Blacktail Deer Plateau tumble down

Disappointment. He hadn't realized how his body had fallen. He only saw the face of his father, his solemn features, the sag of his shoulders when he'd stared back at Malachi and had told him his time had come to leave. His father hadn't been angry, not like Adah had been. He had just looked at Malachi through dull and weary eyes, his voice quiet and calm. Malachi almost wished his father had chased him off with glistening fangs instead. Sometimes, the silence was worse.

If only being strong and healthy and smart was enough. But there was so much that mattered beyond those small things. Malachi tried to pull a smile, if only to lighten the heaviness on his shoulders, but it was fleeting. He hadn't come with the intention to spill a burden on Eilidh, but like always it seemed he'd managed to turn the conversation south. He couldn't just ignore her question, and he tried to shield the tightness in his slow and careful voice. "Sometimes, someone expects you to be a certain way. But even though you try to live up to what they want of you, you make mistakes. Sometimes a lot." He breathed in. "And sometimes, after a while, you realize you'll never live up to what they want of you. Disappointment is when they realize that too, and it upsets them." There was so much more to it, but how could he explain? How could he describe the indescribable look they cast, a gaze once filled with love and warmth turning only to reflect the failures they saw? All he could ask was, "Does that make sense?" and hope it did, because he didn't know how to describe something so heavy to someone so filled with light.