Counting The Stars - Counting The Days
The sun was slowly setting below the horizon, giving off a distinct glowing of amber light. The sky was slowly turning from the ordinary radiant blue to an affable turquoise-navy. Though Jay was blind, it didn't mean the glare of the sun was just black. It gave off a hue of amber, much alike from the feeling of staring at the sun with closed eyes.
Jay was in the midst of a park, where faint children laughter could be heard in the background. He navigated easily, as if this place was familiar. As if he knew it through and through. He couldn't see, yet he maneuvered with ease around the slide. He sat down on one of the black swings, just staring at the ground, as he kicked his feet gently, sending sand flying everywhere. This place felt so... he couldn't explain it. Practically surreal. But it was just a playground. What was so strange about it?
Jay remembered the first time his mother had taken his siblings and him to the park. Or at least, the new park. They were about four. Leo had skipped into the gates, struggling to open them until Holly helped. He took Jay by the hand and urged him to sit down in the sand box.
"Hey Jay, feel this!" Leo handed Jay something grainy, that fell through his soft hands as he tried to catch what Leo was pouring into the middle of his palms. It felt like tiny rocks in his hands, and when he tossed it around from one hand to another, it just sprinkled everywhere, some falling off of the edge. They were like grainy sprinkles, the ones that mom had always put on their ice cream.
"What's this?" Jay asked, dropping the rest of it on his pants.
"I don't know, but it's all around us," Leo smiled. "See, put your hands down and wave them around. You're sitting in it right now!" Jay felt as Leo threw some more sand on his lap, as he did what Leo told him to.
Putting his hands down, he waved them in the sand, like making snow angels. Then he picked it up with both of his hands. It was very hot, though that was no surprise, it had been sitting in the scorching sun all day. Jay put his hand deeper into the sand, then yelped as he felt a burning sensation on his palm, and a sharp, jagged object scrape it. He quickly pulled it out. He felt warm liquid on his hand.
"You're bleeding!" Leo took Jay's hand, examining it. It stung a bit, as Leo's finger ran across the cut a bit roughly.
"Ow!" Jay squeaked. "What's wrong?"
"You're bleeding," Leo repeated.
"Bleeding?" Jay had heard of the term before, but never actually understood what it meant. All he knew is that it associated with the weird, stingy feeling, called pain.
"Yeah. It's when you get a cut and red stuff comes out of it," Leo explained.
"Red?" Jay asked. Another word he had never heard of.
Leo didn't respond. He then grazed the tip of his fingers over Jay's cut again, getting blood on it. He wiped it on the edge of the sand box, then helped Jay get up, still holding his hand. "Red is a color," he said, beckoning Jay to follow as he tugged at his hand, trying to find mom.
Though Jay didn't know what a color was, he didn't bother asking his brother. If he didn't explain what a color was, most likely he himself didn't exactly know what colors were either. They were just... there. The silver-gray haired boy wished he could see. His blue eyes scanning his surroundings, truly getting the beauty of the world. But that would never happen. His mom told him he would never be able to see in his life.
Now he was sixteen. A junior in high school. And here he was, at the park, reminiscing about his childhood. Mainly because he was confused; confused about the nights before. His dreams and nightmares. They had all been about cats. Not just any pet cat, vicious, wild, and violent cats, living in the forest at the edge of the city. Where his family and friends were cats. Jay shook his head. They weren't just the nights before, they have been happening for the past months. Endless dreams. They all continued from where they left off, when Jay opened his blind eyes again to the black world.
Jay stuttered when a hand suddenly grabbed his, yanking him out of the swing seat and onto his feet. The hand forced him violently to lean on the pole, which frightened Jay. Until he heard the voice.
"Jay, what the hell are you doing here again?"
Jay closed his eyes, letting out a slight annoyed groan. "Oh. Hey Leo."
Leo held his brother's wrist to the pole, slamming it on the pole, not too hard that it would hurt, but hard enough to get Jay's attention. "I said, what the hell are you doing here again? I get home to realize that you've been gone for hours, with a message from the school that said you've left school early, with no permission! Now you have yet another lunch detention and detention. Jay, what the hell?" he yelled angrily. "This has been happening for two damn weeks!" Jay let out another exasperated groan. Leo yelled too much when he was angry. It never hurt him, but it just gave him a headache.
"Relax, Leo. It's no big deal, I'm a straight A student anyway, this won't affect my future too greatly if I get out of school to take walks to the park," Jay snapped. "The teachers don't give a crap, the next day, as long as I get all my work right, it's like nothing happened. They give so many extra credit assignments that I'll just buy back what I lost in my grade. So mind your business, Leo?"
