#*replies.kam

Kalani leaned against the doorway of the clinic, the scent of antiseptic and metal sharp in the air. Her arms crossed loosely over her chest, Echo pressed to her leg like a restless shadow — three heads shifting, sniffing, whining softly as if impatient for her to move first.

“Didn’t think you’d still be playing doctor,” she said finally, her tone light enough to pass for teasing, but there was a tremor of something else beneath it — a tired kind of warmth. “Figured you’d have found a cave somewhere by now. Wrestled a bear for the title.”

Kalani’s gaze flicked down to Echo, whose tails swayed lazily before one thumped against the doorframe. “Echo dragged me here,” she went on, softer now. “Guess he really wanted to check on you.” Echo gave another low chuff — the sound halfway between a bark and a sigh — before settling his heads on his paws.

Kalani looked back at Royal, meeting his eyes in that long, unguarded way that made time feel like it hadn’t passed at all. “Guess I couldn’t tell him no.”

Kalani dragged a hand down her face as she padded through the hallway, the heaviness of sleep still clinging to her bones. A blur of numbers on the wall clock caught her eye—3:01 p.m. Somehow, even with hours behind her, she felt like she hadn’t rested at all. The kind of tired that sleep didn’t fix.

Echo’s low whine at her side was a firmer reminder than her stomach’s growl. He nudged her hip with one of his heads, another nosing her forward until she fell into step with the familiar herding motion. She fed him on instinct, scooping his meal into the bowl. The sound of his three sets of jaws snapping together filled the room, his tails wagging hard enough that one smacked against her leg with a solid thump.

Kalani exhaled, rubbing the spot where Echo had clipped her. Her gaze drifted, almost unconsciously, to the faint hum of the mutation she was still trying to wrap her head around. It wasn’t what she wanted. Not what she had imagined when the storm had rewritten her body. To her, it felt more like a cruel joke than a gift—something unwieldy, sharp at the edges, not useful the way she needed it to be.

She turned on her heel, muttering to herself, "What the hell am I supposed to do with this?" as she stepped toward the adjoining room—where she knew Coryn would be, the glow of his tablet or his steady, watchful presence always pulling her in.

The steady ticking of the clock filled Coryn's dwelling, each second stretching the boredom suffocating Kalani. It blended seamlessly with Echo’s rumbling snores from the other room—deep, steady, and utterly unbothered. Unlike her. Her leg bounced, fingers drumming against her thigh, restless energy coiling inside her like a wound spring. The ash storm barely fazed Echo—he was built for the Wastelands, his lungs tough enough to outlast any human’s & most mutants. Kalani could take him out with the right gear, but even that wasn’t enough to burn off the energy thrumming beneath her skin. Meanwhile, Echo slept like a damn rock, his snores practically taunting her.

With a dramatic sigh, she pushed herself up and stalked toward the one room she knew she’d find Coryn in—nose buried in his graphic novelist duties, as usual. She still didn’t get it, no matter how many times she pestered him for an explanation. "You know," she drawled as she leaned against the doorway, arms crossing over her chest. "When you said I could stay here while Mother Nature forced me into ‘taking a break,’ I thought it’d be fun."

The night air was cool against Kalani’s skin as she wandered through the quieter streets of Sol City, Echo trotting faithfully beside her. The city had its own rhythm at night, a softer hum compared to the chaos of the day. She hadn’t planned on stopping anywhere in particular, just walking, clearing her mind—but Echo had other ideas.

The moment they neared Garcelle and Enzo’s home, the massive hound’s ears perked, and with a mischievous glint in his eyes, he changed course. Kalani huffed, shaking her head but letting him lead. She knew Enzo wouldn’t be home yet—he was still at work—but her mother was.

Sliding the spare key from her pocket, Kalani unlocked the door and barely had time to step inside before Echo bolted past her. He greeted Garcelle with unrestrained excitement, paws tapping against the floor as he covered her in affectionate licks. Kalani sighed, shutting the door behind her. “I was going to announce our entrance, but I guess he did it for me.”

Kalani lingers by the gates separating the Wastelands from Sol City, her fingers idly twirling a knife as she hums one of her mother’s old songs under her breath. Her wings flutter absently, catching the faint breeze as she waits for Sangah to return from their weekly scavenging trip.

They always split up at some point—Sangah, with her sheer strength, tackled the areas Kalani couldn’t, while Kalani slipped into tight spaces Sangah wouldn’t fit through, her butterfly form giving her an edge. This time, exhaustion had cut their hunt short, and they’d agreed to meet back at the gates.

Time drags. The sky shifts. Kalani’s gaze lifts at the sound of approaching footsteps, spotting Sangah in the distance. A small smile tugs at her lips as she waves and steps forward. "How was the hunt?"