Daybreak Peaks all that you need now is in your soul

IF YOU LOVE, WELL THAT SHOULD BE ENOUGH

Instead it turns your joy into sorrow, & i can't breathe with the dust of retreat, I'm choking

Ryder had learned why the wildfire smoke had worried his guardians so. Here was the nearest evidence he'd found, too close for his own comfort as the many-humped back of Serpent's Pass was visible from this charred land. Most of the trees that had made it to this altitude had been felled, kindling to a desperate flame that only icecaps had been able to quell. When he dug through the snow, he found blackened grasses and ash that turned his typically-pale paws into a mottling of salt-and-pepper smears. He wondered for the hundredth time if Caspian had come across anything like this where he'd gone, or even the fires themselves.

Ryder let out a sigh, and turned toward the water. It trickled down from the Wellspring to his level now, pooling before his paws. The ice which tried to cover it was brittle and broke easily when pressured. The soot dissipated as water soaked his dirtied fur, carried away in ribbons that were mesmerizing to watch. He had been alone for three weeks now, and it was eating at him. Still, there was a lot of ground to be covered before he was at the Falls again.

on the fumes of my wayward life, 'cause love is an inkless pen, it's a tavern, it's sin

IT'S A HORRIBLE WAY TO BEGIN

IF YOU LOVE, WELL THAT SHOULD BE ENOUGH

Instead it turns your joy into sorrow, & i can't breathe with the dust of retreat, I'm choking

Ryder was getting lost in his thoughts, as though those swirls of different shades of charcoal had hypnotized him. He should have known better than to drop his guard so thoroughly out here alone, but perhaps the comfort of a familiar sight had softened him a touch too much. A stranger's voice reached him, chipper and sudden, and every muscle jumped beneath Ryder's skin.

He spun to face the other, who was already issuing an apology, and giving his name, and asking questions... Ryder's dirty-blonde ears lifted and his brows hunched subtly over his eyes, a characteristic sternness blanketing his features.

"... hi. I'm, fine."

As fine as one could be without their pack, chasing after a brother they weren't even sure wanted to be found. That was the good thing about this abrupt appearance, though. Maybe this Toklo guy had seen him... !

"I'm Ryder. I'm looking for someone."

Maybe it was rude to jump right into what he needed, but this unexpected companion hadn't seemed to have held back.

"Caspian. He's all white but with black markings on the back, much darker than mine. Summer-grass-colored eyes. You know 'im?"

on the fumes of my wayward life, 'cause love is an inkless pen, it's a tavern, it's sin

IT'S A HORRIBLE WAY TO BEGIN

IF YOU LOVE, WELL THAT SHOULD BE ENOUGH

Instead it turns your joy into sorrow, & i can't breathe with the dust of retreat, I'm choking

The answer wasn't positive, and Ryder didn't bother to suppress the frown it caused. Damnit. Still, the other was plenty eager to help all the same. The blonde's features lifted with mild surprise as Toklo took to action, his dark nose working overtime as though the brothers had only just split from one another. If only it was so simple, but the enthusiasm (and the drive to fix) reminded him of the little sister he still had back home.

"Not anymore, no," he answered the older wolf's questions in order, ears lowering once more but now with a touch of sadness, "he's my brother, he went missing... months ago."

He'd had to think on that a moment, realizing it had been so long that the memory was starting to blur into the many others now crowded around it. Ryder's heart felt particularly heavy in that moment.

"... thanks, though."

on the fumes of my wayward life, 'cause love is an inkless pen, it's a tavern, it's sin

IT'S A HORRIBLE WAY TO BEGIN

IF YOU LOVE, WELL THAT SHOULD BE ENOUGH

Instead it turns your joy into sorrow, & i can't breathe with the dust of retreat, I'm choking

Toklo was sympathetic, but his words cut instead of bolstered. 'After all this time.' His dark lips wanted to scowl, but for now he suppressed the expression, merely frowning instead. Where the other likely thought he was giving praise, it jabbed at Ryder's insecurities about what 'all this time' meant for himself and his brother both.

The fellow loner's good nature no longer mattered. Ryder had been agitated, and that was all it took for a cold distaste to take over.

"By having a brain," he answered derisively, seeking now to push the other away. After all, if he didn't have information on Caspian, he was virtually useless to the yearling.

"I don't know where you're from, but I wasn't raised to give up on family."

The words were spoken dismissively, paws talking a few steps and eyes beginning to wander. He was done, expecting his rudeness to chase Toklo off.

on the fumes of my wayward life, 'cause love is an inkless pen, it's a tavern, it's sin

IT'S A HORRIBLE WAY TO BEGIN

IF YOU LOVE, WELL THAT SHOULD BE ENOUGH

Instead it turns your joy into sorrow, & i can't breathe with the dust of retreat, I'm choking

The other seemed almost alarmed at having offended Ryder. He sidled right up to the blonde's side, chattering away to explain and still try and help. Weirdo. Ry watched him from the corner of his silver eyes, the only expression he was giving a taut frown.

"You don't even have the scent," he countered, continuing with his long-legged strides but still not doing everything he could to rid himself of Toklo. He could have easily ran, or snarled and snapped his teeth at him, been meaner with his words, but Ryder didn't and wasn't.

"I just asked you a question, I didn't make any mention of wanting a sidekick."

on the fumes of my wayward life, 'cause love is an inkless pen, it's a tavern, it's sin

IT'S A HORRIBLE WAY TO BEGIN