She was going to be in so much trouble, but she just had to go. Marigold even reminded her of the fact that she was going to be in so much trouble when her father found out, but she just had to. She had just been counting down the days to when she might get to go visit Artorias again and continued to wonder how he was doing ever since she left the castle and returned home, but when she saw an unusual white raven come flying through the Armada territory, yelling for her father, she had to follow it and see what was going on. She lingered in the trees near by, listening as the bird informed him that Tamsyn had been hurt and Resin was locked away, her turquoise eyes going wide and ears folding back against her head. Her father of course immediately bolted away before she could stop him to ask if she could go and after just a few moments of hesitation and debate with Marigold, she took off after him and followed his path all the way down to Auster. She just had to make sure Artorias was okay and then she'd turn around and come right back - or at least that's what she told herself. Briar really didn't quite understand what all had happened from the snippet of the message she had heard from the raven, but she just knew it was bad. Artorias was her only real friend so she had to come check on him, right? As she ran she thought about the encounter they had with Resin in his room and the conversation they had in the tower and her heart sank. Had he been right after all? Had it gotten worse? That pushed her forward and drove her harder toward The Hallow's borders. She heard her father's howl in the distance ahead of her as he announced his presence, but when she got to the border he wasn't there so she had to assume that he just went in on his own. Knowing him, she had a feeling that was exactly what happened. She still hoped to perhaps get in and out without her father finding out so she opted to not call the way he had and instead ran toward the castle and tried to keep her path close to the edge of the structure so she could avoid her father's path. She heard him howl again, except from within the castle this time. She slowed near the main entrance, waiting till she heard a responding howl and the sound of his claws scraping against the stone floor as he ran toward the sound. Once the sounds of his paw steps faded into the corridors of the castle she slipped inside, still panting hard from the mad dash to get here. It took her a minute, but she was able to find a trail with Artorias' scent, which was kind of difficult since his scent criss crossed this main entry quite a few times, but eventually she found the strongest, freshest one, and began to follow it into the castle, keeping her eyes peeled for her father the entire time. "Art?" she called once she was certain that her father wasn't close enough to hear. "Artorias? Where are you?" She still kept her voice down so it wouldn't echo too much through the castle, but was loud enough that he'd be able to hear her if he was actually near by. "Briar"

The sounds of furious, frustrated growls echoed around his makeshift dojo while Artorias unleashed a merciless assault on a training dummy with his wooden sword. Since he had left Resin in her cell and promised to help her, he'd been less than useless in that task. Ulric had sent out almost all the healers in a desperate gambit to try and procure some more herbs and medicines to tend to his injured mother while Gwyn watched over her. That meant nobody was around for him to talk to and try to figure out the puzzle that was Resin's worsening condition. Nothing made him feel more insignificant than being totally and utterly useless, which was exactly how he felt doing nothing but waiting—waiting for the healers to return, waiting for Resin to finally snap for good, waiting for anything!

So he had been unleashing his emotions out in the only way he knew how: beating the shit out of the training dummy like it was some existential threat to his survival. Stubborn vexation and mounting anger and sorrow continued to twist the boy's heart inside his chest, released from him with every vicious swing of his sword that clattered off of the stuffed dummy's body. In front of his eyes he saw flashbacks of the night before. He saw his mother slumped against the wall, covered in blood and crying. He heard his other mother's frenzied banging and shouting from inside their room. He saw Resin locked up, demanding they never speak to her again. He saw Rudy giving up on her and accepting her fate without any show of resistance. He saw the terrified look on Gwyn's face. He heard Tamsyn's sobs and laments for her mate. Every flashback made Artorias swing harder and harder, the boy snarling with each strike that shook the dummy violently. Then, with a flurry of attacks, Artorias yelled in anger and smashed his sword against the dummy's head particularly hard, decapitating the training dummy with a snap of wood and shattering his sword into a dozen splintered pieces that went sailing across the floor.

