Blacktail Deer Plateau iii. time flies

"I love you, too, babe," said Grayday, his heart swelling with pride and affection. Still, there was something lingering on the edges of his mind - he wanted to push it away and simply enjoy the moment, but in his heart, he could hear his father whispering, and he knew that he would never forgive himself if he let this moment pass.

"Dawn..."

Easy stirred against his chest as he leaned closer to his eldest daughter.

"There are two wolves fighting in my chest. One is angry, and one is loving. One is harmful, and one is peaceful," he began, hesitating a bit as he realized the words weren't coming out exactly the same as he remembered. But thing was - was that he couldn't remember. The words in his dream were nothing more than a comforting murmur in waking hours, and Grayday found that the only thing he could do was speak from his heart. "Look, Dawn - I'm worried about you and your brother. I know that things haven't been great between the two of you, but he loves you," he said earnestly, his voice quiet and, honestly, a little desperate. "It just... it kills me to have this distance between us. I know that he left. It hurt me, too. But he was young, and he missed home, and he's not as strong as you."

He pressed his forehead against his daughter's.

"Please, Dawn. For me. Will you go and see him?"