Tales of a Shifter (P5) The White Mountain

Chapter 10 - So It Must Be

Chapter 10 – So It Must Be

And so another week passed by.... but nothing really changed with Brandon's situation.

Ove the course of the week Brandon had spent time either sequestered alone in his room....or actively out of his room participating in various repairs to the Leopards Mansion. Feeling responsible for the attack Brandon threw most of his energy into scrubbing away blood, plastering and paining across the holes ripped into the walls by claws.

He also helped Glen, Erin, Nate and Drin moves in new furniture that the other Leopards in the Clan carved for Mantilo. Brandon liked the work, mostly because it was distraction, but soon there was nothing left to fix and he once more had to face reality.

But....he wouldn't.

In the morning Brandon took his food back to his room in fear that he would encounter Ezekiel at the breakfast table, and whenever Ezekiel walked near him or past him Brandon developed the habit of completely ignoring him. And...Ezekiel did the same.

Their behavior towards each other was awkward and far from graceful and on more than one occasion Brandon had caught Ezekiel's brothers and cousins cringing or even down right laughing out loud (Lander). But Brandon was glad to face that embarrassment versus the emotional whiplash from thinking of talking to Ezekiel upfront.

So...It was now two whole weeks since Hovel and Jacob had attacked and still Brandon and Ezekiel remained apart. Brandon felt like he was in limbo, unable to move forwards or backwards. Knowing that Ezekiel would be out patrolling for many long hours to come Brandon had decided to come out of his room, and settle down in the newly furnished living room of the mansion to think. The large room was empty and silent....leaving Brandon to do all the pacing and muttering he could muster. Until he was exhausted by his own emotions. Never before had he felt so much in one period of time.

Even after seemingly coming to a decision to turn away from Ezekiel Brandon found himself constantly waffling around.

Even after speaking with Walter Brandon wasn't able to truly come to any type of decision.

Should he turn Ezekiel away? Yes.

Did he want Ezekiel to walk out of his life forever? No.

Brandon told himself that he and Ezekiel couldn't be together. But was it cowardice? OR was it simply the truth?

Suddenly Brandon put his hands to his face, screamed and then Brandon fell backwards. Landing in a dejected slump in a cushy arm chair, with his head resting back and his tired eyes trained on the distant ceiling....

Brandon had been sleeping poorly the last few days. He felt a dark cloud on his mind. A cloud that often signaled that he was in for another nightmare. So Brandon had slept light, often only grabbing a handful of minutes at a time, before awakening once more.

"Just...a few minutes..." Brandon now sighed as his eyes seemed to magnetize shut against his will. In seconds lethargy made him numb to his own swirling thoughts.

But even as he escaped some of the emotional baggage....he ran head long into other types of problems and thoughts.

Images flashed across his mind. Sensations traced his spine.

Jacobs's chest cavity broken and bursting all over him, spraying his face and skin with gore and flesh.

To destroy. To flush his system with strength and power....

Brandon could feel a ghost of the Flames willingness to be turned lose on Jacob. He could still remember the seamless way he had wielded the power and shot it into Jacobs core. The utter need he'd felt to go wild. To kill. Not to feed. But simply to be unleased. To rampage.