So I decided to do something a little different for this chapter, seeing as how Caelum is Canon to Zootopia 2, as well as the Marked being Canon to both their lives, I decided to do something that explores a little bit into his time under the Marked, I'm not sure whether you guys like it or not so I guess this kinda a test, so lemme know, either way, I hope you guys enjoy.
The grey vulpine nudged the female cross-breed that lay against him, slowly waking her back up from her comfortable nap. Moonlight blue eyes gazed up at him annoyed, her voice a quiet, displeased mumble. "What? I was having a nice dream." Caelum raised an eyebrow with a badly hidden smirk forming on his face.
Smiling softly, he teased "I thought you said this meant nothing." Promptly earned him a weak punch to the stomach. He laughed, ruffling her fur - much to her obvious utter displeasure. "Your phone went." He gestured to the pocket in which it was kept, attempting to not laugh at her attempt to look angry. Ear's flattened against her head, and her mouth a scowl that still looked more like a smile than anything intimidating. Maybe it was the tiny crush part of him speaking but she looked kinda cute.
"You really had to wake me up for that?" She deadpanned, staring him blank in the eyes. Offering nothing in response but the nod of his head and a stupid grin, he felt another weak jab to his stomach. She took out the device, idly unlocked it, done absolutely nothing then locked it again. "I'll read it later." She shrugged her shoulders, leaning up into a sitting position. She grabbed her drawing book, opening it up to a new page, but ultimately sighed in defeat after a few seconds of staring at it. "I'm lost for idea's right now.. Wanna do something else? Truth or Dare?"
"Well, there's not really many things we can do for Dare's."
"I guess, it could be drawing dares?" She suggested, gesturing with her paw to the blank page. She promptly lay down on her back, her head dangling off the edge of the bed, looking around his room upside down. "Thing's look so weird upside down." She commented, more to herself than him.
With a eyebrow raised, he interegated. "Just what type of dares would these be?" To which his response was a simple mumbled 'I don't know.' as she was still laying upside down. An evil, but playful smirk slowly materialised on his maw, seeing an opening in her defences; he pounced, tickling her sides and making her burst into desperate whines and laughter intertwined.
"Please... Stop." She cried admist a fit of laughter, her legs subconsciously kicking out beneath her. Without even meaning too, she caught him with one kick right in the chest, a weak, but sharp pain suddenly making itself apparent; granting her request, he moved a safe distance from the female, trying his best to hide the smile.
Her face was flush red, burning heat in her cheeks and a lack of oxygen in her lungs. "W...why?" She wheezed inbetween breaths, sitting up. Her fur was an aboslute mess now, ruffled and unkempt, glowing with the intensity of her blush. "Y-you.. Know I'm really ticklish."
"Exactly, you gave me the opportunity." Laughed the vulpine. "And that kick hurt." He faked-whined, rubbing where she had caught him to ease the imaginary pain. "Kiss it better?" He smirked at her playfully.
"Oh hell noo, I'd rather do Maths a week straight." The males expression dropped, but a playful pout still sat there. She giggled, patting the foxes head. "You're so cute when your mad."
"Aww thanks, I knew you liked me." He laughed.
"Yeaah, no, don't go that far foxyboy. We're friends. Just friends." The faintest bit of dissappointment hid under her quiet voice.
"Can be more." He smiled a genuine smile.
"Maybe when we're older." She returned his smile, her voice sounding slightly hopeful but all the same uninterested.
"I meant we could be best friends."
"Huh? W-well.. I-I thought we were?"
"We are." The sky fox laughed. "You said we were just friends. Tell you what, Lunar, will you be my best friend?"
"Jeez, you almost sounded like your were going to propose to me." She laughed. "Of course I will." Shaking her head with an amused smile on her face, she shifted slightly closer to him.
"Thanks Kitty."
Caelum soon found himself pinned beneath her, Lunar glaring at him with her best intimidating glare and growling softly at him. "Don't call me kitty."
"Ok, I won't.." He quickly pushed her onto her back and pinned her down, a smug, cocky, playful smirk on his face. "..Kitty."
"If we kiss Imma puke." She laughed with a blush.
"Wait? What? Oh.." He very quickly moved away from Lunar once he realised how close they actually were, blushing heavily.
"So ermm.. What do best friends actually do?" She rubbed the back of her neck awkwardly, embarrassed. Truth be told she had never had a best friend, or been considered as one, she was always more of a loner type - infact the only reason she knew Caelum was because he just wouldn't leave her alone; first, she wanted nothing more than for him to go away, but now she loved his presence just as much as she loved being alone.
Caelum merely shrugged, looking at her slightly suprised. "You never had one?"
She shook her head in embarrassment. "N-no." She stuttered, suddenly beginning to feel slightly self-conscious about it; perhaps it was the fact he seemed to be able to quickly make friends with someone like her, but whenever she tried, she got shut down. "I-I've never r-really h-had a friend b-before you."
"Aww kitty, I'm honoured."
She flattened her ears against her head, staring at the fox with her best annoyed stare. "Stop calling me kitty. I'm not a full cat. Only half."
"You look like a cat."
"I look more like a fox."
"Same difference, kitty still fits you as a nickname." Caelum shrugged, patting the females fur while she sat there pouting.
"I hate you sometimes."
"No you don't." He smiled playfully, "yooou knooow you like meeee."
She sighed with a laugh following, teasing "I don't think I do know that." He pouted, causing her to laugh more. Suddenly she went quiet, looking at him nervously. She seemed worried to speak all of a sudden.
"Lunar? What's wrong?"
"You're not gonna ditch me are you? You're like my only friend, and I don't wanna go back to being a loner." Her eyes fell downcast, suddenly finding the ground very interesting. Noticeably flinching from surprise as Caelum hugged her, she returned the hug, finding some element of comfort in the embrace.
"Naaah, I couldn't ditch you... Kitty." He ruffled the fur of her head...
He spent so long trying, and in the end it was all for nothing. They were right, right all along, and despite everything, despite all their warnings, Caelum kept pushing, kept challenging them, kept calling their bluffs... Now look where it ended... Look at what he had caused.. He held and kept that promise for so many years, and now he broke it. He wouldn't ever forgive them... He promised himself, he promised everyone around him, he promised her.. He swore that one day, these bastards would get what's coming to them.. One day, these fuckers, these Marked, would find themselves buried six feet under...
He ran his paw along the knife, staring at the mound of dirt infront of him, a lone tear falling from his eyes. They wouldn't even let him bury her.. They were just gonna throw her away somewhere to rot. "I'm gonna fucking kill every last one of those fucking bastards... Mark my fucking words." He growled so darkly. Those who surrounded him, including Nick, took a step back, seemingly out of fear. "They are all going to pay for this, or I'm going to die trying."