a - Printable Version

Cardan could barely hear Diem's voice this time. It scratched lightly against his ears while the hearts pounded. babump..babump..babump…

Neither her magic worked to calm it nor did time alter it very much. He could hear where they're at, but he could not pinpoint the accuracy. A shiver sent down his spine.

"No..no.. it's never been this loud before! I've had.. times it's been.. uhm less loud!"

Cardan knew even when she couldn't hear it, he felt he had to speak louder to know what he was saying.

"There's..
I think.. some in the trees.. and some below.."

His eyes blinked, traveling to the sounds. But they moved. They moved way quicker than he wanted them to. But hey, food was essential wasn't it?

"Speaking"

@Diem Dark

RE: a - Diem Dark - May 19 2025

Okay, Diem, you can do this. Calm. Patience. Take a breath. It wasn't that she was impatient. But she felt some measure of urgency, like if she didn't help Cardan now, something terrible might happen and he'd never figure it out. It made no sense, but that's why she took a breath and tried to dismiss the thought entirely.

"Okay. Give it a minute, and then let me know which one you'd like to go after?" she suggested, offering another smile.

She'd let him go at his own pace, and let him make the decision--unless he started to panic, of course. Then she could take a bit of a lead, but she didn't want to be overbearing. She was trying to teach, not to lead.

@Cardan

RE: a - Cardan - May 24 2025

The noises may have slowed down, gotten a bit quieter. It was beginning to fall too quiet for him. This can't be happening. Why was this happening? To him? Why can he hear so well and not enough at the same time?

His paws felt heavy, his body trembled. Breathing was shallow, chest heaving. It was fine.. nothing dared deem to be danger. Other than the fact he felt cold.

Cardans throat felt dry, his paws shyly brought him to step back. He felt small- too small. The trees felt too tall, the ground felt like it could swallow him up. All he felt like he should do was let it. Words blurted from his muzzle, trying to comfort himself.

"It's fine.. It's fine."

Then a whisper.

"It's not fine..”

Why! Why! Why was it just him! Why did he have to hear these sounds? Why couldn't they go away? Why couldn't his power be better than this?

"Speaking"

@Diem Dark

RE: a - Diem Dark - May 25 2025

Diem wasn't sure what to do. Most of her interaction with this poor kid had, so far, been a matter of him cowering at noises only he could hear. And... there was only so much she could do about that. She could offer advice; she'd done that. She could offer help but her magic had failed, and it wasn't like it was permanent. She could wait: and she was. She was waiting. But nothing seemed to be getting better.

So she was sort of stumped.

She reached out in an attempt to awkwardly pat his shoulder, but her look of vague consternation remained. She was sort of helpless to help, here. And she didn't want to speak while he was like this; would her voice not cause more harm, if his ears were so sensitive..?

@Cardan

RE: a - Cardan - Jun 06 2025

The noises slowly calmed down. The loud thumping went to fall silent. But he wasn't sure what to do. Torn between running away like a coward or turning to Diem. Cardan felt useless. He couldn't hunt. He couldn't walk.

What else was next? What else couldn't he do? He shook his head. Running away.. to be free. Some place had to be paradise. Some place had to take him away from the noises. Couldn't.. anything free him?

Why was everything so damn sensitive? He was the odd one out. None others seemed to have issues. He hated it. He hated his leg.

Cardan even felt helpless. So he ran. The dark brown wolf pulled his paws forward and ran for it. Whether to hide or run. It didn't matter. He needed to get away.

"Speaking"

@Diem Dark
(I'm sorry for him :(( exit unless stopped at all)

RE: a - Diem Dark - Jun 07 2025

She stood up with alarm as the puppy just... ran. Her eyes widened as she hastily stood, taking a couple quick steps after him--but then she stopped. "Wait, kid! -Wait!" She'd wanted to teach him, at least; to show him how to calm his food. What if he frigging starved?! But...

Chasing him wasn't a good idea, either. He was running away; he wanted to get away. So she hesitated, and called out again. "I'll hang out for awhile if you change your mind? I can help you find food!" she repeated.

Then, frowning a little, she sat down. She'd wait a few hours; maybe into the night. Potter around, drink some water, play with Bitey. And if Cardan didn't come back, well... Diem would check back. But she wasn't going to force the pup to learn from her; he was obviously terrified.

@Cardan (for visibility at least--let me know if he doesn't come back, and then Diem will also exit to end the thread!)