COTTON CANDY LIPS && open

playing was something pale had rarely done. rarely engaged, rarely safe enough to be out in the open for so long. yet here had echoed songs that lulled him into a false sense of security. though, he wanted no one to gaze upon him as he had danced between snow piles, kicking up frosted grass and having the soft laugh of a canary. prints had lead a map to him, a wispy tail flying in the wind. while his fur was usually messy, it increased with snowflakes tucked into the soft warmth. dampening him ever so slightly. his heart, growing wings and playing with jaybirds.

that was until he heard a thunderous crack. one that took everything away from him. fur, once relaxed and dancing like a whipping flag, tight and raised. a bayonet raised towards the sky in warning. the once pounding wings falling as icarus had. deeper and deeper into his painful twisting stomach as his hind leg moved quickly from the spot. a crunch under the other to send him into a different directions. rattlesnakes played their warning songs in his ears as pale had flattened himself against the stabbing bark of a tree. claws refusing to come and shield him, and his throat burned with pain. tears stung at mixed lenses and the world grew dark.

until it was cleared again by the sun pushing his fears away. a stick. a leaf. the horrors that caused him to panic and start forgiving everyone who had done him wrong. foolish embarrassment washed over the tom, staring blankly at what caused him to change so quickly. "a....a stick." came a muted note, muscles still tense and his body under an earthquake. hopefully no one had seen this....