Back So Soon

((Continued from: https://incendio.rpg-board.net/t110p30-altogether-now#1923 ))

Coven walked beside Molly as she led the way to where Laek's stillborn pup would be buried. While he would have probably picked a secluded, though rather random, spot as a grave site, the healer seemed to have a specific place in mind. It was a longer walk than Coven would have expected, but perhaps that was emphasized because of the solemnity and silence of the walk. He couldn't bring himself to say anything, just walk near Molly and let her lean on him if she needed. There wasn't much else he could really do for her; it was a fact that the wolfess just needed time to get over things, and this one might take a while. It wasn't her fault that the pup had died, just as much as it wasn't Laek's fault, and Molly would understand that, hopefully, one day. But for now, Coven just let her grieve for whatever it was she needed to grieve for, let her sort it out in her mind first. With words, he just wouldn't be able to do the situation justice, so he didn't use them.

Molly walked silently to the graveyard, although with the tiny pup in her mouth it was not possible for her to speak. It seemed like forever before they reached a small, blooming tree near the center of the graveyard. She slowly came ot a stop, depositing the pup against the trunk and looking over at Coven. "We can dig here." She said softly, her voice full of misery as she thought about Laek's loss, Cas's loss, and her own inability to do anything to change any of it. Instead of talking again, for fear of breaking down, she started to dig, getting her pure white paws dirty in order to lay the pup to rest.

The black male just nodded and silently moved in to help Molly dig. It was not long at all, with both wolves digging, until a sizable hole was completed. It was way too big for it's purpose, but digging had been a nice relief and way to refocus energy. Straightening up and backing off from the hole, Coven announced, "I think it's time, now." He moved over to Molly and brushed his tail against her side, keeping his eyes on the small form of the pup. Again, he felt that even though it was a miserable job to Molly, she was the one who should lay the pup to rest. The wolf looked down at her a little uncertainly, not sure if she was planning on saying anything after this was done, and not sure if he should if Molly didn't. They didn't actually know the little pack member or anything, but it felt like he was a part of the family anyway.

Molly dug in silence, for once not minding that Coven didn't speak. There was no need for communication, they both knew what was going through the others' head. When he finally stopped and broke the silence, Molly found herself flinching slightly at the sudden sound of his voice. But she looked up at him, staring for a few moments before blinking and nodding slowly. She knew that he wasn't going to pick up the pup and lay him to rest, so she walked slowly over to him and licked his tiny face. Then she picked him up and gingerly depositing him in the hole they had dug for him. She didn't have anything to say, nor would she be able to speak right now anyways. Instead she found herself pinning her ears back and closing her eyes, turning away from the tiny, lifeless form in the hole, suddenly unable to look at him.

Coven began immediately digging into the mound of dirt piled up, throwing it onto the pup's body while Molly turned away. He wasn't sure he'd ever understand how the healer could be so vulnerable to such huge emotional expenditures toward...everything, but finally he had decided that it probably worked out well anyway that he couldn't understand it or participate fully with her, since it meant that he could deal with those things when Molly couldn't. That backfired, of course, when Coven was on one of those rare occasions - only once so far - also in such a state, but that wasn't expected to happen again soon.

Once he had finished burying the pup, the black wolf looked down at the dark earth mound for a second somberly and then made his way to Molly, nosing her shoulder silently in an invitation for her to chose what to do next. Perhaps it would be better for them to get going now. Molly could hardly function, and if the warrior didn't know Laek's tough hunter personality and how it contrasted with Molly's supremely sensitive one, he would have been scared for the state of the mother.

Molly was grateful that Coven took care of burying the pup, and when he approached her and nudged her, she nuzzled against him as if his scent and feel could take away the sadness. She just wanted to get away from here. She wanted to speak, but she found that she couldn't manage words, so she decided to just walk instead. Focus on putting one foot in front of the other. Then she'd deal with whatever came next. She knew that Coven would likely follow, and she found herself brushing up against him purposely from time to time as if to draw strength from his large black form. She was headed towards the Moolight Meadow now, hoping that the peace and beauty of the dark meadow would help her to accept what had happened, and if not that, then the stars.

((Continued here: https://incendio.rpg-board.net/t113-dealing-with-two-m-s ))