Relm had stayed away from camp for a few days after Irilyth tended to her wounds. It might not have been really different for her to be away, she wasn't exactly a part of the band and stayed to herself most of the time. She helped with meals on occasion, but otherwise lived on the sidelines.

With Kefka dead however, everything changed. She had laid awake so many times in the last few seasons since the ooze, but she still wasn't sleeping steadily yet. She had almost felt relived but she wasn't letting the emotions out. There was no one there for her, and she was too tough on the surface to allow herself to feel that way.

Later in the evening after dark, she quietly wandered through camp taking a moment to peek over towards Alastor's family den. She wasn't sure if he was out on a patrol or tucked away in there somewhere. She made haste to make her way over to Kichi's den, not because she was scared of Alastor or anything but just didn't want him to approach her.

Standing outside, she called quietly into the den where Kichi had camped, "Kichi?" Her paw tempted to step in, but she stayed where she was. She was most comfortable in Kichi's presence as a long time distant friend, but she would have never just barged into his room without asking first. "Can you help me?" She asked hesitantly.

"Speech"

Kichi had been in a sound sleep, lying straight out with head between paws.  Little Torch laid next to him, his head resting on one paw.  Of course, it was totally natural for miniature deer to sleep pressed up against a wolf.  It was one sure way to make sure no one had managed to attack his deer when Kichi slept when it was just the two of them.  The companionship had also been nice when alone and now it was just a habit that stuck with them.

Kichi’s eyes jerked open as he heard Relm’s voice.  A quick awareness of his surroundings as he waited for any danger to be apparent before he acknowledged he was safe and only another wolf was waking him up.  Nudging, shoving the sleepy Torch off of him Kichi stood up and headed to Relm.  Kichi was hardly warm and sociable for making a lot of friends in the band.  He had done well enough to be that sort of wolf who was easy to forget, never causing trouble but also not really finding a great social circle.

So it was a new thing for a wolf coming to wake him up and ask for help.  Aside from Alastor, Relm was the only one he had a past with so it was no surprise she was the one who was calling him.  Well, still maybe a bit of surprise but not overly. “Relm,” an acknowledged greeting, “what do you need help with?”  Kichi was quick to the point.  He didn’t mind helping her at all, it was just his general blunt nature that didn’t bother with niceties.

"Kichi"

Relm didn't move closer or farther as Kichi emerged from the den, only greeted him with a flat expression and a flick of her eyes around them like she was looking for someone. She wasn't scared of Alastor, but she just didn't want to be in his presence. It was well awkward, just the thought of being around him. She wasn't really traumatized by what happened just... a weird predicament.

"It's my dad." She spoke bluntly, though knew he probably didn't know what had happened with Kefka or with her and Alastor. She didn't explain much at all, "I feel like I need to do something with the body." She felt like maybe she would feel better? If she had buried it or threw it into the ocean or something. Closure she supposed, but she didn't really know what she needed. Her life was a mess right now.

Turning away from Kichi, she grabbed a torch among the band supplies and moved over to the camp fire. Lighting the torch in the fire before turning back towards Kichi to see if he was going to follow her out into the woods where Kefka's body was.

"Speech"

About her dad? Moving dad’s body?  Kichi hadn’t even known the guy had been near or that he was dead.  Kichi vaguely remembered Kefka but not with any feelings of the guy.  He had neither liked nor hated the wolf, back when he’d met him it was just an adult who he’d run into once or twice.  So, now the guy was dead.  What had dad meant to Relm?  She seemed ok.

“Alright,” Kichi agreed.  Kichi nor Relm were big on casual chat so, if she wanted him to know details about the guy’s death she’d tell him.  Still, for so few words the grey wolf was relaxed around Relm in a way that most wolves didn't get.  She didn't have any expectations on how he should behave or talk or any of that general pack etiquette he imagined most had.

Kichi’s ears pricked forward some at her grabbing the torch and he moved along beside her.  “We burning the body?”  That would be one effective way of getting rid of it.  “Hey, Torch, c’mon.” Glancing behind him as a sleepy water deer came out.  

"Kichi"

Relm shrugged at Kichi as he asked because honestly, she didn't know. She had never done a proper burial before, Agria was left to rot in the grasses as was her father right now. But... maybe there was some closure to happen this time or something. She didn't speak again as she started to make the trail back in the woods.

As they drew closer, the stench of the body became thicker and almost overbearing. She could hear the sound of the flies buzzing before they could even see the body. The light from the fire was blocking out her vision further and once they were just feet from Kefka's corpse is when she noticed it. Animals had gotten to him, Alastor's own handiwork had already made him unrecognizable and the other worldly elements didn't help.

Relm winced at the sight, only looking at it for a moment before tossing her torch over to the rotting pile of flesh and fur. She stepped back and watched as the beast started to burn slowly. She felt almost breathless but... also felt nothing. Sitting beside Kichi but without looking at him, she slowly felt the urge and carefully went to move her paw from behind his front leg and hook around the inside. She was hesitant, but in the end went to lean her shoulder into his as she watched Kefka burn. She wasn't this comfortable around anyone else.

