Dead Empress Backwater riverside

And so I tell myself that I'll be strong

Seri Donata

and dreaming when they're gone

They both could have made more efforts, surely. Seri didn’t know what to really think about everything; by that point, the emotions had taken hold, clouding any sense of rational thought he had regarding it all. It didn’t matter who was actually at fault, or if anyone was actually at fault… what mattered was the fact that he felt this guilt just as he felt this loss deep in his bones. He wanted to say something along the lines of everyone always leaves and question why but he was just cognizant enough to recognize that such words might hurt his friend because Eros had never left…

And he never wanted to be responsible for hurting another wolf, at least not outside of defense of his pack and his friends… he asked if he wanted him to go with him and Seri did not hesitate to nod, sniffling lightly. “Please… if your dad will allow it.” He even choked up on the words, on the mention of Eros’s dad… “I… I don’t know if I can go alone.” He wasn’t sure he could bring his paws up that mountain without at least a little support.

If your dad will allow it, Seri replied, and while he couldn't picture his father denying them such a thing the man had surprised him before. The notion that any adult would try to tell Eros he couldn't be there for his friend made him feel anger, and he hugged the redhead just a little bit tighter for it.

"Then we're going no matter what. No one has a right to say no," he assured him, and every word was meant. After all, groundings were starting to lose their impact anyways. Of course, the boys did not actually have anything to worry about in such a regard, the pack patriarch highly unlikely to interfere with Seri's grief.

"Whenever you're ready, okay?"

And so I tell myself that I'll be strong

Seri Donata

and dreaming when they're gone

His brother insisted that no one would tell them no, and that if they did, then they would be going regardless. It admittedly made him feel a little better, even if Seri did not want to add to the strain he had seemed to sense between Eros and his father by kidnapping his son for moral support. Surely he should be able to buck up, right? He knew it was not that simply in the end.

He didn’t manage words, only a nod as he rested his head back against his friend, taking time to fully process, to mourn, and it would end with him fading into a sleep that the boy desperately needed. Thankfully, the late summer weather permitted it to be a comfortable sleep, rather than cursing him with a torrential downpour or something while he was exposed and in the open.

Fade