Normally, he would just ride past.

The gray-furred wolf brought his hand
up the side of his face and rubbed over his muzzle with a deep sigh.
Today he felt drawn to walk down this old driveway, unsure as to why
he chose to do so, but walk he does. Hitching his kigale halfway,
she would not be able to pass the crumbled stone bridge over the
creek. He left the beast with some extra food and water to sate her
till he returned.

Grass and weeds have reclaimed much of
the old path, and young sprigs of various trees and bushes have for a few
years begun to reclaim this once charred landscape. It had only been
eight years since the fall, so much has changed so fast, but he knew
the old path well enough. He already knew in his head what he would
find here, the same old burnt-out husk of a once blissful house he
used to call home, why did he feel the need to torture himself to see
this again?

Closer he could see the rubble now,
vines clinging tangled among burnt walls, trees growing where the floors
once used to be. Piles of masonry overgrown with moss and grass and
occupied by any number of small rodents who have laid claim to his
old home.

He feels his eyes well up and moves
his hand over them, “Why... Why did I come up here.."

“Because I needed you here for
this."

The wolf jumped at the voice behind
him, half falling over he manages to wrest free a segment of old half-rotted wood and turn to face whoever it is behind him. His eyes went
wide and the sorrow he felt faded near instantly, being quickly
refilled with a burning hatred for what he now sees before him.

A small fennec-like creature stands
before him with a smile, his head tilted to the left and eyes closed,
no more than three feet tall. His brown sandy fur on his face sways
in the wind, split only by a white stripe patch over his left eye
that came from his white hair down to his white furred chest hidden
away by the simple brown robe he wore.

The tip of his tail was red.

“How dare you red t....!" The
much larger wolf began to shout, bringing the half-rotten board to
the vulpine's face.

“Now, now, I thought we all grew up
past such trivial insults." The vulpine smile had melted away, but
his eyes remained closed, and his face moved up to show a more stern
look. “Also, put that silly thing away. If you know what I am,
you should know that won't do you any favors." He opened his eyes
to properly look at the larger wolf, the same sandy brown as his fur,
“After all, I'm here to help you. "

He was right about that, there was no
weapon he could use against a red tail. “Help??? Help me?!?! Your
kind caused the fall!" He tosses aside the board with enough force
to split it in two against a pile of crumbled stones.

“First off. My 'kind' didn't fire
the first shot." The fennec frowned, “We never even counterattacked. That's not why..." He stopped and looked at the
crumbled home, “That's not what I am here for."

The old wolf growled, “Then why are
you here, why did you force me to come back here? I lost everything
here!"

The fennec stood in place for a
moment, “I know." He looked back up at the wolf, “The longer
I stand somewhere the more I can see, but my sight is not infinite.
So I need conduits to reach further."

“The hell are you.." The wolf
steps back as the fennec starts moving closer.

“Here." The small sandy brown
hand holds out a small pocket watch he had been holding. The wolf
eyes him over and reluctantly takes the small trinket. A quick
glance explains it as nothing more than a pocket watch with a great
many small notches scratched along its edges as if it had
been dropped a number of times.

“The hell am I supposed to do with
this? A pocket watch isn't worth much, even if this is real gold."

“Just hold it and follow." The
fennec smiles up at him as he walks past, climbing up the rubble that
used to be a front porch, “And it's not gold, your language doesn't
have a word for the metal."

He glances at the watch for a moment
before reluctantly following, it was rumored to be very unwise to go
against a red tail and his words, and he was not going to press his
luck, he would play along for now. He patiently waited for the
smaller fennec to jump and climb objects he could easily pass over, to
eventually find a small segment of the floor near the center that still
remained.

“Here should be good for an anchor
point." He smiled up at the wolf as he easily stepped up onto
the old boards, creaking in a defiant strain at the weight it hasn't had
to support in almost a decade. “Do me a favor and hold onto that watch, and whatever you do. Don't touch anything till I give
the all-clear."

“What are you on about you lit..."
His words faded as the rubble around him began to move, boards
rising from the ground, rot and fire char fading away as they
magically placed themselves in mid-air, awaiting the next piece to
rise and connect. He looked down at the fennec in front of him as
the rubble continued to reconstruct itself around them, a soft brown
aura flowing over him, his outstretched hand glowing a brilliant
yellow. The wolf's words stuttered in shock “...the... you... time
mage..."

Rubble swirled around, assembling and
reconstituting long rotted segments, “I prefer temporal weaver, but
that is what most of your kind refer to me as." Ashes began to
coalesce and reform back into long-lost personal possessions the wolf
once had, “Remember, stay still, don't touch anything yet, I've
been told it hurts a lot if you do."

The wolf watched as a ceiling spread
over them, the living room slowly reconstituted itself around them
part by part. Grasping the small pocket watch tightly the wolf's
memories flooded into his mind all at once, his emotions overwhelming
him he dropped to his knees behind the fennec.