"Speech"

Kichi followed after Relm content with the silence.  The small water deer perhaps seemed the most interested in the surroundings than either of the wolves.  He was tired but willing to pause and munch at a leaf or bit of grass hear and there, the small deer’s tail flagging happily at the juicier greens.

The stink of spoiled meat came to his nose as they got closer, then the flies were all about.  When the fire showed off the gruesome corpse Kichi raised his brows in some surprise.  It’s not like he hadn’t seen what could come of a corpse after predators ate it but it was interesting to think the mutilated body had once been Relm’s father.  He vaguely remembered the guy and these remains showed no hint of having once been the wolf.  Maggots were amongst the remains.  From what he could make of the body it had been mangled up before the death at a guess from where its parts were.  Hard to say for sure.

Kichi quirked a brow when Relm tossed the torch onto the dead body.  Kichi wasn’t one for getting close and touchy with other wolves.  So when Relm was wrapping her paw about his leg and then leaning into his shoulder it was certainly a surprise.  Kichi took a few seconds to just get used to this new feeling.  It was strange but, not bad.  The grey and white wolf inhaled deeply, turning his head to breath softly over her head, tickling the furs atop her head.  After a second he placed his head on top of her forehead, lightly wondering about this new setup.

There was no talk or words given for several minutes before quietly stating, “we need to either dig up the grass around it or kick out the flames at some point to make sure the fire doesn’t spread.”  It hardly seemed a fitting comment with her leaning into him.  It was possible the flames would die eventually in the corpse remains that it didn’t burn up all the way but Kichi wasn’t positive about it.  

He didn’t push her away yet though, the fire would still have some time to go first and it felt wrong to be the one walking away first.  Besides, this kind of felt nice.

"Kichi"

Relm had almost forgotten to breathe while she was here beside Kichi. Even while they had seen each other so on and off since their young lives, he really was one of her only friends. He had seen more of her emotions than most others and was only one of the couple wolves she would ever be this comfortable with.

She just stayed there in silence for a moment as they watched the flames slowly grow on the dry meat and fur that was once Kefka. She couldn't deny that as he moved over her head she felt a little tense and uncomfortable, but just like him she was experiment with the new feelings of touch that they both offered. She didn't shy away from him.

Her ear twitched in his direction as he spoke but didn't look up towards him. In a quick but not abrupt motion she detached herself from him before moving over to Kefka's burning remains and starting to dig a shallow pit around them. He wasn't wrong, and fortunately for the forest this was Relm's favorite place on earth save for the more recent memories she experienced here.

"Speech"

Kichi had a friend or older brother, Alastor.  Now here was Relm.  After several run ins with her in their past that went ‘fine’ and then the time seeing her sick he certainly liked her more than other wolves but what to make of that he didn’t know.  She seemed fine with his head and it was almost a surprise.  Neither one of them were the touchy feely sort but for several minutes it seemed alright.  

After his words, Relm got up to go work on digging a pit about the body.  Kichi’s mind was still working over what to make of those few minutes that had passed.  The notion came to him that he trusted Relm.  Not just for generic things where he reluctantly gave a measure of trust to the wolves of the pack but it was more natural with her.  There was no faking of who he was, nor was she in any way irritating.  No yapping about stupid stuff, or pestering for friendships, no trying to be cute with words.  Aside from Al, she was also the one link back to when he was a pup, and it wasn’t even a bitter memory.

Still musing over how that trust made touch alright he moved to assist in digging the pit.  They weren’t going to be here forever but the pack was too close to this for it to burn down now and a shame to have the corpse’s final action be to help make the area burn.  

Kichi remained quiet again at this point.  If Relm wanted to talk she would if she wanted to think she could have silence and when the digging stopped if she wanted to sit by him again, that was fine also.  Kichi wondered if she was going to want to fight again after this.  Kichi liked fighting when he was numb or angry or bored, ok he liked fighting at any point.  Whatever Relm wanted, no reason not to help out tonight.


"Kichi"

Relm couldn't know how Kichi was feeling, but as it was they felt the same. Being around him was easy. Maybe it was because he was driven from that far back in her past, just the same way he felt about her. Being around others in the pack was weird and awkward, but with Kichi... well she asked him to take care of a body. There wasn't much farther she could push boundaries like that with others. Not that this was really a boundary for the both of them.

Kichi helped finish digging out the pit, Relm's nose twitching to the smell of rotting and burning flesh yet again. She had only stopped briefly as if taking in the warmth from a bonfire as she was nearly thrust back into the memories of that day. Of looking up to Kefka's final blow and bleeding out, and of Alastor...

Kichi had relaxed again too after digging the pit to prevent the forest fire. Relm approached him head on before looking softly over her shoulder at the burning body of her father. "I've seen enough." Her voice edged on an irritated tone, certainly troubling and she went to turn back towards the band's dwelling. She had definitely been having a number of changes in her life as of recently. Her emotions were all over the place.

"Speech"