Emotions pouring from the broken dam, Artorias crumpled to the floor while the hilt of his broken sword fell to the floor with a clatter. The young brute slammed a paw into the stone while he bared his teeth in a silent snarl and tears dripped across the floor. Why was this happening to them? What had they done to deserve this? While he had been breaking down he had heard Sirius' howl, followed shortly by Tamsyn's welcoming him in. Artorias paused, caught between wanting to go see Sirius and beg him for help and not wanting the older warrior to see him in this state. The Warlord had once told him that if he ever needed help, all he had to do was come to him. Well, he needed help now more than ever—but would Sirius even be able to help them with this? Artorias sat back on his haunches in the quiet dojo, listening to his ragged breathing echoing off the walls while he sniffled and tried to wipe his face dry. He couldn't break down; not like this. His family needed him to be strong for them. He had to come back from this for them.

A sudden sound pulled Artorias out of his squalor for a brief moment. Someone was calling his name. The boy held his breath to stifle his crying, listening harder to see if the voice came back. As expected, there it was again, out in the corridor. But that voice... It couldn't be... Wiping his face one more time to make sure he didn't look too disheveled, Artorias got up and walked over to the doors and flung them open, peering out into the corridor. Sure enough, it was Briar's voice calling to him. "Briar...? Is that you...?" he called after her, his voice a hissing whisper that echoed just enough to be heard. He glanced up and down the hall to see if he could figure out where she was. "Briar, over here! Down the hall, wherever you are."


"Artorias" | Thoughts | "Corbin"

One big happy family

Artorias has two ravens named Corbin and Eira and a fox named Argent. Assume they are within calling distance at all times.
As his mate, Briar may enter Artorias' threads unless marked Private.
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"Artorias?" she called again, pausing between each time as she padded down the hall listening for him and continuing to try and follow his scent. She stopped mid step to listen when a voice hissed back to her, the echo taking a moment for her to understand. Blue Boy! An unexpected amount of relief washed over her when she heard his voice and immediately took off running down the hall to follow it as he called out to her again as well. Rounding a corner, she spotted him standing half way out of a doorway at the end of the hall and as she got closer she gradually slowed to a walk. "There you are," she commented as she approached him, still obviously a little breathless and panting from the race she had done to get here. As she came to stand in front of him, she happened to glance past him into the indoor training gym he had emerged from and saw the training dummy that had it's head removed and the broken pieces of a wooden sword scattered around it. Whatever she was about to say died on her lips as worry flashed across her expression and her ears flicked back against her head. "Tamsyn sent a raven to get my dad and I followed him out here," she explained as she brought her gaze back to his. Feeling this kind of worry and concern was unusual for her and she realized as she stood in front of him that she really didn't have any plan. She just felt like she had to be here so she came. After standing there speechless for a moment, she finally just nudged him back into the room and closed the doors behind them and as soon as they were closed away she determinedly sat with him and wrapped her forelegs around his shoulders to pull him into an embrace. She knew he probably didn't want to be comforted like this, but she just had to. She had to be here and support him in the only way she really knew how. Briar wrapped her head around behind his neck and held him tight against her, refusing to let go. She didn't know the exact details of what all had happened, but from what she had been able to gather from overhearing the message to her father, she knew it was bad and that's all that really mattered. She glanced toward the destruction that was scattered around the room while she continued to hold him in that hug and asked softly, "Are you okay?" She had a feeling that everyone else's attention - and probably his own - was probably going to focused on Resin and Tamsyn, which was of course justified, but if she could help support her best friend while he was trying to support everyone else then that felt like the right thing to do. "Briar" | "Marigold"

Just as he was beginning to think maybe his mind was playing tricks on him too, Briar rounded the corner seemingly out of nowhere and came trotting briskly up to him. Artorias stared wide-eyed at the antlered girl as if he was seeing a ghost. What on earth was she doing here?! Had she come down with Sirius? She must have, it was the only logical explanation. Someone must have reached out to Sirius regarding his mothers and they were here to check on them. Did that mean she knew what was going on? He swallowed back the lump caught in his throat when she came closer and he saw the worried expression on her face; she had to know. He was still too stunned to see her and wrestling with his own emotions to respond right away, giving Briar all the time to notice the state of disarray his training space was in and explain why she was here. Yep, she knew. Tamsyn had reached out to Sirius and she had accompanied him down.

