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Sora had to give it to Kari as their hands separated, her fingers feeling numb: the wolf had an iron grip for not being invested in this conversation.  The gentle ocean breeze rushed by them on the bench, Miami Beach’s nightlife filling the area with drunken laughter and groups intent on finding new hot spots.

“Why don’t we walk a little and talk?”  Sora offered, pushing herself up to stretch out her arms and tail.  “It’s a nice night to talk and get to know each other!  Plus, this is kind of my first time in, like, weeks that I’ve felt this free.”

“Really?  Free, huh,”  Kari mumbled, dull eyes and rubbing her arms in an oddly nervous gesture for her former bully; she was the ultra extrovert, surrounded by her ‘pack,’ yet now she looked totally out of place while examining the packs of tourists and locals, club hopping as midnight struck.  “Why won’t you just let me disappear?  I thought you were done with me.”

Lips bunching to the side, Sora lifted an eyebrow at the tall, muscular girl, unwilling to meet her gaze.  “You… are so ridiculous.”

“Excuse you?  Okay, you want me to fake-be your friend?  Sure,” Kari scoffed, now playing with her cuticles.  “None of this matters.  Just release my brother and kick me out.”

Sora snorted, drawing the girl’s amber eyes as her chest shook with soft laughter.  “Have you… been listening to me at all?”

“Uh, yeah?  You want to trot me around like a pet puppy to show off to all your friends.  I guess I deserve it…  Can you just let me disappear?”

“Wow.”  Sora rubbed between her eyes, a half-smirk twitching into place.  “There you go again with the disappear shit.  I want you to be my puppy on a leash, do I?  Hmm.”

The wolf’s attitude only further spurred an aggressive and annoyed impulse within Sora’s chest that pushed her agitation to the next level; she understood Kari and what she needed, which she hated.  Her hatred was swiftly losing its bite.

The worst part was that she knew precisely what Kari’s disinterested, defensive cadence was hiding since she had used that tactic at points against her bullies.  It could have been due to her awakened vulpes nature, or maybe it was something her mother did to help her, but somehow, she just… knew how to push Kari toward recovery.

You want to play this the hard way?  she internally snarled.  Okay, Kari, fine!  I’m not the same girl I was fourteen days ago—hold up, damn, was it really not that long ago I changed into a vulpes?  Wow, I’m so much better!

“You’re my friend.  Great,” Kari softly grumbled.  “What more do you want from me?  I told you, I’m not into this role-playing shit.  We’re not friends, so just—”  she cut off as Sora giggled, feeling the sudden urge to confront the last three years and what she’d learned in the two weeks prior. 

“Oh, c’mon, Kari!  What’s the worst that can happen?!  We’re going to walk.  So walk, puppy!  Princess’ orders!”

“Wha—”  Kari cried as Sora snatched her hand and pulled her up; she hardly resisted, melting into the submissive wolf she’d turned out to be.  “Why are you so obsessed with me?  I just want to be left alone…  Mmgm.  Not that that stopped me when you said that…”

“Exactly!  And no, you do not!”  Sora bit back, drawing her to the sidewalk and creating a magical aura to influence people to walk around them since they were invisible.  “Seriously, Kari, if you think nothing matters, then what’s the worst that can happen?  I want to know who you are, and I know this is hard for you, but tough shit!”

The wolf’s mouth locked, tongue pressing against the top of her mouth as Sora let go, walking backward while prompting her to follow.

“Who’s a good girl?  C’mon!  I’ll buy you a treat!”  she sang, making Kari’s exposed stomach flex and show off her impressive abs.  “Feeling annoyed?  Then stop acting like my doggy and walk with me instead of trying to run away!”

“That makes… no sense—both those are doggy options.”

“I didn’t notice,” Sora snickered.

