Arbol Rosado everyone to the nines

For @Niles || Evening, Sunny, 0 ° F, -18 ° C

"Everyone is dressed up, everyone to the nines
Someone must have found love or someone must have died
This will be forgotten by history and scholars, alike
Another moment of import lost to time" - Everyone Is Dressed Up // American Football

His trip with Azar (Balthazar) had been rather uneventful. They hadn't found who they were supposed to. Granted there was much more to these lands than this orchard but this was a good starting place. He would need to ask which way the older man wanted to go next.

With a brief "Be back shortly" he departed from the man. Every time they split he wondered if one of them might leave the other. So far they had stayed together. There was very little conversation which was fine with the dark man. Sometimes he did wish his company would blabber to fill in the silence but other times he felt like even the sound of Azar walking was enough to drive him crazy. He had grown irritable and harsh over the last month. Had it been a warmer season he might have bothered trying to find a plant that could help him simmer down.

The sun was lowering in the sky, the colors exposed due to a lack of clouds. It was cold but it wasn't unbearable. The trees seemed to disappear and expose one larger tree. The branches were bare but he bet they were covered in the spring and summer. Perhaps a little break would be nice. The large male settled himself into a sitting position by the tree with his head tilted slightly upwards to admire the sky.

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NILES ARCHER LYALL

Meeting with Castel the day before had been quite an event in itself. Not only had it been probably the first time in ages when he'd talked more than just a sentence or two at a time, but it had been the very first time he had met anyone outside of those he had considered his family. Now, while a fragment of him enjoyed the idea of seeking out others and getting to know them, he was still held back by the grief that was the fall out of the passing of his parents. Truthfully, it was rather nice to forget about them, even if just for a little while in order to be who he really was: the cheeky and curious little cub that Enoki and Craw had known some several months ago.

He left the girl and the Blackberry Fields behind and continued on to wherever his paws dared to lead him. All his life he had never known of the world beyond Willow Ridge. Even after the faily expedition he and Angier had shared, it was clear that there was still so much to be explored and discovered. Like this plot of trees whose bark and branches were definitely different than those of a willow or an evergreen... And then there was that huge singular tree atop a gently sloping hill.

His tail waved about in the cool evening air. Isolde would have raced him to the top in a heartbeat. So, he went, helter-skelter as it were, towards it with his tongue lolling from his mouth. He inspected the trunk and the ancient roots, moving around it until-- OH...  Niles stumbled back, his lanky legs tangling with one another until he had no choice but to plop onto his rear and, with gravity's unfortunate pull, slightly down the knoll. He didn't tumble much, but on his belly, he peered up at the other dark wolf, unsure if he had disturbed him at all. If he could have it his way, Niles would have very much liked it if he didn't owe the man an apology for disturbing him. Really, he hadn't even seen him there to begin with.

forever lost in time's currents

we can say goodbye, just head home, but if we're going to be alone
Chimera is currently traveling with Niles and may hop into this IC thread!

He had been so focused he hadn't heard anyone approaching, the wind wasn't in his favor either. He'd merely been focused on the rosy colors of the sky and how they mingled together with each other. It was soothing to watch the peachy tan touch the salmon pink. Not a cloud in sight let him know that the stars would light his way back to Azar, if he was out that late.

Suddenly things changed. His tranquility had been shattered like thin ice. Some gangly teen had bumped into him and was suddenly tripping over themselves. Deacon quickly raised himself up and allowed his hackles to prickle with partial anger. "Aye!" He called out harshly and let his eyes narrow on the boy. They were close in size but Deacon carried a bit more weight than this leggy fellow. "Your eyes and nose broke or something?" He scoffed at the younger male.

He took in a deep breath and tried to settle down some. The large man was not interested in drawing attention to this little scene or causing unnecessary trouble. Yet. "What's your name, kid?" While Deacon may have not been much older he didn't have much to call this wolf other than kid, stranger, and clutz. What a good start they were off to.

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NILES ARCHER LYALL

If the initial "Aye!" hadn't been enough to snag the youth's attention, then the rest of what was yelled definitely made sure Niles was paying attention. Those large triangular ears atop his head folded flat against his skull and every part of him sunk into the ground. If he could have forced himself any lower into the frost-covered grasses, he felt the earth could have taken him in, bones, sinew, fur and all. Gone, just like that, with nothing but a mud-colored splotch left behind where he had once been.

