Death - February 24th meeting

[Morgan]

Morgan knew this day was coming and he felt about as ready as he could. He sat deep in the middle of a field of flowers right at the edge of territory, the beautiful plants swaying in a breeze he himself created.

The samoyed placed his two bracers on the ground, leaving a note attached which read,

"For Crow. You'll be able to find me when you're ready, and when you do, we'll not have to be apart again."

Next to them he dropped his satchel, which also contained a note:

"For Beck. I'm right here with you for as long as there's even a single drop water left in any world, near or far."

The General stomped hard on ground next, raising a circular platform of ice to rest on and wrapping flowers around it in spirals. He cleared his throat as he took in some nice warm sunlight, letting out some small flames with a smile.

...

"I'll start this meeting with an apology, guys. I'm sorry I've been gone. I've been... focused on some things recently that've been clouding my head for a little while now. I spent a bit of time meditating on those things with a certain Tangler, and I've come to an actual decision now. You're all going to be getting a new leader today, and that leader is Crow."

The cream canine took a long breath, pausing to let everything sink in and letting the warm of the sun soothe his nerves.

"I need to go and look for my Vigenere. It's been almost a year now since my life first began, and through this time I found that what I needed was love -- love like his."

He felt himself blush, though with his fur he simply appeared to adopt a more relaxed expression.

"I don't mean I don't love you all as my family. I just mean I think he deserves company as much as the rest of us, because I've got a feeling he isn't going to find his sister anytime soon."

Flowers upon flowers began to bloom in what few bare spots were left in the field, covering it in their vibrant colors.

"I wouldn't recommend coming to find me. Once I leave, I won't be returning for a long, long time. My partner and I still have a lot of life left to live together."

The samoyed sniffled, wishing he could cry proper tears but instead only getting a brief whiff of the sweet aroma from the crown of flowers he wore upon his head.

"And besides, I'm never really going to be gone. I've still got lots of memories of you guys, and I think I've left a little mark on Tanglewood in the time I've had here. Just know that whether it's on the road, in the stars, in the middle of the sea, or in the Abyss itself, we'll all meet again someday. We'll always be a family."

The dog had to take some deep breaths to compose himself before speaking again.

"I think that's about as good of an speech as I can give. I'll miss all of you more than I can even describe, but I'm sure things can only get better as life goes on. At least, that's what I've learned over this year."

As he spoke, he stepped down from the platform as it lowered to the ground, replacing the bare ground with pink petals once it disappeared.

"For as many hardships and as much pain as we all have to go through, there're just as many joys and just as much pleasure to be found out in the world. It's just a matter of taking that first step."

Morgan parted the crowd as he walked out of territory, staring up into the calm blue sky and wagging his tail harder than ever before.

❤

[arrow]

[glow=black,1,400]I GRIEVE IN STEREO, THE STEREO SOUNDS STRANGE ! — ｡+ﾟ.[/glow]

"Have fun."

How did she feel about this? Well...Arrow felt nothing. Not a single emotion crossed her path as Morgan made his speech and walked off, at least looking more alive than he had been, prancing off into the sunset like nothing had ever fucking happened within this span of time. That was it. He was gone and Tanglewood would be passing on leadership to someone else, a good ol' retirement ceremony for everyone to enjoy. She liked Morgan, she looked up to him, she did. She would be sad to see him go, and she was. But over time, over the short lifetime of festering unresolved stress and anger, she was slowly losing a grasp on tangible emotion and was more or less bitter and stagnant by the time this event finally took place.

She wished him the best.

Now onto more important matters, right. She had someone new to keep a leash on. Crow was now her superior, and it would be weird to see. She wasn't jealous or anything, she was no leader. But she'd be damned if she had to endure one more Bossman losing his absolute shit and launching headfirst into a dark depression. But she also liked Crow. Emo dad would be fine.

And that was it. She left. The sun and the flowers were not meant for her.

[toboggan]

Morgan.

The guy changed him, honestly. There was just some pizzazz to the samoyed’s floofy coat, a certain splash to his walk, a zing to his both upbeat and realistic tone to life. Whatever the aptitude was, it absolutely enthralled Leroy - perhaps, not on the surface-level, but rooted far down in the guardsman’s subconscious. The moxie present within Morgan ushered a new sense of confidence into the mongrel’s bloodstream, allowing him to think ”hey, maybe everything won’t go to shit?”. To keep matters simple, Morgan made the pessimistic nihilist realize that everything is alright.

"Later, boss,", he’d convey as the pooch passed by for what may very well be the final time.

Today marked the second time in his vapid life that Tanglewood reformed its leading position. He’d be sad to see the fluffy man move on, but Leroy completely understood where fellow was coming from. When Ophelia seemingly diminished from existence, intense sensations of heartache drowned what little logic he even had - he had to look, search, desperately comb every square inch of the Earth to find her; in the end, however, he did not. His relationship with the female only spanned for a little less than month. Morgan was partnered with Vigenere for maybe six-times the amount of that. Thus, Morgan’s commitment to locating his significant other was reasonable.

Out of the apex of his piercing gaze, the faint ivory movements of Morgan’s figure lingered. And then, they were no more.

The guy would be missed, for sure. With hope, Morgan would return to the home he devoted so much time to, as the prior chieftain of Tanglewood had. Even if it took him a year or three.

Not to dwell on that, though. One can’t witness the beginning of a fresh era while moping about the last.

”Come outta your hole, Crow!”, he’d demand genially, ”Enlighten us with your wisdom!”

The shoes that Crow werr supposed to fill are nothing short of gargantuan. Possibly, aided by a little bit of guidance from the more experienced, the unstable feline had the potential to be moulded into a gifted individual of authority.

[Crow Roux]

[align=center]action — "speech" — thoughts

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Emotions weren't an object to toss about without care. They were an opening, a window, and Crow took careful measures to ensure his would not be treated as such. He expressed joy and fear and rage, but no one really knew him deep down except those that he decided were close. Soli, Marlon, Ben, Pastel and Selby, and Morgan, those were all ones he clutched near to his heart, those he let in to the clockwork of his brain.

Nothing felt real. Morgan stood before him, then as quickly as he arrived, he slipped through Crow's fingers. Just like all the others. His eyes blinked with disbelief in the harsh sunlight that beat down on his figure too long adjusted to slinking through the shadows of the forest. A face of stability for the feline gone in just a tick. It was cruel.

Did I mean anything to you?

He would rush forward, petals flying in his wake, but something caused him to freeze. He wanted to chase after the samoyed, but he knew his efforts would be fruitless. Morgan's destiny lied elsewhere, not here, in Tanglewood, with him, with all of them, and as he gaped after the retreating wagging tail of his former companion, he felt a tear roll down his cheek. Crow was helpless.

Stop crying. That's weak.

Tanglewood needed him, but for now, he mourned in utter silence, clutching Morgan's last gift to him in his shaky paws as his gaze pierced into the horizon searching for any last glimpse of the canine. He was gone. He was really gone.

- ★ -