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Kevin paused, taking in his surroundings. Behind the young beastman was the edge of Duskmoon Forest, blanketed in the eternal darkness of night. The crescent moon and twinkling stars dotted the sky, overlooking the thick, slumbering, twisting forest of gnarled trees and tangling bushes. Yet, before the young half-beastman lay nearly-blinding daylight, reflecting from the sparkling vast, gentle waters of Lake Astoria. The open, grassy shoreline was speckled with weeping willows and vibrant, warm wildflowers, brought to life under a clear, blue sky, the blazing sun high in the sky. Where he stood, the two extremes converged, the skies mingling in shades of orange and navy, melding into broad strokes of peach and lilac where they converged, the colorful wildflowers taking on cooler hues.
"Must be the place," Kevin said to himself, his amber eyes narrowing, his hands closing into trembling fists, matching the quiver in his lips. A feeling clamped his chest, and his throat started to sting and tighten. "But where...?"
Haroo...
Nuzzling against the back of one of his hands was the white muzzle of a golden-red furred wolf, his black, wet nose jolting Kevin. The wolf gazed up at him, reassurance in his innocent eyes. In a near instant, the burgeoning anxiety Kevin felt started to subside, and the tremble left his body.
"Karl..." He gave the wolf a firm, palmed pet on the head and gave his cheek a good scratch with one of his clawed fingers. "Thank you." After steeling himself, Kevin began his search, accompanied by Karl, who kept his sniffing snout deep in the grass.
"Ba-goo?"
Kevin turned his attention to his accompanying young ward, a beastman pup not even yet knee-high. He crawled around in the grass on all fours and sniffed around, curiosity in his brown eyes, his short, high blond ponytail bouncing around.
"Find something, Ludgar?" Kevin asked, approaching the pup, his pulse pounding.
"Ba-goo." Suddenly, the pup's face scrunched in determination. He thrust his hand into the grass, swiping with the ferocity of a lion's paw. Triumphantly, he threw his grubby little fist in the air, proud to show off his catch. "Ba-goo!" Writhing in little Ludgar's hand was a bright red caterpillar, no longer than the little boy's finger. "Bagoo."
"Oh, a bug! Haha! Good job!" Kevin gave Ludgar a congratulatory pat on the head. "Now put it back. Let it grow big and strong! Besides, not very tasty."
At first, the pup hesitated, hugging the bug to his chest, glaring at Kevin. But, after a few moments, and with a full-cheeked pout, Ludgar surrendered the caterpillar back to the grass, where it wriggled off into the unknown.
Kevin exhaled, bringing a hand to his forehead, brushing his finger through his blond bangs. His usually keen eyes nor nose didn't seem to be up to the task. "Argh, King not give good directions."
Karl brought his nose out of the ground and shook off the dirt. It seemed he was a bit at a loss, too.
"Bagoo!" Ludgar tugged on Kevin's baggy, tiger-striped pants, his clumsy, pudgy little legs bouncing in place. "Bagoo!
"Another bug?" Kevin asked, looking down at Ludgar.
Ludgar rapidly shook his head, then pointed off, his little finger wiggling around like the caterpillar he had just shown mercy. "Bagoo!"
Kevin's bushy eyebrows pulled together in confusion. Indeed, it was the same little red caterpillar. But, to Kevin's surprise, it was crawling to a gentle mound of dirt, with a stone marker in the center.
"This..." His heart sank. Taking care to step over the caterpillar, Kevin made his way to the lonely stone marker— a headstone, rather. He kneeled in front of it, his eyes narrowing once again. He ran his hand against the etchings, taking in a long breath through his nose. "Here lies..." He read aloud. "This is..."
This was what he was looking for. This grave, a long overdue, bittersweet reunion with a woman he barely remembered, yet had longed to know for as long as he could remember.
"Mother."
He exhaled through his nose, struggling to inhale through his stinging, tightened throat. His hands squeezed into shaking fists. His canines stabbed into his bottom lip.
Again, Karl nuzzled against Kevin, this time smashing his face against the beastman's scarred cheek, his rough, black whiskers tickling against his bronze skin.
Kevin, once more, gathered his composure. He sat on his rear and crossed his legs, with Karl draping himself across his lap. The beastman and his wolf sat in meditative silence together, staring at the grave, with Kevin scratching the top of Karl's head. Meanwhile, Ludgar, being but a toddler, entertained himself by playing with more bugs he found in the grass, catching and releasing them as he pleased, kicking his feet and laughing with each successful hunt. Wind swept across the grass, rustling the flowers and trees. Dark leaves from Duskmoon Forest's trees would loosen from their branches, fluttering off into the lake.
After some time, Kevin broke from his meditation. His long, notched ears twitched.
"King," he said, his voice stern, "show yourself."
"Hrm, I was wondering when you would say something."
Emerging from a dense thicket from Duskmoon was a towering, imposing beastman, patches of dense, seafoam fur on his brawny body, a royal blue cape draped across his shoulders. The thicket behind him retained his shape, the branches now permanently bent to his form. He stomped across the grass, slow and deliberately, his harsh gaze on the half-beastman, his clawed hands clenched into fists.
"Came after all?" Kevin asked, keeping his focus on the grave.
The Beast King only growled in response. Keeping his distance from Kevin, he stopped a mere step away from the merge in the field, remaining in the familiar darkness of Duskmoon Forest.
