Sorrel never coped incredibly well in a pack environment at the best of times though a mourning one troubled him even more than usual. He was sad as well of course, his grandparents had died even as distant as he had kept himself from the pair he could still feel there was a loss and it had hit the family hard. Perhaps that now was the real reason he sought to get out, not to escape the sadness exactly but simply to escape.
For once Ellingham had gotten the idea as well, the owl had gone off flying elsewhere. Sorrel wasn't entirely convinced his companion had left him entirely, was likely still somewhere in earshot but for now he at least felt alone. Those he liked the quiet, the wolf didn't often travel far and although he paid no real attention to where exactly he was heading, he just continued to walk now. He had no real reason to be out now, sure there were probably some sort of plants he could be gathering though healing wasn't even on his mind right now, he just tried to clear it.
Hecate was getting some rest in a small pigeonhole that she had found the night prior as the delirium from being up too long had started to set in. Her slumber was far from peaceful but it was quite normal for her. Her nightmares seeped into her mind as flashbacks of her early life started to set in. Subconsciously she was whimpering and muttering things in her sleep and she moved and shifted uncomfortably. Most of her words were plagued with the disease of being inaudible but some had come to light in a slightly louder than usual tone - still more like a whisper - "I..I'm sorry.. do-don't kill him." Tears slowly seeped out of her shut eyes as they forced their way out of her tightly closed eyelids.
Her breathing was heavy and ragged. She refused to wake despite her dreams being horror filled for fear out of what would be waiting for her if she did indeed wake. Would the same nightmares haunt her waking steps just like her steps through the clouds? Jezebel whimpered a bit more as her eyes slowly drifted open. She stayed hidden in her peaceful cranny. She'd never leave it if she could help it.
Peace and quiet surrounded him, not another soul anywhere in sight and Sorrel found himself growing somewhat content, at least found that the escape plan was sort of working anyway. It was working for a precious few short moments anyway until it appeared that all suggestions of isolation were shattering away.
He heard the voice first, the soft crying out. He couldn't catch the words though the tone certainly didn't suggest a happiness of any sort. Sorrel's natural instinct told him to turn around and seek out that peace and quiet again, curiosity and perhaps that healer interest instead told him to venture forwards and see what was happening. It was a stupid plan he realised straight away, it was not like he could do anything if the other was hurt, he had no herbs, nothing at all that might help. He told his feet to stop but it was too late he'd already found himself in front of the little hole the other was occupying.
Actually no. It wasn't too late he rudely decided, now turning away without a single word though he had certainly caught a glimpse of the other wolf, and having paused and glanced inside before moving it was very possible that she had seen him too.
She watched carefully out of her nook and paid a great deal of attention to it as she tried to wipe her mind clear of the nightmares that had cursed her since the day her parents attempted to kill her when she was just a small pup. She gulped when she saw the head of a wolf and attempted to jump back in fright only to hit her back on some sharper rocks behind her. There was the slightest scent of blood and she looked to see she had poked a small hole, deep enough to draw blood, in her shoulder. She scrambled out of her nook and landed on her face and sternum before rolling to the ground. She quickly scurried to a standing position as she backed up as fast as she could and started to run in the other direction. Hints of blood trailed behind her as a few drops went flying off of her fur and onto the ground to leave a trail.
She needed a new hideout because apparently that one had not been so hidden for she had been found. Let the moon do what she does. She sternly reminded herself of a small symbol to her as she kept up her pace. She was still fairly slow given that she had just woken up so her run in fright was more like a jog at best as she woke up. The wind against her face dried the fur around her eyes.
Sorrel had expected perhaps to be ignored or for the other to attempt to call him back or say something he however did not anticipate the reaction that he found himself receiving. He heard the dull thud as she moved, crashing into the rocks behind her and would glance back with a frown in time to catch sight of her falling out of the little hole. The blur of a wolf scrambled up quickly and for a moment Sorrel feared for his own safety, was she going to attack him?
That was another wrong assumption apparently as suddenly she began to run off in the other direction. Stunned he watched her for a moment, not a particularly speedy girl he decided though the scent and sight of blood would catch his attention. Great, she was hurt and even better that was apparently somewhat his fault for startling her as he apparently had.
"Oi! If you hit your head you should be careful." He called after her, now starting to move to catch up with her. He'd suffered a nasty head injury himself once, knocking himself out and waking to find that life had been cruel enough to grant him with a bird flying around his head, and not in a cartoon manner. It hurt his head again just to think of the horrid headache he'd found himself with for days after that.
She had been foolish to think that she had gotten away from such a fearful endeavor only to glance behind her to notice that the boy was chasing after her. Adrenaline pumped through her system as she tried to run faster but the clumsy girls tripped over her own paws and landed in the snow, the crimson liquid slowly seeped out of her shoulder to stain the snow around her. The wound was near the base of her neck but not lethal. She turned to see the boy closing in on her and she began to feel trapped. Her eyes filled with fear as she did her best to kick at the snow and scramble to her paws only to fail miserably. She was a failure and she would just have to accept that fact as she most definitely reached her end. This boy was going to kill her and she had to accept that.
She muttered an ancient prayer to herself and whimpered as the wolf came closer until he was only maybe a wolf length away from her. Her whimpering refused to cease which made her utter the ancient language even more. What would he do with her? Fear spread through her as she imagined the worst.
