The raid had been hard fought and, while Calico Jack had refused to injure the little winged boy, the look of utter contempt Gilgamesh had sent his way had not been missed. He knows he has fucked up, been remiss in his duties to Gil and the pack while he struggled to understand his relationship with Rivin. Still, he refuses to run away and hide from his problems so, instead, he seeks to meet them head on.

It is mid-morning when he seeks out a quiet place underneath a palm tree on the beach. The young man settles himself lightly on the sand while his gaze automatically moves out over the ocean. Taking a deep breath, Jack tilts his head back and calls for his King, weaving in a note of importance while also making it clear that there is no rush. Once that is done, he lowers his head and lets his gaze drift out over the rolling waves, seeking answers from them that they cannot give.


"Calico Jack"

Gil would not leave Jack waiting. As disappointed as he is in the boy, he won't ignore him. He would rather address the issue instead of allowing it to fester within the boy. After all, he thought himself as much as father figure to the boy as the boy thought of himself as a son. Moving from the isle's main building across the courtyard and over the sandy dune, he notices Jack sitting beneath a shady palm tree. Relieved that the boy had chosen a cooler area of the beach since the sun had chosen to be ridiculously hot that afternoon.

With no hurry in his steps, he finally makes it to Jack, no word or noise to alert his presence. Instead, Gil sits beside him and stares out at the water that laps along the shoreline. Silence stretches between them for a few minutes, Gil musing how he wanted to go about this conversation. Should he mean? Angry? No, he didn't have the energy for that. Upset? Maybe sure, but perhaps a fatherly route was the best way to go about it.

"Jack, I believe I know why you called for me," Gil starts out, leaning back slightly to rest his back against the palm they sit beneath. "I said my piece at the meeting, you know how I feel. Now, I would like to know why. Why did you choose to not fight in the middle of a raid?" His eyes finally turn to Jack, questioning and expecting an answer. There was no avoiding him now.

"speech"

The waves roll across the sand, spilling their frothy heads onto the beach before retreating back out. Emotions follow the same rhythm within the calico young man, shame slamming into him before retreating to be replaced with sorrow; each and every emotion taking their turns as he waits for the only father figure in his life to show up. He had never known his father and the King had filled that void in his life. The decision to walk away with Rivin has been eating Jack alive since the meeting and he needs to see the man one last time to say his goodbyes properly… and to apologize for being such a horrible Raider.

Thankfully, the King doesn’t leave him waiting long and Jack is pulled from his chaotic thoughts by the soft sound of paw steps on the sand. Icy blue eyes track over to where Gil approaches, a smile being to bloom across his lips only to wither and fall into a frown at the offered words. Shoulders hunch inward as shame flickers across his face, the defeat he had felt at the meeting begins to surface once more. For a moment, their gazes met but the younger man quickly diverts his eyes down to his paws, too ashamed to look at the only man he ever considered as his father.

Silence stretches between them, thinning as the moments tick by until Jack’s voice thick with bitterness and filled remorse, bites out, “It doesn’t matter anymore. I made my choice and I have to stick by it. If I had known that all this would happen…” Head shakes as tears threaten to fill his eyes again but he stubbornly pushes them away, not wanting his father to have any more reasons to be disappointed in him as he adds, “But, if you must know, I was worried about breaking a wing or injuring the small wolf horribly.”

Ears slick back as his frame becomes taut with tension, every muscle screaming his humiliation out to the world as he speaks of his grave offense. Softly, Jack continues on, his voice shifting into a deep sorrow-filled tone as he says, “I just… I needed to thank you, Gil. You have been like a father to me and… and I am sorry I was such a disappointment. I know you have your own family to worry about but it always meant so much to me that you kept an eye on me and… you helped me… a lot.”

The tears are back, swirling in his vision but he refuses to let them fall, knowing that this whole damn situation is his fault. Jack knows that, if he stops now, he will never be able to get all the words that need to be said out, so a rush of words follows, “I know I wasn’t a good Advocate or even Raider and I wanted to apologize for that too. Rivin and I started dating a couple seasons ago and I got distracted by the fun we were having. I know that isn’t a good excuse but it is the truth. And that raid fight seems to have exposed a fatal flaw of mine and that hurts so much. If I had just treated it like any other fight we wouldn’t be here right now… I wouldn’t have to be leaving but…”

Shoulders lift and slump as his icy gaze lifts but does not move to look at Gil and instead moves out to look over the rolling waves as a bittersweet sigh falls from his lips, “I am going to miss this, Gil. It is the only life I have ever known and to now understand that I am not worthy of holding the mantle of a Raider hurts more than any wound. I would still like to visit and please, don’t hold Rivin’s actions against her. That is my fault too. She needs you, Gil. She… needs you more than me. Not that she would tell you that herself.” A soft, humorless laugh fills the air between them and he finally turns his icy gaze, swimming with unshed tears, back to Gilgamesh as a lopsided grin filled with pain finds its way to his lips, “I’m sorry for everything.”


