Sassafras extended both paws out towards him this time, creeping forward only for the same distance to linger between them as he began to shove his weakened body deeper into the den. He was slipping away, both intentionally and beyond his control. Her dark brow furrowed and she clenched her jaw again as she watched silently. It dawned on her that she knew what he was going to ask before the words even reached her, and when all was said, she watched after him almost blankly — almost unable to process it. He wasn’t even dead yet and he wanted her to encase him in a tomb.
She exhaled a long, slow, and ragged breath once she realized she’d been holding it, then turned her head away from him and fiercely fought the urge to do anything except obey. It was a few moments before her wet eyes sought to find him again, but he already seemed so far from her that the last true image of him that she saw had been captured before she’d turned away. The steely grey of his unkempt coat had disappeared, and now there was only the darkness of his moving shadow.
There was nothing left to say, or perhaps she wasn’t trying hard enough. She could tell him that Peregrine… no. No she couldn’t. What did she know of how Peregrine had felt about him? Over the hours since their departure from the borders, she had managed to assume things in bits and pieces. One was that Shrike had so desperately wanted to deliver Peter’s killer that he had thoughtlessly run the risk of Peregrine losing control and more than two bodies being shoved in that tomb. And how long had he known the carcass was poisonous? Her chest heaved in a sharply drawn breath as she continued to stall for time, knowing the anger that began to burn in her chest was only an expression of the grief she felt. Knowing didn’t help.
She shut her eyes for a moment before she thrust them open and finally allowed her tears to fall freely. Her throat tightened violently and she couldn’t possibly have managed to swallow as she began to move the earth with pitch black paws.
She exhaled a long, slow, and ragged breath once she realized she’d been holding it, then turned her head away from him and fiercely fought the urge to do anything except obey. It was a few moments before her wet eyes sought to find him again, but he already seemed so far from her that the last true image of him that she saw had been captured before she’d turned away. The steely grey of his unkempt coat had disappeared, and now there was only the darkness of his moving shadow.
There was nothing left to say, or perhaps she wasn’t trying hard enough. She could tell him that Peregrine… no. No she couldn’t. What did she know of how Peregrine had felt about him? Over the hours since their departure from the borders, she had managed to assume things in bits and pieces. One was that Shrike had so desperately wanted to deliver Peter’s killer that he had thoughtlessly run the risk of Peregrine losing control and more than two bodies being shoved in that tomb. And how long had he known the carcass was poisonous? Her chest heaved in a sharply drawn breath as she continued to stall for time, knowing the anger that began to burn in her chest was only an expression of the grief she felt. Knowing didn’t help.
She shut her eyes for a moment before she thrust them open and finally allowed her tears to fall freely. Her throat tightened violently and she couldn’t possibly have managed to swallow as she began to move the earth with pitch black paws.
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Messages In This Thread
The Parting Glass - by Shrike Redleaf - July 24, 2016, 09:25 PM
RE: The Parting Glass - by Sassafras - July 25, 2016, 06:54 PM
RE: The Parting Glass - by Shrike Redleaf - July 25, 2016, 07:01 PM
RE: The Parting Glass - by Sassafras - July 25, 2016, 07:34 PM
RE: The Parting Glass - by Shrike Redleaf - July 25, 2016, 10:56 PM
RE: The Parting Glass - by Sassafras - July 26, 2016, 12:01 AM
RE: The Parting Glass - by Shrike Redleaf - July 26, 2016, 11:25 AM
RE: The Parting Glass - by Sassafras - July 26, 2016, 09:30 PM
RE: The Parting Glass - by Shrike Redleaf - July 27, 2016, 01:51 AM
RE: The Parting Glass - by Sassafras - July 28, 2016, 08:46 PM
RE: The Parting Glass - by Shrike Redleaf - July 29, 2016, 02:17 PM
RE: The Parting Glass - by Sassafras - August 17, 2016, 04:09 PM
RE: The Parting Glass - by Shrike Redleaf - August 17, 2016, 04:36 PM