Nightingale Palisade ranger of the Dunedain

April 9th; Afternoon; Broken Clouds; 37.4 ° F, 3 ° C.

Anwen was gone and, now, so was Dad. Dad. The ever-present force that was lingered in the Fields, the sense of security that blanketed over him and Griffin every night, the Guardian at the borders, the stubborn voice in any (overheard) conversation that refused to be swayed... Chimera wasn't sure what to think. He had never seen death; for one reason or another, he had initially thought that wolves simply went away when it was time for them to go.

Flashbacks of Drestig, den-bound and lethargic, plagued his mind. It was a bizarre thing to just imagine his father not breathing or laying so still that he could have been sleeping, then realize that he would never wake.

For once, the sanctuary in his mind was not enough. To simply step under the pelt that was The Red Hound's hide still meant that the pain could find him there, deep in his chest. For ages, The Red Hound traveled alone, essentially having no one but Neko, the Black Cat, as a blue-moon sort of companion. But, even then, he traveled alone. Chimera now understood how the solitude and loneliness felt without having to pretend.

He forced his paws to keep walking, starting from the edges of the growing Fields and down into the rolling hills that made up the Palisade. If someone could have stopped him, they might have if they paid attention, but the youth kept to himself and ultimately shrugged off anything that would have kept him from moving. He was going to see just how far he could go today until the need to return home screamed at him to turn back.

Hope it's alright that I jump in here. <3

Her whole body felt like it was being crushed by some extraterrestrial force. After all the loss, the Rye Queen could manage losing her subordinates - who seemed to simply come and go as they pleased - even after they pledged their loyalty to the Field's cause. Drestig. Well, his case was different. He was the love of her life, her equal, the father of her children, and the one thing that made sense in her life in a very long time. Now, even after his death, where she felt like everything shouldn't have made sense, Jessie forced it to. The pepper-and-salt colored woman had a pack and children she needed to take care of - both of which she had neglected since her mate's death. When she had come upon Chimera's scent leading out of the borders that day, she had meant to give him space, just as she had needed her own, but something else had forced her on its own track. And so, she followed his trail. After all, just how much was too much space? One child already did not want to see her, at least, that's what it seemed like. Percy had been in the lore for quite some time and still made no effort to seek her out - to make a connection even though Jessie had ensured that all of their rescources had been used in order to find their missing child when she had gone missing so long ago. Unknowing to her, these thoughts only made Jessie push harder to her ultimate destination, frustrated with herself. The last thing she wanted to do was fail her second litter. She let out a bark when her son's form came into view, her ears folding against her head as she approached. Other than a soft utter of his name and a gentle butt of her nose against his cheek in greeting, she did not know what to say.

foxstox @DA & Dawnthieves.de

"Chimera," he hadn't known just how far she had been trailing him for or just how she had known of his agenda, but the simple pronunciation of his name by his mother made him stop in his tracks. Her touch was quick to cement his paws to the ground. His shoulders slumped forward and his elbows and knees bent. Another attempt to leave foiled. His inner self grumbled at him, but the cub within cried out to her.

"Mom," he whispered, his own ears folding back as he turned to face her. Their eyes met; he had been as tall as her for some time but it was only now that he realized it - and the fact that she seemed to look so small now that Dad was gone.

we can be blue as a neon light, singing them sad love songs all night
Niles is currently traveling with Chimera and may hop into this IC thread!

She felt small too. Jessie knew that she had the pack at her back and they loved her just as she appreciated and loved them, but it did not take away from the fact that her equal was no longer standing by her side. With Drestig here, everything just seemed to make sense again, especially after Hotei's death. Now, it just seemed like a large puzzle that she certainly couldn't solve on her own, as much as she would have liked to. Chimera's yellow gaze was all it took to ground her, remind her of why she had come out here in the first place. His voice, just as she felt, sounded so small. All she wanted to do was reach out and embrace him, but she settled for a soft caress of his cheek. The Rye mother had never been one to initiate physical contact so freely but she loved her children and she wanted them to be happy. Her rough facade had been broken by what she felt like was he failure. Her lip trembled as she spoke, "I'm so sorry, Kasai." In this apology, she felt like she was apologizing for a million things.

foxstox @DA & Dawnthieves.de

"I'm so sorry, Kasai."

It should have been enough. Even being acknowledged by his other name couldn't render her apology into something that soothed his wounds and made him feel like he was cradled close, safe and sound. Her touch, though, got to him. He let out a small whimper for a lack of words to say. The silence rushed in between them. For a time, he embraced it, but almost as soon as he had become comfortable, he was uneasy. The pressure built in his chest, inching up his throat and burning up his nostrils. He sniffed.

"It isn't fair," he breathed, slightly leaning into her.

As much as he had wanted her to let him go, to let him chase Anwen off into the wilderness, never to return, he suddenly didn't want her to. He wanted her to latch onto him and drag him down, down into her depths, so that maybe - just maybe - he would drown too... then, they would resurface together. Two were better than one.

"What do we do?"

we can be blue as a neon light, singing them sad love songs all night
Niles is currently traveling with Chimera and may hop into this IC thread!

While she was in pain, nothing hurt more than her children in pain. Emerald eyes shut tight in the embrace, desperately wanting to take away Kasai's pain. Anything to lessen the suffering that he was feeling. When he spoke, Jessie felt a twinge in her heart. No, she wanted to say, none of what happened was fair. Drestig was taken too early. He was the one that was suppose to live on out of the Rye founding couple. The woman caressed the back of his neck, in what she hoped was a comforting manner. When he spoke again, she felt cold on the inside. This was part about what being a mother and eader was about: promoting and keeping hope alive when everything felt like it was falling apart. The woman pulled away so that she could look her child in the eye, "We fight for one another, love one another, and we stick together, because that's what's important. We take care of one another because family is forever and one of the most treasured things you'll have in your life." Emerald eyes sparkled with what could have been passion or a slight mist in her eye. Her children, foremost, and her pack were the most important things in her life - her family. And it was now her responsibility to take care of these wolves with her life.

foxstox @DA & Dawnthieves.de

(This post was last modified: Jun 19, 2018, 05:33 PM by Jessie.)