Echoing Past

[taza]

“Ugh…”
A sickening crunch sliced through the air, and the wolf sometimes known as Skullflame crashed to the ground. He could almost feel his bones crushing into powder as he forced himself over, onto his stomach, pushing to stand again. More than anything he wanted to fall down again, to stay down, not to keep on and on with this monotony…
“Right, I’ll do you for that,” Harrz snapped angrily, wiping the smear of blood from his cheek. It was infuriating to keep being battered around by this beast. Snarling angrily, the demon threw himself across the ground to snatch up his fallen sword. As his hand clasped onto the cool hilt, he felt the wolf’s dagger teeth ripping into his exposed side.
An unearthly scream shrieked from his lips, the pommel of his sword connecting sharply with the beast’s skull. Skullflame reeled back, half-stepping sideways in an almost drunken fashion, the world swirling around him. Desperately he sniffed at the air. It was almost familiar… In the momentary pause while Harrz lifted himself, drawing up to his full impressive human height, Skullflame tossed his head back proudly, letting his weakening feral growl burst forth into a high-noted howl, something like a plea for help before he slammed himself sideways, just missing the end of Harrz’s blade.

[Felypsa]

“Dad…?”

He was in the shadows, watching others live their lives, as he usually did, hidden from sight. But suddenly he heard a howl, high-pitched and more like a cry for help than anything he’d ever heard. Shade hesitated, unsure whether he should get involved; it sounded close to the borderlands of Shinkou Ookami, and he wasn’t quite sure he wanted to go there. But he ran anyway, chasing the sound. The sight that met his eyes was not one he’d expected to see in a long time—if ever. His father, Skullflame aka Skull, had disappeared when Shade was still a pup, and he hadn’t seen him since. Now here he was, quite clearly, and fighting a creature with a sword…a demon, maybe…Shade snapped out of his daze and rushed to his father’s aid.

As soon as he left the shade, he reverted back from his unseen phantom-form into a normal, quite homely, wolf. He leaped out at Harrz as if from nowhere, preparing to dig his claws into the Prince’s back.

[taza]

His hand was swinging down again when the young wolf hit him from behind. A grunt of shock escaped him as he stumbled, nearly dropping his sword while he struggled for balance again. Another of the creatures? His disgust shimmered across his face. With a violent shake of his shoulder, meant to dislodge the wolf from his back, Harrz started to whirl around, lifting his sword again.
For a moment Skullflame froze in shock as the familiar scent he registered as his child hit him full on. His foot slipped sideways, strength failing him as memories flooded him, hitting him as hard as the sudden sight of his Shade crashing against his enemy. A quick instinctive shake of his head, and he leapt forward again, sinking his own brutal fangs into the tough demonic flesh.
Harrz yelped in pain, assaulted from all sides and momentarily overwhelmed. In vain he tugged in both directions, sword arrested by the father, body weighed down by the son.
A determined gleam shone in Skull’s eyes, a low growl escaping him around the demon’s arm. “You’ve grown, little one…”

[Felypsa]

Shade was almost as surprised as Harrz when he landed on the demon prince. “Oof!” he gasped, momentarily losing grip. But he somehow managed to stay on the bucking Harrz, clinging with as much desperation as determination. Thankfully, the distraction was enough of one for Skull to make his attack, which rendered Harrz temporarily helpless. Shade mustered a very shaky grin at his father from his standpoint on Harrz’s back. “Thanks, Da. Wish I could say the same. You have been away for a while,” he added, as if Skull himself hadn’t been aware of the passage of time. Then his expression changed to awkwardness and discomfort. “Uh…d’you think we should knock him out? I’d try, but, um…you have the sword arm,” he pointed out, for all the world as if Harrz was off in his own world and not listening to a single word of the wolves’ exchange.