“Ugh.  Foxes.”  Kari puffed out a hot stream of air, hands tucked under her armpits as Sora coaxed her on, tail swaying with how the roles had been reversed.  “Fine, whatever… but only if you promise to leave me alone after… whatever you want to say or do.  I need to go.  You don’t know what’s the worst that could happen…  You have no idea what Eric might do… what he’s capable of.”

Sora’s enthusiasm and swaying tail diminished as Kari’s voice cracked.  Putting on an encouraging smile, she found her elbow behind her back and nudged her head to the side.

“Hey, Kari, I’m the one jumping to you across this very unstable bridge between us.  I know you’re scared.  I’m scared!  And I know you’re going through… so much right now.  So, I will make a deal with you.”

For the first time, Kari’s uncertain amber eyes lifted to stare down at her; it was so weirdly empowering to see the far stronger and taller girl looming in front of her so timid—cathartic, even.

“I’m listening.  Sora, what’s wrong?”

Abruptly, fire crept up Sora’s chest, shocking her as her eyes stung, and a particular event surged back to punch her in the gut; Kari had offered her a lifeline two weeks ago when she had told her to leave, when Sora had no power over her life, and it had sparked everything that came after.  Now, it was her chance to repay the kind act, and oddly enough, it had been a kind act on Kari’s part.

“Nothing… just remembering something.  Umm…”

Tucking her bottom lip under and filled with curiosity after what the wolf’s brother had said when they met, Sora examined her from head to toe; she seemed to have raided her closet, including undergarments with how her much smaller sports bra fit the athlete.  She wore a pair of her blue jean shorts that were pretty short on the black-haired wolf, and her tank top was fairly stretched on the girl’s larger frame.

Sora could picture a collar on her with how submissive the wolf had become.  It would make a funny joke for later if they ever did become friends, which was unlikely with how things were going.  In any case, she was about to shove it into the sport-loving girl’s court.

“First, for all of tonight, I want you to show me your tail and ears—I want to see you—not this human side you show the world.”

Kari gulped, fingernails digging into her sides, and Sora restrained a wince as they broke through the fabric to draw blood that quickly struck her nose.  “T-That’s stupid!  I’m me—a tail doesn’t define who I am.  What are you even asking—I don’t get it.”

Placing a hand on her hip, Sora didn’t back down now that she smelled blood—literally—this was important to the wolf, which meant that if Sora wanted to get where she wanted, then she had to get this concession from the broken girl.

“Okay, then I’ll keep pestering you and force you to stay nearby because I hold all the power this time, my little puppy girl!  If it’s not a big deal, then just do it.”  She flashed her teeth.  “Again!  What’s the worst that can happen?  I make fun of it because it’s not as long as mine, or yank it?  Not that that would do anything since you’re a freaking tank,” she grumbled, a little spiteful at how physically invulnerable the wolf was.

Goosebumps ran down Kari’s arms as she turned to the side, making Sora realize she was taking a defensive stance rather than a combative one; she was going to crumble.  It was so weird to see this side of her archnemesis.

“I… forgot how,” she lied.  Her cheeks were coloring, and her heartbeat rose as she showed more defiance than before.  “Why do you even want me to do that—it’s weird—it won’t work with my shorts—”

“First of all, those are my shorts!”  Sora shot back, pointing out the hidden slit in the back she knew was there.  “Don’t think I didn’t hear you snag them from my drawer when you were leaving my room to get out of those clothes the SCC put you in.  So don’t you lie to me,” she accused, getting a nervous twitch from the wolf.  “You fill them out way more than I do—they’re practically short-shorts on you.  So don’t start with me!

“Secondly, if you do what I say, then I will let you off your leash to do whatever you want.  If you want to go off somewhere and die, then you do you, boo-boo!  I’m willing to jump across this bridge and get to know you, but go ahead and shove me off if you want to after I’ve said my piece.”

It took a moment for Kari to respond, her throat thick.  “That’s… all you want from me?”

“No!”  Sora shot back with a huff.  “I’m just taking what I know I can get, geez, and I need to get this shit off my chest.  I have to clear my conscience, and I want to see you.  Accept the deal?”

