4. Dark (100 Theme Challenge)
Amber needed to get away from her mother; the young rat couldn't take any more of her drunken rants and beatings. She didn't know where to run to except for the local park she'd hide away in when she was little. She wore what she would always wear when she retreated this time of the year: jeans that allowed her naked tail to stick out comfortably, whatever t-shirt she grabbed, and her favorite, yellow pull-over hoodie that had a hood which fit comfortably over her round ears and fiery red hair. She was never comfortable wearing the specialized footwear and gloves to keep her digits warm; she got used to the cold and the various textures on the ground that rubbed against her feet paws. Unlike her previous retreats, she left the key to her house and her mom's car; she only carried what she needed: one of her dad's old wallets for money and identity, a cheap pay phone for emergencies, and a desire to never return.Like nearly all of the inhabitants of Axeford, she was one of the half-humans: animal-like beings that had a general human-like figure to them. Some say they're better than humans, some say they're worse, some say they're just like humans but look a little different. Amber had no interest in those kind of debates, or any for that matter; she had enough to worry about after graduating high school a year ago.
She walked a good ways from her house and soon found herself standing in front of her usual starting point. A trailhead poked out of the boundary of the park. Not too far off ahead, Amber could see how it forked once it reached the creek. Wherever ground the trail and the creek didn't cover, the deciduous trees and fallen leaves did. "Ok...no turning back this time," she tried to encourage herself, "maybe you'll find someone to crash with until you get it together."She entered. The skies became overcast, ever so slowly greying out the sunlight. Every day became more and more of a blur to Jeremy, as if they were slowly morphing together into one unit of time and losing their distinction. Yet the young fruit bat remembers why he came here in the first place, why he had to run: he came out to his parents his senior year of high school. Since then, he hasn't gone back. He's lived in a cave in Hartmann Park just trying to survive on his own. The colder months were always the worst, and he hated asking passersby for supplies. He too was one of the half-humans and, being a bat, his wings were attached to his arms rather than his back, like the avians or the dragons he's seen around Axeford. His white fur wasn't thick enough to combat the cold, and longs sleeves won't work for him. He could almost feel the chilling winds from outside passing through his thin, maroon wings; those sounds were too much for his large, sensitive ears at times. He only had on from when he left his parents: an old, grey tank top ratted with age and use, loose jeans that also shown wear and tear,
and a black leather belt that's seen better days. His short, black hair was greasy too, even though he would sneak a bath in the nearby creek outside when it was warmer. Only his two ring piercings on his left ear were still shiny despite being exposed to the elements.
But with all this, he felt right at home. Jeremy was a natural cave-dweller, as all bats are, and his parents' house emulated that natural environment. The low lighting, natural moisture, various cave formations, the gems reflecting any light that would come inside, and the right depth comforted him. He had no real need to leave. Jeremy woke up in the middle of the afternoon, still clinging upside-down on his perch in the cave. He stretched his arms downward and yawned before gliding off his perch, righting himself up. Not having slept too far into the cave, he walked to the cave entrance when he noticed a pounding snowstorm outside."Winter came early this year," he muttered, his voice sounding a bit feminine, "It's only mid-November and now this?"The snow was coming down hard and was carried by the fierce wind. It aided in knocking down any remaining leaves the trees had left, and blanketed the exposed ground in front of Jeremy's cave. The creek that flowed throughout the park, now becoming a frozen vein, passed in front of the deep cave in the park. The cloudy, mid-afternoon skies grayed out any sunlight as they continued to unleash snow onto the earth.
Jeremy quickly hugged himself, rubbing his wing arms. "Shit. Can't be going out today. Wish I would've prepared to hibernate sooner." He faced downward to keep his face out of the wind.His ears became numb, but were still able to pick up something. He heard a female voice muttering profanities mixed in with a few squeaks of distress. He moved his head back up some, only to get a better view outside. He noticed a small, petite brown rat struggling to make her way out of the woods in the deep snow, almost tripping with each step. When she got to the open area in front of his cave, the strong winds blew her hood off her head, exposing her hair and round ears. He ran out of the cave towards the rat girl. "Hey out there!" he shouted to her.She looked up at him, squinting and shivering through the storm.He motioned with a wing arm for her to come over to him. "It's a bit warmer in here!"She looked around, nervous at what might happen if she went in. Sigh "I guess have no choice," she said to herself. She ran across the open, snow covered ground towards the cave. As she kept moving towards the cave, she felt something on her back, guiding her inward.
