no love like your love

It was time to return to the garden. There had been time for the fire to die down, leaving only a few patches of smouldering ground. They could be easily avoided by cautious paws like his own. He wanted to revisit the site of the garden, and see if anything had survived the blaze. Unlikely, but he wasn't willing to give up hope on his precious creation. He was bringing Motif with him, as she had helped him with a large portion of its creation. It was as much her garden as it was his, and he was selfishly hoping she would be just as crushed by its loss as he. Then, perhaps, he could focus on consoling a child than grieving the loss of his one, meagre attempt at redemption.

He couldn't muster up the words to speak to the young girl as they headed into the heart of the once lush Thicket. Instead, he was morose as ever. That could easily be blamed on being faced with the devastation of the flames on his sanctuary. The ground was charred almost everywhere, a clear path of the flames through the territory. It didn't take long to reach the ground of their garden, marked by borders made of river stones, charred to match the earth beneath them. The waif stood stock still, blinking like a deer in the headlights. He'd known in his heart that it would be gone, but that hadn't made it any easier to be faced with the truth.

The dark pelted male sucked in a deep breath, and let it escape in a shuddering whoosh. Verdant gaze swept away from the carnage of his garden, to his young niece. He tried to gauge her reaction, recognize the emotions on her face. Though he was himself blinking away burning tears, he wanted to be sure she was not as distressed. For her sake, he wanted to be the strong one.