Redhawk Caldera She's got an appetite for lightin' dynamite

Family thread! Stevie, I know you're on absence, so take your time replying to this -- just wanted to start something to keep the timeline moving! <3 If any of this isn't okay, just PM me and let me know! @Finley @Elwood Jr

In the days following Finley's rescue, Elwood had scarcely left her side. He completely forfeited his duties as Beta, gamekeeper, and warden, knowing that his packmates -- particularly Peregrine and Fox -- would take up for him while he nursed his mate back to health. Raven was a constant presence, coming and going frequently as she tended to Finley's wounds, and he was thankful for her help.

The events that had transpired had been overwhelming for Elwood, and he suspected that it had been even moreso for Eljay. He did his best to try to explain everything to his son, and even tried to send the boy on a couple of errands with Raven -- although Eljay sometimes refused to be away from his mother. He didn't push the issue, knowing that the weeks spent without Finley had been traumatic for the youth.

Presently, Elwood was laying just outside of the den, soaking up the autumn sunlight while giving Finley some space. He glanced over his shoulder frequently, peering into the shadows where she lay as though afraid she would disappear. Although her recovery would be a long and rocky road, he knew that she wouldn't be going anywhere for a long while, and that thought both comforted and bothered him. He frowned thoughtfully as he gnawed at an itchy spot on his right foreleg, one ear tilted back towards the burrow as he listened for any movement from within.

Eljay was rarely from either — or preferably both — of his parents' side these days. He had kicked and screamed when forced apart from mommy before, but now the youth kicked and screamed when either of his parents wanted to leave his side. He feared that leaving them out of his sight would make them disappear forever, and so mommy and daddy ideally were both by his side all the time.

Of course in practise, this was not always a doable feat. If anything, at the least the boy was more undertaking these days, for he wanted to follow his parents everywhere, even if it was far away from the den, even if it was a little scary. Being somewhere scary with his parents was better than being alone at the den. Eljay would often follow daddy when he would go get something to eat, hunt, or do whatever; mommy was hurt and tended to stick around the den, so Eljay had a little more faith that she'd still be there when he and daddy returned.

Today he lay by mommy's side, but he had his face turned towards daddy so that he could keep an eye on both of them. Eljay vigilantly watched both his parents to make sure neither took off or, even worse, left him with Raven. Raven was nice, but she wasn't mommy and daddy, and he didn't want to run the risk of losing either or both parents while they were out.

The beta had spent much of the time since her homecoming resting away the pain and soreness in her bruised and battered body. She was worn and broken, and though she had been very well tended by her mate and goddaughter, the exhaustion seemed to have seeped deep down into the marrow of her bones. Fin felt as though she had somehow aged beyond her years. As much as she slept, she didn't feel rested. It was as though the entire time since she had left had just been one long, hazy day. And it still hadn't ended somehow even though she was home and safe again where everything should have felt like normal.

But it didn't. Thought it made her heart happy to be reunited with her precious son, Eljay had grown more clingy than ever. Though it was adorable and endearing to the weary mom, there was a tightness in her chest that clenched uncomfortably every time his little voice called her name and often she found it preferable to just pretend to be asleep rather than suffer the guilt that came with the inexplicable anxiety she felt when Jay made a request of her.

Fin actually had managed to doze off for a little while that day instead of merely pretending for the sake of her oddly off-kilter sanity. She awoke to find Eljay snuggled against her and she smiled fondly down at him in spite of the knot in her stomach. The boys gaze was trained upon Elwood who was lying just outside, poised protectively and also rather stiffly like a statue, so Fin leaned over to nuzzle his head to get his attention. 

"Hey.." She whispered quietly into Jay's little ear, "Go tell your dad he looks too serious." She gave him a tired smile, her gaze flickering to her mate to see if he had overheard.

Elwood gazed into the distance, his mind wandering. He wondered when Raven would be stopping by again and imagined it would be sooner rather than later. Although his right ear was directed back towards the den, he was unable to hear Finley whispering to Eljay. He did look back at them a moment later, though, just by chance, and smiled when he saw that she was awake and that there was a ghost of a smile on her lips.

His tail stirred behind him with a rustle of dry grass but he did not get up or speak, instead looking outward once more.

The stalwart guardian kept a close eye on daddy, wanting to make sure that both his parents weren't going anywhere. When mommy rustled slightly, Eljay was quick to pick up on her awake status and ears canted back. When mommy spoke, Eljay lifted his head to look at her and listen to what she had to say. She was smiling, and Eljay smiled back at her, his tail wiggling a little because he was just glad that she was back home. He was never ever never gonna let her out of his sight again. Well, okay, maybe just not for more than a little while.