His stomach twisted into knots while he tried to think of the right things to say. Did he thank her? Did he send her away? Art didn't even know what to do with himself, how the hell was he supposed to know how to handle surprise visitors? The pain and conflict was transparent in his usually lively fire-hued eyes, though now they were foggy with worry and stress, staring at her but appearing as if he didn't truly see her and he was a million miles away in his own head. He didn't know how long they were both standing there without talking, but eventually she nudged him back into the dojo. He stepped backward without resistance, allowing her entry and just flopping back onto his haunches while she shut the door.

With the world closed away to them, Artorias watched when Briar came back to him and wrapped her arms around his neck to pull him into her. Eyes widened and blinked in surprise, but the warmth and safety she surrounded him with was the final push the young wolf needed to break the frail walls he'd put up around himself. He shifted his muzzle to bury his face into the side of her neck, hiding himself away from everything while his body shook with silent sobs. He had been so angry and upset, but he'd held it all in for the sake of his family. No one had asked him how he was holding up. The truth was, he wasn't. His one mother was gravely hurt, the other was sentencing herself to death, his family was directionless and panicked, his pack was leaderless, and everyone was looking to him to keep them together while he was pressuring himself to save Resin. Having Briar here allowed him a harbor in the turbulent storm, a place to release and come undone.

Artorias couldn't respond to any of Briar's words right away, he was too choked with chaotic emotion to do anything but tremble and cry—actually cry—for the first time since everything had exploded. He had always tried to follow Resin's example of keeping his emotions in check and locked up, but it was fast becoming apparent that he couldn't be as detached or unfeeling as she was, and it was only breaking him down from the inside. "No... No, I'm not okay..." he finally managed to mutter into her fur. "My mom... There's something wrong with her..." It was all he had the strength to say right now. He couldn't begin to explain the depths of the issue to her, nor did he know if he should. This wasn't Briar's burden to bear; she didn't need to know all the gristly details. Art was just thankful to have her here to allow him to fall apart without seeming weak. "I-I'm sorry... I'm getting your fur wet..." he apologized between a few short breaths after a moment of trying tog et himself back under control.


"Artorias" | Thoughts | "Corbin"

One big happy family

Artorias has two ravens named Corbin and Eira and a fox named Argent. Assume they are within calling distance at all times.
As his mate, Briar may enter Artorias' threads unless marked Private.
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Feeling Artorias crumple into her made her ears fold back against her head and had her holding him a little tighter. She felt him bury his muzzle in her fur and his body began to shake in her embrace and it almost felt like her heart physically broke. She knew it wasn't logically possible for that to happen, but the pang in her chest at seeing him break down like this made it feel like it was. She could feel his tears dampening her fur, but she didn't care. She just kept holding him like that and would keep holding him until he was ready to pull away. He was her friend. Her only real friend. And he was hurting. She didn't know how to help him or how to make any of it right, but she could at least comfort him in some small way and that made whatever hell there was going to be for her when she got home worth it. Eventually he would answer her, giving her the obvious answer that he wasn't okay. There really hadn't been a reason to ask because she already knew what the answer would be, but it was one of those questions that you just had to ask when you saw something wrong or someone hurt. It felt like the default question for something like this. She nodded quietly when he said that something was wrong with his mom, confirming what she had wondered on her way here over whether this was all related to what they had talked about last time she was here. It seemed like whatever it was had gotten exponentially worse. She wanted to hope that her father could help, that he'd be able to direct things in time to help make things better, but... what if he couldn't? Then what? She had so much faith in her father that she didn't want to believe that was a possibility, but she also wasn't sure how bad everything had gotten. She didn't know if it was too late. Normally she would hate that she had gotten wet or that he had messed up her fur, but in this instance it had been the last thing on her mind. When he brought it up with an apology she squeezed him in her embrace again and said, "I'll allow it this time, Blue Boy..." smirking a little as she tried to weave just enjoy humor into her reply to hopefully take the edge off of things for just a moment. She glanced down at the grip of a broken sword that was laying near her and added, "I hope there's more swords where that one came from... That one had a bad time." "Briar" | "Marigold"

Artorias felt like such a failure as he wept into Briar's embrace. He was supposed to be the strong one, the stable one, the brother his siblings all looked up to and turned to for reassurance and protection. Yet here he was, falling apart at the seams and he didn't know how to stop it. It was as if life had decided to crank up the difficulty for his family all at once. But he just couldn't handle it on his own. He wasn't ready for this. But Briar's stalwart hug made him feel safe. Even if it was only for a moment, it was a moment he wouldn't have traded away. The way she just let him be and purge all the negativity and pain away was exactly what he needed right now. And on top of that, she wasn't teasing him for it either. He appreciated that more than she would ever know.

