King Elk Forest see my heart; I decorate it like a grave

they bury him in a quiet corner of the forest, marked by a stone delight carefully extracts from the dirt, large enough to be noticed but small enough to be moved about. in the end he decides not to call for a public mourning. it feels like something burke would be annoyed by, and truthfully, he's not sure how well any of his current wolves knew the old man. he pays his own respects quietly, promises to hold on to his story, share his memory. burke'd probably hate that too, but fuck it: he can be sentimental if he wants to.

nathaniel's disappearance troubles him, too: delight catches his scent exiting the pack but does not follow him. he wonders if the soldier really had just meant to stick around til burke died and then ditched. it's.. frustrating, at the least. makes him feel like he's failed them all, somehow. nonetheless when he catches wind of him near the borders he picks up his pace, intent on scolding or at least questioning until he realises, oh, that's blood too.

faint, but definitely blood. and when he arrives on the scene he sees more, and oh yikes that's a pretty bad wound. without hesitating delight throws his head back and calls for @Anatha, then rounds on nathaniel with a cross expression. "what happened?" he demands, worried and annoyed and anxious all at once, making his voice sound as strained as his tired face looks.