The Sentinels i like gypsy moths and radio talk

this is set for april 1st - sorry for the long backdate, set a day after this thread: clicky

the pale man was shamed as he limped home, his heart in his throat and a sickening feeling threatening to overturn his gut. he had let down donnelaith -- and worse, he had let down lusca. the dark-faced banshee that had wounded him had cowed him; her words as sharp as her teeth. tachyon feared he had unwittingly started a rift between donnelaith and saltwinter. he felt as if he had left a portion of his soul with lusca -- and he could scarce envision what horrible vengeance the dark-faced woman had exacted upon the wolf he loved.

timidly he crawled to the borders and soft, meek call pressed forth from his lungs -- did he still have a home here?

In these adolescent months, Emaleth had become withdrawn from her family; although quite the extrovert in her infancy, the dark child had grown to find the presence of others overwhelming. While she loved them fiercely and could not imagine a life without them near, she found herself at times yearning for the stillness and quiet of the sentinels that were the strong guardians of Donnelaith. She would vanish within them for hours at a time— for it was never long before her blood found her, ushering the small witch back to safety— and felt renewed for it.

Too long in the focus of others, and the child's thoughts would grow dark and her mood foul.

It was in one of these small jaunts of hers that a meek call caught her attention; and this was a Change, for the child could not recall many breaches in the grove's borders. Curiously, she trotted towards the source to investigate; and ran to the man's side when her eyes fell upon him, and she saw his state. Emaleth did not know him well, but she knew him for pack— for family— and too young to understand the nuance of his presence, or that he may not be welcomed, she was more concerned for his well being. "Are you well, sir? I will find Eilidh," she offered in a rush, her speech proper and tiny.

his voice, hark! howled the trees; and she did, and deirdre was frozen as the breath was stolen from her. she had joined in his song once, but she could not do so now as her legs possessed her being. the cub moved in his direction, flowers and their petals flying helter-skelter off of her shoulders (that her dear owl instructor had made her) as she ran. tachyon! deirdre cried into the air, her emerald eyes glowing with happiness renewed. but as she looked to tachyon and noted his appearance, her features crumpled. no! she thought of the white ogre, the monstrous woman who had assaulted her, as she looked at maimed hamstring. deirdre knew only the most minor of pain in comparison to the wound he bore, and she gasped. it truly hurt her heart to see the blood, and the soft girl wilted at the sight of it. were it possible, her color would melt into one of transparency with her present pallor. but her love for tachyon conquered her fear of the scarlet beads that flecked his furs, and she drew nearer before she looked to emaleth. i... i can clean this! get eilidh, her tone lacked both command and inflection, and she nearly swayed where she stood, but her intent to stay was clear. her mind was so frazzled she did not even think of calling for eilidh, but this was urgent. deirdre felt as though she could smell the damage, though it was likely the metallic stink of blood from one she loved so dearly. she neared his side, looking at her crumpled friend, and any accusations of his leaving her had long since died. she had been worried, so worried! but he was here, and hurt, and whoever had done this to him... these were questions she did not think to ask. would it hurt badly if i cleaned it??? she asked his permission, his consent. now, she only wanted to help, and to take away the hurt as he had helped do for her.

i missed this i fail

tachyon.

the man's absence had not gone unnoticed -- nay, his daughter asked daily after the man, and the druid himself had ranged along the coastline, searching for the slimly built creature. but his observations had turned up nothing, and dejectedly he returned home each day, empty before the grieving eyes of his palest witch.

the call that rose halted the man in his very steps; his breath was taken sharply, surprise riddling his features. and yet he dashed there straightaway, to see a wounded tachyon assailed affectionately by reserved emaleth and the dotage of deirdre. "yes, my sweets," lasher murmured to his little pair. "fetch eilidh here and clean his wounds. tachyon," taltos went on, gesturing that the man might step again into his home, his eyes fraught with worry. "what has happened?"

he smelled of the sea -- and of the priestess, but lasher's mind shied from this fact. surely she had not attacked one of his own.

tachyon remained in a pathetic huddle, his gaze refusing to meet the wolf that first greeted him out of shame. emaleth. the shadow-cast youth was alarmed, but tachyon afforded a small smile when he heard how properly she addressed him. "well enough," he tried to smile encouragingly, though his facade seemed to crumble when her sibling came upon the scene. it did him great harm to witness the worry in deirdre's expression; the panic in her gaze -- tachyon wanted to sink into the ground then and disappear forever. he tried to extend his muzzle in a soft kiss as she fussed over him, though he still felt weak from his endeavors. "it won't hurt." he assured her, though it was a bald-faced lie. when lasher followed he felt his shame sting him anew and he cast his head to the ground in compunction, knowing what was about to be told would likely cause a rift in the alpha's heart. "i found her..." he didn't elaborate, for he knew lasher would know -- "but she is captive. i tried to bring her back here but was attacked." he groaned as he shifted his leg, his ears cast to the side of his skull in defeat. "it was my fault.. i let you down and let my foolish temptations get in the way of my true family." he looked in every way like some sodden, beaten dog: "i'm sorry."