Apparently Sorrel was bringing nothing but bad luck to the poor girl, now she would tumble once more, falling down to the ground though surprisingly she did listen to his words and actually stop. Of course it was out of fear more than anything else though he didn't realise that right away as he finally came to a stop by her side.
"It wasn't your head then." He muttered after a moment, realising the wound was actually upon her shoulder rather than where he'd initially assumed. "You're still bleeding though." He continued, mismatched eyes looking more at the wound rather than concentrating upon her trembling form. He could clean it but not much else. Before he could say or do anything else, now he would finally catch onto her mumbling, though he wouldn't have understood anyway he certainly couldn't make out the words. "What are you saying?" He questioned "I can't hear you properly."
Pain from her shoulder became more apparent as she began to block out the rest of the world. She was beginning to shut down from the events before her. She continued to mutter the words so they were audible for Sorrel to hear though she did it not in response to the boy's question but instead to the fear of death. Even the most brave of wolves feared the creature that took life after life. "Ud'dhāraka manē madada. Ud'dhāraka tamārā daravājā para manē namaskāra karavā hō'i. Ud'dhāraka manē madada. Ud'dhāraka tamārā dayā sāthē manē grēsa." Her eyes were widened as she stared at the snow in front of her and she trembled. He was examining her wound but she paid no attention as she began to panic even more.
Worthless. Stupid. Wench. The cruel insults of the past came to mind as she tried to bury her face in the snow. She was far from mentally stable but had come to accept the fact that this boy would have killed her already if he was going to kill her. He wasn't going to hurt her or he would have done it already.
Nope, the volume didn't help at all. Sorrel stared bemused at her wondering if perhaps she had hit her head after all somewhere in the jumps and tumbles and now had forgotten how to talk or something like that. Not one word made any sense at all to him and he took a step back, not entirely sure how he was going to deal with this one. If she had forgotten how to talk, would she remember anything? Oh no, had he just earned himself a patient that would need permanent care now?
Wait a minute, maybe she could talk. Maybe this was some other weird language he'd never heard of before. He knew of the existence of other languages, head in fact been taught French by his father, not that he used it very often. Perhaps she hadn't gone mad after all. He desperately hoped that was the case. "Do you speak English?"
With the realization that she was not going to be harmed just yet, she managed to climb back into reality to hear his question to her. Did she speak English? Yes... yes she did. Well, she was pretty sure. She had never called in English and instead referred the the language he had spoken to her as commontongue. "Y-ye-yes, I sp-spe-speak commontongue." The words were stuttered out in a quiet voice. Her words carried a slight northern accent as she trembled before the boy. Her breathing was ragged and unsteady but she did her best to calm herself. Her shoulder still bled though not quite heavy. Her eyes softened but she could not hide the fear. Why was she so scared of this wolf?
Sorrel was hardly a sympathetic individual, somewhat selfish at times and saw things simply from his point of view rather than considering the emotions of others entirely. For that reason he still remained blind to the fact that the poor girl was so scared and instead remained concentrated upon finding a way to communicate with her and do what he could for that shoulder so he could clear off back to his solitude. At last he had gotten through to her, some words he understood though a different terminology for the language. They both sounded the same though, that was all that mattered and they could communicate and get this all over and done with.
No sign was given in response to her answer however and instead he simply decided to continue with on with the task. He had nothing to offer for pain, if she was in a lot of pain nor did he have anything to help with the healing process. All he could do was clean it. "Hold still." He told her simply as he set to work. To be completely honest Sorrel probably would have left her to clean it herself if it wasn't in such a hard to reach place but he'd chosen to help as much as he could and so he would do what he could.
The panic within her started to settle and Hec's body started to stop trembling until it was barely noticeable. Her eyes were still wide and her teeth were gritted in order to fight back what pain was left. It wasn't terrible but it was noticable and Jezebel never took too kindly to pain. She glued her eyes shut as he moved closer and started to clean her wound. The wound still stung as she fought her natural behavior to stay still. He was just trying to help. He wasn't going to hurt her yet. He was just trying to help. He was just trying to help. She was still having issues but she managed to keep her upper body still enough for Sorrel to work. She didn't say a word but kept the ancient prayer running through her head.
Even if he had anything else to do, Sorrel probably would have continued his work in silence. The wound was cleaned now though and blood seemed to be starting to clot and it meant that there wasn't much else for him to do. Well nothing else that he would do anyway. A friendlier, more sociable healer might have offered to sit and talk, spend a little time with them but not this one.
He took a step back now, as much for himself as for his fearful patient. "There." He declared simply. "I haven't got any plants to help, but it wasn't too deep, should heal ok on its own." He was hardly the most pleasant of healers really, no introduction or small-talk, just quietly working and even now not asking how she was feeling or warning her to be more careful. In fact, the rude boy was just about ready to turn around and continue on with his walk, pausing only briefly to remember some semblance of manners. "Bye." And with that he turned away to walk once more.
He finished cleaning her wound and stated that he didn't have the right herbs to help any further. He then proceeded to say goodbye and he turned and left. She just sat there, trembling slightly as he turned away from her but she remained silent. "Bye." Her word of departure was silently to the point where it almost wasn't audible - like most of her speech. She turned and headed in the opposite direction to get away from the other wolf despite the fact that he had just helped her. She had to find a carcass to scavenge off of or perhaps a new place to sleep for her former place had been discovered.
