Broken Boulder but then the special secret sickness starts to eat through you

they're so far away from the forest now, delight wonders if he'll ever make it out back there. if there was any reason for him to even go -- to visit the king elk's grave? burke's? they're just dust in the dirt at this point. 

still, it's isolating in a way that the vale hadn't been -- or even the forest. it suits him. right now delight's functioning just rotely. he helps alarian because alarian took him and his future children in. he looks after queenie because she's still his friend and she's carrying said future children. he eats because if he doesn't he'll die and he's not gonna abandon, again, the future children. he ... he wonders where mato went. he wishes he didn't.

today he moons alone, letting himself grieve quietly, or as close as he can come to grieving.