Title:           Deer Friends and Dog Days RP
Author:          Xenthori
Pastebin link:   http://pastebin.com/u5UYAT92
First Edit:      Tuesday 6th of January 2015 05:22:16 PM CDT
Last Edit:       Last edit on: Monday 12th of January 2015 05:40:50 AM CDT

> Akira turned over on the sofa, facing the deer that slept next to her. She hadn't been able to sleep the entire night, even with Maali comforting her a great deal. Her eyes were reddened from tearing up quietly through the night, with dark rings underneath them. Deciding she needed a hug, she wrapped a paw around the deer, hoping it wouldn't wake him.
> He felt soft and pillowy like a warm plush under Akira's arms. But he squirms a bit under the embrace. He was a rather light sleeper. Likely because of his species, with his race being hunted by gryphons and other carnivores, gave him instincts of waking up fast and ready to run. That wasn't the case with Akira, for he knew he was safe. However his eyes fluttered a bit, he seemed very close to waking up. " Mmmakir...a..?"
> She sighed, yet still kept her arm around him. "Sorry Maali... didn't mean to wake you. I'll let you get back to sleep." She whispers, wiping the wet fur around her eyes with her other paw as she tries to manage a smile for the deer.
> Maali groaned a bit. "Miss Akira...what is wrong?you...you were crying?"
> Akira turned her head quickly in embarrassment, covering her face with both her paws, "N-no, just go back to sleep, please don't worry about me. Just had a lot on my mind... that's all..." She said, patting the deer on the back tentatively as she sniffled a bit.
> Maali shifted up, placing his hooves on her hands. "Miss Akira...look at me...please..." he whispered to her sweetly, but still very worried. "What has been troubling you?"
>  Akira let the deer move her paws from her face, her eyes reddened and sleep deprived. "Like I said earlier, haven't been able to sleep well since I was a kid..." she said, sighing, "And Yin bringing up my home and family brought up some memories that I didn't really want to remember... sorry..."
> Maali let go of her paws. The sight of his friend like that shattered his heart. "Miss Akira...Oh Gaia D-don't be like that...I'm sorry..." he said running a hoof on her shoulder comforting her.
> She shuddered, "I'm sorry Maali, I shouldn't have woke you... now I've gone and gotten you all upset. I'm sorry, you've had to put up with a lot of scary things recently, you don't need me stressing you out. I can move to another bed or something if you like."
> Maali had enough of that. With no warning he embraced Akira, burying his muzzle under her neck "please...don't even dare say something like that miss Akira....none of the trials we faced today were as terrifying as seeing you like to this..." he muttered under her, his arms wrapped around Akira's torso, under her arms
> Akira was shocked, the deer's words causing an unplanned for well of tears to spring up. "T-thanks Maali..." She says, weakly smiling, "I wear my helmet to hide my eyes a bit, you know... doesn't cover them up, but you can't see the rings with the shade it produces..."
> He looked up at her. "Why?...why do you hide how you feel miss Akira?you shouldn't do that..."
> she chuckles, tears still falling down her cheek, "Please, who'd hire an emotionally unstable mercenary? It's best to keep a straight face and be quiet unless told to speak in my line of work...
> He didn't respond. He just gave her a big squeeze. Enjoying her warmth and sniffling a bit
>  she smiled a little, before looking at maali semi-seriously, "Hey Maali? You don't have to answer, but umm... what are your parents like?"
>  He barely lifted his head, only adjusting himself so that he could rest his chin on her. "Well...My father has always been rather distant...He loved me...I know he did, he loved me and all my blood-brothers, but he was always meditating, studying...Never had much time for us...or Mae..." he said melancholic
> she wiped her eyes again, ears perking up slightly, "Mae... she is your mother?"
> "Oh...right. Mae is how I call my other mother...not Gaia...She was the sweetest...kind, loving and so strong for us...I loved her so much." He stammered out, he rubbed his face against her fur a bit. "And I miss her so much as well..."