“And... done." The fennec stated
with a slightly worn-out tone. “Some things may not be in their
exact places but at least close enough." He walked over to a green
and brown couch and climbed up onto it before laying down, an
interesting design choice he thought, but will do for his rest. “You
can have a look around now, I need to rest a moment. But do keep a
hand on that pocket watch, things may need an extra moment or two to
settle. If you see anything out of place, and I mean anything, click
the middle button."

The wolf stood up and glanced over at
the fennec now laying on his couch. Looking around, it was his home.
As it was before the fall, before... He started toward the stairs,
only one destination clear in his mind.

“And I do mean, do not put that
watch down for any reason!" The fennec shouted after him before
allowing himself to rest for a bit.

Normally, he would just ride past.

The gray-furred wolf brought his hand
up the side of his face and rubbed over his muzzle with a deep sigh
as he made his way up the stairs. He paused and looked down at the
small watch in his other hand as he reached the second floor. He
closed his eyes for a moment and raised his head, gazing at a room to
his right for a moment before continuing. He hesitates on the door
handle before letting himself in.

Normally, he would just ride past.
Why didn't he ride past?

The room was a bedroom, not too large
but not small as well. He carefully moved into the room, taking care
to place his feet so as to not step on any of the dolls and toys left on
the floor. Stopping at the bed tucked away in a corner near the
window, its pink flower sheets just as he remembered them. A small
table next to the bed resided with a simple electric lamp, and a
small wood-carved kigale.

Normally, he would just ride past.
The tip of his tail was red.

He dropped to his knees and took up
the wood carving in his free hand. “Jade...how can I... why... I
lost... I lost Raine... I lost both of you..." he could feel his
mind being overwhelmed by emotions, the memories he had tried so hard
to bury away bursting to the forefront of his mind.

Normally, he would just ride past.
The fall...

In a split second the room became
alive with the rushing of wind and sand, the fennec stood behind him,
his sand-colored eyes dead focused on him as the door behind him
slammed shut, “That is the conduit I was looking for."

The wolf jerked his head around,
dropping the small wood carving as he watched the small fennec begin
to levitate in the center of the room, the increasing sand in the air
seemed to be coming from him, “What the hell are you doing!"

The fennecs body seemed less and less
tangible as the rushing sand increased, the wolf could hear his voice
coming from all around him, “Rewinding physical objects is simple
enough. Rewinding lost lives, however... the stronger the conduit the
better!"

The wolf stood up in the sandstorm
within his daughter's room, while he could feel the wind in his fur,
the sands never touched him, it rushed around him violently and the
fennec was no longer visible.

“Hold onto the watch, do not let go!
The sands will guard you, life will flow! Walk, and you will find
them!"

He felt the floor under his feet fall
away, dropping him into darkness for what seemed like miles in mere
seconds before his feet touched the ground again. Dropping to his knees
he held his chest trying to stop himself from vomiting from vertigo onto the sand below him.

After what seemed like ages, he was
able to collect himself, breathing slowly to help calm himself.
“What the hell..." He slowly stood up, looking around himself.
There was nothing but darkness in every direction. The only thing he
could 'see' was the sand at his feet. He opened his hand to glance
at the pocket watch, he didn't pay much attention before, but the
watch was ticking now, the hour hand clicked backward in each tick,
while the minute hand spun in whatever direction it felt like it seemed.

As he looked at the watch, the sand at
his feet started to spread to his right, forming a leading path, but
not spreading too far into the darkness away from him, the amount of
sand was limited. “Walk and you will find them..." he muttered
to himself. He turned and took a step in the direction of the sand
path, the sands behind him reacted by contracting behind him and
stretching out further before him. “Looks like I'm walking this
one."

Normally, he would just ride past. It
was red.

He walked, and continued, following
and walking on the cold sand as it flowed and snaked in the darkness,
occasionally he would have to wait on the sand to choose a direction.
He didn't feel tired, even at the moments when it felt like he had
been walking for years. He tried running a few times, but he felt
something prevent him from gaining speed, was it the sand or the
darkness? He tried to walk off the sand once, only for it to create
a wall of sand in front of him, preventing him from straying off.

Normally, he would just ride past.
“Because I needed you here for this."

It seemed like ages but also only
seconds, decades maybe? The watch in his hand was of no use in
telling time as it spun wildly. Regardless of how much time passed,
ran in reverse, or didn't pass at all.  He held onto the watch,  he no
longer tried to test the sand or the darkness, he only followed,
guided by the soil at his feet through the never-ending abyss of
darkness.

Normally, he would just ride past. I
lost both of you...

Suddenly the sands pulled back,
surrounding his feet and no longer showing a path, it boiled in place
around him before some of it rose and began to swirl around him
once more as it had done years ago... or was it only moments ago?
Faster and faster it spun, he could barely see the darkness beyond
the gaps in the sand.

