Wolf RPG

 
Despite everything that had happened that Rannoch would eventually re-visit through reflection, he currently had one purpose at that moment: to get @Korei Julia away from Galaxy and to provide emotional support for her in light of what had happened. It had taken her some time to move but, when she did, Rannoch guided her away from where everything had happened. 

He kept close to her, his eyes lingering with evident as they walked. 

"I'm here if you need anything," Rannoch remarked quietly, his pace slowing as he felt that they were at a reasonable distance away from the scene of the crime. "But I'd understand if you didn't want to talk." 

Korei had desperately wanted to stay right by Galaxy's side, even if she was dead. But she had been convinced to move, even though she planned to head straight back. She couldn't leave her sister's side, not like this. 

Rannoch said something, and she chose to say nothing, whining and sobbing quietly. She would occasionally have a little hiccup, or a sniffle. Her throat was a little sore from the constant crying, and even her wails of despair.

Despite Rannoch's best intentions, Korei was not receptive to what he had offered. Her lack of reaction was understandable, and Rannoch knew that her mental state was delicate at best at that moment. 

He frowned, and attempted to think of something that could take her mind off of Galaxy. It was naive of him to think that he could come up with something but, he knew he had to try. 

“Do you want me to tell you a story?”  He asked suddenly, unsure of how his suggestion would be received. To Rannoch, it seemed like a reasonable distraction.

She remained silent, even though she kind of wanted to say yes. But, she did stop walking and sat down, her eyes however stayed to the ground. It was a way of showing that she was ready to listen to Rannoch, waiting for him to speak.

Although Koeri remained silent, it was evident that she was receptive to his suggestion. Feeling as though he had accomplished an arduous task, Rannoch sat before her with a renewed light in his eyes; he was happy to be given a chance to take her mind off of Galaxy. 

"Liffey has told me a few stories about the constellations," he began, knowing that Korei's interests aligned with his wife's, "Did you know that one of them is a winged horse?" Though his knowledge of Pegasus was limited, Rannoch was sure that she'd be interested in learning if she didn't already know about the winged horse.

She shook her head. The mention of Liffey made her a little happy, someone who shared in the interest of stars like Korei did. She didn't know however of this constellation, and she tried to show some interest by eventually looking up to face Rannoch and meet his gaze.

Slowly but surely, it appeared as though Rannoch was making progress. As they made eye contact, he smiled and cleared his throat before he began to speak. 

"Okay, so, to start off, I need to warn you I'm not as good as telling these stories as Liffey," he cautioned with a light of merriment dancing in his eyes. "But, she once told me about a winged horse named Pegasus. Pegasus was a beautiful flying horse who sprang from the body of Medusa when she was slain by the hero Perseus, the son of Zeus and Danae." Rannoch wasn't well-versed on the backstory but, it had been this tidbit of information that he remembered. "Do you know who Medusa is? Or any of the other individuals I mentioned?" He asked then, hoping that engaging her would help take her mind off of the situation.

She shook her head, she hadn't heard any of these names that Rannoch spoke of. And she wasn't seeing the point of the story, just yet. However, finally she spoke up. "Wh-what's the point to this s-story?" she tried to ask, still trying to hold herself together and not cry. How was a story even meant to help her grief? She did not know.

It appeared as though Rannoch had been too vague in his storytelling. As she questioned his motives, Rannoch flatted his ears and chuckled nervously to himself. "It would have been better if Liffey would have told you the story," he admitted and met her eyes briefly. 

Korei had been through a lot, and Rannoch knew that he couldn't lie to her about his purpose to telling her the story. "I wanted to get your mind off of everything," he admitted, "But... it seems like I didn't do the best job." Some Coach you are, a dark voice told him as he paused in thought. 

"Do you want to talk about anything?" Rannoch asked as he looked at Korei again.

Korei remained silent, and looked away. There was nothing on her mind. All except Galaxy, and only Galaxy. "I want to go back to her" she finally said. "I have to...I have to bury her." She even had a spot in mind for it, she didn't want Galaxy's body to be eaten, or anything like that.

"I wouldn't suggest we do that yet," Rannoch said kindly, his expression sympathetic, "I think they'll need to examine it to determine whether or not the wolves they have are guilty or not." Though Korei Julia and Rannoch knew of Gannet and Titmouse's innocence, the rest were not convinced. The investigation would take time, and Rannoch knew it'd be better if she were not present to witness the evaluation. 

