Quaking Vale Fractured Heart

Backdated to September 14th

 

So much had changed in her life. From settling in with her new pack, getting to know the lay of the land, and raising her only son at the same time. He was her little ray of sunshine when her world seemed the darkest. His smile lifted her spirits, his childish curiosity reminded her fondly of her earliest days. While she did not spend quite as much time with Sachiel as she liked, since the boy seemed to prefer the company of his father, Neha was always aware. Always watching from a distance, often times unseen. Her motherly tactics may not be the best...perhaps downright questionable, but no one said that being a first time parent was easy. She had to learn on her own.

While her relationship with Sachiel was healthy enough, a certain distance had grown between her and Draven. He was acting different, and she didn't know why. Didn't understand that when he looked at her, that it was no longer with a certain light in his eyes. She was left perplexed. Had she done something wrong? Or was it the responsibility that came with being a father, and at such a young age, that was getting to him? She had learned her lesson from the squabble back at Fallen Tree Cove. Instead of pestering him, forcing answers from him, she gave her supposed lover his space. Surely, he would come to her when he needed to speak. But he hadn't.

Neha's patience had ran out, and she had decided she waited long enough. She didn't want to be left in the dark any longer. . Tucked away in the small glen in which she had given birth to their son, and away from prying ears and eyes, she sat, issuing a soft howl for Draven alone. Unlike the first time, instead of being angry and confrontational, she was calm and composed. Still, a touch of hurt was written over her youthful features. She sat alone, waiting for him to come, suspecting that he had known such a discussion was coming. An uneasy stirring in her gut rose up, as if a sign of which path this meeting would lead.   

 

Draven was far from the perfect father, or the perfect pack member but most of all he was a terrible partner. Or, maybe he was just terrible at being a romantic partner. That was probably a better description, physically he still provided everything that Neha needed, they slept next to each other in the den and he was always polite and kind to her. As far as a partnership went he had the providing part down, they never argued and from the outside they probably looked like the perfect couple.

It was the romantic part of the equation that was lacking. Draven still kissed her muzzle in the morning before leaving the den and would give her quick nuzzles as a greeting after an afternoon apart but it no longer felt as it used to. It felt like routine, a subconscious way of life that he was leading without any thought or feeling. In fact, if the Leigh dwelled on it for too long that was the conclusion he came to. He didn't dislike Neha, he wasn't mad or upset with her her, he just... didn't love her. He probably never had and had gotten swept up in the romantic moment and now everything had come so far.

Draven was a wolf of his word. While he knew that their relationship was lacking and he wasn't fulfilled by it he would never leave. He couldn't tear apart his family like that, even if his mind wandered to Treyah at night while he laid next to Neha. He barely knew the yearling and yet he still found himself dreaming about those golden eyes late into the morning. So, he kept up the routine, despite his platonic feelings towards what used to be his lover. When she called the dark wolf lifted his head from the herbs he had been sorting, it was curious to say the least but he hardly questioned it. Pushing the herbs to the side Draven exited the healing den and made his way towards the source of the call. When she came into his sights he smiled softly, moving forward to press his snide into the soft fur of her neck in greeting at always, "Everything alright?" Neha didn't often call in the middle of the day.

 

Neither of them likely realized it yet, but what had transpired between them over the many months was nothing more than a classic case of puppy love. They had been young, naive, foolish and impulsive. They acted without thinking, listening only to their hearts instead of their heads. There was no undoing what had been done, and had she been given the choice, she would have done it again, had she known how wonderful a son she would have brought into the world. Like many relationships between young partners, some were complicated. Many changed, while others collapsed completely. It was all part of the process of maturing, becoming an adult.

When Draven arrived after her gentle summons, she attempted a smile as he pressed his side to her neck. She in turn, gently draped her chin over the back of his neck, taking the opportunity to nudge at a dark ear. A hopeful little test to see, if maybe, just maybe, he would return the affection. When they pulled away, her brown eyes sought out his as he asked her if everything was alright. At this, her gaze dropped to her paws, brows knitted in confused thoughtfulness. "That's...exactly what's been on my mind. I'm...not sure, to be honest." From the outside, everything looked picture perfect. Draven was doing well as a father, he slept at her side, and played with their son together. There was just a certain vibe that was lacking. The energy between them was good, but it was so different than before. "I'm not sure how to put it...but something just doesn't feel right." She spoke softly, lifting up her eyes towards him. They needed to figure this out together, to discover why something had shifted between them.  

 

Neha can often be found close to Aleister's side and therefore may appear in any of his threads.

Perhaps one of Draven's biggest flaws was that he was quick to take the blame and place it all on his own shoulders. His second biggest flaw was probably his tendency to feel defensive about accusations that had not really been made. So when Neha nudged his ear he has smiled at her comfortably. This was their routine after all. Maybe they would go and find Sachiel and take him for a walk as they often did in the afternoons. That was probably all the mother had called about.

Then she opened her mouth and said she wasn't sure of everything was alright. This was where Draven's flaws kicked in. His muscles stiffened in defence, only a subtle difference in his posture but noticeable if one knew him well enough. Simultaneously his ears dropped backwards on a silent apology, had he done something wrong? Was he supposed to bring lunch and had forgotten? Was there something else he had somehow been unaware that he was supposed to be doing?