She stepped forward and held out her hand, her green irises drilling into the wolf’s amber; Kari was more defensive than she’d ever dreamed.

“Our lives have been nothing but chaos and torture for the past three years, but I don’t want that to define my life.  I don’t want you to define my life, but I do want to know if you’re worth making a part of it.  So quit being difficult!”

Kari stared at her offered hand for a moment before looking away and scratching the back of her head.  “It’s just…  It’s hard.  My hair gets really… wild and thick when I release more of my Fenris Wolf side.  Ack-you’re… so aggressive now—it’s weird.  I don’t like it!”

“And you’re so submissive!  It’s weird, and I’m… honestly kind of a fan because old you was scary, but yeah!”

“Right…  What’s the worst that can happen?  Agh.  None of this makes sense to me, but sure, whatever…  What’s the worst that can happen, right?  Shit.”

Shifting uncomfortably, Kari took a defiant stance, amber eyes illuminated as her hair grew into a mane of silky locks, and larger ears than Sora would have thought sprouted out of her head.  They twitched, and Kari took a step forward to stare down at her, making Sora’s ears pull back a little now that the tall, muscular girl was standing over her.

“I’ll only do… this much.  Happy?”

Sora forced a smile, glancing down.  “I, uh, don’t see a tail!”

“And you won’t see one!  Look, take my ears or just put a collar on me already—agh, my hair gets everywhere—it’s so annoying!”

Giggling a little, Sora was happy to have gotten this far with the traumatized girl, and she shook her firm hand.  “Fine!  Fine!  I’ll accept it for now…  You’re actually so much prettier like this, which is crazy…  I’m supposed to be the fox, but you’re the ‘busty’ one.  It’s not fair.”

“Wha…  What are you talking about, fox?  I hate how random you are!  Can you just stick to a topic for once?  Damn.  And quit complimenting me, weirdo.  You’re plenty pretty.”

Sora rolled her eyes before freezing at the returned compliment that felt like a slap across her face.  “I’m what?!  You seriously think I’m pretty?  Jenny was always calling me ugly and flat-ass and shit—all your girls did!”

“Of course, they did, stupid,” Kari grumbled, walking past her to take the lead and trying to brush her bangs over her human ears that had disappeared, further frustrating the wolf.  “Dammit, I…  Oh, thanks…”

Sending a swift desire of magic to manage Kari’s absurdly thick hair to keep out of her vision, Sora was not done with the topic.  “You can accept help after all!  And why would they say those things?  Haha.  Don’t tell me, they were jealous?”

Kari snorted and crossed her arms, passively scanning their environment and acting far too casual and nonchalant, which was probably a defensive attitude thing.

“Duh.  Jenny had a flat ass, which was why she always said yours was to make you self-conscious like she was of hers.  Lori was harping on you being half-Asian because the guy she liked was into Asians and put you on a top five list in the school for prettiest girls; she just had connections with the party committee to take you off the running for prom and shit.”

“No freaking way!”  Sora growled.  “No way she did that!”

“Don’t believe me if you want.  Shit,” Kari grumbled.  “I’m just telling you what happened.  All the guys knew every girl hated you and that you were a target of my pack; they talked about you, but no guy wanted to be on the girl blacklist.  You had it all.  Looks, brand clothes, unlimited money… nothing much I cared for.”

“Right…”  Sora mumbled, looking backward and jogging to keep up with the wolf’s much longer stride.  “You were more into the sports scene, which I wasn’t a part of, so… I wasn’t really in your way.  Damn.  You’re not pulling my tail?  So… I don’t have a flat ass?”

Kari slowed a little, bored gaze shifting to glance at her backside before flicking away.  “It’s gotten fatter since you changed, but it’s proportional, I’d say; you’re just smaller than me, so I look bigger.  Why are you even upset about that?  You can transform your body any way you want, so what’s the big deal?”