>  Akira rubbed the fur of Maali's back with a paw as she sighed, nodding, "Reminds me of my birth mother, Inari. She taught me there was more to the world than fighting... she too was a very kind and loving woman. I wish I could see her face for one last time, I miss it so much..." She wrapped both paws around Maali, squeezing him tightly again as her stomach churned from the longing for her mother.
> "I...oh miss Akira..." he mutters, hugging her tighter. " I am so sorry for that...No one...no one should suffer like that..."
> No... remembering her is what helps me when I'm sad sometimes... It's just..." she trails off, "I dunno, it's my father who I..." she continues to stammer. "Ugh, sometimes I just imagine his face when I'm slicing someone with my katana. I hate him with my whole heart, I just c-can't do anything about it..."
> He seemed shocked. "W-what...why would...why hate your father miss Akira?" He asked placing a hoof on her paw
>  She huffs a bit, "Why would I hate him? He hated anything I did that wasn't something he told me to do, h-he hated my mother, he kept me away from the other girls in our clan, he would have me do his dirty work... he... he..." She breaks down, crying into the shoulder of Maali, "W-well, he literally killed my mother... on p-purpose... goddesses he is the bane of my existence..."
> Maali's eyes widened in horror, pupils shrinking as he looked back at her. "How.. why...Oh Gaia miss Akira I am so sorry please don't cry...P-please don't...Don't *sniffle* cry..." Maali stammered his words as he embraced her as well, forcing his eyes shut to try to hold back the tears of his own
> Unfortunately, Akira could not be consuled. She continued to cry into the deer's shoulder, squeezing him close. She still felt bad she was making Maali said, letting out multiple 'sorries' in between her weeping.
> He held her close as well. "Please don't apologize, don't say that you are sorry please...I don't want to see you like this Miss Akira...Please don't cry" he said as the tears ran down his furry cheeks
> Akira continued to cry into the deer's shoulder, sobs slowing down to small whimpers, sighing as she eventually gets over her episode. She continues to hold Maali close, wiping her eyes yet again. "Sorry Maali... I've never told a-anybody that before, I didn't think it'd h-hit me that hard..."
>  "Miss Akira...You do not have to apologize for anything...Just for not telling me before... a friend would never let the other hold such a pain in its heart...do you...want to go outside? The clean air should help..." he said slowly climbing out of her grip
> "T-thanks..." she says quietly, "and yeah, that'd be n-nice." she let's go of the deer after one more squeeze, putting on her kimono.
> "Arigato, it was a gift from an old friend." She says, walking out of the cabin with her quiet padded paws muffling her footsteps out, waiting for Maali to follow before going through the door.
> He blinked once at hearing the foreign word, but followed shortly after, he slowly closed the door, "Excuse me" he muttered to Ebon and Platinum, and walked along with Akira. Silently
> Akira walked a ways away from the cabin, before laying out in the dead grass, looking up at the sky, offering a paw out to Maali to lay down with her, gazing at the endless night.
> Maali seemed confused. But he took her paw in his hoof without another word, wait to see what she would do.
> She just continued to look up at the sky, "I dunno, I thought some star gazing would be nice... guess there aren't any stars though... ah well..."
> He blinked again. "I spent many nights staring at the stars before...in my tribe there is a story that says the stars are the tears of Gaia..." he commented before laying down besides her
>"The tears of Gaia..." she said, "fitting..." Akira sighed, "I think I'm feeling a little better now though... thank you for that."
> "See? I knew it would make you feel better. The smell of grass calms the storms of our minds...um... I just wish it was not so cold outside..." he said rubbing his arm
> Akira picked up the deer, placing him on her belly. "Well maybe this can help, at least..." she said, letting a little smile slip again.
> His tail raised suddenly as he let out a small eep. But did not struggle. Maali was really light as well. He smiled and settled his head on her tummy. " Y-yes...this helps indeed...thank you."
> Akira laid still in the grass for a while, not saying anything, seemingly in thought. She then blinks a few times, before nudging the deer. "Hey, Maali? Can I talk to you about my family again? I dunno... it made me sad, but felt like a weight of my shoulders that'd been there for a long time... That or we could just lay here, I-I'd be content either way..."
> "Miss Akira, if it helped take the weight of your  shoulders I would swim over the seas of Equestria...so yes. Please tell me about yourself and your family. I would love to hear..."
