Cedarwood Forest the ashes of my paradise

A little something to catch Rook up on what had happened with Bishop disappearing... Based on this AU tumblr post.

Still, in the night I watch your breath,
My tears run down, my heart confessed.
It’s cold, so cold...
Oh, help me break the ice;
The ashes of my paradise.
Don’t go, don’t go...
- Kelly Sweet - "Ashes of My Paradise"

I touch, you pull away,

rook lyall

Like glass the fragile moments break...

October 23rd; Evening; Clear; 30° F/-1° C. Just north of Whisper Marsh, east of CRR territory lines, along the edges of Cedarwood Forest.

How could have this had happened? How could it have even come to this? In the midst of his misery and adolescence-fueled angst, Rook Lyall had been pushed to the breaking point. In the stillness of the evening, it had come to him - the very last words his sister Bishop had told him. "You’re so selfish, Rook! God, I hate you..." And, what had he told her in return? He hated her... too. It was instinctive, only natural and truly characteristic, like a chemical reaction - a bucket of gasoline to an open flame, a dying flame exposed to the cool open air - and, just like that, Rook and Bishop Lyall had called it quits (over something as incredulous as jealousy and the need to be wanted and valued, no less). If @Namid joining the duo and meeting @Titan had been the start of it all, adding @Quil and @Beren to their little group had pushed them both to their limits, with Rook wanting all of them together and Bishop wanting only her brother and no one else.

Never in his life had he been more than a few days away from her and now he was in Relic Lore, by himself, all alone. Even if he had had the chance to find his brother Ryvet and their father, and had known that his mother and his sister Taima were somewhere out there possibly just within reach, their presence paled in comparison to Bishop's absence. It was as if his heart had been divided, frozen solid, shattered, and left to melt from the heat of their argument.

His ears and nostrils still burned as he eventually found his way to the tree line of Cedarwood Forest, still obviously upset. His hackles were raised in terrible spike-like tufts and his gait consisted of heavy stomps that made the leaves and broken twigs snap and crackle underfoot. Along the way, he had even torn a path through the exiguous patches of grass and reeds when he crossed the Marsh.

"Goddamnit Bishop!" he hollered into the trees, so very convinced that she stood within its depths, too proud and self-righteous to level herself with her brother. "You promised!" His muzzle wrinkled upward to distort his face in an ugly grimace. "You promised me!" You promised me that you would help me... be there for me...

He paced around in a small circle that trampled the dry grass at his feet. It should have occurred to him that he had been taking his twin for granted, but at present all he wanted to do was finish the fight that had begun with him announcing that he had made two more friends - @Quil and @Beren - and that they had agreed to help them. Now that their father had arrived to Whisper Caverns, though, Rook found that he had been abandoned, left to deal with Borden and their broken family on his own. All he felt liked doing now was doing as he always did: take back all the nasty things he had said and make it all back up to her with a kiss to the base of her ear. Just like old times, even if the days of the childhood had long since passed.

Defeated, his hind legs folded beneath him and his rump came to rest on the ground with a heavy thump. Like a cub he whimpered, too stubborn to crawl back to Whisper Caverns or try to find his twin himself in the dark forest before him. His mismatched eyes closed tight and he angled his head as though he were looking at the tip of his tail at his left side. For a while he tried to just breathe. Seconds became minutes and minutes into roughly an hour and nothing was helping...

After all this time he had been waiting for someone to pull a trigger, to set off a series of events that would give him the sort of awakening to stop dawdling about and keep working towards fixing their father. And, it would have seemed that Bishop had gone and done it, aiming the gun at his chest before walking away and leaving him to die.

Opening his eyes again the young Lyall stood up and looked around before crying out for the only individual who could console him and make him forget something as petty as a squabble between his littermate, his mother @Jaysyek...

template base formed by GINNYSAURUS.

Chances are I have a BEN WHISHAW gif for that.

@Rook

I miss everything about you

Slowly the cage of her heart rose, eyes upon the mottled rabbit, that nibbled cautiously beneath a cedar tree. This was what it had come down to to eat. Jayse didn't exactly find the thought ideal she was bidding her time to make her attempt successful. It had been a few days since she had eaten, and she needed to keep her strength. The once queen was far from bringing the wayward pieces of her family back together, she was not past trying. It may seem impossible to unite them all, have what once was. Grizzly Hollow. Jayse had to know the legacy would continue, her children were safe. With a heavy heart, it was hard to hold onto a hazy future. The pale wolf hadn't felt this alone since her first time coming to Relic Lore. Even reuniting with Borden was sadly not quite the same. The stranger she could become to him in one blink.

About to make her move, a male's voice broke the quiet beat of the forest, calling for someone and the rabbit scurried away. Jayse may have grumbled about the sudden loss, there was a ring to this voice that pulled her. Could it be? It had to be one of her sons, but was she simply that hopeful? Triangle ears flipped back in uncertainty, a twist in her gut. What did she have to lose?

There was a hurried jerk in her steps as she sought the other soul, trying not to let her heart get too excited. There was also a smudge of worry, creasing her forehead across her mismatched eyes. If it was not one of her sons, maybe she could least help.

The further along she went, it seemed her confidence found her, and she certainly could smell another wolf. Young, with a trace of Whisper Caverns. It was then she sharply halted drawing in a heady breath. She wanted to be sure, but there was no mistaking who it was. "Rook?!" The mother called, not sure she could believe he was right under her nose. Jaysyek would shuffle forward, eyes hungrily searching when there he was, a perfect image of Borden. "Rook!" Happily she barked, bounding to him with a rapidly wagging tail. There was something that took over her happiness, suddenly face downcast. "What's wrong, son? Where's your sister? Your father?"