Thoroughly confused at the direction this conversation was going, Sora realized she was trying to deflect to other topics.  “I… want to push you away and kick you over that rail into the water channel, but I’m not!”

“Why don’t you, then?!”  Kari huffed, shoving four of her fingers into her denim pockets, which totally didn’t fit all the way.  “You only did what you did to help me in order to save Wendy, so don’t pretend you actually care about me.  Yeah, I was a bitch to you.  Tell your mom to kill me.  Done.  Solved.”

“Not solved or done!”  Tail flicking to the side, she glared up at the tight-lipped wolf with a death wish.  “I should leave your ass to go off yourself—I really should—but I know you’re hurting inside and want help.  I’m probably the closest person that gets that, yet you keep punching me in the face!”

Jumping forward to block Kari’s path, she glared up at the sports girl, her puffy black ears pulling back and showing Sora exactly what she wanted to see and couldn’t sense due to the wolf’s steel-clad defenses.

“Oh, boo-hoo, cry me a river!”  Sora scoffed, rolling her eyes and running her fingers through her hair.  “Be honest with me and stop acting like you’re okay because I know you’re not!  Tell me how you really feel!”

Anger flashed across Kari’s face as her teeth clamped down, fingers ripping a small section out of her shorts as her hand pressed against her chest, face turning red in a short outburst.

“What do you want from me, Sora—that I’m scared—because I am!  My brother would have forced me to kill Lori, and you put me in that situation!  I lost because you couldn’t keep your shit together!”

“Oh, tell me how you really feel!”  Sora shouted back, fire igniting down her tail as it flailed behind her.  “Well, I beg your pardon; It’s not like I was the only one that could keep your shit together long enough to actually make your brother proud of you!”

“What?”  The heat in Kari’s voice vanished, pulling back and hugging herself.  “What did you…”

Sora’s ears flew up, belly tightening at the venom she’d thrown.  “No, that… that wasn’t what I meant to say—I’m sorry, Kari—I just said it without thinking…”

Half turning away, Kari looked into the slow-moving channel of water below them.  “It’s… not like you’re wrong, though.  I’m too weak.  My mom would be so disappointed in who I am… just like Eric is.  So yes, Sora… nothing matters.  What options do I have?  Be friendly with you or get turned into a baby incubator for my uncles to eat my children?”

Jaw slackening, Sora’s left eye narrowed as a brain error came on.  “Okay, I… kind of deserved that—I’m an asshole—but what the hell is up with that comparison?  Is being my friend really that bad—nooo… are you thinking that being friends with me means… you’ll be my slave puppy?”

Kari nibbled on her bottom lip as she moved to the rail guard, and it took a minute for her to get her emotions under control.  “Haaa.  Sora, I made your life hell.  So, why wouldn’t you make mine hell?  At least I know what awaits me from my uncles and brother.  How am I supposed to know what shit you’ll force me to do?  You’re a vulpes with a vendetta—so it’s probably not much better than what they’ll do to—haaa.  And what trick is this?”

Sora’s arms closed around Kari’s tight stomach, hugging her from behind.  “It’s okay, Kari.  I don’t feel any hatred toward you anymore, which I hate, and I will show you exactly what I want from you if you’ll trust me and lower your defenses…  Are you willing to gamble with me?  Heh.  What’s the worst that can happen?”

Thick black locks almost touching the ground, a shiver ran down Kari’s spine that transferred through Sora’s chest.  “You could… make me relive my mother’s death,” Kari choked, making Sora’s arms hold tighter as the wolf breathed to steady herself.  “You could hurt me, and I don’t want to be hurt…  I’m scared of you, Sora.”

“Please, just… give me one chance,” Sora pleaded.  “I promise you on Wendy’s life—my dad—that I only want to learn who you really are past the fear and hurt… because I’d want someone to do that for me—someone did do that for me.”

