Uvee sighed, staring at her dirty hands.

She bowed her head, listening to another of her mother's scoldings. These occurences were plentiful, in which her mother, Beacee, scowled and stamped her feet, going on and on about how she was supposed to act like a lady. But it was so hard...how could she, when everything wild and free, everything so very unladylike, called to her? It was no use arguing, however, so she took her punishment in stride--and silence.
It seemed that Demena, Uvee's older sister by three years, was perfect in every way, the golden-haired, purple-eyed beauty so like her mother, while Uvee, who favored her father in his dark hair and solemn eyes, could--and did--everything in the exact opposite of whatever task she was called upon to carry out.
Finally, Beacee ran out of things to say, and simply stood, arms crossed, a supreme and--Uvee thought--slightly sinister look upon the lined face.

Once upon a time, Uvee recalled, remembering stories her parents used to tell her, her mother had been a queenly woman, lighthearted and beautiful, the creases erased from her soft face, eyes a-sparkle. She had been a social young woman, flirtatious, and fond of parties and get-togethers. She had met Uvee's father at one of the festivals, and fallen deeply in love with him. Unfortunately, it was unrequited love. The man, Uvum, hadn't shared her passion.
One night, at another of Beacee's wild parties, she got drunk on sweet nectar, she mistook a young man-dark of hair and eyes, like Uvum-who was besotted with her, for Uvum. The young man took her to his bed, and in the morning, Beacee awoke with a stranger next to her and a pounding headache. Beacee left in a hurry, but the anonymous beau left his mark-the beautiful, 'perfect' Denema.
Three years later, the same man showed up at Beacee's door, revealing himself to be Uvum's brother, Ukaro. Beacee tried to make him leave, but his passion for her overwhelmed her good sense, and she made herself believe that she loved him as he held her on the mat in her room, Denema asleep in the next room.
Ukaro was a rider, and he was killed, as well as his dragon, in a Lizard fight, a few years after Uvee's birth. Beacee's face became drawn, haggard and white, old beyond her years. Uvee grew up to be a willowy, dark girl of shadowy dreams and quiet outbursts...Denema, of course, was Beacee's only light in life, being the perfect child that she was.

-I've always been different-, thought Uvee. -Different from my mother, my sister--even my father, the one I was closest to in character and looks, didn't understand me, and never will, because he's dead.-
Uvee looked up at her mother's stern face and grimaced. Beacee glared, and turned her around.
"March on to the washroom, Uvee, on the double. You're filthy! I won't have you come to dinner like this."
"I wasn't planning on making dinner, anyway," mumbled Uvee.
"What was that, young lady?"
"I said..ok, Beacee."
"Good. Go now."
Uvee slouched her shoulders, and turned, a sullen expression on her face. Beacee sighed in exasperation, and bit her lip angrily. She whirled the opposite direction from her daughter, and stalked down the hall.
Uvee looked behind her, to see if Beacee was still there. Finding that her mother was nowhere near, she burst into a run, darting through the corridors. Finding the door leading outside, she tugged it open with all her strength, as the door was heavy. Pulling it open a crack, she managed to slip out, and the door slammed shut behind her.
Tears began to course down Uvee's cheeks, though she knew not why. She reached her hand upward, and traced the salty streaks, tasting them in wonder. She hardly ever cried..she had promised herself that she wouldn't, because she believed no one would sympathize. No one on Danach, that was.
"And if no one on our planet, then who? Some strange alien angel, a crown of thorns and roses upon his brow, to dispel my pain and comfort me through my hazy sadness..? I wish that there were such a person.."
Uvee left the Keep that she lived in, and wandered toward the forest, a perilous place to be during the evening, a time of danger and blackness. Many a traveler had lost their way in The Blackness, as the nearby forest was called. Well-named it was, too, because once you stepped across the threshhold of mist and moss, it was as if you had entered an abyss, full of nighttime with no moon.
Twas toward this Blackness that Uvee went, and once she crossed into it, it was as if a bag had gone over her head. She stumbled aimlessly, her tears and the fog blinding her, not that there was much to see, except for the foliage and roots, rocks and dirt that lay hidden in front of Uvee, to hinder her wild progress. Presently, tired and dirty, Uvee crumpled into a heap, throwing herself upon the ground and weeping. It was a lonely place, and Uvee took to talking to herself between sobs.
"I'll never escape..*sob*..I shouldn't have left..*gasp*..I should've just made supper and gotten on with my wretched life!"
The howl of a wolf split the eerie silence, and Uvee's eyes widened in a vain attempt to peer through the velvety darkness, as if she could peel it away and see the truth that Blackness hid from human eyes.
The sound of pawsteps came nearer, and a panting sound accompanied it. A moment later, Uvee found her face caressed by a warm, soft wetness, and she stared into the glowing green eyes of a wolf. She stifled a scream, and backed away on her hands and knees, very slowly. The wolf's eyes were so bright that Uvee found she could see a very short distance.
The wolf that had found her was of very small build. She was almost a bluish grey in color, with large paws, small muzzle, and a brushy tail.
"Wait a second," said Uvee softly to the wolf, "you aren't a wolf..I've heard of your kind! You're a rhyori!"
The wolf..er..rhyori seemed to smile, and wagged its-
"No, not it..you seem almost feminine."
The rhyori smiled even more widely, wagging her tail. She walked around Uvee, to her back, muzzle pointing the way Uvee had come from, and set off toward the direction of Kylo Keep.
Uvee managed to stand up, and having nothing else to do, she followed the rhyori.
"If I'm guessing correctly, you're not just any ol' rhyori. You are the Cathairte's rhyori, Lovis. Am I right? Wag for yes."
The rhyori wagged her tail.
"Okay then, Lovis. I wish you could speak..it would be much easier. But I suppose you only do that in the presence of Inness. Very well--were you sent to find me?"
Wag.
Uvee mulled over this, not even noticing that they had reached the edge of the Blackness, and could see the tiny figure of Kylo in the distance. Lovis nosed Uvee's hand, barking gently, and set off at a run.
"Wait!" shouted Uvee, struggling to catch up. Lovis seemed to slow down a little bit, but continued a steady trot in Kylo's direction.
-If Lovis was sent to find me, then somebody must've cared enough about me to make sure I came back safely...someone does care!-
Uvee felt like leaping into the air for joy, but Lovis was already so far ahead that it wasn't a very good idea--so she just ran, feeling a huge pressure that had been weighing on her heart grow wings and fly away..she was loved!
When Uvee reached Kylo, she wrapped her arms around Lovis's neck in a tight embrace. Lovis stood still for a moment, then wriggled free, slurping Uvee's cheek.
"Thank you, Lovis," said Uvee, curtseying. Lovis bowed back, turned, and ran in the direction of Cathair Utopia.

Cathair Scyjavor--http://www.geocities.com/scyjavor/