The Storm's Thunder (#Wattys2016)

Chapter III

Thunder sat straight up, his silver hair sticking out in every direction.
    That dream... about Storm's 10th birthday. Storm had been so overly excited about getting a violin like his. At least he didn't have to let her borrow his after that. He shook his head, just like he had in the dream. She had always been the creative one - she read, wrote, drew, painted, and even joined the drama club in school. He was the athletic one, never really the super creative type. He was the fastest in the gym class, and had joined track and baseball. The only two things they shared was their love for the violin and their skill at fencing. He had easily beaten everyone on the fencing team - the best epeeist in the school. Storm had been a saber fencer, and she kicked everyone's butt. But despite their many, many differences, they were very close - closer than they could have been any other way. There was never one without the other. There was never a storm without the thunder.
    Now they were both 18. She... well, she had been the same, up to about a year ago. Thunder couldn't vouch for anything after that. Because... well, because she was gone.                            
    But that dream... it felt like she was alive. But how could she be? She had been inside the house with their parents when the fire started. Then again, he was alive. But he had been outside when the air filled with smoke. She was fast and light, and could jump like a deer. If she was fast, she could have run outside and leapt over the flames. So... was it possible?
    He shook his head. There was no point in debating it more. He must have been imagining it. He reached behind his back and pulled a dark instrument case from the brush. It was one of the only things that had survived the fire since he was playing it outside when it started. He was happy that it survived being in the forest with its protective case. He unlatched it and withdrew a violin - the same silvery one he'd had since he was eight years old.
    He heard a rustling and looked about warily. He hadn't seen anything but a couple curious animals here - nothing trying to kill him yet - but that didn't mean that there wasn't anything dangerous running loose. It's a forest, after all. Who knows what could be waiting out there, waiting for him to drop his guard.
    Thunder looked out of the hollow tree. This was where he lived now. He missed their parent's warm, oak home, but there was no way he could stay near there. It reminded him too much of the things that he lost. And he couldn't bring himself to go to find out who had survived... And who hadn't.
    The bushes rustled and a wolf pup bounded out, a large red fruit carefully held in its jaws in order to not puncture the skin. Stripe, his wolf friend, had quickly learned that Thunder didn't eat raw meat like he did. So, he would go out, scouting for food for the two of them. He would hunt small animals like squirrels for himself, and help his human friend find fruit.
    Stripe dropped the huge apple in Thunder's lap and sat down, waiting. He knew what was coming each time the silver-haired human pulled the oddly-shaped wooden object out. The wolf wasn't sure what it was, but he knew what it did. It made the air shiver with sounds like the wind through the leaves. He enjoyed it when the human used it, because it was one of the only times that his friend seemed happy.
    Thunder began to play. It was one of Storm's favorite songs, called "Shadows." She said it sounded like a duet - two violins playing even when he was alone. She described it like his shadow had learned to play the violin and was playing the song, too.
    Stripe suddenly perked up and his ears stuck straight up. Then he barked in a pattern. He barked twice, paused, then yipped once more. That meant someone was coming.
    Thunder quickly put away the instrument, snapped the latches closed and stood up, scanning the surroundings. Almost immediately, he heard crunching on the undergrowth. His icy blue eyes fell on the girl in the shadows, sitting atop a horse. Her clothes seemed too smooth and clean to have been living in the forest. And her blonde hair, twisted up into a messy bun... He breathed in sharply and glared at the newcomer.
    "You...!"