Kari’s voice broke, her shield falling and her powerful muscles trembling against Sora’s body.  “Just get it over with…  Do your damage and let me leave… please, let me go…”

Sora’s heart fractured at her choked tone, a wave of terror filling her as she linked herself to the wolf in a similar way that she’d done to Lori; yet, instead of attacking her weaknesses, Sora tried to connect with her fears and experiences, showing Kari how much alike they were.

“I don’t pity you, Kari… I empathize… I understand,” she wept, burying her face against the crying wolf’s tense back.  “I know your pain is so much deeper than mine… that you want to find someone to trust.  It’s not a trick—I want to know you, Kari.  Not a Fenris Wolf or my bully, but the girl that’s curled up, crying inside for help… because that was me!  You can understand me!  So understand me!”

Kari’s legs gave out, taking them to the ground as she curled in.  “I can’t feel—I can’t care for anyone or, or Eric will use them—they’ll use me… they’ll hate me for not being human—for being a wolf…  I’m not worth being friends with, Sora.  All I do is hurt people I care about, or they betray me: my mom, Tiri, Aiden, Lori, Jenny…  What’s the point if everyone leaves me?!”

“I won’t leave!”  Sora promised.  “I hated you so much—so much—but I can’t abandon you because it feels like I’d be abandoning myself!”

Kari shoved her away, making her wince as she was almost sent into the street, but she refused to let the connection break, and Kari didn’t block her.  “Just hate me already!  Leave!”

“You know I can’t!”  Sora shouted, invisibility failing her as her magic became chaotic, and their shouts made the crowds on the sidewalk freeze.  “So the only thing I can do is give you a chance to make me hate you again!  I want to hate you, Kari!  I want to hate you sooo badly it hurts!  Make me hate you!  Why can’t I hate you!?”

Sora forced herself up, heated eyes and burning tail boiling the asphalt as the heat intensified.  It felt like they were both falling through the opening of a gaping abyss together, reaching out to find someone who would take their hand.

Bright amber eyes glistening, Kari glared at her and yelled, “You don’t make sense—none of this makes sense—why can’t I hate you?!  You keep trying, and trying, and trying!  Why won’t you let me hate myself—why are you trying to forgive me?!  I hate you!  I can’t escape!  Just… let me be alone and die!”

“I can’t!  I just can’t!  And you know I can’t,” Sora shot back, crawling over to hug Kari again, the wolf’s attempts to fend her off crumbling due to her total lack of confidence and self-worth.

“Just be my friend already because we both know we need each other!  I’ll chew out your brother—I’ll protect you from him—and you know I can!  So… stop struggling, and please, please, please, please, let me get to know you… so maybe I can hate you again…  Please, let me hate you again,” she wept, weak blows against her back coming to a stop as she drew her into a hug.  “Please, let me get to know who you are…  What’s the worst that could happen?”

Hiccuping, Kari couldn’t speak as she choked a laugh through her tears, but her resistance failed, and the broken wolf pulled her into an embrace.  “Please… protect me…  Eric, he… he’ll drag me away, and… and I don’t want to go with him.  I can’t go with him.  I can’t…  Save me.”

A total wreck, Sora held her tighter, arms quaking against the wolf’s back as Kari’s tail unconsciously slid out, unable to restrain it in her current state; it curled around to wrap around hers, pleading not to be let go or betrayed.

“I promise, Kari…  You’ll never see him again until you’re ready to see him.  I just… want you to have the same opportunity I did…  You gave me a chance to taste freedom, Kari, and I want to do that for you.  I just… want to do that for you.”

Silence overcame them as they spun on an axis, cycling around one another, emotions on a roller coaster only they shared.  Sora jumped across their burned bridge, and as she fell, Kari took her hand to pull her up; the storm in Kari’s heart was still there, but the thunder and lightning had quelled.  At the very least, she’d stopped her free fall.

It was only the first step in building something new, and there was so much more to overcome, but Sora had rarely felt so sure about someone.  Kari isn’t a bad person… no matter how much I wish it.  I can finally close that book in my life.  We’re moving forward!

