The Life Among The Dead

Reassurance followed from the titanic russet male that they were not interrupting, nor running behind. He briefly flashed a lopsided smile in response to the small smile that was offered up. However, when the ruddy man returned his attention to Balthier, the way his expression darkened brought a pang of anxiety to his chest, flooding his muscles with a desperate plea to flee, abandon this conversation and whatever was about to happen next. The alabaster giant stood still as the grave, feeling his mind drifting away from reality as he braced for whatever might fall from his lips next. "I'm... sorry to say that she's no longer here," he said morosely, forcing Solo to push away the scoff of disdain that threatened to burst through his jaws. Of fucking course she had abandoned them again, without a word or a care. Why should he be surprised, it wasn't like either of their parents gave a shit about their kids, really. Dark lips pulled back into a stern line, ignoring the mournful expression of an adult simply trying to lighten the blow of their mother's abandonment. Ebony and gold dipped auds tipped back irritably, tail flicking against his tall heels. The ruddy man's sigh preceded yet more painful news, but did little to ease the sharp pang of guilt and anger that arced down his legs and into his paws. "Aranea passed away... She had been pregnant and there were complications."

Hadn't Allegro mentioned something about her choosing someone else over the family but.... this? How could she have abandoned them so readily? Moved on to try and make a new family, without trying to fix things with her children in Abaven. It was a punch in the gut, and he felt sick. He was dimly aware of what was happening around him, mercury gaze fixed on something in the middle ground at the Aegis' feet. He drew in a deep breath, letting the fresh air of the warm southern continent flood his lungs and force the tightness in his chest away. He could grieve his childhood later, he needed to take care of his siblings right now. He peeled his eyes from the ground and lifted them to the Aegis' features as he spoke again. "I can take you to her grave if you'd like... And you're welcome to stay here for the night to recuperate before you go back home." the autumnal man offered softly, and Solo finally realized that this hadn't been an adult trying to console abandoned kids, but a man forced to deliver the hardest news there was. Gold marked brows pinched together as he dipped his head mutely in assent to the larger man, and then turned his attention to his siblings. Balt had leaned into Azz, muzzle buried in the thick fur of her dove grey ruff. He could hear the ragged edge to his brother's breath, but both of them were even keeled and protective enough that they would take their time to truly grieve later, once everyone else was settled and cared for. Their gazes met, and Balt's sapphire eyes flicked towards Psalm. Solo dropped his head in a soft nod of acknowledgement, and he slowly raised a massive ivory paw to cover one of Psalm's. "I'd... like that." Balt mumbled quietly, and it locked Solo in to join as well, he bobbed his head quietly in agreement. He wasn't present enough to remember that he had already nodded in agreement when Ulric had initially offered.

He recalled their father's abandonment, and the way Psalm had taken off for an entire night. They were in unfamiliar territory, and far from home. She couldn't get lost, or they might be stuck here for way longer than they should trying to find her again. When his gaze drifted to his littlest sister, Azz was staring blankly at the ground, ears pressed towards her skull and cerulean eyes glistening with tears. He felt the compulsion to comfort her, to draw her tight against his chest and let her tears stain his fur until she was ready to talk about things again. Instead, he let Balthier take the lead, and pushed his shoulder into Psalm's. He searched her pale features, ebon masked mirroring ivory. Words would only fill the space, they wouldn't fix anything. If she moved to run off, he would be forced to chase after her. He sought to walk solemnly at her side, trailing after the Aegis and their other siblings in the direction of Aranea's grave. Obsidian tipped tail would sweep across his hocks periodically, and tap lightly against her thigh as they walked. Bringing up the rear of their travels was becoming his place, and he wasn't stopping now. It didn't take long for them to arrive beneath a gnarled tree, mounds of disturbed soil slowly being reclaimed by grasses and weeds.

He settled in behind his siblings, looming over their shoulders and staring blankly at the largest grave. That was their mother in there. Alone in the end, despite how hard she'd tried to make her perfect family. No one had been good enough, and she had run out of time. Heavy skull lingered in the space between Balthier and Azzurra, while Psalm settled in alongside them all. He felt the gentle pressure of his brother's head sinking into the plush fur behind his jaw, and he pushed back into the comforting gesture with a sideways tilt of his muzzle and a low rumble in his chest. The uneven, drawn out breaths against his neck were all Solo really needed to confirm his suspicions that Balthier was just as devastated as the rest of them, despite his attempts at stoicism. As Balt pulled his head away, he spoke quietly to the siblings gathered around him. "Allegro... I saw him in a dream. He told me he had passed." he said simply, sorrow laden in his accented vocals. The ivory brute drew in a long, heavy breath through his nose. That was it, then. They were officially orphans. No parents to give a shit if they lived or died. They would have to support each other even more now, through this grief and the eventual healing that would come with time. Azzurra clung to their brother, burrowing her face in his pelt and keening softly into it. A pale paw reached up to slide gently down her back, the breadth of his massive forepaw nearly covering the width of her shoulders. "I'm sorry, Zu." he murmured solemnly.

Mercurial gaze shifted to Psalm, praying he wouldn't have to race after her if she took off again. She'd loved Allegro deeply, and the notion of his death would crush her more than anyone. By now, Solo was numb, overwhelmed by the onslaught of emotion and trauma. He would need time to unwind the tightly coiled feelings at his core, and deal with them on his own. He was here to help his siblings right now, and he would attempt to wrap Psalm up in his forelimbs and hold her close if he felt she was going to make a break for it. He didn't have anything to say about Aranea's death. What was there to say? Any chance to build a relationship from the crumbling foundations of her abandonment was out the window. Just another bad memory to add to the pile. His attention kept coming back to the tiny graves alongside hers. None of her new kids had made it, and somehow that was sadder than her death itself. Children had died before they'd been born, as collateral damage in her failed attempt to build family that was better than the one she'd abandoned. He looked away, trying to preserve any shred of affection he might have still harboured in his heart for his mother. If he focused on Psalm, on Balthier, on Azzurra, he didn't have to worry about what Aranea's death made him feel.