I Seek, and Yet my Eyes are Shut [tagged]

[Meds]

Tiel

Rayen;

Their daughters were well-looked after; still asleep and under the eye of a watchful packmate. Only when they were safe was Rayen able to truly focus on what was to come. She and Leo had travelled long, though perhaps not so long—to arrive at their destination. She had only heard whispers of this place before. As they had approached, the sun had began to lighten the distant sky... and yet, when they passed under the shadows of curious and unknown trees, time almost seemed to slow. Indeed, almost move backwards. The more they had moved into this strange and quiet place, the darker it had become, until finally the light seemed frozen somewhere between twilight and dusk. The sky above was half-hidden by the strange trees, but above it a deep blue sky shone with winking stars that seemed to disappear if looked at straight on.
The Ethereal Realm.

Rayen shivered and pressed closer to Leo, her shoulder aching from the journey but easy to ignore. They were fast approaching the Pool of Time, as well as the chance at answers to her love’s past. For as long as she had known him he had not known himself... and now, ah now... Now the time was nigh... She did not want to know, and yet she did. Somehow the confusion and fear of the moment was dampened however—be it by the strange new surroundings, or by the strength of her love for her mate, Rayen didn’t know...
But they were there. And it was time.

[Tiel]

Leo:

His entire life, Leo had been walking by Rayen’s side in the Ethereal Realm. At least it felt that way. He remembered the distant dream that was Tranquil Meadows and the mountains and the plains and his den. But here in the fog, it seemed that this single frame of time was everything. There was no way of knowing if they had been here for five minutes or five hours. Did it even matter? Was time relevant here?

Leo took a deep breath. He remembered Rayen’s comforting presence. They were here to find the Pool of Time. They were here to dig up his past. He thought of the old legend — the living could contact the dead… but there was something else, too. A catch. What was it? Only a wolf with a pure heart? That was right. Contact with the intended spirit wasn’t guaranteed. They had to be certain their souls were free of darkness and corruption. Power, would Leo be able to pass the test?

Something caught his eye just then that distracted him from his thoughts. A glint of water. The pool. It had to be. He turned his face toward Rayen, certain his readiness would show in his expression. It was time. He stalked toward the calm water, all the while making sure he did not leave Rayen’s side. If he hadn’t been paying extra attention to what lie directly in front of him, he might’ve walked straight into the pool, gotten his front paws wet. The water was so still, it looked like you could stride right across and still remain dry. It was unnatural. It was otherworldly. It was magic.

“Only the pure of heart,” he said suddenly to Rayen. What if it didn’t work? What if Leo was too crooked deep down? He had been evil once, he was the offspring of it. Maybe they’d return home by the end of the night without having gained any knowledge of his dark history. Well, there was only one way to find out.

[Meds]

Rayen;

Though she didn't remember approaching it, suddenly Rayen was gazing into the gentle, cooling waters of a pool. It was small, and yet large to look at. It didn't cover much ground physically, but Rayen got the sense that if she jumped into it (which she found herself wanting to do, for some reason), she could swim and swim forever and not touch the other side. So it was that she both felt curious and cautious. One did not jump into a lake that had a bank so far it was out of sight. This pool was but a pool—but Rayen couldn't shake the feeling that if she were to leap in, it might be a time before she got out again...

Leo turned to look at her, and she felt her heart soften, and the pain in her shoulder from having walked so far relax. He was such a gentle, warm, loving soul. She ached for him in that moment. Perhaps it was the locale, perhaps it was the situation; Rayen didn't know, but she was so in love with him in that moment. Her Leo...
"Only the pure of heart," He murmured to her. He was nervous, she could both see it and smell it on him. But then, as a proper mate should, she leaned against him, offering silent encouragement.

Rayen was not good with words. But Leo knew this, and more than that, he knew what she meant beyond her silence.
"Go," She whispered, breaking the contact between them and walking so close as to sit at the banks. It was not a deep pool, but Rayen didn't want the water to touch her claws, for some reason...
She turned and gave Leo an encouraging smile.

[Tiel]

Leo:

Rayen leaned into him — a silent assurance. They knew each other well enough that many of Leo and his mate’s interactions were unspoken ones, smiles and nods and brushings against each other’s fur. Rayen always said it was because she wasn't very good with words. That was partially true, but Leo liked to think it was because they had sort of invented their own language, a language of gestures, a language of love and intimacy, one that no one could speak but them. And anyway, Leo wasn't a master conversationalist himself. Gestures were better. And this particular case was no exception. It might’ve seemed small to another wolf, but for Leo it was just enough to still his beating heart. Perhaps boldness would help the matter. Perhaps he was more likely to connect to a spirit if he was sure of himself.