After a time, Sora reconstituted her illusions, letting the unsure onlookers freak out and search for them, but one set of voices touched her heart, helping to settle her emotions.

“…Dutch, did you hear that—someone said there was a red-haired girl that vanished into thin air!  You don’t think…”

Joe flagged down the group as Jeremy questioned Dutch, the throng still pointing at the spot where her foxfire had melted the asphalt.  “Hey, hey!  Was her hair red or coppery?  How old was she—around sixteen or fifteen?”

“Huh?”  One of the ladies that had observed them nodded enthusiastically, watching a few men searching around for them, yet there was an invisible barrier keeping them out.  “Yeah!  She had ears and a tail, like some kind of fox, and she was yelling at this black-haired fox—eh, wolf-girl?”

The younger woman beside her piped in.  “Uh-huh, yeah!  I don’t know, I think she was a fox-girl, too, but she was yelling at the redhead to be friends and that they can’t hate each other—well, the wolf-girl and fox-girl were yelling that at each other.”

“No, no!”  her friend jumped in.  “The redhead was yelling at the black-furred wolf to be friends with her.”

Joe shot a look at Jeremy and Dutch, shivers running down their frames.

“It has to be Sora,” Jeremy whispered, drawing away to look at the spot everyone was focused on.  “A fallen angel that… lost her way?”

“I mean, your guess is as good as mine,” Dutch chortled, positive vibes now releasing from the homeless trio.  “Trouble in paradise, yet Sora’s still mending hearts…  Thank you, Sora.”

Joe cleared his throat, holding back tears.  “Yeah, Sora, whoever or whatever you are…  We’re getting our lives together.  We’ve been trying to do right by the city since, uh, you seem to be its guardian angel.  Thank you.”

“C’mon, guys!”  Jeremy laughed, ushering his buddies away.  “We don’t need to be bothering Sora with our nonsense; I’m sure she’s on some important mission from heaven.  No coincidences, right?  So, let’s find someone’s life that we can touch.  Spread the positivity!”

“That’s the goal!”  Joe chimed, nudging his brothers and throwing his arms around their shoulders.  “If guardian angels don’t have a bedtime to help people, neither should we!”

It was hard, but eventually, Kari got herself under control enough to lightly tap her arm with her closed fist.  “I’m good, Sora.  I… don’t know what I’m supposed to do.  I don’t have any friends.  Aiden has his own shit to deal with… he’s always helping random people—I just don’t want to take him away from what he loves to do…  What am I supposed to do?  I can’t go back to the school…  I won’t make their lives hell again… I can’t.”

Squeezing her one last time, Sora pulled back and used magic to wipe away her tears, showing off a toothy grin as Kari saw all the bewildered humans feeling around their invisible barrier.  “Go to school with me at a fae school.  What’s the worst that can happen?”

“Pfft!”  Kari’s chest shook with laughter, and she forced herself up with a heavy sigh.  “Is that going to become your catchphrase or something?”

“Our catchphrase!  Something only we share as budding friends—our inside joke,” Sora chimed, holding out her hand.  “Wendy will be soo jealous and confused!  Care to be my tsundere pet friend that wags her tail proudly because I love your tail and ears, by the way.  It makes me not feel so alone!”

Hand pulling away as Kari moved to accept it, Sora giggled and twisted around to display her tail, weaving it back and forth.  “Tail shake?”

“Bold!”  Kari scoffed, using both palms to rub at her hot, puffy cheeks and flashing her own teeth with a lifted eyebrow.  “Leaving your tail wide open for attack is asking to have it grabbed.”

“It’s a good thing we are on such a deep, trusting level now!”  Sora’s grin became strained as the wolf’s hungry amber eyes followed its movements, most likely fighting temptation.  “Right, Kari?”

