As much as Rook did not want to admit it, for the past few days - three, to be exact - he had been keeping Veho to himself. He believed, that as soon as he introduced his parents to the handsome rogue, either Borden and Jaysyek would be suspicious of their son and his companion or, rather, Veho (the medicine man from faraway lands) would be quite taken with them and how to go about the request Rool had bestowed upon him. Just a few days more, a moment's more, a few hours more... he inwardly pleaded with himself. A little bit more before he brought Veho to meet and join the rest of the family.

His feet were swift as he traveled through the trees just beyond the pack borders he had recently revamped, his nose twitching as he scanned the forest for the distinct musk of his newfound confidant.

Just the day before and the day before that, he had shared with the tawny man a number of secrets. The first of which was the most important: His name was Rook and that the only ones who called him as such were his family and most trusted of friends. To any other average being, perhaps this was a bit too soon, but for the Lyall it was something he thought to utilize. If he couldn't "physically" be at Veho's side at all hours of the day then he would use such a confession as a sort of loyalty exercise, see for himself just how trusting they could be to one another. If Veho could see past the mask that was 'Gaheris,' then Rook would let the man see for himself just how desperate and longing he truly was.

The other admissions and stories he had shared were as follows: the Lyall family and their history from Relic Lore to Renegades Reach and back, the fact that Rook had been the youngest of a set of twins ("was" if only because his sister Bishop was, at present, no longer in the picture and he was having to deal with everything on his own for the first time in his life), little stories about his life within the Reach beneath a pawful of headstrong older sisters and brothers, the whole basis of his religious beliefs and how he longed to be released from them, Rook's worries for not just his father's life but that of his family's, and that Veho was to stay clear of Willow Ridge wolves at all cost if he could help it. Additionally, every now and then Rook let slip his inkling of affection towards Veho in the way his voice lilted in all the most perfect places (for example, "If my sister were here, she would definitely" disapprove of all this. I'd tell her never to mind though, I like you and that's reason enough." or "I think my family will like you just the same. You'll fit right in. With us."). It might as well have been some kind of song-and-dance with how careful he was to make sure that nothing about Namid, Beren, or Titan left his lips. And every time the pair separated from one another, it was always with a good note, a smile and a simple 'good night.'

Stepping around a fallen tree he continued further until he spotted that familiar fur pattern on the ground. His lungs ballooned and a whine emitted from his muzzle, his frantic steps thundering along the ground until he could graze his nose ever so gently along Veho's ear. There was no blood or any other unwelcome smell, no strange scents apart from the curious aromas within the man's pelt that Rook had not noticed before.

The sprig of salmonberries were immediately regarded with wide eyes as soon as the youth had caught sight of their vivid orange fruit nearby. No. This isn't happening... "Ve-ho?" he breathed, his vocal chords strung tight with dread. "What- What happened?" For a young lord to have never witnessed death (for all he knew, his family was all still living), sickness (barely even a cold or a tummy ache), or suffering in any form until now (in the light of his father's progressing mental illness), it could have been either humorous or tragic to see Rook slowly circle around him, with his tail and ears pointed downward. For all the Lyall could think or assume was that Veho was dying. He pressed his nose to the brute's cheek, that tender spot below a black-lined eye, continuing to walk around him before settling with his side pressed against Veho's mottle back. Then, he did nothing else aside from pressing an ear against a broad shoulder, listening for any change in the rhythm of his heartbeat.

"Please," he mewled. God, he would give anything if it meant that it would keep Rook from suffering yet another lost chance at love. "Don't leave me."

"I’m not going anywhere, Gaheris," Veho rumbled. It made Rook perk up in a way that suggested he might have been a startled rabbit or a cub who had been expecting the long-awaited return of a parent who had been hunting all morning. His tail wagged and a sigh of relief ushered through his teeth. The word 'poisoning' however had taken it all back.

"Poisoning?" he echoed. "Unfortunately?" His jaw clenched, his thoughts immediately going to Sköll and the wrest of his wretched kin of the Archer-Lyall part of the family. Perhaps they had done this. But, his uneasiness was  brushed aside by the next words that came from the medicine man's mouth, the profession that he had swallowed the wrong mushroom. If that had been so, then which one had been the right one and, if not death, what did this fungus dare to do to Veho?

