Witch's Marsh Running with blood on my paws

@Grayday I hope the location is okay? :)

Sorrel had seen it happen, the tragic fall of her mother. And the young pup was unable to get the horrific scene out from her head as it replayed over and over in her mind. A soft whimper erupted from her tiny muzzle as she ran through the lands, small ears pinned to her skull as the she recalled the unforgettable sound of her mother's body hitting the ground. She ran blindly, her eyes tightly shut as tears streamed down her cheeks. Sorrel had no idea of where her petite paws were even taking her, but she had to run. She had to get away. Away from the glacier and away from lifeless corpse that was her mother. And soon, the others would find her there, laid out in a grotesque fashion, mutilated on the floor. What would her father say? Even worse, what would Kieran say? They could never know that she had been the cause of Eden's demise.

Small paws ached, her leathery pads becoming sore from the ceaseless running till Sorrel finally came to a halt, her wet eyes stinging from the cold air as a bitter breeze swept through the land, hitting her face. Quietly, the girl peered around through blurred eyes, observing the hideous landscape that she now found herself in and couldn't help but let out frightened whine. Gradually, the girl hid herself amongst some long-grass, located to one side of the marshes. Panic had taken over the girl when she finally realised that she had no idea where she was, or how far she had even ran for that matter. She sunk into the coverage of the small foliage, blue eyes peering out across the land as she shuddered in the cold. She was frightened and alone.

Perfect!

Day scrabbled his nails against the icy ground and then leaned down to sniff the marks left behind. There was a scent here that reminded him of Doe Cairn, strangely, and after a few seconds of reflection, he remembered meeting her in that swamp. There was a similar scent of mud and decay to this place, along with traces of an aging female. Her smell was all over the place, and - after taking a moment to wonder about his old friend and how she was doing - Grayday decided to get out of there.

On his mental map of the area, he marked down this marshland as a possible place to take the kids when the world began to thaw. There'd probably be frogs here, and he thought Sunny in particular would enjoy trying to hunt them down. Hopefully, the presence of the aging woman will have passed by then. Day was a little wary of strangers, lately.

He turned and began to pad back the way he'd come, knowing that his children would be missing him, but paused when a new scent wafted toward him on the chilly breeze. Turning his head, the weather-beaten male scanned his surroundings, ears perked and nostrils flaring. There was the scent of a child where there had not been one before, and Day stood rooted for a moment, wondering if it was a scent worth investigating. Where there were children, there were probably protective mothers nearby, but Day had seen much since coming to these lands, and he couldn't help the ugly thought that came to mind: What if there isn't?

It shouldn't matter, he argued back. After all, his kids could be out there and he'd left them to fend for themselves. Not Sunny and Dawn, but the nameless seed that he'd lost to that nameless woman. If he didn't care about them, why should he care about someone else's child?

But no matter how he argued with himself, his paws still dragged him toward the source of the smell. His eyes were not strong enough to pick her form out of the brush, but his nose and his ears were working just fine. He could smell fear and exhaustion, could hear the sharp sounds of her breaths, could almost feel the trembling of her body.

"Are you alright, little darlin'?" he called, his voice soft and cajoling. "I won't hurt you. Where's your ma, huh?"

Crouching low, Day crawled toward the source of the frightened sounds, still not exactly sure where the child was hiding.

Small paws covered her head as she whimpered softly, the pup's scarred mind unable to think about anything else but her mother's tragic fall. A stuttered cry escaped her little muzzle as she gasped for breath through each snivel, the girl's light brown ears remained stuck to her head as she tried to stop her loudening cries by placing her paws over her muzzle, trying desperately to muffle her whines from the world. But Sorrel's efforts were in vain as another whimper slipped her from her mouth. Why did she have to be so careless? Why did she play so close to the Glacier's ledge? All she seem to do was cause trouble and heartache and Sorrel couldn't help but think, that maybe, her family was better off without her.

Sorrel's tiny brown form continued to shiver in the cold as she remained huddled within the grass, though her ears soon perked from her skull as the sudden sound of a voice caught her attention, pulling her from the depths of her own self-pity. Sorrel hadn't heard the paw-steps of the male approaching, nor had she picked up his scent through her cowering, but his voice appeared friendly and so the girl slowly, but cautiously poked her head out from the thicket, allowing a stammered squeak to escape her, ”N-n-no.” She mustered as her light blue eyes peered up at the silver male as he crouched down to her level and gradually began to crawl toward her. Her eyes closed tightly as she thought of what to tell him about her mother, another little whine escaping her as she thought back to the traumatic event, ”S-she's g-gone.” Sorrel replied, her head dropping to her paws as fresh tears began to fall from her eyes.

A fuzzy brown face poked itself out of the brambles nearby. The little girl - not much older than his own - was trembling like a blade of grass. Day's heart went out to her at once, especially hearing that her mother was 'gone'. Amber disappearing act still on his mind, Day took her words as 'left' rather than 'dead'.