Kevin had nothing more to say, and it seemed the Beast King didn't, either. The silence between them was only interrupted by the now-tuckered out, snoozing Ludgar's roaring snores. Karl would occasionally look up at Kevin, keeping an eye on his best friend.
"One day, a foolish beastman thought he could ascend Chartmoon Tower on his own."
Kevin's ears twitched. He did not turn to the Beast King, and the king made no efforts to force him to.
"Alas, the harsh tower and its ruthless monsters humbled him," the Beast King continued. "Barely dragging himself out alive, he collapsed in the clearing at the tower's foot. As fortune would have it, a bright, holy light flashed. He thought it was the Goddess coming to claim him, and he prepared to go.
"To his dismay... It was a group of... humans, peaceful missionaries from Wendel who happened to be passing through. Out of shame, the barely conscious beastman attempted to hide himself, but it was no use. His trail of blood and fur led them to him with ease. With the last ounce of his strength, he thrashed out, trying to scare them off. It worked... Almost.
"The smallest of them, a young, petite woman with straight, golden hair stepped forward, no fear in her amber eyes. She bent over and placed a hand on his muzzle, delicate as a midnight rose. And she said, with a voice like a cocky wisp, 'It would be a shame for the fledgling Kingdom of Ferolia to lose their king, yes?'"
Kevin glanced out of the corner of his eye to find the Beast King had made his way to the grave, yet still kept his distance from Kevin, his rugged arms crossed.
"He didn't know how she knew, but he didn't ask. Reluctantly, the beastman returned to his human form, and allowed the cleric to heal his wounds. The moment he felt his strength return, he wanted to limp off... But it was no use. At the cleric's behest, the missionaries stayed in Ferolia for a few days. She wanted to ensure the beastman fully recovered, ceaselessly doting on him even when he would gnash his teeth and throw out his frenzied claws. It wasn't her he was fighting... But his own feelings. For a human. Eventually, he gave in. Caring not for the ridicule of his peers, He... I made her my mate."
Kevin finally turned to the Beast King. His face was unreadable, but there was an unmistakable tremble in his arms.
"Some time after you were born, she fell gravely ill," the Beast King said, a hint of hoarseness in his voice. "And... I was unable to repay her for her kind deeds, for her love. For the first time in my life, I had felt truly powerless. I watched her turn pale and wither to nothing, completely out of my control."
Still, the Beast King kept his composure, in spite of his claws digging into his arms.
"She loved you dearly, Kevin. She wouldn't allow me to throw you into the forest the way I and many of our ancestors were as pups. She wanted you to grow up in the safety castle, to take care of you and teach you, to let you out into the forest on your own when you were ready. For years, I wondered if that was why your beastform had been out of your grasp. You hadn't the chance to connect with nature and the moons the way other beastmen could. It made me resent her for her... weakness."
Before Kevin could jump to his feet and mercilessly slam his fist into the king's mouth, the Beast King threw up his hand in protest. "I was wrong, though. Your mother was not weak. You came into your true strength on your own. You're a stronger man than I ever will be, because you have what I don't have: her heart."
Kevin rolled his lips together, and let his fist sink into the grass. "Father..." His eyes began wandering around the field. He found the red caterpillar again, watching as it nibbled on the leaf of a nearby wildflower.
The Beast King shut his eyes, tilting his head downward. He approached the grave, kneeling on one knee. "When she knew the end was near," he said, placing his hand on the grave, "she requested, 'Bury me at the cusp of dawn and dusk, so I may feel the soothing warmth of sunlight and bathe in the mysterious beauty of moonlight... The best of both worlds, like Kevin, yes? '" The Beast King opened his wincing, misting eyes. His claws scraped at the stone, leaving behind superficial scratches. "Yes..." He looked skyward to find the sun began its descent, the sky over Astoria turning a deep orange, a hint of a second moon appearing on the horizon. "... But even the sun sets here."
"It's still a beautiful spot." Kevin knelt next to the Beast King, accompanied by Karl. "The sun may set, but it rises again, always." In the young beastman's hands was a ring of flowers, both vibrant and muted, sloppily woven together by the stems. "Friend... taught me how to make this." He rested the crooked ring of flowers on top of the grave stone. "There."
The Beast King blinked away the forming tears in his eyes and cleared his throat. "Your friend... the amusing, puny one?"
"Charlotte," Kevin corrected, his voice coarse. "Not puny. Show respect."
"Yes. Charlotte. My mistake." The Beast King then brought his attention to the mound of dirt. "Pesky weeds." He began clawing through the dirt, effortlessly uprooting the ragged weeds.
Kevin smiled to himself, joining the Beast King in deweeding the grave. Ludgar remained on his belly, snoozing away, occasionally barking in his sleep, while Karl watched over him.
Once the grave had been swept clean of loose weeds and dirt, the beastmen became quiet again. As they meditated, a subtle glow emanated from the ring of flowers, sparkling with sunshine and twinkling with moonlight. Kevin felt a deep warmth swelling in his heart, unlike anything he had felt before. He clutched his chest, his claws lightly digging into his skin. Turning to his father, it was apparent he had felt the same thing, as much as he tried to hide it.
"P-pretty, yes?"
"Heh. Yes."