Blacktail Deer Plateau pearls and swine bereft of me

Note: the following misunderstanding is Perry's, not mine. I promise I got an "A" in reading comprehension. It probably would've culminated the same way, regardless. :D <3

"Don't twist my words like that, Atti," was Peregrine's only remark before he fell silent. It was said softly. He hadn't meant it that way at all and it irritated the hell out of him that Atticus would put that kind of spin on it. His point was that Crete had been able to somehow strike a balance between his understandable fears and his history with Peregrine. In comparison to Crete, Atticus had handled the situation awfully and that was the Alpha's only point.

It seemed the two would forever go in circles, each getting angry at the other for being hurt by this, that or the other. Finally, Atticus broke the vicious cycle and, finally, Peregrine opened his ears completely. Although Peregrine didn't appreciate the smaller jabs, at least they were exactly that: smaller. And the Alpha decided that if Atticus didn't get it, they were simply at an impasse because he wouldn't bother explaining again how his brother's lack of faith had naturally affected him.

"I'm glad she cleared the air," Peregrine said after letting Atticus finish, "and I'm sorry. I was distracted that day. I know that's not an excuse. I just wanted to explain. I'm sorry too," he repeated. "It isn't fucked up beyond repair..."

Peregrine's voice trailed off but only for a second. His eyes became narrow and flinty. "But what are you saying, Atti? At this point in time, isn't it clear that none of your fears about my rank hold any water? So, other than fixing the emotional hurts already caused, there's nothing to worry about right now except for moving forward with our lives. I'm not Tyrannus, once and for all, and I've actually proved that now. And you took your time to sort it out. So what do you mean? You still need time? You're going away? After all of this, you're still going to leave."

That last sentence didn't come out as a question but rather a statement. His voice deadened, as did the expression on his face. Peregrine realized suddenly that there was nothing else he could do or say. He didn't understand why Atticus still needed time and space—for what and from what, exactly? They'd both been hurt but he thought they'd moved past the worst of the storm at this point and that they could go about fixing their relationship and moving on. And here Atticus was telling him that it was still all fucked up... beyond repair?

All of the energy and heart went out of Peregrine in that moment. He realized suddenly that it had nothing to do with him—it never really had—and the feeling of futility was absolute. There was nothing he could do or say. No amount of hashing it out with Atticus would do any good. For reasons he couldn't fully comprehend (partially because he still didn't have the full story), this was going to be a permanent flaw on their brotherhood.

"I'm just going to leave you be. You do what you need to do, Atticus. I love you." It was difficult to say those last three words when he was so mad at and hurt by his brother but the possibility that these might be the last words he got to say to Atticus for what could be a long time—he was suddenly sure his sudden leave would result in Atticus's departure from the pack—overruled his reluctance. He looked into his litter mate's eyes for three long seconds, then turned and walked away without another word.