But I Have Promises to Keep

(October 22nd A relaxing thread. Open just to Badger and Dusty for the first few posts, then any other heroes can come in given our cue ^^ Random title is random 0-o)

Badger yawned groggily, swiping a paw at her face as she attempted to shake off her drowsiness. Rolling over, she attempted to judge exactly where she had fallen asleep on her small throne of hay. Countless times she had ended up thinking one end of the room was another. While she was well accustomed to the darkness, the spotted female still had difficulty doing everyday things. Feeling around with her paws, she attempted to find the doll that she kept near in her sleep. She left it at the front of her small 'nest,' using it not only as a way to determine where she was, but the blind pup viewed it as her person angel. Despite never having seen the doll that had been gifted too her, it held a certain sentimental value; she had a difficult time explaining it. Within the doll, she imagined all of those who she had once held dear; her mother, Mortaray, Onyx, Pepsi and Solitude and Mayson. Everyone who had touched her life and was no longer here to watch her in person. They watched her through the doll. At least, that was what the mixed-eyed Dalmatian liked to believe.

Groaning, the spotted pup forced herself to her paws, and slid down off of her bed. Dusty hadn't visited her the previous night, so it was safe to assume that he'd be visiting her in the morning. While she was both emotionally and physically healed (well, as 'healed' as she could possibly get), the two hadn't broken the tradition of nightly visits, as it was the most comfort the two received in this place. She had come to rely on Dusty's visits, as they calmed her at night, and brought her to sleep without wretched nightmares. When the white-furred canine didn't visit at night, the black-eared dog often found that he visited in the morning, or that the two caught up later in the day. Whatever the case, she wasn't willing to oversleep to miss a chance to talk to her friend.

Bowing down to stretch out, she let out a happy hum as she felt her muscles stretch out. Slowly padding outside, she raised her head to the sky, checking for clear signs as to what time of day it was. While she normally woke up early, she could never tell exactly what time of day it was. There were always telltale signs of the time of day; how thick the air felt, if she could feel the sun on her pelt, whether or not she heard birds (and what kinds of birds), along with many other types of little hints.

Although, before she was able to begin attempting to discover the time, a familiar scent hit her nose. Spinning around, she felt a smile stretch across her muzzle.
"Hey, Dusty, what time is it?"

(Crappy post is CRAPPYYYYYY. I apologize xP)

"Hey, Badger," as always, a smile split Dusty's own maw as he saw her, one that he knew the girl couldn't see, though she could probably hear in his tone. He wasn't sure what he and Badger were anymore - at one point, he would have sworn they were verging on becoming lovers, but after everything else, he didn't know anymore - and didn't really care, either. Suffice it to say that she was special to him; so much so that for the past two months, the white shepherd had abandoned most other pursuits to check on her every day. It was a miracle she hadn't got sick to death of him by now, the larger canine couldn't help but muse wryly.

"Just coming up for seven," he informed her casually, giving her cheek a nudge with his muzzle, which he allowed to linger for a moment. "And it's a nice day today," he added, rather needlessly. Even if Badger couldn't see the weather, she could still feel it well enough, rendering his statement somewhat unnecessary.

"How did you sleep?" he asked, only partly to cover his unneeded last sentence. He knew Badger had found herself troubled by nightmares ever since her father's death, and though he wished he could protect her from them, when it came down to it that was a stupid notion. Still, he wanted to make sure none had bothered her too much the previous night.

(ooc: shouldn't this thread be in the Pridelands, not the grasslands? ^^")

Tail happily slicing through the air, she felt her smile quickly begin to grow in size. Just his presence made her feel a happier. Just being with the white-furred male made her feel... Like she wasn't alone anymore. Sure, it sounded silly, even to Badger, but merely the white-furred male's voice could calm her down. She never felt the need to worry when she was around him, it was just really... Nice. It was strange to the girl; he made her feel happy and calm and worthy of life, like she had worth, all at once. It still amazed her, how his scent could bring such a torrent of emotion to her, but she had stopped wondering about a while back. Honestly, it didn't matter why. He was her very best friend. He would always be there for her, and she would always be there for him, that was all that mattered in the end.

