The Sentinels (they call it lonely digging)

@Deirdre <3

[table width=55%][tr][td]
Donnelaith. it still stood upon the cliffs overlooking the sea, pillared by great redwood trees. winter had only made it more beautiful, and as Cas gazed at it, he felt homesickness overwhelm him from the deep pit where he'd shoved it all done. he didn't know if he could ever come home, but fuck if he didn't want to do just that one some days.
though he was all but exhausted from his trip, the boy ran toward the borders with long lunges, eyes glowing as he cried out for his sister. even if he couldn't live here, he could pretend it for a short time. "Dee!" he shouted breathlessly. what had she been doing; the borders were rife with the scent of many wolves and the fragrance of the ocean.[/tr][/td][/table]

her heart had splintered into many different pieces, falling to many different directions. but the core of it was here, where her father rest. she would protect this place, stay here, until she died. many of her kith and kin had decided she did not follow her fathers vision—but all, except for she, had strayed from this place. one due to wanderlust, one due to a broken heart, one escaping her fathers ghost, and the last her sisters shadow. time and time again emaleth had left. it was not shocking to hear, and see, her do it once more. there had been a time emaleth had been there for her, and it had been long, long ago; she had forgotten those days, and doubted there would be a time she would see them again. 

deirdre was not impervious to the callouses life had brought. she was hurt, now, and when casmir called deirdre could not find it in her heart to rush toward him as she usually may. she was the sole leader of this place, and so much had transpired since she had last seen him. her beauty remained, as did her regal disposition as she came toward him, but the light that was deirdre was eclipsed by her mental turmoil that she fought through alone. casmir, she spoke, her voice low. she did not ask him: have you come to return? gone were the days of this foolish hope, gone was the fool. but there was a true smile that came there, a true happiness to see him. she loved him wholeheartedly. come inside, she beckoned, the edges of donnelaith significantly cooler than its depths.

[table width=55%][tr][td]
his sister soon appeared and Cas' brow furrowed to see how quiet she had become. gone was the dancing child who had greeted him even at the boundaries of Silver Creek — Deirdre, while beautiful, having grown into womanhood, had lost the glitter that had inspired the light of her verdant eyes. upon the heels of her invitation, Cas stepped forward to nudge into the pale softness of her ruff. "i'm so sorry, sis."
sorry for leaving, for the fact Connie and Eilidh and Emaleth had all left, had all abandoned this girl to shoulder what she believed to be her father's legacy, and press on. the boy fell into step alongside her, a smile wreathing his own muzzle. he was, after all, just as happy to see her as ever.[/tr][/td][/table]

deirdre shook her head to his apology, murmured a faint: non, for he need not apologize. he was here, for the time, and the girl--nearly a year old--simply appreciated his being there, now, in her time of need. she had prayed, and even if only for a short while casmir was here. and so they spent the day together, enjoying the company of one another.

[font=tahoma][table width=55%][tr][td]
Cas kissed her cheek, stepped back, unsure of what to do. what could he say that would draw her out of this funk? "do you wanna hear about our baby sibs?" he asked hopefully. out of all their family, surely Deirdre would be most enthralled to hear him speak of Cort and Mona.[/tr][/td][/table]