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[roan ;]

Thinking about the meteor strike was difficult for Roan, aside from the myriad of usual reasons that made most not want to speak or remember it. Yes, the chaos and destruction it had wrought obviously made his skin crawl, particularly when he thought about the broken down and rotted remains of many a hut that had been destroyed in the aftermath, entire houses and histories leveled. Beyond that, however, the young siamese had felt a massive weight settle on his back after the incident, dragging his wings downward towards the earth and weighing down his entire small – although not so small anymore, really – body. Not only had he been saddled with the massive responsibility of treating most everyone's injuries after the catastrophe, but he had also lost a not inconsiderable amount of his family from it, as well. He had thought, at first, that he would at least be able to hold himself together for the good of the group. After all, he hadn't been the only sage working hard to ensure the health of the group. Unfortunately, this hadn't been the case for long, as Ahab had also disappeared as the dust settled, and Roan was left alone, with yet another member of his family gone. After that, the young male had become used to a schedule that involved slinking forth from his home, interacting with few and only seeing others in order to treat their injuries or check on their mental health. Meanwhile, his own mental health had been on a steady downward spiral, eventually leading to him becoming a practical hermit within his home, despite the best efforts of his mother. All because he had so much to worry about, along with so much less to cling to.

Over the last couple of weeks, the sage had been steadily breaking himself of his reclusive habits, having moved from his old family home and begun getting out more often. Things had calmed down quite a bit with the reconstruction efforts in full swing, and he had even gotten some of his family back in the form of Jaime's eventual return. However, there were still bad days, naturally. Days when he couldn't look at the patched up buildings without thinking of fire raining down from the sky, and his heart roaring in his ears as he flew high above, desperately searching for anyone he needed to help. Days where he couldn't help but feel like a failure, because he had not only lost a brother in the panic, but a sister as well. Unlike Jaime, Eulia had not yet returned, and as days turned to weeks and weeks approached months, Roan felt more guilt seeping into his veins than ever, threatening to poison his blood and choke him from the inside out. He knew he should've been able to be there for her. Should've been able to hide her away from everything that was going on. He was her big brother, for gods' sake. Wasn't that the entire idea of what big brothers were supposed to do? He had thought he was doing a fairly good job of it, up until all of this had happened. Now he couldn't feel any farther from doing anything right.

The lanky medic had been having one of these bad days when the time finally came for Eulia to return, and it was a good thing that Roan hadn't gone with his first instinct that morning, and just stayed in bed. It was still difficult to make his way through the main town, his steps slow and heavy as he kept his blue gaze focused down on his paws. He wasn't sure he could meet the gaze of anyone, or bear looking at the patched up buildings. His chest grew tight as he heard the sounds of jovial cheering from the tavern, and he once again found himself pondering if he'd be able to get away with having a drink. However, these thoughts were stripped away, and the sage was left bare when a certain scent reached his nose, causing him to freeze. Jaws cracking open minutely, the siamese lifted his head, his gaze darting around until it fell upon none other than Eulia, accompanied by Jaime. A near breathless gasp left him, and he scrabbled across the rocks and sands, coming to a skidding halt by Jaime's side. He stared down at his little sister for a moment, his breath simply shuddering with shock, before he stepped forward, touching his green nose to the top of her head. He muttered softly, his voice shaking in tandem with his breathing, "Lu... Eulia. You're back, and you're safe. I thought... I wasn't sure where you had gone. I wasn't sure if you were..." He didn't dare finish that thought, instead just circling around her slowly, asking with concern, "You look hurt... are you alright? I've got my herbs with me. I can patch you up..." It was a sort of cruel irony, having his position as sage bring him so much grief, yet also be one of the only things that enabled him to truly help his family.

[glow=#D15540,1,000]" stay by my side, high or low tide " ♡[/glow]