"I'm sorry to hear that," he said softly, hesitating. Day thought of hisomething children, waiting for him at home. His warm den, Addie's green eyes. He had to get home, but he just couldn't leave this little girl all alone.

"Are you lost, sweetheart? Do you need help getting home?" he asked reluctantly. He didn't want to go any further today, but if he needed to in order to help the child, he'd do it in a heartbeat.

In the back of his mind, he began to think guiltily of the unnamed woman from the mountains.

sorry it's short :/

Sorrel's head dropped at the sound of his apology, the girl's eyes tightening shut as she tried to force back the tears. She should be the one apologising, it was all her fault after all. There was no changing what she had done, there was no going back to the Glacier, back to her family, to Kieran.

Her head lifted as she listened to the male's questions, her small head shaking as she responded, ”I can't.. go... home.” She stuttered, head falling into her paws as she covered her eyes, her small body quivering as she whimpered softly, ”Mama...she...” The girl stopped, not wanting to finish the sentence as she scrunched her body up tightly, before forcing the final word from her muzzle, ”.....died.” Sorrel cried, sinking lower into the grass as she thought back to the haunting incident.

He wasn't sure what emotion churned through his belly at her words. Pity was chief among them, but there were undercurrents of guilt about the unnamed woman, and worry about what Steady would say to yet another pup that wasn't his own.

And he realized then that he meant to keep her, because what else could he do?

"I'm so sorry, sweetheart," he said, but the words didn't carry the weight they should have. There was too much going on in his own mind. "Well... I'm not letting you stay here alone. Let's go," he murmured, his voice soft but unyielding. He stepped back and straightened up, waiting for her to follow.

Sorrel shook her head at his words, he hadn't the need to apologies, for it wasn't the stranger's fault. The fault was hers. And knowing this, Sorrel hid her face deeper into her paws, the sound of muffled sobs escaping her as she continued to cry. The girl gradually came to the conclusion that she was nothing but trouble, having already gone missing once and then upon her return, she had gone and destroyed her family. Sorrel couldn't bring herself to imagine what Kieran was going through back at the glacier, the pain he felt through loosing not only his mother, but his sister too.

Shuddering in the grass, the girl lifted her small head from her paws, small ears listening to the man as he spoke. Gradually, Sorrel peered up, pale blue eyes watching as the stranger carefully stood from being crouched, ”W-w-what?” She questioned softly. Sorrel had heard him, but his words didn't quite register and she wondered if she had heard his right. Slowly, the girl tilted her head to the side, watery eyes observing the silver male as she moved within the foliage, her small form cautiously crawling out from the brush, ”Y-you want me t-to follow y-you?”

Day gave a gentle whisk of his tail. "I do," he replied. "It's getting late - I need to get home to my pack, and I'm taking you with me. The wilds are no place for a young girl all alone."

He didn't have time to sit and cajole her; he had his own kids waiting back at the den. Krypton was probably sick of them already, though - bless her - the woman would never let on. Dawn was fine on her own, but Sunny could be a nightmare when he missed his dad. And Sunny always missed him.

"What's your name, sweetheart?" he asked, realizing that he hadn't gotten it yet. "I'm Grayday - I've got a daughter just your age called Dawn. She's real nice. Do you want to meet her?"

A singular ear rose from her head as the silver male responded, her watery blue eyes peering up at him as he went on to explain that it was getting late and that he needed to get home. Home. Something Sorrel didn't have now and her eyes slowly glanced up toward the darkening sky, realizing that he was right and night was gradually creeping upon them, Sorrel - not being a fan of the dark, let out a soft whimper. She could feel her body wanting to shrink back into a ball within the grass at the thought of being alone in the dead of night, but her tiny paws continued to force her closer toward the towering male until she was practically tucked away, safely underneath him.

"I-I'm S-Sorrel.” The girl said as she gradually poked her head out, tail giving a light wag behind her as the male began to tell her that he had a daughter the same age as her at home and that she was also really nice. Now, knowing this, Sorrel gave her petite head a nod and offered a small smile as she slowly emerged out from underneath the male, ”Dawn.” She repeated, finding the name to rather pretty, though her smile slowly faded as she thought back to her brother. Her eyes closed as she let out a sigh, though her blue gaze soon returned to the male, ”I'd like to meet her.” Sorrel replied, offering a weak smile as she then quietly stared out across the marsh.

He really was a sucker for the needy. Day could already feel a deep well of protectiveness (borderline possessiveness) drilling into his chest, right alongside the wells already constructed for his children and Adeline. "C'mon then, darlin'," he said, his heart nearly breaking for the girl when she tried to shelter underneath him. She clearly needed a champion right then, and though Day would have loved to allow her time to draw strength, he knew that it was more important to reach safety first.

So he turned toward home, moving slowly so that the girl - Sorrel - could continue to walk beside him without trouble. She was probably tired - so was Day - and he worried that she wouldn't make it to the borders. But he'd carry her if she faded, and the'd rest if the need arose. "Everything's gonna be okay," he murmured, hoping that he wasn't making himself into a liar.