The Untold Story of Texas and Lappland (Arknights)

Days of Remembrance 3

"I know."

Gran gnawed on her lower lip, and then let out a sigh as something in her softened at the sad droop of Lappland's ears. "I don't say any of this to be cruel. If it were up to me, you'd be welcome here with open arms. And I'll try to do just that, but for now, I pray you'll be careful. Promise me you'll try."

And it wasn't a demand, it wasn't a forced out order.

It was a plea.

How strange for an acting alpha to ask such a thing?

The words came out of Lappland before she could think them over, spurred on from the worry.

"Okay, I'll try."

*****

She had found Texas just where she expected her to be. The door opened with a creak, illuminating the darkened room. Underneath the covers of the queen sized bed was a small, scrawny form. The little shivers it made broke her heart. They were the kind that came with an unapproachable shock, spamming legs and arms. Accompanying hiccups and sobs filtered through the air, things she never heard from Texas before.

"Texas . . ." She whispered lowly.

Where to begin when someone's whole world was practically ripped from them?

Out of her depth, Lappland chose to hesitantly approach the bed. She was mindful of the crumpled up clothes left at the foot of it. The moonlight cast through the slits in the blinds picked up on the jagged zipper of Texas's discarded hoodie. That was normal; that she had landmarked from past visits. So her bare feet avoided the area entirely, hand squeezing the bed post before she finally reached the mattress and the person it had resting on it.

"Texas," Lappland said again, louder this time.

It prompted a shaky exhale out of the bed's occupant. The covers fell as first pointed ears, messy bed head, and then the tired face right below. Those bicolored eyes were red, skin blotchy from all the crying she had been doing. Texas's lips trembled as she sniffled, a gleam at her throat from the necklace Lappland gave her a short while ago. The lines which represented Lappland's name were dark slivers on the metal. The primal part of her wanted to reach out and touch it, press her nose against the crook of Texas's neck to breathe her in . . . and leave her scent behind.

How hard it was hard to understand this feeling in full. Her parents had explained it somewhat, telling her what mates did to one another, the early signs of a deep bond. "But you don't need to know all that now. You're just a child."  If only they knew then they wouldn't live past Lappland's childhood. It might've given them more urgency to teach me these things.

But a low pitched whine and grabby hands had her pulling out of those thoughts. Texas was looking at her pleadingly, eyes rounded like saucers. Tears spilled over the corners and it was a bit surprising she could see much through the blurred vision.

"Lappland. Y-you're here . . ." She whimpered.

That was all the prompting she needed. Lappland got onto the mattress, crawling the rest of the way over to Texas. "Of course I'm here. Where else would I be?"

The question had been asked rhetorically, but the choked sob Texas let out was anything but. "I-I . . . they took me, a-and you disappeared a-and they s-said Momma and Daddy w-were and I . . . I thought you might have . . ."

Oh.

Lappland took Texas in her arms, holding her tightly. Texas smushed her face against Lappland's shoulders, hiccuping with anguish. Those small cries made a prickle of anger rise in her gut —those people, those awful people would pay— but she kept herself in check from digging her nails into the fabric. Cotton was gentle to the touch, masking soft skin.

"They didn't get me. And even if they had they wouldn't take me." She replied confidently, hoping Texas would believe her.

In truth, she wasn't sure where her limit was. Fighting off all those Hunters in the forest had been with the element of surprise, ancient tradition and adrenaline fueling her movements. But in the mansion things were different. There was adrenaline but not protocol behind it. And with no ancient traditions the lines of morality bled out into unknown. And all those men and women . . . the medical workers might not have been a challenge but the multiple, multiple hunters might serve to be a major problem should she decide to fight them off.

"Are you sure?" Texas asked.

"Yeah. I'm sure." She breathed.

"I was so worried." The words came out muffled.

Lappland rubbed a hand up and down the small of Texas's back. "You were?"

It was still weird to hear someone cared for her.

In tradition, when your pack was gone that was meant to be it.

Yet for her things were different.

Texas was a game changer.

"Yeah. I-I can't have anyone else taken from me." She sniffed.

That made her stomach flip, heat building in her cheeks. But as Texas could not see it she let the rushing tinge remain, did nothing to abate it besides will her heartbeat to slow. It was picking up the pace with those wholesome words. So she deepened the hug, focusing on breathing in more of the scent she had grown to associate with reassurance, trust, and love. There would be certainty there too, rooted into her very being like a promise carried out by bells dolling in the new hour.

"I won't be taken from you. And neither will they." That second part might be a lie, but she said it with as much conviction as she could. It was hard to know what would happen to Texas's parents, but her gut instinct told her the sickness was not good.

That this would not end well.

Her gut feelings were rarely wrong. So she trusted them without scrutiny.

And little did she know how right she was . . .

****

A month.

A month had been all it took.

Yet those days of waiting had been agonizing, full of hope mixed with fear. Texas had cried a lot during those nights, small whimpers in sleep for Dallas and Alice to come to her, to comfort her. So she tried her best to be there for her friend. They cuddled closer now, squeezed against each other as if to provide a reminder the other was always there and was not going anywhere.

But comfort wasn't the only thing Lappland focused on in those dark days.

She also prepared.

For the very eventuality that had taken place.

Because she had felt first-hand how bad grief was and did not want Texas to go through the same pains.

But what can I do?" Texas asked about her proposal.

Lappland's eyes hardened as her voice gained a serious edge to it so rarely heard. "You can do something. Texas, you and I can protect your pack and make sure no one here is Infected because of outsiders ever again."

She hoped the explanation was simple enough, that it hit home for Texas. Because Lappland wasn't one for lengthy words, explanations falling in defeat to the ease of which battle decided things. She yearned for Texas to feel hope instead of despair. So she urged her words to reach out and extend the metaphorical hand to lift the other up.

It seemed like her action succeeded, if Texas's bright, yet tentative smile was anything to go by.

"Okay. Where do we begin?"

Lappland grinned faintly. "I'm glad you asked."

*****

A/N: Was this chapter short? Yes. Please bear with me. The Days of Remembrance are going to play out in a certain way, each one having an integral scene. What this means is that the next Days of Remembrance will likely be much longer.

Meanwhile, the next chapter will also be longer. Hooray!

So don't forget to vote and comment and I'll see y'all next time!