found her. lasher felt he knew of what tachyon spoke. thunder gathered in the gaze of the normally placid druid -- he began to pace before the wounded man, silent and grim. there could be no denying now what had occurred -- tachyon had trespassed and the seawitch had attacked him, but he had trespassed for good reason. he felt as though he must talk to the woman now, but reserved that for another time -- how had caiaphas grown so cruel that she would all but cripple one of his own?

he could not even speak of it, and so remained dark in his quietude.

posting out of turn, i'd like to wrap this up if that is okay!

his gaze remained resolutely on the ground. he could not bear to look at lasher, not if it meant coming face to face with his betrayal to the donnelaith clan. while he had encountered lusca on neutral territory, it had done nothing to dissuade the icy salt queen from reclaiming her captive. "i'm sorry," he issued feebly -- and with a dull whimper tachyon said nothing further.

In the future, you're always welcome to private message me, even if it's just to ask if you can skip me. My last post, though, because lack of order confuses me and Emaleth is off to find Eilidh, anyway!

It was unlike Deirdre to command her so, but while it startled the dark child, it did not rankle her; she bowed her head and began to move, even as their dear father approached and commanded her so. Emaleth caught the ragged man's words, though she did not understand their meaning— who was she? But she was compelled to obey both her littermate and father, and could not stay to learn more. She sprang through the forest of Donnelaith, making her way to the healer's den within its heart, where she knew she was likely to find @Eilidh.

last post from me unless another is necessary!

deirdre would never tell her sister to do a thing, as emaleth would not to her, unless it was of the utmost importance to either of them. they had a balanced relationship, and lingered beside one another in a pleasant equilibrium. but the devastation of seeing tachyon wounded had frazzled her mind, and the urgency it provoked in her prompted her to do as she would. was this life or death? she did not know, but the way her heart raced she thought it to be so! emaleth waited no more, and tachyon enabled her to fuss over his wounds. she did so with the gentleness that befitted one her age, and the nervousness that surrounded her. her tongue was soft as it lurked around the raw edges of the wound. she knew nothing of temptations, or of who the 'her' was tachyon spoke of; she was innocent enough to think nothing at all of his interlude away, though she wondered if it was the monster-woman he spoke of for a brief moment. surely not! he would not bring the ogre here to return, this she knew for certain.

she was quiet as she continued to clean his wound, gentle and attentive.

wrapping up! <3

they were all silent -- emaleth heeded her father and ran off to find her elder sister, while deirdre quietly cleansed tachyon's wounds. lasher glowered toward the sea, toward the priestess' lair, until he paused and turned to the wounded man. "rest and eat; i shall seek you out in a few days' time and we shall speak then." with that, taltos turned and left the pair, stalking toward the borders in a fit of ire and confusion at the actions of his seeming companion.

Quick post from me.

Emaleth came to her with news of Tachyon, and the pale healer followed her sister to the site. Her heart ached and raged inside her equally. Why had he left without a word goodbye? Did he care for her the way she did for him? Eilidh refused to dwell on that question for very long, and pushed all thoughts to the back of her mind when Tachyon came into view. Deirdre was already tending to him, and she swept into the mix with a heart-felt whine. Which is worst? she asked softly, indicating his wounds. She saw that they were all relatively superficial, but if not treated or cleaned properly, could become threatening. Eilidh waited for his reply before leaving to find the herbs she needed to heal him.

i'll archive! thanks for threading with me!! <3 @Eilidh if you need one more post or s/t for this to count towards caregiver let me know and i can pull it out of archives again!

tachyon was consumed by his guilt, but not so much that he did not catch the anger that simmered beneath lasher's gaze. wrongly, he thought it directed at him and looked away, his gaze tracing emaleth as she bid silently for the den. when lasher turned to him it was not in the tone he expected; tachyon's ears folded in subservience and he replied with a silent nod. with hesitation he rose as deirdre was besides him, wondering if it would serve them all better if he made for the den. he was just about to move off when he saw eilidh approach -- for a moment, life returned to his features in a warm flush, though he felt shame too for straying from her. gingerly he lifted the hind leg that had been assailed and smiled sheepishly: "this one." with a gentle nudge to both deirdre and eilidh he would limp off towards the den for them to attend him in a setting more befitting of them all.