(This post was last modified: Nov 05, 2014, 02:28 AM by Jaysyek.)

"Mom!" he wailed, he cried, he sobbed. "Mum..." Unsure of what to do with himself next the young Lyall's ears fell back and he sniveled and whimpered as he stared into the shadowy depths of the Cedarwood. This wouldn't have happened if Bishop had had a level head about everything; then again, this wouldn't have happened if Rook had minded what he was doing in his mission for a "cure" and kept his word about everything being "the two of them against the world." He was about to turn around, to simply run until every bone in his body ached along with his restless heart, when his name lifted from the darkness.

"Rook?!"

There was only one thing he could have said to that. "Mom?!" he called back, his hopes soaring as high as they dared into the evening sky. "Over here!" His muddied forepaws trampled the long grasses as he stumbled over the uneven ground until he saw her there. Jaysyek. "Rook!" she exclaimed again, but the joy on her face that should have been there for the sake of such a blissful moment of reunion, was overcome simply by the look on his face and the whimper that left his quivering lips.

He came forward to bury his face in the snow white fur that made the front of her chest; the crown of his head and his neck just grazed her throat and chin. He whined for a few moments, his words utterly evading him. He nuzzled his nose into her forelimbs before lifting his head so that he could press the side of his face into her shoulder. Everything was wrong, at least, for the time being, according to Rook and everything that had made up his present situation. There was just nowhere to begin with it all except for the one important fact. "Dad is okay," he sniffed, his nostrils stinging as though they were cold now. "He's with the rest of the pack, but..." Another sound emitted from him as though he were a mewling cub. If they had all been back within Renegades Reach, one might have thought that Bishop or Aiyana had merely been teasing their baby brother again, reducing him to tears. "I can't find Bishop. She... She left me and I was... I was stupid and now she's gone and I can't find her."

(This post was last modified: Nov 10, 2014, 09:29 AM by Rook.)

Chances are I have a BEN WHISHAW gif for that.

Eep I suck :X

I miss everything about you

Pointed ears were back in displeasure, never liking the sounds of her children in pain. His face was lost in her pale coat, she sniffed his ears, tracing along his neck, gently sweeping her muzzle against his own shoulder. He had grown from a small pup to an adult, but seemed to be so much the same boy. Curling her neck to him, she lingered in the embrace, glad she could at least offer him some kind of comfort. It was torment not knowing what had happened, to be in the Lore again, but simply another outsider. She did not press the issue, knowing it was best to give him a second to collect himself.

It was evident Borden was fine, and the pace of her heart became more normal. One less thing for them both to worry about, and it counted for something. The mother was frozen, unwilling to move from her child, as another sound of his pain was voiced. The white wolf tussled at the thick hair upon his shoulders, encouraging him to speak. Rook often took on too much for his age, things he should not have to bear. Jayse had a terrible feeling what had left him in such despair, but she needed to hear it from him.

Sure enough, Bishop was not beside her brother. Now, she realized how her daughter's scent did not linger. A harsh frown marred her muzzle, eyes roughly blinking trying to make sense why they should part. Next to Hocus and Trisden they had always been the closest. They had often had their fights, but they had never ceased to make up. Jayse could not know if they ever would.

"Oh dear," she murmured. Now another Lyall had drifted. She could not even tell him Bishop would be back. Even if Rook was blaming himself, it wasn't an indication it was only his fault. "You want to tell me what happened?" She queried, giving a bump to his shoulder, understanding if for now he could not.

Rather, I suck... :c  Rook in this mindset now is so weird and I figured I'd just wrap this one up. <3

In a way only a mother could, Jaysyek was able to pull Rook from his distress, to have him surface for even a split-second to catch his breath. Another small cry slithered out from his vocal chords. "She got upset," he explained, his mismatched eyes still seeking out any bit of comfort in the expression on her face. "It just... Everything got so... out of control so fast... and I couldn't--" His lungs were becoming desperate for air, making him take a lengthy pause to catch his breath. "I couldn't control it. I couldn't control her."

His forehead wrinkled. Never had he ever said such a thing, no matter how much he had wanted to express such want of dominating her and putting her in her place. She might have come into the world first and they might have shared more than just their agouti-patterned coats, but when it came to rank, it was a seemingly never-ending row between the two of them. In this instance, Bishop had won but, in his eyes, she had cheated; and, all he had wanted was a fair fight. "I told her that we needed help, I got that help, and she blew up in my face," he exhaled in an exasperated sigh. The sound of something moving in the distance snagged his attention and, immediately, his ears, tail and head came back up.

"I need to go," he sniveled, forcing himself to withdraw from Jaysyek's embrace. "We need to go. I think Dad might come looking for me and I need... I need to go look for Bishop." The words felt like stones on his tongue, but it was the right thing to do. If he didn't find her, he was going to make his own way, and that was that.

"I left Dad with Narime," he pointed his nose vaguely in the direction of south. "He'd... he'd be glad to see you. Tell him I'll be back soon whether I find her or not." Nuzzling her shoulder and bumping his nose to her chin, he finally stepped away from her, the sadness still etched on his face. "I love you, Mom. I'll be right back." His lips pursed as he willed himself to keep his emotions in check. "If I don't find her, I'll find you again."

(fade?)

Chances are I have a BEN WHISHAW gif for that.