Rayen urged him forward, then left his side and approached the still waters. Sheepishly, he followed after her. The fog around them — it was everywhere in the Ethereal Realm, and it made the air buzz with magic, like the hum of a bee or a lullaby — was the only thing the smooth, watery surface reflected in the dark, so it looked like empty space, like if Leo kept walking straight he’d just fall into mist and shadow instead of a shallow pool. Was it shallow? How deep was the Pool of Time? If he waded in, would his paws touch the bottom? He didn’t really want to find out.

Except… though he couldn't explain what it was… there was something tugging at him to step into the pool instead of just standing by the edge of it, in spite of his anxiety. Would that be disrespectful to such a pure, sacred place? Part of him feared that if he touched the water then something he didn’t want to happen would happen… but oddly enough… it felt right.

Well, Leo trusted his instincts for the most part.
Carefully, he lifted his paw, and for some reason, he was surprised when it was mirrored in the waters. Leo leaned over the edge and peered at his own face. He saw the scar on the top of his head, a mark of what he had lost and, hopefully, what he would gain back tonight. He dipped his paw in the pool, then yanked it back at how icy the water was. Leo watched thin rings ripple over the entirety of the Pool of Time as a result of that single disturbance. It was so quiet in the Ethereal Realm he thought he could almost hear the tiny waves move across the surface.
His presence was now announced.

Leo swallowed once, then dipped his paw back in and pushed it all the way to the bottom where it found, shockingly, gravel. Just like the gravel in Kai Lake. Leo eyed the pool, its chilly water now in familiar, natural motion from his disruption, and had a terrible thought: Maybe this was just an ordinary pool of water in an extraordinary location. He quickly pushed that thought aside. If there was one thing he and Rayen needed right now, it was magic.

Leo put his second paw in the water, then his third, then his fourth. He stood there, feet wet, until the waters stilled for the most part. He had expected something. Perhaps to feel closer to his past or to Arcturus or even his inner demons. But at the moment he really just felt… wet. He supposed he’d feel different once he called on his father. Before he proceeded, he stole a glance back at his mate sitting behind him, and nodded. So far so good.

Finally, he turned his gaze down into his own eyes staring back at him from the inky shallows, green and wide with awe. To his surprise, he didn’t find fear in them. Leo checked himself. No, he realized, maybe it was something about the pool, because he was not afraid. Not like he had been before, about his family and his old family and the inner evil that was surely lurking in him. It occurred to him that his reflection didn’t look evil at all. He looked like any average, mild-mannered pack wolf, perhaps with a few scars on his head, but still ordinary. His eyes held no hate or violence. Only peace, and maybe a little weariness, too.

Perhaps this image of him was the most accurate reflection of who he was, both outside and in. He may have been an awful wolf once, but now, today, in this moment, he was a father and a mate and a pack-member, and he was good. Power, he was a good wolf.

Leo took a deep breath. He felt at ease. And he had a funny notion that if he went to sleep now, he wouldn’t have any nightmares like the ones he had been having.

But it wasn't time for sleep now.

“Arcturus,” he said, voice steady. He couldn't forget Rayen’s presence behind him, supporting him. She was his bones. “I summon the spirit Arcturus, my father.”

[Meds]

Rayen;

Leo moved towards the water painstakingly. Rayen watched him, her brown eyes wide but patient. The green of her fur was dark, and with the strange twilight that had settled over them, she appeared almost black—save for all of her white detailing, of course. She nodded as Leo moved past her and put a paw into the water. Quickly though, he yanked it back with such force that Rayen feared he had hurt himself. She made a move as if to draw closer to him, but stopped herself when she realized that it was all part of it.
Leo seemed to realize as well, and moved into the water gingerly. Rayen felt herself pull back every so slightly as the ripples from Leo spread across the pool. No, she was sure now—she had no interest in being touched by that water. She had no fear of it, exactly, but somehow she knew that since Leo was touching it, for her to touch it at the same time would be folly. Rayen trusted her instincts—they had saved her more than once.

Leo's voice then rang out of the mist—though it was strangely muted at the same time. Rayen held her breath, and lifted her eyes to the heavens above the pool. Nothing happened at first. Just the slight trickling of the water pressing past the banks as Leo moved again—but, wait. Leo wasn't moving. Rayen's eyes quickly lifted from the banks to her mate. He was not moving; however, the ripples had begun to spread out from him again. At first they were just that, but soon after they had turned into sizable waves for such a small pond. Rayen flinched, but found that though the waves were building—splashing against Leo's own coat and rocketing across the surface of the water—they were not breaching the banks. No, indeed, the banks were just as dry as they had been moments before.

The air was suddenly thicker with mist—though it was not darker. If anything, it was actually brighter. But where was that light coming from? The sky still reflected the strange fae twilight. Then Rayen, looking forward, realized that the light was pouring out of a particularly dense patch of mist just in front of Leo. If she squinted, she could dampen the light just enough to make out the form of a large wolf...