Rannoch had to think fas; he was becoming more aware of Korei's impatience. "Do you want to show me where you've picked?" he asked, hoping that the location wasn't too close to the scene of the crime.

Korei Julia didn't want to wait, she wanted to bring Galaxy to a final resting place, but then she decided to just sigh and give in. She started moving off to where she wanted to bury Galaxy, and that was at the highest point of Moonspear. "I want...I want to bury her closest to the sky" she said.

It was sad to see Korei's spirit so broken but, Rannoch was thankful that she did not put up a fight. Instead, she stood and led the way to the location where she wished to see her sister be laid to rest. 

"That's a beautiful idea," Rannoch complimented as he walked alongside her. "I'm sure she would appreciate it." Rannoch couldn't bring himself to refer to Galaxy in the past tense just yet. 

In an effort to continue their conversation, Rannoch asked, "Is this a spot where you and Galaxy watch the stars?" 

She sniffed sadly, pawing at the dirt as if to mark a point where to start. Korei nodded sadly to Rannoch's question, a tear falling to the dirt. "Big dipper...That was her favorite" she said quietly. "And it's right there" she added, looking up to the sky. Even though there were no stars, she knew where abouts it was. "She'll see it every...every night..."

Riding on the wings of adrenaline, the pair of wolves arrived at the gravesite in no time. Rannoch watched silently with labored breath as Korei pawed at the location she had picked for Galaxy. 

"She will," Rannoch agreed once he had caught his breath, touched by Korei's dedication to her sister. "What's the Big Dipper?" he asked then and turned his eyes to the sky above. Rannoch couldn't recall Liffey ever telling him about it.

Korei Julia kept her eyes up to the sky. "It's...it's a constellation" she answered. "The first I showed to her..." She could picture it there now, up in the sky. The other had been the Little Dipper. Those two names would always be her favorite, and hold a very special place in her heart.

Although Rannoch had no idea what a "Big Dipper" was, he searched the starry sky in an attempt to find it. He nodded in reply to what Korei offered as he studied at the heavenly canvas overhead. 

After a pause, Rannoch looked to Korei. "What does it look like?" he asked, hoping that she would help him learn something new.

She smiled lightly at his question. "It's...like a shape...with a tail....you can't see it now" she added. There was a sad undertone to her voice, but she tried to remain chipper about talking about stars.

"Oh, " replied Rannoch quietly as he pulled his attentive gaze from the sky overhead. He felt that it was a shame that he wasn't able to observe the constellation but, it did provide the two wolves with an opportunity to reconnect in the future; their reconnecting would also give Rannoch the chance to see how she was coping. 

"When it is visible, do you think you could show me it?" asked Rannoch, hopeful that she would accept.

Korei smiled at the idea of doing so. "Yes..." She answered, giving off a small smile toward Rannoch. She would like to do that. The stars always made her happy, her little quiet place. "I would love to...thank you" she said to Rannoch, leaning on him as she felt exhausted after all the emotional trauma.

As Korei leaned, Rannoch shifted himself to accommodate her weight; although she was light, she added weight that Rannoch was not used to. "I'm glad," he replied with a smile. 

Korei seemed tired suddenly, and Rannoch couldn't blame her. She had been through a lot in the past hour, and he was confident that all the drama had tried her out. "You want to head in for the night?" he asked as he looked down at her. "I'd be more than happy to assist you back to your den." 

Korei nodded while leaned against him, giving a soft, quiet mumble of affirmation. She leaned off him for a moment to get herself up, then she would start to head toward her den, occasioanlly leaning on Rannoch so she would not just collapse onto her side.

With a new destination for their night, Rannoch assisted Korei down the mountainside. He remained vigilant as they traveled, silently hoping that nothing would deter them from their goal. 

Their trip took longer than expected, due to Korei's mental fatigue. "Here we are," Rannoch announced as they stepped through the entryway. He led her to where she slept and allowed her to settle before he spoke again. "I'm going to hang around outside for a little bit," Rannoch informed her. He would only stay until he was confident that she was sleeping. "But, if you need anything at all, please don't hesitate to come to my den. We won't mind it at all." 

When all was said and done, and Korei nodded slowly in reply to what had been said, Rannoch excused himself from her den. He sat just outside of the cave and kept watch until he heard light snores come from the shelter behind him. He left his post then, and headed back to the den he shared with Liffey, feeling a sense of dread at what he had to do next. Rannoch had to fill her in about everything that had happened that night, and given the fact that her family's pack was involved, he was not looking forward to breaking the news to her.