He swallowed back another sob when she squeezed him in her embrace, just losing himself in her secure hold, in her presence, and slowly, slowly he began to calm down. He gave a weak chuckle when she said she'd allow him messing up her fur this one time. He knew she was a bit of a diva princess in that she hated being messy in any regard, so it was a rarity to see her disregard those cares for his wellbeing. Her comment about his broken swords brought another choked laugh from him, though he still kept his face hidden away from the world. He didn't want to face reality just yet. "I broke twelve others too..." he mumbled into her shoulder fluff, recalling every flimsy sparring sword he'd smashed and shattered since he'd found them rotting away in the castle armory. "There's plenty and they suck..." He was giving a little bit of humor back, a good sign given the dour mood all around the castle, especially heavy in this room.


"Artorias" | Thoughts | "Corbin"

One big happy family

Artorias has two ravens named Corbin and Eira and a fox named Argent. Assume they are within calling distance at all times.
As his mate, Briar may enter Artorias' threads unless marked Private.
____________________

Briar was distracted for a moment form the situation they were in as he informed her that there was in fact twelve brown swords, not just the one she saw scattered around in pieces here. She blinked with surprise and chuckled. Well, at least there was plenty of these swords for him to pick from, she supposed. "Sounds like you need some better weapons," she added with a soft chuckle. She knew it was just a momentary reprieve, but it was something and she was glad at she could give it to him. She leaned her head into his neck while she continued to hold him and let him hide away for as long as he wanted, more than happy to just sit here with him if that's what he needed. She didn't exactly know how to approach these kinds of things, but she was also perfectly fine with him directing where her visit took them. After a few moments of silence, her paws started rubbing gently at his back and between his shoulders. "How bad is it?" she asked gently. Was it something that could be healed? She wasn't the most skilled healer around, but who knew, maybe there was something she had learned from Marigold that could help. It was a long shot of course, but she had to ask to know if there was any way she could help. "Briar" | "Marigold"

Artorias was laughing more genuinely now when Briar made a quip about him needing to find better weapons. Boy, wasn't that the truth! He just laughed weakly between gasps for breath and shaky exhales, feeling a bit loopy between the mental, emotional, and physical exhaustion the last few days had burdened him with. He was just so tired and it manifested itself into nearly uncontrollable laughter while she just held him in her comforting embrace. "Yeah, I really should..." he replied between his broken laugh. Artorias didn't want to leave the sanctuary of Briar's arms; it was one of the few times since the incident that he'd felt the ability to relax. With his face still buried in her neck, the heartbroken boy allowed himself to get lost in her fur and scent, a rich smell of vanilla and sugar that just made him feel calm.

As if it couldn't get any better, Briar began to run her paws along his back like a gentle massage, further relaxing the wound up wolf. Low rumbling murmurs escaped Artorias as relaxation covered him like a heavy blanket. He could easily have stayed just like this and he would have fallen asleep against her in no time at all. How long had it been since he'd gotten a full night's sleep? The days had all seemed to blur together since this whole ordeal started. But in this one quiet moment with nothing else besides them in the world, the wayward warrior found his peace, if only for a short time.

Briar asked the question he had been dreading. How bad was Resin? It was almost impossible to say, but he knew how bad it could be. He'd seen his mother's bloody, torn face. He'd heard her scratching and banging at the door to get out. He'd watched Gwyn work tirelessly through the night to make sure their mom didn't bleed to death. "Bad... She's losing herself completely now..." He sniffled back more tears to try and compose himself enough to do a simple thing like talking. "She attacked my other mother in the middle of the night... She'll be scarred for life and she could've died... Mom's locked up in the dungeons now and we just... we don't know what's wrong..." Artorias finally removed his face from Briar's shoulder to meet her eyes, his own tired and bloodshot from the crying and the lack of sleep. Everything about his posture read fatigue and listlessness. He simply didn't know what to do anymore. Nobody had any answers and everyone was behaving like the battle had already been lost. But it couldn't have been lost. Resin was still alive. They just had to try a little harder.