"Calico Jack"

Gil mulls over the words of Jack, a small nod of his head confirming that he's listening. At the core of it, Gil is tired. His words had been made clear more than once and yet, there were still some members of the pack that didn't quite understand. Which ultimately, wouldn't matter. Gil was not like some leaders and did not force anyone to stay. If ideals no longer aligned, he would more than open the door for someone. If they wanted to be back, he would allow them back, but his eye would forever linger on every decision. That much would be so for Jack because well, the trust was no longer there for Gil.

"It appears than that you have not had proper training. Perhaps that is my fault for not helping," he pauses, his tone level and stiff. "I started that raid informing everyone to not maim, not take it so seriously, but that did not mean play nice and give hugs," there is a rumble in his chest that he can't hide. "To me, that is seen as traitorous. You must have confidence in yourself that you can face any foe, no matter who they are. But throwing your fight? Purposefully? I will not forgive that," Gil keeps his tone level as he continues, but the hurt and distrust is obvious in his eyes.

"We were supposed to go into that raid simply to acquire resources. Not to kill or maim or hug our enemies. The fact that several of you didn't heed my words correctly is disrespectful and disappointing. You have led a raid before and were more than sufficient, but now? What? Because you have your dick stuck in a girl, you suddenly forgot how to fight? How can I reward you for stupid mistakes?" Gils brow furrows, a sigh leaving him as he gives his head a shake. Yes, he knew what it felt like to be in love, Modesty was proof of that, but he had never allowed it to cloud his judgment. Well, at least when it came to raiding.

"I know more than I let on and it is foolish for anyone to believe otherwise. What I make myself appear as on the outside is merely a show. I am a much different man on the inside and for various reasons. You and many others have underestimated me Jack and it will not be happening again. You are always welcome to be a Raider, but the rules will always apply, even to my own children," Gil finally turns to look at Jack, noticing the tears swirling in the boy's eyes and the lopsided grin that reveals more than what the boy probably thinks it does.

"speech"

Gil speaks and Jack quietly listens, knowing that he no longer has the man’s trust in anything that he does. It hurts the young man, to his very core, that one fight has stripped away all the good that he had done and because of that one fight, he is now nothing. Shoulders are squared as he takes in everything that the King says, eyes distant as he carefully pulls in all the information that is leveled at him. Features try to remain neutral but the level tone and hurt and distrust that he finds in his King’s eyes stab at his heart and wound his soul.

Still Calico Jack listens, each word impacting him like a physical slap across the face but he holds strong, knowing that this is a conversation that has to happen. Then, the King blames him for being stupid because he his dick stuck in a girl heat rushes up to flood his face as embarrassment pulls at his features. Anger boils in his gaze as he breaks eye contact, not at the King but at himself for all that has happened. He is unable to look at Gil because he knows that the King absolutely correct and, when the words finally stop and the young man’s lips twitch as he looks at his paws, mulling over the ultimatum that had been laid out before him.

One fight has officially stripped away all of his old life and Jack sees two ways that this can go; he can either admit defeat and leave or raise from the ashes and build a something better. Slowly, he speaks, starting off by admitting his short-comings, “I have always tried to the best I could with what I was given and I do not regret a second of it. But, you’re right Gil, I relaxed, became complacent in my work because I felt safe and fell in love. But, that is not who I am. I am a hard worker, willing to go the extra mile to see that any task gets done. While I failed you as an Advisor, I will show you how worthy a raider I am.”

Determination flashes in his icy gaze as he once more meets Gilgamesh’s gaze, steel entering his voice and eyes as he talks. Yes, he had fallen short but the young man is determined not to let that moment be what defines him. Silently, Calico Jack vows to earn back the trust he lost with that fight… no matter what stands in his way.



"Calico Jack"

Even if he wasn't the best wolf out there, he still tried. Being a decent father had probably been the only good thing he'd ever wanted in his life. Jack wasn't his blood child either and yet, here he was, hoping the best for the boy. Was it so bad? For him to want to be there for the kid even during his darkest times? Because he can see it in Jack's eyes. He can see that same determination that he had when he was younger. One day, Jack would be something great, someone worth talking about, but for now? The boy still had so much growing to do.

"I look forward to it," Gil gives him a grin before leaning over to bump his shoulder against Jack's. As he leans back over, he lets out a sigh and glances around. "You'd think by now, we would have booze stashed in every corner," he lets out a quiet chuckle as he rises to his paws and takes a few steps away. Shaking out his fur, he glances back at Jack one more time. "Don't ever give up, okay kid?" Gil says, one last smile before he turns and walks down the beach.

- exit Gil -

"speech"