Eljay got up, looking back at mommy as though to make sure she was still there, and he started to trot on over to daddy. "Mommy says you gotta smile," he instructed daddy, interpreting mommy's message his own way. Eljay looked over his shoulder again, not wanting to let mommy get out of his sight while he talked to daddy, so he made sure once every couple of seconds that she was still where he'd left her.

Elwood turned after she spoke and instinctively, she turned her face slightly away.  Eljay obliged his mother's instructions and trotted steadily towards his father.  Fin watched to see how her mate reacted.  Her smile had faded though, and instead she felt the melancholy creeping back in with each backwards glance her son nervously gave her.

She had hoped that some time away would have helped her little boy grow more independent.  In hindsight, it had been one of Finley's dumber moves.  Of course it hadn't worked.  It maybe would have backfired less had she actually returned when she had said she would, but she had no doubt now that it would have still been somewhat traumatizing to the child.  To Fin, it was just even more proof that she was a terrible mom.

There was soon a presence at Elwood's shoulder, and he looked back to see Eljay standing there. Just the sight of his son brought a smile to the Beta's face. He looked older than he acted -- long legs, large paws, and oversized ears were the trademarks of growing up, but he was still very much a child. "Mommy says you gotta smile," Eljay instructed him, and Elwood's gaze slipped past the grey-furred youth to land on his mate's shadowed face.

It was easier said than done, especially since he hadn't seen a real smile touch Finley's face since before she left. She tried these days, but it never quite reached her eyes. Even now, her expression was pensive and dark, and she carefully kept the injured side of her facade hidden from view.

Elwood looked back at Eljay, the corners of his lips pulling upward ever so slightly. "You gotta smile, too," he quipped, reaching out with a forepaw to poke at Eljay's ribs. In the back of his mind, he wondered how long they would all go on pretending that everything was okay.

this entire thread is so beautiful yet heartbreaking.

The feelings of his parents weighed heavily upon Eljay's shoulders. It was like he was constantly trying to dam them, stopping them from pouring out; out of him or out of them. Even as he wandered over to his father and daddy put a smile on his face, a mask to show mommy that everything was okay, to show Eljay that everything was okay, it was evident how very not okay things were. Eljay wondered if it was because of him that they felt the way they did, if he had done something wrong somehow.

Daddy said he had to smile, too, and Eljay forced a smile on his face. He looked over his shoulder then, smiling at mommy alongside daddy, even if it was all just empty gestures without the matching emotions.

 I agree so so much ;__;  Last post for me <3 I'm sure we shall has new soon! 

Elwood encouraged his son to smile as well as he put on the ghost of one himself.  It broke her heart to see it, and for a moment, she felt as though she were going to collapse under the weight of her pain.  She swallowed hard and took a steadying breath, forcing herself to think of how cute they both were, sitting together, smiling at her - her love and his little doppleganger.  Her family.

Whom she had tried to abandon.

Swallowing the lump in her throat, Fin laid her head back down and gave them a soft smile back before allowing her eyes to flutter closed.  She curled up into a ball and tucked her muzzle against her side.  She knew that sleep wouldn't come and if it did, it would be tormented with guilt-ridden nightmares.  Even so, it was the only escape she could hope for, and so she pursued it, even though that hope was barely even a whisper in the dark of her heart.

Iris, you can post once more if you want and then I'll archive this! Thanks for the thread, lovelies. <3

Eljay grinned on command, but it was forced. Elwood hated to see that, but did the boy really have much choice? The weight of his parents' emotions were likely pulling him down; all three of them were in the same boat, and it was sinking fast. As he looked back at Finley, he watched as she curled herself into a tight ball, presumably going to sleep. He didn't realize that she spent much of her time pretending to rest when she was really fully awake.

He sighed softly, then glanced at Eljay. "Go lay back down with Mama," he said, then turned his gaze outward once more. He lowered his chin to his forepaws, silently and diligently keeping watch over his broken little family.

Daddy told him to go lay down again with mommy, and Eljay obliged. He hobbled back towards mommy, who had already curled up by that time to catch some more sleep. She had been so tired since she had returned home. Eljay wanted mommy to get better, so he let her sleep most of the time (unless sometimes when daddy was out and he was having a panic attack). Eljay wandered over to mommy's side and lay down with a little sigh. He settled by her side in the same spot as before, touching mommy's fur and watching daddy to make sure that neither of them were going anywhere.