"Artorias" | Thoughts | "Corbin"

One big happy family

Artorias has two ravens named Corbin and Eira and a fox named Argent. Assume they are within calling distance at all times.
As his mate, Briar may enter Artorias' threads unless marked Private.
____________________

Briar smirked softly when she heard and felt Artorias beginning to relax more into her as she rubbed his back and she leaned her head into his neck as she just enjoyed being with him for a moment. She hadn't really allowed herself to make any other friends and even the few that she did have she wouldn't just hold and comfort like this. After the last time they were together she really began to see Artorias in a different light. She didn't really understand how she felt toward him, but she didn't really want to question it either. At least not right now. She was just enjoying this weird warm, fuzzy feeling that was strangely mingled into the sympathy and sorrow she felt for him and his situation. She listened as Artorias described what was going on with Resin and what had happened to Tamsyn in the process and her eyes widened a bit with horror. Now she understood why her father had taken off in such a panic and a hurry to get down here. She didn't know much about mental issues and things like that. Most of her training had been in just physical wounds so far so she was at a loss when he told her that Resin was losing herself. All she knew was that it was nearly impossible to treat or heal and all you could really do was manage it - at least from what Marigold had told her. She didn't feel like that was really helpful information for her to tell him right now though so she kept that knowledge to herself and instead she just hugged him tighter for a moment before he finally lifted his head away from her shoulder. Her eyes found his and her ears flicked back with worry when she saw how tired and red his eyes were. She pulled an encouraging smile onto her lips though and brought one of her paws up to his cheeks to wipe away some of the tears there. She didn't know what to say. "sorry" didn't really seem to cut it and "it'll be alright" felt like a lie. Instead, she went with a completely different tactic and got to her paws as she nodded toward the door. "Come on, lets go to the tower. I want to see the views and I think some cool air could do you some good." She gently nudged him toward the door, insistent on getting him out of this room where he had clearly been stewing in his own rage. "Briar" | "Marigold"

Despite his obvious attempts to maintain his strong facade, Briar was breaking down his walls with little difficulty. The way she was holding him, leaning against him, it just made him feel safe—like the hurricane outside this room couldn't ever touch him. His anxious heart rate had slowed back to a steady thumping inside his chest, calmed and even, and although he no longer felt the anxiety reaching its wicked claws into his soul, something about being with Briar made his heart feel lighter in his chest in a way he hadn't noticed until he had watched her leave Hallowed lands a couple of weeks ago. His entire being felt lighter and warmer, as if he had become weightless and was adrift in a hot spring. He didn't understand it, why his body was reacting so weird, but he chalked it up to the tidal waves of emotions and his resilience reserves being almost entirely depleted by recent events. He was just glad to have his close friend here with him again as if she had manifested solely by the power of all the thoughts he'd had of her since she left.

The look of worry that crossed her face didn't go unnoticed by the young wolf. He managed to give her a lopsided smile, though it was weak at best. Did he really look that bad that Briar was looking at him like he might collapse at a moment's notice? He offered no resistance when she brought a paw up to catch some stray tears left over on his cheek, but deep down he wished he hadn't had such a breakdown in front of Briar. She didn't need to see him like this, to be worried over him. Fortunately, she didn't address it, and instead offered to take him up to the tower for some fresh air. That sounded like a fantastic idea, and Art nodded his head slowly.

"That sounds good..." he said, getting to his paws at Briar's insistent nudging, snickering a little at the way she was basically herding him out of the destroyed gym. A ghost of a smile touched his lips while he tried to avoid getting poked by her antlers, pulling the door open and stepping back outside with his friend, closing the door on all the destruction left in his wake.


"Artorias" | Thoughts | "Corbin"

One big happy family

Artorias has two ravens named Corbin and Eira and a fox named Argent. Assume they are within calling distance at all times.
As his mate, Briar may enter Artorias' threads unless marked Private.
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