Bearclaw Valley We started livin’ in an old house

Not tagging this as joining cause I’m not sure if he’d be joining again only because I’m not sure how much muse I have for him rn. He might wander off and eat ppl for the time being. Just wanted him to come say hi again lol!

@Merrick @Astara 

The beast had lost his mind. Is still losing his mind. He’d wondered off from his temporary home without even knowing where the hell he went. He didn’t even remember leaving. His mind is in a haze — its so horribly foggy — and it causes him to twitch and snarl for no apparent reason. 

With what little sanity has has left, he stumbles back to what he had called home. The coy wolf, Merrick, had graciously allowed him refuge and he squandered it. He wants his humans back but he knows he will never be able to see them again. Not like this.

So unsteadily he goes, waltzing back up to their borders. His form sways and he shakes his body off. Scrapes litter his form and a patch of fur is missing where he chewed it from his forearm. His eyes blink more than they should and his already drooping lips are dropped into a frown. His head hurts and he might just be dying. What’s wrong with him? Whatever healed him made him sick. It’s taking over his mind, soul, and body — driving him mad.

Tilting his massive head up he releases a short series of distinctly dog like howls. They drip with pain and anguish. Someone please fix him. Someone please stop this madness that swirls inside of him.

"you've come back."
the voice of merrick was pleased. he prowled out of the snow to examine the great quivering mass of pained fur and flesh at his borders. "bishop." ironic that he had once thought that aventus could learn from the man. now look what his son had become. 
he was unmoved by the way that the man cried, but he knew bishop, and so pressed dangerously close to the heavy jaws, seeking the hybrid's face with his one knowing eye.
"what happened to you?"

Through his occasionally blurry vision he can see the king of this valley come forth. His steps careful, as they should be. Bishop is unstable, so mentally ruin that he can’t quite wrap it around his paw himself. And it’s all because of those people who tried taking him away from his family. It’s because whatever fixed day old, life threatening wounds into healed scars is driving him insane. 

He see the other and his shoulders sag, while somehow tensing up all together. A fraud he might hurt the man who had allowed him into his home even though he was a clueless stranger. Yet, even though Merrick can tell there’s something wrong, he presses horribly close. It has Solomon backing up just a few inches of only for the coy wolf’s well being. He never knows when he’ll go into a fit of rage he’s been so prone to these last few months. 

“Don't come too close.” He warns softly, wearily.

The mastiff mix groans as if he’s in pain at the alpha’s searching question. He is in pain. His head constantly hurts and his muscles are sore from how much he’s traveled lately. 

“I- I don’t know.” He grumbles out. “Or... I might. I know there’s something wrong.” His deep voice sounds almost strained as he locks pale eyes with the others. “Whatever healed me — whatever stopped me from dying is rotting my mind and taking over my body. I don’t... I can’t control what I do sometimes.” He hums somberly down to the other male. 

He’s not blind to what the symptoms sound like. It could be a possible case of rabies, but he’s seen rabies before and this isn’t it. It’s something ethereal, some type of dark magic or curse.

but he was already close, tip tip tapping toward those massive jaws; merrick sought to ingratiate himself into the vision of the sickened beast. but when bishop pulled away, so did the bearwolf. seeking one-eyed gaze lifted toward the broad tormented face.
a demon caught in the thick flesh. something that clawed at beautiful brutal bishop from the inside.
tormented, trembling; merrick licked his dry jaws and thought of the physician.
"evien is gone." he did not know if the man would know the hallowed name.
breath huddling in his throat;
"is death what you want, bishop?" seeking to hold and gleam and tantalize, for this man needed salvation and merrick needed blood.

Bishop watches Merrick carefully, sure not to ease closer to the coy wolf despite his desired friendliness. He’s always seen the bear king as a man of great honor for allowing him to join his pack when he was weak and injured. He still wants to be in his pack but he’s afraid of what it might Bishop himself or Ursus as a whole. What if he ended up accidentally injuring or killing one of Merrick’s cherished pack mates. Or even worse one of his children. He doesn’t desire to make an enemy of the Coy-wolf, staying away is his best option. The termoil rushing through Bishops mind like a rumbling waterfall is too obvious as he looks upon the leader of Ursus. 