His colorless eyes narrowed to slits, a whine emitting from him in an unmistakable wordless apology. His tail swept across the snow until it pressed against his body. Though, as the older male took a deep breath, the yearling fully tucked his tail. If his little stumble into Castel Noor was just a little accident, then his little trip into this rogue had him really step in it this time...

"What's your name, kid?"

Niles felt as though his tongue had glued itself to the roof of his mouth, another nasal whine emitting from hs nose. His teeth would have chattered if his jaw hadn't set so tight into his skull. As was customary when speaking to outsiders or someone he didn't know (or trust), he shook his head. Angier and Elettra had always told him not to speak to strangers...

forever lost in time's currents

we can say goodbye, just head home, but if we're going to be alone
Chimera is currently traveling with Niles and may hop into this IC thread!

He watched with a pitiful look as the yearling pushed himself into the ground. Was he burying his own grave? Deacon thought he had been as polite as possible despite his recent angry moods. Apparently, he hadn't been because this kid was all kinds of nervous and submissive. The whine had a sick smirk twisting onto his lips. Perhaps the boy really was digging his own grave.

"Play nice for now."

He mentally reaffirmed himself as he stared at the puddle of fur in front of him. What was he to do with it? There were no words just those whines. But there had been a shake of a head. A no. Was this man refusing to reveal his identity? How low was his self-esteem to not offer a name, an apology, and become one with the earth in a sad display? There was an internal battle in Deacon right now. One side of him was chanting to go harsh on the boy, show no mercy to such a whelp. The other side was tugging at his heart strings with whispers of forgiveness and kindness, to show this boy that not all strangers were monsters. His brows furrowed at his inward battle.

"Get up." He spoke rather neutrally at first. "Please." It was a gentle plead as he looked at the gray-eyed boy. He was doing this for his own conscious, to perhaps set out part of the wildfire that had been eating him up. "I'm not gonna hurt you so just don't whine anymore and please don't, I don't know, become a puddle again." He shrugged and looked away before letting his eyes fall back to the boy. Deacon hoped the boy could follow that simple string of instructions.

Once he felt enough time had passed, Deacon parted his lips to speak. "Are you lost or something? I could point you in the right way if I can get a description or name, something, anything." He kept saying something out of a fear of the unknown. He was nervous he hadn't done the right thing by taking the more merciful route.

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There is a moose carcass that has been scavenged by coyotes nearby. +15 Health

NILES ARCHER LYALL

"Get up."

The words, although jarring, had Niles pushing himself off the ground. It was enough force to even shuffle him backwards by a step and a half. The addition of 'please' went over his head, his attention solely focused on the older man before him. "I'm not gonna hurt you so just don't whine anymore and please don't, I don't know, become a puddle again." This had the youth's brows creased again, the whiskered points touching one another as he hastily studied the rogue. There was something familiar about him, but he couldn't pinpoint what. Truthfully, all that was coming to mind was how Skoll often spoke to anyone with a sharp tongue.

"Are you lost or something?" the interrogation continued. Niles' jaw began to quiver. "I could point you in the right way if I can get a description or name, something, anything." Again, the lad shook his head. He didn't want to go home, he didn't want to face them all again or even be within a couple miles' radius of that old willow tree with the scratch marks on the trunk where his parents had taken their last breaths.

"Ca-an't go home," he rasped, dragging his tongue down the front of his nose with a small whimper. "Not welcome." He could have left it at that, but even if he didn't want to seem rude, he tacked on a pathetic farewell as if just saying such a thing would excuse him from the stranger's presence, "I-I'll go now."

forever lost in time's currents

we can say goodbye, just head home, but if we're going to be alone
Chimera is currently traveling with Niles and may hop into this IC thread!

Bright eyes watched with pleasure as his instructions were followed. He watched as the awkward boy stumbled back a bit with the force of his rising. Everything was going smoothly until the words fell from his mouth. A stutter about not going home. Deacon felt that some days but he was sure that everyone would welcome him with open arms if he ditched Azar and headed that way. He was at a loss for words. The kid went on to say he wasn't welcomed before trying to dismiss himself.

