The nameless leopard leaned against the tree, breath ragged, his body nearly torn apart.
"So that's it..." his voice was barely more than a tremor in the dark.
"Claw!!" Ivy dashed forward, only to trip over Gash's motionless form.
"No... not yet, dear," Gash rasped, his voice weak but defiant.
He wanted to save me... Claw just wanted to protect us.. but why?
Ivy's eyes darted toward the fallen leopard, heart pounding against her ribs.
"Finally!" Vein's grin broke wide as the leopard hit the ground.
"Great job, tough bear!" Vein barked, half-laughing as he turned toward Grizzler.
"I told you, Vein! Where's the—H..."
Grizzler's voice cracked mid-word, his gaze emptying into silence.
"Grizzler?" Vein's tone wavered, the thrill draining from his face.
Vein took a cautious step forward, his chest tightening as Grizzler swayed.
A faint tremor rippled through the ground , or maybe through Vein himself.
"Hey... come on, big guy, don't mess with me now..."
Thud! Grizzler's massive frame hit the earth, sending dust spiraling into the air.
From a distance, the leopard's laugh cracked through the silence: "So... it's happening again, huh?"
He stared at the glowing leaf, its light pulsing like a dying heart.
"Am I dying... or is the world?" the leopard murmured.
"Huh... it doesn't matter."
The leaf's light dimmed, flickering like the final breath of a dying star.
"Grizzler!!" Vein's voice cracked through the silence, raw and desperate.
"Claw!!" For Ivy, the quiet around her wasn't peace ; it was mourning disguised as stillness.
Vein rushed toward the leopard's body.
"Claw, that was you?! What did you do to Grizzler?!" Vein's words hit the air like claws themselves.
The leopard didn't move. His breathing was shallow, fading with each rise of his chest.
Vein's glare trembled , anger and confusion tangled together.
"Say something... anything!" he barked, though his voice faltered near the end.
"Hey, deer! Where do you think you're going?!" Gash shouted, then his eyes squeezed shut, his trembling betraying more fear than fury.
"Claw... he's gone." Ivy took a cautious step forward.
"He died... smiling." Vein's voice broke between disbelief and rage.
Ivy's gaze fell to the ground, her reflection trembling in a pool of blood-tinged water.
"Calm down, Vein... this isn't Claw... this isn't Claw..." Vein's shoulders trembled, his breath uneven , a sound closer to a growl than a sob.
Why... why did he smile? Ivy thought as she stared between the leopard's corpse and Grizzler lying still.
"Yes... that's right... that's why I kept fighting!!" Vein's claws loosened, then clenched again , as if he couldn't decide whether to fight or fall apart.
"BECAUSE THAT'S NOT CLAW!! RIGHT, GASH?!" Vein's voice cracked, breaking under its own fury.
Gash didn't answer , his eyes darted between Vein and the fallen leopard.
The question wasn't really for Gash , it was Vein begging the silence for mercy, Ivy realized.
Vein's breath came in shudders; his chest rose and fell like a cornered beast's.
"Say it..." he whispered, almost pleading. "Say that's not him."
Gash's eyes flickered with guilt; he looked away before Vein could see it, then let out a small laugh.
"Yes... sir!"
"Right?! Deer?" Vein turned to Ivy, who trembled under his gaze.
She looked away without an answer.
"See? Even she knows," he muttered, half to them, half to himself.
From the side, Grizzler's fingers twitched , faint, but enough to ripple through the still air.
The silence lingered for a moment until Ivy spoke.
"Though it's him, killing him wasn't wise," Ivy said, forcing the words past her fear. "He's still a creature… just like us." Her voice trembled, but the truth in it cut through the silence.
"Wha—?" Vein's gaze flicked toward her, unreadable , a mix of fury and disbelief.
Ivy swallowed hard, her chest rising and falling as if every word might be her last.
"Anyway… why are you still here, deer? Didn't you have your chance to run?"
"Or chances?" Vein's smirk returned.
"Seems you're not a clever deer after all," he hissed, tongue tracing his fangs.
"..." Ivy's hooves scraped the dirt, but she couldn't move.
"Tch… what a waste," Vein muttered, his gaze lingering on Grizzler's body before drifting back to Ivy.
Then he turned back to Ivy.
"Right, right, Gash! Let's celebrate.
.. breakfast is trembling already."