Hushed Willows they escaped the weight of darkness

for @Harlyn though i won't be upset if @Silas or @Larkspur or even @Pippin party crash this!

There was a distinct chill in the air when he brought himself around finally to the proverbial doorstep of the Keep. By now summer's grasp on the earth had left them fully, pulling the heat away with her to leave them with what may have been the first tease of winter to come. The days were beginning to curb their lengthy light and while the leaves were wont to give up their leafy coats, he knew it would come eventually.

The rocky climb along part of the border to the Keep gave him trouble, but the limp he had been sporting for some time was beginning to mend itself. He had weak skills when it came to healing, only bits and pieces he had gleaned from Harlyn's repetitive tending to the Hollow's kin. It hadn't helped him here and his persistence (and perhaps lack thereof) to return home had only served to irritate tender muscles. Stress and strain paired with looming mental anguish had not been kind to him either; Mordecai felt surprisingly timid making his way to an appropriate place to try and call Harlyn out.

When he had achieved finding such a location that would hopefully offer them privacy, he hesitated in summoning her. The words still hadn't came to him, not even ones that he could have used to offer her meager comfort with such horrid news. He hadn't the slightest idea that his family was more intact than he thought. But it was time to face the music—Mordecai raised his head skyward and called for Harlyn.

agalloch — "to drown"