Evien is gone. He says then. Bishop’s eyes flicker with sorrow for the high ranking medic he never got to truly know. He blames the disease that clutches at his being for not being able to. He would’ve liked to, he seemed nice. Maybe he could’ve helped him cull whatever is wrong with him from his battered body. 

He wants to ask what happened, but Merrick is asking him a very important question. One that makes his cropped ears twitch unnaturally. No. He doesn’t. Whatever is inside of him does — horribly so.

Bishop whines, a high pitched noise in the back of his throat. A spotted tongue licks at his lips nervously. The twitch of his ears makes him nervous. It’s subtle signs at first. Then they get more obvious before he goes into whatever state he’s in that desires blood.

“No. I don’t, but it does.” He states lowly. “What do I do?” He asks almost desperately. “I can’t stay here and risk killing one of you in cold blood.” He shakes his head. “What do I do?” He asks again when his ears twitch again.

"well," merrick mused before he lapsed into silence. if what bishop said was true, then he himself was in danger, so close. a blink of single eye closed the coywolf's features for a moment; he sighed and tilted his head to one side, ragged ears angled softly toward his companion. 
the twitch of the auds upon his friend's head at last drove the canny bearking back; bishop was damned, and merrick did not know how to help him. but neither would he pull away, nor run away; he only padded at a distance from the heavy jaws. "go into the mountains," he urged, indicating the smudge of grey upon the horizon. "learn to be alone until you know what it is to be whole again."
the words, somehow, torturous to say.

Bishop watches the scarred male for a few moments with great anticipation. His glacial eyes are intense like Merrick has the power to solve this mess. He doesn’t though and that’s the worst part. He wants Merrick to just fix him, but he knows he can’t — no one can. 

Then Merrick is flicking that single eyed stare up to his twitching ears. He’s moving back and Bishop is glad that he is. Just in case. Not that he doesn’t want to be close to the bear king, but he just doesn’t want to hurt him. Besides, he’s sure the coy would be able to run from him anyway if push really did come to shove. Still, unintentionally, the gesture hurts — it’s necessary though and they both know it.

So his short cropped ears flick backwards in shame, but he keeps his eyes on Merrick as he speaks. His words cut just as deep as the knife that stabbed him — as the bullets that pierced his pelt and shredded his muscle. Yet, again, he knows  it’s necessary. Merrick has given him a purpose — a mission — and once he completes it, he would come back to them.

He nods his giant head once. “I will do as you command.” He rumbles back softly. He’s a mutt anyway, he’s meant to follow orders. “Perhaps it will help me.” Then he pauses. “May I come back? If I get better?” It’s almost a plea. He wants to know he still has a home somewhere at least.

bishop, — what might have been. what might still be. "come back to me," the snakewolf purled, the single eye searching the flat hard planes of the tormented face. the stricken nature of the ice-wound eyes was a fault that belonged to him, but he would learn to bear this. ursus' king saw no reason to lie or to dissuade. bishop knew the truth of what was happening to him.
"the bear spirits who live in this place. seek them. ask for their guidance. they —" breathless "— they will ask something of you in return. blood."
the remaining eye glittered.
"if you are able to provide them that, then i believe you will be cured. and then you come back."
ursus was a home to the devout. if bishop could not be freed of this malady, let him use it in the service of the holy bruin.

Fade here if you’re down ;>

Come back to me. The words make Bishop whine. Anxiety making his heart beat faster as well as admiration. This man is a strong leader and Bishop can see the respect he holds for his broken self. He desires for Solomon to find the help he needs in order to come back to him — to come back to the pack. Bishop will do this. 

So at Merrick’s last words Bishop nods, a look of saddened determination in his steely blue eyes. “I will do this. I will be back.” His deep voice murmurs back. 

With nothing but a last dip of his head in respect to his leader, head level with his massive shoulders, he moves along. Turning around to head close to the mountains. That is where he will find salvation. He will be back.