Sex: FemaleI’m Done Putting Out The Fires You Start
There was so much going on. There was too much going on and Marrah had questions. She had more questions than she knew what to do with and frankly it was wearing her young little heart and mind thin. This was also the first time the child was realizing the she could not always rely on the adults in her life that she had previously always thought of solid.
What a hard time her life to realize all the adults were just people trying to figure everything out, just like her.
Marrah wanted to talk to Adelard, he was one of the only adults who had never wavered. Him and Auntie Woya were always there when she needed them, and she had already talked to Auntie Woya recently and that had been, well that had certainly been hadn’t it. The dark child followed the man’s most recent scent trail until his large dark form came into view, and then she hesitated.
She chewed on her cheek for a second, and then took a deep breath, ”Adelard?” Her voice was meek. She did not really know what she was going to say to him, but she needed to say something.
When The Cranberry Vodkas Hit A Little Too Hard
Since his chance encounter with Rhaegara and meeting with Woya, Adelard had been busy. If he was not minding the borders, he was keeping tabs on everyone while tracing their daytime trails. Tonight, he had started his usual midnight patrol early.
He was approaching the part of his beat that preceded the stretch of land where Riven had been taken. His head had been so preoccupied with remembering Woya's gifts that he did not even hear the youth breathe in.
"Adelard?"
His ears rose and he whipped around to see her. Marrah. His round eyes were quick to study her, a paternal and instinctive need to ensure her well-being. "Marrah," he greeted her in kind. His endearing nickname of Little Shadow barely fit her anymore. They were about the same height now. While her voice had been timid, he was quick to notice the way she hung back and away from him. He reoriented himself to face her full-on, his own lumbering frame lax and at ease, "Is something wrong?"
ADELARD GERAU
black smoke, I take it higher
I’m Done Putting Out The Fires You Start
From far away when Marrah watched Adelard turn she suddenly realized that they were almost the same size. When had that happened? In her head he was always so much bigger than her, so strong and sturdy, and grown. Little did she know that by the time she was fully grown she would actually stand a couple inches taller than the man she had come to accept as a father figure in her life.
When his gold eyes met her ambers, Marrah dropped them to the ground, her ears flicking backwards against her skull. She wished she had not sought him out all of a sudden, the Maceio-Tainn girl realizing she didn’t think she was ready to have this conversation afterall. But, it was too late for that, and she didn’t want to pretend that everything was okay with her.
Looking back up, her expression betrayed her age, even if her physicality spoke of an older wolf. Marrah was a young soul, even by pup standards, and that made all of this seem even harder. Realizing she had let the silence go on too long she spoke quietly, ”You’re not… um, you’re going to stay right? You’re not going to leave too?” All she could think of was how small the woods had seemed from up on the mountain, how the world went on forever. If Adelard left after her father she never met, and her brother, and her mother… the list of people gone would almost outnumber those who she loved who stayed.
When The Cranberry Vodkas Hit A Little Too Hard
Though his whiskered brows touched, he did not speak. Paternal patience became a prominent feat the moment she spoke again.
"You’re not…" she faltered for a second. Adelard tried not to jump to conclusions. "Um, you’re going to stay right? You’re not going to leave too?”
Relief washed over him like a breeze across a rolling grassy meadow. Oh, dear one. A branch might as well have pierced his heart; his ears fell and his tail gave a low, sweeping wag. "Oh, Marrah," he murmured, coming forward to touch the front of his muzzle to her temple. An attempt of an assuring 'kiss' of sorts. "I would never leave you."
He drew back to look over her dark face, "Is that all that's brought you out this way?"
ADELARD GERAU
black smoke, I take it higher
I’m Done Putting Out The Fires You Start
The Maceio-Tainn pup could hardly meet the older man’s eyes as he moved forward, and she chewed furiously on her cheek. She had no idea what had overcome her to think that she should seek him out and have this conversation. It was so out of character for her to be so confrontational. His words were like the sweetest birdsong, he would never leave, but how much could she trust that? She had never thought any of the others would leave either.
Leaning into his embrace for a moment Marrah squeezed her eyes shut. She wanted to go back in time, or at least freeze everything the way it was right now. She did not think that she could handle anymore change - and she had no idea what was coming her way in a few short months. When he pulled away the girl cautiously opened her eyes, looking back up at Adelard.
Her expression was earnest, the look of a child, but her eyes displayed a level of sorrow and hurt that was well beyond her years. Finally she released the now raw inside of her cheek she murmured, ”It’s just….I don’t think any of them are ever going to come back.” She took a shaky breath, ”I think they’re all gone forever, Hudson, Aweho, now my mom. Why are they all leaving? Is it me?” Really what else could she assume? She was not even a teen yet and the only family she had left was her brother and her aunt, everyone else had willingly left them behind.
