Blacktail Deer Plateau red birds escape from my wounds

Perry and Junior witnessing the accident doesn't jive with my other posts but I'll just have to go back and edit (or assume he was in shock and couldn't piece the story together) 'cause I wanted to seize this opportunity. :)

"Hey, look," Peregrine said to his daughter, who bounded ahead of him as they made their way home following their visit to Stavanger Bay. "Up there," he said when she stopped and looked back at him questioningly. Her two-toned gaze followed his line of sight as he pointed his black muzzle skyward. "Do you see? The wolf climbing the mountain? Looks like a speck from here. Hey..." The Alpha suddenly sounded excited. "I think that's your Uncle Atti! What the hell is he doing up there? Where the hell has that bonehead been?" He was speaking to himself now rather than to Osprey Jr.

Moving more swiftly now, Peregrine trotted around the plateau, avoiding the main towpath and seeking one of the bush trails nearer to the foothills. It would deliver him more swiftly to his brother's location. Yet even as the Alpha male arced around his homeland, he saw the black speck suddenly jerk and begin tumbling down the rugged slope. Peregrine froze, causing Junior to bump into his hind leg. He stared, horror-struck, as the wolf tumbled far down the craggy terrain and then slammed to a stop at the valley floor with a crack! that Peregrine heard even from a distance.

"Shit!" he cried out, forgetting all about Junior as he burst forward, closing the distance between himself and the fallen wolf. It's not Atticus! It can't be Atticus! he found himself thinking and desperately hoping. His heart throbbed in his throat and his lungs burned. As he drew in breath, he caught his sibling's unmistakable scent. By the time he reached him, there was no doubt left in Peregrine's mind. His older brother lay at his feet, twitching like a dying animal.

"No. Oh... fuck. Atti?" Peregrine gasped raggedly, slinging himself to the ground and thrusting his face into his brother's. Atticus was unresponsive for a moment but then his eyes opened, making the Alpha's heart jump. "Atti! Dude, are you okay...?" He nudged the black male softly, though Atticus didn't say anything. He didn't make any noise at all. And when Peregrine looked into his eyes, he realized that his brother's gaze was... vacant. It was peculiar and unsettling.

"Daddy, what's wrong?!" Osprey cried behind him, huffing and puffing. She looked at her uncle with trepidation. "Uncle Atti fell?! Is he okay?" she queried, stepping closer and sniffing. She didn't smell blood, so she figured he couldn't be hurt too badly.

"Yes, Uncle Atti fell," Peregrine said softly. He couldn't stop staring into Atticus's icy eyes, which were at once so familiar and strangely alien. He's catatonic. "He's hurt. He... let's see if we can help him sit up," Peregrine said to his daughter, motioning for her to move to Atticus's other side. Together, they hoisted him upward. Peculiarly, he cooperated, yet he weaved almost drunkenly and still wouldn't speak. Not to mention that thousand yard stare...

Osprey stared at her uncle. "Hey!" she shouted suddenly. "Why aren't you talkin', Uncle Atti? Cat got your tongue?" Oblivious to the graveness of the matter, she poked at him. When Atticus did not react, her smile twitched, then fell. She looked questioningly at her father.

"Let's help him home," Peregrine said in a shaky voice. We have to get him to Blue Willow. "C'mon, Atti," he added softly, coaxing his brother to his feet. Atticus rose, robotic. Swallowing the lump in his throat, Peregrine pressed his flank to his brother's and began shuffling back toward the main towpath.