[taza]

In all honesty, Skullflame’s grip on the passage of time had been rather on the shaky side in recent history. Something like sadness passed through his eyes for a moment. He’d missed his babies growing up… The sadness was replaced by a vindictive flash and another snarl erupting from him. Not having a clear plan, he tugged sharply at the arm in his jaw, fangs ripping through the muscle and sinew in an attempt to disarm the Prince before any further attack.
Harrz shrieked hoarsely, and suddenly his arm gave way. A blackness flowed between the separated limb and the demon’s torso. The dark seeped quickly along the rest of the demon, dissolving him silently and pulling the shriek away with it. In moments Prince and sword were completely gone.
Skull sighed in relief, allowing his now scrawny legs to give out completely beneath them. His breath rattled hollowly against his prominent ribs, but something like a smile tugged toothily across his jaw at his son. “Thank you, by the way… I couldn’t have scared him off like that by myself. You’re very brave.”

[Felypsa]

Shade let out a gasp, partly shocked, partly horrified, as Harrz vanished with a screech of agony, and black blood stained the emerald grass blades. He collapsed unceremoniously to the ground, along with his father, although Shade was not as admittedly as worn out as Skull was—just a little overwhelmed. He flushed a little as his father gave praise, muttering, “Must’ve been beginner’s luck.” It had been, after all, Shade’s first real battle against a living, thrasing enemy, as opposed to simply a hunt, no matter how long and vigorous. “Is he…dead?” Shade inquired tentatively, a little worried. It seemed like a strange way to die, and he wasn’t entirely convinced they had seen the last of Harrz.

[taza]

“Dead?” A light laugh rumbled out of the older wolf, echoing carelessly against his shaky breath as he leaned over, nudging Shade at the base of his ear with a wet nose. It was a small affection; one Skull had inherited from his father Ignis for dealing with the young. Despite the obvious proof that his son was no longer a pup, Skull couldn’t help but see Shade as such. “No, he’s not dead. He’s back where he belongs, though, if only for the moment.” A panting smile parted his lips again as he continued to completely regain his battered breath. “Let’s hope your beginner’s luck hold up to your next encounter, eh?” Skull turned his face away for a moment, casting his now clouding eyes over the surrounding area. His breath returned at last calmly. The clean air, the lack of an enraged demon, and the presence of his son all had a soothing effect on him. At length he returned from his drifting thoughts to glance over his son again. “The others, how are they? And your mother?”

[Felypsa]

Shade, instead of being embarrassed by his father’s show of affection, merely grinned, choosing to momentarily forget about Harrz—after all, this was his father! Returned after so many years! “I actually haven’t been keeping track,” Shade admitted, with regard to his family. “I haven’t seen Melian or Byre or Ghoul in a while…Novawing’s mated, though, and she’s got twins! I’m an uncle to Zahevan and Zotagu.” His eyes danced at that; he still couldn’t quite get used to the fact that his sister had already become a mother. “And Echo’s mated, too, although she spends a lot of her time just singing, as usual. I haven’t seen much of her either…” his voice trailed off and his smile drooped a little. “And Mom…well, she disappeared for a little while after you left, but then she came back, and she wouldn’t tell any of us where she’d gone. Now she just sort of sits by herself.” He sighed a little sadly. “We’re all separated, and loners, except for Nova. I’ve gone here and there, experimenting with my powers and all…” Suddenly he looked as if he’d said too much, regarding his own powers, and stared at the ground, feeling oddly inadequate.

[taza]

While his son began, Skull had attempted to push himself to his feet again, but hearing that Nova now had pups of her own hit him hard enough to crumple him again. Jaw hanging slack in an almost comical way, he listened to the rest of Shade’s little synopsis of the life he’d missed almost without understanding a word. When the young one’s voice faded off Skull shook himself properly into thinking again. The little family he’d so suddenly abandoned; what had become of it? The pups all grown and gone their separate ways, his beloved mate alone without him or their children… Skull sneezed violently, almost angry at himself. It couldn’t all be his fault; he wasn’t vain enough to think it. But his absence couldn’t have helped. Quietly he looked back over at his son. His eyes slid back into focus and he smiled understandingly at his son. “Will you walk with me?”

