen limb; once it detached, it dropped to the ground, leaving the open wound an ugly surface of seared flesh. But he persisted - he covered the amputation with his paws, feeling the skin and tissue and bone sizzle beneath his touch until it had successfully cauterized.

Once the job was done, Leon uttered a small cry and pulled away from her. The skin of his paw pads had begun to smoke, his own flesh charred. Tears gathered in the corners of his eyes as he backed away, staring in shock at what he'd done. All he could do was fall onto his rump and nurse his paws, lost for words. He sympathized for the capybara, but he knew no amount of sympathy could possibly match what she had just gone through.

His heart pounded wildly in his chest. When the capybara's small voice begged for him not to unleash his heat upon her leg, his heart twisted, and his stomach felt as heavy as lead. This was probably going to be among the most painful things she would ever experience. Nobody deserved to feel this kind of pain, not so early in their lives, anyways. His heart reached out to her, and when he had finally severed the leg, he was recoiled from the burning pain and stared at the seared stump that was once an intact limb. Carrie cried, her sobs muffled by Makyna's fur. Even Leon was on the verge of tears, with no idea of what to make of the situation. He stared, his mind numb. Then, quiet voices began to fill the room.

The sound rose in harmonic waves. It echoed between the walls of the tunnel, quiet and moderate and metered. It was soothing, a fair distraction from the pain he had just unleashed on the capybara. Leon himself fell silent, sniffling once and then tearing his eyes away, listening to the quiet songs that lulled his wild heart. Makyna's voice would soon fill the gap in the interwoven whispers, a gentle hum to the melody of the voices. He blinked away the wetness in the corner of his eyes and slowly pulled himself to his feet. First, he awkwardly took the frozen leg in his jaws and nestled it behind some rocks, out of sight. Then Leon slunk around Makyna, stopping to stand on the other side of Carrie. There, he slid onto his stomach, pressing his shoulder against her side in an attempt to comfort her, while listening to his friend's lullaby. They shouldn't stay here for long, but Leon wasn't going to push them to leave. Not yet.