More than Just the Gloomies

The winter blew over the Col and the territories of the Armada like a smothering blanket.  The leaves over the woodland had long since gone, only a few dried crisp stragglers clung to their branches with strong stems.

Drifts of snow gathered between the trunks and the sky had turned into an unbearable shade of gray for days. The clouds overhead roiled above like slow ocean waves, full of froth and pregnant with precipitation. The blue sky had been hidden for some time now, casting the diffused sunlight over the territory.

Oleander had a feeling. With the new snowfall, the fresh blanket reminded him of his mother's cream white pelt, the same as his. He had a feeling it would remind someone else in particular.

Oleander sat beside the old family den, below his own since he had taken residence with his brother Wylan. This would probably be the hardest part of the job he was gunning for. He knew his father was struggling hard since his mom and the others left. For a bit it seemed he was trying but as the snow came in and the dark gloomy days became the norm... He was afraid his father would slip even further away from them.

"Dad?" He called within, a basket beside him filled with some of Wylan's honeyed treats, some new mead infused with last summer's St. John Wort, the literal happiness herb that helped to boost one's mood even from the darkest depths, and some cured meats.

"Dad it's me, Ollie. I'm coming in." He stepped inside and would lean into his father's feathery embrace, allowing himself to be hugged.

"Speech"