FSE

Furry search engine

formerly SoFurry search engine

The Missing Links

Alright, y'all. This story here will be a multi-chaptered work that will fill in the holes that were left in the movie where we experienced large jumps in time. Enjoy.

Chapter 1: Comforts

The low clouds, heavy from prolonged condensational build up, blocked out the meager moon causing the already dark night sky to become as thick and black as the ink from a pen. There was wind on this night, strong wind that roared aggressively over the land and made the canopies of the many trees sing with the rhythm of the raging storm, breathing deeply with its ominous intake. The rain that fell was carried lightly on the wind, blowing in at acute angles as it journeyed swiftly from the sky to the ground, hitting in a cascade of little droplets. The rain immediately wet everything that it touched, bleeding through the canopy of the forest to the ground and turning the dry grain dirt into slippery, soggy mud. Shallow rivets and holes that lay imbedded in the clay became small streams or puddles of water and everywhere could be heard the sound of thunder as it clapped hostilely after each persistent flash of lightning. The bolts of electricity would illuminate high in the sky and briefly make the land as bright as day and then would disappear just as quickly as they had come, throwing the world into darkness yet again. The earth seemed dead, desolate in the presence of this storm, all forms of life absent from the open spaces as it raged, daring any to come out and challenge it. However, despite the violent storm, life prevailed.

Watching from the security of a freshly made den, just large enough to spend the night in comfortably, were two lupus canines, the male of the pair lying alone toward the back where he hoped to keep dry. However, the female of the two seemed restless, the amber furred she-wolf sitting near the mouth of the little makeshift den and watching the storm with great anticipation. She had a lot of trouble on her mind at present: the storm hindering their progress, the impending war that waited for her at home, the wolf that she would be forced to marry, and she thought about her grey companion in the back of the den and the predicament that she now found herself in as a result of the thoughtless act that he had committed. She didn't know what to think about him, for her thoughts were so conflicting that they were in no way close to conclusive as to how she should feel or what she should do at the given moment. She was still slightly bitter at the fact that he had practically ruined their chances of getting home and over something as asinine as a little cupcake; but she was also in light that she now owed him her life. She knew that if it were not for his unwavering desire to follow after her, even after she had just left him alone in the rain, and his valiance in dangerous situations, she would have died a quite horrible death in that gorge. For that she would be eternally grateful; but as she forced that problem away from her mind, her thoughts settled upon something else, an old wound that lay so deep inside she felt as though it would never heal. Nearly all of her forethought now revolved around one thing in particular; one old memory that always crept into her mind on nights like this, when the world seemed to cry for her. She sighed deeply, subconsciously, as she thought back on the memory that she so desperately wished to forget. She flattened her ears against her skull and closed her eyes slightly as she pictured his face, young and free and innocent. She could still see him smiling up at her, could still hear his laughter, and she felt as though she could still smell his scent through the rain, though she knew that it was impossible.

"Kate?" she heard from behind her, the voice belonging to her male counterpart.

Said wolf pricked her ears into attention when she heard the sound and turned behind her, finding the male sitting up on his haunches and regarding her inquisitively with his deep aqua eyes.

"Kate, why don't you rest," he said softly, "you've had a long day."

Kate said nothing and simply turned her head back to the front, returning her attention to the storm. The grey male sighed in defeat and lowered his head slightly, letting his ears droop limply above his skull, and then rose to his feet. He waited for a brief moment, contemplating whether or not he should approach his friend, and after a span of a couple dozen seconds he slowly made his way over to her side, arriving wordlessly and taking a seat left of her. For a long while the two simply sat, watching through the thick film of drips that fell from the top lip of the den, the ever-present rain as it pounded the earth outside. The grey male could sense the pain that his amber companion felt, but he didn't know how to approach such a delicate subject, for he knew what it was that troubled her so. He fumbled quietly with his paws as he thought, trying to think of exactly the right thing to say. Multiple ideas popped into his head, but just as he would have something that he could build on, he would trash the idea and find something else to say. The silence droned, the only sounds being that of the storm outside and the soft, slow rhythm of the pair's breathing.

"You miss him don't you," the grey wolf finally stated, his voice low and his tone deep.

Kate sighed and let her head fall slowly, closing her eyes in an attempt to fight back the tears that stung her eyes. The grey wolf saw this and he laid a gentle paw on her shoulder, silently encouraging her to speak.

"It- it was so long ago, but it feels like it happened yesterday," Kate said sadly, her voice choked to the slightest of degrees by the tears.

"Do you want to talk about it?" he asked as he slowly rubbed her shoulder, even though he already knew the story.

Kate didn't answer. She only turned her head forward and let it hang low to her chest.

"Come on, Kate," the grey male said comfortingly, "It will help if you talk about it."

Kate sniffled and took a long, collective breath before slowly lifting her head up and opening her teary eyes.

"I miss him more than you could even imagine," she mused sadly, "even though it's been almost a year since the accident, I still can't help but remember, and when I do it breaks my heart because I know that I could've prevented it."

The grey male turned Kate's face to his with his paw, but she jerked away.

"Kate, look at me," he pleaded softly and turned her face to him again.

He stared deep into her watery, amber eyes for a long moment, almost as though he were trying to alleviate Kate's anguish with his gaze.

