Neverwinter Forest Then all at once she understood,

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It had been some time since Miriam attempt. She still remembered staring down at the red, and her paw moving without a thought before injesting the substance. Everything seemed but a blurr, as she starred teary-eyed down toward it so, and motioned it toward her mouth before resting to what would be, an enternal slumber.

Though her stomach was pushed and prodded, and did her blurry gaze see but the saviors would be. It seemed the Goddess, had desired her to live so; but Miriam always thought, did she deserve so? 

She layed in the den, skinnier by the days and mangled in fur, occasionally with @Caerus, stopping by to check up. She felt a more natural trust to the smaller one, then the other healer, and mother of the Neverwinter. Sometimes it felt if she were to step out, there was eyes of judgement that the maiden was not willing to face.

And so, she wasted away in the den.

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The transmission of information had been slow and quiet, but Jackalope had eventually learned that one of his packmates had become quite ill; and while he knew next to nothing about her condition, he did remember the woman, though he'd never thought much of her considering the way they'd met. Still; when he heard there was concern about her well-being, he rolled his eyes, and left the forest to hunt out in the open- just far enough from the newly claimed Glen to be safe- and brought home a rabbit. If nothing else, it could at least be said that he'd done one kind gesture for a packmate.

This Miriam wolf was perhaps the one woman in the pack (aside from his sister, naturally) that he hadn't tried to woo, if nothing else than simply because of the foolish grudge he harboured against her for taking that brat Caerus' side after the psychopathic child nearly drowned him in the river. So, he thought her gullible and weak in constitution, and naive enough to believe a child's lies as Caerus had attempted successfully to cover up his attempted murder. He'd avoided the both of them- both the piebald child and the lilac-tinted female, but now he figured he might as well try to be a decent packmate, and bring something for her.

The rabbit fell out of his mouth when he caught sight of her within the den he'd been directed to. Skin and bones and dry, dull fur, and he took a step back, inhaling sharply to see if there was any trace of disease that hung about her. And while he could smell nothing that might be of concern to him, he could tell easily that something was eating away at her, probably from the inside. He tried his best to relax, though the fur down his spine still bristled slightly as he moved forward and nudged the rabbit up to her mussle with his snout. “Here.” He grunted, and sat down. “Eat.”

She held faint memories of the man, who Caerus claimed to fall in the waters. He claimed him to be a devil of sorts, but as the other never lied nor' seemed like a troublemaker, she easily believed into the child. Sad to say even today, she does know the truth of Caerus's rather daredevil nature, especially since he did save her life, regardless if Miriam asked or not.

Inside she faintly blessed him, but also scorned the factor.

The Goddess truly said it wasn't her time, and she could only accept the fact... And waste away.

When the man entered near her den, she faintly opened silver eyes to him so, and only shook her head. She did not feel hungry, only tired, and wanting to sleep the days away, to the point even her body, was becoming no more.

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She looked up at him, but he couldn't even tell if she recognized him, so vague and distant was her gaze. She did seem to understand that he wanted her to eat, but she simply shook her head with the greatest of efforts, and set her chin back down upon the ground. He breathed in a deep sigh, the air whistling through his damaged nasal cavity, and he growled softly. He didn't like it when other wolves were miserable. He was supposed to be the miser of the pack.

So he sank down to the ground and pulled the rabbit toward himself, propping it between his forepaws so that he could begin pulling the fluff out of it in clumps. Seeing no reason to waste it, he stuff whatever fluff he pulled off the rabbit in and around Miriam's shoulders and gentle prodding motions, so that she might shift herself later and find something more comfortable to rest her bony frame upon. By this time of the year, the rabbit's fur was both beige and white- speckled; an indication that the seasons were changing.

Once he'd plucked a fair amount of fur from its sides and belly he tore into it, spilling its innards out across his forelegs, and licked clean some of the blood. He was hungry, but this wasn't for him. He was tempted to pull a 'one bite for you, two bites for me' trick, but Miriam was clearly in need of more nourishment than he was. So he began to tear off small, bite-sized pieces, and once he had a couple of them, he picked up the smallest of them and lay it on the ground right in front of her nose so that she might even feel the warmth of it. “Eat.”

Any bedding she once had was worn thin and gone, riffled into the dirt of her den, and grossly upon what was once a silky, silver fur. She was like a mangy coyote, there was no cleaniness nor' food she would take, and only continued staying still, eyes but closed in peace as she breathed in, and out, in and out.. All in a peace.

