Heart to heart
Ever since Roza left a few days prior it had gotten Leo thinking about how much time he had spent with each of his children. He and Heather had spent quite a bit of time together recently with their discussions of her being the heir and such. He had even spoken to Lionel a bit more recently as well. He wished he had spent more time with Roza before she left, but now it was too late. Alfred though.... He didn't see much of his largest son. He caught his scent around from time to time and saw him at meetings, but he wasn't sure when the last time he had a real conversation with him. He set out to look for Alfred to remedy this with his new found determination to make sure he connected with all of his children. He still didn't quite grasp that they were grown and fully adults in their own right. He still wanted them to be the tiny pups that followed him everywhere. He followed Alfred's scent till he spotted the russet and white male's figure up ahead. He smiled and let out a bark of a greeting to get his attention as he trotted over to him. |
After confessing his feelings to Razor the other had… he’d died. Alfred had distanced himself again without meaning to after his death. He had hardly noticed that Roza was gone either… he wasn’t himself. Even Koron sensed it, and the fox gave a small whine as she tried to rouse the youth. Some days it seemed like Alfie was just on auto pilot and it was a miracle he even left the den. Or perhaps the true miracle was that he found his way back.
Koron was worried… She kept close by Alfred these days, more than usual, and feared what might happen if the young male continued down the path he was headed. It wasn’t until she heard Leo that the fox strayed from Alfred’s side, rushing over to her friend’s father.
“Mister Leo! Alfie isn’t doing well!” That was an understatement, but what more could she say just yet? Her fur was on end as the creature glanced after Alfred who had kept wandering forward, almost like he had a lost look in his gaze. Koron frowned, hoping and praying that the leader of Fiori might be able to do something to break Alfred out of this troublesome state.
"Speech"
Leo's smile faltered when Alfred seemed to have no reaction to his bark and he watched as his son kept wandering off in the direction he had been heading. Leo's eyes got drawn down to Alfred's fox friend when she hurried over to him, obviously concerned as she expressed how Alfred wasn't doing well. Leo frowned and his gaze went back up to Alfred as his ears flicked uncertainly. Between the recent episode with Heather, Roza leaving, and the quietness from Lionel he was beginning to think he was losing touch with his family. He stepped past the worried fox and hurried forward to catch up with Alfred, stepping into his son's path and turning to face him to make him stop. "Alfred?" he asked, his tone a mix of concern and sternness. Perhaps it was irrational for him to be upset with his son for being so out of touch without knowing what was going on, but just the fact that he was clearly upsetting his companion and letting himself sink so far into his own head really bothered Leo. He was no stranger to loss or disappointment, but he had always had to push past it. "What's going on?" |
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I have father's eyes, Alfred didn’t stop right away, not until his father getting in his way forced the young man to. He lifted his gaze to Leo, blue hues flashing with pain, sadness, and regret. Slowly Alfie sat, letting out a deep sigh before his gaze fell towards the ground. “He’s dead.” Alfred whispered. His heart clenched in his chest as he whispered those words, as if, for the first time since Razor’s death, actually acknowledging the fact. His body started to tremble with emotion, ears lowering as he looked back to Leo.
He felt like a child again… a child who was helpless to do anything when he lost his mother. He gave a low whine to the orange and white male, tears beginning to form in his blue eyes. “I…” His voice cracked, and Alfred was only somewhat aware of the fact that Koron had come up beside him once more, laying at his side with worried eyes. Alfie lowered his head once more, shaking his head back and forth quickly. No… it wasn’t fair. It wasn’t right. Razor couldn’t be dead… he couldn’t be…
“I believe… he’s talking about Razor, Mister Leo…” The fox placed her head over onto Alfred’s forepaw, giving a soft whine of her own. She had known about the bizarre relationship budding between the two, despite their blood relation… to suddenly lose that must have been hard… but she knew Alfred couldn’t dwell on it forever. If he did it was going to break him.
Just Go ahead And try! |
The news of Razor's death hadn't yet spread to him, so when Alfred admitted that someone was dead Leo only met the statement with confusion. "Dead? Who's dead?" he asked with disbelief. When Alfred seemed to be unable to speak his gaze turned to his companion, hoping that she might be able to shed some light on what was going on. Suddenly now his concerns were far greater than just Alfred's sorrows. Someone had died and he hadn't heard about it? Was it someone from the pack? Once he heard the explanation he almost couldn't believe it. "Razor? When? How?" he asked as he fell back onto his haunches with his mind reeling. He hadn't seen most of his adopted sister's children in a while, but Razor had been a constant staple in the pack since he came to live here. Leo had comforted him self with The knowledge that he had at least been able to protect and give a home to one of her children. And now... Now he was gone. |
“He was coming back to Fiori, barely able to make it the edge of the Mangroves…” Alfred whispered. “He had been talking with his brother… but Riv wouldn’t stay. He was leaving with another male to create a kingdom somewhere outside Boreas.” The tears began to form anew as Alfred continued, though with each word it felt like his throat was slowly closing up.
“He collapsed at our borders… and… then he left me…” His voice cracked, the type of crack that comes from a broken heart. “He died and there was nothing I could do about it!” Alfred squeezed his eyes closed, his chest growing heavier as he pinned his ears back.
“Alfie was burying Razor when I found him… he’s been distraught ever since…” Koron added, seeing her friend shuddering with emotion beside her. The fox let out a low sigh. “Alfie loved Razor with all his heart… I could see it.” Koron lowered her ears. “He didn’t want to tell anyone… I don’t think he wanted to face the truth that he’s gone…” Her voice quieted as she glanced at the large wolf at her side, looking so broken and defeated… it hurt her too.
"Speech"
Leo had a hard time focusing on Alfred's words while he explained how he had found Razor and the bit of news about Riv. He wasn't sure where he had fallen short in taking care of Arin's children. Of course there was nothing he could do to keep them here in Fiori where he could keep a close eye on them. If they wanted to leave that was of course their decision. He also knew that Razor hadn't been in good health from day one, but he thought that he had been doing better as of late. It was just heartbreaking to know that Razor was gone and it was very likely that he would never see Riv again. He hadn't seen any of her other children in a very long time and he felt like it was safe to assume he never would. His gaze tipped down to look at the little fox while she added her explanation to the mix. Loved? That pulled Leo's thoughts back fully into the conversation. He looked to Alfred with surprise and for a moment he was speechless. It didn't occur to him that it was odd for Alfred to love Razor since they were technically family. The only thing he was really thinking was how devastated he was for his son. Leo had lost someone he loved, he knew how it felt. "I'm so sorry, Alfred," he said softly, his ears flicking back. |