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Autumn is here on Quesadilla Island, but it is soon to become winter. The environment and animal behaviors have already started to show the change. The once colorful autumn leaves have become less frequent, though the golden warmth of the sun still lingers, casting a warm glow over the landscape of the island.
Near the church, Ewron sits on the edge of the cliff, tail swaying while deep in thought—hair slightly blowing from the light breeze.
Ewron notices. How couldn't he? As most hybrids do, their body changes through the seasons. Some hibernate, some have cycles throughout the year—the most change he's ever felt is being a little warmer than usual in some seasons (and a little more affectionate but who would ever admit that about themselves..)
Though, the weather is not the most important thing he notices.
He's noticed that Katie's appearances have become less frequent. Less visits at the polish cafe, the Zabka, even the KFC and her HQ!
At first he thought it might’ve been his fault. Maybe this time his “prank” had finally got to her? If that was true, he’d wish to apologize for the thousandth time.
He looks toward the orange glow of the sun and feels the warmth on his face. He closes his eyes and stares at the reddish-orange hue behind his eyelids. The warmth of the sun reminds him of Katie, so warm and inviting, how he craves the attention and feel of both.
He’d been sitting on the side of the cliff for an hour, finally getting up after an entire day of thinking of her (as much as he hates to admit it, he even dreamt of her) He glides down to the polish cave, the sudden cold from the shade of the rocks making him shiver. While he walks around the Polish Cave, it's quiet, the rest of the polska hussars off doing who knows what. Ewron's only here because he finished doing whatever ridiculous scheme he had planned, which then went unnoticed because of the lack of Katie.
While looking for materials for another laurka, he sighs, thinking about the last time he had seen her. He recalls her as a fox hybrid, talking with Don under a tree somewhere around the plaza. The orange leaves of the tree making her ever more beautiful than normal, her orange and bronze tail wagging slightly.
He doesn't really care about the other details as long as she's with someone else.
But it gives him an idea!
He immediately stops moving, a smile slowly showing on his face, his voluminous tail shaking lightly.
He should go ask Don! What ‘bestie’ would he be if not one who cares!! And who would know where she is if not the last person he saw her with—AND Don also being her older brother helps immensely with his search, he is always spying on them whenever they are talking..kinda creepy but everyone knows how protective Don gets over Katie, not wanting anything bad to happen to her and helping her in every way possible.
Rocking on his feet with excitement he pulls out his waystone, teleporting to Holland.
When he arrives he runs straight to Duncan's factory, knowing Don, he's probably gathering supplies for more items that he is gonna give to Katie.
As he steps inside his boots track some amber leaves in, he walks right past Duncan who is near the Dutchies shared storage, effectively cutting off his greeting of “Oh hey Ewron—“
“DOONN” Ewron boomingly yells.
He can hear a faint “oh fuck me” coming from their crafting unit. He grins.
Walking up to Don, he greets him in the sweetest, most sugar-coated way he could.
“Heeey Don!!” He says while batting his eyes.
He waited for a beat before continuing, giving Don a chance to at least glance up at him or say hi—Don continued crafting, forcefully banging a pink lining into a netherrite chestplate on an anvil.
“Do you know where Katie is?”
He asked, raising his voice just tad, not caring to ask how he was or anything else, he isn’t Katie, why should he care?
Don stops his hammering, finally looking at Ewron—who has a shit eating grin plastered on his face and a glimmer in his eyes—looking uninterested he says,
“Why should I tell you? Just for you to go and harass her like usual? Yea right dude.”
He then focuses back on the chestplate.
Ewron puts on a shocked look for a moment, then exclaims,
“But she's my bestie!! It's what we do! It's not harassment, it's pranking! We mess with eachother!!” he ushers.
It’s not like its a lie, sure, he doesn't know how it started or why they feel such a pull to each other but it’s addictive, he yearns for her reaction and heavily desires her attention solely on himself.
Don scoffs. He then gets desperate,
“Don please..I'm worried.. I haven’t seen her in so long!!”