Leo glared at Jay. "Mind my business? Mind my fucking business?" he had to let go of Jay's wrist before he was going to pop it, and let out a soft sigh, smacking himself lightly in the face with his hand. "Jay, bro, I'm just trying to look out for you. Dad isn't around, and mom gets worried easily. You know that. It's my job to be the one to make sure you're safe all the time, so she has less of a burden on her shoulders."
Jay looked at the ground. "Look, I'm sorry, okay? But I'm sixteen now, you're seventeen, and I can look after myself. Don't worry yourself or mom like this, all right?" he then kicked the ground, splashing sand onto the pole. "...let's just go home."
Leo just shrugged, before nodding in agreement. He hesitated before taking Jay's hand. Jay instinctively yanked it back. "I'm sixteen," he repeated.
Leo just rolled his eyes, then led his brother to the car. He opened the door for him, then closed it. Sliding into the driver's seat, he started the engine, and made way to drive back to the house.
After stepping inside the house, Holly was there to give Jay a hug. "Hey! Where have you guys been?" she asked, seeing as Leo entered the door after his brother, locking the doors on the car with the push of a button.
Leo just grunted. Jay let go of his sister, then leaned back on the wall. "The park," he replied casually, before receiving a cold glare from his brother.
"Again?" Holly asked, seeming to know what they were talking about. She just frowned. "Geez Jay, another detention?"
"Yeah," Leo answered for Jay. "But it's all right, I guess. Jay's safe, that's really all that matters," the anger was gone from his words. The good thing about Leo is that although when he was angry, he got angry, he never really was angry for long. Too forgiving, one could say. Jay just calls it non resentful.
Holly smiled. "Yeah, it is. Mom's still working at the hospital, so I went and bought us some dinner. Who wants..." she paused for a moment. "-chicken tacos!"
Leo's stomach growled, but Jay didn't say anything. He didn't like tacos, none the less chicken tacos. "I'll have leftovers from last night," he simply replied, walking past Holly holding up the three bags, and opened up the fridge, only beckoning for Leo to come over to tell him what there was.
"Oh," Holly said, disappointment in her voice. "Jay, you owe me five bucks."
"Yep," Jay called out to his sister. However "yep" usually just meant "don't count on it" in Jay's world. Leo leaned over his shoulder, trying to see what was in the fridge that his brother could eat. He pulled out a bowl wrapped in tinfoil, sneaking in a peak. It was green beans and rice. Jay liked vegetables and rice, so he gently pushed Jay aside so he could close the fridge.
"What is it?"
"Green beans and rice."
"All right."
Leo unwrapped the bowl and put it in the microwave. "Jay, go fix your dinner when it's done. I'mma go eat my chicken taco now," he chirped perkily, ripping open the bag as he grabbed the shell wrapped in a napkin. Holly was in the living room, turning on the TV.
Jay smiled at him, nodding his head slightly. That day was pretty much an ordinary day.
That was until night came, and the dreams were back.
Uncomortably, Jay fidgeted in his bed. He was in deep sleep. Clutching his pillow, his breathing grew rapid as his dream expanded.
Jayfeather's heart was racing. He trampled his paws on the ground, his breathing growing rapider and rapider by the second. The sound of ripping, tearing fur was still in his ears. He had to get there. He had to help him. The stench of a fox filled his nostrils, he could hear the blood pounding in his ears.
What if they have Lionblaze or Hollyleaf, Jayfeather thought. He raced through the forest, surprisingly weaving through the trees steadily, like he could see. Jayfeather never stopped his stride, bringing his front paws forward, and then flinging them back to his belly, and doing the same thing over and over again.
"Lionblaze!"
The fox held his brother in its jaws, shaking viciously and growling at the same time, as cats flung themselves at the two beasts, trying to get them to release their clanmate. Jayfeather just watched in terror as Lionblaze got ripped up. His fur was all over the ground, patches of red and bleeding skin could be seen. His tail was ripped off. Lionblaze's eyes were closed, as if he thought he was going to die. Jayfeather choked just watching. "Lionblaze!"
A tight feeling clenched his chest as the fox dropped Lionblaze, and he fell limp. Jayfeather wanted to cry out in agony. The tight feeling clenched his throat like a cat trying to strangle him, as he struggled to find words to yowl. He croaked out weak words. "Brother... don't leave me..."
AN: A new AU fanfic, goodie. And slash. My, my. And it's humanized. Mind blown. But seriously, as said in the summary, all of the pairings will be listed...
Here. LionXJay, JayXBreeze, HollyXFallen, LionXHeather, one sided CinderXJay
That's all I have planned though for now. Be expecting more couples. And more. And more. ^^'
Thanks for reading! R&R