“Haha.  Right…  Tail shake, huh?  You’re such a kid.  Tiri used to do this all the time.”  Twisting her hips, she flourished her tail, which was actually a tad longer and thicker than hers.  “What next, tail battles?  Such a fox kit.”

“Well, excuse me for not having tail siblings, Ms. Pup!”  Sora shot back, warmth swelling within her breast as their fluffy appendages met, tingles shooting down its length to the tip of her ears.  “You still haven’t told me if you’ll be joining me at school, and I have plenty of rooms now, so you should move in with Wendy, Eyia, and everyone!  Oh.  I’m building my own cult!”

“I don’t think that’s something you brag about aloud, Cult Leader.”  Kari chuckled and yanked her to the left.  “Care for a dip?”

“H-Hey!”  Sora cried, almost losing control of her magic as she stumbled to the railing, almost falling over, and all the fur on her tail went straight up when Kari’s fingers clapped around her waist.  “Kari, don’t!”

Her ear twitched as Kari’s hot breath pressed against her ear.  “Are you ready to jump?  Are you willing to jump?  Because… I’m jumping with you, kit friend?  What’s the worst that can happen?”

“Huh…”  She barely got the words out before Kari tossed her over the side and jumped after her.  “W-Wait a second—aaaahhhh!”

Plunging into the cold channel, Sora’s scream was stifled by the cold water as she sank halfway to the bottom, and Kari entered beside her, flipping around in the water and showing a genuine smile.  A thumbs up from the girl made Sora’s glare hard as she snorted and choked, taking in water and making the wolf’s tail wag with her underwater laughter.

A desire for air quickly pushed back the liquid, creating a bubble that Kari casually slipped into, flipping to land cross-legged.  “Nice.  We’ve escaped the crowd.”

Sora strained a smile and wrung out her hair, her dress sticking to her figure like glue.  “Mmm!  Don’t act like that was your plan the whole time.  You threw me into dirty water!”

“If it makes you feel better, I jumped after you; you looked like you had fun,” Kari defended with a chuckle, holding out her arms.  “You wanted me—this is me!  Hate me yet?”

“It does actually make me feel better you’re in here with me,” Sora huffed, reaching over to stick her hand through the bubble to throw some of it at the amused wolf.  “And, unfortunately, no!  We’ll see how that plays out in the future.”

A half-smile lifted Kari’s still-puffy face as she looked off into the swirl of water they floated through, carried along the undercurrent.  “What’s the worst that can happen?”

Sora couldn’t keep a straight face.  “I’m going to get you a collar, I swear!”

“Sure, you can buy me one,” the wolf shrugged, making Sora lift an eyebrow.

“Doesn’t mean I’ll wear it.”

“And there it is!  Hehehe.  I’m like you already, which is scary!”  She extended her tail for a second time.  “To maybe future friends?”

“Let’s not get carried away,” Kari said with a dubious side tilt to her head.  “I’m still waiting for your retaliation.”

“Oh, it will come,” Sora cackled, smiling eyes fixated on Kari’s.  “Oh, it will come, and you won’t see it coming.”

“What’s the worst,” she paused at Sora’s digging stare, “you can do?”

“You suck!”

“Hahaha!  I haven’t laughed this hard for so long!”  she wheezed, doubling over.  “You’re making my sides hurt!  Haaa.  Thank you, Sora… for making me trust you.”

“I don’t know if I can really do that,” Sora mumbled, scratching her cheek.  “I just offered to be friends… persistently.  Okay, very persistently!”  she admitted at the wolf’s stare.  “Let’s have some fun before we head home and fall asleep.  I can do the Eric stuff later—he’s not important—I want to have fun some more before opening that can of worms.  You with me?”

Kari linked her hands behind her head and leaned back, closing her eyes.  “I’m just a dead pillow along for the ride.  You’re the mastermind.  Where next, Ms. Kit?”

“To adventure, Ms. Pup!” Sora roared, carrying them through the water as her purse skated along the surface.  “To adventure!”

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