So engrossed was he in his self pity, he failed to notice the blind wolf's approach. He flinched, his hackles raising instinctively. As the form of the grey female came into view, he relaxed, feeling suddenly ashamed of his unconscious reactions. "Sorry, Hotaru, I didn't mean to disturb you." He walked down the steps of the porch and began gathering shards of bone into his hand. He swallowed hard against the lump rising in his throat as shard after shard of skull were gathered into his palms.
His hands began trembling as his eyes focused on the nearby rose bushes he had planted for her. Shawchert had brought her flowers that wilted and died soon after being gifted. The pale scholar had instead planted rose bushes so she could enjoy the beauty of the rose as it budded and bloomed. He had thought he'd been clever to notice that about her, the blue eyed beauty he'd fallen for. Heartache gripped him tightly, turning his every breath into a tortured gasp of emotional hurt. He let the shards fall as he clenched his fists tightly, trying to combat the waves of angst that rushed him.
"Sorry, I'm not myself, Hotaru. I've had some news that... has left me unsettled." His voice was anguished and ragged, though it didn't hold the deep grief it had after Tameri's murder. Instead it held betrayal and disbelief. He began to mechanically pick up the skull shards, his hands continuing to tremble, his throat working spasmodically as he swallowed down the whimpers that wanted to escape his maw.
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