Gimme Shelter

Dorian's ears flicked back as he listened to Haydeé's call for him, blinking his gaze back into focus as he was pulled back to the present. He looked around a bit and then back down at the lamb's ear plant that was sitting in front of him. He had been tending to the garden, removing some plants that had begun to dry out and replacing them with some freshly sprouted cuttings when he reached a lamb's ear plant. As he felt over the fuzzy, soft leaves he was pulled back to the memory of the lessons he had gotten from his father just shortly before his death. He sat there and replayed the memory in his head several times without realizing just how long the memory had kept him there. He liked to think that by tending to the garden and keeping these memories and lessons he had gotten from his father it would help to keep him close, but that absence and the void it had left in his life still felt so wide and insurmountable.

Shaking his head to clear it, he quickly got up and trotted off toward the falls to find Haydeé. As he got close he realized that his mother's scent was also strong and fresh, intermingled with Haydeé's so he assumed they were together. However, as he reached the entrance of the caves he found his sister, but their mother was nowhere to be seen. "Hey, sis," he greeted with a slight smile, dipping his head down to press his nose briefly to her cheek. "I thought Mom wa-" Right in the middle of his questioning a wailing cry echoed from the tunnels and his hackles immediately stood on end, his emerald gaze darting up toward the tunnel entrance. It was recognizably their mother's voice and immediately he bounded off toward the tunnel. She hadn't gone far so it only took a moment to find her curled up in the tunnel. He had admittedly been keeping his distance from everyone since their father was killed so this was the first time he had really looked at her since the one day she had sought him out and guilt twisted at his gut when he saw the state she had deteriorated to.

"Mom, we're here," he told her softly as he lowered himself to the ground beside her, taking her paw in his own and forcing her gaze to meet his. "Breathe with me, okay? Slow breaths," he instructed her before taking in long, even breaths and letting them out just as slowly while making sure she did the same. The look in her eyes was more lost and manic than it had even been the day that a tiger had attacked Haydeé and already he was trying to recall any of the herbs that he had learned so far that could help her calm down and relax. Her physical state needed a lot of help as well, but they could only take one thing at a time. Once he was sure he had his mother's attention and had her at least slightly more calm, he glanced over to Haydeé and said quietly, "Help me get her back to bed," before getting to his paws and gently nudging their mom's shoulder to do the same. "Come on, mom. You can't be comfortable here."

"Dorian"