As soon as it began the sand had
slowed but remained to swarm around him in tight clumps, he was on
the old path to his home, just as it was before the fall. The sky
was now the dark abyss, his home barely visible through the trees
past the stone bridge. He looked around for his kigale, but she was
nowhere to be seen. “No." He thought for a moment looking at
the ticking and spinning watch again, “I'm still... the darkness."

He looked back, there was nothing
behind him, only the darkness. As he walked over the stone bridge,
two steps behind him would cease to exist, giving way to the dark.
It was following him, he needed to walk.

Normally, he would just ride past.
“My sight is not infinite, I need you to see for me."

The wolf stepped up onto the porch
and welcomed himself into his home with a turn of the handle. As the
door opened he was greeted with fire. The inside of his house was
ablaze with fur scorching heat. The sand spun around him, and the
heat faded, he could hear them through the crackling of the blaze
now...

He walked through the fires untouched,
ascending the stairs to the second floor. He closed his eyes for a
moment and turned his head, then gazed at a room to his right for a
moment before continuing. He does not hesitate on the door handle
before letting himself in.

He stops and stares, both his wife and
daughter are huddled up near the bed, their forms motionless, frozen
in time as the house burns around them for all time. He moves
closer, he reaches out for them...

The sand around him erupts and spins
faster, the ticking of the watch slowly fades and he can again feel
the heat of the flames. He can hear the cries of his wife and
daughter only inches away from him, he moves closer, he reaches out
for them...

Normally, he would just ride past.
The sands will guard you.

He moves closer, he reaches out for
them... The darkness and the flames surrounding him.

Normally, he would just ride past.
“Hold onto them, do not let go!"

The watch in his hand crumbles to
sand, joining the swirling mass around him. His hand free he can
feel his motions become easier, he reaches out for them with both
hands...

The fire and darkness vanish as the
swirling sands fall to the floor within the bedroom now lit by the
sun through the window. The gray wolf crouched down over his wife
and daughter, holding them as tightly as he can. He sobs
uncontrollably as they open their confused eyes to him, if it were
possible he would hold them even tighter.

The ticking of a pocket watch snapped
his attention away just enough for him to see the fennec laying on
the floor, or at least the head and upper torso of the fennec, the
sands slowly flowing to him, rebuilding his body. The fennec's head
turns to face him, “DO NOT LET GO!"

The house shook violently, sparks of
flame erupted then extinguished repetitively, and the light from the sun flicked as
the darkness seeped in. He turned his head back, holding onto his
family with everything he has, both his wife and daughter still
confused, return the hold as the home around them seemed to crumble
and rebuild itself at the same time, the fire burned and wood reconstituted as
the vulpine's near complete body rose up from the floor.

The fennec's sandy eyes glowed a
bright yellow as his red-tipped tail reformed from the sands, “Life
will flow! The sands will guard life! These no longer belong to
you!"

The house continued to rumble in
defiance of the red tail, the home being torn between two realms.
“These no longer belong to you! I am coming for them all!" As
suddenly as it started, the house ceases its trembling, and the darkness
outside again faded. The fennec fell to the floor unconscious as the
sunlight once again filled the room.

A month had passed since his last
successful recovery. The red tipped fennec had left the old wolf
and his family to continue his work, leaving them with a vial of sand
as a safeguard should they need him again. As he walked down the
road, he hummed happily to himself glancing at the two new notches
scratched along the edges of his small pocket watch.

He had walked for several miles before
he could hear the familiar sounds of a kigale's hooves pounding on
the ground, along with the unmistakable rattle of a cart being drawn
behind. He stopped and stepped to the side of the road and waited
for the cart to approach.

As the cart neared, the driver, a
female wolf, directed the kigale to slow to a stop. She stared at
the three foot tall fennec as he smiled up at her with his eyes
closed and head tilted to the left, “Red tail..." She started.

“Yes yes, I have heard it all
before." The fennec interrupted her, still grinning, “We can
dispense with all that. Where are you headed?"

The female wolf glared at him for
being so rude as to interrupt her, but she bit her tong, she had herd
rumors about the red tails, she had best answer him. “Home,
although I don't know why. The only thing that's there is hole in
the ground. But I just have a feeling I should visit it."

The fennec opened his eyes, showing
her their sandy brown colors, “Because I needed you there for
this." He half jumped and climbed up into the back of the cart,
“Your kigale looks strong enough to carry me as well, we should go
together so we get there at the same time."

“Don't you just!" She started,
but was met with the small fennec holding up what looks to be a gold
pocket watch with some edge damage. She paused before taking the
small trinket from his hands as he settled himself in the cart with a
smile. She looked at him as he swayed his tail, it might be unwise
to refuse payment from a red tail, “Fine, payment accepted. I
might be able to get something out of this."

He nodded back to her, “You will
defiantly get a lot for that, just hold onto it, yes, shall we go?"

She sighed at him, “Sure. Whatever
red tail. I don't know why tho."

“Normally, I just ride past."