Though even her rejection he didn't leave, and Miriam opened her eyes to the look of him tearing but the rabbit apart, fur and all it's glory. She questioned to the factor of now she dressed of a rabbit's fur, pleasantry but small, for a coat was not enough for a wolf, even if she was but average. It was a nice gesture-

"may the Goddess bless you.." she gently said, as her eyes closed once more.

Though she could not ignore the factor of the blood that now hung in the air, and the meat that swarmed her nose. Once more, did he command so, and once more, she only brushed it back with nose, and shook her head. She didn't want to eat, the feeling never came.. She didn't feel it was deserving.

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She said something that made Jackalope nearly want to hiss. A goddess? He'd met religious types before, and he'd never cared for them. He felt they believed in things so that they could take the responsibility for their own lives and fates off their own shoulders, when he firmly believed that everything he did had consequences that were either directly a result of his actions, or some kind of coincidence. He didn't take the blessing well, but he didn't say much to it, either. He didn't feel like he was the sort that any Goddess could bless, anyway.

She nudged the food away and he growled softly, and moved it back, nudging it against her lips. “If you just let yourself starve to death, you're never gonna meet that Goddess of yours,” He threatened. He had no idea what she believed- but from what he'd learned in his travels, there were two paths that a wolf could go down after death, so he blindly assumed this applied to most religions. “Murderers and cowards go to the Hellhound. Now eat.”

Miriam wasn't aware of her status, she didn't realize how scrawny she was, only the fact she felt simply weak and tired. There was no water mirror, only the occasional trip to take a parch but didn't even take time to see what she looked of, before slippering back down into her misery of a den. 

"I don't feel hungry," she muttered with a low breathe, once more opening her silver gaze toward his. He even growled softly upon insisting she ate, and it reminded her of another warrior that did the same. Neverwinter was truly a kind place, perhaps dipped in both the light and the dark.. She wasn't sure what it could be, only a gray disaster.

"Do you believe in a God?" She said weakly.

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She was likely so starved that she was delusional. At least she was conscious, or partially so- but whatever it was that kept her going, it wouldn't keep her going much longer if she didn't eat. If she truly had no apetite, then he figured she might have been beyond his help; either that, or whatever malady it was that she had was simply telling her brain that she wasn't hungry, the same way the white-plague would make a wolf fear and loathe the water. Something was wrong with her- but avoiding food was not going to make her better.

She asked him about his beliefs but he wasn't in the mood to make up a story just to please her. Nor was he interested in getting into a discussion about her beliefs, because he'd just fall asleep and that wouldn't help her any. With his luck, she'd probably die while he slept there, and then he'd be found with her body and yet again- no one would believe him when he told them what had actually happened.

“Look, lady,” He said. “You don't eat, you die. I don't care if you feel like you just ate an entire elk- you look like you haven't eaten in weeks so you need to eat.” He said. “As soon as you do, you'll realize how fucking starving you really are so just do me one fucking favour,” He said, and shoved the piece of meat up against her lips again, a bit more roughly this time. “And eat the goddamn meat.”

She knew he was right, that the way her mind was fooling the body. Despite not feeling so as days go by so had her strength, and she was nothing but skin and bones. As a pack wolf and a  mother it was a pitiful sight indeed, as she was once a lovely silver wolf, young and prepped for the world ahead, and instead was now a mother who lost one child, and the other was going through a rebellious phase. Then in the end- she succumbed to the darkness.

After some hesitation, she then followed his rather harsh words. But when Miriam tried to swallow so, her stomach was so weak that anything that came through simply went back up, and the food that was offered was regurgitated to the ground before her. Miriam set her head to the side, finding no use if she couldn't even eat, as it all would come back up.

Jackalope watched as the pitiful woman made an attempt to eat the small morsel of meat he'd offered her, but in the end, it simply came back up- relatively untouched. He groaned. He wondered if Aibreann knew any ways to help a wolf whose stomach was too weak to digest food, and what dawned upon him then was the fact that he knew his sister had experienced this before. So had Miriam, likely, considering the fact that she and Aibreann had something in common- they were both mothers. And while Jackalope had never raised children before, he found himself possessed by an idea that openly disgusted him, made him openly roll his eyes and cringe- but what else was there to do?