When Neha said something didn't feel righr his defenders dropped and worry was painted across his dark muzzle. Draven's eyes flicked over her body in a quick scan, "Are you sick? What doesn't feel right, your stomach? Your head?" naively the young man has missed the implication the woman had laid out for him. It was easier to assume this was a problem he could fix with herbs.

 

Neha knew Draven well enough, and his flaws. She knew what could trigger his defensiveness, or bring make him take all of the blame. Over the past year, the Vuesain had grown more emotional...more sensitive. And not necessarily for the better. But in turn, she had also learned to control those emotions. She was no longer so quick to jump the gun and speak whatever came to mind first. When she saw him tense ever so slightly, she mentally prepared herself for what could be coming. In turn, her ears fell back partway, to silently show that she meant no offense whatsoever. She was not being accusatory. She was just gently trying to dig up some answers.

As Draven soon expressed genuine concern over her own well being, pressing to know if she was feeling ill in any way, she quickly shook her head in dismissal. "No no, it's not that. I'm fine, no need to worry." Her lips formed a small smile. "But thanks for your concern." She took a pause, glancing to each side, to ensure that they were still alone. She didn't want anyone seeing them like this, especially not Sachiel. She wouldn't want their son to worry. "It's just..." She gnawed on her bottom lip slightly. "...how do I put this? It's almost like something has changed between us, but I can't place it." Here she tread carefully, the last thing she wanted to do was to step on his toes. "It's...the energy, I guess. Like...when you touched me just now...it didn't feel the same. You know...like before." She wasn't entirely sure if she had this down right, but she was giving it her best shot.    

 

Neha can often be found close to Aleister's side and therefore may appear in any of his threads.

The relief Draven felt over Neha not being sick or injured was clear on his maw and he moved to once more press his nose into her neck to physically show how he was feeling. But as he pulled away he paused, what had she meant then? If something didn't feel right but she wasn't sick what had she been really asking him? He didn't have to wait long for that answer and suddenly the dark male felt like he may be sick. So he had not been doing as good of a job pretending as he thought he had been, how could he have been so foolish to think she wouldn't notice?

What the hell was he supposed to say now?

Instinctively he wanted to come up with a lie, to cover it up and smooth things over so they could go back to their platonic yet familiar routine. But, Draven was not the type to lie even if it was to keep the peace and keeping things bottled up had so far caused nothing but trouble. Several moments went by in silence as his green eyes remained firmly planted on the orange leaves behind Neha's head, his exterior calm and collected despite the panic he felt welling within him. He did not even realize he had been holding his breath until he let it out in a long sigh as he turned to look the woman in the eye.

It had been so long since he had truly looked at her, she looked tired and wary and Draven felt a pang of affection. But, he knew it wasn't the type of affection she wanted to feel, and it wasn't enough to keep this relationship alive. Before he convinced himself otherwise he let the truth out, "I just, I don't love you Neha." The words were true but Draven felt his heartbreak all the same. The life he had wanted for Sachiel wouldn't be possible anymore, and he felt every kind of guilt over what he was doing to their family.

 

A sinking feeling grew in her stomach, coiling up into an uncomfortable knot. Her confusion slowly turned to dread as she watched Draven, the man she thought she was meant to spend her entire life with, struggle to find answers. The way his unforgettable green eyes stayed pinned on the orange trees behind her head, and the look within them, began to confirm her growing suspicion. When he looked at her again, dead in the eye, she braced herself, her jaw setting slightly.

His simple words struck her like a slap to the face, the stinging pain of which didn't immediately register. She could only gaze at him, frozen with warm brown eyes, pupils constricting in shock. Slowly, the brightness within their depths faded, replaced by a far off, glazed over look. Her tawny ears fell, as did her head, neck craned towards the earth. There were no tears, no quivers or pleas. "...After all this. After all that we've been through?" Her voice slipped out in a meek whisper. "W-why? Was it something I did? Didn't do?" There was no accusation in her voice, just a deep need to understand why. They had bore a son together, a healthy, lively wonderful son, forged of Vuesain and Leigh blood. But Neha was afraid to know now, if their one night of passion had just been one terrible mistake. There was no undoing what had been done, and Neha feared how this would impact Sachiel. Just as Draven worried, she too, fretted over the possibility of what kind of life their son would have now.   

 

Neha can often be found close to Aleister's side and therefore may appear in any of his threads.

Draven’s body stiffened after he spoke, feeling the pain radiating in his chest; a physical manifestation of what he had just done. It tore him apart to see the look on neha’s face as her eyes glazed over before she dropped her face away from him. Part of him thought that was better, now he couldn’t see how much he had hurt her. Most of him knew that nothing would make this better. He had broken every promise that neither one of them had ever thought to speak out loud.

He yearned to reach out and comfort her, press his nose into her scruff and take all the pain away. But the man refrained. He knew there was nothing he could say or do that would make her feel better, and even if he could comfort her he was the last person she would want it from. Draven suddenly wished that he had said nothing at all, that he had been a better actor, a better father and partner. It was too late for that now.Shaking his head vigorously he reached out to use his muzzle to lift her face, force her to look at him but he froze. Pulling back he shook his head again, ”Neha you’re a great mother and a great person, it has nothing to do with anything you could have done.” He wanted to say more, but he didn’t know what else he could say so he was silent once more.