Grizzly Hollow all that's left is a ghost of you

For @Veho~

August 25th; Later Afternoon; Patchy rain nearby; 63 ° F, 17 ° C

Everything hurt today. His neck, his shoulders, his back, his knees, his elbows... Laying on his left side was just about the best he could do. The cool earth was comforting against his chest and abdomen, the pine needles somewhat soft against his temple and cheek. He had spent most of the afternoon napping in the sun until the clouds started to roll in and those little droplets of rain began to sprinkle down from the heavens here and there. Every so often, he tried to go back to sleep, but someone or something up there thought it rather amusing to keep hitting him square on the nose with a raindrop. He resorted to keeping his half-lidded eyes focused on the trees in the distance, feeling as if he weren't particularly there with no one nearby.

His son had been by earlier that morning but Borden had dismissed him with a curt bark. Since then he had been on his own with many a confusing thought to keep him company. What time was it? he kept wondering. Did he had breakfast? He was sure he did. Would Jaysyek come by? How about that other man, @Veho? His brows furrowed as he blinked twice. That sounded somewhat right, but he was certain it wasn't Vero or Hero. That was just... off.

His silvered tail swept across the ground as he started to hum something familiar. Had he remembered, he might have recalled that it had been the lullaby he had typically used when Taima and Calla were too fussy for bed. The song didn't last long, though, the notes warbled in some places like an untuned piano. He stopped and stretched his limbs as far as they would go then relaxed once more. It had occurred to him then that he had not seen Taima. A whine emitted through his nostrils, just loud enough for those who were within earshot. He slowly rolled over with a grimace so that he could lay on his belly with his forelimbs stretched out before him. Perhaps if he asked, he might be able to find her before the storm.

Things were different, now.  Confusing, where before they were so carefree and simple.  Natural, even.  Veho continued his daily routine, simply because he knew not else what he could do – as he'd been instructed upon joining Grizzly Hollow, he continued to patrol the border, and add to its strength.  Some days, he would deposit a rabbit or a fish in the pack's cache.  It happened less often than he would have liked, but the man had never become a proficient hunter.  Even as a loner, he often scavenged or partnered up with a fellow vagrant to take down something that would keep them both sated for days.

All the same, he did his best, spending his free time gathering herbs from near or far and pining over Gaheris.  If he was not with @Rook – and he was not near the alpha nearly as much as he would have liked, for not only did the young man have the burden of leadership hoisted upon his shoulders, but he also had a family, a son who surely wished for the attention of his sire – than he was thinking about the masked man, and the trouble Veho had dipped into inviting this…this thing, into his life.  For what even could such a relationship be called, when he knowingly pursued a wolf bound to another?  It went against everything he stood for, there was no honesty in this.  He knew not what his-  What could he even call Rook?  Not a lover (though he may have wished otherwise), not a suitor (for someone else had caught him already), certainly not a friend (for such a word was far to weak to describe whatever was happening between them).

Regardless, he knew not what Gaheris had told his mate of the matter, and it was not his business to know.  What troubled him was what he himself took part in – the Ancestors knew of this dalliance.  This was nothing to be proud of.  Veho might have continued to dwell as the guilt threatened to eat him alive when a whine caught his silver-tipped ears.  Perking up, he was eager to discard the self-abuse in favor of his actual job, jogging through the brush until he came upon Borden with a soft smile.

"Good afternoon, my friend.  How are you feeling?" he asked gently, coming up to the patriarch's side.  

(This post was last modified: Aug 27, 2015, 03:42 PM by Veho.)

"Good afternoon, my friend.  How are you feeling?" a voice came from somewhere at his side and Borden craned his head about to get a good look at who had come into his midst. A half-growl and half-whine came from him as he dipped his muzzle downward, his seeing eye staring much too hard at the young man's face. Well, he seemed friendly enough and, perhaps, if he was nice, he might  get some valuable information out of him.

"Everything hurts," he admitted with a wince, his black-tipped tail gingerly lifting to drag across the ground once more. "I want to move, but I can't." He stretched forward slightly with a face as his wrist and elbow popped. The digits at the end of his paws spread apart from one another before he relaxed them. It didn't help much but it showed he was able to move... just... his muscles ached from even the slightest hint of movement.

"Could you tell me if you've seen Taima today?" he asked, suddenly drawing attention away from his limbs. "I thought... I thought she was supposed to come by-" His ears lowered on either side of his face. "-but she hasn't. I'm afraid she might've gotten lost." He altered his position so that the weight of his body transferred form one side to the other. "Could-- Could you help me find her?"

"She... looks like me but more pale in the coat. The only thing she got from her mother was her capability of enduring things, really. I just want to see her back safely. If she's anything like me, she'd be out there all on her own. Alone, missing her family while being too stubborn to return home."

Well, what do you want from me?

Veho hummed softly as he approached the former patriarch, tail held at his hocks as he bobbed his head. It was difficult to tell if the aging wolf was able to recognize him today – there were good days, and there were bad. Time slowly stole away Borden’s memories, and as a more recent fixture, he always assumed his place in the man’s mind was anything but permanent. So he approached the man slowly, ears at a soft angle and tail low – he was a friend, he was a subordinate, he was someone to trust.

Down he sat nearby, not touching – it was hard to know if the former alpha would find him threatening or not, and inclined his head. “I am sorry to hear it,” he murmured softly, ear twitching at the sound of air rushing into a joint. Fortunately, he knew just the plant to offer the man, if he felt at all inclined. (He’d not be the first wolf to stubbornly refuse the help florae could offer. @Karima in particular came to mind.) “If you would like to lesson the soreness, I will bring you some white fir from my den,” Veho suggested, propping himself up to trot off upon the request.

It was a different sort of appeal that came – Taima. A daughter, a Lyall, a wolf he’d never met. He’d heard some of his partner’s siblings mentioned in passing, but knew little other than that the woman existed. Exhaling deeply, he shook his head, wondering how to explain to the man that she’d not been part of Grizzly Hollow for many months at least – who knew when she’d actually gone? “I was supposed to come by today,” he murmured softly, his tail swishing softly behind him. “Taima is-- She’s not here, Borden. She’s dispersed some time ago. But I will keep an ear out for her, all the same. If she is anything like you, I am sure she is surviving just fine.”