Not that he could stand up properly…

(( ooc:: Help me here. What’s the mother’s name? I’m drawing a complete blank… although, I drew a blank on Skull’s name too until you reminded me… x.x;; ))

[Felypsa]

oOc| ^_^ Spec. Short for Speciosity. “Deceptively attractive.” No worries. You’ve been gone awhile. I must admit I’d completely forgotten about Ignis and Bombihi. And whatever other random characters you had.

Shade looked up and examined his father curiously. He seemed a little out of sorts, to say the least, and he had trouble walking. Shade frowned at Skull’s proposal. “Walk back? Da, you can barely stand. Are you sure?” Shade was ashamed to say he wouldn’t be much support if Skull needed it; physical strength was never an attribute Shade was graced with. “Where’ve you been, anyhow?” Shade asked as he watched his father concernedly, his initial curiosity returning.

[taza]

“I’ll be fine.” Skullflame’s eyes narrowed slightly, daring his son to say otherwise. Clearly another trait inherited from his father; a proud streak pulsed through his veins. Slowly, calmly, he pushed himself up to his feet again. He was no longer a majestic wolf, by any means, but there was still an inherent grace in his bearing. Taking a hesitant step forward, his ears pressed flat against his skull now as if in focus, he pondered the question of where he’d been. “I… I’ve been away. With the old friend you just helped me be rid of.” His legs shook a little as he took his next step, but his resolve didn’t waver for a moment. “Nothing too exciting.” An almost cough, and the subject was closed, as far as Skull was concerned. He took another step, not sure of where he was going. Casting a glance over his son, he asked quietly, “Tell me about yourself. I feel as if I hardly know you now…”

[Felypsa]

Shade trudged slowly besides his father, matching his gradual pace. “Oh, I, uh…” he stumbled, unsure what to say. He hardly knew himself! In fact, it was as if there were two Shades that existed: himself, and the phantom-form in the shadows. “Well…there’s not much to say…” It was hard to gracefully bring up the subject of his second self. “I sort of…discovered something about myself. When it’s dark, I’m…different,” he finished lamely. This conversation was slightly uncomfortable, since Shade didn’t have much experience in talking with someone else, least of all his father.

[taza]

One ear flickered up for a moment with interest. Skull shot a glance at his son before focusing on forward motion again. Clearly he didn’t want to push his son to say anything he didn’t feel like discussing. On the other hand, this was his son, still a pup in his mind, who should be taken care of and protected. It was horrible to think that he couldn’t help his child with something. But he wasn’t going to pry. He was going to be a good parent and let his child decide whether he wanted to discuss more.

“How do you mean?” One step in front of the other. Heck, he’d been a horrible father up until this point; why start doing well now?

[Felypsa]

“Well, er…” He couldn’t take it back now; it was out in the open already. “I turn all dark and stuff, so it’s almost impossible to see me, and I can…” He hesitated again, then whispered morosely, “I can walk through solid objects.” There. He’d said it. Would Skull think him a freak, for possessing such a demonic power? Would he regard his son with anxiety? Would he (gods forbid) tell his mother, Spec? She was unaware (whether blissfully or not) of Shade’s developed ability. In fact, no one in the family knew, except Echo—but it’s impossible to keep something like that from her. And now Skull knew. What would happen?

[taza]

“Very good,” Skull nodded easily. If that was all, he’d breathe more easily and not push his son. A little smile tugged at his lips, an approving glance now roving his son’s face as it became easier to walk. He was almost proud, really. Then again, he was proud simply to have children at all. Slowly he picked up the pace a little, nodding his head as he began moving at a normal walking pace. “And you’ve some amount of control over it, I assume? You haven’t told your mother, have you?” Somehow, he felt his dear Spec would worry about it much more than he was.