Kicking the stones cast out against the ever so familiar terrain, of his homeland of which was not truly his home. Sharp emerald eyes gazed longingly out towards the people crowded together, laughing and talking amongst each other ever so freely, relaxed and at ease with each other. 'Wishing gets you nowhere…' a sharp, but precise voice whispered across the edges of his mind….

Alone. Something that was unusual for someone of his people, let alone someone with his status. Sighing, the young serpent boy walked along "his" path to the field, in which sometimes by luck intertwined with fate he would meet his "little hawk", he so affectionately teased her, in a brotherly way, of course.

Consciousness began to fade. The edges of her vision became distorted, scenery blurring and spinning; the darkness calling to her, soothing the searing pain soaring throughout her body. Even her breathing began to slow. The unfamiliar darkness overwhelmed and she was lost…drowned in it. But she didn't mind nor cared. She embraced it openly.

Salem's whole body tensed. A weird feeling came to him…was he merely imagining or was something really wrong? The scent of rain began to fill the air, with it came little clouds of darkness voiding out the bright rays of wholesome sunlight. He shook his head slightly letting the a few strands of soft black hair fall in front of his line of vision.

The feeling stayed with him till he approached the open field… heart beating rapidly and head spinning with a web of over a thousand different thoughts flooded his mind. Salem seen her, lying against the harsh ground, outlined only by the oncoming storm, pale as death, unmoving and worse yet, not breathing. Dead or not, he could not decide for sure. Shifting forms without much thought he shed his confiding human skin and became a small cobra slithering in the waving grass, eyes flickering back and forth, lingering on the sound of the clashing thunder blaring in the background.

Time appeared suspended till he stopped in front of her and shifted back. Kneeling beside his little hawk, rain drops splattering cold and menacing against his grief stricken face. His hand absent-mindedly reached out for her arm, feeling for a calm and steady pulse, one, which was barely there. Without much consideration, panic shone on his face, he gently picked her up into his arms, cradling her as if a sleeping infant, sheltering her as best possible with his body from the harsh wind and freezing rain. Salem made the journey back a short and speedy one, purpose and motivation carrying him along with the increasing wind. At times like these he wished he could sprout wings and take flight, then maybe she would live, even if it meant he might have to die.

Note: this one i tried my best to make it longer and it turned out to be just alittle bit. I hope you enjoy this chapter as well! Pls comment...whether it be compliment, advice, or critque...