"You nap now. Bout a thirty minute nap, or whatever," He said, attempting to soothe her by brusing his muzzle over his shoulders but the gesture was devoid of empathy. He stepped toward the meal he'd brought, and began tearing it up into small bits, and he devoured them, feeling his own hunger satisfied at least for the time being. Then, with a soft sigh, he slumped down onto the floor beside her, resting his angular shoulders as gently as possible against hers. He could feel her bones beneath her skin, which made him frown. With a sigh, he began to stare off into space, content to simply stay there and wait- allowing his own stomach to do the work hers couldn't, dreading the task he knew he'd have to face once the food had settled enough.

She was in no condition to protest, nor' would she really. He was showing kindness that she somewhat longed for, as her daughter ignored her so, and while Caerus was someone got along with, he was still a child, and could not give companionship like another adult. Mal himself was busy with his own life, and she could not rely on him, not even desired to after coming solace how she felt upon him. Distance at the moment, was something to be preferred while quietly co-parenting.

She shuffled against him so, her head lowering while close to Jackalope. Slowly did her body ease into a motion of soundless sleeping, delicate to the touch and shifting in motions to gain the warmth that he provided. Internally she so missed it, as days went where she slept alone and cried herself to sleep-

it was a peaceful nap.

He wasn't sure how much time went by, but he made sure to wait until Miriam's breathing slowed to a gentle, repetitive pattern before he began to consider what he'd do next. He had no clue how long he was supposed to wait, given his lack of experience, and he also felt extremely uncomfortable even giving his idea a shot without seeing if Miriam was even willing to put in the effort and try to survive. He wondered if she'd be grossed out- but then again, she was a mother already- she'd cleaned up after ids long enough that she was probably used to seeing everything that went into and out of a wolf twice. 

So he pulled away from her side as discreetly as possible so he might not awaken her and paced quietly, trying to figure out how exactly he could prompt himself without having to physicall harm himself to the point where he'd vomit out of pain. Fortunately for him, instinct worked in his favour and he didn't have to ponder for long until his body figured it out. He probably looked like a slightly deranged housecat trying to cough a particularly difficult hairball for longer than he would've liked, but after a few failed attempts and a good amount of hiccupping motions, he vomited as quietly as he was able to, bringing back the meat he'd eaten not long ago though now, it was partially digested. 

"Grossssss," He hissed, before he looked to Miriam. He felt stupid, and ashamed of himself. If she refused, he'd have to bury it or something- there was no way he could clean it up now. This was ridiculous, and he felt extremely self-aware as he cleared his throat loudly. "Miriam." He said, somewhat gruffly. Was she going to judge him for treating her like a helpless child, pre-chewing and regurgitating her meals for her? "You can eat this. It's...Yeah. You know what it is," He said, and slumped to the ground. "But eat it." He insisted, turning his gaze away. Regurgitating food was gross enough- and he wasn't sure he could then sit and watch her gulp it down, if she even gave it a try.

Upon the noticement of warmth being absent she stirred a bit in the slumber, but remained in a peaceful rest. Only upon the slight enticement to wake up did she open her moonlit eyes, groggily looking at the blackthorn man. While his talking seemed a bit numbed in her weakened figure, not understanding the words, but she knew what he talked about on motioning toward the regurgitated food.

She was used to it since becoming a mother, needing to clean her children and get them prone to eating meat- it wasn't foreign. Though she will admit it was a bit odd needing to do so herself, but seeing as Jackalope turned away, she thought perhaps he was embarrassed on it. Not wanting to take his good will for granted- Miriam ate it.

And it stayed down.

Had there been much left in his stomach, he might have thrown up again as he heard Miriam begin eating what he'd digested for her, but fortunately, when he gagged, nothing else came up. He flattened his ears and stared away pointedly, forcing himself to remain there just to make sure his plan had worked and if it didn't, then he'd have to bury the slurry he'd vomited so it didn't attract other predators. 

Fortunately, his plan seemed to succeed- Miriam ate the pile of gross, reddish mess, and seemed to relax afterwards. He waited for some time- long enough for him to convince himself she wasn't going to throw it back up again- before he nodded and stood up. "Good. Now rest." He commented briskly, before he turned to give her as soft a look as his four, disgusted features could manage, before he stalked off. He could continue to provide for her in such a way- but he wouldn't go out of his way to do so. He'd mention his discovery to Aibreann, and leave the caring to his sister.