> It's not the kind of thing that'd you'd love to hear, really... I don't talk usually bring it up for a reason, I've done a lot of bad stuff in my life, are you sure? I don't want you to think badly of me or anything, so tell me if I need to stop, okay?"
> Maali placed a hoof on her shoulder "I know you are not a bad dog miss Akira...And I know that you regret the bad things you have done. " he said scooting closer
> "Alright, thank you Maali..." she said, wrapping an arm around him. "Anyways, you know about how I'm a mercenary. Basically, when Equestria was expanding into diamond dog territory, my father the clan chief struck a deal with the Princesses, selling their land and gem mines in return for a vast amount of money and being allowed to keep some of the land for ourselves. I wasn't born yet then..." she says pausing to add "You can always stop me to ask questions, by the way..."
> He shook his head negatively. " only after I hear the whole story... please go on..."
>"Alright... anyways, my father took the money and reformed the clan into a powerful mercenary army, those in my business call them PMCs, or private military corporations. Sure we had a few farms here or there, but we were a clan of warriors, any dog capable of holding a bow or wielding a blade was taught to use them, and it was a good business. With the discovery of the dimensional rifts and all, my father expanded the business to create multiple outposts throughout seventeen dimensions..." she stops herself, "I'm getting ahead of myself, before the adventurers came from there, Inari and my fath-, eh I'll call him by his name now. Anyways, Inari and my father Hametsu had me."
> "My mother was ecstatic by my birth, but Hametsu wasn't. His first born being me, and me being a woman, he didn't have an male heir to the linage. Though they tried again, Inari never had a child again, much to my dismay. Instead, my father decided to raise me as a son, and not a daughter. Not so bad yet, right?"
> "Well...I do not know what Is so important about the gender of a child...but do go on, do not let me interrupt you. But um...Could I just get a bit comfortable..." he says shifting in place. He settled on Akira tummy laying on his back, his hooves dangling cutely in the air
>  She chuckled with the deer moving around on her stomach, tickling her slightly. "Ah, well in my clan at least, chiefs were never female, always male. Only a couple female diamond dogs ever ruled a clan, and they're old legends from far times. I'm named after one them, Akira the True, who once ruled over two mountains with fairness and sternness."
> "Oooh that sounds nice...reminds me of a story from another friend but that does not matter...go on..."
> "Anyways... Hametsu trained me to be a mercenary like anyone else in the clan. For fifteen years, my father taught me swordplay, mathematics, battlefield tactics, scouting, and plenty of other vigorous activities. My mother in the dead of night, however, would often wake me when my father was sleeping, teaching me things like reading, clan folklore, and even some calligraphy. I was never too good at the calligraphy though..." she says, chuckling.
> "But it was okay, sure my dad was tough, but spending time with my mother made it worth it."
> He laughed "hey at least you can read unlike a certain deer"
> "I still plan on teaching you some day, don't you forget that." Akira says, nudging him playfully.
> He jiggled as the nudge made him slide off of her "Oops...Hehehe..." he sat up besides Akira, a small blush in his cheeks and a glow in his eyes that reflected the moonlight. He gave her a bashful smile
> "You're so cute." Akira says, before returning to the story, "Anyways, it all changed on an autumn evening. There had always been tension between my father's clan and some more wild clans that lived in the wastelands. They resented Hametsu for siding with the ponies, selling his land for the money. Three smaller clans banded together and raided our clan. It was a bloody day, I certainly didn't have enough training to do any fighting, so my father had me hide with Inari in the throne room. He had left shortly to grab rally some more dogs, but by time he got back, one of the rival chiefs had taken my mother hostage. I was hiding in a corner unseen." She shudders, whimpering for a bit, "It was really scary..."
> "R-ready for the next part?" She asks Maali, but more so questioning herself, not sure if she wants to recount it.
> Maali had been listening intently, Focused on Akira. Seeing her hesitant he placed a hoof on her shoulder. " if you are ready..."