His blue- and gold-hued eyes raked up and down the other's side, watching in concern as Veho attempted to right himself before he remained on his stomach. This, in turn, had Rook on his feet, ready to support him should he stagger to one side if he were able to stand up. "Lay back down," he almost ordered. Without having to say anything, Veho simply remained on the ground. It wasn't as if they had places to go and things to see anyway. Well, Rook might have been keen on introducing him to his family but that, he found, could still wait a while longer. He did not want to run the risk of triggering Borden back into thinking that they had never left Relic Lore and that the sickness from over the mountain was still on its way into the west. "Spiritual aid-" Whatever that meant... Neither Kiche nor his aunts Sibyl or Aniu had mentioned such a thing, "or not, perhaps maybe you ought to sample other things instead of strange toadstools and death caps."

"If I can ever find Titan again," he mentioned the Thorben's name as casually as he could, as to not raise any suspicion or assumptions. "I'll point him to you; he might have an idea as to which mushrooms are safe to eat." While, he didn't particularly like the idea that Veho might spend a bit of time with Titan, he thought to mention it anyway. After all, with Titan's trials that concerned Borden's consumption of chaw-gaw mushroom, it seemed that the Leader's state of mind had improved - if only for a little bit to allow the pack some peace of mind.

Rook decided to plunk back down beside him, ears no longer folded and hackles no longer raised in alarm while the brute averted his gaze. He nudged his nose to Veho's shoulder once more. "Adores it," he emphasized as he eventually let his chin rest on Veho's side. "But, I'd love to keep you company." Again, he angled his head so that he could listen to the inner-workings of the wanderer's body with the pulse of heart, the soft 'whoosh'-like sounds of his airways filling his lungs, and... the occasional tummy grumble. It reminded him of the days when he was a cub, his siblings and the nights he would curl up beside them in-between the tall trees that made up the Reach in the northwest, and the calm summer evenings in which he and Bishop often laid together to just listen to the world around them.

"Do you have any siblings?" he asked, his voice also a whisper. In the past 72 hours, it had actually never occurred to him ask when he had the mind to tell Veho about all of his. "Older.. younger... age-mates?"

Rook offered a smile as Veho defended himself. It wasn't in any sort of jest or mocking, but rather an assured simper, one that told him that Rook believed him capable of figuring out a variety of fungi... that this whole ordeal with this strange mushroom was an accident and a lesson learned. "It's fine," he replied in regards to the whole 'leaving the pack.' "Titan was gone for a while, he's around... somewhere... If it's for a good reason, I'm sure we'll allow you a number of days for your journey. My father went to the Mountain of Dire and back a couple times over the course of a few days, my mother only worried when he was gone for much longer than that. The ground's pretty much flat, I've found, in these parts; it shouldn't be too troublesome to traverse apart from the Archer-Lyalls in the Ridge." Much of what he said here was said in confidence, stemming from both his own personal experiences and his parents' fanciful stories of when they had first come to this expanse of Canadian wilderness.

Upon the mention of the berries, Rook hummed back with a note of approval. He would have to do something with it somehow. A whiff of it deciphered through his olfactory senses told him that it could have tasted tart, but whether or not it was poisonous was something to question first and foremost. When it came to berries, though, Rook's mind had thoughts of using them as bait, utilizing them as a means to draw birds to the forest floor. For a second, he thought it would be something Titan might find interesting, but he did not dwell on it and, in return, offered a small "Thank you. They're lovely."

It was here that Veho shifted and the masked youth removed his chin from the other's shoulder blade, allowing him to move. Once comfortable again, Rook remained characteristically sphinx-like with his right paw folded at the wrist. The rogue was allowed a moment to think, the silence between them nothing but pleasant and relaxing. When Veho spoke at last, the Lyall was obviously fascinated by how his ears had cupped forward in interest, but as soon as Namid was brought up, something in Rook's face changed. The mention of Neha and everything else thereafter almost unheard of if it weren't for Rook's need to hang onto his every word.