"You can't blame yourself for what happened to Jake," he said to her firmly, "you were only a pup."

Kate bit back a sob when she heard his name.

"B-ut I was supposed to look after him," she whined miserably, "if I had only done as mom and dad told me and not left him all alone in the den, he would still be alive."

The grey male pulled her into a comforting hug, wrapping his forelegs protectively about her shoulders.

"You had a moment of weakness, Kate, that's all," he said softly to her, "what pup wouldn't want to go play in the river with their friends?"

Kate sniffled.

"But what kind of big sister leaves her two week old brother alone and unattended in her parents' den?" she asked in rebuff.

The grey male released his grip on her and extended his arms out so that he still held her, something that he had always wanted to do, and could look her in the face.

"Kate, kids do stupid things," he said to her, "regardless of who they are or what they are told. Accidents are bound to happen."

Kate just couldn't hold back her tears anymore and she erupted into a fit of hysterical crying.

"Bu-ut m- my d-is-obid-ia-ance g-got J-Jake killed," she choked between her sobs, "a-nd I-'ve had t-to li-ive with that for m-y entire l-ife."

"Kate, nobody would've ever expected something like that to happen," he condoled, "It was a freak accident that nobody had any control over."

Kate tried to arrest her tears, but all she managed to do was throw herself into a fit of short and choppy gasps as she tried to breath.

"B-ut I c-ould- have save-d him," she argued through her gasps.

"You don't know that for sure," he replied, patting the back of her neck, "your presence would not have stopped your parents' den from collapsing, and if you and Lilly had been there you would have died as well."

"Bu-ut w-hy was-s-s it him-m?" she asked miserably, "wh-what did he-e do to deser-erve to die?"

The male again pulled her into his body and this time Kate broke down and buried her face into the fur on his chest.

"I can't answer that Kate," he condoled, gently stroking the back of her neck, "it was just his time to go."

"But it's not fair!" Kate suddenly yelled, pulling her face away from Humphrey and glaring back at him with bloodshot eyes, "He was too young to die!" she screamed, her voice loud enough to drown out the thunder from the storm, "He had only just opened his eyes that morning!"

The grey male pulled her in closer to his body and allowed her to cry into his shoulder, once again stroking the back of her neck with his gentle paw.

"Shh, Kate I know," he whispered, continuing to rub her neck, "I know."

Kate could not explain why, but she felt so... safe, so secure in his arms, almost as though his body was absorbing all of the pain from hers, almost as though with each gentle brush of his paw over the back of her neck, her sorrow was brushed away like a thin layer of sand being swept softly away by the wind from the face of a rock. His scent, a mixture of pine and musk, seemed to put her at ease, and before she could even begin to realize what she was doing, she began to indulge herself in his chest, losing herself in heaven as his warm fur radiated so softly against her face, as the steady rhythm of his heartbeat pounded so soothingly against her cheek, as his warm scent so pleasantly wafted into her nostrils.

Each brush seemed to sooth her further, as the male could feel, for the longer she remained in his arms, the more and more her muscles loosened up until finally, she felt as though completely relaxed, but despite the state of easement that her body was in, tears still rolled down her face, though now they snaked slowly through the fur on her cheeks.

Kate sniffed and buried her face deeper into the fur on his chest, almost as though trying to bury herself completely into his body, and as her face brushed slowly against his soft fur, all of her tears were wiped away.

The male, now realizing that her fit was nearly over, squeezed her tightly against his chest for a moment then slowly loosened his grip, extending his arms so that she was once again held at a distance from his body and so that he may look upon her eyes once again.

As she was separated from his body, Kate slowly lifted her head and once her eyes settled upon her companion, she allowed the most meager of smiles to tug at the corners of her mouth.

"Feeling better?" he asked her gently, mirroring her smile with one of his own.

Kate sniffled and used the side of her paw to wipe the stray tears from her face and nodded.

"Well I'm glad," he began, "no more cryi-"

His sentence was cut short when he felt her lips press firmly against his, and for a moment, his entire body became stiff, as this was a complete surprise to him, but after a matter of a few seconds, his initial shock wore off, his body relaxed, and he did what his mind so loudly screamed at him to do; he allowed his lips to become firm against hers and kissed her back. He melted at this point, feeling his heart beginning to race, feeling his spirit beginning to soar, for this right here was all he had ever wanted, all he had ever needed.

After about ten seconds, Kate pulled away from the kiss and stared at him with a smile.

"Thank you," she said to him.

His eyes slowly opened as they separated, fearing that he would wake up to find it all to be a dream, but when his eyes settled upon Kate, he knew that this was real.

He smiled.

"Don't mention it," he replied, masking his blush with his grin.

Kate's smile broadened and she gave him a quick hug then turned away.

"Come on, Humphrey," she said to him, "let's get some sleep. We have a long road ahead of us."

Humphrey was still in the throes of shock, but nodded and slowly began to follow, though his knees struggled to support his weight so shaky were they from the joy he had experienced, and as Kate curled herself up against the wall of the den, he knew that she was going to be his forever...

Chapter 2 will be out just as soon as possible. Like what you saw? Don't be afraid to leave a comment. Didn't like what you saw? Don't be afraid to leave a comment. All feedback is crucial in the business of writing.