He begs, clasping his hands together, flattening his ears, stilling his tail and putting on puppy eyes, trying to mimic Katie when she begs for something, it always works in the end for her.
Don then sighs and looks over, stopping the mending for now.
“Last time I saw her she said she was feeling under the weather, ok? I don't know where she is bro, just leave her be”
Don looks tired, already done with Ewrons (and Katies) shit.
Ewron lights up, ears springing up and tail swaying once again. This at least gives him an idea on where she is.
He gets giddy and grabs Don's shoulder to shake him, showing his appreciation. Don groans, trying to shove him away.
“Thank you Don, thank you!”
After letting go he turns around, he hears Don mutter “whatever” under his breath and once again he runs past Duncan, giggling to himself, he doesn’t even spare him a glance while on his way to the Holland waypoint.
When back on the dock, out of the corner of his eye he sees Jeremy duck under the card shop counter, but he pays no mind as he has more important things to do (or people to find).
——-
He's back at the polish cave gathering certain materials that could possibly help Katie recover and beat this assumed sickness.
A variety of orange and yellow leaves have blown into the cave, Ewron pays it no mind as he is sure as fuck not cleaning it up.
Ewron rummages through their storage, finding some food, a blanket, assorted pain relief pills, some medicine, and a bottle of water. He stops and thinks for a moment, one hand on his hip carrying the items and one hand on his chin, ‘What else would she need other than some necessities and me’ tail swishing as he thinks before shortly leaving.
——
He arrives at Schlatt & Co. with everything in hand, trying to be as quiet as possible, as to not alert ‘Mr. J’. While on the sub-island, he feels a pull in his heart, a certain attraction now. Following the feeling in the depth of his body, he moves around the newly planted trees, though already grown with aged, golden leaves. Brown brush and amber leaves cover the ground, a comforting feel to the island.
Ewron takes a quick lap around the island, looking for the hatch to Katie's house. Standing where it once was, he looks around.
He looks to the lighthouse—the bright glow of the highest level illuminating the night sky—he feels allured by it, something pulling him in. He smells a hint of sweetness, a bit of bitterness, and it lures him in even further. Moving toward the lighthouse, he crouches lower to the ground, hearing yet another car crash repeat and the same laugh following it.
As he reaches the lighthouse he looks down the spiral staircase, the feeling in his heart tugging even more.
He descends down the stairs, his ears twitching and tail swaying curiously.
At the bottom of the lighthouse, there's a hallway. His fluffy tail starts to wag hard, seeing the bright red at the end of the hall. He jogs down the hall, sweetly singing her name.
“Katarzynaaa~” standing in the doorway he leans forward and peeks around the room, “are you here? I’ve come with a cure!!” He smiles wide as he hears a groan—shuffling following the noise—from the right corner of her room, where her bed is.
His eyes widen slightly as he focuses on where her bed is. He sees a pile of clothing and a mess of clothes on the floor by the bed: As he gets closer he becomes more hesitant, but the pull becomes stronger.
Now at the foot of the bed he sees a variety of blankets and clothes; looking further up, he sees the orange fur of ears with black tips following. He grins widely as he sees hands pull down the blanket further, her full face now showing, tinged with red as an irritated look displays on her face.
“Don’t even.”
She says as she narrows her eyes. He moves to the side, setting the materials down and sitting on the side of the bed. Her eyes still narrowed as her gaze follows him.
“Awwww Katie you are soooo cute,” he teases as she swats him away.
“Stop. I'm not feeling good and you know this, I'm not in the mood to fight Ewron.”
He feels a buzz inside of him when she says her name, and moves even closer. He sees her lift her hand, eyes closed as he prepares for a punch.
The shove comes but her touch lingers. She holds his wrist as he moves to dodge the light shove.
He opens his eyes and looks over at her, not expecting how warm her touch would be. They don't say anything for a moment, just staring at each other.