"Thank you very much. It's a freezing hell out there," she spat, wiping the snow off her clothes and body. She looked up at Jeremy, blood rushing to her cheeks when she saw him. "Oh...""It'll be warmer in
here," he replied in his slight, feminine voice. "Follow me; I'll show you around," he told her as he started walking backwards like some sort of tour guide.Jeremy showed the rat girl everything: his perch, the storage holes where he kept anything he could get his paws on, all organized, and even the area where he relieves himself. All of this was in one large room deep within the cave, with a few smaller crevices he's never used that lead farther in. He even told her everything he knew about cave systems from living at his parents' simulated cave home and here. Even though the grey, outside light barely illuminated the cave, the few flashlights Jeremy had and both their natural senses kept them from running into the walls or stalagmites, or tripping over themselves.He admired the rat girl for asking a lot of questions about his home and himself, though he was a little concerned as to why she's taken such a keen interest in him right away. It was then when he noticed her red hair. It fell just below her neck, and her bangs just covered her black eyes some. "Wow...I never realized how pretty you were," he muttered to himself when he noticed how her hair glowed in the light, and how it complimented her brown fur and yellow hoodie.
"Come again?" she asked him."Umm, nothing," he said, rubbing the back of his head with a paw. He hoped she didn't notice him blushing through his white fur. "Oh yeah, I don't think I properly introduced myself. I'm Jeremy and, well, this is my home." He stuck out a paw."Amber," she replied, gingerly shaking his paw with hers. They both let go. "So, um, why did you, um, decided to run away from your parents' place?"Jeremy looked to the side. He could feel the mix of emotions he felt when he first left tensing his gut. "Well, you see, um..." he began as he held one wing arm with a paw, rubbing it gently. His ears lowered. "L-Let's just say my story was just like many other half-humans who were attracted to other species along with their own." He looked downward. "I'm sure you've heard about them...us.""Yes I have, but I don't believe you're wrong about that," she quickly replied, "I'm a little the same way.""Really?""Yeah," she chuckled. "Funny...my first girlfriend was a rabbit; I guess I was being taboo in more ways than one, haha."
Jeremy motioned her to the side of the cave to and asked her to sit down before they continued. They both leaned their backs to the side of the cave, just far enough away from the mouth that the grey light from outside illuminated the opening. He continued. "You're a little rebel, aren't ya," he teased, giving her a playful punch on the shoulder.She rubbed her shoulder where he hit her and felt flushed in her cheeks at his teasing. She chuckled. "I guess I am.""And is that why you were crazy enough to come out here in this weather?"She nodded. "In a way, yes, but..." She trailed off with what she was going to say and sighed. Her round ears lowered. "Nevermind...I don't want to talk about it.""You sure?" he turned toward her and reached a paw to comfort her, but he didn't make contact."It's nothing," she quickly replied, pushing his paw away.He still reached over around her snout and gently touched her cheek. He turned her head to face his. "I may not have the best eyesight, but I have damn good hearing, almost too good. I can hear every drop of liquid sediment dripping from the roof back there. I can hear everything outside being hit by the wind and snow, at least what's close to the cave; it actually hurts my ears if I get too close to the mouth when it's this windy out.
"And I can damn well tell you I can hear your pulse change when you say that. I think you might know, but when someone's pulse changes suddenly like that when they speak, it usually means they're lying."Her eyes became downcast.He removed his paw from her cheek. Sigh "I know it's not nothing. You don't have to tell me if you don't want to." He turned away from her, now looking at nothing in particular.She looked back up at him, and gave a half smile. Then Amber did something even she wasn't expecting her to do. She leaned in and pecked him on the cheek. Jeremy squeaked at the sudden gesture, his face becoming warm with embarrassment. "Wha...What was that for?" he asked softly."I don't know..." she replied, "I guess...I guess I think you're a sweetheart." She smiled, still embarrassed by her sudden expression towards him.He smiled for a moment, then his expression was neutral. "Amber, I'm sorry but..." He tried to find the right words to say. "If you have feelings for me right now, I don't for you." He couldn't look her in the eye.
She frowned. "Ok, I...I understand.""Well, see," he began, "I need to get my life together first. Frankly, I don't want to live like a raccoon in a cave for the rest of my life. I need to get some ground first." He paused to let her take it in. "Ok?"She looked at him. "...Ok.""You can stay here as long as you like though. I'm sure you don't want to go back home, whatever that reason may be."She nodded. "Thanks."They both leaned their heads against the cave wall, slightly exhausted from being emotionally drained. The storm still raged on outside; and the skies became darker and darker as the sunlight behind the cloud covers faded. They continued conversing with each other into the night about nothing in particular, but got to know each other more and more in the process. Days pass, and soon, they fell for each other and decided to become one. They lived in the cave ever since the night of the storm, as neither of them wanted to return to their former homes.