> She takes a deep breath, and continues, "W-well, the guy had a tachi -something kinda like my katana- up to her neck, and was shouting at Hametsu. Said for him to drop his katana if he didn't want Inari killed. Hametsu..." she pauses, "Hametsu had this... I dunno what to call it. This strange expression on his face. I-it was... I don't know, a face of evil or something, I dunno what to call it. He walked slowly up to the rival chief, his stride made him look like he was still in charge of the situation... I thought he was going to be a total hero and like - i dunno, chop the guy's head off and w-we'd be happy and nothing bad would've happened..." she says, taking more deep breaths
> He silently gripped her paw harder...
> "He took his k-katana, right in front of the two out. The guy was shouting at the top of his long, saying about how he was going to slit her throat right then and there when suddenly-" she gulps, another tear falling down her cheek. "He looked at Inari in the eyes, it was... he stabbed the damned katana right into her chest, piercing her and the chief at once..." She says, more tears falling down her cheek.
> "He s-said along the lines of 'couldn't give me a son anyways', b-before pulling the blade out, the two falling to the floor..."
> Maali hugged her slowly and gently as she spoke
> "My mom... s-she... she reached out towards me, but her paw fell halfway down... s-she..."
> "Hametsu killed my mother..." she said, burying her head in her paws again, sobbing.
> Maali hugged her around her neck, climbing on her a bit as he muttered words to calm her down. Rocking back and forth with her.
> Akira wept. While saddened from the returned memories, it once again felt like a weight was lifted off her shoulders, the deer comforting her. She forces herself to calm down, not wanting to worry him. "A-anyways... after t-that, i-it was kind of a blur..." She said, curling up into the fetal position, "I think my mind... something h-had happened that just e-ended all happiness for me. W-with no mother, m-my dad controlled my life... I had control o-of my mind, but not my b-body." She shivered, adding, "m-metaphorically, speaking..."
> "I w-was just another s-soldier, doing m-my fathers bidding without s-saying no. I a-amounted one hundred and nineteen missions... k-killed two hundred and thirty six people... fifty seven of those didn't deserve to d-die. I still r-remember the face of every s-single one, they haunt my memory to this d-day..."
> Maali hugged her from behind. Trying to spoon her but...failing due to their size difference. "I can relate actually. To your loss but not the feelings. I suppose some face it differently...still... Miss Akira...Why did you endured all of that? For so long?" He asked from behind her
> He hugged her tighter. Silently.
> "S-something in me j-just snapped, i-it's like... my mind didn't want to feel emotion any more, so it stopped. I was just a machine, m-my dad putting in orders, and I'd comply without thinking..." She said sniffling, "E-even when I was contracted with Neph', I still hardly had any free will. Sure I had moments of clarity, th-the day my father remarried, I know I stayed alone in a cave and didn't do anything except for cry again..."
> "Y-you'd think it be good to have a mother again..." She said, her paws forming into fists, "W-well... Meinu was not loving at all... j-just another suck up to my father who wanted to get into the p-pants of the clan chief. There w-was no love.."
> "Well I just...I...Oh goodness I don't even know what to say miss Akira that...that is just terrible...I'm sorry I'm so sorry..." he said climbing up from behind her and going to snuggle under her tummy "at least... Something good came out of it all right? "
> She paused, slightly giggling from the deer's snuggling. She wiped her eyes yet again, offering a slight smile. "Y-yeah... when Dao was born... I knew he was a blessing... he was a fighter, sure... but goddesses, even as a kid he was so selfless. Sometimes when I'd show back up at the clan house battered and tired, the poor kid would offer me his bed in the middle of the night, and would ask if I wanted any of his secret stash of gemstones he hid in his closet." She smiled slightly wider, petting the head of deer on her belly, "Wish I had a picture to show you, gosh he was cute..."
> "Haven't seen him for years though... I hope he hasn't changed too much...
> "I miss my siblings too...I hope Dao is well. He sounds really nice miss Akira " he said still snuggling up to comfort her. "Although I never understood the Diamond dogs obsession for gems..." he wondered out loud.
> Then, he silently went up, until he was hugging Akira's neck again.
> She smiled more, her sniffling subsiding. "Hehe... well you know how dragons can eat gemstone, right?"
