Noctisardor Bypass of a leaf, a stone, a door; and of all the forgotten faces

Illidan did not know that he had been followed. He wouldn’t have known even if he had been fully grown and capable of catching the scent of others. The emotions within him had gone on a rampage and had left very little room for him to notice much of anything. All that he could see was the image of his father. All that he could smell was the stench of his body, roasted in the sun and pecked at by dark deadly birds. It was burned into the back of his mind with a brand. Illidan was just old enough that such impressionable things would remain with him for the rest of his life. He knew of death, and there was no denying that what he had seen was the aftermath of such things.
 
The strange wolf seemed to have circled wide around the young boy. Illidan still did not notice him. His eyes were trained on the distance, unable to see through the blurriness that his tears had created. His sides continued to heave, and his breaths fell in ragged, tired gasps. Had he noticed the other wolf, he would have likely growled him away. Instead, the boy remained where he was. His body shuddered as he inhaled sharply, feeling the weight of his circumstances fall down on him.
 
If his father was dead… where was his mother?