She sighs, “Ewron I don't know what’s happening, ever since my form shifted and the season changed my body's been feeling weird. I feel sluggish and sore, I don’t even remember making this mess!”
She gestures to her bed and the clothes around her. His face softens in pity, he thinks about how her form is constantly shifting, only giving her a short time to get used to the different features. As a red panda, he knows animal behavior, but the thing is, he’s used to it.
His thoughts stop as Katie starts nudging him, trying to get him to come into the pile of clothes. He feels giddy at the thought, in his breed, as a red panda it's important—its like being invited into a sacred temple, being accepted and given permission to enter—and in his red panda mind, being invited to a place that represents a nest, a sacred and comforting place, it turns on a switch in his brain. She trusts him, he’s special.
His fluffy tail starts wagging, and soon after he hears a thrum of quiet thumping from under the blankets. He smiles softly as he moves closer to her, toe-ing off his boots and taking his cape off. Before he can set it down she grabs it quickly. Moving out from under the pile of fabric to tuck it somewhere in the makeshift nest.
He feels so happy he’s dizzy. It's un-normal for her to be this clingy. Not that he doesn’t like the push and pull of their normal relationship, it's what made him addicted to her, but this feels intimate, much more special for the both of them.
As she's placing the cape, he sees her orange and bronze tail swaying contently. She's comfy, she's happy. They mirror each other, it’s instinct.
He finally starts getting fully on the bed feeling the warmth of where she once was. He sits awkwardly, not knowing where he should or can be.
He stares at her and thinks that now, when out of the mound of clothing, he sees the relaxed version of her. Not that he hasn’t before, it is just that she is physically showing her cozy, restful state. Her hair is down, beautifully wisped over her shoulders, she's wearing a tank top and some plaid boxers, she’s comfortable.
He's realized the depth of intimacy of this situation, he's in her house (a secret one at that), in her “nest” full of her scent, and is seeing her in a vulnerable state. He feels his face warm up, a blush is faintly seen, his hands coming up to cover it.
She turns back around and maneuvers him in a cuddling position under a light layer of fabric, tails tucked between their legs, touching and softly patting the bed underneath them. His face pressed against her pillow he inhales, it smells like her. Like fresh air on a sunny day, a light smell of citrus, and like her shampoo. Her scent is faint, but he buries into it further, wanting more although he is surrounded by it.
He's interrupted by Katie moving them again; facing each other, they're laying down on their sides, Katie holding both of his wrists while she rubs her face against his. A very low, quiet rumbling sound is heard deep in her chest, the vibrations further making him drift into a daze.
Being surrounded with her scent, in the heat of her nest, combined with the purr-like vibration in her chest makes his eyes half-lidded, high on her. A soft purr starts up from him, their noises fall into a soothing rhythm.
She continues holding him in place by his wrists with a soft grasp, rubbing her face and neck against his own. She then stops and pulls away, letting go of his hands.
He opens his eyes—he hadn’t even known they closed—to find her staring at him again, a warm expression on her face. Her skin was tinged with pink, a very sheen glisten to it, her light freckles visible from the close distance—she was gorgeous.
He looked up to her eyes, where they made eye contact, then down to her lips. His gaze lingered then went back up.
“Katie..” he softly whines.
“Hmm..?” she hums, her eyes hooded as she tilts her head slightly down at him.
“Could I kiss you?” he asks, voice airy when he moves a bit closer, only an inch or two between them.
She holds no protest as they both close the distance. He lightly grasps her jaw as they kiss, slow and gentle. Her hands moving to his ears she lightly massages. Ewron feels like he's in heaven. He can't decide whether to lean into the kiss or into the touch on his ears. Katie notices the fight and moves her touch so that they could get closer.
They break away and she lets go. He whines, ears flattening a little.
She laughs airily, her own ears twitching softly.
“Silly panda, you really don’t know how good you have it.”
She pulls him in closer, face hot in his neck as her breath evens out.
He thinks for a moment, feeling the warmth of the sun within him, arms around her. He really does have it good, huh ?
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