> "Yes...oh do you eat gemstones too?"
> "We don't have the teeth to do it, but we can gnaw and suck on em'. Powdered gemstone is also a highly sought out spice." She said, showing off her canine teeth. "That, and my race is naturally greedy." She says with a twinkle in her eye, looking a bit more like herself than before.
>  He giggled "Scary dog teeth Hehe " he then opened his mouth wide, showing his cute deer teeth in return "mine are pretty strong too! I once bit off a whole bamboo in half! "
> She giggled, ruffling his fur. "What a strong deer you are, hehe..." She said sitting up, looking a bit concerned, "Speaking of being strong, how's the hoof?"
> He sat on her lap. " Well it doesn't hurt...at all...but it still gives me a lot of worry. I know mister Ink said that it is but an illusion. I trust him but I'm still not sure..." he rubbed his ugly and wounded arm. "And I can feel that...it is somehow related to the Doom Desire..."
> Akira hugged the deer closely, "Well, don't worry too much, okay? I'll make sure no more bad things happen to you, I promise that." She chuckles a bit, "Besides, I promised you I'd teach ya to read, didn't I? I don't break my promises."
> He looked up at her with the most excited look. "Oh gosh oh gosh oh gosh I am so happy for that miss Akira! When do we start?" He said practically bouncing in the hug.
> "As soon as we find a library or a bookstore, okay? I don't have any books on me, should have grabbed some when we were in Aramael..." She said, sighing.
> The snuggle intensified. "Heeeey, don't worry miss Akira, I bet the next dimension has books eeeeeeeeverywhere! And I need to teach you something in return as well..."
>  "Oh please... I had never told anyone about what happened to my mom... ever, really... getting that off my chest was more than enough payment. Best thing that's happened since I decided to loose the mercenary career back in Aramael." She says smiling, "Besides, what do you think you could teach me?"
> He opened his mouth to talk but..."Oh..."
>  He let out an embarrassed smile "Well...um....I could..." he stammered, being adorable again.
>  "Oh shush, all 'ya gotta do is to continue being you, okay?" She said, almost all traces of sadness gone, "Promise me you won't change, that's my offer."
>  He looked back at her. "Not...change?" blinking a bit he looked at the distance. " That's a very interesting offer..." a small smile forming on his face as he got off of Akira. " my Master once told me how nature is always the same, but going through a constant change"
> "Well, continue being cute and nice and stuff, okay? you change other stuff all you want. It's your nature to be good-hearted, pardon the pun."
> "Just make sure you're around to make sure the group, including I, make the right choices, alright?"
> "Hehe, like Ashon, Ying... Mr. Platinum, Sir Ebon, whatever the new mercenary's name is..." she chuckles, "Eeeeveryone!"
> He smiled for a moment before his eyes widened and he gasped "Oh wait I shouldn't have said that. I really shouldn't have said that. I promised miss Ying I would be quiet about it. .."
> "About what?" She says, turning her head inquisitively.
> "That she likes- Augh I'm sorry I'm sorry I can't stop talking about it!" He held his head in his hooves.
> Akira once again ruffled the deer's fur, chuckling. "Maali, don't worry about it. I won't intrude on anyone's personal affairs if they don't wish for me to. My lips are sealed." She says, crossing a paw across her muzzle in a zipping motion.
> Worry showed in his face. "B-b-but wouldn't that be painful miss Akira? If not scary as well..." he said touching his own lips
> "Maali-" she says, then laughing heartily, "It's an expression, I'm not *literally* going to seal my lips." Akira pats him on the back, "I just mean I won't talk about it with anyone else. Though, if you ever need someone to talk to, I'm open, okay? It's the least I can do, after tonight at least."
>  "Oooooh...I'm dumb..." blushing in embarrassment, he looked away for a few moments before laying his head on her leg. " I... would love that actually...thank you miss Akira...I know it doesn't seem like it but I have been rather upset lately..."
> She frowned, rubbing the deer's fur slowly with one paw as she sighed, "What's been bothering you? You just listened to my story, the least I can do is listen to yours."