"Stay." He said in a more hardened tone. "I don't want you to leave yet." Deacon stated that like it would change the mind of this boney boy. "I mean, you can't leave yet." He ordered a bit firmer like his mother or father might have ordered out duties. While the dark male was hoping he wouldn't have to get physical he was more than ready to literally wrangle information out of this wolf.

He swallowed a lump in his throat before his brows furrowed. "Can I know your name? You never told me and I'm looking for someone so it might actually be helpful of you to share.." The yearling before Deacon did not resemble Jynx in any way but the young boy didn't know that. Perhaps if he could convince the klutzy stranger to cough up a few more words he could figure out what to do with him. "If you tell me yours I'll tell you mine, okay?" He tossed out the bait with hopes it'd be latched onto.

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NILES ARCHER LYALL

More words that were commands: "Stay... don't leave yet... can't leave yet..." Niles leaned back and away, poised as though he were ready to make a run for it at any moment. He stayed. No one ever thought Niles as a bad boy, mischievous perhaps once upon a time, but never disobedient. He would do as he was told.

The other man's brows wrinkled and the yearling relaxed his own face, his brows lifting up instead as if he were awaiting some grand verdict. Another question, another reason, and it only spoke to Niles just enough. The tone seemed genuine here, and all too soon he almost wanted to assume he might've been looking for @Castel. His heart wrenched in his chest. He suddenly didn't want to share her if that was the case.

"If you tell me yours I'll tell you mine, okay?" This could have been a bribe or an actual deal to be made. As an Archer-Lyall, he knew better than to be modest when it came to bloodlines. Now that it was clear that he wasn't to be expected home anytime soon, Niles reasoned with himself in his head that he held no power here; and, what harm could it have done if he gave out his name? He had been an heir just some months ago, and now he would inherit nothing. Without his parents to ensure he - or his sister Ravenna - took charge of Willow Ridge, there was no way to be sure that he was a little lord any longer. Maybe he was like Skoll now, just some pitiful lost cause.

"N-Niles," he sputtered, speaking slowly as not to have his maturing voice box mess up the only valuable thing he had left. "Niles. Archer. Lyall." With his teeth clasping together with a soft click, he looked now to the brute, wondering if he, too, would share his own name.

forever lost in time's currents

we can say goodbye, just head home, but if we're going to be alone
Chimera is currently traveling with Niles and may hop into this IC thread!

Deacon
I know I never used to feel like this
I used to never think of death or hear voices

:cc

Everything felt in order for a moment. The way his instructions were followed made Deacon feel important and powerful. The young boy didn't try to run off but he seemed positioned in case he needed to. The older male assumed that was better than nothing. Each moment he was either getting closer or further away from getting what he wanted. It was like running through a thick forest unsure of what would be waiting past each branch.

"N-Niles,"

No. He refused to hear it.

"Niles. Archer. Lyall."

Each name was like those metaphorical branches slapped him in the face. Over and over. He was unable to duck and guard himself against the stinging pain they brought forth. "No no no." He suddenly had lost that power and control he had only minutes okay. "You took him from me, from our mother, from everyone." He cried out. "Where is he? Is he close? He has to be." Deacon had not expected to crack like this. He had expected to be strong and face Niles with teeth and claws. Instead, he was folding in on himself like an old house. There was a lump that kept building in his throat. He felt hopeless. He felt as though he was being held underwater and could do nothing but stay there and hope he'd be set free soon. But there was never a full breath entering his lungs. He didn't realize it but his breathing had become short and quick. "Tell me." He hissed with a lowered tone. Why wasn't the aging father here? He couldn't be out there alone. What had happened and why was Niles saying he wasn't allowed home? What happened?

It was lick something in his brain caught fire and Deacon couldn't control himself. "WHY IS HE OUT THERE ALONE? WHY AREN'T YOU HOME? DO YOU EVEN CARE?" He roared at the skeleton of his brother. His hackles raised like his voice had. Deacon didn't even think how he likely wasn't even leaving much room for the boy to speak. But Niles had been selfish by leaving with father, so it was only fair for Deacon to be selfish with his words and feelings. Wasn't it?

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