One of those dark, rounded ears had swiveled to one side, making for an obviously puzzled expression that the youth couldn't have recovered from fast enough when he heard Veho add that he had been on his own for a while and that he hadn't the faintest clue as to what his siblings were up to. "Oh," the single syllable came from him as though he were a mourning dove singing it's trademark song in the chill of the early morning right before sunrise.

For Rook, it was impossible to lie; for him to have to keep from lying meant that he had to keep his mouth shut. In the face of his companion's enlightening history, he could not help but wonder if he should say anything. He cleared his throat as politely as he could. It was his turn to look away for a moment, "I suppose we share that common aspiration; the only difference is that you've gone out to make a name and vocation for yourself whereas I've merely gathered my family together and nothing else." He almost continued to share the rest of his story but at this point it was no use. He had already told Veho that he had come here for his father's sake, to find a cure, and relieve him of his memory loss; a point had also been made that his family had returned to the Cedarwood Forest if only because it was the last place Borden truly remembered and felt at home in.

"N-Namid, though," he faltered with the pronunciation of her name, the memories all flooding back to him to a time when he had her and his sister Bishop for company. The ear that was facing to the side perked up before relaxing again. How many Namids were there in the world anyway? Just one as far as he was concerned. Once, he believed that there were, perhaps, a number of Bishops and Rooks but none of them twins or siblings or even in the same pack or family. The reason there were so many was because of the whimsical idea that there were packs out there who liked to name their children after birds. he would have never thought that Namid had a last name. She had never mentioned it and, to him, she had always been simply "Namid, the Star Dancer..." his Bright Star. And, now, her brother was here and Rook found that he loved Veho a little more...

Something in him seemed a bit sad, bordering on melancholic as well as hesitant to continue on the topic of Veho's sister, "I'm the youngest in my family and I, too, have the faintest idea as to what my own brothers and sisters are doing. They go off and do their own thing, thinking the others might take care of 'the baby' but no one thinks to double-check that I'm being looked after. They just leave." The moment he had said it all, he regretted it, wondering if it might spur Veho to look for @Namid - something he absolutely did not want him to do. "'He can take care of himself,' they say, 'He can fend for himself. He's the favorite, he'll survive.'"

The whine that had left Veho's muzzle prompted Rook to blink, lost in thought for the time being. When the brute came to press his nose to his ruff, the Lyall's ears relaxed. An explanation came soon after; nothing he had never heard or thought before but, somehow, this time around, the words seemed as though they would stick. What he had said was true: rounding up what little family he had in these parts and forming an actual pack was no small task and yet he had done it.

Veho's proximity was silently noted as he watched their forelimbs inch closer and closer to one another. Rook didn't dare to say anything though, not wanting to embarrass either of them or somehow give the impression that it wasn't what he had wanted. The masked youth met the other's eyes at the offer of having someone look after him. An actual advisor, his mind began to ran with the idea, a second self, someone who didn't replace his twin sister Bishop but, at the very least, did as she used to do). Scolding, suggesting, musing, and all...

Foolishly, he wondered who this identity might be; and, while Rook had thought that, by some long stretch, the wolf might be  @Beren or @Namid, herself, he was further drawn in as Veho offered that he would be there for him. Rook's cheeks felt hot beneath his fur; an appreciative smile seemed to settle on his face, the sadness momentarily staved away.

The stuttering made his little grin grow lopsided, making it obvious that he was rather taken with the idea of have the medic around. Rook's nose twitched as he truly considered the idea but, then, all too soon, Veho began to draw away, an apology being the last thing to leave his lips. As if not to lose another moment, Rook leaned forward, angling his muzzle toward his companion so that he could place the smallest, quickest of kisses on the tip of his muzzle. A hot flash radiated from the back of his shoulders and fled all the way down his spine to the end of his dark-tipped tail.

He released a breath as he, too, drew away. It had been impulsive and sudden, even for him but, oh, how refreshing it felt. It was as if life had been breathed back into him after being dead for so long. His mismatched eyes sought out the pair of pale-ringed irises though in apology before hastily turning away and clenching his teeth together. "S-sorry," he whispered back, breathless and stricken with another feverish heat. "I... ought to be the one apologizing... that, there, was too... bold."