> "It is rather a lot to tell...this will take hours maybe miss Akira...Honestly I think it would be better if...we just let it go and go back to bed..." he said slowly getting up with a sad,seemingly fake smile as he slowly headed back inside
> Maali wait-" She said stopping him, grabbing one of his hooves. "Don't say that, we're stuck together for who knows how long, I can spare more than a few hours. Days, even. Please, stay here and tell me what upsets you..." She says, giving him an abrupt hug.
> The deer froze when she caught his leg, he opened his mouth to retort but once he found himself in the hug...he relaxed again. " Afraid of losing any of you...this lingering fear is what bothers me..."
> "Oh Maali..." She says hugging him even tighter, "Don't you dare say that... I w-would... I wouldn't ever want you to have to know that feeling..." she rubs his back as she continues to squeeze him possibly a little to strongly, "I promise... I promise I won't go, you're too good of a person for that to ever happen to you. I won't... I won't..." She repeats, loosening her hug, but still keeping him close.
>  He sniffed. " You promised... alright?" He asked hugging her large arm. "Ever since the fight me, Ying and Harmony and the others had in Aramael...No...even before that....I have been sleeping every night silent praying that no one dies... and that in the you are all safe and healthy..."
>  "And I will stay safe and healthy, I promise you that. Just promise me you'll stay safe too..."she says, continuing to rub his fur with her paws. "I know you're scared of loosing us... I'm scared of loosing you guys too. When I saw Rosey upset in Aramael, I snapped out of my stupor, someone who had lost someone like a parent to them as well... I don't know what would happen if I lost you guys as well... I'd probably go back into my emotionless following of my Hametsu again, I don't know..." She sighed, one more tear falling down her cheek, "I love you guys, despite if I argue sometimes, even Neph'. I've killed so many people... the idea of being stuck in the mind of someone amongst the people that killed you, literally trapped against their will... Forgive me if I pity her..."
>  He was almost in tears at this point . He looked up at her with teary eyes and spoke. " I... I love you too miss Akira...I love all of you..."
> He gave her yet another warm embrace around her neck
> "Now... I promised I won't die, so can you promise me something as well?" She said, looking into his teary eyes softly, "D-don't you die either, please?"
> "I promise miss Akira. I won't die on you...on anyone of you guys..." the thought of dying and leaving his friends behind pierced Maali's heart. He was tearing up even more now... "Ugh...cursed...I'm sorry miss Akira I just cry too much all the time...I need to be stronger than that..." he started wiping his tears
> "Oh shush you..." she said, patting his back, "If that's the case, I'm no stronger than you are. It's okay to cry you silly deer, I mean, what was I just doing?" Akira give the deer a big hug, standing up with the deer in her arms. "Let's head back inside, okay? Maybe you were right, rest would do us good..."
>  Nestled in her strong arms, Maali gave her a nod. 'Y-yes let us go back...I promise I will make us tea in the morning like I used to do every day... Would you like to share a cup with me miss Akira ? "
> "Of course Maali, I believe you offered me tea on the tram in Aramael before, but we never got to partake in it. I would love to." She said, walking back to the cabin with the deer in paws, letting out a yawn. "I think maybe... maybe I'll be able to sleep a bit easier now. Domo arigato, Maali. Thank you very much."
> "Itodenu miss Akira... you're welcome..."he spoke as he snuggled up against her kimono "Hmnn this is a really nice robe...Smells so nice too..."
>  She just smirked, bringing Maali over her shoulder as she freed up a paw to open the door, making her way back to the couch that had previously held the dog and deer, setting the deer down as she reclined back onto the couch, keeping her robe on. "You're a very silly deer, Maali. Let's get back to sleep."
> Hehe I'm not silly...am I?" He said laying back with his tummy facing up. His tongue poked out of his mouth as he smiled sweetly at her, like that, he looked 200 percent cuter than usual
> Akira giggled, playfully bopping his nose with a paw. "Alright alright, that's enough cute for one night. Get to sleep already." She said, closing her eyes as she slipped an arm around the deer, smiling contently.
> Without a word he rested his head on her shoulder. Closing his eyes as he drifted off to sleep. "...Good night miss Akira..."
>  "Goodnight, Maali."