Heart's Desire, Heart's Pain {LouWebena}

Grave

Ignore the typos, too tired to care.

Louie knew it was all his fault. The fall into the ravine, Lena's arm breaking, his brothers hating him. It's all his fault.

---

"Woo, camping!" Webby yelled from the tree she was perched in, a duffel bag slung across her shoulder. Louie shook his head, watching the girl from the path he walked slowly apon. Lena stayed at his side, her hands tugging at the straps of her backpack, a grin on her beak.

Louie's brothers walked a foot in front of them, just behind Scrooge leaning heavily on his walking stick. He would've made a joke about how old his uncle was getting if he didn't vow to be silent and distant. It was best for his family.

Lena reached down to squeeze his hand. "You haven't talked the whole walk," she whispered, gaze soft. "What's up, Lou?"

Louie bit back a snarky reply and thought his words over. He could be distant, push her away too... but if he does he might lose her and Webby. He shook his head. He didn't want to.

"I..." he swallowed the lump in his throat he gets everytime he opens up to anyone. "I don't want to hurt anyone anymore. Huey and Dewey already hate me-" his voice cracked and he glanced in his brothers' direction "-It's best if I don't speak at all."

Lena opened her beak to object, to try and change his mind, but was cut off from a call up the line.

"Here we are, kiddos!" Scrooge yelled, leading them into a clearing. Webby jumped down beside him and squealed. The older duck watched in amusement as she claimed a spot and began working on her tent.

Louie walked into the clearing, abandoning the conversation still in the air. She felt drawn to the edge of the woods, something akin to a whisper filling her ears. Suddenly she felt off, wrong. She could see two eyes glowing in the shadows of the leaves, beautiful and enchanting. She felt pulled to them.

And then in a blink, they were gone.

And Louie stood there, confused. What just happened to him? He shook it off and went to go struggle putting up his tent. When Huey came over to help, he waved him off with an "I got it" and a "Go help Lena" even though said girl had Webby tackling the tent.

Huey looked at him pensively, eyebrows raised. Louie could tell he had something to say, but instead the older triplet just clenched his beak and walked away. Good, Louie thought. Let him be angry.

Then his family will stay away.

---

An hour after getting the camp set up, Scrooge led the kids down to the river to search for something. Louie shook his head. He knew camping couldn't be the only reason they came out here. As his brothers and girlfriends searched the bank of the river, Louie walked up the river to a dim part of the forest.

Louie instantly regretted stepping over a root, the moment she caught the glowing eyes in the shadows. She froze, watching as the creature stepped into the light.

It was tall and thin, arms dangling at its side, pale blue its scaly skin was. What terrified Louie most was it's long flowing hair, green and dripping like the creature just came out of the river flowing like white noise behind him. It had a snout, short and pointy like a shark and it's eyes were big and glowed a menacing yellow in the light.

It stalked closer, leaving puddles of soppy moss in its wake. Louie tried to move her legs, but found them rooted in place. The creature was closer now, it's hand reaching up to touch her. She sucked in a breathe the moment the hand met her shoulder, it's claws digging into her hoodie.