"Seven, huh?" The blind pup mused, lifting her muzzle to the sky, glad to know that she hadn't slept too late. His second comment, though, didn't bother her in the slightest. "It feels really nice," She confirmed, tone light as her ear twitched, catching the sound of birds chirping in the distance. "I bet," Badger continued, "That today's gonna be one of those days where the sky is that real pretty light blue..." Smiling widely at the thought, she turned her head back towards Dusty, tail continuing to wag.

How did you sleep?[/i]

Sniffling lightly, Badger sat down, recalling the previous night. "I didn't have any dreams, but I didn't have any nightmares, either, so I can't say that it was bad," She explained, shifting in her spot. Dreams always made the pup's night, as dreams brought back her sight. She could see colours and light and the sun and rocks and dirt and grass and things that she'd never imagine missing the sight of so dearly. "How was your night?" The speckled canine asked offhandedly, cocking her head.

"Oh... alright." Dusty shrugged evasivly. Truth be told, he had his own variety of nightmares to contend with, ones in which the fire he'd started on the TV set - so long ago now - came back to haunt him repeatedly; but since they paled in comparison to what Badger's nightmares must consist of, Dusty had decided a while back that he would neglect to mention them. The studio fire was possibly his best-kept secret around the camp; even now, Dusty was sure he would be branded a fire hazard and expelled from the camp lest he cause the same thing to happen here - and then who'd watch out for Badger? No, better that no-one - not even her - learn of that incident.

"Yeah, it probably will be," he agreed, going back to pick up her thread of conversation regarding the weather. Already, the sky was well on its way to being that colour, and what few clouds there were were passing rapidly enough not to obscure it.

One thing was for sure; his closeness to Badger had made him much more appreciative of his own sight. He'd never really thought about it before she'd been blinded, but the more time he spent around her, the more he understood what a wonderful gift it was to be able to see all that he could. He only wished that she could share it with her. If Dusty could have torn out one of his eyes to replace one of hers, so that they could both see half the world, then physical pain aside he would have done so in a heartbeat. As it was, though...

He'd already come to terms with the fact that there was nothing he could do to restore her sight to her. Still... he could dream.

"What do you want to do, today?" he asked her, distracting himself from what was essentially an unproductive train of thought.

(ooc: okay, for all my talk of Dusty being a struggle to write for... that post came much more easily than I was expecting. Odd XD)

(God I'm sorry for the wait on this xP)

Badger could envision the sky, how it would look in. The spotted female recalled, the day that she lost her sight, the sky having been gorgeous. The last sight her eyes had bestowed upon her. A black paw, flying towards her, ebony claws outstretched. But beyond that, there was the glistening snow. The form of a lithe feline behind that very paw. The bright, beautiful blue sky. The blind pup had seen many things thanks to her time in the war; endless rain, bloody warfare, dirt so sun baked and scorched that it crumbled under your paws. Despite all of this, she had to admit, the sky on that very day had been breathtaking. It was brilliant. It almost upset her that she had taken such a beautiful sight for granted. But she was beyond that now. She didn't let her disability haunt her anymore.

In all truth, the mixed eyed dalmatian was grateful for the time she had had with sight. Badger was grateful for having gotten to see colours and sunshine. It pained her to think that some were born into the world, never having seen simple things. At least she could close her eyes and imagine rocks and trees and clouds. The prospect of being unable to simply imagine the most basic of objects saddened her.

"What do you want to do, today?"

Black ears perking, the female paused, not having thought about it, yet. Blinking slowly, she gave a small shrug, no ideas immediately coming to mind. "I don't really know," Badger woofed after a moment, face painted with a look of serious as she tried to think something up. "We could... Go for a walk or something... Or...." She pondered, tail thumping softly against the soil. "I dunno, go to the watering hole?" The spotted female mumbled, frowning slightly as she attempting to think up something more exciting that just going on a walk. Sighing, she turned to her white-furred friend for ideas. "All my ideas stink," She laughed, nose twitching as she spoke, "What do you think we should do?"

(ugh this post is terrible I apologizeeeeee)