When The Cranberry Vodkas Hit A Little Too Hard
His heart shattered then. Every paternal instinct within him turned live. He would have traded everything he physically possessed for Marrah's protection. Anything to instill in her a sense of security. Stability. Safety.
"I will tell you one thing," he stated, wanting to meet her own fire-glow eyes now. "It is not your fault. Their leaving is on them. Do you understand?" His voice, though gravelly and austere, craved her comprehension. The zeal in his tone could have been hard to hear, but Adelard wanted more than anything for Marrah to know she was loved. So very loved.
"Hudson, Aweho... and your mother," he fought to suppress the sigh in his lungs and lost. It felt like it had been ages since he had even uttered their names. "They were called away." It was easiest to explain it this way. The wanderlust. The itchiness in the limbs or the sorrow of the heart.
A bittersweet smile, "It happens sometimes. Out there, in the world beyond all this... sometimes there exists something or someone that calls to you. We wolves were not meant to stay in one place. It's how I came here, then I found you." His smile grew to touch his eyes, Maybe one day, you'll hear your calling, but..." A small pause, hoping he hadn't overwhelmed her in her unease, "For now, Aunt Woya and I are here for you."
ADELARD GERAU
black smoke, I take it higher
I’m Done Putting Out The Fires You Start
Marrah’s amber eyes were misty with tears when she met the man’s gaze, and she swallowed a thick lump in her throat as he continued to speak. She wanted so desperately to believe everything that he was saying to her but the tiny voice in the back of her head was growing louder everyday. Still, she did what was expected of her and nodded sagely when asked if she understood what Adelard was saying. She didn’t want to disappoint him.
The cheek chewing resumed as he continued to speak about a calling that had taken everyone away. It was supposed to be comforting, but instead it only filled her small heart with dread. Panic was clear in her expression, ”But what if you and Auntie Woya get called away again? If it’s happened before…” Marrah trailed off, implication clear. She didn’t want to be called away into the wilderness, and she definitely did not want anyone else to be called away.
For a life so short, she had lost so much. And there was no way any of them knew what the spring would bring them, how much worse things would become.
When The Cranberry Vodkas Hit A Little Too Hard
"It may happen again," he had the audacity to finish her sentence. "But, Marrah..." This time he found his voice caught within a tide of thoughts. He could only give her a wistful smile.
This pack was meant to be led by the Macieo-Tainns. Marrah and her siblings were meant to be reared by both of her parents - and, yet, here was Adelard Gerau.
"Marrah," he tried again. "I need you to trust." His voice was low but steady. History, he knew, repeated itself, but there was no comfort to be had in that realization. "Trust that things will work out for the best." Like a furnace, the heat began to build in his chest. The longing and desperation. "I'm going to tell you a secret and I hope it will bring you some assurance." The corners of his lips pulled up but all that did was straighten into a hard line, "I would die first before this world separates me from you." He searched her face for any sign of affirmation for what he was saying. Someone had to say it. If not Huddy, if not Saga... It was him. The man who had always been there when their little pack could barely stabilize itself. "I want you to know that I'll always be here. I will it." For the family he had left behind, he vowed to be present for this one. "You can have me for as long as you need me."
ADELARD GERAU
black smoke, I take it higher
I’m Done Putting Out The Fires You Start
When Adelard confirmed what she had implied, a loud sob worked its way out of her mouth and her eyes filled with tears. He may get called away again. How was she supposed to go about her life knowing that at any moment the ones she cared about were potentially only minutes away from being swept away by some unknown calling. She did her best to listen to him as he asked her to trust, but salty tears were already flowing freely down her cheeks.
She took a couple of deep breaths and tried to think of a response. He would rather die than leave her all alone, but she didn’t want him to die either, that was so much worse. None of this was giving her the comfort that she had been looking for when she sought out the leader that day. She choked out a garbled, ”Okay.” She wanted to say more but she just couldn’t, so she followed up with a, ”Okay, bye.” Then she turned and high tailed it out of there, running so fast that everything blurred against the moisture in her eyes. Instead of putting her world back together it just felt like it was falling apart even worse.
When The Cranberry Vodkas Hit A Little Too Hard
As abrupt as it was, Adelard let loose the breath he had been holding. He had made her cry. Nothing had been as soothing as he had hoped. It wasn't enough. Furthermore, it was distressing...
A forlorn gaze went to the place Marrah had been only seconds ago. He grimaced to himself and clicked his tongue against his teeth in regret. As a stand-in father, he knew now that he had failed Saga's brood. If Aweho had gone, it was only a matter of time when his siblings were next... most especially after their parents had left.
The Leader took a slow step forward. He could have run after her but chose not to. Adolescents needed their space; and, after all Marrah had seen thus far in her left, he knew she longed for it now. A low howl was offered to the trees above. Just a simple three-note song to ask the Fates to look after Marrah. Adelard Gerau, against his own will and promise, had lost her.
ADELARD GERAU
black smoke, I take it higher