Before The Morning
07-02-2013, 06:36 PM
~*~ The fae came like a ghost out of the earliest shreds of dawn. Her pelt made to complete the illusion, and a out of the blue tinted half light came the glow of one gold-green ember. Long she had waited just outside the border, fighting with herself, trying to decide if it was the right thing to visit the wolves that held so much of her life within their memories. There were fewer of them there now, after all the moves and all the years... mainly there was just Cairo. But oh, that one name was a story in and of itself. So much of her beginning, of her character was wrapped up with his, in some of the best of times, and some of the worst. She hadn't seen him in years, but, all that had passed between them? It wasn't something a girl could just forget. Perhaps that was why, when she heard the faint traces of the wounded howl tugging at the wind, all her indecision vanished. She was running past the border before her consciousness even recognized that that howl had indeed been Cairo's. Without hesitation the old she-wolf sprinted through the trees and fields. Ten years old, one eye and a game fore-leg and she could still run like heck. Just the other week she'd been in Seracia and helped them bring down a wolf-murdering bull. She was far from the invisible force she'd once been, but Crusade was still Crusade, old age or no. But she knew that not all wolves had her genetics and luck. Cairo was old now, very old, heaven forbid he'd gotten himself into some sort of trouble now in his twilight years. And damned if Crusade was going to let him face it on his own. There was a time, once, when she'd stood straight and tall at his side. She'd been his Commander, trained his troops, cared for his pack members, and fought shoulder to shoulder against the dark monster that had plagued the pack then known as Starlite. She'd kept herself away from the Valhallan borders, from Cairo, for so long. She had a mate now, Cifer, and she finally had kids of her own. Her life had turned out very different from the dreams she'd had went she met the dashing blue eyed Alpha on that wintry border so many years ago. But she realized something now; no matter how much bad water was under the bridge, no matter how many years had danced by... she would still come when he called. If she heard he needed help she'd be there. But when she reached the source of the sound, her paws slid to a stop in the melded shadows of the trees. She saw the multicolored shapes of other wolves, and she knew that, with how far she'd trespassed she ought to have been worried, but no, she wasn't. What held her back was the sight of what lay in the middle of the gathered wolves. It was Cairo... Cairo was dead. Crusade swallowed. She'd lost many wolves; friends, pack mates, a mother, a daughter, a mate - with the kind of life she lead, she knew a thing or two about heart ache and mourning. But each new loss brought it's own brand of pain. And this one? This one was so sad it was bittersweet. All that was... All that could have been... All gone. And Crusade hadn't even been there to see his last breath. The old she-wolf, after a long minute, slowly unfroze and let a breath escape from her maw. It was only then that she realized her muzzle was trembling, and she stilled it by sheer will. A single tear, from her remaining eye, pooled and then sunk down into her ivory cheek fur. She dipped her head low, she closed her eyes, and then, after a moment, she lifted her skull to the sky ... and before she let her presence interrupt anything, she turned away and vanished once more into the haze that came before the dawn. Only when she came to the border again did she let her steps falter and pause. Another shakey breath pulled itself from her lungs. She couldn't have spoke there, even if the fact that she'd been trespassing was off the table, she never could've put voice to such personal thoughts in the presence of others. This was something between herself and the Alpha who hadn't wanted her to call him 'Alpha'. "Hey..." she breathed, glancing upwards. "You're a soul now, right? A wolf spirit floating around up there, probably getting ready to head off towards the happy hunting grounds - this is - if you're lucky." She swallowed. "You weren't supposed to go without saying goodbye you know. I keep feeling like... like there's something missing. There was more we were supposed to say. Well, I guess I'll say my part then." She blinked back another tear "You were an idiot. A two-timing, crown-happy, warlord who made years go by before he'd give up a grudge... and you were probably the best wolf I've ever known. Strong, deep, a fighter through and through. That same stubborn streak that I hated, I also loved. It kept you from ever giving up on those that hurt the ones in your care. You were the most powerful lupine I've ever met, and I've met plenty." The old fae straightened herself up as the dawn started staining the clouds. " And in the end ... I still loved you. I knew your best and your worst, and my piece of my heart was yours no matter what. But you know me, " a weak, bittersweet chuckle drew itself out into the mists, "I was an idiot too." Crusade swallowed hard, but nothing seemed to get past the lump in her throat. Didn't matter now, she was done. Letting her head hang in the shadow of her shoulders, she strode across the border and back into no-man's land. --EXIT-- IS THE ONLY HOPE YOU'VE EVER KNOWN |
Current time: 11-22-2024, 02:44 PM
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